Introduction

When I was in the sixth grade, I learned the hard way the difference between being privileged and being favored. My friend Ricky and I were projectionists. It was a position of privilege; it was also a privilege because we got out of class to run the projector for other classes. However, Ricky and I did not live up to our position of privilege. We raced the projection cart, with the projector, down the empty halls of the school while everyone else was in class.

On one occasion, just as I was banking a curve with the skill of Andy Granatelli and making record time down the hallways, I collided with one of the teachers. Unfortunately for me, the teacher was my father. Although I was his son, this did not make things easier for me; in fact, it made things much worse. Because I was his son, he gave me a double dose of discipline. My racing days were over, at least in the school halls where my father might be encountered.

The nation Israel was God’s “son” in the sense that God had chosen this people to be the source of blessing to all the world (see Exodus 4:23; Hosea 11:1). The Jews quickly began to forget that God’s blessings and their privileged status were gifts of God’s grace, something for which they could take no credit. They began to presume on God’s grace, supposing that because they were privileged they were exempt from God’s chastening. They believed in the “kindness and severity of God.” They also believed they deserved and were assured of God’s kindness, and that the Gentile heathen deserved God’s severity. Israel’s pride became her downfall.

The downfall of Israel and the salvation of Gentiles is the subject of Romans 9-11. Two primary questions are asked and answered in these three chapters:

(1) Has the Word of God failed because Israel has failed (see 9:6)?

(2) Is there any hope for the nation Israel, or was her failure fatal and final (see 11:1, 11)?

Paul’s answers to these questions are clear and confident. His answer to the first question is this: The Word of God has not failed; rather, God’s Word has been fulfilled. The Old Testament clearly reveals that God never intended or promised to save and to bless every physical descendant of Abraham. God chose to bless some and not others. Those who have failed are those whom God has not chosen; the faithful remnant are His chosen ones. It is men who have failed because the gospel was proclaimed to the nation Israel, and they willfully rejected it. For their disobedience, they are without excuse.

Paul’s answer to the second question is this: Israel’s hope is still future, and it is just as certain as God’s Word is reliable. Israel’s disobedience and God’s chastening was long before foretold by Moses in Deuteronomy 28-31. Israel’s history is but the playing out of prophecy. Since God’s promises to Israel are not based upon human merit or works but on sovereign grace, they are unthreatened by Israel’s disobedience. Just as no amount of good works could merit God’s grace, no amount of sin and rebellion can thwart His grace.

The conversion of many Gentiles bears testimony that Israel’s sin has resulted in the fulfilling of God’s purpose to save men from every nation. Israel was to be a “light to the Gentiles.” It was their privilege and responsibility not only to believe the gospel but to proclaim it to the nations. They neither believed it nor proclaimed it. Because of Israel’s disobedience, the good news of the gospel has been extended to the Gentiles, and many have come to faith. All this has happened through Israel as a disobedient people. One can hardly fathom what blessings will come to the world when Israel repents of her sin and comes to faith in Jesus as the Messiah.

The spotlight has been on Israel up to this point. Paul does not want her failure to produce the wrong result in the hearts and lives of his Gentile readers. The Gentiles are no different than the Jews, for all have sinned. The failures of Israel should serve to warn the Gentiles against committing similar sins. Paul fears that in focusing on the failures of the Jews, some Gentiles might become puffed up with feelings of pride, looking down on the Jews. As a result, Paul turns from explanation to application in verse 13 of Romans 11. He wishes for his Gentile readers to learn from Israel’s failures. He desires that they respond to God’s grace with humility and praise toward God rather than with pride.

In verses 25-32, to be considered in our next lesson, Paul will turn to Israel’s future restoration. He will direct our attention to the fulfillment of God’s promises to His people, the Jews, as it relates to God’s present dealings with the Gentiles. Finally, in verses 33-36, Paul will fall on his knees, praising God for His infinite wisdom as revealed in the outworking of His plan to save both Jews and Gentiles.

Structure of the Text

It is probably best to view our passage as falling into two major sections. Verses 13-16 focus on Paul, on his identity as a Jew, and on his ministry to the Gentiles. Verses 17-24 focus on Paul’s Gentile readers, who may misinterpret the failure of the Jews and the blessings which God has been pouring out on the Gentiles. Here Paul warns his Gentile readers of the folly and consequences of pride as seen from Israel’s history.

The structure of our text can be summarized:

(1) Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles as a faithful Jew — Verses 13-16

(2) Paul’s words of admonition to the Gentiles, based upon the failure of the Jews — Verses 17-24

Paul’s Ministry to the Gentiles Explained
(11:13-16)

13 But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify²⁷ my ministry, 14 if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them. 15 For if their rejection be the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? 16 And if the first piece of dough be holy, the lump is also; and if the root be holy, the branches are too.

Currently, Israel is to be characterized by her unbelief. She is under divine discipline as seen by her dullness to the truth of the gospel. Nevertheless, in spite of Israel’s present unbelief, there is hope for the Jews. This hope is based upon the faithfulness of God to His Word and not the faithfulness of God’s people. Israel’s failure is partial, for God has preserved a faithful remnant. Her failure is not permanent, for she will be restored in the future.

In coming to faith in Christ, Paul has not denied his Jewish heritage. His conversion was no denial of his Jewish hopes but an entrance into them through Jesus, Israel’s Messiah. Therefore, in chapters 9-11 Paul has pointed to his roots and affirmed his loyalty to both his heritage and his hopes as a Jew.

This raises a question: If Paul is a faithful Jew, what is he doing ministering to Gentiles? If there is still hope for Israel, how can Paul justify ministering to Gentiles rather than to Jews?²⁸ Paul’s answer is given in verses 13-16. His response proves that his ministry to the Gentiles is completely consistent with His Jewish heritage and hope.

Paul acknowledges that he is an “apostle to the Gentiles” (verse 13). This is not a ministry which he takes lightly. Indeed far from minimizing his ministry, he seeks to magnify it. He seeks to enlarge and to enhance this ministry to the degree that God enables him. Paul does not take this ministry on half-heartedly or perform it begrudgingly.

Although not stated in our text, I believe there is a very good reason why Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles is fully compatible with his identity as a Jew. Paul might be thought of as some kind of exception, some deviation from the norm. Some might think his ministry to the Gentiles was a unique calling. It was not. Israel had been chosen to become the source of blessing to all nations. Israel was not only to believe the gospel but to proclaim it to the nations, to the Gentiles. They both refused the gospel and resisted its proclamation among the nations.²⁹ When Paul obediently preached the gospel to the Gentiles, he was simply doing that which every faithful Jew was called to do—to take the light to the Gentiles. While Paul’s actions may seem to be the exception, God had instructed that they be the rule. Paul’s ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles was completely consistent with his calling as a Jew.

Paul also understood that his ministry to Gentiles was not in conflict with God’s purposes for the Jews or with his hope as a Jew. He saw his ministry as playing a role in God’s purpose and program for the Jews at that point in time:

Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them (verses 13b-14).

His preaching to the Gentiles certainly did provoke the Jews to jealousy, as we can see in the Book of Acts:

“And he said to me, ‘Go! For I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’” And they [the Jewish mob gathered at Jerusalem] listened to him up to this statement, and then they raised their voices and said, “Away with such a fellow from the earth, for he should not be allowed to live!” (Acts 22:21-22).

The Jews did not want the gospel, but neither did they want Paul to preach this gospel to the Gentiles.

Provoking the Jews to jealousy was fulfilling God’s purpose for Israel at this time in history, as a divine response to their rebellion. This was fully consistent with the prophecy of Deuteronomy 28-31, which not only foretold of Israel’s disobedience but of the divine discipline God would bring on His people:

‘They have made Me jealous with what is not God; They have provoked Me to anger with their idols. So I will make them jealous with those who are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation’ (Deuteronomy 32:21).

Isaiah’s ministry as a prophet of God to the Jews was not to bring this willful nation to repentance but to proclaim its guilt and even add to it (Isaiah 6:1-10).³⁰ Paul’s ministry was not to turn this willful nation around but to play a part in provoking it to jealousy. In this way, some would be saved. And in this remnant, Israel’s hope was assured.

Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles was not in conflict with God’s promises to Israel. His ministry was perfectly consistent with all that God had said. Paul was confident of this, and thus he could magnify his ministry among the Gentiles knowing that in the long run it was for the good of his fellow-countrymen.

There is a vitally important point to be noted here. Ministry is like spirituality: appearances are often deceiving. To the unbelieving Jews, Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles appeared to be a betrayal of his heritage. He looked to the unbelieving Jews like a traitor to the cause of Israel. They were wrong, because they looked only at the appearance and not at the truth.

In Luke’s Gospel, our Lord warned the Pharisees about judging on the basis of appearances.

And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15).

Outwardly, the appearance was that Paul was unfaithful to his Jewish heritage and calling. The unbelieving Jews thought they were “keeping the faith.” In reality, they were doing just the opposite. The unbelieving nation of Israel did not believe in Jesus as their Messiah, and they did not proclaim the good news to the Gentiles. Paul did so, and in being obedient to his calling (both individually and as a Jew), he provoked his brethren to jealousy and some came to faith.

Who would ever have thought Jewish evangelism would have been achieved by Gentile evangelism? Who would have imagined that by turning to the Gentiles Paul was doing Israel a great service? No one. But this is the way God works. In verses 33-36 of this chapter, Paul concludes by praising God for His wisdom, a wisdom which far surpasses anything men would have devised or even imagined. Who would have imagined that the salvation of the Gentiles would have been accomplished through Israel’s disobedience rather than her obedience? Yet this was God’s way. In achieving His purposes His way, God receives all the glory.

We have here a very important lesson to be learned. Frequently, we are called to achieve God’s purposes in ways which may seem contrary to His purposes. In biblical terms, we are called to walk by faith and not by sight, to walk in obedience to His Word, even when doing so seems contrary to God’s purposes.

For example, how could one ever imagine that God’s promise to Abraham would be fulfilled by obeying God and putting his son to death as God commanded him (see Genesis 22)? Faith required Abraham to obey, trusting in God rather to live by appearances. God calls upon us to give up our lives in order to gain them, to take up our cross in order to serve Him. Obedience to God’s Word by faith may often seem inconsistent with what He has promised to accomplish, but God’s ways are often accomplished by the most unlikely means.

The church has been commanded to “make disciples of every nation” (Matthew 28:18-20). This command necessitates evangelism, preaching the gospel (see Romans 10:14-15). Often there are often those who lay a guilt trip on every believer, insisting that we obey the Lord’s command by doing what appears to be evangelistic. And so every Christian is urged to do those things which on the surface seem to be evangelism. If we are not passing out tracts, going door to door, or doing what others expect of us, we can often feel guilty. If Paul had done what appeared to be necessary to evangelize the Jews, he would have been aggressively pursuing Jewish evangelism. He did actively pursue Jewish evangelism, by going to the synagogues and preaching Christ. But he also saw that his ministry to the Gentiles was playing a part in Jewish evangelism too even if it did not appear so.

A young man may be out mowing the church lawn on a hot Saturday afternoon. As the heat of the sun bears down upon him, he may wonder if he should be mowing the grass when he could be out witnessing. But it may be the neatly-kept lawn which attracts and encourages a passerby to visit the church and thus hear the gospel. A housewife making a plate of cookies for an ailing neighbor may very well be playing a part in God’s plan to bring that neighbor to faith.

God has given each member of His body, the church, different gifts and a different ministry. We must exercise our gifts and fulfill our ministry, even though it may not “look” spiritual or appear to be directly related to God’s purposes. It is only when we see our obedience to Christ’s calling as a part of the larger program and purposes of God that we are able to “magnify our ministry,” knowing that God will use it to achieve His purposes.

Paul performs his ministry to the Gentiles in hope—not only the hope of saving some Gentiles, but in the certain hope that all Israel will be restored to a place of belief and blessing. This hope is expressed in verses 15 and 16. The specific meaning of Paul’s words here provokes great discussion, but the general intent of his words is very clear: Israel’s rejection of the gospel has led to the universal proclamation of the gospel to the whole world. Thereby, reconciliation to God has been offered to all the world. Whereas the offer of the gospel was initially restricted to the Jews (see Matthew 10:5-7; 15:24), their rejection of the good news caused the preaching of the gospel to be universal. Reconciliation is available to all who will receive it, by grace through faith.

If Israel’s rejection of the gospel has brought about the “reconciliation of the world,” how much more the world will be blessed by Israel’s acceptance of the gospel (verse 15). It will bring about not only reconciliation but “life from the dead.”³¹ This argument from the lesser to the greater is but an elaboration of what Paul has already said in verse 12.

Paul turns in verse 16 to two other illustrations which affirm the hope of Israel. The first illustration is the imagery of the first-fruits as God prescribed these offerings in Leviticus 15. The first-fruits were the offerings of the first part of the greater quantity which was yet to come. The first small portion of grain harvested was offered to God, acknowledging that He had provided it and that He would provide the full harvest which was still to come. If the first portion of “dough” is “holy,” it is assured that the rest of the “lump” will be holy. Whether the first-fruit to which Paul refers is that of Abraham (and perhaps the patriarchs), or that of the remnant of true Israelites, the point is clear: God has saved some, and these are the evidences that a greater harvest is to come.

The second illustration Paul uses in verse 16 is that of the tree, its roots, and its branches. This imagery will be the basis for Paul’s admonition in verses 17-24. But here he wishes to show that the well-being of the root is the basis for the well-being of the limbs and their fruit.

Paul is seeking to establish and to demonstrate two major principles by his words in verses 15 and 16. First, he is arguing that the good which we presently see God doing through Israel’s disobedience is insignificant in comparison to the good which God is yet to do through Israel’s repentance and restoration.

Second, I believe he is seeking to tie the welfare of the Gentiles to the well-being of the Jews. If the Gentiles should be so foolish as to rejoice at the downfall of Israel, they are mistaken. They have benefited from Israel’s downfall, but they, like Paul, should seek the restoration of Israel, for the restoration of Israel is the basis for even greater blessings for the Gentiles. The blessings of the Gentiles are always linked to their root in the Jews. The more God blesses Israel, the more we Gentiles are blessed. We Gentiles, like Paul, should be cheering for the Jews. Their blessings are the basis for our own. Only a fool would rejoice in Israel’s failure or in God’s divine chastening of these His chosen people.

