notes

Main point summary

Love the saints by being affectionate to one another, rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. Love your neighbor by blessing and doing good even if they act like enemies toward you.

Arc

NT

Romans 12:9-21

nkjv

ngu2011

Let love be

Die Liebe soll echt sein,

without hypocrisy.

nicht geheuchelt.

ideaexplanation

Abhor what is evil.

Verabscheut das Böse,

Cling to what is good.

haltet euch unbeirrbar an das Gute.

series

Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love,

Lasst im Umgang miteinander Herzlichkeit und geschwisterliche Liebe zum Ausdruck kommen.

in honor giving preference to one another;

Übertrefft euch gegenseitig darin, einander Achtung zu erweisen.

not lagging in diligence,

Lasst in eurem Eifer nicht nach,

fervent in spirit,

sondern lasst das Feuer des Heiligen Geistes in euch immer stärker werden.

negativepositive

serving the Lord;

Dient dem Herrn.

rejoicing in hope,

Freut euch über die Hoffnung, die ihr habt.

patient in tribulation,

Wenn Nöte kommen, haltet durch.

continuing steadfastly in prayer;

Lasst euch durch nichts vom Gebet abbringen.

distributing to the needs of the saints,

Helft Gläubigen, die sich in einer Notlage befinden; lasst sie mit ihrer Not nicht allein.

given to hospitality.

Macht es euch zur Aufgabe, gastfreundlich zu sein.

progression

actionmanner

Bless those who persecute you;

Segnet die, die euch verfolgen;

bless

segnet sie,

and do not curse.

verflucht sie nicht.

Rejoice with those who rejoice,

Freut euch mit denen, die sich freuen;

and weep with those who weep.

weint mit denen, die weinen.

alternative

Be of the same mind toward one another.

Lasst euch im Umgang miteinander davon bestimmen, dass ihr ein gemeinsames Ziel habt.

Do not set your mind on high things,

Seid nicht überheblich,

but associate with the humble.

sondern sucht die Gemeinschaft mit denen, die unscheinbar und unbedeutend sind.

Do not be wise in your own opinion.

Haltet euch nicht selbst für klug.

Repay no one evil for evil.

Vergeltet niemand Böses mit Bösem.

Have regard for good things in the sight of all men.

Bemüht euch um ein vorbildliches Verhalten gegenüber jedermann.

If it is possible, as much as depends on you,

Wenn es möglich ist und soweit es an euch liegt,

live peaceably with all men.

lebt mit allen Menschen in Frieden.

conditional

Beloved, do not avenge yourselves,

Rächt euch nicht selbst, liebe Freunde,

but rather give place to wrath;

sondern überlasst die Rache dem Zorn ´Gottes`.

for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.

Denn es heißt in der Schrift: »´Das Unrecht` zu rächen ist meine Sache, sagt der Herr; ich werde Vergeltung üben.«

ground

Therefore “If your enemy is hungry,

Mehr noch: »Wenn dein Feind hungrig ist,

feed him;

gib ihm zu essen,

If he is thirsty,

und wenn er Durst hat,

give him a drink;

gib ihm zu trinken.

For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”

Ein solches Verhalten wird ihn zutiefst beschämen.«

inference

Do not be overcome by evil,

Lass dich nicht vom Bösen besiegen,

but overcome evil with good.

sondern besiege Böses mit Gutem.

To bless those who persecute is a command in relation to unbelievers. Paul jumps back and forth in regard to our relation to believers and unbelievers. This makes it difficult to divide it in sections.

Persecution is obvious in relation to unbelievers. But is their also a persecution under believers? Some might act like persecutors when they attack the person without any valid ground. In other words they may attack the person to defend their own wrong conviction. It happened to Paul (Phil 1) I have heard it done too.

