Today is Day 14 in our current series, working through the Not Ashamed of the Gospel Bible study from Hellomornings. Welcome back!
Our Bible text for today is Romans 12: 9 - 21 ...
Love must be without hypocrisy. Detest evil; cling to what is good. 10 Show family affection to one another with brotherly love. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not lack diligence; be fervent in spirit; serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer. 13 Share with the saints in their needs; pursue hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep. 16 Be in agreement with one another. Do not be proud; instead, associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own estimation. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Try to do what is honorable in everyone’s eyes. 18 If possible, on your part, live at peace with everyone. 19 Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for His wrath. For it is written: Vengeance belongs to Me; I will repay, says the Lord. 20 But:
If your enemy is hungry, feed him.
If he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
For in so doing
you will be heaping fiery coals on his head.
21 Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.
If you've ever wondered how you ought to live as a Believer in community other Believers, Paul provides a very comprehensive list here!!
Everything on his list falls under the subheading, which Paul phrases as a command: "Show family affection to one another with brotherly love." (Verse 10a)
Under that heading, I counted 27 sub-commands, which describe how we are to show phileo (brotherly) love to one another.
These include: being in agreement with one another; not avenging ourselves; not being proud; serving the Lord; blessing those who persecute us; pursuing hospitality; and outdoing one another in showing honour.
In particular, verse 13 stood out to me for its very practical commands: "Share with the saints in their needs; pursue hospitality."
Verse 13a tells us that we are to contribute to the physical needs of other Believers. We see this modeled for us in Acts 2: 44 - 45: "Now all the believers were together and held all things in common. They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as anyone had a need."
Now you might balk at the thought of selling all of your possessions and giving the proceeds to help the poor and needy in your church, but in reality, for most of us, we have so much more than we need, that we can honestly give out of our excess and help many without even feeling it in our pockets!
It has always been God's plan for the community of God to take care of its own (see Deuteronomy 15: 11; Proverbs 14: 21; James 2: 14-17), and this command is still applicable to us today.
Secondly, Romans 12: 13b instructs us to show hospitality to others. "Hospitality" in this text refers not only to inviting people to our homes for a meal, but also providing a safe, welcoming space for them in our churches.
This concept of offering visitors not only a meal, but also protection from thieves, violence, and bad weather was deeply rooted in Ancient Near East culture, and Paul now applies it specifically to our care of our fellow-Believers.
Modern culture tends to be far more private, insular, and selfish than the culture Paul was writing in, making this instruction seem quite difficult to follow - but it still applies to us today!