Romans 12:9-13

                                                                 Romans 12:9-13

Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

 

Love is the distinguishing mark of the follower of Christ.  However, love can be easily confused with other things that are only imitations of what true love is, things like lust and romance.  Paul’s description of love is very helpful for us to understand how God would have us to love one another.  The list is long, but practical and can be divided into four categories.

 

LOVE MUST BE PURE: By definition, love does what is best for the object of that love.  True biblical love will always contribute to and strive for the purity of one another.  The love of Christ is demonstrated in the fact that He gave Himself up as a sacrifice for us that we might be made holy and blameless in the sight of God.  We are called to love others as Christ has loved us.  Anyone who says they are “in love” but is pressuring the other person to do something that is sinful is not truly being loving.  If we want to love like Christ, we must strive to help others be like Christ.

 

LOVE MUST BE POWERFUL: Love is not lazy.  True love will be zealous and each of those involved in the relationship will strive to outdo one another in demonstrations of love for one another.  Love should be strong in our spirit in that it should impact our inner man.  Love should be active in service in that it should impact our outer man.  Love should be both felt and acted upon.  This is truly a demonstration of our love and service to the Lord.

 

LOVE MUST BE PERSEVERANT: We live in a fallen world.  The context of our love is always in the fallen world in which we live.  That means that we will face problems.   True love will persevere in the context of problems.  When there are problems in the context of love there is always hope.  There is an expectation of good things in light of the promises of God made to those who love Him by loving one another.  Love responds to troubling times with prayer and seeking the help of God to relieve, heal and restore.

 

LOVE MUST BE PRACTICAL: If we love biblically, we will seek to meet the needs of the people around us. Love requires action.  Love is an emotion, but it leads to service.  Those who love one another will delight in serving one another.  However, they will not focus on be served by the other.  Hospitality is a genuine expression of love because our homes are places where we the most vulnerable and intimate.  Who we are, the food we eat, the way we live and many other things are on display when we open our homes.  

 

APPLICATION: Encourage the people you love to walk closer to the Lord by praying for them and communicating with them is some way that will encourage them to be more Christlike.  Don’t be satisfied with the current level of your current relationships.  Take steps to make those relationships more profound.  In times of trouble double down on faithfully demonstrating love.  Investigate the needs of others and find a practical way to meet that need.  Invite someone to your home for a meal.

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