Lessons to Learn From Israel’s Failures
(11:17-24)

17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, 18 do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you. 19 You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20 Quite right, they were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear; 21 for if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will He spare you.

22 Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. 23 And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in; for God is able to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more shall these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree?

Now having laid the foundation, Paul brings his Gentile readers to the point of what he has been teaching them. Using the analogy of the fig tree and its branches, Paul shows the folly of spiritual pride and the need for a deep sense of humility and holy fear. Before interpreting the meaning of Paul’s words, let us first lay a foundation to guide us and keep us from pressing the meaning of Paul’s imagery too far.

First, Paul is speaking of Israel and the Gentiles collectively more than he is speaking of men individually. While there are individual dimensions to Paul’s words, he is primarily speaking here collectively of God’s dealings with the Jews and the Gentiles. The thrust of Paul’s teaching in these verses is not to speak of the salvation of individuals so much as the privileges and blessings of two groups: the Jews and the Gentiles.

Second, Paul is speaking generally of the privileges and blessings which God bestows on His people. While salvation is surely a blessing which God bestows by means of His grace, the blessings of which Paul speaks here are more general, including salvation but not restricted to it.

Third, the larger context of Romans 9-11 stresses the sovereignty of God and the certainty of His blessings in spite of the failure of His people. Paul has stressed the security of the believer, and here in these verses it is most unlikely that he is attempting to do so now. Paul is striving to discourage pride and to encourage humility.

Fourth, the problem underlying these words is that Gentile believers, like the Jews, may soon forget that God’s blessings in their lives are by His grace through faith and not of works.

Having determined the general sense and thrust of this passage, let us now try to understand in greater detail by looking more closely at Paul’s words of warning to the Gentile Christian based upon Israel’s failures.

In the early chapters of Deuteronomy, God warned the Israelites they would soon forget that His blessings were based upon grace and not upon their worth. The Israelites were a greatly privileged people:

“Indeed, ask now concerning the former days which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and inquire from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything been done like this great thing, or has anything been heard like it? Has any people heard the voice of God speaking from the midst of the fire, as you have heard it, and survived? Or has a god tried to go to take for himself a nation from within another nation by trials, by signs and wonders and by war and by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm and by great terrors, as the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? To you it was shown that you might know that the LORD, He is God; there is no other besides Him. Out of the heavens He let you hear His voice to discipline you; and on earth He let you see His great fire, and you heard His words from the midst of the fire. Because He loved your fathers, therefore He chose their descendants after them. And He personally brought you from Egypt by His great power, driving out from before you nations greater and mightier than you, to bring you in and give to you their land for an inheritance, as it is today (Deuteronomy 4:32-38).

But God knew that once the Israelites began to taste of God’s grace in the land of Canaan, they would forget that all His blessings were bestowed on them by grace in spite of their sin:

Beware lest you forget the LORD your God by not keeping His commandments and His ordinances and His statutes which I am commanding you today; lest, when you have eaten and are satisfied, and have built good houses and lived in them, and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold multiply, and all that you have multiplies, then your heart becomes proud, and you forget the LORD your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. He led you through the great and terrible wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water; He brought water for you out of the rock of flint. In the wilderness He fed you manna which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might test you, to do good for you in the end. Otherwise, you may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.’ But you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day (Deuteronomy 8:11-18).

The Israelites did not heed these words of warning. Over and over in their history, they turned from God to idols. They spurned God’s grace and became proud in heart. They believed God blessed them because they were superior to the Gentiles. Their pride was but self-righteousness. In their self-righteousness, they ignored or denied their sin, and thus they felt no need for grace (a rich man needs no charity.) And so, when Jesus came, offering grace and forgiveness to “sinners,” the majority of Israelites did not think they needed Him nor did they want a Messiah like Him. They disdained and rejected the salvation He offered to sinners. Ultimately, they put Him to death, with the help of the Romans.

Now the Jews and the Gentiles have changed places. The Jews are the heathen, and the Gentiles are being offered forgiveness and salvation by grace through faith. As Gentiles believe and enter into the blessings of God, all too soon they too will forget that God’s blessings are by His grace alone. They will begin to look down on the Jews who have not believed and who are suffering divine discipline. They will become arrogant about their privileged status. They will repeat the sin of the Jews.

Following the imagery of the olive tree and its branches, Paul illustrates two forms which Gentile arrogance may take. The first form of error is exposed and corrected in verses 17 and 18, and the second in verses 19-21. In verses 22-24, Paul returns to the crux of the matter, the basis for all of God’s blessings. His words in these verses, if believed, will produce humility and dependence.³²

In verses 17 and 18, the first form of Gentile error is exposed. A Jewish branch is broken off from the tree. A Gentile branch, which is inferior—a “wild” olive branch, is grafted into the tree. The Gentile branch begins to feel arrogant toward the branches. He fails to see that he is grafted in among the Jewish branches (verse 17). He does not understand that
Israel's failure is both temporary and partial. It is as though there are no branches, other than Gentile branches. This is exactly how the Jews felt toward the Gentiles. If one were to enter into God’s blessings, one had to become a Jew.

And when the Gentile branch realizes that there are Jewish branches, he begins to feel superior to them. Paul reminds the Gentile branch that he is a “wild olive branch,” an inferior branch, as far as fruit-bearing is concerned. Grafting in such an inferior branch is contrary to nature (see verse 24). God grafted the Gentile branch into the tree in spite of its “roots” and not because of its superiority.

Does this Gentile branch reason that God has removed Israel from His plan and purpose? Does he think it is all over for the nation Israel, from the question asked in verses 1 and 11 of chapter 11? Does he suppose God’s Word has failed (9:6)? Let him recall that he is the branch, and Israel is the tree. It is not a Gentile tree which may support a few Jewish Christians, but a Jewish tree which supports some Gentiles.

I am reminded of the relationship between a flea and a dog. Israel is the dog, and the flea is a Gentile Christian. How foolish for the flea to despise the dog and to suppose that the dog is dependent on him. All the flea does for the dog is make him itch. All the Gentile does for the Jewish unbeliever is make him jealous. How foolish for fleas to look down on the dog. How foolish for Gentiles to disdain the Jews!

A second form of Gentile pride is described and corrected in verses 19-21. If the first error was in misunderstanding the relationship of the grafted branch to the tree, the second error is in misunderstanding the relationship between the “broken off” (Jewish) limb to the “grafted in” (Gentile) limb.

A Jewish limb is broken off. A Gentile limb is grafted into the trunk of the olive tree. The Gentile limb begins to reason something like this:

“A Jewish limb was broken off. I, a Gentile limb, was grafted in. I took the Jewish limb’s place. I must be a better limb than the Jewish limb. God removed that limb in order to put me in its place. I am better than the Jewish limb!”

The breaking off of the one limb and the grafting in of the other has nothing to do with the worth of the limb. There is really no difference between an unfruitful “natural” limb and a worthless “wild” limb. It is the case of the “pot calling the kettle black.” The issue is not the Gentile branch’s works or its worth, as compared to the other Jewish branch. The issue is faith. The Jewish limb was removed because of unbelief. The Gentile limb was grafted in because of faith. Grace, working through faith, does not bring glory to the sinner who is saved by grace but only brings glory to God who is gracious. The Gentile limb is in error by comparing itself to the Jewish limb when the Gentile limb should be looking to the trunk—God. Salvation by grace gives no believer any basis for pride.

Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs, and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are, that no man should boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, that, just as it is written, “LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD” (1 Corinthians 1:20-31).

In verses 22-24 Paul brings the issue to a head as his words turn men’s attention from themselves to God. His words specifically turn men’s attention to the two ways in which God deals with men in His incomprehensible workings: “Behold … the kindness and severity of God.” Let us consider Paul’s words here in the light of Jeremiah’s words, centuries before:

Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in; for God is able to graft them in again. For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more shall these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree? (Romans 11:22-24).

Then the word of the LORD came to me saying, “Can I not, O house of Israel, deal with you as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel. At one moment I might speak concerning a nation or concerning a kingdom to uproot, to pull down, or to destroy it, if that nation against which I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent concerning the calamity I planned to bring on it. Or at another moment I might speak concerning a nation or concerning a kingdom to build up or to plant it, if it does evil in My sight by not obeying My voice, then I will think better of the good with which I had promised to bless it. So now then, speak to the men of Judah and against the inhabitants of Jerusalem saying, ‘Thus says the LORD, “Behold, I am fashioning calamity against you, and devising a plan against you. Oh turn back, each of you from his evil way, and reform your ways and your deeds.”’” (Jeremiah 18:5-11).

God’s dealings with men cannot be segregated racially. He does not deal with the Jews kindly and the Gentiles severely, as the Jews like to think. Neither does God deal kindly with the Gentiles and severely only with the Jews, as the Gentiles would like to think. God deals with men either kindly or severely, based upon man’s belief or lack of belief.

The Gentiles, like the Jews before them, are tempted to abuse the grace of God by thinking that God’s blessings are poured out on those who are better than others. God’s blessings are bestowed upon men by His sovereign grace, on the basis of faith alone. Since men cannot ultimately take credit for their faith, it is to God alone that glory and praise belong. God’s kindness is the outpouring of His grace on all who believe. God’s severity is the outpouring of His righteous wrath on all those who reject His grace, on all who will not believe.

Whether Jew or Gentile, God’s favor is always a matter of grace. Whether Jew or Gentile, God’s kindness is poured out on those who believe in Him. His wrath or severity is for those who refuse to believe. There is no basis for pride when men become the benefactors of His grace. There is only basis for humility—and even fear.

Those branches which were cut off were removed because of their unbelief. Those branches which were grafted in were grafted in because of their faith.³³ The branches which have been grafted in should not feel smug and secure in their own strength or goodness. Arrogant self-sufficiency was the reason for the removal of the branches. No Gentile should be comfortable in his arrogance either. Paul is not trying to teach that those who are saved can lose that salvation. He is saying that those who are saved should remember they are kept in the same way they are saved, by trusting in God. Those who are self-sufficient must not be granted the luxury of feeling secure in their self-sufficiency. They must abide by faith.³⁴

Paul’s word of warning to the self-righteous here are also words of hope for Israel. If God is severe toward those who do not believe, then they too may be delivered from God’s wrath and enter into His kindness by simply believing in God, and in His Messiah, Jesus Christ. Jeremiah’s words are both words of warning and words of hope. God’s severity toward Israel will be instrumental in bringing them into the realm of His kindness and grace. All the disobedient and unbelieving Jew (or Gentile) needs to do is to repent and believe in Jesus Christ. Through His sacrifice on the cross of Calvary, God’s righteous anger has been satisfied, and through Him, God’s righteousness has been provided.

What is the bottom line? It is this: God is no respecter of persons. He deals with the Gentiles on exactly the same basis as He deals with His chosen people, the Jews. He forgives and blesses those who believe in Him. He is severe toward those who do not believe. What is it that we must believe? Just what Paul has taught in the previous chapters of Romans. We must believe that we are a sinner, without any hope of God’s favor, deserving only of His eternal wrath. We must believe that God sent His Son to die in our place, to pay the penalty for our sins, and to provide us with His righteousness. We must believe that He has done all that is necessary for our eternal salvation. Have you believed in Him? When time ends and each man stands before God, there will be but one question: “Have you believed in My Son, or are you trusting in yourself?” May you believe in Him today.

Conclusion

A few important truths are taught in this text which we should consider in conclusion.

(1) Privileges and blessings bring greater responsibility, but they do not indicate superiority. Israel in the past, and the church in the present time, have been given great blessings. They have also been given a high privilege which brings with it great responsibility. These privileges and blessings are the result of God’s grace and not an evidence that we are better than others. We should be humbled by the grace of God. Arrogance flies in the face of grace. It is a perversion of grace. Grace is unmerited. Grace is sovereignly bestowed. Grace is given to the needy who believe, not to the self-righteous who think they are better.

What we are, in our sin, our ignorance, and our rebellion, is that for which we are responsible and for which God must deal with us in His severity. What we are, in Christ, is that for which God deserves all the glory. There is no basis for pride in Christ. There is ample basis for praising Him, from Whom, through Whom, and unto Whom are all things (Romans 11:36).

(2) Grace therefore gives the Christian a new perspective on failure and a new perspective on “success.” Failure cannot frustrate the purposes and promises of God. Failure can bring about the severity of God. Our own failures will be forgiven if we turn to God for grace. The failures of others only show that they are no different than we are. The failure of others should serve as a warning to us and must not become a false basis for a sense of superiority on our part.

The truths of this text help explain Paul’s agony described in Romans 7. Our failures remind us of who we are in Adam and of our need to cling to Christ. They remind us that we have not arrived, spiritually speaking, but that we are in a constant struggle with the sin which still indwells us. It is allowed and purposed by God to keep us humble and to keep us clinging to Him and Him alone.

Every success in life must be seen as a gift of God’s grace and not as an evidence of merit on our part. If we “succeed” as a parent, and our children are faithful to Him, it is by His grace alone. If we prosper materially, it is ultimately not our work ethic or our greater determination, but God’s grace. If God blesses our lives and our ministry, it is an evidence of His grace. If God gives us greater knowledge of His Word, it is grace. Every blessing is a gift of grace, which should turn us toward God in humility, dependence, and praise. Why is it that we, like the Jews and Gentiles of past days, seek to take credit for the work of God?

(3) The failures of men in the past are a warning to us in the present. Heeding them may spare us from repeating the sins of those who have gone before us. The Old Testament Scriptures are of great importance and value to the New Testament Christian (see 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Romans 15:4; 1 Corinthians 10:1-13ff.). Let us study them diligently. Let us listen to them and learn.

(4) Our response to the offer of salvation through Jesus Christ will determine whether we eternally enjoy His kindness or eternally endure His severity. The “kindness and the severity of God” are reflected in the person of Jesus Christ during His earthly ministry. Jesus was kind toward sinners, who acknowledged their sin and who received His grace. He said to the woman taken in the act of adultery, “Go and sin no more” (John 8:11). But Jesus was not so kind to those who condemned her and justified themselves. Jesus was severe in His indictment of the Pharisees and those who were self-righteous (see Matthew 5:20; 23:1-39). Jesus stormed the temple and thrust out the money-changers (Luke 19:45-46).

