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1 Romans 12:9-13 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor 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. Romans 12 is not a disciplinary section. Paul is not telling the church in Rome what they should do because they have problems. He addresses them with the anticipation that they want to do what is right in light of everything that God has done as delineated in the previous chapters. Now we come to verses 9-13 where Paul puts forth additional information as to a general life perspective. Verse 9 seems to be a hinge verse in which the conversation switches from living in the body to the principles of love. Verse 9 is set up differently than verses 6-8 and is different that Verses follow one format that is very emphatic as to the nature of love. Here is a truth that is often overlooked: we are not love; we are not the embodiment of love; we only mirror the love of God and often not very clearly. Our objective is to be Christ-like when we act in love, then we are successful. When our selfish ambition takes over, we do not act in love. Grammatical Analysis: 1. There are no verbs, so these are axiomatic absolute truth 2. The adjectives and the participles are the subject of each clause (Nominative Plural Masculine) 3. This indicates that Paul is describing believers in respect to love (an ideal) 4. Because these descriptions are idealistic, they are normally translated as imperatives. 5. In describing the attributes of love, Paul was providing motivation to emulate The Love 6. Paul also does this in 1 st Corinthians In Greek word order, the dative phrases (e.g. in diligence) are first in the clauses. This indicates that the emphasis is placed more upon the qualifying condition than the attribute. 8. These statements are very much Christian cliché. Many times, people repeat these lines and nod their heads but the phrases are rarely understood. Our attempt is to try to explain the meaning so that we can understand the full force of these phrases and then evaluate these attributes to apply them to our lives. To review what we learned last lesson, let us look at the translation of verses 9-10a: Love is not pretentious; being ones who actively hate the evil, being ones who cleave to the good (agathos); co-cherishing of one another as one s kin in brotherly love. Love is the ultimate goal and is the underlying theme of Romans The Love is the love of God in Jesus Christ. He is the example. The attributes found in this paragraph are godly attributes. Every one of the attributes is personified by Jesus, in His life chronicled by the Gospels.

2 Last lesson, we finished mid verse in verse 10, so we pick up with the second half. The second phrase is give preference to one another in honor. This phrase has been disputed by almost every lexicon and word study. προηγέομαι proēgeomai is a compound word with the prefix προ pro (before, in front, prior) with ἡγέομαι hēgeomai. This is where the confusion comes in. This word can either mean to lead or guide or it can mean esteem, think, or count. The two choices are being ones who guide one another in honor or being ones who think of one another first in honor. There is very little external information on this word. Looking at when the term ἡγέομαι hēgeomai is used in regard to guiding, it is always in reference to leadership (Heb 13:7). But Paul never uses it in this manner (Phil 2:3; 3:7-8). Obviously, not all or many are leaders, so this word should be understood as being ones who think of one another as first. This is not an idea of priority but of value. The other person has been evaluated and determined to have priority. A couple translations state outdo one another is showing honor. They understand that everyone cannot take the lead so they look at this as a healthy competition. This is not supported by the context or word usage. Honor is τιμή timē which indicates respect or placing a high value upon. This word is normally translated honor and is a good translation. Honor reflects back to being ones who esteem (determine) others first, that they are more important. The function is based upon honor. A rendering of this phrase may be being ones who have determined that others are more important, placing a high value upon one another. As stated, the emphasis in this clause is in honor. This means that the determination is based upon honor of the other. The antithesis is that you think of yourself not worthy. In verse 11, we have three clauses not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. In the first clause, the term not lagging behind is an adjective with a negative particle. ὀκνηρός oknēros (awk-nay-rahs ) is cognate of the verb meaning to delay. The adjective is used three times (Matthew 25:24-26; Philippians 3:1). In the other references, the acts are determined to be useless, lazy, refusing to work. Paul s other use of this word indicates that his writing the same thing was not a waste of time. Diligence is σπουδή spoudē, the same word as in verse 8 and is defined as haste, urgency, or eagerness. Putting them together, the reference must be understood in context of love and is outward in its action. This is not in reference to work ethic in a profession but more in regard to the function of the believer to others. When we see a need, we should have an urgency to meet that need.

