ROMANS 12: 14-21

THE MEN’S GROUP BIBLICAL EQUIPPING – JANUARY 19, 2005

14
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice
with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with
one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim
to be wiser than you are. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take
thought for what is noble in the sight of all. 18 If it is possible, so far as it
depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge
yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written,
“Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 No, “If your enemies are
hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by
doing this you will reap burning coals on their heads.” 21 Do not be
overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Background
Writer: Paul, as a letter to friends in Rome, not to a specific church, but to an
emerging Christian community. He wrote the letter from Corinth. He was
laying the groundwork for what he hoped would be a future visit (he had never
been there). As it turned out, he did come to Rome two years later – in
chains.
Date: About 56-57 AD.
What’s Going On: In Rome, there were more Gentile believers than converted Jews.
Paul focuses the book mostly around the concept of “salvation”: what it is,
how to get it, and what role the Holy Spirit plays in it. Believers are led by the
Spirit, are aided by the Spirit in prayer, and are the first fruits of the Spirit.
The quotes in this passage refer to several passages all over the Bible, in
both the Old and New Testaments. The first quote relates to passages in
Leviticus 19:18 (OT) and Hebrews 10:30 (NT). The second quote refers to
Proverbs 25:21-22 (OT) and Jesus’ teachings in Matthew 5:44 (NT) and Luke
6:27 (NT).
St. Matthews Emmaus Groups
Facilitator’s Biblical Equipping: Jan-April 2004

ROMANS 12: 14-21

THE MEN’S GROUP BIBLICAL EQUIPPING – JANUARY 19, 2005

Explore:
1. Why does Paul draw from both the Old and New testaments in his
teaching here?
2. What is Paul’s definition for “living in harmony with one another”?
3. How can good overcome evil?

Connect
1. This all sounds nice, but how hard is it to pull off?
2. What examples of successes have you had in this regard? What
examples of failures have you had?
3. How can we use this passage to arm ourselves as we move
forward?

Prepare
Everyone writes down how they plan to apply the concepts discussed here to
their daily life in the ensuing week. We will discuss how that went during
Check In next week.

ALSO, BE SURE TO FACILITATE SPIRITUAL COMMUNICATION WITH YOUR

GROUPS BETWEEN MEETINGS!