What Genuine Love Looks Like Among Christians
Thinking about Romans 12:9-13.
Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. (Romans 12:9-13)
What Paul has done so far in Romans 12 is this:
Urge Christians to present themselves as living sacrifices to God (12:1-2).
As living sacrifices, Christians must not think more highly of themselves and their gifts than they ought (12:3-5).
As living sacrifices, Christians ought to use the gifts God has given us in His service (12:6-8).
In our current section, Paul emphasizes the importance of genuine love for each other. “Let love be without hypocrisy” acts as the “thesis statement” of this section (Pollard, Truth for Today Commentary, 438-439).
Genuine Love Abhors What’s Evil and Clings to What’s Good.
To “abhor” evil means to have a “vehement dislike” for evil. At the same time, genuine love is firmly attached to what’s good.
Christians who demonstrate genuine love detest evil but cling tightly to what’s good and right.
Genuine Love is Kindly Affectionate to the Brethren.
Brotherly love refers to the love brothers and sisters in Christ are to have for one another as God’s family (1 Thessalonians 4:9; Hebrews 13:1; 1 Peter 1:22; 2 Peter 1:7).
There ought to be a devotion to kindness and love for our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Genuine Love Puts Others Before Self.
The idea here is to “take the lead” and to “go out of your way” to show honor for your brothers and sisters in Christ. We are to consider our brethren before ourselves (Philippians 2:3).
Instead of waiting for others to honor us, we should take the lead in honoring and considering others better than ourselves.
Genuine Love is Not Lazy but Zealous in Serving.
Paul urged the Christians in the churches of Galatia “not to grow weary while doing good” (Galatians 6:9-10).
Christians who are lazy when it comes to serving others demonstrate that their love is not sincere. We must be “fervent” or “zealous” in serving others. The picture behind the word “fervent” is a boiling pot of water.
The person who is eager to serve demonstrates a genuine love for the Lord and their brethren, while the reluctant or grumbling servant shows they care more about themselves than others.
Genuine Love Rejoices in Hope, Endures in Suffering, and Persists in Prayer.
The Christian’s hope is grounded in God and is an important point in Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome (Romans 4:18; 5:2, 4-5; 8:20, 24; 15:4, 13).
The Christian’s hope is based upon what God has done in Jesus Christ. Genuine love continues to rejoice in what Christ has done for us and reminds others of this wonderful hope.
Because of the hope Christians have in Christ, they also were able to endure through “tribulation” or “suffering.” Genuine love pushes through difficult times by remembering the hope we have in Jesus Christ.
Prayer is another characteristic of Christians and is something which we ought to be devoted to (Colossians 1:9; 1 Thessalonians 5:17).
How dismal would tribulation be without hope (1 Corinthians 15:19) and how defeatist would we be in persecution without the resources of hope and patience conveyed to us through prayer. - Murray, 2:132
Genuine Love Contributes to the Needs of the Brethren.
Paul encouraged Christians who had the financial means to help their brethren in need to do so (Romans 15:25-27; 1 Corinthians 16:1-4; 2 Corinthians 8-9). This was also practiced by the very first Christians (Acts 2:44-45).
A sincere love means we will be generous with the blessings God has given us, and seek to share with our brethren in need.
Genuine Love Looks for Opportunities to Show Hospitality.
Hospitality is bringing someone into our home and making them feel at home. It’s caring for others enough that you would even open your own home to them to help them.
Paul realized how important hospitality was to evangelization. Many wandering missionaries relied on the generosity of others, as Paul did on his missionary journeys. Jesus also counted on hospitality when He sent out His first disciples (Matthew 10:5-15); and later missionaries, knowing the deplorable conditions in most public inns, relied heavily on Christian kindness. - Pollard, Truth for Today Commentary, 443
Genuine love looks for opportunities to help and care for others - even going so far as to bring others into our homes.
Love is not merely an emotion. It’s not merely saying the word, “I love you.”
As you’ve noticed from what we’ve studied in Romans 12:9-13, genuine love is connected to what we do.
Our brothers and sisters in Christ will know our love for them based on what we do to show our love. The lost and hurting in our communities will know that we love them based on what we do.
Do your actions demonstrate a genuine or hypocritical love?
You are correct... love is not a feeling, but an action!