The goodness and severity of God can best be seen in the two comings of our Lord. In His first coming, Jesus came to “seek and to save those who are lost.” He came to be gracious to sinners. When He comes the second time, it will be to judge the wicked. The severity of God will be eternally and irreversibly evident when He returns to reign upon the earth. The grace of God, available to sinners now, will no longer be offered to men. Throughout all eternity, you will either enjoy His kindness or endure His wrath. The difference is determined by belief or unbelief. Do you believe?

(5) Our text, along with the rest of the Scriptures, denies the teaching of “unconditional acceptance,” so popularly discussed today in Christian circles. This is a very warm and fuzzy error, very popular among Christians today. “God accepts me just as I am, unconditionally,” they say. Does He? Did God accept Israel unconditionally, just as they were? Then why did God reject them? God cannot and will not accept anyone who is unrighteous. God accepts only those who are justified—made righteous through the person and work of Jesus Christ. God accepts men only on the basis of faith. If I will not believe in God and in the provision He has made in His Son, I have no acceptance. A righteous God cannot accept sinners. He accepts us, in Christ, and in His righteousness. God accepts me just as Christ is. The only time we can come to Jesus, “just as we are,” is when we come to Him acknowledging our sin and trusting in the shed blood of Jesus. “Just as I am, without one plea, but that Thy blood was shed for me.” God sets the condition for His acceptance of men: believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved. Apart from this, God cannot and will not accept us.

27 This word has the same root as the term “glory.” It could rightly be rendered “glorify” in this context. To glorify is to magnify, to exalt, to enhance. When we glorify God, we are to magnify or enhance His name. And no matter how great our expression of His glory is, He will always surpass our estimation of Him.

28 We must remember that Paul’s consistent practice was to go “to the Jew first” and then “to the Gentiles.” It was only after the Jews of a town or city rejected the gospel that he went to the Gentiles. But over time, the focus of his ministry did change so that his ministry to the Gentiles became more dominant. He was recognized as having a ministry to the Gentiles (Galatians 2:7), just as God had called him to do (Romans 1:5).

29 It is ironic that while Israel did not want the gospel, neither did they want Paul or anyone else to preach the gospel to the Gentiles (see Acts 22:21-23). If they did not want the gospel and threw it out as garbage, so to speak, they did not want the trash men to have it either.

30 Note from Isaiah’s words in verses 11-13 that even at this very low point in Israel’s history, Isaiah was aware that God’s hand of discipline would be but for a season, and then Israel would be restored:

Then I said, “Lord, how long?” And He answered, “Until cities are devastated and without inhabitant, Houses are without people, And the land is utterly desolate, The LORD has removed men far away, And the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. Yet there will be a tenth portion in it, And it will again be subject to burning, Like a terebinth or an oak Whose stump remains when it is felled. The holy seed is its stump” (Isaiah 6:11-13).

31 I take it that “life from the dead” is to be understood as a general principle which has many applications. “Life from the dead” includes: (a) spiritual, eternal life for those who were spiritually dead (see Ephesians 2:1-6); (b) resurrection from the dead, to enter into His eternal kingdom (see 1 Corinthians 15); (c) the restoration of the nation Israel, which was as good as dead but which will be brought to life once again (see Ezekiel 37:1-14).

32 In the puffed up words which Paul has given the arrogant Gentile branch, no mention is made of God. The focus is all inward, selfward. Only in Paul’s correction and admonition does the focus return to God. Grace always looks Godward (see verses 33-36), self-righteousness and arrogance always looks selfward.

I see this same selfwardness in Christians today. When we speak of our salvation, it is just that—our salvation. We should focus on our Savior rather than on ourselves. People say such things as:

“If I were the only one in the world, Christ would have died for me.”

“I was so important to God that He sent His Son to die for me.”

These are frightening words because the sinner is looking to himself rather than to the Savior. These are the evidences of the very arrogance Paul is condemning.

33 Man’s faith is not a work for which he can take credit. It too is a gracious gift of God (see Ephesians 2:8-10).

34 I see here a strong tie to two passages in the Gospel of John. I encourage you to study with this text John 6:29 and 15:1-8.

Introduction

Gifts are given and received in various ways. One of my Christmas memories is of my grandmother who often made the presents she gave to her family. The only problem was that my grandmother never quite finished anything. When we passed out our presents, we often were not able to take them home with us. If she had made a shirt for me, the buttons might not have been sewed on quite yet. If it was a dress she had made for one of my sisters, it was not hemmed. When my grandmother died a number of years ago, her house was filled with unfinished presents which never quite made it to completion.

The spiritual gifts God gives to every believer are not like those my grandmother gave. God’s gifts are complete. Not only does God give to each of us spiritual gifts by which the body of Christ is supported and sustained, He also gives us all that is needed to carry out those functions vital to the health and ministry of His body, the church. With those gifts, God gives to each of us not only a measure of grace to empower us for service, but a measure of faith as well. Our text will teach us more about these two endowments.

I have yet another Christmas memory of a relative who seldom kept the gift he was given. If we gave him a new shirt for Christmas, he was as likely to give it away as to keep it. He might very well turn to a relative beside him and ask, “Do you like this shirt? Here, take it.” This was frustrating to watch and difficult to accept. And yet, in a sense, he was an example of the way God wants us to receive and share the gifts He has given to us. Spiritual gifts are not to be hoarded and kept only for our own benefit. They are to be used for the benefit of the body. Spiritual gifts are to be given away, in service.

We should first agree that the subject of spiritual gifts is relevant and vitally important to Christians today. Some evangelical Christians believe and teach that spiritual gifts are no longer applicable, that spiritual gifts were given for the church in its infancy. If this is so, why does Paul choose to speak first of spiritual gifts in this portion of Romans? Why does a matter of minimal importance have such a prominent place in this Epistle? If these spiritual gifts are necessary for the functioning of the church, how could they now be extinct? Elsewhere, Paul explains why spiritual gifts have been given and when these gifts will no longer be needed:

Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. When I was a child, I used to speak as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I shall know fully just as I also have been fully known. But now abide, faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love (1 Corinthians 13:8-13).

But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says, “WHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH, HE LED CAPTIVE A HOST OF CAPTIVES, AND HE GAVE GIFTS TO MEN.” (Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also had descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.) And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by that which every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love (Ephesians 4:7-16).

If I understand Paul’s teaching correctly, spiritual gifts are needed as long as we are living on this earth as members of the body of Christ. Spiritual gifts are those endowments of power which enable us to carry out the vital functions of our body life in Christ as members of His body. These endowments are a supernatural enablement so that supernatural results are produced. It is only when our Lord returns, when the church is taken up into glory and fully perfected, that the need for spiritual gifts will cease. While some may differ as to whether all the gifts are necessary in this age, it is very difficult to understand how none of the gifts are needed. Paul’s teaching assumes that teaching about spiritual gifts is both basic and fundamental to Christian living.⁴⁴ Peter likewise looked at the exercise of spiritual gifts as a crucial matter.⁴⁵ We should take spiritual gifts no less seriously than did the apostles.

Let us therefore approach our text with a deep sense of the importance of this teaching on spiritual gifts, observing closely so that we might learn well. May we then be obedient to that truth which we learn, by His grace and to His glory.

The Context of Our Text

In chapters 1-11, Paul laid the doctrinal foundation for the lifestyle he now calls upon all Christians to adopt and to manifest in day to day living. In verses 1 and 2 of chapter 12, Paul has characterized the lifestyle which God’s mercies motivate and which God’s grace enables. The Christian is expected to respond, motivated by the mercies of God. Grace should beget gratitude, and it is on the basis of gratitude that Paul bases his appeal to Christians. Paul calls for a lifestyle characterized by worship, worship expressed in self-sacrificial service. This service must first and foremost be to God, expressed through service to others. Our service of worship should be the logical outflow of God’s Word and His work in our lives. It is a reasoned worship, not at all like the frenzied, sensual, self-indulgent worship of the heathen. To practice this kind of worship, we must cease being shaped by the world around us, and have our minds renewed and transformed so that we look at all things from a divine perspective.

The verses which follow spell out the exercise of this renewed mind in greater detail. Paul outlines in verses 3-8 the Christian way of thinking concerning spiritual gifts. In verses 9-21, Paul describes the Christian’s relationship with others as the outworking of love. This new mind relates differently to human government, realizing that it has been given divine authority (13:1-7). The new mind relates to others out of the obligations required by true Christian love (13:8-14), realizing that strength is given by God to minister to those who are weak (14:1–15:6). It requires Jews and Gentiles to relate in an entirely different way than they have done before (15:7-13).

The Structure of Our Text

Our text divides into three main sections. In verse 3, Paul introduces the subject of spiritual gifts with a call to clear thinking. In verses 4 and 5, Paul calls Christians to think corporately. Spiritual gifts must be understood and practiced in the context of the body of Christ. Paul illustrates Christian thinking in verses 6-8 by focusing on the attitudes and actions appropriate to specific spiritual gifts. We can therefore outline the structure of our text:

(1) A call to straight thinking about spiritual gifts — verse 3

(2) A call to corporate thinking about spiritual gifts — verses 4-5

(3) A call for practice consistent with spiritual gifts — verses 6-8

A Call to Straight
Thinking About Spiritual Gifts
(12:3)

3 For through the grace given to me I say to every man 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.

Paul begins to address the subject of spiritual gifts by first telling his readers that in the process of teaching on this subject, he also is exercising his own spiritual gift. He speaks through the “grace” given to him, that “grace” to which he referred at the beginning of this Epistle:

Through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles, for His name’s sake (Romans 1:5).

Paul exercises his spiritual gift of apostleship (and perhaps other gifts as well) as he writes these words of instruction and exhortation. Having been prevented from being physically present with these saints for the time being did not keep Paul from exercising his gift “by mail.” This he did not only to the profit of the Roman saints, but to all those who have been blessed by this Epistle down through history. This Epistle to the Romans is an illustration and evidence of the gifts God gave to Paul for our edification.

Paul’s teaching here is universal. His teaching is not addressed to any one individual, nor to some small group, but rather “to every man among you.” These principles apply to every believer. Paul’s words assume that every Christian has been given at least one spiritual gift which is to be exercised for the edification of the church,⁴⁶ the body of Christ.⁴⁷

Paul calls for sound thinking and judgment. He has already informed us that we must not be “conformed to this age”; we must instead “be transformed by the renewing of our minds.” Paul warns of the danger of “overthinking” (Greek) or “thinking too highly of ourselves.” Our day regards low self-esteem as the great evil, the cause of all sorts of maladies. But here Paul warns of the opposite—we must not have too high an estimation of ourselves. Low self-esteem is never mentioned. As fallen, sinful creatures, we are great lovers. Among other things, we are lovers of money and lovers of pleasure, evidences that we are lovers of self (see 2 Timothy 3:2, 4).

Thinking too highly of ourselves may be illustrated in the matter of spiritual gifts. First, we may think too highly of ourselves because of the gifts God has given to us. Spiritual gifts are gifts of grace. “Grace” is the root (CHARIS) on which the term “spiritual gifts” (CHARISMATA) is built. Spiritual gifts are sovereignly given as gifts of grace. Spiritual gifts are unmerited and not an evidence of our spirituality. Neither are they a barometer of our worth. Yet when given one of the more visible, more prominent and prized gifts, we may be tempted to take credit for that which God has given us and which He is accomplishing through us.⁴⁸

Second, our response to being given a less prominent gift may reveal an inflated estimation of ourself. Consider these words of Paul recorded in 1 Corinthians:

For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body (1 Corinthians 12:14-16).

At first I was inclined to think that the “foot” and the “ear” did not regard themselves highly enough, but this is not what Paul is saying. The “foot” does not say, “Because I am a foot, I am not a part of the body.” He says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body.” The “foot” does not think too little of himself; he thinks too much of himself. He (wrongly) thinks that being a “hand” is more important (prestigious?) than being a “foot.” If he cannot be a “hand,” the “foot” refuses to function as a part of the body at all. The “foot” thinks he is better than the gift he has been given. He thinks too highly of himself. There is no sacrificial service of worship here but only self-seeking ambition. The “foot” needs not more self-esteem but more humility and gratitude. The “foot” needs to “die” to himself and to fleshly desires and ambitions.

Paul calls for sound thinking which is based upon humility and faith. Whenever our ego is involved in our thinking, our thinking becomes distorted. Because of our natural self-love, we will always think too highly of ourselves.⁴⁹ Self-love distorts our perception of reality. As frequently mentioned in the Bible, especially Proverbs, “humility” leads us to see and to accept the truth. Humility is seeing things as they are; pride is seeing things in a puffed-up way, which feeds our ego and our self-love. Grace should lead to humility, and thus we find in our text a consistent emphasis upon that which God has sovereignly given to us as a gift of His grace.

Faith is the basis of sound thinking. This statement needs further consideration, because most of us do not really believe it. We tend to think “rational thinking” is that which the natural man does. We conclude that thinking on the basis of faith must therefore be unreasonable—that thinking by faith must involve the setting aside of the rational mind and acting apart from rationality, apart from sound judgment. Thinking in accordance with faith is thus thought to be at odds with sound judgment. But Paul tells us that thinking by faith is sound judgment, and that “overthinking” is outside the realm of reality, faith, and reason. Sound thinking, according to Paul, involves the mind—it is rational, it is accomplished by the exercise of faith, and it does not go beyond the realm of what is proper and right—it does not overthink.

How can this be so? Let us consider this matter further. To the unbeliever, faith is mere foolishness; it is believing what is not true. To the Christian, faith is believing what is not seen but is true nonetheless:

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old gained approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible (Hebrews 11:1-3).

Sound thinking is based upon those truths which God has revealed to us, which are unseen, but true. The foundation for mere human thinking is that which is seen or that which appears to be. The foundation for Christian thinking is the Word of God—that which is revealed and which is believed by faith. Sound thinking is thinking based upon the revelation of God, contained and communicated by His Word, and illuminated by His Spirit.

