Глава XII

The whole life of a Christian, as a member of the Church, should be worship (1-2). In the life of the church, this should be expressed in the humble fulfillment of one’s calling (3-12). Especially a Christian must maintain good relations with his brothers in faith (13-21). Rom.12:1. Therefore, I beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service, Having finished the didactic part of his message, the Apostle now proceeds to exhortations. He convinces Christians, in view of God's mercy towards them, to give up their bodies to serve God and, having ended their former life, begin a new, better life. "By the Mercy of God". Previously, the Apostle encouraged his readers to improve in the Christian life either because of a person’s personal interests (Rom. 6:19 et seq.), or because of the obligations assumed by a person at baptism (Rom. 6:1 et seq.). Now he puts forward a new foundation - a whole series of manifestations of Divine mercy (in Greek the plural is put here - οικτιρμοί) aimed at achieving our salvation. - “Your bodies.” The apostle assumes that the souls of the readers have already been given to God. But the body of a Christian has not yet become an obedient instrument of new righteousness, and the task of believers is to free their bodies from subjection to sin (cf. Rom. 6:13). By body we must generally understand the sensory side of the human being, which, through the influence of sin, becomes what the Apostle earlier called flesh (Rom. 7). - “A living sacrifice.” A Christian’s dedication of himself to God, although it can also be called dying, similar to what took place in relation to the sacrifices of the Old Testament, but here a person dies to sin and, at the same time, enters into true life (Rom. 6:11, 13). To show the superiority of this sacrifice over the Old Testament, the Apostle calls it holy (in the moral sense) 37 and pleasing to God, which the Old Testament was not always. sacrifice (Isaiah 1:11). - “For your reasonable service” - more correctly: “your reasonable worship.” These words form an appendix to the entire preceding sentence, beginning with the word imagine. The service of a Christian is called reasonable, in contrast to the Old Testament, which corresponded to the childhood of humanity and represented only hints of the service that pleases God. This is the same as spiritual service (1 Peter 2:5). Rom.12:2. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. "AND" . Here this particle has an explanatory meaning: namely. This age is the real life of the world, in which the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life rule (1 John 2:16). This life is under the influence of the flesh, which in turn is enslaved by sin. The Christian, on the contrary, must live under the influence of Divine grace. – Renewal of the mind is necessary for a new life, because the natural mind of man, according to the Apostle, is a corrupt mind (Rom. 1:28) and cannot comprehend the will of God. This renewal is already described in Romans 7:14 et seq. It consists in the fact that the mind is freed from the shackles of the flesh, which made it dark and powerless, and unites with the spirit of Christ. - “Cognize”. The word δοκιμάζειν here not only has the meaning of “test”, but also indicates the ability to direct human activity towards high goals (cf. Rom. 14:22). This is the result of the transformation that a Christian must make with himself. Rom.12:3. By the grace given to me, I say to each of you: do not think about yourself more than you should think; but think modestly, according to the measure of faith that God has allocated to each. The first thing in which the internal change that takes place in a Christian should manifest itself is humility: this is the basis of the correct life of a Christian as a member of the Church. Christians must humbly realize that all their grace-filled gifts, with which they serve the Church, are the result of God’s mercy, received by them through faith. Then the apostle convinces Christians to put the gifts they have received to work, namely, to use them in the service of the Church. At the same time, Christians should always be frank, honest and diligent in serving the Lord, without losing heart under any difficult circumstances. "According to the grace given to me." The Apostle points here to his high apostolic authority and his calling (cf. Rom 15:15; 1 Cor 3:10). - “According to the measure of faith” that God has allocated to everyone. Here we are talking about faith as a gift of God. Therefore, one must see in this faith not justifying faith, but miraculous faith, which was given to some Christians of the apostolic time for the accomplishment of works that benefited the entire Church (cf. 1 Cor. 12:9, 13:2). In the New Testament, even if it is said that saving faith is the gift of God in part, then nowhere is this gift depicted as being shared unequally. Rom.12:4. For just as we have many members in one body, but not all the members have the same function; Rom.12:5. so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. God gives each member of the Church a certain amount of faith for a special purpose. He wants us from different sides, each with our talents, to serve one common cause, just as different organs of the body each in their own way support the strength of the body (for more information on this, see 1 Cor 12:12-31). Rom.12:6. And since, by the grace given to us, we have various gifts, then if you have prophecy, prophesy according to the measure of faith; Rom.12:7. If you have a ministry, remain in the service; whether a teacher, - in teaching; Rom.12:8. whether you are an exhorter, exhort; whether you are a distributor, distribute in simplicity; Whether you are a boss, lead with zeal; Whether you are a benefactor, do charity with cordiality. The Apostle lists here several grace-filled ministries that existed in his time in the Christian church. - “According to faith.” Here the Apostle means the faith of the hearers of the prophecy, the state of which the prophet, that is, the inspired teacher, preacher, must be aware of in his speeches (prophecy is discussed in detail in 1 Cor 14:1-24) 38 . “Service” (διακονία) is a special gift, those who had it served the external structure of the Church, for example, caring for the sick, the poor and strangers (cf. 1 Cor 12:28, where this gift is called the gift of intercession, and Acts 6:1 et seq.; 1 Tim 3:8, 