Romans 96
With brotherly Love
Brian Kocourek
Last week we spoke
from ROMANS
12:10 where the Apostle Paul said, [Be]
kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one
another; Paul was telling the people that not only should their
affections show kindness toward one another, but it should be done in Love.
That means there is an action implied as well. And then He says, 11 Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;
Now, I want us to
see that verse 11 has everything to do with the love they are showing to the saints, and is not just some interjection
concerning the way they do business. He said [Be] kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love;
in honor preferring one another; Not slothful
in business; fervent in spirit;
serving the Lord; In other words, he is saying, Be kindly affectioned
one to another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one another; and don’t
be slothful doing so, but be fervent in spirit; when you serve the
Lord by serving each other.
In order to get a better understanding of this we need to examine some other things the Apostle Paul said concerning this same subject on how we should love and treat each other.
In I CORINTHIANS
We are told in the
book of HEBREWS
11:6 But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he
that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Now,. If it is impossible to even please God without Faith,
then Faith is the foundation stone by which we stand, and have Christian our
walk for Paul said, in GALATIANS 3:11 But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God,
[it is] evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
In ROMANS 5:1 Paul
further tells us that our peace with God and even our access to God comes
through Faith. ¶ Therefore being justified by faith, we have
peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and
rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
And the Apostle
Peter tells us the stature of a perfect man begins with Faith. II PETER 1:4 Whereby are given
unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be
partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the
world through lust. 5 ¶
And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue;
and to virtue knowledge; 6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience;
and to patience godliness; 7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to
brotherly kindness charity. 8 For if these things be
in you, and abound, they make [you that ye shall] neither [be] barren nor
unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But
he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see
afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. 10 Wherefore
the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure:
for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
Now, after seeing
the importance of Faith, you might ask, “Now, if Faith is the foundation for
our very growth in the Lord, and even gives us access to God, and justifies us
in the sight of God, and brings us into Peace with God, and allows us to be
pleasing to God, then what do we need hope and Love for? And the answer is that
there are three things involved in our coming into perfection which is full
maturity in Christ.
I CORINTHIANS
And William Branham said from Q & A 64-0823E 1005-56 I
Corinthians 13 says this: "When that which is
perfect is come, that which is in part shall be done away with." So all
these little things of jumping up-and-down like a kid, trying to talk in
tongues, and all these other things, when that which is perfect... And we do
have today, by God's help, the perfect interpretation of the Word with Divine
vindication. Then that which is in part is done away with. "When I was a
child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child;
but when I become a man, I put away childish things." Amen.
Now, notice, the
Apostle Paul doesn’t end it there, but goes on to say, in verse 12, “ For now we see
through a glass, darkly; but then face
to face (When? At the time when we have the perfect revealed
Word, that is when we shall see Him Face to Face. And then he continues,) now I know in part;
but then (When? At the Time when the Word will be perfectly
revealed, it is then that I ) shall I know even as also I am known. 13 And
now (When? He said, and Now, or as for now, in other words, until
that time, there)
abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the
greatest of these [is] charity.”
Now, the word Charity in the Greek is the word Agape which actually means Love. But notice that it is translated here as charity because that’s what the Love of God is all about. No greater love can a man have than to give His life for the brethren. For God so Loved the World that He Gave His Only Begotten Son. Notice, that Love is associated with giving. This Agape Love is always self-sacrificial in nature. Always that way.
That is why Paul
could say there remains Faith, Hope and Love these three, but the greatest of
these is Love. Faith is the revelation, it is the access, it is the foundation,
it is the starting point, but when Faith truly takes a hold upon a man, it
begins to move that man into an action. And Hope is the catalyst that begins
the faith toward action. Faith in itself is a passive thing, but if it is a
true genuine faith, then it will begin to move the person who possesses that
Faith toward the goal of that Faith. And hope is that thing that causes man to
move forward with faith. Faith is the power, but Hope is the steam that is
released by that power, and Love is the outward action that comes forth by that
Divine Revelation. GALATIANS 5:5 For we through the Spirit wait for
the hope of righteousness (right-wise-ness) by faith. 6 For in
Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing,
nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love. So we see that Faith without
Love remains dormant, and passive. And we see that Faith is motivated by Love.
Therefore, love is greater than faith because it can move our faith from a
passive faith into an active faith.
Paul tells us in Ephesians chapter one that after we (as a church) have received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, then our Faith will begin to become manifest in a way that it will outwardly show in our love for the brethren , and at this time, then we will be ready to receive the Spirit of Wisdom and revelation in the Knowledge of God.
