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Romans 12:9-13
Ephesians 4:7-16, 1 Corinthians 13:1-8
Pauls exhortation to the brethren in Rome and to all believers is to present their bodies a living
sacrifice; to enter into just what God accomplished for them, through the cross of Christ.
Believers are to count on the fact that they are dead indeed to the sin, but now alive to God in Christ
Jesus, their Lord. Death is a severance from the life that you were born into. And Death causes separation;
you are separated from that life, permanently separated from it; you are completely removed from it.
Finally, Death is a one-way process; its irreversible; theres no going back.
That is why Paul chose the word Dead to describe what happens to the person who believes into Christ.
They have been cut off, from the creation into which they were born; they are no longer in Adam.
But they are not only severed, they are separated; they are now set apart to God, for His purposes;
sanctified and useful for the Master. And their death, to the creation in Adam, is irreversible; theres no
going back; they are in the process of becoming what God has already declared them to be: His glorified
sons.
But Paul also uses the word Alive, to describe that same believer; he is alive from the dead; alive to God,
in Christ Jesus, his Lord. The believer is now in Christ, a new creation. For the believer, old things have
passed away; all things have become new. Now all things are of God for him.
The believer has been reconciled by God to Himself, through Jesus Christ. That means that the believer is
no longer at enmity with God, but has become the friend of God. And as friends, God and the believer
share the same interests. And those interests involve nothing less than the reconciling of the world to God
(2 Cor 5:17-18).
For that purpose, God has given believers the ministry of reconciliation. As ambassadors for Christ, they
implore on Christs behalf, that men be reconciled to God (2 Cor 5:20).
Now, in order to accomplish this ministry, God has committed to believers the word of reconciliation; the
gospel of Jesus Christ (2 Cor 5:19). But what must happen with that word, in order for it to reconcile men
to God? It must be heard.
Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Rm 10:17). Someone with understanding a
believer must speak the word to men, and then men must take that word into their own hearts, and believe
it for themselves.
That requires a receptivity on the part of the hearer, to consider what is being said; his ear must be open, so
to speak, to take in the word. And what will cause him to open his ear; to listen?
Certainly his own need; but he has to know that he has a need; that something is missing from his life. He
has to see that there is something better to be had, in this world, that he does not have.
That better thing is love; and that is the crucial ingredient that believers must add, to the word of
reconciliation, for their ministry of reconciliation; to demonstrate the love of God before the world, and to
the world, so that men are drawn by love, to hear how they can have that love, for themselves.

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This is where Paul turns his attention next, in his letter to the believers in Rome to love. Paul has
exhorted believers to recognize their sanctification which is Gods will for them. They have been set
apart to God, as vessels fit for the Masters use.
Into each of those vessels, God has poured a measure of faith; the charismata, not gifts for themselves, but
grace benefits, through which believers are empowered for their service to others. And Paul has
encouraged the believers to fulfill the particular aspect of the ministry that the Spirit has apportioned to
them, much as Paul has, his own.
But they are not to do so by themselves; as they see fit; when and how they think it right to do so. Paul
brought out that believers are like a body, that responds to the authority of its head Christ. Christ directs
the member of His Body, in the work of reconciliation, through the Holy Spirit in them.
And in Christ is the unity of the Body; though they are many different members, they are all one in Him,
and one with each other, through Him. In submission to Christ as the Head of the Body, this whole new
creation will perfectly fulfill its ministry to reconcile others to God, through love.
Paul wrote of this in greater detail in his general letter to the assemblies in Asia Minor. Turn to Ephesians
chapter 4.
Paul had begun to exhort the assemblies to have a walk worthy of the calling with which they were called;
to conduct themselves as the righteous sons of God that they are, beginning with their relations with one
another.
Paul spoke of the oneness of believers; a body that is united by one Spirit (Eph 4:1-6). But then he wrote of
the diversity of the members of that body, and how they are to work together.
[Ephesians 4:7-16]
v. 7 In this verse, Christs gift to His Body, was the Holy Spirit, who was poured out on the Body of
Christ collectively on Pentecost; the anointing for their ministry.
As we learned last week, the Holy Spirit gives the grace benefits the charismata to every member of the
Body of Christ, distributing to each one individually as He wills (1 Cor 12:11). This is what Paul is
referring to here as grace given to each one, according to the measure of Christs gift, who is the Holy
Spirit.
Paul is not saying the Spirit is given by measure every believer is completely filled with the Holy Spirit.
