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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadPaul Kretzmann Commentary - Romans 12:9 - 12:16
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The Christian's conduct in his personal relations:
v. 9. Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.
v. 10. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love, in honor preferring one another;
v. 11. not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;
v. 12 rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;
v. 13. distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality.
v. 14. Bless them which persecute you; bless, and curse not.
v. 15. Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.
v. 16. Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.
The apostle now speaks in general of the Christian's relation to his fellow-Christians and to his fellowmen. Of love in general he says that it should not be dissimulated, consisting not merely in words, but in sincere deeds; it should come from the heart and truly desire the welfare of one's neighbor. It is a feature of such true love that it will not hesitate to rebuke every form of sin and trespass, and likewise to acknowledge and further the good which it finds in one's neighbor. This admonition is incidentally a summary of all the exhortations now following. So far as brotherly love is concerned, your love toward each other and toward one another as children in the one great family of God should be tenderly affectioned. The relation of believers toward one another, as members of the one body of Christ, as possessors of the same faith in the redemption of their Savior, is, in a way, more intimate than that of blood relation between members of a family. And therefore it should be tender and affectionate in its manifestations. And with this love should be connected mutual respect: through honor preferring one another, going before each other in giving honor. There should be a friendly rivalry between Christians to outdo one another in every form of kindly reverence as partakers of the same grace of the heavenly Father. A mere passive feeling, however, is not sufficient, according to the apostle's admonition: In zeal or willingness not lazy, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. When it comes to the question of serving one's brother or neighbor in any way, there should be no hesitating, laggard steps, and we should not grow indolent or weary. Rather, should our spirit be fervent with eagerness, we should be interested in his welfare with persevering enthusiasm. And, with a decent regard for the exigencies of the various circumstances of life, the Christian should nevertheless never forget that his activity and zeal is actuated and governed by the desire to serve Christ a factor which will tend also to keep down any thought of self-exaltation and pride in the performance of our duties. The thought that the Christians in all the works of their calling are in the service of the Lord will have a further beneficial effect: As to hope, full of gladness; they will rejoice inasmuch as they are partakers of Christ's sufferings, that they may also become partakers of His glory, 1Pe_4:13. As to oppression, distress, misery, tribulation of every kind, patient; remembering always that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed, Rom_8:18. In prayer, be intent and persevering; the Christians should apply themselves to this indication and manifestation of their spiritual life with all ardor and importunity, as the Lord so often admonishes them, not with conventional deadness, but with the zeal which grows from firm trust in His fatherly goodness.
Having thus shown just how the feeling of personal service toward God will influence the Christian's personal conduct, the apostle again turns to his relation toward his neighbor, vv. 13-16. Take part in the needs of the saints, let them be your earnest concern as well as those with which you have to battle, make their necessity your own and act accordingly. And this is further explained: Following after hospitality. Because believers are members of the body of Christ, they will naturally share their sorrows as well as their joys. During times of persecution, such as often came upon the early Christians, there was great need for the believers to entertain the strangers of the household of faith, as they were driven from their homes by tyrants. But in the midst of such persecutions the Christians were not to forget the example and the command of their Lord as to their enemies: Bless those that persecute you; bless, and do not curse. For the sake of emphasis the apostle repeats his admonition that the believers must be active in blessing their enemies. Even if persecution rises to unbearable heights, Christians must cultivate the habit of wishing well to their persecutors. "It is not sufficient to avoid returning evil for evil, nor even to banish vindictive feelings; we must be able sincerely to desire their happiness. " (Hodge.) And in cultivating this state of mind, we shall find ourselves all the better able to heed the admonition that again concerns chiefly the brethren: to be glad with those that are glad, to weep with those that weep. The interest of a Christian brother or sister enhances their joy over any blessing of the Lord; and their sympathy relieves any heavy burden, especially if their words are not the conventional, stereotyped phrases of so-called polite society, but the words of heartfelt compassion dictated by the love of Christ. That same love will also effect this, that Christians think the same thing toward one another; a feeling of concord, or harmony, of unanimity governs their actions, Php_2:2; Php_4:2; 2Co_13:11. Because the love of the Christian for his fellow Christian will always cause him to place himself in the position of the other, therefore he will be able to combat discord and disharmony. All the better will he succeed in this by following the injunction: Not having in mind, not setting your thoughts upon high things, but be willing to be drawn along with the lowly; be not wise in your own estimation. All pride of self is out of harmony with the demands of Christian love; not to be aspiring, but to be humble must be the character of every follower of the lowly Nazarene. Inordinate ambition, which despises all those that have not received equal intellectual or spiritual gifts, on the one hand, together with a contempt for their lowly persons or pursuits, are absolutely inconsistent with the idea of perfect Christian unity which the Lord at all times had in mind. The lowliness of mind which was found in Christ Jesus, who consorted with publicans and sinners, with the very outcasts of society, because they had accepted His message of salvation, must be found in all His true servants. But if any one becomes puffed up by his pride of intellect, by a fancied superiority to others, then he deliberately disrupts the harmony which should characterize the Christian community, and cannot properly lay claim to the spirit that lives in the Master.