Gift onto Each Other

 

The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand.  Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.  Romans 13:12

 

Romans 12 & 13

Romans 12 starts with Paul urging his brethren to present their bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.  12:2

It is time for us to wake up and be ready ourselves for God and for others.

… knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed.  The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand.  Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.  Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy.  But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flash in regard to its lusts.  13:11-14

 

 

Sincere love for one another through gifts of the Spirit

The world’s way is competitive, with each individual seeking to be superior to others.  In Christ, each person is valued, for each has a gift which enables him to contribute to others.  There is no room to “think of yourself more highly than you ought.”

God is building a new community t: a colony of righteousness that sets it apart from the dark and twisted world of lost men.  This community is not marked off by its ideals or even by its rules and high standards:  it is marked off by a deep love for one another which makes rules irrelevant.

Love does no wrong to a neighbor: love therefore is the fulfillment of the law. 13:10

What you and I can do to build others up is a gift, and we ourselves are God’s gift to others.1

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The second part seems to be hard to do.  How do I not to be competitive?  I’ve come so far by being competitive.  How do I give that up and start to work on building up others?

When I have the mind of the Lord that knows how to love.  When I realize that the riches he promised us are unlimited.  No need to fight over the inheritance.  It’s not a Hunger Game anymore.