Romans 12:9-21 - What It Means to Be Us
Romans 12:9 Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; 10love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. 11Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. 13Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers. 14Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. 17Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. 18If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20No, “if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.” 21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
About Romans: Paul’s letters are the oldest Christian documents that we have. The earliest, probably 1 & 2 Thessalonians, were written within 25 years of Jesus’ death. Romans was the last letter/book that Paul wrote. It may have been written before any of the Gospels. Romans was written to pave the way for Paul to visit the church in Rome, a church he had never visited, but whose help he needed to complete the work he longed to do in the western Mediterranean. Most scholars believe that Paul was put in prison and died outside of Rome. Romans is the most fully developed and densely theological of all of Paul’s work. In it we see the Jewish roots of Christianity and the powerful grace of God that washes over all of human life and, alone, leads to salvation.
Background to Today’s Lesson: In the first 8 verses of Romans 12 Paul moves from a long doctrinal argument to a passionate urging toward Christian duty. For Paul, all behavior flows from belief. Right belief must, by necessity, result in a specific, observable, lifestyle. He proceeds in these verses to make the case for that distinctive way of living and to urge people to develop deep character and to hold on in times of difficulty. He reminds us that we are to be living sacrifices and to live holy lives. In today’s verses he offers a loose list of exhortations intended to help expand our understanding of what it means to live a holy life.
What does Paul mean by “Love”? Almost exclusively in his writing Paul uses the Greek word for love, Agape. In many ways, he specializes that word and redefines it for Christians. Agape is not affection. Nor is it passion. Agape is self-giving love that takes action on behalf of others. It is the active seeking of the good of others regardless of their behavior or our personal feelings of the moment. This kind of love is made possible for disciples because we have first received it from God and so can be infused with agape by the Spirit. In these verses, Paul helps us see how God’s amazing active love for us translates into the ways that we treat/love each other in the Christian community.
Word Study
Vs. 9 – genuine – The word here is the word for un-hypocritical, not counterfeit or showy. Paul recognizes that it is possible for people to pretend (even to ourselves) that we love those that we, in fact, do not work for the good of at all. John Calvin wrote: “It is difficult to express how ingenious almost all men (sic) are in counterfeiting a love which they do not really possess. They deceive not only others, but also themselves, while they persuade themselves that they have a true love for those whom they not only treat with neglect, but also in fact reject.”
VS. 10 – mutual affection – This verse would literally be translated ‘With kindred love toward one another, love dearly.’ Paul uses another Greek word for love here: philadelphia. This word refers to the warm affection found in families or close friendships. Paul wants us to see that for Christians, fellow believers are their true family.
Honor – give a place or prominence in our lives. Paul is saying that because, as believers, Christ’s dwells in us, we are to treat each other with respect for that reason alone and to place each others needs on a par with the needs of Christ.
Vs. 11 – zeal – this Greek word is used of water that is boiling or metal which is glowing red-hot. That kind of energy and passion is to characterize our service to God and others.
Vs. 12 – hope – Christian hope is not wishful thinking. Hope is a deep assurance that all will be well, somehow, someway, someday. It is the deep well of calm assurance that God is at work bending the world toward goodness and redemption. It is the courage that comes from knowing that nothing is ever really final, that all will in time be made new.
Suffering – This is the word often translated as tribulation. It refers to the crushing pressure of life. It refers both to normal circumstances of trial, and especially to the suffering that comes from living in an unbelieving world according to the radical values of Christ. Paul sees this kind of suffering as having a saving effect, just as Jesus’ suffering on the cross had a saving effect. He believes that it is through standing on our beliefs and values and paying the price for that, along with enduring personal struggle, that we enter into the kingdom of God.
Vs. 13 – contribute – For Paul all giving is mission giving and it is essential for both spiritual growth and development of Christian character.
hospitality – This is an ancient command of God’s people. Christian hospitality means ‘creating a safe space for others to become all that God has dreamed for them to be.’ The ancient ones believed that God often came in disguise as a stranger in order to test humans to see if they really loved or not.
Vs. 14 – Here again is the hard concept of loving those who hurt us. Not only are we to reject hurting in return, we are to actively work for the betterment of those who persecute us. This is a clear example of the mind reversal that Paul insists must take place when one becomes a follower of Jesus.
Vs. 15 – Believers are also to share in the most intimate moments of human life with one another.
Vs. 16 – There is no place in Christian community for exclusivity, haughtiness and judgmental attitudes. We are never to label and think that we are better than others or that they have no right to a place at the table. We are not to seek those above us in status but rather to reach out to the lowly.
Vs. 17 – Do not repay anyone evil for evil – This is a very common Christian teaching. You can find this admonition in 1 Thess. 5:5 and 1 Peter 3:4
Noble – Good. This refers to things that are good intrinsically. They are not good by consensus, but good in and of themselves. This word implies things that both are good and look good. There is a winsome and alluring quality to this kind of goodness.
Vs. 19 – avenge – Here again Paul reminds us that we do not deal with our wounds by revenge or retaliation. That is not in our job description.
Vs. 20 – burning coals – This is not about bringing pain or shame on enemies. Paul is quoting Proverbs 25. In this context he means that, as we do real good for our enemies, it can bring them to change and repentance. True friendship is then possible. The image of burning refers to the purification of repentance and forgiveness.
Vs. 21 – Paul again urges us not to retaliate because when we do we become like those who have hurt us and we are overcome by the very thing we despise.
Questions for Personal Reflection
1. The Bible urges Christians to adopt a special and distinctive lifestyle. This goes far beyond the simple rules we learned as children, like don’t cheat, steal or lie. This lifestyle includes a reorientation of attitude toward all other people. It requires seeking the good for all. In what situations do you find this most difficult?
2. Can you identify habits of thought that lead you to think negatively about others? It is very difficult to work for someone’s good while simultaneously judging or disdaining him or her. Make a list of people that are hard for you to care about. Practice seeing them as God’s beloved children. Ask Jesus to help you here.
3. What are the characteristics of a Christian lifestyle mentioned in this passage that seem most appealing to you? Which ones do you find yourself resisting? Can you think of reasons for this resistance?