Abraham was thinking soundly when he chose to obey God, even if it involved the sacrifice of his son, Isaac (see Genesis 22). Abraham acted out of faith when he sought to obey God’s command, even though it was the most difficult test of his life. His faith was a reasoned faith, based on “sound judgment.” He had come to realize that God is able to give life to the dead. This is what God had done to enable Abraham and Sarah to have a child, even though they were “as good as dead” with regard to child-bearing (see Romans 4:16-21; Hebrews 11:17-19). Abraham’s obedience was based on sound judgment, and his sound judgment was based upon that which God had revealed which he believed by faith.

But why is faith necessary in relation to spiritual gifts? Why does Paul tell us that we are to think “so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith”? There are several reasons. First, we live and walk by faith. Faith is essential in our service and in the exercise of our spiritual gifts, just as it is in every other aspect of our lives. Second, the results of our ministry may not be evident or apparent to us, or even to others. The results of the ministry of spiritual gifts are spiritual. They may not be revealed until eternity. We must act on the basis of faith, even though the results are not visible to us. The results of our ministry may be unseen, and faith deals with the unseen.

The prophets of old faithfully ministered, and yet most of them appeared to fail in their own lifetime. They did not see many repent and turn to the Lord. They were rejected, persecuted, and even put to death. The results were not immediately evident. Even the prophecies they gave concerning the Messiah were perplexing to them (see 1 Peter 1:10-12). Yet they faithfully persevered with no evidence of success. They served by faith, knowing that God’s Word would not return unto Him void (Isaiah 55:11).

Because the exercise of a spiritual gift may be unseen, faith is required. Most often the ministry of spiritual gifts is described in terms of the function of the human body. In the human body some members are visible and prominent such as the hands and the eyes. But there are other unseen members like the heart and lungs. These unseen members are the “vital” organs. Likewise, the vital members of the body of Christ may very well be unseen; thus faith is necessary.

The analogy of the body should be pursued even further. The work of God is carried out through the body of Christ, the church. God’s work is achieved corporately, as a team, and not just by individuals working independently of others. The hand cannot function alone nor can any other member of the body. God’s work is not achieved directly by any one member but by the body as a whole. The function then of any given member of the body may seem insignificant, even unspiritual, unless viewed in the light of the function of the body as a whole. The one who has the gift of helps may not seem to be doing much in the way of evangelism, but if they are serving in a way that edifies the body of Christ, they have a part in the ministry of the body as a whole. Faith enables us to understand this proper functioning of the body of Christ.

We have at this time a large number of troops in the Middle East. The one peeling potatoes, hauling water, or building outdoor toilets may not seem to be doing much for the cause of world peace. But apart from these vital functions being done, no army could survive, much less win, a military conflict. Each army member has a vital role. Each member of the body of Christ plays a part in the work of the body, as a whole. This the Christian believes by faith.

Only a renewed, transformed mind can think of spiritual gifts as Paul has exhorted here. Our culture would convince us to do the opposite of what Paul teaches. Paul warns us not to “overthink” and not to “think of [ourselves] more highly than we ought to think.” The world tells us we do not have a good enough estimate of our own worth. In the secular way of thinking, we need to think more highly of ourselves. Many tell us there are no limits placed on our abilities except those we impose on ourselves. The solution, we are told, is to believe that within us (not apart from ourselves, enabled by the Holy Spirit) there is unlimited potential for success and achievement. We are told that if we but think more positively, more highly of ourselves, then success is guaranteed—the higher our thoughts and goals, the higher our performance.

The world looks inward to what is within man and finds unlimited potential. The Bible instructs us to look Godward, to look to the Holy Spirit and His enablement, to live our lives in a way that will sacrificially serve God and men. The world believes we cannot think too much of ourselves; Paul warns that thinking too much of ourselves is our natural, sinful, inclination, and that this must be put aside. The world tells us that faith is unreasonable; Paul tells us that faith enables us to think soberly and soundly in a world where our perception of reality is distorted by sin. God’s ways are far from man’s ways.

Thus we are challenged to consider the subject of spiritual gifts with our minds thinking clearly and straight. This is to be accomplished by means of true humility, recognizing that all that we have and are, all that we will ever accomplish, is by the grace of God, and not of ourselves. We will think in accordance with reality, and in accordance with the faith we have been granted. Our thinking must be based upon that which God has revealed in His Word, upon those unseen realities which are not only true, but vastly more reliable than the appearances seen with the human eye. Further and more specific manifestations of this straight thinking are given in verses 4-8. Let us look further, to see how straight thinking manifests itself in the life of the Christian and in the realm of spiritual gifts.

Thinking Corporately About Spiritual Gifts
(12:4-5)

4 For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

We live in a very independent, self-centered age. In many ways, we are teetering on the brink of anarchy. The winning governor-elect in a recent state election boasted that people could live without government looking over their shoulder, restricting or condemning individual freedom and choices, choices which clearly included abortion and homosexuality. Marriage is being redefined, because neither the husband nor the wife wish to give up their independence. “Self” is the watchword of our culture. The public good seems to be eagerly sacrificed to individual freedom. Being independent and self-sufficient is viewed as the goal for many. The new evil of our day, from which people need desperately to be delivered, is “co-dependency.”

Paul teaches that Christians must think quite differently. The watchword of our text could be “inter-dependency.” Spiritual gifts are God’s means for sustaining His body, the church. Spiritual gifts mean that I am both weak and strong. I am strong in the area of my gift; I am weak in the areas where others have been gifted. Thus, I must minister to the body of Christ and others out of my strength, and I am dependent upon the ministry of the rest of the body in my areas of weakness.

For the proper functioning of spiritual gifts, we must cease thinking individualistically and begin to think corporately. We cannot look at ourselves as an island, independent of all others. We must see ourselves as a member of the body of Christ, with certain gifts or special enablements which equip us to carry out functions necessary to the equipping and ministry of the body. There is individuality within the body, because there are many members, all with a different role to play. But there is no room for individualism, for we are inter-dependent as members of one body. We must rely on other members of the body just as they must rely on us.

While we have been individually chosen, called, and justified, we have been joined to a body, the body of Christ. We must therefore think and act as members of this body. Spiritual gifts are one of the means by which the body of Christ is sustained and through which the life of our Lord is manifested. Thinking straight necessitates thinking corporately.

The Spiritual Use of Spiritual Gifts
(12:6-8)

6 And since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let each exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; 7 if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; 8 or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.

Paul’s expressions, “according to the grace given to us” in verse 6 and “as God has allotted to each a measure of faith” in verse 3, point to an important truth to consider before pressing on in our study. Spiritual gifts have nothing to do with ambition. The spiritual gifts mentioned here and elsewhere are not a shopping list from which we make a choice and then seek to gain that gift. The gift(s) we have received have been sovereignly bestowed by God. We already possess the gifts. God gives to us not only the gift (the grace), but also the faith by which they are to be exercised. When we belittle the gift we have been given, we quibble and question the sovereign will of God which determined the gift given to us, along with the place of ministry and measure of success (see 1 Corinthians 12:4-6).

Each of the gifts given to us, and to the rest of the body, are given in such a way as to provide all that the body of Christ needs to function properly. Given these different allocations of grace and faith, each of us must exercise our gifts in a certain way if we are to please God and be consistent with His purposes. If verses 3-5 emphasize proper thinking about spiritual gifts, verses 6-8 stress those attitudes and actions vital to the proper exercise of these gifts. Verses 6-8 emphasize what we are to do and how we are to do it in the context of spiritual gifts.

The structure of verses 6-8 seems to be indicated by Paul. This is somewhat evident in the English translations and more clearly evident in the Greek text. Allow me to arrange Paul’s words according to the structure I think he intends us to recognize:

And since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us,
let each exercise them accordingly:
if prophecy — according to the proportion of his faith;
if service — in his serving;
or he who teaches — in his teaching;
or he who exhorts — in his exhortation;
he who gives — with liberality;
he who leads — with diligence;
he who shows mercy — with cheerfulness.

Paul’s words in the first half of verse 6 tie what follows with what he has just said in verses 3-5. The last words of verse 6 seem to distinguish two major categories of gift: (1) spoken gifts (prophecy) and (2) serving gifts (service). This same distinction is found in 1 Peter 4:

As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Whoever speaks, let him speak, as it were, the utterances of God; whoever serves, let him do so as by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen (1 Peter 4:10-11).

Teaching and exhorting both fall under the category of spoken gifts (or prophecy). Giving, leading, and showing mercy, all fall in the category of serving gifts.

The spoken gifts as a group are given one major word of exhortation, one fundamental guideline: “Keep within the boundaries of the revealed Word of God.” The New American Standard Bible and many other translations seem to stress the need to stay within the boundaries of the faith God has allotted us. This is certainly consistent with Paul’s words in verse 3, but why should Paul need to repeat this again? The rendering is also consistent with the lexical definition of the term employed. There is, however, a second meaning, one that seems more appropriate. This meaning is, “in agreement with,” rather than “according to.” This first, more restrictive meaning is totally consistent with the second, more general meaning. I think Paul is cautioning all who speak to do so in a way completely consistent with Scripture. Paul seems to be saying the same thing to the Corinthians when he writes,

Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively applied to myself and Apollos for your sakes, that in us you might learn not to exceed what is written, in order that no one of you might become arrogant in behalf of one against the other (1 Corinthians 4:6).

Notice that in Paul’s words to the Corinthians the danger of going beyond “what is written” is arrogance, the very thing Paul is warning us about here in Romans 12.

Those who serve are given the exhortation to be diligent in their service. If those who speak are in danger of wandering beyond the prescribed boundaries of God’s Word, those who serve are in danger of wandering outside the context of the service they have been given. Servants are tempted to critique and correct their fellow servants when their God-given calling is to perform their own service (Romans 14:4).

Having given a general exhortation to everyone whose gifts fall under one or the other of the categories he has used, Paul now gives more specific exhortation. He first addresses those in the category of the speaking gifts in verse 7b and 8a, specifying the gifts of teaching and exhorting. He then turns to those who serve in verse 8b, specifying the gifts of giving, leading, and showing mercy.

Those with gifts of service have already been urged, as a group, to diligently devote themselves to their areas of service (verse 7a). In verses 7b and 8a, Paul urges those who have the speaking gifts to likewise devote themselves to doing that which they have been gifted to do. The one with the gift of teaching should devote himself to teaching. The one with the gift of exhortation, to exhortation.⁵⁰

But why would the teacher need to be exhorted to teach and the exhortor to exhort? Is this not their natural tendency? Our natural tendency is to be self-centered and self-serving. Our service to God is to be self-sacrificing. When our service does not appear to be successful and when our ministry is not self-serving, our tendency is to resign. We, like Elijah and Jonah, want to turn in our badge and give up. Paul urges us to stick with that which God has given us to do, to persevere, because he knows that in the flesh we would give up. Here is where faith and obedience evidence our perseverance.

Those who fall under the speaking gifts category have been urged to stick with it, as those who serve have also been exhorted. Now Paul turns to those in the category of serving gifts to encourage them to exercise their gifts and ministries with spiritual attitudes and motivations which are befitting and edifying.

The one who has the gift of giving is encouraged to give “generously” or, as the marginal note in the NASB indicates, with “simplicity.” I think it is this second sense which is prominent in Paul’s words. Those who give may be tempted to give in a way that “works both ends against the middle.” Giving, in other words, might be done in a way that appears to be generous and sacrificial but which is actually self-serving. Ananias and Sapphira (see Acts 5:1-11) seem to have given with multiple motives and thus became deceptive and dishonest. They were not as generous as they wished to appear. One’s giving should be done for the benefit of the recipient, not the gain of the donor. The emphasis of “giving in order to get” appears to be in contradiction to Paul’s teaching here. Giving, as with the exercise of all other spiritual gifts, is to be a self-sacrificing act of worship and service (see 12:1).

The one who leads is to do so “with diligence.” Because spiritual leadership may not enhance and promote the leader (as spiritual leadership is marked by servanthood, and not lording it over others), he may be tempted to back off of spiritual leadership. Because the rewards of spiritual leadership come from God and not men, and they come at His return and not immediately, Christian leaders may be tempted to exercise their leadership in more “fulfilling” and “self-serving” causes. They may be tempted to go about their tasks casually and half-heartedly. This is not the manner of exercising the gift of leadership in which God takes pleasure.

The one who shows mercy is to do so “with cheerfulness.” All of us have attempted to show mercy at various times. Showing mercy is acting graciously toward those who need mercy. Often, such people are not pleasant to be around. All too often, such people are not even grateful for the mercy they are shown. It may not take long for the one showing mercy to be tempted to have a cynical, sour grapes attitude. Spiritual gifts are gifts of God’s grace, and they are to manifest God’s grace to those whom we serve. The gift of showing mercy (and every other gift as well) must be exercised in a gracious way so that God’s grace is neither distorted nor disfigured by our service.

Paul sees two great dangers in the exercise of spiritual gifts. The first is in not devoting ourselves to doing that which we are gifted to do.⁵¹ The second is exercising our gifts in a way inconsistent with the grace of God which is to motivate them and be manifested by them. We are therefore challenged to devote ourselves to the function for which God has gifted us and to the ministry to which He has called us. And we are to do so in a manner pleasing to Him and consistent with the goal of the task in the overall plan and purpose of God.

Conclusion

Paul’s words raise some important questions I call to your attention, for they require answers which only you can give. I will conclude by raising the questions, and I urge you not to leave this text without arriving at some answers.

Paul is speaking to believers about the spiritual gifts God has bestowed upon each of those who have become His children, by faith. First, have you received God’s gift of eternal life? Have you been born again? If not, then the subject of spiritual gifts is but an academic exercise, a purely hypothetical question. If so, then you have received, along with the gift of eternal life, a special enablement to serve God through His body, the church.

Second, is your pursuit and interest in spiritual gifts one of personal ambition motivated by self-interest? Or do you, out of gratitude, wish to offer up your body to God in sacrificial service to others? If you wish to sacrificially serve God by serving others, then spiritual gifts are the means God has provided for you to do so.