The following is how love looks like. Paul speaks about the unconditional love of God for the good of another, ἀγάπη. The Lord taught to love God and our neighbor. Paul explained in 12:1-2 who to love God by living as holy sacrifices to God. And from verse 3 he explains how to love our neighbor.

discourse

Notes

What follows is still connected to the "therefore" of verse 1, which means that everything that Paul teaches about love in these verses, still rests on what he wrote in chapters 1 to 11, in which he explained how much people are loved by God. The following is impossible to do and does not make sense without knowing the love of God and trusting in Jesus Christ. Verse 9 - How does love without hypocrisy look like? How does Paul instruct the Roman saints to abhor what is evil and cling to what is good? Paul does that in a twofold explanation: How other believers are to be loved is explained in verses 10-13 and verses 15-16. How all people are to be loved is explained in verses 14 and verses 17-21. Verse 10-13 - How does Paul teach to be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love ? 10a brotherly love : φιλόστοργος - usually used for the reciprocal tenderness of parents and children. In 9a he uses ἀγάπη for "love" which is the unconditional love of God, which Jesus showed with His life while He was on earth. So, the brotherly love should accompany the saints unconditional love of God in the following context/manner: 10b In honor giving preference to one another . Considering how God has honored the saints to be declared righteous in Christ, the saints should imitate Christ by giving preference to one another in honor because they are righteous in the sight of God. Verses 11-13 The manner in which the saints should be kindly affectionate to one another is: 11ab by being fervent in spirit. Laziness is hindering to be effective for the Lord. The love of God kindles the fire in times of lack of motivation. 11c by serving the Lord. Seeing the Lord in the saints helps to be kindly affectionate to one another. What is done for the Lord, is done for eternity. If service is done for the Lord, it frees also from the need of receiving the same honor and preference from people in return. Hypocrites like the Pharisees displayed to be in service of God but desired reward from the people. Godly service is done in appreciation for the Lord which He will reward. 12a by rejoicing in hope, that is in who God is and what He has done, Rm 5:1-2 and still is doing through the saints by their imitation of Christ. 12b by being patient in tribulation. At times saints go through difficult tribulation in which they should be patient. They might not rejoice for some time, though they always should and hopefully soon do as they remember what the purpose of tribulation is. Tribulation purifies hope in God which is cause to rejoice because the love of God is shed into their hearts Rm 5:3-5. Even when they are in tribulation they should be kindly affectionate to one another. Sometimes difficult circumstances lead to spitefully making others go through difficulty too. 12c by being constant in prayer. Prayer is the means by which the saints abide in Christ. Anything that will ever be of spiritual value is through abiding in Christ. Kindnesses and affections to one another are nurtured before and carried through in prayer. 13a by distributing to the needs of the saints. Likely, physical needs, such as food and clothing, but perhaps also spiritual needs such as encouragement and godly counsel. 13b by hospitality. Saints get to know each other better as they invite one another into their homes. As the saints get to know one another more, they share their joys and sorrows which leads to more prayer and care for one another with the aim of increasing in the knowledge and appreciation of the unfathomable worth of Christ and the glory of God the Father. The home is also a good place to practice verse 15 , which teaches to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. Weeping is often an expression of weakness and the majority of the people of this world look down on the weak and some use weak people for personal gain. It ought not to be so in the Church, rather, the gifted and strong saints carry and support the weaker saints. Some people get jealous if they see others rejoicing. Self-pity is a dangerous trap. Happy are those who rejoice over the blessings of others as if it happened to themselves. Verse 16 should also be practiced when saints meet together. Saints get to know not only the sides which are Christ-like but also the inconsistent sides of one another. A high opinion of oneself is an unfortunate set up for a break in trust of relationships. Saints should be firm but more importantly careful in the matter of mere opinion and primarily set their minds on solid facts on which saints agree on. These are some ways in which the world should see the reality of the Lord by the love of the saints to one another. Verse 14,17-21 - How does Paul teach to bless those who persecute? Paul describes basically the life of the Lord Jesus and shows exactly how the Lord handled persecution and spite. Paul does not teach to overlook evil because that is not what the Lord did. The Gospel records show that the Lord confronted evil often but did not avenge Himself. He did always overcome evil with good. The saints should reflect on the Lord in that they: Bless those who persecute Have regard for good things in the sight of all men Live peaceably with all men Give place to the wrath of God instead of avenging themselves Care for their enemies Overcome evil with good