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It seems that there is something special to celebrate on every day of the year. National Donut Day. Coffee Day. World Elephant Day. There are also those days we celebrate, often promoted by the greeting card industry, such as Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and Employee Appreciation Day. On such days, we celebrate and honor what makes that person or thing so special to us.
In Romans 12:10, Paul exhorts us to “love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.” He wrote these words in a chapter filled with gospel implications for the Christian life. In the previous section, Paul explains how we are united to one another in the body of Christ (Rom. 12:4–5). We are one body made up of many parts. And because we are one, we are to not think of ourselves more highly than we ought (Rom. 12:3). Paul then describes how each person in the body has a gift to use to build up the church (Rom. 12:6–8).
It follows, then, that because we are one in Christ, we are to love and honor one another. We are to go so far as to outdo one another in showing such honor. To celebrate the work that God is doing in the life of another. To rejoice when God blesses a brother or sister in Christ. To glory in the ways that God gives gifts to our siblings and uses them for His kingdom purposes. Because we are all one in Christ, the good things that God does in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Christ are our good as well.
Yet how hard it is to rejoice and celebrate and honor a sibling in Christ. More often, we begrudge the good things that God does for others. We might say “Congratulations!” to our sibling whose ministry is growing and thriving, but inside we think, “That’s not fair!” We might smile at the way that God gives gifts to other people and uses them in the church, but in our hearts, we envy their gifts, desiring them for ourselves. We compare the story that God writes in our lives to that which He writes in the lives of others and find it lacking.
These responses reveal idolatry for which we need to repent. They also reveal that we’ve forgotten our union with one another in Christ. Because we are one, we should desire to see everyone in the church use their gifts because their doing so builds and strengthens the whole body—including us. We should rejoice when the Lord blesses other members of the body and answers their prayers, for we are all one in the Lord. God gives gifts to and blesses each member of the church for His good purposes.
The Bible calls us not only to love our siblings in Christ but to honor them as well. To go out of our way to celebrate them. To not only say “Congratulations!” but to host a party to celebrate with them the good things that God is doing in their lives. And not just once a year, but all the year through.