Third, have you discovered the special abilities God has given to you and the place of service where these can be employed for His glory? Paul teaches that every believer has a special enablement, a spiritual gift, by which to serve God. You are to be a steward of that gift. Do you know what it is that God has entrusted to you? Have you found a place of service where your gift can be put to good use? If not, why not?

Fourth, how closely are you linked to a local church and to the broader body of Christ, so that your gift may benefit others and so that you may draw from the strengths and gifts of others? Spiritual gifts are not given so that we may set ourselves above or apart from the rest of the body. Spiritual gifts are to be employed by serving the body, and they also cause us to be dependent upon the body for those areas in which we are not strong (gifted).

Using the analogy of the Book of Nehemiah, I ask you very practically, “What is your piece of the wall?” What are you contributing to your local body and to the body of Christ at large? What are you doing in obedience to this passage to fulfill your responsibilities to the body of Christ?

Allow me to assume that you cannot satisfactorily answer my question, and that you are uncertain about what your spiritual gift is and the ministry where your gift can be employed. Spiritual gifts are not intended to be a mystery. The teaching of spiritual gifts is both fundamental and elementary. If you do not know your spiritual gift and ministry, God is not hiding it from you, if you are seeking to be obedient to Him. Three practical suggestions may help you identify and exercise your spiritual gift.

(1) Offer yourself to God as a living sacrifice, out of gratitude for His mercies to you. Give yourself to serve Him sacrificially, selflessly, through serving others. This is the starting place Paul specifies in Romans 12:1-2. It should also be our starting place.

(2) Study the Scriptures which not only name the spiritual gifts, but also describe their function. The gift of exhortation, for example, is illustrated by the life of Barnabas, the “son of exhortation.”

(3) Be obedient to the commands of Scripture. We are commanded to give (verse 13). Pray for wisdom and insight as to how you may give in a way that pleases God. I am convinced that for every vital spiritual gift there is a corresponding command to perform this function. Ask God to open your eyes as to how He wants you to obey in each vital area. As you begin to obey, take note of those things in which God’s blessing is confirmed by others and becomes clear to you. Develop this particular ability further, and seek different ways to implement this gift.

(4) Look for needs, and seek to meet them. Look for those who are weaker than you, and serve them from your strength. Spiritual gifts are given in order to meet the needs of others. Others needs are all about us. We need but the eyes to see them and the obedience to respond to them by God’s grace and power. Look in your church bulletin. Who are those in need this week? What needs are going unmet in the church? Is there a need for Sunday School teachers? What an opportunity if you have the gift of teaching.

I am convinced that the matter of spiritual gifts is not as mysterious as some suggest and as it might seem at first. If you have first given yourself to God, and you are seeking to obey Him in the strength He supplies, you will know what He has given you to do, and you will have the faith and the grace necessary to do it.

44 In addition to Romans 12:3-8, see 1 Corinthians 12-14; Ephesians 4:7-16; 2 Timothy 1:6-7.

45 See 1 Peter 4:10-11.

46 See 1 Corinthians 12:7, 11; 1 Peter 4:10.

47 When I speak of the church here, I am referring not only to the local church, but to the broader body of Christ of which the local church is but a small part. Each individual believer is thus conceived of as a member of the church universal and as a member of a local congregation of believers. Our ministry should not to be restricted only to the local church. Paul’s ministry, for example, was much broader, although he did minister to the local church.

48 Two serious errors are the root of pride over the possession of our spiritual gifts. First, we may believe we deserve the credit for what God has given us and what He is doing in and through us. We dare not take credit for grace, neither saving grace nor serving grace. Second, the most visible and prominent gifts are not necessarily the most important gifts (see 1 Corinthians 12:22-24). Our vital organs are not visible. So too the vital members of the body of Christ may be the least visible.

49 Even so-called “self-hate” is really “self-love.” We “hate” ourselves because we fail to live up to that which we think we are worthy of and deserving. We hate ourselves for failing to live up to that which our self-love desires and demands.

50 This is not intended to mean that the teacher only teaches and the exhortor only exhorts. All of us are to give, to teach, to encourage, to show mercy, and so on. But the one with the gift of teaching ought to make teaching a priority. One should do most what God has enabled him or her to do best. This is good stewardship (see again 1 Peter 4:10-11).

51 Could this also be because we do not gratefully accept the gift God has given to us, but stubbornly seek to do that which we think is more important, more spiritual, more fulfilling, and self-serving?

Introduction

There are vast differences between Christianity and other religions. The uniqueness of Christianity stands out boldly in the way we treat our enemies. Nikita Khrushchev understood this and graphically illustrated the difference between Communism and Christianity with this paraphrased remark: “The difference between Christianity and Communism is great. When someone strikes you on the face, you turn the other cheek. If you strike me on the face, I’ll hit you so hard your head will fall off.”

Even in the church, the vigilante spirit is alive and well. Christians sometimes attempt to sanctify their anger calling it righteous indignation, but we too are tempted to retaliate against those who mistreat us. Piously, we may pretend to resist evil supposing that God is on our side as we seek to “even the score” by causing hurt or harm to those who have mistreated us. We may even try to use Romans 12:9 as a proof text for our revenge—as long as we read no further in Romans. Our text calls for much more, requiring death to the flesh and the subordination of our personal interests to those of others. Our text requires in particular what Paul has previously called for in general terms:

I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12:1-2).

In Romans 12:3-8, Paul urges us to offer our lives as living sacrifices through the exercise of our spiritual gifts within the context of the body of Christ. In verses 9-21, Paul calls on the Christian to exercise love by our response to both “good” and “evil.”⁶¹ Verses 9-13 speak more of our love as expressed toward other Christians. Verses 14-21 describe the behavior of love toward our enemies.⁶²

Paul’s teaching in our text is not new. The same essential truths were taught in the Old Testament, and thus Paul cites texts from the Book of Proverbs (20:22; 24:29; 25:21ff.). Our Lord’s teaching calls for the same attitudes and actions (see Matthew 5:38-48; Luke 6:26-38). The teaching of the other apostles is the same (see 1 Peter 3:8-12; 4:7-12; James 3).

As clear, consistent, and emphatic as the teaching of our text may be, it is not popular for it runs contrary to the inclinations of our flesh. We are therefore tempted to try to find a way to excuse ourselves from simple obedience to the commands of the Word of God. Let us be on guard against this temptation as we study this text. Let us look to His Spirit to guide our interpretation and implementation as we seek to present our bodies to God as living sacrifices and as we love and serve Him through loving service to others.

Our Perspective Toward Our Persecutors
(12:14-16)

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and curse not. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16 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.

Paul is very specific in these verses. Those whom we are to love appear to be primarily non-Christians who have persecuted⁶³ us because of our faith in Jesus Christ.⁶⁴ Old Testament saints, prophets in particular, knew persecution (see Matthew 5:12; Acts 7:52). Jesus told His disciples to expect the same treatment (John 15:19-21). Paul and the other apostles taught likewise (Acts 14:22; 2 Timothy 3:12). Peter probably has the most extensive teaching on suffering for Christ’s sake. For example, he writes:

Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. For the time already past is sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousals, drinking parties and abominable idolatries. And in all this, they are surprised that you do not run with them into the same excess of dissipation, and they malign you; but they shall give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead (1 Peter 4:1-5).

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing; so that also at the revelation of His glory, you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. By no means let any of you suffer as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler; but if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not feel ashamed, but in that name let him glorify God (1 Peter 4:12-16).

We should not forget that when Paul writes about our response to those who persecute us, he writes as an expert on this matter from both sides. Paul persecuted the church of our Lord with a vengeance (Acts 7:58–8:1; 9:1-5; 1 Timothy 1:13). Once he was saved and began to proclaim Jesus as the Messiah, he became the target of opposition and persecution both from the Jews (Acts 9:22-23; 13:50; 14:2, 19; 1 Thessalonians 2:13-16) and the Gentiles (Acts 16:19f.; 19:23f.). Paul’s words come from a man not only inspired by the Holy Spirit but from one who is well acquainted with persecution from personal experience.

Paul tells us in verse 14 that the Christian should respond exactly the opposite from the natural man and the inclinations of the flesh. Instead of cursing, we are instructed to bless those who persecute us. Cursings and blessings are pronouncements of the mouth which address the future well-being of those to whom we are speaking. Cursing expresses our desire for harm to befall the one cursed. Blessing verbally expresses the desire for good to come to that person.

Blessing and cursing are mutually exclusive; we can do one or the other but not both (see James 3:9). We cannot seek blessing for someone and at the same time seek his harm. God is not content to allow the Christian to merely tolerate his persecutors. We must actively desire and seek to bless our adversaries. Jesus gave specific ways this should be done:

You have heard that it was said, ‘AN EYE FOR AN EYE, AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH.’ But I say to you, do not resist him who is evil; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any one wants to sue you, and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. And whoever shall force you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you. You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR, and hate your enemy,’ But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you in order that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax-gatherers do the same? And if you greet your brothers only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:38-48).

The natural man seeks to pay back those who persecute him, plus interest. He would not be content with “an eye for an eye” but would seek two eyes for an eye.⁶⁵ This is revenge. The man of integrity seeks only that which is appropriate repayment or retribution. This is justice. The Christian must return blessing for cursing, good for evil. This is grace.

Verses 15 and 16 are puzzling at first and appear to be out of place. What does “weeping with those who weep” or “rejoicing with those who rejoice” have to do with persecution (verse 15)? What does pride have to do with persecution (verse 16)? Verses 15 and 16 almost seem to be misplaced as though they might better fit somewhere in verses 9-13.

Our consideration of these verses begins with an observation. Verses 15 and 16 apply to our response to both believers and unbelievers. In theological terms, the grace we are to show is “common grace.”⁶⁶ We are to weep with all who weep, and rejoice with all who rejoice. We are not to be proud but humble in mind, not showing partiality to some while discriminating against others.

Consider then, in this light, the command of verse 15: “Rejoice with those who rejoice” and “weep with those who weep.” We can safely say this text teaches us to empathize and identify with those around us, sharing the sorrows and joys of our fellow men.

We are a part of the body of Christ, and so we identify and participate in the sufferings and joys of our brothers and sisters in Christ because their experiences very much affect us:

And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it (1 Cor. 12:26).

We are also a part of the human race. While the sufferings of an unbeliever may not affect us as personally, we are still to share in their sorrow and in their joy.

We should recognize this to be true and the teaching of Scripture. But what does this have to do with persecution? Suffering and persecution often turn men inward. They find their own suffering so great they feel unable to share in the sufferings of others.

Viktor Frankel, a well-known secular psychiatrist, wrote of his incarceration in a Jewish concentration camp, where he was confined to a small room. Through cracks in the boards, he could see the stairway immediately behind his wall. Hearing a thumping sound, he peered through the cracks and saw a German soldier dragging the dead body of his fellow-prisoner down the stairs. So great was his own suffering that Frankel confessed feeling nothing at all; in his own suffering, he had become isolated and emotionally uninvolved in the sufferings of his fellowmen.

Christians can do the same. We can become so caught up in our sufferings that we become isolated from our fellow men. If we would demonstrate the grace of God toward others, we must not sink in the mire of our own suffering and pain. We must identify with others and share their sorrows and joys. This empathy is vitally important for the unity of the body of Christ. It is also essential for ministry to unbelievers.

Paul could readily identify with the Jewish unbelievers who persecuted him, for he once was one of them. He was even better at persecution than they. Identifying with our persecutors enables us to forgive them and to desire to minister to them. Thus Paul and Silas were able to minister to the Philippian jailer even though he had played a significant role in their innocent sufferings. The jailer came to faith in Jesus, and great was the joy resulting from the salvation of his whole household. Great also was his gratitude as he ministered to some of the wounds he himself might have inflicted (see Acts 16:16-34).

The connection between verse 15 and its context is to be found in the relationship between revenge and love. If one’s attitude toward his persecutors is one of revenge, it will be difficult indeed to obey the instructions of verse 15. Revenge would rejoice over the weeping of our persecutor and would weep over his rejoicing. The only way we can weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice is to genuinely seek their good. Our ability to share in the joys or the sorrows of our persecutor is an evidence of our blessing and a test of our obedience to God’s Word.

In verse 16 we come to yet another puzzling statement. Here Paul warns us of the danger of pride. The outcome of obedience to Paul’s teaching should be humility and impartiality. But how does Paul link the danger of pride to the dilemma of persecution? What does persecution have to do with pride or pride with persecution?

Chapter 11 holds the key. In our text, Paul warns, “Do not be wise in your own estimation” (verse 16). An almost identical expression is found only in Romans 11:25:

For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery, lest you be wise in your own estimation, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles has come in (emphasis mine).

In chapter 11, Paul identifies unbelieving Israel as an “enemy” with respect to the gospel (11:28). Due to much persecution from unbelieving Jews, it would be easy for Gentile saints to view the Jews as their enemies. So they are, in one sense. But one critical factor transforms Israel’s opposition into a source of blessing: the sovereignty of God. In His sovereignty, God causes all things to work together for the good of His saints (Romans 8:28). “All things” includes the unbelief and persecution of men. God therefore used a willful, hostile, Pharaoh to demonstrate His power and to proclaim His name (Romans 9:17). He also uses the unbelief of Israel to bring about the offer of the gospel to the Gentiles (11:12, 28, 31). The unbelieving Jews may be the enemy of the saints, but in spite of themselves, they have been used by God to perform a great service to the Gentiles. The Jews are an enemy, but a “beloved enemy.”

Why was Paul concerned that the Gentiles would become “wise in their own estimation”? Paul’s warning about Gentile pride (Romans 11) explains the instruction of Romans 12:16. As strange as it may seem, persecution can produce pride. By its very nature, persecution is unfounded and unjust. Because of this, the one persecuted feels a kind of righteous indignation. “I don’t deserve this,” the persecuted victim reasons, and rightly so. The victim is right; the persecutor is wrong. The victim begins to look down on the persecutor and is tempted to become proud. Paul thus warns the Gentiles about the danger of pride and of looking down on Israel.

Persecution is sin, based on pride and the misuse of power. Persecution can reproduce itself in the lives of those who are its victims. A feeling of superiority causes one to look down upon those who are not as blessed and to associate only with those who are as spiritual and worthy as ourselves. Pride results in a falsely based discrimination, the very evil which first caused the persecution.

