Romans12. 9-13 is a call for love
in the body of Christ. For Paul, loving others is the heart of Christian living. Even charismata find its base in love. Paul
links charismata and love strongly in
Romans 12 and 1Corinthians. Love is the foundation of the communitarian
existence of the body of Christ. In Romans 13.9, Paul says that the whole moral
codes of the Old Testament are summed up in loving others.
Let me expose three aspects of love in the body of
Christ based on Romans 12.9-13.
Firstly, Love should be liberative without hypocrisy.
V.9 used the Greek word agape for love. Paul used this
word for God’s love and human love. For Paul, Christ’s death is the supreme
expression of God’s love to humanity. Agape indicates the conjugal love between
man and woman in non biblical literature before 2 and 3 century CE. It is love
for others. V.9 says this agape Love must be genuine. The Greek word for genuine
is ajnupovkrito" which means without
hypocrisy. Hypocrisy conceals the true identity and intentions behind the mask.
Love should not be manipulative. When love loses its sincerity, it becomes
hypocrisy. Hypocrisy is antithesis to agape.
V.9 further says that this love should hate evil and
hold fast in doing good to others. Love is not blind towards evil. Rather, Love
opposes evil, oppressive and unjust structures of the society. However, this
liberative voice is often stumbled by our selfishness and wrong priorities.
Pride and selfishness often prevent us from doing good to others. When love
compromises with evil, the liberative voice of love can be lost. Friends, when love is dominated by
differences, it can produce quarrel. When love becomes possessive, it can be
oppressive. When love fills with control, it can be denial of freedom. When love
is linked with lust, it can be immoral. When love is linked to money it can be
greed. When love connects to pride, it can produce arrogance. When love turns
into the wrong side, it can be
oppressive. Therefore, our love should be bounded by
doing good for others. That prevents us from being oppressive in our daily
relationship and the structures in which we are placed. When our sincere love
hates evil and is bounded by goodness, it can be liberative.
Secondly love transcends all boundaries
V. 10 talks about brotherly love that should be
directed to one another. The word philadeliphia in v.10 indicates the love for brother or sister and among friends. The word Philostorgoi in v.10 is
the love of a parent for the child and the love among other family members.
Pauline use of these family words indicates that the Christian community is the
family of God where love should prevail like the love that is shared in a
family. Further, this verse talks about respecting one another. Love of each other goes along with the
respect of each other. Respect recognizes and accepts others. Love without
respect can be blind and respect without love can be corruptive. The
institution of the family is bounded by ethnic, gender and socio-cultural boundaries
in the first century. Pauline use of these family words implies that Christian love
and bonding should transcend the ethnic, gender, and socio-cultural boundaries.
Christians should respect each other not on the basis of status, power, money,
gender and caste but on the basis of love. Often our self dominated ideology
prevents us to value or respect the downtrodden, marginalized and weaker ones
in the society. In short, our love transcends all the boundaries and affirms the
value of every human irrespective of class, caste and colour.
Thirdly love should express through liberative praxis.
Encouragement in v. 11 deals with eagerness, Spirit
and serving the Lord. The exhortation in v.12 talks about hope, affliction and
prayer. Both of these verses seem to indicate the enthusiasm and eagerness of
the spiritual life of Christians. V.13 exhorts for sharing resources and hospitality.
The spiritual eagerness and enthusiasm of Christian life is correlated to the
practical side of the philadeliphia or agape that is hospitality and
sharing resources to the needy. Again
the emphasis here is the correlated – interconnected mutual side of Charismata
and loving relationship. Charismata and social concerns should go hand in hand.
Love is often tested by our readiness to share our resources to others. Early
Christians used the word agape for their community
meals. The koinoneo/ fellowship was a part of the early Christian agape.
Early Christian concept of sharing, koinoneo and hospitality could be
considered as alternative Christian financial measures against the oppressive
and exploitative economic structures of the society. Thus, love should stand
against evil and oppressive structures. It should also stand for the well being
of the other. Thus, Agape or
philadeliphia of Christians should be expressed in liberative praxis.
May God enable us to
practice love without hypocrisy by transcending the
boundaries through liberative praxis. Amen.