Romans 12:15 – Give and Take
Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.
Truth to Learn
Sharing in grief means taking, but sharing in joy means giving.
Behind the Words
“Rejoice” comes from the Greek word chairo, which means “to be full of cheer, that is, calmly happy.” It was often used as a greeting or a parting salutation meaning “be well.” Today we mean essentially the same thing when we say “God bless you.”
The word translated “weep” is the Greek word klaiein, a form of klaio, which according to The Word Study Dictionary means, “To weep, wail, or lament, implying not only the shedding of tears, but also every external expression of grief.”
Meaning Explained
As Paul has been teaching us, in Christ we are all part of one body, that is, we who are Christians. All members of the human race are not children of God, as many secularists and humanists would have us believe. In fact, here’s what Christ said to Pharisees in John 8:23:
You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.
And in John 8:44:
You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do.
Just because someone claims to be a child of God does not make them so. Only those who have submitted to the authority of Jesus as Lord and have accepted his sacrificial death on the cross as payment for their sins can truly say, “I am part of the family of God; the body of Christ!” As we have seen in this twelfth chapter of Romans, membership in the body of Christ carries with it many responsibilities, including those identified by Paul in this verse.
Let’s look at the second half of this verse first. We are to weep with those who are weeping. What Paul is telling us is not to cry whenever someone in the body cries, for there are many reasons for us to cry. But, when that crying is from grief, we are to share in the grief of the suffering one by taking on some of that grief as our own. We are told by psychologists today that one of the ways a person can get over grief is to have others share in the expression of that grief with them.
The first half of this verse is actually the more difficult thing for Christians to do. We are to rejoice with those in the body who are rejoicing. The problem is that what we say and what we do are often two different things. It is easier to mourn with those who are mourning than to be happy with those who are happy. Instead, we often feel jealousy or envy toward those who have something to rejoice about. But this, my friend, is the sin of selfishness at work.
We all need to extend our sympathies and partake in the grief of members of the body of Christ who are grieving. But we also need to learn how to be truly joyful with those in the body who are experiencing joy.
Application
When we grieve with those who grieve we take to ourselves some of their grief. However, when we rejoice with those who rejoice, we are actually giving them some of our joy. And then, we give all the glory to God, for He deserves it! Let’s put these things into practice this week!
In God’s service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2011 Will Krause. All rights reserved.
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