Our salvation and the gospel have nothing to do with human merit or works but everything to do with God’s sovereign grace. His grace is bestowed upon us solely on the basis of faith, a faith He has given without merit. We have no reason for pride. In and of ourselves, we are no better than any other saved or lost sinner. Grace is given to the needy and the humble with whom we should associate. Those with whom Jesus associated caused the scribes and Pharisees to become jealous and angry (Luke 5:27-32; 6:20-26).

Grace is not bestowed on the basis of our status, worth, or performance. The grace we are to show toward men must be the same. We are not too good to associate with and serve the humble, and they are not too lowly to receive God’s grace. The gospel is the great equalizer of men turning the social structures of society upside down. If we would love our enemies, we will also cast off false pride and reject as evil any form of discrimination based upon human merit or external measurement.

Verses 14-16 command us to do no more than that which the Lord Jesus Himself did in His incarnation and earthly ministry. Consider how our Lord is our example in the things Paul has instructed us to do.

First, we have been commanded not to curse men but to bless them. Peter reminds us of our Lord’s response to the persecution of men when they nailed Him to the cross of Calvary:

For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed (1 Peter 2:21-24).

Second, Paul instructs us to rejoice with those who rejoice and to weep with those who weep. As Jesus approached Jerusalem, soon to be rejected by His people and to be nailed to His cross, He came to the grave of Lazarus where He wept, along with Mary:

Therefore, when Mary came where Jesus was, she saw Him, and fell at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her, also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit, and was troubled, and said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept. And so the Jews were saying, “Behold how He loved him!” (John 11:32-36).

Finally, Paul instructs us not to be proud but to have a humility of mind which enables us to associate with and minister to the unworthy:

If therefore there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (Philippians 2:1-8).

Verses 14-16 give us very clear instruction concerning our perspective, especially toward those who have unjustly persecuted us. We are to abhor cursing and bless our enemies, seeking their well-being. How better can this be accomplished than by their salvation? We are to have the kind of love for our enemies which enables us to rejoice with them in their joys and to weep with them in their sorrows. We are also to grasp that both sin and grace make all men equal in God’s sight. Being saved by grace means we have nothing for which to take credit or to be prideful. All men have sinned, without exception, and are deserving of God’s wrath. No man is worthy of His grace nor is anyone beyond the reach of His grace. The grace we manifest must therefore not discriminate as though some are unworthy of it.

Returning Good for Evil
(12:17-21)

17 Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. 19 Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

In verses 14-16, the response of the Christian to those who persecute him is more passive in nature. Our love toward our persecutors is to be manifested by blessing rather than cursing. The one who is persecuted wishes either good or evil on his persecutor. But in verses 17-21, the victim is now viewed as the one taking action. It is not just wishes for our enemy, or merely our words, but our works which are in view. If in verse 14, our response to ill-treatment is the pronouncement of a curse or a blessing, in verses 17-21 our response to our enemies is seen as either the doing of “good” or “evil” to our enemy.

The first statement in verse 17 is a general summary statement. Verses 17b-19 lay down a general principle governing our response to maltreatment by our enemies. Verse 20 illuminates the application of these principles with specific examples of how Christian love responds to one’s enemy. Verse 21 contains a summary statement which concludes the argument of verses 9-21.

If Christian love abhors what is evil and clings to what is good (verse 9), then Christian love can never reciprocate by responding to sin with sin. Christian love can never practice what is evil in order to pay back someone for the evil they have done to us. Paul is not talking about justice here, which is the duty of the state (to be discussed in the next chapter), but about revenge. Revenge is returning evil for evil. Revenge is but the perpetuation of sin. It is not overcoming sin but being overcome by it.

Revenge is categorically forbidden—never is it to be practiced nor done to anyone. No exceptions are named; no excuses are accepted. Why? Four answers are given in the verses which follow:

(1) Revenge runs contrary to what society deems to be right (verse 17b).

(2) Revenge does not promote peace but incites men to hostility (verse 18).

(3) Revenge usurps a task which belongs only to God (verse 19).

(4) Revenge succumbs to evil rather than overcoming evil with good (verse 21).

Consider now why revenge is wrong, categorically and without exception, for each of these reasons.

Revenge is contrary to righteousness and to the definition of right which society holds in common (verse 17b). God’s righteousness is higher than sinful men are willing to accept. It is also a higher standard than Christians can meet, apart from God’s grace through the enablement of His Spirit. Unsaved men may often reject the higher standard of righteousness which God has established and which the Law defines. Nevertheless, society has its own standards of right and wrong. Man-made laws define those standards and prescribe the consequences for all who refuse to abide by them.

The Christian has been saved not to continue in sin but to demonstrate the righteousness of God in his daily life (see Romans 6:1ff). We are to live by God’s standards and not those of men. God’s standards are perfect and almost always higher than those of men. We should not disregard human standards altogether. Revenge not only violates the standards God has laid down for us, but it violates the standards of society as well. Revenge takes the law into its own hands. This view is dangerous and unbiblical.

I remember the statement from my college political science class, “We are a nation of laws, and not men.” Vigilante rule is unacceptable. That is why we have police and law-enforcement agencies. Revenge almost always extends the punishment beyond the crime and often promotes further violence. Society forbids revenge and condemns it as an evil. If society views revenge as evil, as God does, we should have regard for its standards. Revenge should not be taken because God forbids it and because society does also. Our testimony as a Christian will be greatly tarnished if we fail to live up to those standards commonly agreed upon by men.⁶⁷ We dare not seek revenge.

Paul probably had another reason for instructing the Christian to have regard for society’s standards. Persecution is frequently imposed by the state, by the government. The Jewish religious and political leaders joined forces to persecute Christianity, especially in Israel. Before long, Rome would cease to protect Christians and begin to persecute them. Even though this were the case, the Christian should beware of disdaining government (thus Romans 13:1-7) and rejecting all of its standards of right and wrong. If the Christian is to suffer at the hands of human government, let it be for doing right and not for disregarding society’s standards categorically. When we must violate society’s standards by disobeying the law, let us be sure there is a clear and contradictory command from God. We must beware of rejecting all of society’s standards because we must reject a few. The mistreated Christian may be tempted to see a persecuting government as all wrong when it may only be wrong in more restricted categories.

Revenge does not encourage peace but incites men to hostility (verse 18). Peace⁶⁸ is a priority for the Christian. When Jesus came to the earth, born as a baby, the angels sang, “… on earth peace among men, with whom He is well pleased” (Luke 2:14). Jesus taught His disciples, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9). Peace was to govern the conduct of His disciples (Mark 9:50). Our gospel is the gospel of peace (Luke 19:42; Acts 10:36; Ephesians 2:14-17; 6:15). God is a God of peace (Romans 16:20; Philippians 4:9; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; 2 Thessalonians 3:16; Hebrews 13:20). Peace should characterize the Christian (1 Corinthians 7:15; 2 Corinthians 13:11; Galatians 5:22). Because peace is a priority for the Christian and revenge promotes hostility, pursuing peace is the antidote to revenge. Pursing peace lays revenge to rest.

Revenge is the wrath of man; Christians must leave vengeance to God to whom it rightly belongs. James said it, and Paul obviously agrees, “The anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God” (James 1:20). Revenge takes the law into our own hands. In seeking revenge, men attempt to execute judgment on their fellow men. Judgment is God’s business as taught by the Scriptures. God has promised to establish justice and to execute His wrath on the wicked. We must believe this by faith. We must wait for His day of wrath and not hasten it by taking matters into our own hands. Just as we must patiently wait for God’s blessings, we must also patiently wait for God’s vengeance. Taking our own vengeance is taking God’s place and exercising His prerogatives.

Taking revenge is being overcome by sin; doing good is overcoming evil with good. Christian love is evidenced by our abhorrence of evil and our cleaving to what is good (verse 9). Revenge is being overcome by sin and is the promotion of evil. The Christian does not “fight fire with fire”; we must not react to sin by sinning. Our sin was overcome by the righteousness of God. The sins of others expressed in opposition to us will not be overcome by our sinful acts. Sin is only overcome by good. As we do “good” to our enemies, we vividly demonstrate to an unsaved world how God defeats sin, complimenting the gospel we are to proclaim. When the sin of others prompts us to sin in return, we have been defeated by sin. When the sin of others prompts us to do good to our enemies in return, sin is defeated and righteousness prevails.

The biblical principles laid down by Paul in this text are not new but are consistent with the teaching of the Old Testament. Thus Paul quotes from the Book of Proverbs, citing Proverbs 25:20, which shows the very practical ways love is to be demonstrated to one’s enemies. When our enemy is hungry, we should feed him. When he is thirsty, we should give him water to drink. Revenge would let him suffer and rejoice in his suffering.

By dealing with our enemies this way, the Scriptures say we “heap burning coals” on their head. Does this sound a little like revenge? It cannot be. We do not do good to our enemy to bring about his suffering; we do good to our neighbor in order to be a blessing to him. Many explanations are offered for the reference to burning coals. I believe these “coals” refer to the guilt and condemnation of a stricken conscience which our good deeds may produce in the sinner’s heart. This is indeed a blessing if the sinner’s guilty conscience leads him to repent and turn to God for forgiveness and salvation. One wonders if Paul’s conscience was not stricken by the response of some of those whom he persecuted. The broader context of our passage makes clear that we do good to our enemies with the purpose of blessing them and not with the hope that we will bring a curse upon them.

Conclusion

Paul’s meaning could hardly be clearer. Such standards repulse our flesh, but they are clear and compelling. The Christian is set apart from all others by the way he responds to his enemies. He does not hate his enemies and seek their suffering and destruction. He loves his enemies and seeks to do good to them. As we conclude this lesson, consider four foundational truths upon which Paul’s teaching is based.

First, Paul calls for attitudes and action toward our enemies which are consistent with the character of God and evidenced in the person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ. When Jesus came to the earth in human flesh, God became incarnate; God was manifested in human flesh. Our Lord was the exact representation of God. He manifested to men all of the attributes of God—His holiness, His grace, His love, and His other attributes. In His attitudes and actions, Jesus was a perfect reflection of God.

When our Lord ascended into heaven, He left behind the church, His body. It is now through the church that God is incarnate in this world. God’s self-revelation comes through His Word and through His body, the church. Paul calls for an attitude toward others which reflects the attitude of God toward men. In particular, Paul wants us to love our enemies,⁶⁹ and through this to reflect God’s love for fallen men. We are commanded to love our enemies in order to be like God and in order to be distinct from lost men. In the context of loving our enemies, our Lord Himself said: “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48, see verses 43-47).

Second, Paul calls for that which is consistent with the present purposes of God. All men are sinners, deserving God’s righteous wrath. Those who have received God’s gift of salvation in Christ have been delivered from His wrath. Those who have rejected God experience a present manifestation of His wrath (Romans 1:18). They are also storing up wrath for a future day of judgment as well (Romans 2:5). God has chosen to delay the execution of His righteous judgment, the full outpouring of His wrath, for a purpose. This purpose is put forth by Paul in Romans 9:

What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? And He did so in order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles (Romans 9:22-24).

The full power of God’s wrath has been delayed so that He might save those whom He has chosen as the objects of His mercy. At this time, these “vessels of mercy” are pre-dominantly Gentiles. But in the future, God has purposed to turn the hearts of the Jews to Himself (see Romans 11:25-32).

When on the earth, Jesus refused to judge men, insisting that He had come to save and not to condemn (see John 3:16-17; 8:1-11). There will be a future day of judgment, when He comes again at His second coming. Until then, the good news of God’s saving grace is to be proclaimed to the world. Until then, we who are saved are to reflect the saving grace of God to a lost and dying world. We are to leave judgment to God and to the time He has appointed. Now is the “day of salvation.” Let us behave in a manner consistent with God’s purpose for the present—the salvation of lost sinners.

If you have never trusted in Jesus Christ, my friend, do so today. Acknowledge your sin and the fact that you deserve God’s righteous wrath. Receive the gift of salvation God has provided in Jesus Christ. He suffered God’s wrath in your place. All you need do is to receive this gift and be saved. Be assured that there is coming a day of reckoning when all who have rejected Him will be eternally condemned. When He comes, the day of salvation will be past, for all eternity.

Third, what Paul teaches here requires a transformed mind which sees life vastly different than the natural man. The more I study the Word of God, the more I see that God’s ways are not man’s ways and that His thoughts are not our thoughts (Isaiah 55:7-9). Often Christians today talk of integrating secular truth with the truth of God’s revealed Word. What is so beneficial to the Christian from man’s thinking, motivation, and way of doing things? What do we need to know and do which God has not already revealed in His inspired, all-sufficient Word? The church’s great problem today is Christians seeking to live as the world thinks and lives. Our great need is to think and act as God does.

Romans 12:1 and 2 call upon the Christian to live in an entirely different way. We are to offer ourselves to God as living sacrifices. To do so, we must be transformed from what we were and not be conformed to the world. This is done by the renewing of our minds. Our thinking ceases to be in merely human terms but conforms to God’s thoughts. We must realize that to live as Christians, we must first think as Christians. This kind of thinking comes only through the Word of God, illuminated by the Spirit of God. Our text highlights the contrast between God’s thoughts and man’s. Let us be conformed to His thoughts. Let us obey Him by loving our enemies and seeking their benefit and ultimately seeking their salvation.

Fourth, Paul calls for conduct which is possible only in the strength God provides. If God’s thoughts are above ours and His ways are above ours, it is only by His means that we shall live as He requires. The Christian life is impossible to live in our own strength. Reading Romans 12 helps to better understand Paul’s words in Romans 7. No wonder Paul found it impossible to achieve God’s will in the power of the flesh. Only as we walk in the Spirit are these impossible requirements met. May we obey Him as we walk in His Spirit.

61 You will note that love is the general subject, giving unity to verses 9-21. Also note that in the first verse of this text (9) and the last (21) “good” and “evil” are specifically mentioned. Verses 9-21 are all about the exercise of love as it relates to “good” and “evil.”

62 This classification of (1) love toward fellow-believers and (2) love toward unbelievers generally holds true. It should be recognized, however, that some of our “enemies” will be found within the fold of those who profess faith in Christ. See, for example, Philippians 1:15-17; 2 Timothy 3:8; 4:14(?); 3 John 9.

