Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor that which is evil. Cling to that which is good. In love of the brothers be tenderly affectionate to one another; in honor preferring one another; not lagging in diligence; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope; enduring in troubles; continuing steadfastly in prayer; contributing to the needs of the saints; given to hospitality.
In Romans 12, Paul tells me more about what it means to do good to fellow believers. At the heart of it is real, fervent, not faked, not hypocritical, love:
Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor that which is evil. Cling to that which is good. In love of the brothers be tenderly affectionate to one another; in honor preferring one another; not lagging in diligence; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope; enduring in troubles; continuing steadfastly in prayer; contributing to the needs of the saints; given to hospitality.
Notice the components of real love, because they all work together, not separately:
Real love hates evil, and, in this context, hates evil that is at work in my own life first and then in my fellow believers’ lives. It does not join in it.
But real love clings to everything that is good. In this context, when a real opportunity to do good to another person—but particularly a believer—arises, it does it. And it diligently looks for the good—not the evil—in others and supports it. Real love, therefore, does not make me into a great critic, always seeking to find, talk about, and “fix” the faults in others. Instead, it makes me into a great encourager, finding the good and helping it grow.
Love of my fellow believers should be tenderly affectionate. In our world, affection is normally used as a tool of manipulation. It is carefully rationed to keep us starving for it. That way, when it is given only rarely, some (but never close too all) of the times we do as we are told, we will become dependent on the source and learn to always comply. But it is not to be this way among believers. I should be tenderly affectionate, not only on rare occasions, in order to manipulate, but on every proper occasion. It is a part of doing good.
Love also makes me honor and prefer those I love. Like showing affection, this should be a normal part of my life, not something shown only rarely or to manipulate. As preachers and writers have said for years, this includes preferring other believers in business. But it goes way beyond this. It should touch every part of my life.
Real love is continually diligent in seeking, supporting and doing good. In doing good, and in serving the Lord—which are flip sides of each other, parts of the same thing—it is “fervent.” Other translations say “zealous” or “passionate.” Real love is not emotionless. It is not, as the Puritans thought, the complete denial and absence of all passion. It is not doing what I know is right while at the same time trying to be as bored or emotionally flat as possible. God expects some fire in what he is doing through me!
(That there can be some problems keeping this fire under proper control when it is first let loose is another matter. That is a question of training and experience. It is not a good reason to keep the fire quenched at all times!)
Love keeps its hope, rejoices and perseveres in the face of trouble. And there will be trouble! The world doesn’t like what we are doing. And there are times when the people we most love—within the church—will reject us also.
Prayer is also a part of love, a part of doing good. Paul says we are to “continue steadfastly” in it. We are to keep on praying even when there seems to be no answer, when nothing positive seems to be happening. And we are to keep on praying even when prayer is discouraged. This speaks directly to what I should do when other believers tell me not to pray for them—I should “continue steadfastly” anyway!
Finally, real love welcomes those it loves and cares for their needs. These are also flip sides of each other—caring for needs and hospitality—and are directed by prayer. And I am now convinced that my many failures to do these things, or to do them well or in the right spirit in the past, do not disqualify me from doing them now. Past sin does not require present sin.
Email me: Ian Johnson
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