He is saying that the graces are given by measure, by the Holy Spirit; different graces, to different
members. We found the same idea in our letter to the Romans last week. Paul said that God has dealt to
each one a measure of faith (Rm 12:3).
Paul then supports this idea with a quotation from Psalm 68 (v. 18).
v. 8-10 This psalm actually will have a far-fulfillment when Christ returns in His Second Coming, as the
King of kings, and Lord of lords. But here, the Spirit applies the psalm to Christs first coming, as well.
Jesus is presented here as a victorious conqueror, who ascended on high.

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Where did Jesus ascend to? To heaven. But first He had to descend, that is, into the grave, before He could
ascend. That is how Jesus obtained His victory through the cross in order that He might fulfill all
things.
And Jesus led captivity captive. A conqueror would often take the people of the land as his captives, who
would then form a train in his procession as he returned from his triumph in battle. When Jesus ascended,
He took captivity captive; believers, who were captives of Sin and Death, have become captivated by the
love of Jesus. We form the train of our Victorious Lord, His entourage, and were following Him to His
heavenly abode.
A victor in war would often share the spoils of war with his people. What did Jesus share? It says He
gave gifts to men plural. In the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the Body of Christ, Jesus gave the
spiritual graces, by which the members of His Body were endowed for the fulfillment of their ministry.
v. 11-12 You remember that saints simply means sanctified ones, referring here in verse 12 to
believers.
In verse 11, the words to be were added by the translators, and are not intended. Christ Himself gave
some apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers to the Body of Christ He gave the Body these
believers, endowed with these spiritual graces.
There is a commonality among these they all minister the word of God, to the other members of the Body.
There is an order to these, as well first those who preach the gospel of Christ, then others who teach the
doctrines of the faith.
Christ gave particular believers these abilities, so that the other members of His Body would understand the
truth, concerning Him, and be empowered to share it. Thats the power of Light.
This is the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry their ministry of reconciling men to God.
And this is how the Body of Christ is edified. In this context, edifying, which literally means building
up a house, is referring to adding members to the Body of Christ; thats how the Body of Christ grows, as
a collective; the Lord adds to the church daily those who are being saved (Acts 2:47).
v. 13 As believers grow individually in the grace and knowledge of their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ (2
Pet 3:18a), they come to the unity of the faith; the unity of the knowledge of the Son of God.
And as the Body of Christ is edified, collectively as it is built up, or added to it grows to a perfect man
to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ a Body that is complete.
Paul elaborates on the purpose of equipping the saints with the truth.
v. 14-15 In verse 14, we see that the saints are equipped with the word of God, for the purpose that they no
longer be children. The word for children here means unenlightened ones, devoid of understanding.
Paul is alluding here to unbelievers, who have no knowledge of the truth, and therefore no discernment.
They are subject to any and every deception. But the saints, equipped with an understanding of the word of
God, are enlightened to the truth; therefore they have discernment, and are not deceived by false doctrine.

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Armed with their knowledge of the truth, the saints can now share it with those on the outside with
unbelievers, who need to hear it. But notice how they are to speak the truth to unbelievers, in verse 15
how? They are to speak the truth in love.
Without love, there would be no receptivity, to the word of God. Love is what opens a person up, so that
the word of God may be planted in the heart. Unbelievers must see the love of God through the members
of the Body of Christ they must observe it; they must experience it so that they may taste and see, that
the Lord is good (Ps 34:8).
This is how the Body grows, in verse 15. The Greek is simply grows, not grows up. The idea is not
maturity, but growth in numbers. As men hear the word of God, and believe it for themselves, they become
members of the Body of Christ; they are united like a part of a body, right to the head, who is Christ; and
His Body is growing, into completion.
v. 16 It is Christ who causes this growth, as He directs the members of His Body, in their work of
reconciliation. How does that work? Every part of the Body does its share; each believer ministers in their
unique role within the Body.
And as each member of the Body does so in submission to the Head, Christ; as He directs them, the work is
done together; its a single, cohesive effort; and therefore, it is an effective working; it accomplishes the
purpose of the Father, to reconcile men to Himself, through Christ.
This is how the Body edifies itself; how it grows. And Paul concludes, it does so, in love. It is love that
makes the work effective.
In all of Pauls letters, we can see that he places a great deal of emphasis upon the love of the Body of
Christ and this is why. Love is the essential ingredient needed in order for them to fulfill their ministry.