3 Fervent in spirit fervent is ζέω zeō and is a verb (Present Active Participle) that is the root for ζηλωτής zēlōtēs. The verb means to boil, to be inflamed. This is obviously figurative in regard to enthusiasm. The only other time this verb is used is in Acts 18:25. A cognate of this word is used in Titus 2:14 and 1 st Peter 3:13 where the people are described as being an enthusiast for good. Another cognate is used in Revelation 3:19 as an imperative verb. They were commanded to be zealous. I have a question about this. Fervor, zeal, and enthusiasm are tied to emotions. How can one determine or choose to be enthusiastic? The typical response is to rev oneself up and be determined to be happy and excited regardless of the circumstance. But that only leads to obvious false emotion. Most people see through this very quickly. Are zeal and enthusiasm the same as happy and excited? Let me suggest that this is not an emotional high but a focus, a maintained enthusiasm. The two usages of ζέω zeō provide the clue. Both have the dative in spirit. In spirit each of the dative phrases contains an article (in the honor, in the brotherly love, in the diligence, etc.), so it would be improper to emphasize one article over another. But in Acts 18:25, Apollos was fervent in the spirit. Is this a statement that he was excited in his own spirit? Or is his enthusiasm based upon a focus being in the Spirit? Galatians 5:16-17, 25 Being spiritual, led by the spirit, is the proper state for the believer. It is not based upon maturity (maturity makes it easier), but rather this is based upon the focus of the believer being in tune with Holy Spirit, considering the Lord s direction through what we understand from the Word of God. ***Infatuation vs. Love*** If we are focused in the Spirt then the fervency that we often lose will come back. It is inevitable. Those who have trouble regaining an enthusiasm for the Lord are not focused on Him or His Word. Some try to regain it through superfluous spiritualisms (worship concerts, feel good retreats). Sometimes, we need to get away but if the refreshing is not based upon God s Word then the fervency is temporary, weak, and not in the Spirit but in the act of men. This clause would be translated being ones who are fervent in the Spirit. We have to focus back that this is an attribute of love. This is an outward outpouring of the believer to others. Those who are characterized by the love of God are ones who have an authentic enthusiasm for God that is demonstrated to others.

4 Serving the Lord serving is the participle δουλεύω douleuō (duel-you -oh), meaning to be in service, perform the duties of a slave or servant. This is not a difficult concept. The problem is in the translation. Obviously, we are ones who do emphasize serving the Lord, doing what He desires. Is that how this should be translated or understood? Just as before, the Lord is a dative phrase. The in is added due to the part of speech. Here the translators include the article and leave out the dative understanding. Does it change the understanding if we say, serving in the Lord? Being ones who serve in the Lord indicates that the service is not directed to God but to others and the source or reason for the service is the Lord. Verse 12 adds three more attributes of love, rejoicing in hope, preserving in tribulation, devoted to prayer. Just so I do not have to do a lot of repetition, the LCV is In the hope, rejoicing; in the tribulation, enduring; in the prayer, continuing. Rejoicing is χαίρω chairō (kai -roh) and means to take pleasure in, be happy, be glad. In biblical context, this is always in response to Biblical truth or promises. In this context the happiness is based upon the hope. ἐλπίς elpis is different than the English watery definition of hope. This is an assurance of a future expectation. This is not based upon a lack of knowledge but based what we know awaits us. The hope always refers to the promise of glory, salvation from this flesh, and being in an eternal state. Is being ones who rejoice in the hope internal or external? If this is an attribute of love, then the mood of believers should be happiness as we convey the truth of eternal expectations to one another. Enduring tribulation is a concept that we have seen in other epistles. The participle is ὑπομένω hupomenō and literally means to remain under. I like to remind fellow believers that God never promises to remove the pressure but encourages us to remain under it, handling it with patience (1 st Peter 2:18-20). Tribulation is θλῖψις thlipsis which is better understood as pressure. This pressure can be anything external that can lead a believer to doubt God or act in some immoral manner. Most of the time, this is tied to persecution. Intense persecution (public harassment, imprisonment, threat of death) often causes believers to doubt God or acquiesce to what the pressure is designed to do, usually denying truth or Jesus Christ Himself.

5 By definition, being pressured is not enduring. One must not acquiesce to the pressure. Handling it properly based upon the word of God with patience and an understanding of eternity. Pressure that is given into or that we constantly complain about is not endurance. Again, is this internal or external? How does this characterize The Love? We are to add to the success of the saints by being a voice to endure and being an example by handling all pressure properly. In the NASB, the next phrase is devoted to prayer. But as we already saw this is in the prayer the participle is προσκαρτερέω proskartereō (prah-skahr-teh-reh -oh) and literally means to be earnest towards, be constantly diligent to. To whom or what are we to be earnest? This is not to prayer. This is inconsistent with the text. Also, being steadfast to prayer is like saying having faith in faith. We are to be earnest for one another, to be diligent toward one another in the prayer. Love is set forth toward one another when we are constantly praying for one another. The word for prayer here is the standard word προσευχή proseuchē which is a formal address to God the Father. It is a planned meeting with God and we have talking points to discuss with God the betterment of one another (in His will). Verse 13 finishes these clauses with two more attributes, contributing to needs and practicing hospitality. At this point, I do not think it is necessary to point out that the translators add or subtract to help us read in English what they think is the message. Contributing is κοινωνέω koinōneō which is a word for fellowship, to share in, partake, possess together (Romans 15:27). The idea of possessing needs with one another indicates that one takes on a portion of the burden. One of the most obvious attributes of love is to share needs. Practicing hospitality διώκω diōkō means to pursue and it is often used as ones who persecute. To follow after someone is not good or evil; it is the intentions that determine the understanding. As we have already done before, we must ensure that the emphasis is not in the act of hospitality but that love is characterized by pursuing one another in the hospitality (have them as a guest). Conclusion This unique paragraph is self-explanatory when translated and explored properly. We need to understand the attributes of love and understand that Jesus is our example. Our goal is to be Christ-like and this list serves as a mirror to see if our attributes are reflecting the ideal love of God through our focus and actions.