Romans 12:1-21

Paul’s letter to the *Romans

Romans

Hilda Bright and Keith Simons

Chapter 12

True *worship 12:1-2

v1 *Brothers and *sisters, God has shown you his kindness. Therefore I am appealing to you. Offer your bodies to him as a *sacrifice that is alive. Your gift will please God greatly. This is true *spiritual *worship. v2 Do not live any longer in the way that this world lives. Change completely the way that you think. Then you will be able to test what God wants. You will discover that God’s plan is good and acceptable. It is perfect.

Verse 1 Paul appeals to all the Christians in Rome. God has shown his great love to them all. So they should be grateful. If they have the right attitude to God, then they will think rightly about themselves. This will make a difference to their *relationships with other people. Paul uses the idea of a priest who offers a *sacrifice. The *sacrifice had to be a perfect animal. Then it would please God (Leviticus 1:3; Leviticus 1:9).

Christians must offer their bodies as a *sacrifice to God. Paul is not writing about death here. He is explaining how Christians should live their lives in this world. They should try to use every part of their bodies in a manner that pleases God. They will use their feet. They will go where God wants them to go. They will use their hands to give practical help to other people. With their ears, they will listen to other people’s problems. With their mouths, they will speak to encourage other people and to tell them the good news about *Christ. The right use of the body will be like the perfect *sacrifice that pleased God. Their *worship would not just be a ceremony. This is the right kind of *worship. It is *spiritual. It is the *worship that God asks for.

Verse 2 Christians must also change the way that they think. The word ‘change’ is the same word that describes the change in Jesus’ body. Jesus changed when he showed his *glory to the three *apostles (Mark 9:2). It is easy for people to copy what other people do. But Christians should not copy everything that people in the world do. Christians belong to God’s world. So they should behave in a different way from people who are not Christians.

What Christians think will affect what they do. Christians will think differently about the use of money. Christians will remember that money belongs to God. So they will try not to waste it or to use it selfishly. They will have a different opinion about sex. They will make careful choices about what they read. They will select carefully what they watch on television. The *Holy Spirit will guide Christians as they try to please God. They will want to obey God, so that they can ‘reflect the *Lord’s *glory. Then they will continue to change and to be like him’ (2 Corinthians 3:18).

Use of the skills that God gives to Christians 12:3-8

v3 God has given to me his *grace. So I say this to each one of you. Do not have too proud an opinion of yourself. But rather, think clearly. *Judge yourself by the *faith that God has given to you. v4 Each of us has one body, which has many parts. All these parts do not have the same function. v5 So we who belong to *Christ are many people. But we are like one body. We all belong to each other.

v6 By the *grace of God, God has given different skills to us. These skills are different because of the nature of God’s *grace. For example, someone might give a message from God. But that person must be careful not to use this skill in a way that is greater than his *faith. v7 And a person who has some other skill should also use his skill in the same way. So, some people serve. Other people teach. v8 And other people can encourage. The person who gives should be generous. The person who leads should be eager. And the person who shows kindness should be cheerful.

Verse 3 Paul uses the words, ‘I say to you.’ Often Jesus began an important statement with similar words (for example, John 3:3). God had shown his *grace to Paul, so that he had become an *apostle. So he speaks with authority. He tells Christians to think properly about their skills. They must not be proud. They must not think that they are better than other people. The standard by which they must *judge themselves is the standard of the *faith. That *faith means to trust in *Christ. He lived and died for them. When they think about *Christ’s action they will be humble.

Verses 4-5 Paul talks about the human body. All the different parts of a body are necessary. In the same way, all members of a Christian church should work together. Then the church can work properly. The people may have a variety of skills. But each skill is necessary for the purpose of God’s work in that church.

Verses 6-8 Christians should be humble because their skills come from God. Then Paul gives 7 examples of special skills that Christians should use. He mentions other special skills in 1 Corinthians chapter 12 and in Ephesians chapter 4.

1. *Prophecy. A Christian might receive a message from God. That Christian would give this message to the local church. But he must only give such a message if he has *faith. In other words, he must trust God that the message comes from God. Christians must not give *prophecies that do not come from God. So any *prophecy must agree with the Bible’s message.

2. To serve. The *Greek word is ‘diakonia’. It can mean various activities. The *apostles were ‘serving’ when they *preached (Acts 6:4). And the same word describes the work of the 7 *disciples who gave food to poor widows (see Acts 6:2-3). So a person should use whatever skills he has in order to serve other people.

3. To teach. After people become Christians, they need to learn about the meaning of their *faith in their daily life. Someone must teach them.

4. To encourage. This has two meanings: a) to persuade with strong words. A *preacher can do this. b) to comfort and give courage. Barnabas is an example of this meaning. He was well-known among the first Christians because of the way that he encouraged people (Acts 4:36-37; Acts 9:27).

5. To give. If we share our possessions, money or time with other people, we should do so in a generous way. We should enjoy ourselves as we give to other people.

6. To lead other people. Church leaders should carry out their responsibilities eagerly.

7. To show kindness. This can mean a) to forgive people who have offended us or b) to give help wherever anyone needs help. The good Samaritan was a man from Samaria whom Jesus spoke about. We can read this story in Luke chapter 10. This Samaritan had *mercy on a traveller who was hurting. The Samaritan delayed his own journey in order to help the man. And the Samaritan even paid so that the man could stay at a house (Luke 10:30-37).

The way of love 12:9-16

v9 Your love must be sincere. Hate everything that is evil. Love everything that is good.

v10 As Christian *brothers and *sisters, love each other fondly.

Give honour to each other. And do this even more than you care about your own honour!

v11 Do not be lazy in your work on behalf of the *Lord. Keep your *spiritual energy.

v12 Be joyful in hope. Be patient when you suffer. Be *faithful in prayer.

v13 Share with God’s people who are poor. Invite strangers into your home.

v14 Bless those who attack you. Bless them, and do not speak bad things to them.

v15 Be happy with those people who are happy. Weep with those people who weep.

v16 Live in agreement with each other.

Do not be proud. But be willing to be a friend to people who are not important.

Do not think that you are better than other people.

Christians are like a family. So we should love each other. The *Greek word for this kind of love is ‘agape’. This is the love that God has for us. So this love benefits everyone. Paul gives a list of brief rules. Christians should do these things. Their actions will show that their love is real. There are 12 different rules.

Verse 9

1. Love must be sincere. The word ‘sincere’ is a translation of the *Greek word. It means that a person is not pretending. People used that *Greek word to describe an actor in a play. The actor hid his real character behind a mask (cover) on his face. Christians must not be like actors. They must not merely pretend to love each other.

2. Hate everything that is evil. Love everything that is good. *Sin should disgust us.

Sometimes people do not hate their *sin. They only hate the thought that someone will discover their *sin. They are afraid. Someone may find out what they have done. Such an attitude is not right. A Christian should confess his *sin to God. And that Christian should pray for God’s help, so that he does not *sin in the same manner again. Instead, that Christian should try to do the things that please God. Christians must desire greatly to love all good things.

Verse 10

3. Love other Christians, like *brothers and *sisters. Paul uses words that describe the good feelings between relatives in a human family. Christians form a *spiritual family. So Christians should show the same kind of love to other Christians. They should look after each other like sisters and brothers.

4. Christians must give honour to other people. Christians should not insist on their rights. In other words, they should not always argue for their own benefit. They should not want thanks and honour for themselves. They should be humble and they should give honour to other people.

Verse 11

5. Christians must work hard in their service for the *Lord. With the *Lord’s help, Christians are opposing *sin and the devil, so they must not be lazy. They must use all their energy in the battle on God’s side.

Verse 12

6. Hope, patience and prayer. A Christian can eagerly expect his future *glory with the *Lord. But he needs to be patient when he suffers in the present. He must continue to pray on behalf of himself and other people as they all wait for the *Lord’s return.

Verse 13

7. Share with people who are poor. In the first church in Jerusalem, the Christians gave to anyone who needed help (Acts 2:44-45). The Christians in Antioch sent gifts to Jerusalem when there was not enough food for the Christians there (Acts 11:29-30). We often read in the *New Testament about such gifts. And Christians should continue to act in the same manner today.

8. Invite other people to stay in your home. In Paul’s time, there were not many places where travellers could stay. Travellers often had to sleep in unsafe places. So Christians should invite travellers into their homes. The writer to the Hebrews said, ‘Do not forget to entertain strangers. Some people did this. And they did not even know that *angels were their guests’ (Hebrews 13:2).

Verse 14

9. Bless those who insult you. Pray for those who attack you. Be kind to them. Do not speak bad things to them. Paul was saying the same words as Jesus (Luke 6:27-28). To bless and to pray for enemies is the evidence of Christian love.

Verse 15

10. Sympathise with other people. Christians should share other people’s joys and pains. Christians should care about other people. And Christians should look after other people.