Yes, it is the love of Christ; but in order for His love to be manifested, the members of His Body must yield
to Him.
Lets return now to Romans 12, and read what Paul has to say in that letter, about love. Well read through
the end of the chapter.
[Read Romans 12:9-21]
Now, you might be thinking, Wait a minute. Paul only mentioned love in the very beginning of verse 9.
This is not a passage about love. But it is. The first sentence, Let love be without hypocrisy, is actually
not a sentence. It reads more like a subheading in the letter, in the Greek: Its Love without Hypocrisy,
or Genuine Love. And everything that follows it is what that love looks like; its a manifestation of that
love. And what love is that? The love of Christ.
In fact, the theme of love continues into the next chapter, all the way down to verse 10 of chapter 13, where
we see that Paul concludes the section, summarizing his thoughts on genuine love.
We will see that Paul has organized his thoughts on love into four parts: how love is manifested in the
believer individually (v. 9); what love looks like, among the brethren the members of the Body of Christ
(v. 10-16); how love is expressed, to those on the outside to unbelieving individuals (v. 17-21); and
finally, love under the submission of civil authority (13:1-7).

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Now, before we begin a section which is all about love, it would be good to know what love is. Do you
know what love is? Not naturally, right? We must learn what love is.
Who would teach us that? The Holy Spirit, who guides us into all truth. And the Spirit gave Paul a
wonderful definition of what love is, which Paul wrote down in one of his letters.
Hmmm . where do we find that definition? Almost everyone knows that in First Corinthians chapter
13. Its commonly used at weddings, isnt it? Well, how perfect, for the Bride of Christ!
Turn to First Corinthians 13. The believers in Corinth were struggling on many fronts; worldliness;
selfishness; pride; divisiveness. All of these symptoms were due to a common affliction a lack of love.
So in this part of his letter, Paul was showing them the way of love. The way of love is the way that Christ
loves, through the members of His Body, as they submit to Him, in love.
But before Paul showed the Corinthians the way of love the more excellent way he showed them what
can be achieved without love which is nothing.
[First Corinthians 13:1-8a]
v. 1-3 Paul has just finished speaking of the spiritual graces, in the previous chapter which the
Corinthians were misusing. Here he is showing that though the graces are powerful, without the love of
Christ, they will have absolutely no effect.
Paul selects some of the showiest charismata, which are the ones which the Corinthian believers coveted,
for they wanted to show off. But without the power of love, those graces effect nothing.
Why? Because the power lies within the believer; it was graced upon him; but unless the believer rests as
an instrument in the hand of His Master; unless the believer is willing to be used as an instrument of Love
to love others that power must remain untapped; dormant.
Without love, the Christ One is nothing he has no value, to Christ. And without love, the Christ One
cannot fulfill his ministry of reconciliation so there is no profit to God. Without love, what we say, what
we know, what we do amounts to nothing; nothing of any eternal value.
Paul continues now to show the way of love; for Love is a way of living; Christ, loving others believers
and unbelievers alike through the members of His Body. Each quality we read of here pertains to love for
others. Gods love is always for others.
v. 4-8a
Love suffers long love is forbearing; it is patient with people. People require patience, dont they; why is
that? Because they are different from us; different temperaments; different upbringing; different ways of
doing things. But Love does not let differences stand in its way.
Love is kind this is the willingness to help out and assist others. Love extends itself to others, to be
actively useful to them.
Love does not envy it does not covet the blessings that are bestowed upon another; instead, Love is glad
for what another has received; Love selflessly delights, for them.

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Love does not parade itself it does not brag, or boast in its abilities. It does not seek to draw attention to
itself, for itself.
Love is not puffed up. Love recognizes that it is not more important than others. Love affirms the value of
others.
Love does not behave rudely; in an ugly manner. Love is always gentle and lovely with others.
And Love does not seek its own. It does not have its own agenda, its own selfish interests; it promotes the
welfare of others.
Love is not provoked. This is where the idea of tolerance belongs; Love does not get aroused by
differences with others. Love makes peace, not war.
Love thinks no evil. Love thinks the best of others, and keeps no account of wrongs.
Love does not rejoice in iniquity; instead, Love rejoices in the truth. Love can find no joy in the sin of
others; but Love is the first to applaud the one who lets truth reign, in his life.
Love bears all things. This refers to being silent concerning the faults of others; Love covers a multitude of
sins; it does not expose others.
