November 27
Romans 12-16
Each one of us have gifts from God. We can use those gifts
for the benefit of the Body of Christ or we can use them to build ourselves up.
Whenever we put ourselves above everyone else, we can be assured a fall is
coming. God created us to come together and to support one another, not to lord
our gifts over others or even to judge others. He wants us to lift each other
up, so we call all grow closer to Jesus.
There are some people who are easier to love than others.
There are some we just cannot make ourselves love. That is when we need the
power of the Holy Spirit to empower us to love. Paul says we should even give
our enemy food and drink. We cannot do that on our own. In love we support our
brothers and sisters. If one hurts, the others are there to support them, if
one rejoices, the others are there to rejoice with them. The Church is the Body
of Christ and as with any body each member is affected by the others.
It can be difficult enough getting along with members of
your family, how can we learn to love our brothers and sisters in Christ let
alone our enemies. This kind of love can only happen when we first love God
with all our heart. Paul wrote; "Therefore,
I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living
sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of
worship." (Romans 12:1, NIV) When we offer our bodies as living
sacrifices, we no longer live for self preservation, but for the Kingdom of
God. We can humble ourselves and love in ways that we could have never loved on
our own. When we have a transformed mind, we can love with a pure heart.
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