(Romans 12: 9-21)
As I’ve mentioned before, one of my favorite movies is Cool Hand Luke starring Paul Newman, George Kennedy, and Strother Martin as the prison farm “Captain.” Newman’s character, Luke, is a real hard case. And Luke is pretty self-centered and used to doing things his way. Things that only benefit him. He really cares very little about the plight of his fellow inmates. Strother Martin recognizes this and knows Luke will be a challenge to the orderly operation of the camp if Luke doesn’t “get his mind right.” Compliance with the camp’s rules is not voluntary. It’s compulsory and the “Captain” has many coercive options at his disposal such as “nights in the box” to help adjust your attitude, and a heavy ball and chain should you unsuccessfully try to escape and get captured. I won’t spoil the ending of the movie, but I will tell you that Luke never gets his mind right, and it doesn’t end well.
And getting your mind right is what the Apostle Paul was trying to convey to the church in Rome in our scripture reading for this morning. In Chapter 12 he addresses the personal responsibilities we have as followers of Jesus Christ. The Apostle initially starts out by describing his readers as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God. He tells them that this living sacrifice of ourselves is our spiritual act of worship. What Paul is saying is that God wants us to be non-conformists and not to do as the world does, not to conform to the pattern of this world. Be different, stick out, stand out. Be the square peg in the round hole. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind in Christ. Paul admonishes his readers not to think too highly of themselves, to be humble and remember that they are each one part of the total body of Christ. He wants them, and us, to understand that we all have different gifts according to the grace given and that we are obligated to use these gifts to bring honor, glory, and praise to God. And, he says, in order to do this, you must have love and that love must be sincere. He says: Love should be shown without pretending. Hate evil and hold on to what is good. Love each other like the members of your family. Be the best at showing honor to each other. Don’t hesitate to be enthusiastic—be on fire in the Spirit as you serve the Lord! That’s an insightful observation from Paul as most of us have learned how to pretend to love others; how to speak kindly, how to avoid hurting feelings, and how to appear to take an interest in others. We may even be skilled in pretending to feel moved with compassion when we hear of others’ needs, or to become indignant when we hear of an injustice. But God calls us to real and sincere love that goes far beyond pretense and politeness. Sincere love requires concentration and effort. It means helping others become better people, and it demands our time, money, and personal involvement. Paul says: Be happy in your hope, stand your ground when you’re in trouble, and devote yourselves to prayer. Contribute to the needs of other people, and welcome strangers into your home. Bless people who harass you—bless and don’t curse them. Be happy with those who are happy, and cry with those who are crying. As Christians, we honor people because they too have been created in God’s image, because they too are our brothers and sisters in Christ, and because they too have a unique contribution to make to Christ’s church. Paul continues by saying: Consider everyone as equal, and don’t think that you’re better than anyone else. Instead, associate with people who have no status. Don’t think that you’re so smart. Don’t pay back anyone for their evil actions with evil actions, but show respect for what everyone believes is good. It was Christ who demonstrated and taught that we should treat all people with respect; those of a different race, the handicapped, the poor, young and old, male and female, the other who is not like us, and the not-so-loveable. We must never consider others, those not like us, as being beneath us. We need to live in harmony with others and not to be too proud to enjoy the company of someone not quite like us, someone out of our comfort zone.
Paul then switches to an “easier-said-than-done” exhortation when he says: If possible, to the best of your ability, live at peace with all people. I like the phrasing here because it acknowledges that what he is asking may very well be difficult. “If it’s possible and to the best of your ability.” Paul understands the concept because he used to be one of those “hard-to-like” people and, now with his conversion, his going over to the other side, he’s racked up more than his fair share of people who would like to make his life miserable settling an old score. He says: Don’t try to get revenge for yourselves, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath. It is written, Revenge belongs to me; I will pay it back, says the Lord. Instead, Paul says; If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. By doing this, you will pile burning coals of fire upon his head. Don’t be defeated by evil, but defeat evil with good. He’s saying to let go of that enmity, that hatred, and desire to get even, and let God take care of it in his own way. He has more important things to keep you occupied. Hate is wasted energy. Be nice, and who knows, maybe it will get to them, and they’ll change for the better. If not, move on and do God’s will. Paul is speaking from the heart when he talks of forgiveness. He wants us to understand that forgiveness may break a cycle of retaliation and lead to mutual reconciliation. It may make the enemy feel ashamed and change his or her ways. And, by contrast, repaying evil for evil hurts you just as much as it hurts your enemy. Even if your enemy never repents, forgiving him or her will free you of a heavy load of bitterness. Paul is exhorting the Christian body of believers to exercise radical hospitality, love that blesses persecutors, and pursues peace, humility and forbearance that trusts God to take care of the rest. Paul is urging a deliberate goodness that overcomes evil with good.
There will always be inequalities and inequities no matter what we do. The question is how much are we willing to tolerate as Christians? In answering this question, we must keep in mind that no one individual has the capacity to express love to a whole community, but the body of Christ in our community does. As a community of believers, we need to look for people and welcome those who need our love and look for ways that we and our fellow believers from other congregations can also love the community for Christ. When the Christian community is so motivated it will do all it can to address the inequalities and inequities in this world starting first within our own four walls, and then outside the church itself as we bravely and boldly enter the mission field. But before we can even begin such a monumental task, we must first get our minds right for Christ.
Let us pray,
Gracious and loving Father, blessed be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love; the fellowship of kindred minds in Christ is like to that above. Yes, before your throne we pour out our ardent prayers, our fears, our hopes, our aims are one, our comforts and our cares are in harmony with your Holy Word. Guide us as we share each other’s woes, our mutual burdens bear together, and very often, in sympathy we share our tears. Move us Lord through your Spirit to see others as you see them and guide us as we do your work and your will to treat them as our equals, as brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus, and to do what we can to address the inequities, injustices, and unfairness of life they face so that they too can live a life of sincere peace and love as we know it by the unmerited grace given us. In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.