Love believes all things. Love has unshakable confidence and trust in others; Love never gives up on
someone.
Love hopes all things. Love looks to the end that God desires for every man to be a son of God and has
that desire for others.
Love endures all things. Endurance is persevering under the load. Love bears the burdens of others.
Love never fails; it will never come to an end. God is love; it is an attribute of His divine character. His
love endures forever; it has always been, and it will forever be. It will accompany the believer into eternity.
Thats why Paul says that Love is the greatest (v. 13).
Lets go back to our passage in Romans now.
[Return to Romans 12]
v. 9 So Paul opens this section of his letter under the heading, Love without hypocrisy. Love here is of
course agape love that is derived from God, for others. Agape focuses on the needs and welfare of the
one loved and does whatever is necessary to meet those needs.
Paul qualifies agape as without hypocrisy; he will be showing how the Christ One is to conduct himself,
in genuine and sincere love toward others. But before Paul can discuss the Christ Ones love for others, he
must begin with the Christ One, himself.
The believer is to abhor what is evil. The word abhor means to detest with horror; here it is
communicating the idea of avoidance. The believer is to avoid, or flee from, what is evil.

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What is evil? Evil is that of which God cannot approve and therefore cannot accept. All that is in the
world the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father, but is of the
world (1 Jn 2:16). That is this present evil age. Believers are to flee from it; and instead, they are to cling
to what is good.
What is good? God is good (Ps 119:68). The Greek word for cling comes from a word for glue. The
idea is to adhere to, or to join oneself with; to follow. Through faith, we have been united to Christ; we
have received the righteousness of God, in Him.
We are in the process of being sanctified; separated from this world system, separated unto God. Paul is
calling believers to realize that process, in their lives; to abhor evil, and be separated from it; and to instead
join themselves to what is good.
Now, why would Paul begin his discussion on love with a statement on the believers personal
sanctification? Because the world system perpetuates the love of self; and as long a Christ One is caught up
in worldly desires, he will be caught up with himself.
Love of self is all-consuming; it leaves no room for the love of anyone else. So Paul is calling believers to
leave the world behind, with its promotion of self-love; and to instead possess their vessels in sanctification
(1 Th 4:4), to cleave to God, so that they can be filled with the Masters sincere love for others.
Paul now addresses the love that fellow members of the Body of Christ should manifest toward each other.
v. 10 The term kindly affectionate actually refers to the love and tender affection that exists between
members of the same family. Brotherly love reinforces this idea.
When you believed into Jesus, you were born again, born of the Spirit, a child of God. You were born into
Gods family, and suddenly acquired many, many siblings all of Gods other children.
Like in any family, the children come in all shapes and sizes, with their various personalities and quirks
and shortcomings; but they all bear the family resemblance, for they are being conformed to the image of
Gods Son (Rm 8:29); they all share the family bond, which is the unity of the Spirit (Eph 4:3); and they all
have a common interest, as well; seeing to it that their Fathers will gets done.
Paul is encouraging believers to love one another, like members of the same family a good family, not a
dysfunctional one! That will require longsuffering, wont it? Bearing with one another; but thats just what
Love does (Eph 4:2). As Paul goes on, we see what the love of this family is like.
He continues: in honor, believers are to give preference to one another. They are to put one another first.
This is a mutual respecting; a deferring, to one another. Were not talking about opening the door for each
other, here; but allowing one another to take the lead; submitting to one another (Eph 5:21). And since
these are members of the Fathers family, and they are concerned with accomplishing His will, the one who
takes the lead will be the one who is being led of God.
This promotes order within the Body of Christ, to accomplish work together, with the appropriate members
leading and others submitting to their lead, for the task at hand. Its how families get things done, in an
orderly household. Because Love is kind, and willing to help others.
Paul next describes the quality of the work, in the family of God.

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v. 11 Believers are not to lag in their diligence. No sluggards, in the Body of Christ. Diligence is speaking
of the effort that goes into the work. We are to make every effort; pour all of our strength into the task;
expend the time needed, and accomplish it right away.
Accomplish what? Loving our brethren, in the Body of Christ; serving them, in whatever manner the Lord
prompts us to do so. In the context of what Paul is saying, serving the Lord in this case refers to serving
our fellow members in the Body; the other kids, in the family. And we dont get to pick who, or how, or
when; thats for the Father to decide.
