The Message of Romans
“Love never stands aloof from other peoples’ joys or pains. Love identifies with them, sings with them and suffers with them. Love enters deeply into their experiences and their emotions, their laughter and their tears, and feels solidarity with them, whatever their mood….
“Few kinds of pride are worse than snobbery. Snobs are obsessed with questions of status, with the stratification of society into “upper” and “lower” classes, or its divisions into distinctions of tribe and caste, and so with the company they keep. They forget that Jesus fraternized freely and naturally with social rejects, and calls His followers to do the same with equal freedom and naturalness. As JB puts it, ‘Never be condescending, but make real friends with the poor.’
What a comprehensive picture of love Paul gives us! Love is sincere, discerning, affectionate and respectful. It is both enthusiastic and patient, both generous and hospitable, both benevolent and sympathetic. It is marked by both harmony and humility. Christian churches would be happier communities if we all loved one another like that.”
-John Stott, The Message of Romans
“Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly…”Romans 5:16
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