Romans 12:3-5 NIV
“For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. For just as we have many parts in one body and all the body’s parts do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually parts of one another.”
It doesn’t matter what race or nationality we are, or who
our parents were (or are), or what our social status is, or who we are related
to, or how much money we make, or where we live, or what education we have had,
or what talents or gifts from God we may have.
What we have or what we were born with or what we have been
given does not make one of us Christians better than the other. God makes only
one division, and that is the righteous and the wicked, or the one believing in
Jesus and the one not believing in Jesus, or the one walking by the Spirit and
the one walking by the flesh, for they are all the same.
Whatever gifts, talents and ministries God has given to us
are not to be compared with other people’s gifts, talents, and ministries, for
God did not make us all the same. He didn’t give us all the same assignments. So,
not one is to be raised above the other or considered less than another.
We are one body, and we are to have equal concern, one for
the other, and we are to encourage one another in our walks of holiness. We
should never be in competition with another brother or sister in Christ. And we
should never say to another brother or sister that we don’t have need of him or
her.
Romans 12:9-13 NIV
“Love must be free of hypocrisy. Detest what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor, not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality.”
The kind of love being spoken of here is not human love. It
is not based on our feelings or our emotions. And it is not based on another’s
likeability to us, either. For, Scripture teaches that we are to love even our
enemies – that we are to pray for them, do good to them, and want for them what
is for their best, which is God’s best for them.
The kind of love being spoken of here, thus, has to do with
looking out for what is God’s best for others, for what will benefit them
spiritually, and for eternity. It is unselfish, self-sacrificing, and it is
based in moral preference, for it prefers what God prefers, i.e., it chooses
God’s choices.
So, if this love is to be free from hypocrisy, it means it
is not to be faked. We are not to pretend we love others by our words while our
actions speak the opposite. It is so easy to say, “I love you,” but then we
must back those words up with what we do.
But then we have to go back to what it means to “love,” for
many people today are saying that if we talk about sin or if we call people to
repentance or if we talk about judgment and hell that we are not being loving.
Love, to them, is tolerance. It is acceptance of other people’s sins.
Or, if we separate ourselves from the world, and we live
holy lives unto God, and we don’t participate with others in what is sinful to
us, then they call us judgmental or hyper-religious, and they think we are
being unloving.
So, for love to be without hypocrisy, we are to detest what
is evil, and we are to cling to what is good, which is the opposite of what the
world and the worldly church are saying. For, love does not coddle people in
their sin or join in with them in their sin to make them feel good.
So, being devoted to one another does not mean we overlook
their sinful practices and that we say nothing or that we join in with them so
that they don’t feel as though we are judging them. If truly we are devoted to
one another, we are going to help one another to not sin and to live holy lives.
Romans 12:14-18 NIV
“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Never repay evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all people. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all people.”
Black or white, rich or poor, straight or other, masks or no
masks, vaccine or no vaccine, Republican or Democrat, MSM or “Fake News,” MSM
or “Conspiracy Theories,” etc. The ELITE play us one against the other. Divide
and Conquer. Order out of chaos is the name of their game.
The ELITE and their followers stir the pot. Social media is
their playground as well as is the news media. Always some controversy going
on. Always angst. Always fear mongering, getting everyone afraid of something
so that they can come to the "rescue" to save us from ourselves.
So, don’t let them “pull your chain,” so to speak. Don’t let
them deceive you with their proclamations that they are looking out for what is
best for you. TV, social media, and the media in general can be very hypnotic
and captivating, and they can easily pull most humans under their spell.
So, step back from it all. Look at the overall picture.
Pray!! Ask the Lord to show you what is truly going on here. What is their
agenda? Don’t fall into their trap. Don’t let them get you fighting each other
over things which may not even be real, or which may not ever happen.
The enemy wants Christians at war with each other over all
sorts of issues, many of which were mentioned here already. And those on the
side of our enemy, Satan, can be very persuasive. They know how to “push
buttons,” i.e., to get people riled up. They are very good actors.
So, don’t believe everything you hear on social media, in
the media, coming from your government leaders or even from pastors and
teachers of the Word. For there are many liars and deceivers out there whose goal
it is to pull us away from Jesus and to get us fighting each other.
Live in harmony with other believers in Jesus who are living
in harmony with the Lord Jesus. Love one another as Jesus loved (and loves) us.
But don’t compromise truth or righteousness or morality to live at peace with
each other. For love detests what is evil and clings to what is good, and love
will do for others what is spiritually beneficial for them in light of
eternity.
Full
Release
An
Original Work / April 15, 2012
Walking daily with my Savior
brings me joy.
Loving Father; precious Jesus;
He’s my Savior and my Lord.
Gently leads me; follow Him.
I’ve invited Him within.
Now abiding in His presence,
oh, what peace.
From my self-life
He has brought me,
By His mercy, full release.
Hope and comfort,
peace and safety Jesus brings
When I daily bow before Him;
Obey freely; do His will.
Follow Him where’er He leads.
Listen to Him; His words heed.
Now obeying his words fully,
oh, what love
That He gives me
through salvation,
By His Spirit, from above.
Loving Father; precious Jesus,
He’s my friend.
With my Savior, by His Spirit,
I will endure to the end.
Share the gospel, tell what’s true.
Witness daily; His will do.
Tell the world of how their Savior
bled and died.
On a cruel cross He suffered
So that we might be alive.
No comments:
Post a Comment