But when the Father does call us to serve someone in the family, we are to do so with fervor; we are to be
fervent in spirit. The word fervent literally means to bubble or boil. Paul is using it figuratively here to
suggest intense zeal. And it is speaking of our attitude, in serving others, in the Lord.
We are not to be lukewarm; no half-hearted efforts, here, for Love is never half-hearted. We are not to boil
over, either; we are not to be overzealous, and do things for other members of the Body that the Lord did
not authorize, because we thought it would be good for them. Who knows whats good? God does.
We are to serve others with all our heart, but under the control of the Holy Spirit so that what is done truly
serves them; it meets their need.
Now Paul addresses a different quality of the work of Love, in the family of God: its ability to stay the
course.
v. 12 Remember that Paul is speaking about believers serving other members of the Body of Christ, as the
Lord directs. He has previously written of the individual believers need to persevere through the trials and
tribulations of life (Rm 5:3-4).
But here, the trial may be affecting another member of the Body; or many members, at once. To be patient
is to remain under the load; to endure, through the trial. But this is the trial of another; what is that to you?
Everything; were in the same family. Love endures all things. Members of the family share each others
burdens; they help each other to bear up, in trials.
Turn to Pauls second letter to the Thessalonians, chapter 1. This was an assembly that experienced severe
persecution, at the hands of both unbelieving Jews, and pagan Gentiles.
In his first letter to the believers in Thessalonica, Paul wrote of the tribulation that they were experiencing:
they receive the word in much affliction (1 Th 1:6); but they were standing fast, in the Lord (1 Th 3:8).
Paul called this their patience of hope (1 Th 1:3), which he later defined as their patient waiting: to wait
for His Son from heaven (1 Th 1:10) enduring under the load of persecution, by patiently waiting for
Jesus to return. That was their comfort (1 Th 4:18).
In this second letter, Paul began with a commendation of them.
[Second Thessalonians 1:3-4] Notice that Paul ties together their mutual love for one another abounding
overflowing to one another and their patience and faith in all of the trials that they were under. They were
under them together, and in love, were encouraging one another through the trials, to endure. In love, they
were sharing the burden.
[Return to Romans 12]

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Pauls thought of rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation here is similar to the patience of hope in the
letters to Thessalonica that we just considered. Believers are enabled to endure their afflictions by keeping
their eyes fixed upon their know-so hope; their hope of glory, with Jesus. Thats their deliverance.
And because the brethren love one another, they constantly encourage one another with that same hope,
and they pray for one another, so that the will of God in the trials might be made known. Were a family;
were all in this, together.
And because we are all in this together, we not only share others burdens; we share in others needs.
v. 13 Distributing communicates the idea of sharing. The emphasis, then, is not the haves giving what
they own to the have nots; it is a sharing of the family resources, so that everyone has not the same
amount, but enough; enough for them.
Are the things that we have in this world our own possessions? No. Theyre gifts. Where did the gifts
come from? From our heavenly Father (James 1:17); He has allowed us to have what we have. Everything
belongs to Him; and it is His right to determine how to distribute those things. He determines what is
enough for each one; He distributes, as He wills.
How do you receive a gift? With your hands. Now, if you close your hands around the gift, it will stay in
your hands; and how will the Father be able to fill your hands, after that? We need to put down the gifts;
that is, to relinquish our claim, on what the Father has given us. Then He will be able meet the needs of our
brothers, and to fill our hands with more.
Hospitality refers to kindness to strangers. As Paul is speaking about the Body of Christ, these would
simply be fellow believers, whom we do not know. To be given to hospitality means to pursue it.
Believers are to go out of their way, to open their homes to fellow believers; not just their friends, but to
believers they dont even know; to provide food and shelter for them, as needed; as directed by the Lord.
This was particularly important in Pauls day and culture, as many members of the Body of Christ traveled
from one location to another, preaching and teaching among the assemblies, as well as carrying out other
aspect of ministry to them.
Paul was saying that these traveling brethren should be provided for; they should not have to search for
accommodation and sustenance, while trying to carry out their ministry. Instead, Love should pursue them.
How contrary this thinking is to the worlds thinking, which centers upon self-love. The love of God is
other-worldly.
Jesus said to His disciples, By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one
another (Jn 13:35).
As the love of Christ is seen through the members of His Body caring for one another, those on the outside
will recognize that this is the love of God genuine love Love that is seeking to draw them, to Himself.
Reading: Romans 12