The Romance of Romans-Part 101

Romans Chapter 15

Those who have more personal strength must use it to lift up those who are weaker, and not exploit it to their own advantage. Let each of us seek out ways to bless others and build them up. Even the most powerful man of all, Jesus Christ, didn't use his power to create for himself a pain-free and pleasure-filled earthly life. As scripture says, "I have personally identified with and embraced the rejection they have shown you O God." All the scriptures have been written to impart knowledge, patience and comfort to us so that we can live in hope- a confident expectation of a glorious future.

Comments:

I can't think of another value of the spiritual life that runs more contrary to fallen human flesh than what Paul states above. "Survival of the fittest" is one of the primary mantras of secular humanism. We witness the exploitation of the weak by the strong in our cultures every day. It, long ago, became the way of the world.

On the other hand, when we consider the natural affection that parents often exhibit toward their children, we do get a glimpse into the kind of sacrificial love that the apostle holds out to us as a way of Christ that is meant to apply to the heart of all our relations with others. Parents often heroically offer their strengths to their children without thinking of getting anything out of them. Along the way in my studies about the kingdom of God, I have come to believe that is is actually more "native" to human life than I once thought. Sin is actually a "foreign invasion" into human existence...there is something more original than sin in God's beautiful creation.

When Jesus came on the scene to reveal the kingdom of God, he was making a way for us to get back to the Garden...and then beyond it! The echoes of the goodness of our Father's original intentions for humanity resonate within our deepest heart. In the beginning, the Son was the voice of God that initiated these echoes and now today pours substance back into them. When we come to Christ we are actually "coming home".

In whatever way God has blessed us with "strengths" (abilities, opportunities, resources, experience, relational connections, etc.), we are called to walk in them with a consciousness that they are a gift from him, that he has bestowed them upon us so we can love others better and that we will ultimately answer to him for how we have stewarded them.

Father, what do I have at my disposal today and how can I use it to benefit another who might otherwise not have access to it? Continually keep me from "the boastful pride of life" that sees my strengths as "mine" alone. For Christ's sake. Amen.