63 Persecution is not as personal an offense as some others. We are persecuted because of Christ and because of our identification with Him (John 15:19-21). The hostages held against their will in Iraq were persecuted for being foreigners. The captive governments had nothing personal against them other than that they were foreigners in general and Americans in particular. We are persecuted not so much because of our theology as we are because of our practice. When our lifestyle threatens or exposes the sinful ways of those around us, they are inclined to retaliate (see Genesis 19:9; 1 Peter 4:3-4).

Men persecute those who threaten them, especially in the areas of wealth or power (see Acts 4:16-17; 5:27-28; 16:19f.; 19:23f.). Usually, persecution is an offense of the stronger against the weaker. Those who are in the majority and who have greater power have a greater capacity to persecute. I suspect this is why cursing is the evil in view here. Those who are overpowered may not be able to strike back physically, but they can always curse. Note, for example, the thief on the cross (Luke 23:39) and the instruction Peter gave to sufferers (1 Peter 2:1, 21-25). Cursing may be the only harm a helpless victim can do to his oppressors.

64 Verses 14-16 appear to have a more restricted group in mind—those who are our persecutors. Verses 17-21 seem more general—our enemies. Our enemies would include all those who have wrongly treated us.

65 The teaching concerning an “eye for an eye” was to establish a fundamental principle on which all justice is based, namely: Punishment should always be consistent with and proportionate to the crime. This principle was given primarily to govern rulers whose task it was to administer justice and not to those who sought revenge.

66 Common grace is the term theologians use to refer to the unmerited goodness of God toward all men, believers and unbelievers (see Matthew 5:45). God’s elective grace is sovereignly bestowed on those whom He singles out for blessing (see Romans 9:6-18).

67 There are many things which our society may permit which the Christian cannot practice. But there will almost always be fewer things which society prohibits which the Christian should feel free to practice.

68 For Paul’s use of “peace” in Romans, see 2:10; 3:17; 8:6; 12:18; 14:17, 19; 15:13, 33; 16:20.

69 There are those who say that God does not love sinners. If this were true, then God is requiring us to do that which He Himself does not do. When we love our enemies, we reflect God’s love for His enemies. God loved us while we were yet sinners (Romans 5:6-8), while we were His enemies. God has a special love for His elect, but He also loves all men, including His enemies.

Introduction

Imagine how you would feel if you were told that you had only a few months to live. You might try to cram a lifetime into those last days. You might travel to places you have always wanted to see. You might do things for which you had never found the time before. It would not be difficult to understand why you would want to spend your last days indulging yourself.

In Romans 13:8-14, Paul proposes a radically different response to a similar type of deadline—one every Christian must face. He reminds the Christian that his time is limited because the day of the Lord’s return is daily drawing nearer. In the light of this reality, he calls upon him to deny his fleshly lusts and to live for God. He challenges the Christian not to indulge himself, but to give himself sacrificially in serving others and in seeking their good. In this way, the Christian fulfills the Old Testament Law and its standards for godly conduct.

Our text in Romans is particularly significant in that, at the moment, our future is dominated by a deadline—January 15, 1991. This is the date which the United Nations has set for Iraq to retreat from Kuwait or face the threat of attack. The Middle East crisis draws our attention to the deadlines in life. This crisis could play a significant role in the final events which pave the way for the coming of our Lord to judge the earth and to establish His kingdom.

But even though our text in Romans draws attention to life’s ultimate deadline—the coming of our Lord—it challenges us to do more than be preoccupied with it. The important thing is to be found faithful when our Lord returns. We are to watch, wait, and work until He comes, whenever that might be.

We can accomplish this by adopting the mindset which Paul explains in our text. It is a mindset that denies fleshly lusts and refuses to make provision for them. It casts off the evil attitudes and actions which characterized us before our salvation and which are typical of the unbelieving world in which we live.

In this text of Scripture, Paul calls attention to a lifestyle appropriate for the Christian living in the light of Christ’s approaching return and reign. It applies to us all and demands the careful attention of each of us.

The Text in Context

In Romans 12, Paul turns from laying a doctrinal foundation (in chapters 1-11) to challenging the saints to action based on the truth he has been teaching. Romans 12:1-2 set forth the primary theme of chapters 12-15: Out of gratitude for the grace of God in our salvation, we should present our bodies as living sacrifices in worshipful service. This will entail a whole new way of thinking and acting—a transformed life—which is the outflow of a constantly renewed mind.

Our obligation to God as expressed in 12:1-2 is simply a reiteration of the primary theme of the Old Testament as emphasized by our Lord Jesus: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Deuteronomy 6:5; Matthew 22:37, etc.). It is not new, but it is easily forgotten, and so the need for another reminder.

The verses which follow Romans 12:1-2 articulate and apply the second great theme of the Bible—our obligation to love God by loving others. In Old Testament terms, once again reiterated and confirmed in the New, this obligation is: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 22:39; Romans 13:9, etc.). Love for our neighbor is a dominant and cohesive theme in Romans 12:3–15:13. Love must inspire and govern our ministry to one another within the body of Christ as we exercise our spiritual gifts (Romans 12:3-8).⁸¹

In Romans 12:9-21, Paul shows how love is to govern our relationships, not only with our fellow-believers, but also with our neighbors and even our enemies. In these verses, Paul speaks of the good which love inspires—even if the recipients persecute the Christians who practice such love.

Beginning in our current passage, Romans 13:8-14, Paul looks at the flip side of love. He directs our attention to what love will not do.⁸² Specifically, love does no wrong to our neighbor (13:10). Verses 11-14 again turn our attention God-ward, providing both the motivation and the means for living in love. Paul directs us to think both of our initial salvation and of our final salvation, and of the limited time which we have to offer to Him our service of worship in this life.

Later when Paul turns to the strong and the weak in Romans 14 and 15 (14:1–15:13), he is still applying the principle of love. This can be seen by his words in Romans 14:15: “For if because of food your brother is hurt, you are no longer walking according to love.”

Love is not only the motivation which inspires our actions, it is the principle by which our actions are governed. Loving God and loving men is therefore to be the outgrowth of salvation and of sound doctrine. These themes give unity to the entire section which we are studying.

But how, you may wonder, does Romans 13:1-7 fit into this picture? How does our obligation to obey government relate to the themes which Paul has been developing in this section? Let me suggest three ways in which verses 1-7 fit into the overall argument so as to pave the way for the words we are about to consider in this study.

First, Romans 13:1-7 explains why we can return good for evil to our enemies rather than seeking to retaliate (see 12:17-21). Judgment should be left to God rather than taken into our own hands. God’s judgment has several forms. One is His future day of judgment when all injustices will be rectified, all evildoers will be punished, and the righteous will be rewarded (see Romans 2:5-10). There is also a present form of divine wrath in which men are turned over to their sin (see Romans 1:18-32). But in addition to this, government has been instituted to serve as a “minister of God” to reward those who do good and to punish those who do evil (13:1-4).

Second, verses 1-7 remind us that all those in power have been ordained of God, and thus carry out their tasks as God’s ministers with His authority. To resist governmental officials (except in those times when they require us to disobey God’s Word) is to resist God (13:2). Romans 12:1-2 is a general call to obedience toward God. Romans 13:1-7 is a specific call to obey God through our obedience to the government which He has ordained.

Third, verses 1-7 directly relate to the theme of loving others which precedes and follows Paul’s teaching about human government. In Romans 12:9 he has instructed that love pursues that which is good and avoids what is evil. In Romans 13:1-7 he reminds us that government’s role is consistent with our own calling. Just as we are to abhor evil and cling to what is good, government is to reward those who do good and to punish those who do evil.

If for no other reason, men ought to obey the government out of fear, knowing the power which it has to punish evil-doers (Romans 13:3-4). But obedience based on fear is the “low road.” Love is the “high road,” and it is the relationship of love to law which Paul discusses in Romans 13:8-10.

Of course, we can refrain from doing harm to our neighbor because we will get in trouble with the law. But those who love their neighbor need not fear the law. Much more than this, love inspires us to do good to our neighbor, thus both fulfilling and surpassing the minimum standards set by the law. It is love, therefore, and not law which should motivate and guide us in our dealings with our neighbor. When we walk in love, we also keep the law.

Love and the Law
(13:8-10)

8 Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. 9 For this, “YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, YOU SHALL NOT MURDER, YOU SHALL NOT STEAL, YOU SHALL NOT COVET,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.” 10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; love therefore is the fulfillment of the law.

The expression, “owe nothing to anyone,” can be easily misunderstood. J. B. Phillips, in his usually excellent paraphrase of the New Testament, renders this phrase: “Keep out of debt altogether.” I feel that his paraphrase misses the mark in this passage. The term which is rendered “owe” is used a number of times in the New Testament in several forms. Most often, it is not employed in the sense of a financial debt or obligation. Usually it is used in a broader sense of obligation or duty, which would best be conveyed by the word “ought.”⁸³

Although Paul is speaking about the Christian’s sense of obligation to others, it would be a mistake to conclude that any obligation other than love is evil and therefore forbidden. As Paul has stated previously, because of God’s mercy and grace we are obligated to present our bodies to God as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1-2). Paul was obligated to preach the gospel “to Greeks and to barbarians” (Romans 1:14). We are obligated not to live according to the flesh (Romans 8:12), but to serve others and seek their good—even our enemies (12:3ff.). We are obligated to honor those in authority (13:7).⁸⁴ And we will see in future lessons that the strong are obliged to bear the weaknesses of those who are weak (15:1).

As I understand Paul’s words in Romans 13:8, he is teaching us that our highest obligation toward men is our obligation to love them. There are other obligations which we will always have toward men, but these obligations are to be subordinate to our obligation of love. Paul doesn’t exclude all other obligations, but rather subordinates them to our highest obligation. Loving God is our first level of priority. Loving others is second. All other obligations (in their own levels of priority) are subordinate.

Let me play out the implications of this truth for just a moment. If I understand Paul correctly, my obligation to government is subordinate to my obligation to love others. But when I love others, I fulfill the law (not only God’s Law, as seen in the Old Testament, but government’s laws as well—see Galatians 5:23). If, however, the government orders me to do to others that which is contrary to love, I would have to disobey government. For example, a German citizen who was ordered to betray known Jews so that they could be exterminated would have had difficulty doing so in a way that could be viewed as loving his neighbor.

Romans 13:8-10 not only gives my obligation to love others a higher priority than by other obligations (such as to obey government and its laws), but it explains why this can be true: When I love others, I fulfill the law. Fulfilling my higher duty assures that I will obey my other duties. Loving God will not hinder me from loving others, and loving others will not keep me from my obligation to obey the law.⁸⁵

Love fulfills the law, Paul tells us. This is no new revelation. Paul’s proof comes from Leviticus 19:18. Jesus taught the same thing (see Matthew 22:34-40). Love would never permit the things the Old Testament Law forbade. Love would not commit adultery or murder, nor would it steal or covet.

Why is the emphasis of these verses so negative? Why does Paul speak of what love will not do, rather than of what it will do? In the first place, Paul has already spoken a great deal about the positive outworking of love in Romans 12:3-21. Paul is now speaking of love in its relationship to the law. Whether this “law” be the Old Testament Law or the laws of the land in which we live, law tends to be more negative in nature. The law tends to prohibit men from those actions which would harm their fellowman. The law focuses more on the prevention of evil than it does on the promotion of good.⁸⁶

The four evils which Paul names are all found in the Old Testament Law of Moses in exactly the order Paul has listed them.⁸⁷ Adultery, murder, theft, and coveting are all categorized as actions which would harm others.⁸⁸ Few would debate that murder and stealing wrong our neighbor.⁸⁹ But the two sins of adultery and coveting are less universally condemned.

Today in America, adultery is hardly considered immoral, let alone illegal. In fact, adultery is often justified by asserting that there was not love in the marital union but there is love in the extra-marital one. Our world accepts (and sometimes commends) adultery because it believes it is the expression of love. The Bible condemns adultery as a violation of love. How do we explain the difference?

We must begin by affirming that adultery is sin simply because God says so, forbidding it in His Holy Law. We must also agree with Paul that some sins (he specifically names coveting) would never be recognized as sin unless God divinely forbade them as such (see Romans 7:7).

But adultery is considered sin in our text because it harms our neighbor. Adultery involves our neighbor in sin, which carries with it divine condemnation (see 1 Corinthians 6:9-10). It does great damage to the individuals and families involved. It destroys the intimacy of the marital union. It ultimately produces no good and brings much evil. Because of this, adultery is condemned as sin and contrary to love. You do not commit adultery because you are in love; you commit adultery as a sin against love.

Coveting is also harmful to my neighbor. The Old Testament Law says we are not to covet our neighbor’s house, wife, property, cattle, possessions, and servants. But how can coveting the possessions of my neighbor harm him in any way? In the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 5:21-48), Jesus taught that those attitudes which lead to sinful actions are just as sinful as the actions themselves. Anger is forbidden because it leads to murder. Lust is forbidden because it leads to adultery. Coveting, too, is evil because it leads me to wish that my neighbor were deprived of something he owns so that I could possess it.

Coveting anything which belongs to my neighbor is wishing he did not possess what God has given him. Coveting his possessions is desiring my good and my gain at my neighbor’s expense. This attitude is that which will hinder me from seeking or contributing to his good.

To illustrate this, suppose my neighbor has an antique which I want badly. I covet this antique and wish I had it rather than my neighbor. I learn that he has suffered some serious setbacks and is likely to go bankrupt. I could give or loan my neighbor enough money to prevent his bankruptcy or even offer to buy the antique at fair market price. But if I covet it, I will be tempted to do nothing good to help my neighbor to escape financial disaster—then buy the antique at a liquidation auction at a fraction of its value. Coveting predisposes me against doing good to my neighbor in order to gain at his expense. Coveting, even though only an inner attitude and motivation at first, is harmful to my neighbor.⁹⁰

Paul’s teaching in verses 8-10 may be summed up in this way: We are to view our neighbor from the perspective of love. When we do, we will seek his good, avoid doing what is harmful to him, and thus fulfill the law.

