Principles Governing the Congregation, Part 2
Notes
Transcript
A Brief Summary
A Brief Summary
In this next section, Rom. 12 - 15:13, Paul goes into the purpose and calling of all followers of Yeshua. As mentioned before, I have broken up this section of Romans as follows:
Rom. 12:1-8 Ministries of the Congregation
Rom. 12:9-21 Principles governing the Congregation
Rom. 13:1-7 Respect for authority
Rom. 13:8-14 Call to love and hope
Rom. 14:1-12 Respecting one another
Rom. 14:13-23 Pursuing shalom
Rom. 15:1-13 Strengthening one another
Last time we focused in on the first part of the Principles Governing the Congregation. Today we will continue to the end of Romans 12:14-21
Bless those who persecute you—bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be proud, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own eyes. Repay no one evil for evil; give thought to what is good in the eyes of all people. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live in shalom with all people. Never take your own revenge, loved ones, but give room for God’s wrath—for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay,” says Adonai. Rather, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. For by doing so you will heap coals of fire upon his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Bless those who Persecute
Bless those who Persecute
As I mentioned last week, this next section reminds me of the Sermon that Yeshua gave on the mountain in Matt. 5. What is interesting is that the letter to the Romans was written earlier than the Gospel of Matthew. Romans was most likely written in early 57 A.D., where as Matthew as well as Mark were most likely written in the late 60s A.D. This means that Paul was quoting the oral tradition of what Yeshua said.
Yeshua had said the following in Matt. 5:11-12
“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, on account of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great! For in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
And again in Matt. 5:43-45
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
When Matthew was writing this, the persecution was very real and coming from the Jewish leaders of his day. Also shortly after Paul wrote this letter to the believers in Rome, they would come under the persecution of Emperor Nero. Yeshua was absolutely clear that we are not supposed to seek revenge, but rather we are to treat everyone, even those who persecute us with love and blessings and even pray for them.
If we are called to pray for, bless and love those who are persecuting us, how should we treat those in the congregation? Or those in our own family?
David Stern points out:
The Jewish New Testament Commentary Romans, Chapter 12
In connection with Yeshua’s Sermon on the Mount [Stern points] out that there is no reason to expect New Testament ethics to differ from Tanakh ethics, since God does not change. All the advice found in these verses is implicit in the Torah and the Prophets, and frequently explicit as well. Because Gentiles are not bound by Torah in the same way as Jews, and because the Holy Spirit does his work from within, Sha’ul draws out for believers the core principles of right action, confident that persons with transformed minds (v. 1) will, by the power of the Ruach HaKodesh, be able to apply those principles in particular situations.
Weep with those who Weep
Weep with those who Weep
This idea of Romans 12:15 “Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep” comes from two different passages of Scripture. One is from the book of Job 30:25 where Job cries out for justice by saying:
Have I not wept for the unfortunate? Was not my soul grieved for the poor?
Job’s compassion had been stirred when he saw the plight of the unfortunate and poor. Compassion is more than simply pity, rather Compassion spurs us to action. Time and time again we see that Yeshua was “moved with compassion” and then healed and met the needs of those around Him.
Another passage that Rom. 12:15 is based upon is Ecc. 3:4-5
a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance; a time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;
This lead to a famous teaching of Hillel, the grandfather of Gamliel (Paul’s teacher), who said:
A man should not rejoice when among people who weep or weep when among those who rejoice. He should not stay awake among people who sleep or sleep when among those who are awake. He should not be standing when all others are sitting or sit when all others are standing. This is the general rule: A man should not deviate from the custom of his companions or from society.
Rather, as Paul says next, we need to live in harmony with each other. Paul had previously written to the the believers in Corinth that 1 Cor. 12:21-26
The eye cannot tell the hand, “I don’t need you!” or in turn the head to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be less important are indispensable. Those parts of the body that we think to be less honorable, we clothe with greater honor; and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty; but our presentable parts have no such need. Rather God assembled the body, giving more honor to those who are lacking, so that there may be no division in the body, but so that the parts may have the same care for one another. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer together. If one part is honored, all the parts rejoice together.
Associate with the Lowly
Associate with the Lowly
One of the things that can absolutely destroy the harmony of a congregation is pride. In three different ways, Paul tells the believers to not just reject pride, but to actively associate with those who are lowly. This could refer to a contriteness of heart before God, a humility of attitude as Yeshua spoke about in the Sermon on the mount Matt. 5:3-5
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
It could also refer to identifying with those who are financially poor. The Didache, a 4th century how-to manual for congregations says this:
But be meek, since the meek shall inherit the earth. Be long-suffering and pitiful and guileless and quiet and kindly and always fearing the words which you have heard. You shall not exalt yourself, neither shall you admit boldness into your soul. Your soul shall not accompany the lofty, but you shall walk with the righteous and humble.
Either way, Paul is certainly picking up the theme that he started in Romans 11:18, 20 & 25 where he spoke of being “wise in your own eyes” or “boasting” or being “arrogant” against the Jewish people. Now Paul is pointing out that Believers should not be “proud” and “wise in their own eyes” in any of their relationships.
This phrase is a quote from Prov. 3:5-10
Trust in Adonai with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear Adonai and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your body and refreshment to your bones. Honor Adonai with your wealth and with the first of your entire harvest. Then your barns will be filled with plenty, your vats will overflow with new wine.
