Love of God's Family (Romans 12:10)

Continuing on with my breakdown of my memory verses (started in this post). Here is my study and part of my application for the next section. It is a bit ironic that I’m studying these verses in the midst of a week where I’ve been continually challenged to love. I woke up about a week ago feeling God was telling me very clearly to, “Love your family”. It seemed like a simple enough idea until I began thinking in larger terms…especially in light of this verse which encourages a special kind of love between all members of God’s family. The thing about families is that you can’t fake affection (harking back to verse nine), because people can tell when you don’t truly care about what they’re saying or what they’re going through. The more you practice genuine love the more you realize how painful it is. People are flawed and it can seem like we must mourn with the mournful more often than rejoice with the joyful.

“Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;” Romans 12:10

Kindly Affectionate (philostorgos): tenderly loving, family affection, devoted love, mutual love between parents and/or children

Brotherly Love (philadelphia): brotherly kindness, fraternal affection

Honor (timé): price, value, price paid for a person or thing bought, pre-eminence

Giving Preference (proégeomai): going before, lead onward by example, prefer

One Another (allélón): each other, together, mutually

And here is my rewritten version:

“Be tender and loving with each other, just like a close family. Show the value you hold for your spiritual family by example, giving pre-eminence to each other.”

The first thing about this verse that struck me was the picture of a close-knit family, especially the love between parents and children. The same love that God showed us, we are supposed to show through kindness to our fellow Christians. No one is exempt from being a leader in this area. Moreover the way we treat each other really puts a price on our relationships. How much am I willing to sacrifice in loving someone? What message or ‘price’ would the person say I’m sending by my actions? Are there some people I’m satisfied with giving a dime’s worth of affection or that I think others should love without loving them myself? Thank you for putting a price on your love of us God- your son’s life. Help my love to flow from that greater love.

Text Reference: Helps Word Studies copyright © 1987, 2011 by Helps Ministries, Inc.

Strong, J. (2009). Exhaustive concordance, updated edition KJV. Peabody: Hendrickson publishers.

The Holy Bible, New King James Version Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Photo Reference: The Field Museum Library. Captain Marshall Field South American Expedition: Family portrait. 1923.