Even more, the Christian should look beyond himself to others with a spirit of obligation, an obligation rooted in gratitude toward God and in love toward others. Unfortunately in our culture, we look to others with a very different attitude. We might be able to capture the essence of this attitude with the term “expectation.” In our sinful, self-seeking flesh, we do not look upon others with an obligation to serve them at our expense, but to be served by them at their expense. We live in a day of expectation, not obligation.

We just celebrated Christmas, supposedly a joyous season and a time of giving. Why is it, then, that Christmas is almost always followed by an upsurge in mental depressions? I think it is because we all come to the Christmas holidays with a spirit of expectation. We hope that others will give us those things which will make us happy. We expect our times of gathering to be personally enriching. We desire and expect to gain more than we give, and then it does not happen. Our expectations are unfulfilled, and we are frustrated and depressed.

If our outlook were one of Christian love, we would approach Christmas (and every other day) as a time of obligation—when we can give of ourselves to others and set aside selfish desires. If our attitude were one of obligation to others, there would be no time for us to be frustrated or depressed, for there will always be more than enough opportunities to serve others at our expense.

Sadly, Christians have taken on the attitude of the world rather than being renewed in their minds to think and act like our Lord. We look around to see if others are affirming us and meeting our needs. We look back at the past, not so much to consider the obligation and debt which we owe to our parents, but to see how “dysfunctional” our family was and to contemplate how family members failed us. We look back with expectation, not with obligation. We look around, not with obligation, but with expectation. This is not the way of love.

Love subordinates self-interest in order to serve others. It seeks others’ gain at our expense. Emotionally and personally speaking, we are not producers; we are consumers. And, I fear, we are on the verge of relational bankruptcy. God’s way is the higher way. His way is the better way; His way is the way of love. When we choose this path, we will more than fulfill the requirements of the law—both God’s law and man’s.

Love, Its Motivations and Its Means
(13:11-14)

11 And this do, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. 12 The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.

Let’s begin by considering the connection between verses 8-10 and verses 11-14. I see three links between these two paragraphs. First, the one text immediately follows the other. Proximity alone tells us these two paragraphs are logically related. Second, the first words of verse 11 point back to the previous verses. Paul begins verses 11-14 with these introductory words, “And this do …” Thus, loving others (verses 8-10) has much to do with “knowing the time” (verse 11). Finally, when we consult parallel texts we see that loving others is linked with considering the time of Christ’s return and with forsaking our former lifestyle.⁹¹

Paul speaks about walking in love in chapters 12 and 13. Verses 11-14 are written, I believe, to bring us back to the bedrock basis for walking in love. Paul’s words turn our attention both to the motivations which inspire love and the means which help it function.

Paul’s teaching in these verses is predicated upon that which he has already taught us in chapters 1-11. There are two principle themes dealt with in Romans 13:11-14 whose foundations have been laid in the earlier chapters of Romans. These two themes are salvation and love. Let us briefly review what Paul loads into these words, for their meanings will be assumed in our present passage.

Salvation has two dimensions in Romans 1-11. The first dimension is that of our initial salvation, the point in time when we were transferred from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light—when we who were God’s enemies became His sons. In Romans 1-3 Paul taught that we are all in need of salvation and under the sentence of divine condemnation because we have rejected the revelation we have received about God. By our deeds we have shown ourselves to be unrighteous, unworthy of His favor, and deserving only of His wrath.

The Lord Jesus Christ made salvation possible for those who were chosen (see Romans 8:28-30; chapter 9), for He died in our place and suffered the penalty for our sins (Romans 3:21-26). When we believed in Him by faith, His righteousness was imputed to us and we became His children. That salvation changes not only our future, but also our present conduct. We must no longer live in sin, but rather live righteously (Romans 6).

Our salvation also has a future dimension. While we presently have the forgiveness of God and are declared to be righteous in Him, we have a future hope. We now look forward to His blessings rather than His wrath (see Romans 2:5-10). This is our hope of glory in which we presently exult (Romans 5:2). While we presently groan because of our own imperfection and that of the fallen world in which we live, we look forward to that day when our full “sonship” will be realized, when our bodies will be redeemed, and when God’s kingdom is established on the earth (Romans 8:14-25). This future day of full and final salvation will come not only for the Gentiles, but also for the Jews (Romans 11:25-32).

Paul speaks also of love, which originates from God and finds expression as it reflects in the saints. God manifested His love in the death of Christ by which He drew many to Himself and to salvation (Romans 5:5-11). The love of God is that certainty which gives the Christian joy, hope, and assurance, even in the midst of present trials and adversity (Romans 8:31-39).

The love of God, so evident and so secure for the saint, should also be reflected by the saints. Thus in Romans 12, Paul turns from God’s love for us to His love expressed through us to others. It is this love which we must have for our fellow Christians, our neighbors, and even our enemies (Romans 12:3-21). It is this love which prevents us from doing harm to our neighbor (Romans 13:8-10). This love, however, must be motivated and sustained. The motivations and means for Christian love are described in verses 11-14, based upon the previous teachings of Paul.

Our motivation for love is presented in the context of time. We are to love others “knowing the time.” Paul uses the well-known symbols of “night and day,” “darkness and light,” and “sleep and waking up.” We usually go to bed at night when it is dark. The coming of light indicates the passing of night and the beginning of a new day. The coming of the dawn is an indication that it is time to wake up, get up, and get about the deeds of the new day.

What Paul describes in verses 11-14 has happened to me all too often. I go to bed at night. Then in my first waking moments I become increasingly aware of the light. Suddenly it dawns upon me. It is morning! Good grief, what time is it? I grab the clock. Oh no! I have overslept. The day has begun, but I have not. I shed my bed clothes and hastily dress, running from my bedroom to get to the day’s duties.

I think this is the picture Paul is painting. We have been oversleeping. We need to wake up. The night has passed. The new day is dawning—the day of our Lord’s return. We must get about doing those things which remain to be done. We must put off our night clothes and put on clothes appropriate for the work our Lord calls us to do.

Here Paul is looking at time from two perspectives. In the first place, he is looking at that time which has elapsed between our initial salvation and the present. The time which has passed should have produced growth and maturity and greater sensitivity to both good and evil. Another passage, Hebrews 5:11-14, describes the danger of stunted spiritual growth:

Concerning him [Melchizedek, see 5:1-10] we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for some one to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For every one who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil (emphasis mine).

The Hebrew saints had been saved for some time. Time should have meant growth and progress, greater sensitivity to good and evil, and greater ability to assimilate truth. But the reverse seems to have been true, and for this the writer rebukes his readers.

In our text in Romans, Paul is saying something similar. He is indicating that these Roman saints have been saved for some time now. They should be growing in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. But they still seem to be “sleepy Christians,” not fully awake and alert. It is high time they wake up and grow up!

Time is also viewed in a second way. If, on the one hand, Paul says that too much unprofitable time has passed by, then the time they have left is slowly eroding away. The Roman saints must hasten to demonstrate their love. Paul does not say here that the day of salvation, the day of the Lord’s return, is imminent. What he does say is that the time left between the day of their initial salvation and the day of their final salvation is diminishing. And for us too, there is less time to serve the Lord now than there was when we were first saved. There is no time to waste!

Paul reminds us of our initial salvation and of the coming day of our full salvation to stir us up to love and good deeds. Our focus is not only to be upon others, but upon God, His grace, our salvation, and the rapidly approaching day of His return. This will mean glory for us and rewards for faithfulness. It will also mean condemnation for the lost. Let us not waste this time, but rather serve God faithfully and so be found faithful when He returns.

Two things are stressed in verses 11-14. The first is why we are to increase in our worship of service through loving others—the day of Christ’s return draws closer every day. The second is how we are to do so. Given the proper motivation to serve God by loving others, how do we do it? We know from Romans 7 that while Paul was properly motivated to serve God, he was not able to do so in his own strength. The problem was not the law, but Paul’s weak, sinful nature, and sin, which took advantage of his flesh.

If one is to walk in love, putting service to others above his own interests, how does he do it? It cannot be done in the flesh. In fact, the flesh must be crucified—put to death. Paul describes the means for walking in love in both its positive and its negative dimensions:

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts (Romans 13:14).

Positively, we must “put on the Lord Jesus Christ.” Negatively, we must “make no provision for the flesh.”

When we put on the Lord Jesus Christ we will manifest Him through our lives. When we do so, we will manifest His love, a love for those who had offended Him and who were His enemies. Putting on Christ means depending on Christ to live His life, His grace, and His love through us by means of His Spirit. There is no human means for Christ-like living. God has provided for us that which we lack. We must simply walk in the Spirit, by faith.

On the negative side, we must make no provision for the lusts of the flesh. Love and lust are opposites. They are incompatible with each other. The world equates the two, so “making love” is satisfying the lusts of the flesh. But in a biblical sense, “making love” is living in love, as described in Romans 12 and 13. Satisfying our lusts is the opposite of living in love. Living in love requires that we present our bodies, with their lustful desires, as living sacrifices to God.

Paul instructs us to “make no provision for the flesh.” The term which is rendered “make provision for” here is found only one other time in the New Testament, in the Book of Acts. Tertullus, an attorney who was the spokesman for the Jews who opposed Paul, spoke these flattering words to Felix:

“Since we have through you attained much peace, and since by your providence reforms are being carried out for the nation, we acknowledge this in every way and everywhere, most excellent Felix, with all thankfulness” (Acts 24:2b-3, emphasis mine).

The term “providence” above is the same one used by Paul in our text in Romans. It implies forethought, planning, and activity. In Greek literature outside the New Testament, the term is used of a premeditated crime.

Sin seldom just happens; most of the time it is premeditated. Sin is a link in a chain of events.⁹² When we surrender to the lusts of our flesh, it is often not a sudden collapse, but rather the culmination of a process. The sins of our flesh are those sins about which we have given much thought (here we see the role coveting can play), and for which we have made provision. If we would be victorious over sin and the flesh, we must cease to make provision for it.

I am reminded of the story of an alcoholic who was bemoaning his sin to an evangelist. He explained his frequent downfalls by saying, “When I pass by that tavern on my way home from work, I go in, and then I later find myself with a hangover.” When questioned by the evangelist, the alcoholic admitted that the tavern was not on his way home from work at all. He had to go several miles out of his way to pass by it. This man, like us, made provision for the lusts of his flesh, and so he fell.

If we are to live in love, we must be motivated by our love for God and our gratitude for His grace. We must do so out of a sense of obligation toward others, and not expectation from others. We must do so knowing that more than enough time has passed for us to have grown and to have changed and that less time than ever is available to faithfully serve the Lord.

Rightly motivated, we must also be rightly enabled to serve God by loving others. We must positively “put on the Lord Jesus Christ,” and we must negatively cease to “make provision for the lusts of our flesh.” Only by His grace can these be done, but they can be done. Let us by His grace seek to do them—for His glory and for the good of others—until He returns for us.

81 Granted, love is not yet mentioned specifically in verses 3-8, but it is immediately introduced in verses 9 and following. Verses 9-21 spell out the way love enhances our ministry, just as Paul elsewhere emphasizes love (1 Corinthians 13) in the context of spiritual gifts and the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12-14). Thus, while love is not yet mentioned in verses 3-8, it is implied and assumed.

82 This two-sided dimension of love is consistent with, and the outworking of, Paul’s statement in Romans 12:9: “Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good.” Love acts both positively and negatively.

83 As the term is translated in the King James Version, out of 34 occurrences, it is translated in the following ways: ought 15 x; be a debtor 1 x misc.; renderings 7 x; owe 7 x; be guilty1 x; be bound 2 x; be indebted 1 x. When the idea of monetary debt is involved, the reference most frequently occurs in the gospels. Paul frequently uses this term (in several forms). He employs it 19 times in his epistles (Romans 1:14; 4:4; 8:12; 13:7, 8; 15:1, 27 twice; 1 Corinthians 5:10; 7:36; 9:10; 11:7, 10; 2 Corinthians 12:11, 14; Ephesians 5:28; 2 Thessalonians 1:3; 2:13; Philemon 18). The term is seldom used of a financial obligation (see Philemon 18), but of a higher, more general, obligation or duty. To use this passage as a proof text against borrowing money would be a failure to understand the broader connotations of this term (here rendered “owe”) in its occurrences, and in its specific use here in Romans 13:8.

84 The expression, “what is due,” in Romans 13:7 is the same root word, in a slightly different form, as is used in verse 8, rendered “owe.”

85 There are exceptions to the latter portion of this statement, but here we are dealing with the rule, not the exception.

86 The Old Testament Law had a great deal to say about the good which we should be willing to do for others, and it had commandments with specific applications. Even here, however, the Law sought to prevent harm to others, while looking to love as the incentive for doing good.

Under most human governments, the law is concerned more with prohibiting evil than with promoting good deeds. One exception might be socialism, which seems skeptical about love and human kindness. It does not expect men to voluntarily do good toward others. Consequently, socialism somewhat forcefully causes men to do good to others. For example it takes (taxes) money from some and distributes it to others.

87 The King James Version includes a fifth prohibition: love will not bear false witness. The reference to bearing false witness occurs between the prohibitions of stealing and coveting, just where it occurs in the Old Testament Law (see Exodus 20:16; Deuteronomy 5:20).

88 As a friend of mine pointed out, all of these offenses deprive others of something (coveting wishes so) in such a way that we gain at the expense of others. In this sense, we are under an illicit obligation to them. Some of these debts can be paid back in some form of restitution. Others (like adultery) cannot.

89 Some do, however. I have seen, in prison ministry and elsewhere, that some excuse murder as doing society a favor. For example, a “hit man” might excuse his murder by contending that he is a social garbage collector, removing those people from society who are detrimental to it. There are those who rob from the rich, justifying their actions by accusing their victims of having wrongly acquired their wealth or of wrongly using it. Sin is often logical to the sinner. The mind has a way of excusing what the wicked heart desires and the hand performs.

90 Ironically much of our economy (and certainly much of our advertising) is based upon coveting.

91 See Galatians 5:13-26; Ephesians 4:22-24; 5:6-16; Colossians 3:1-17; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11; 1 Peter 4:1-11; 2 Peter 3:8-15.

92 James describes this “chain” of events in the first chapter of his epistle (James 1:13-15).