In my bible this section of scriptures is called Love in Action. We have gone through the 1 Corinthians 13 definitions of love and now we will go through Romans description of how to put love into action!
Verse 9 says, "Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good." While "fake it til you make it" is helpful in situations, when it comes to love we must do it with sincerity. The definition of sincere is, "free from pretense or deceit; proceeding from genuine feelings" Our love that we show to others must be genuine just as our God genuinely loves us. There is no deceit in His love for us. This verse also says to hate what is evil and cling to what is good. How do we know what is evil and what is good? Well, we can grow our knowledge of what God sees as good and evil by reading His word. To truly fight this spiritual battle we must be ready to wield the scriptures that God provides us. His word can show us the way but we must dig in and be diligent about spending time in His word and in prayer to grow in wisdom.
Verse 10 says, "Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves." To have true love for one another we must grow that servant attitude. We must put aside our own selfish ambitions and devote ourselves to serving others.
Verse 11 says, "Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." Zeal and fervor mean great energy, passionate, intense, and enthusiastic. We should love the Lord with power and excitement. One of the best ways to accomplish this is through worship. I love my full blown car worship moments. I'll have my radio turned all the way up and singing my heart out to God! You can also show zeal and fervor in the Lord by getting in His word as often as possible! Whether it be reading your Bible or reading a devotional to dig even further into the scriptures, do these things with enthusiasm, reading and growing in your excitement for the Lord.
Verse 12 says, "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer." In the hard times of life it can be hard to live up to this verse of having joy in hope but if we cling to the Lord we can truly have joy in the hope of the Lord even during our hardest trials. Not only do we need to be joyful in hope during these times but we must also be patient.
Verse 13 says, "Share with the Lord's people who are in need. Practice hospitality." Being one of the Lord's servants means we are to take care of those around us. There is a true joy when you show your love through serving others. Each year I help to host a free community dinner on Thanksgiving where everyone in the community is welcome to come eat for free and enjoy the company of others. It is a lot of work! But, I would do all that work over and over again because I know that by feeding God's children I am showing my love for God. I can't even explain in words the joy it brings to my heart when I take a break from cooking to peek into the dining hall and see all the smiling faces and the comfort that is being given throughout. We must also show hospitality. You don't need a perfect home in order to practice hospitality with others. I have found over the years that most people I invite into my home are not looking at the carpet that isn't vacuumed or the sink full of dishes. They are looking at the heart of the woman who is offering them a hot cup of tea and a listening ear. Hospitality can mean anything from a grand display of appetizers and drinks or it could me a glass of ice tea and some crackers. Its not the what but the who. Hospitality to mean is creating a comforting place for those who need a listening ear or sound advice from a friend.
Verse 14 says, "Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse." This one can be a hard pill to swallow.... Bless those who persecute you? Oof that one just stings but it is what shows the true love of Jesus. Jesus was up on that cross hanging for our sins and instead of cursing the ones who drove the nails in, He asked for forgiveness for them. That is the ultimate love of Jesus. Even when we are the most undeserving of His love He offers it to use free and clear. Be a blessing to those around you and not a curse even if those that surround you are your enemies.
Verse 15 says, "Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn." There is a time for joy and a time for sadness. When we have a fellowship and relationship with other christians we are building a true family of God. As family members in God's family we share with each other the ups and downs of life so we must rejoice with each other when someone has accomplishments or exciting things going on in their lives. We must also mourn with those who are in a stage of grief or sadness. This is not to last forever but be patient with those who are struggling in hard times.
Verse 16 says, "Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited." Oh harmony where are you? These days harmony is hard to find. There are fights and wars going on with division all in between. While the world's harmony may be off balance we as individuals can do our best to live in harmony with those around us. Harmony, peace, and joy can all have a rippling effect and spread. The best way to bring harmony to the world is to start with you and the people that come in contact with you. This verse also talks about not being proud or conceited. I know we all can get into judgy moments but the Lord wants us to be humble and know that we are all human and all God's children so we must not look down upon one another. You also don't know what has happened in a person's life to bring them to the place where they are at so it is best to not be prideful but instead meet them at their level and show them the love of Christ. Matthew 25:40 says, “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’" Treat everyone as you would if they were Christ himself.
Verse 17 says, "Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone." Its very easy to bite back when someone hurts you but is that the right thing to do? No. We don't want to repay the person hurting us with the same evil. We want to help them come to know our loving God and the best way to show that is turning the other cheek and fighting evil with kindness and loving grace.
Verse 18 says, "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone." Peace is such a wonderful thing. I can't wait to get up to heaven and experience true peace. But while we are here we need to create the peace until we reach our heavenly home.
Verse 19 says, "Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is mine to avenge; I will repay' says the Lord." The Lord will take care of our true enemies. We do not need to take revenge for ourselves. The Lord is our shield and defender. We need to focus on what we can do to better the world and not contribute to the evil of it.
Verse 20 says, "On the contrary, 'If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head'." This verse gets me and makes me giggle a little. I'm not quite sure if this means that when we are kind to our enemies God will take his revenge or if that when you show kindness to those who are persecuting you it tears down their strategy. Kindness can really turn a situation around and it sometimes confuses the heck out of those who are not being kind.
Verse 21 says, "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Let's get out there and take the world over with good!
How will you put love into action today?
~ Jessica C
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