musing on Romans 12:9

There is a lot to be gleened from Romans 12. Just thinking of putting down in text how it all spoke to me is daunting, but i'm going to give it a shot. Romans 12:9-21 has so much to say. I probably can't do it justice, but I shall try.

v9 "Love must be sincere"

That's not all of verse nine quite yet, but I'm pausing there. Love MUST BE SINCERE. Truly having love for someone cannot be faked. Often times when we try to appear loving when we have no love. We just do it to look good when really, we just look like we want ppl to THINK we are loving. The ppl you are "loving" in this way notice. I'm not real sure why I bring this up. I guess maybe it's because as Christians we are called to reach out in the world in love....and that's a lot of ppl. Love all of them? Yea, and genuinely.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13;

"if I speak in tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have faith that canmove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing."

The acts he speaks of are good (the first two only if they are from God), but without love, it's nothing. This reminds me of some song lyrics by the Newboys ages ago "But without love my words are dead". It's very true.

Alright, on the rest of v9 which is "Hate was is evil; cling to what is good". Too often Christians make excuses for some of the things that God hates they they are entertained by: movies with crude humor and sexual immorality

(Ephesians 5:3-4 "But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are imporper for God's holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving")

or enjoying media that uses God's name in vain

(Exodus 20:7 "You shall not misuse the name of th Lord you God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses him name" - emphasis added)

There are things in this world that we make excuses for because we still dont want to give them up. God hates evil. We also, if we are in Christ, should "hate what is evil", not make exuses for why we partake in or support it whether it is certian movies, downloading music, drinking at the club. Scripture is very clear on these things. We all need to cling to God with both hands...not clinging to him with one while still holding onto something in the world. It cannot be done.

I believe I will stop here for the night and continue on another time.