Solomon counsels us to have the correct perspective of Adonai. We are supposed to trust Adonai, lean on Him, acknowledge Him and fear Him, and when we do we gain a correct perspective of each other. Each one of us will stand equally before Adonai, regardless of our social standing in this world. For as it says in 1 Sam. 16:7
But Adonai said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or his stature, because I have already refused him. For He does not see a man as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but Adonai looks into the heart.”
Evil for Evil
Evil for Evil
Once again Paul refers to the words of Yeshua in Matt. 5:38-42
“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evildoer. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn to him also the other. And the one wanting to sue you and to take your shirt, let him also have your coat. Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
Now this might mean that you get punched twice in the face instead of once, but I can tell you that there is a joy that comes from knowing we were struck for the sake of Yeshua.
Richard Wurmbrand is his book Tortured for Christ wrote this:
It was strictly forbidden to preach to other prisoners, as it is in captive nations today. It was understood that whoever was caught doing this received a severe beating. A number of us decided to pay the price for the privilege of preaching, so we accepted their terms. It was a deal: we preached and they beat us. We were happy preaching; they were happy beating us— so everyone was happy.
Richard writes of a believer names Matchevici who was offered medicine by the guards in exchange for betraying other believers, and he said this:
“I am a disciple of Christ and He has taught us to love our enemies. The men who betray us do us much harm but I cannot reward evil for evil. I cannot give information even against them. I pity them. I pray for them. I don’t wish to have any connection with the Communists.”
Richard writes that Matchevici returned from his conversation with the political officer and he died in the same cell that Richard was in. Richard said Matchevici was praising God when he died! His love had conquered even his natural thirst for life.
Paul continues in Romans 12:18 “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live in shalom with all people.” Not only should we not retaliate, but we should actively pursue peace with all people. Now relationships are a two-way street, and Paul acknowledges that we can not control the actions of other people, however, we should go out of our way to reconcile with people. Yeshua tells us in Matt. 18:15-17
“Now if your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault while you’re with him alone. If he listens to you, you have won your brother. But if he does not listen, take with you one or two more, so that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may stand.’ But if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to Messiah’s community. And if he refuses to listen even to Messiah’s community, let him be to you as a pagan and a tax collector.
As a side note, the order is extremely important. Yeshua tells us to attempt to reconcile with the individual before we involve anyone else. Also notice that the context is when your brother or sister sins against you, you have the responsibility to go to the other person?
And by the way, if someone comes to you with an issue or a fault, please don’t justify. Listen, hear what they have to say, and remember, “Repentance is a gift!”
Vengeance is Mine
Vengeance is Mine
Not only should we actively seek peace with others, but we also need to trust God for matters of ultimate justice. Paul quotes two passages of Scripture. The first is from the Song of Moses in Deut. 32:35 where Adonai is speaking of how He will bring ultimate judgement on the wicked, on those who have rejected Him as God and Lord.
Vengeance is Mine, and payback, for the time when their foot staggers. Surely their day of disaster is near— what is prepared rushes on them.
After reminding us that we should trust in Adonai for justice, Paul points out how we should act by quoting from Prov. 25:21-22
If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink, for you will heap coals of fire on his head and Adonai will reward you.
Now you might be tempted to look at this proverb and say to yourself, “Well I want that person to have hot coals on their head, so I am going to be nice to them.” This might not be the correct attitude. David Flusser points out that there might seem to be a discrepancy between Rom. 12:14 and Rom. 12:19 in that:
If you pursue your neighbor with good, you need not love him and you can even hate him, because you can explain your behavior by assuming that by acting thus you do not diminish your wicked neighbor’s portion of divine punishment. [However this is tempered by Rom. 12:14 and Matt. 5:44, so] when you pray for those who persecute you, you surely do not pray for divine vengeance.”
Application
Application
What does this mean for us today? Well firstly, I know that I have not arrived. For me, these are some of the hardest principles to put into practice. Does Yeshua really want me to refuse to defend myself? Does Yeshua really want me to bless people that persecute me?
I mean I can understand weeping with people when they are going through a hard time, I can even understand walking humbly and helping everyone regardless of their status in society. But does Yeshua really really want me to pray for people who are insulting, spite-filled, hateful … sinners (for lack of a nicer word)?
Well, maybe we can find an exception. Let’s look in Heb. 12:1-4
Therefore, since we have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also get rid of every weight and entangling sin. Let us run with endurance the race set before us, focusing on Yeshua, the initiator and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross, disregarding its shame; and He has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you may not grow weary in your souls and lose heart. In struggling against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of bloodshed.
Sorry, this is more of the same, but in this case it tells us how we can do it.
For me, the sin that so easily entangles me is my anger, for you it might be something different. The reality is that we have not yet resisted to the point of bloodshed.
We need to fix our eyes on Yeshua. When we look at Yeshua, we see that He never asks us to do something that He was not willing to do Himself. We are called to lay down our pride and promotion, we may even be called to lay down our lives one day just like Matchevici did. But just as Paul says in 2 Cor. 4:16-18
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though our outward man is decaying, yet our inward man is renewed day by day. For our trouble, light and momentary, is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, as we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen. For what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.
And remember a synonym for temptation is testing, so let’s finish by reading 1 Cor 10:13
No [testing] has taken hold of you except what is common to mankind. But God is faithful—He will not allow you to be [tested] beyond what you can handle. But with the [test] He will also provide a way of escape, so you will be able to endure it.