EPHESIANS 1:13 In whom ye also [trusted], after that ye heard
the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye
believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 14 Which is the
earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession,
unto the praise of his glory. 15 ¶ Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the
saints, (Notice, he says after I have witnessed your Faith and
then your Love, it causes me to) 16 Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you
in my prayers; (Why? Because, ) 17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the
knowledge of him:
18 The eyes of your
understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his
calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, 19
And what [is] the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe,
according to the working of his mighty power,
Paul tells us that after the Faith comes to the place where it is released in an action, then the people will be ready for the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation in the knowledge of God. And we saw this take place in the man William Branham. He came to the place that he so yielded to God, that God unveiled Himself to that man and through that man to the very elect in this hour. His faith, although passive to begin with, was so yielded to God, that even when his wife and child were taken, he so loved God that he cried out like Job, “Though He slay me, yet I will trust him.”
After quite a few years of pouring out that Love of God which has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation was released upon the church and the entire Book became an open Book, showing in plain view the Lord of Glory. And then we saw Him Face to Face as Paul has told us it would come.
In I THESSALONIANS 1:2
we read, ¶ We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of
you in our prayers; 3 Remembering
without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of
hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;
ANGEL OF THE LORD 51-0718
E-17 Tonight, I want to speak to you about the
Angel of the Lord. Now, to... It's just as true, friends, as I'm... I can't
make you believe it. You see? I can only speak what's truth. And your
attitude towards it will determine the success it'll be for you. I have no
power to operate it.
I Thessalonians 1:3 Remembering without ceasing your work of
faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in
the sight of God and our Father;
Now notice, Paul speaks of works OF faith, and labour
OF love, and patience OF hope. The word OF
means Out From, and therefore we can read it as your works which
spring forth or spring out from your faith (revelation), and your labor which
comes forth as a result of Love, etc. It
is the Love which produces it. Love then is an energizing power.
EXPLOITS OF FAITH 53-1213E E-87 Howdy do, young
man? You believe? If I be God's servant and--and He's here, His Presence, which
I'm sure that you're conscious of something. Now it's your attitude, what
you think it is; that'll determine what you get.
Now,
in reading from the Wuest translation, we get a
better appreciation for this scripture. 1 Thessalonians 1: 4 Wuest "Remembering
unceasingly your works produced and
characterized by the Faith which is yours, and your toil which is motivated and characterized by your
divine and self sacrificial Love, and your patient endurance under trials which
finds it's source in your hope which rests in our Lord Jesus Christ in the
presence of God, even the father."
Notice what Paul tells the same church at Thessalonica several years later when he writes to them again. II THESSALONIANS 1:2 Grace unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth; Paul said you Faith is Growing and it is showing in the way you treat each other.
HEBREWS 6:9 ¶ But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you,(of
you, out from you) and things that accompany
salvation, though we thus speak. 10 For God [is] not unrighteous to forget
your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister. (Notice
how Paul is letting them know that their Love is being expressed by the way
they minister to one another, and then he says,) 11 And we
desire that every one of you do shew the same
diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end: 12 That ye be not slothful, but followers
of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
II CORINTHIANS 8:7 ¶ Therefore, as ye abound in every
[thing, in] faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and [in] all diligence, and [in] your love to us, (Notice he is speaking of being diligent in
your love toward the brethren) [see] that ye abound in this grace also. 8 I speak not by
commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the
sincerity of your love. 9 For ye know the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor,
that ye through his poverty might be rich.
Now, we have shown by many scriptural proofs that the Apostle Paul wants us to be diligent when it comes to not only believing God’s Word, but also expressing our Faith through our actions towards the brethren.
Not only the Apostle Paul, but the Apostle Peter, and the Apostle John were very pointed in letting us know how important it is to show our love to toward the brethren.
GALATIANS
I PETER
I PETER 3:8 ¶ Finally, [be ye] all of one mind,
having compassion one of another, love as brethren, [be] pitiful, [be]
courteous:
I JOHN
TOKEN THE 63-1128E 103 "And He will appear the second time to
all those that love His appearing," who love and longing for it. It's a
love affair. And how
we ought to love one another, because we're fellow citizens in the same Body.
We should have love one for another.
HAVE FAITH IN GOD
54-0900 E-5 Brother, sister,
that's what the world needs today is some more love of God. That's what the
world's hungry for today is more love of God. If we'd show a little more love to one another, little more love towards
God, how much better our churches and
individuals and how much better we'd be if we'd just love one another. If we
love one another then we can love God, for God is Love.
ENTICING SPIRITS 55-0724 113 And if you can't love one another, how you
going to love God who you haven't seen? Love hides a multitude of sin. Get in
love with God. Then you'll love one
another. Then you'll love the church. You'll love the cause. You'll love
everything that's godly and you'll keep away from the things of the world.
WHY 61-0413 E-17 We've got to love one another. Though we
different, you got to love anyhow. You can't bluff it. You got to really do it.
You got to. And that's the greatest power they found in healing, is love, when
you have sympathy and love for the people, trying to help them.