Finally, the believers live the Body life through living a life of the highest virtues of the divine life and love (vv. 9-21). In the Body life we must first have love toward others. Verse 9 says, “Let love be without hypocrisy”; then verse 10 says, “Love one another warmly in brotherly love.” In order to practice love toward others, we need the Holy Spirit to work in us and give us a certain amount of transformation in love. Love is not merely an outward act; it is an expression of life. Without the supply of life, it is useless to try to love others. To love others, we need the supply of life and transformation in life. Our natural life is not the life of God’s love. We need transformation in life so that we may have the nature of God’s love to love others.
Verse 10 says, “Take the lead in showing honor one to another,” and verse 13 says, “Contribute to the needs of the saints; pursue hospitality.” In the matter of showing honor we must move quickly and be the first to show honor to others. Furthermore, we need to contribute to the needs of the saints and to pursue hospitality.
Verse 15 says, “Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.” We must be transformed before we can rejoice and weep with others. This indicates that in the Body life we need to have a proper emotion to be able to rejoice and weep with others. Verse 16 admonishes us, saying, “Be of the same mind toward one another, not setting your mind on the high things but going along with the lowly; do not be wise in yourselves.” We should not be so high; rather, we need to go along with the lowly.
Apart from the virtues we need toward others, Romans 12 also speaks of the virtues we need toward ourselves. Verse 12 says, “Rejoice in hope; endure in tribulation; persevere in prayer.” We believers should be a rejoicing people because we always have the enjoyment of the Lord. If we enjoy the Lord in His riches, we will not only be joyful inwardly, but we will be rejoicing outwardly. Even in times of trouble we should and can rejoice in hope. By rejoicing in hope we can endure any kind of tribulation. However, in order to endure tribulation we also need to be persevering in prayer. Perseverance in prayer enables us not only to endure tribulation but to remain in the enjoyment of the Lord, in His presence, and in His will.
In addition to all this, as God’s holy people, we must “abhor what is evil” (v. 9), “conquer evil with good” (v. 21), and “cling to what is good” (v. 9). We, who have been separated to God, must maintain the highest standard of behavior, a standard above that of moral and ethical people. In relation to our persecutors and enemies, we must live a life of the highest virtues of the divine life and love. Verse 14 says, “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.” Regardless of how bad people may be toward us, our mouth should only express blessing, not cursing. How the Lord blessed us when we were His enemies! We should bless our enemies and persecutors in the same way.
The first half of verse 17 says, “Repay no one evil for evil.” Under the law it was an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Today we are not under law but under grace. We must not repay evil for evil but rather repay good for evil as the Lord has done to us. Verse 19 continues, “Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to the wrath of God, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’” While we are practicing the Body life in love with the highest virtues in the divine life, we should not avenge ourselves in any way. On the contrary, we should be willing to suffer people’s wrongdoings, including the loss of everything. We should leave the whole situation in the sovereign hand of the Lord and give Him the place to do whatever He likes according to His sovereignty.
Verse 20 says, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing this you will heap coals of fire upon his head.” This is what it means to love our enemies. Our loving them will heap coals of fire upon their heads, causing them to turn to the Lord.
Verse 18 says, “If possible, as far as it depends on you, live in peace with all men.” As far as it depends on us, we need to live in peace with all men. Sometimes it is not possible to live in peace with all men because others are not willing to have a life of peace. In such a situation there is nothing we can do. Therefore, Paul says that “if possible” we should live in peace with all men. In the second half of verse 17 Paul gives a general word: “Take forethought for things honorable in the sight of all men.” We must be very thoughtful to consider what is honorable before all men. Our thoughtfulness must take place beforehand. In order to keep from offending people, we should not oppose anything that is honorable. Since we are not only living before God but also before men, we need to take forethought for things honorable in the sight of men.
If a believer desires to live the Body life in practicality, he needs to present his body and be renewed and transformed in his mind. He also needs to not be slothful in zeal, but be burning in spirit, serving the Lord. Therefore, the believer’s entire tripartite being—spirit, soul, and body—is necessary to live the Body life. The more a believer enjoys the dispensing of the Divine Trinity into his tripartite being, the more he becomes a living member of the Body of Christ in practicality and the more he desires to be in the Body.
The believers practice the Body life through the exercise of their different gifts. When the divine element enters into the believers to be their life and to be enjoyed by them, this is grace; grace brings forth certain skills and abilities as gifts. The measure of a believer’s gift is limited by the level of his enjoyment of the divine life as grace. The gifts enumerated in Romans 12:6-8 are like the abilities of our human body; they are the gifts of grace in life and include prophesying, serving, teaching, exhorting, giving, leading, and showing mercy.
Prophecy refers to speaking for God and speaking forth God under God’s direct revelation, not to predicting. Teaching refers to teaching based on what the prophets have spoken. Exhortation refers to exhorting others based on the prophecy and teaching. These three kinds of speaking build up the Body. They minister life to the saints and enable them to grow together through the word of God. Service refers to the service of the deacons and deaconesses in the local churches. Giving in simplicity refers to the giving in order to supply and take care of the needy ones in the church. Those who lead refers to the leading brothers in the church, whose characteristic is diligence; showing mercy is a disposition formed in the believers through transformation, giving them the burden to take care of others and to show mercy to those who are not worthy. All seven kinds of gifts mentioned above are needed for the practice of the Body life.
Finally, the believers live in the Body of Christ through living a life of the highest virtues of the divine life and love. Such a living requires that the believers be transformed in life so that they may have the nature of God’s love to love others. As a result, with regard to others, to themselves, to the expression in life, and even to their relationship with their persecutors and enemies, they maintain the highest standard and remain in the enjoyment of the Lord, in His presence, and in His will.