Love (1)
A Sermon on Romans 12:9-21
Scripture
9Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. 10Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another; 11Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; 12Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; …
Sermon Description
In this sermon on Romans 12:9–21 titled “Love,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones teaches that the believer must always proceed from doctrine to application and the two great principles must characterize and govern the Christian life. The apostle Paul is concerned with the practicalities of the Christian life, both in how the Christian acts and reacts. The listener will see their absolute need for the salvation of Christ and respond in presenting themselves as a sacrifice. Love is the fulfilling of the law and it sums up the whole of the law — these two must never be contrasted. “We should be animated in our living with the same kind of love by which God loves us,” Dr. Lloyd-Jones says. Love is totalitarian, not sentimental and weak. God should not be loved merely in word, but also in deed. Learn of the love of the atonement that commands one’s love of God and neighbor. The Christian must keep the law with the Spirit; otherwise they will fall into dissimulation. “The law is an expression of God’s being,” says Dr. Lloyd-Jones. The Christian is to hate and abhor evil, adhering themselves to that which is good in the eyes of God.
Sermon Breakdown
- The sermon begins by introducing Romans 12:9-21 as a new subsection that deals with practical application and the outworking of doctrine.
- Verses 1-2 provide the foundation for understanding this section. We must understand God's mercy and grace to live this out.
- Verse 9 provides two governing principles: let love be without dissimulation (hypocrisy) and abhor evil, cleave to good.
- Love must be genuine, not pretended or hypocritical. It shows itself in keeping God's commandments, not just words.
- Love is not contrasted with law but fulfills it. The law expresses God's nature and character. We should love God's law.
- We must not be self-centered or men-pleasers in our love. We must love to glorify and please God.
- Love is commanded and results from understanding, not just feeling. We must think it through and obey from the heart.
- To ensure love without hypocrisy, we must understand the doctrine we've been taught and let the Spirit shed God's love in our hearts.
- We must abhor (hate, shrink from) evil, not just avoid doing it. We must see evil in light of God's holiness and hate it as He does.
- We can only abhor evil if we know and love God. The more we know Him, the more we'll hate evil.
- We must cleave (stick fast) to the good, meaning what pleases God. We must join ourselves to it inseparably.
- These principles show we're in the realm of holiness and truth, not just ethics. It's a passion for God, not a list of rules.
- This is a command to obey, not a passive experience. We must work it out, considering God's mercy and the doctrine we've learned.
- There is no "entire sanctification" in this life. This is a perpetual command we must keep obeying.
The Book of Romans
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.