Ahhh...It's been a long day today, but an enjoyable one. I just finished cleaning up a little after The Truth Project small group that Pastor Erik and I have at the house on Thursday nights. It was a lot of fun tonight. I'm praying that my brain can stay active enough to make it through this blog tonight. I guess I have to remember what we have been talking about. Every day we have to make the decision to put all the distractions aside and put ourselves on the altar as a living sacrifice for God. I'm going to be intentional about doing that tonight and I pray that you will as well.
So, have you begun to use your gift that we learned about in yesterday's passage? I hope that you took the time yesterday to consider the passage and to pray to be used by God, to function as part of the body.
Today we are going to continue to read Romans chapter 12. This time we will focus on only two verses. Please take a moment to read Romans 12:9-10 on your own. It shouldn't take long!
Now we dig!
Romans 12:9 (NKJV)
Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.
What do you think it means to let love be without hypocrisy? What is a hypocrite? If you don't know the definition of that word please open another window of your browser and google it. I would encourage you to search the definition of both words.
Done? Ok, so what is hypocrisy? Hypocrisy is when you claim to believe in something or feel something and yet your actions do not match your words. What is a hypocrite? A hypocrite is a person who acts the opposite of the way they claim to feel or believe. So now that we know what hypocrisy is we can go back to the first sentence in that verse. It says here in Romans that we are to love without hypocrisy. That means that we must love with actions and not just words. If we stated that we loved someone and acted as if we hated them we would be called a hypocrite. Think about the way you have behaved this week. Did you tell your parents you loved them but then did not act in a loving way? I know I have been guilty of that in the past! Ask my mom, she'll tell you! But true love, real love, has words and actions that match.
The next part says to abhor what is evil. What does it mean to abhor? It means to loathe, or hate. I have to be honest with you guys here. When I was younger, and before I came to know Christ, I used to watch horror movies. I used to see the gore and it wouldn't bother me at all. However, the closer I have grown to Christ the harder it has become for me to even see evil depicted on film. I know the movie is not real, but to see something acted out that is evil repulses me. I not only hate evil, I literally can not be around it. It turns my stomach. That is the way God wants you to react to evil that may want to creep up in your life. I'm not talking about viewing horror movies here, I'm talking about any sinful nature that you may have that wants to trip you up. You may be putting your life on the right path for God, but you have that one sin in your life that you are having a hard time kicking to the curb. God wants you to start viewing that sin as something you abhor, something that makes you sick to be around.
The last part of that verse says to cling to what is good. God, therefore, wants you to hate evil and to not only love what is good but to cling to it. The word cling conjures up the image of my daughter when she was about two years old. She used to like to sit by my feet while I was washing dishes after dinner. Sometimes she would hold unto my leg and when I would walk away from the sink I would drag her across the floor. She loved that! She would laugh and laugh. The thing is my daughter wasn't just holding onto me, she was clinging to me, clutching onto me as hard as she could so she could be dragged across the floor and not fall off. Clinging to something is hanging onto it for dear life. That means God wants you to not only hold onto good he wants you to cling to it for dear life.
Romans 12:10 (NKJV)
Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another.
Here we learn that we should be kind and affectionate to each other. The verse also clearly states that this affection is not romantic love, but brotherly love. We are called to love each other as we would our own brothers, our own family. It also says that we should give preference to one another. That means that you should think of others before yourself.
Remember that the focus this week is on living a transformed life for Christ. We are called to be set apart for Him. How do these two verses help us to live a life transformed? Well, these verses taught us how to behave. We are called to think of others as more important than ourselves, to love in action and in word, to be kind and affectionate. Keep yourself as far away from every evil thing as possible and surround yourself with good. Hold onto good for dear life! I know that you can put these things into practice today. At the same time remember to use your gift this week as well.
Good night Transformers!
'Til tomorrow...God Bless!
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