Romans 12 Challenge

Romans 12:9-13 (ESV) Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

    I call this the Romans 12 Challenge. Looking at the modern church we don't really look like this...to be honest I don't know if I have ever seen this in action. My goal with this challenge is to begin a change in the way people think and act towards each other and move the modern church away from the judgmental stereo type it has earned. I want to start focusing on these traits and get back to, well the first point.

1) Let love be genuine.

    I like the word genuine. Its a fun word with a great meaning. Let our love be truly love, let it be authentic, without fault or question of what it is. That is what this is saying. Find what it means to be genuine in our love in 1 Corinthians 13:1-8.

2) Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.

    Abhor means to hate or strongly dislike. It means to disdain, show no respect for and flee from evil. 1 Corinthians 15:33 gives us a great warning of this, “Do not be misled: 'Bad company corrupts good character.'” When we start to surround our selves with good company though we start to be uplifted and encouraged as well as begin to be that good influence and encourager to others.

3) Love one another with brotherly affection.

    I think this is huge! I look at the relationship my wife has with her brother and it brings me joy. They know how to minister to not only the physical sadness one of them may be facing but also how to minister to the spiritual struggle they may be facing in life. This is what I believe to be loving with brotherly affection, to uplift and encourage each other always pointing our troubles back to God for solution.

This needs to come not in the language of christianese but in actions or words of understanding. Don't slap a spiritual bandaid on someone with a verse and call it a day.

Take the time to understand whats happening and give advice that fits the situation and the person. This also needs to be done honorably and appropriately.

4) Outdo one another in showing honor.

    This is one of my favorite points! We should constantly point out to one another what our brothers and sisters are doing for the Lord and honor them for what they do. This should be done earnestly and not to gain favor from the other person but to glorify and edify the body of Christ. I like to think about the verse where Jesus says we must become last to become first in the kingdom of God. To me this means we need to be humble in our actions and loud about the actions of others when they bring glory to God.

5) Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.

    Zeal is such an awesome word! I want you to know a good friend of mine, Kevin Wilson has instilled this message in my mind so amazingly. He probably doesn't know this but he inspires me with how much Zeal he has for the Lord and how hard he goes after deepening his relationship with Jesus. I challenge you to be like him.

Have so much passion for God that all you want to do is serve him, but don't stop there, fulfill that passion and serve Him.

Do it in whatever way He has given you but serve and do it with Zeal!

6) Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.

    This is self explanatory ya'll. Be joyful we have hope in Christ, don't give into struggles that may slap us across the cheek, turn the other and press in. Show you will not fall or fail because you stand on the foundation of Christ and have an army of brothers and sisters by your side to uplift and encourage you through prayer, and words of wisdom. Stay vigilant in your prayer life so you can draw closer to the Lord and hear Him speak. Some trials may take very little time and others may take a while, but remember its in Gods timing. Your struggles aren't forever, often times it depends on us just staying faithful in the midst of them to find freedom.

7) Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

    This goes hand in hand with the previous point. Just as we can rely on our brothers and sisters coming to our aid when we fall into struggles we must be there to join them in their fight. We must be willing to give a helping hand and support our brothers and sisters when they face tribulations and come to their aid when they need it. No matter the circumstances we are not to judge them harshly, but rather to help them back to the father.

    Lets get on this Church! Lets live like this! This is the Romans 12 Challenge. Lets begin to live this out and edify the body! Show honor to some of your brothers and sisters in Christ with Zeal and lovingly challenge them to pass this on! That is if your brave enough...I pray you find the courage to accept it. You can keep this to your self or post the challenge on social media using #Romans12Challenge I encourage you to do the latter so others can join the Romans 12 Challenge. Here is a link for a great template.

Much Love,

The Bear