12). – “Teaching” (διδασκαλία) – according to the context of speech, not simple teaching, but again a special gift for teaching in the truths of the Christian faith (cf. Eph 4:11). “Exhorter” is a preacher who, according to the custom of the synagogue, added exhortations to the section of Holy Scripture read (cf. Acts 4:36, 11:23 et seq.). And this ability, as well as the following ministries, are also defined by the Apostle as ministries based on receiving special gifts from God. – “The Distributor” is a benefactor (Eph. 4:28), who must perform his good deeds in simplicity, without any selfish calculations (cf. Matt. 6:2 et seq.) 39 . - “Chief” - more precisely: the upcoming one (about προϊστάμενος). This is not an ordinary hierarchical person (bishop or presbyter), but a person who stands out in Christian society with his special administrative gifts, by virtue of which he is the leader of Christian society in difficult circumstances. - “Benefactor” - more precisely: merciful or merciful in relation to the suffering and unfortunate, to whom he knows how to say a word of consolation and reinforcement. - “With cordiality” - more precisely: “with clarity” or so that all his consolation came from a pure heart and did not arouse any doubts in the sufferers. Rom.12:9. Let love be unfeigned; turn away from evil, cling to goodness; Rom.12:10. be kind to one another with brotherly affection; warn one another in respect; From various ministries - gifts - the Apostle now moves on to ordinary Christian virtues, among which he places love in first place. This love must be unfeigned. She therefore turns away from evil and denounces evil even in her beloved creatures. For her, the highest thing is good, which she knows how to find and appreciate everywhere. In relation to brothers in faith, love combined with tenderness should appear. It is also connected with respect for one's neighbor. Each of us should try to set an example of such respect. Rom.12:11. do not slacken in zeal; be on fire in spirit; Serve the Lord; Rom.12:12. be comforted by hope; be patient in sorrow, constant in prayer; A Christian must be a diligent, zealous worker in the Church. Let him be inflamed with the (Holy) spirit! Let him always act as a servant of the Lord (Christ), and not according to his own whims (Instead of: the Lord (Κυρίω) in some codes there is: time (καιρ)). This will indicate the need for a Christian to adapt his zeal to the demands of time and circumstances, an example of which was set by the Ap himself. Paul (See 1 Cor. 9:19 et seq.; Phil. 4:12 et seq.). In sorrows, a Christian should be consoled by the hope of future glorification. Rom.12:13. take part in the needs of the saints; be zealous for hospitality. In relation to his neighbors, a Christian must be caring about their needs and even wish his enemies every good, being in every possible way wary of vindictiveness. Hospitable hospitality in the circumstances experienced by the Apostolic Church, when Christians often had to leave their cities and seek refuge in others, was a particularly important virtue. – Saints = Christians. Rom.12:14. Bless your persecutors; bless, not curse. Rom.12:15. Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. Rejoicing in the happiness of others, in the success of others, requires a certain moral height, and the Apostle puts this virtue ahead of sympathy for the misfortunes of others. Rom.12:16. Be of the same mind among yourselves; do not be arrogant, but follow the humble; don't dream about yourself; “Be of the same mind among yourselves” is more correct: have in relation to others the same mood, feeling that you have towards yourself. Wed. Matthew 22:39. - “Don’t be arrogant,” that is, don’t become arrogant in your dreams, don’t shy away from real life. - “Follow the humble,” that is, go to the poor, misfortune, go down to those areas of life where there is more need for your concerns. – “Don’t dream about yourself,” that is, about your superiority. This will take away your interest in the needs of your neighbors. Rom.12:17. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but strive for good in the sight of all people. “Be careful about what is good in the sight of all men,” that is, even if your outward behavior does not give anyone a reason to blaspheme the faith you profess (cf. Proverbs 3 according to text LXX). Rom.12:18. If possible on your part, be at peace with all people. "If possible". On our part, we must always be peaceful: there can be no restrictions. If, after all, peaceful relations are not established, it is no longer your fault. Rom.12:19. Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but give room to the wrath of God. For it is written: Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord. By pointing out the wrath of God towards the wicked enemies of Christians, the Apostle does not at all want to give some satisfaction to Christians. He only wants to dissuade those who believe that our patient attitude towards the insults inflicted on us destroys the moral order in the world and that through this evil people will triumph. No, says the Apostle, God Himself, as the Most Holy Judge, is vigilant over the life of the world and will not allow evil to triumph over good. Rom.12:20. So, if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink: for by doing this you will heap burning coals on his head. “You will heap burning coals on his head,” that is, you will prepare for him bitter repentance and shame, which will burn him like coals (Augustine, Jerome, Ambrose, etc.). Rom.12:21. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. “Do not be overcome by evil” - that is, do not succumb to the feeling, the desire to take revenge for the evil done to you. Let the evil man gain the upper hand, let him - temporarily - triumph. But evil will undoubtedly be defeated by the fact that a Christian will not want to imitate his offender and will not repay him with insult for insult. The body of a Christian, sanctified by a pure life, thereby acquires the right to complete revival through the resurrection (Rom. 6:22 et seq.; Rom. 8:10–13). According to Tsang, here we are talking about the given faith of the prophet, i.e. about his talent. A prophet must prophesy only as long as prophetic inspiration speaks within him. Tsang understands this term to mean the distribution of not only material goods, but also spiritual ones (Rom 15:27; 1 Cor 9:11). You might be interested in: