ΡΩΜΑΙΟΥΣΡΩΜΑΙΟΥΣ

1. Dhabihu Iliyo Hai (12:1-2)1. The Living Sacrifice (12:1-2)

Warumi 11 iliishia kwa doksolojia (wimbo wa sifa). Warumi 12 inaanza kwa neno la bawaba ambalo tumekuja kulitambua kuwa mojawapo ya maneno muhimu zaidi katika Agano Jipya. Basi, ndugu zangu, nawasihi, kwa huruma zake Mungu... Kila kitu ambacho Paulo amekifunua kwa sura kumi na moja sasa kinafika mlangoni mwa maisha ya Kikristo ya kila siku. Fundisho halikuwekwa ili tulistaajabie tu. Liliwekwa ili tubadilishwe.Romans 11 ended in doxology. Romans 12 begins with a hinge word we have come to recognize as one of the most important in the New Testament. I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God... Everything Paul has unfolded for eleven chapters now arrives at the door of practical Christian living. The doctrine has not been laid down so that we could admire it. It has been laid down so that we could be transformed.

Paulo haamuru. Yeye anasihi — neno la Kiyunani liko katikati ya kuamuru na kuomba kwa unyenyekevu. Angeweza kusisitiza mamlaka yake ya kitume. Badala yake anavutia kwa huruma za Mungu ambazo tayari zimetajwa katika sura ya 1-11. Kichocheo chenye nguvu zaidi cha maisha ya Kikristo si sheria bali huruma ambayo tayari tumeipokea.Paul does not command. He beseeches — the Greek word lies between commanding and pleading. He could have asserted his apostolic authority. Instead he appeals to the mercies of God already named in chapters 1-11. The strongest motive for Christian living is not law but mercy already received.

Dhabihu inayoombwa ni ya ajabu. Katika utaratibu wa Agano la Kale, mwabudu alileta mnyama aliyekufa. Paulo anaomba dhabihu iliyo hai — mwili wote, maisha yote, yaliyotolewa kila siku juu ya madhabahu. Jambo gumu zaidi kuhusu kuwa dhabihu iliyo hai ni kwamba inaweza kushuka tena kutoka madhabahuni. Msalaba ni jambo la hiari kila asubuhi.The sacrifice asked is unusual. In the Old Testament economy, the worshiper brought a dead animal. Paul asks for a living sacrifice — the whole body, the whole life, surrendered daily on the altar. The hardest thing about being a living sacrifice is that it can climb back off the altar. The cross is voluntary every morning.

Mstari wa 2 unataja vitenzi viwili vinavyopingana vya maisha ya Kikristo. Msiifuatishe namna ya dunia — yaani msibanwe kutoka nje ili mwingie katika kalibu ya dunia. Mgeuzwe — mbadilishwe kutoka ndani kwenda nje kwa kufanywa upya nia zenu. Neno la Kiyunani la "kugeuzwa" ni metamorphoō, neno ambalo kwalo tunapata metamorphosis (mabadiliko kamili ya umbo). Kiwavi hakiwi kipepeo kwa kubanwa ndani ya kalibu yenye umbo la kipepeo. Kinakuwa kipepeo kwa mabadiliko ya ndani. Ukuaji wa Kikristo ni mabadiliko ya ndani (metamorphosis), si kufinyangwa kwa nje.Verse 2 names the two opposite verbs of the Christian life. Do not be conformed — squeezed from the outside into the world's mold. Be transformed — changed from the inside out by the renewing of the mind. The Greek word for transformed is metamorphoō, the word from which we get metamorphosis. The caterpillar does not become a butterfly by being pressed into a butterfly-shaped form. It becomes a butterfly by internal change. Christian growth is metamorphosis, not molding.

Vitenzi vyote viwili viko katika wakati uliopo. Shinikizo la dunia la kutufanya tufanane nayo linaendelea; kazi ya Roho ya kutugeuza inaendelea. Maisha ya Kikristo ni mashindano ya kila siku kati ya mashinikizo haya mawili.Both verbs are in the present tense. The world's pressure to conform is ongoing; the Spirit's work of transformation is ongoing. The Christian life is a daily contest between the two presses.

2. Mwili na Karama Zake (12:3-8)2. The Body and Its Gifts (12:3-8)

Paulo anahama kutoka madhabahu ya mtu mmoja kwenda kwenye jumuiya ya madhabahu. Kwanza anaonya dhidi ya kujiona kuwa bora kupita kiasi, akisihi badala yake kuwa na akili za kiasi. Kila mwamini amepewa kipimo cha imani, lakini hakuna mwamini aliyepewa kila karama. Kutambua kwamba mimi si mwili wote ndio msingi wa maisha mazuri ya kanisa.Paul moves from the individual altar to the community of the altar. He warns first against thinking too highly of oneself, urging instead sober judgment. Every believer has been given a measure of faith, but no believer has been given every gift. The recognition that I am not the whole body is the foundation of healthy church life.

Paulo anaorodhesha karama saba za mfano — unabii, huduma, kufundisha, kuonya (kutia moyo), kutoa, kuongoza, kurehemu — na anamwambia kila Mkristo atumike katika karama yake kwa bidii na neema. Kanuni iliyo chini ya orodha hii ni muhimu kuliko orodha yenyewe. Karama za kiroho ni vifaa vya kujengea, si vitu vya kuchezea wala silaha za kupigania. Karama zimetolewa ili kuutumikia mwili, si kumwinua mwenye karama wala kuwajeruhi viungo vingine.Paul lists seven representative gifts — prophesying, serving, teaching, exhorting, giving, leading, showing mercy — and tells each Christian to operate in his gift with diligence and grace. The principle that runs underneath the list matters more than the list itself. Spiritual gifts are tools to build with, not toys to play with or weapons to fight with. Gifts are given to serve the body, not to elevate the giver or to wound other members.

Hii inamaanisha kwamba maisha mazuri ya kanisa si heshima tu, wala si ushirikiano tu — ni kukamilishana. Jicho halifanyi kazi zaidi kwa kugeuka kuwa sikio; linatumikia kwa kuwa jicho huku sikio likiwa sikio. Kanisa lililokomaa linasherehekea utofauti wa karama kwa sababu utofauti huo ni mpango wa Mungu.This means that healthy church life is not just respect, and not just cooperation — it is complementarity. The eye does not work harder by becoming an ear; it serves by being an eye while the ear is being an ear. The mature church celebrates the diversity of giftedness because the diversity is by God's design.

3. Upendo kwa Vitendo (12:9-21)3. Love in Action (12:9-21)

Sehemu iliyobaki ya sura ya 12 ni picha ya haraka-haraka ya jinsi upendo wa kweli wa Kikristo unavyoonekana katika maisha ya kila siku. Paulo anarundika amri fupi karibu bila kupumua. Pendo na lisiwe na unafiki. Chukieni lililo ovu, shikamaneni na lililo jema. Kwa pendo la udugu, pendaneni kwa shauku; kwa heshima mkiwatanguliza wenzenu. Orodha hii inasomeka kama Hotuba ya Mlimani kwa ufupi.The rest of chapter 12 is a rapid-fire portrait of what genuine Christian love looks like in everyday life. Paul piles short imperatives almost without breath. Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love. In honor giving preference to one another. The list reads like a Sermon-on-the-Mount in miniature.

Maneno kadhaa yanaishikilia sehemu hii. Furahini pamoja nao wafurahio; lieni pamoja nao waliao. Upendo wa Kikristo hurekebisha hali yake ya kihisia kulingana na ndugu aliye mbele yake. Mpatane nia zenu ninyi kwa ninyi. Msinie mambo makuu, bali mshirikiane na wanyonge. Upendo wa Kikristo haukimbizi hadhi; huinama ili kutumikia.Several phrases anchor the section. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Christian love adjusts its emotional register to the brother in front of it. Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Christian love does not chase status; it stoops to serve.

Kisha Paulo anageukia matumizi magumu zaidi — upendo kwa adui. Msimlipe mtu ovu kwa ovu. Kama yamkini, kwa upande wenu, mkae katika amani na watu wote. Maneno kwa upande wenu ni ya kweli na ya wazi. Migogoro mingine haiwezi kumalizwa na upande mmoja peke yake; wajibu wa mwamini ni kufanya kile kilicho upande wake wa mstari.Then Paul turns to the hardest application — love for enemies. Repay no one evil for evil. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. The phrase as much as depends on you is honest. Some conflicts cannot be ended unilaterally; the believer's responsibility is to do what is on his side of the line.

Maneno utampalia makaa ya moto kichwani pake yamesomwa kwa njia nyingi, lakini msingi thabiti wa Agano la Kale ni kwamba makaa ya moto ni picha ya hukumu ya Mungu (2 Samweli 22:9, Zaburi 11:6, Zaburi 18:13, Zaburi 140:9-10, Mithali 25:21-22). Maana yake si kwamba wema humwaibisha adui katika maisha haya — ingawa mara nyingine hufanya hivyo — bali kwamba mwamini anaweza kulipa wema kwa ubaya akiwa na uhakika kwamba Mungu atashughulikia hesabu ya mwisho. Kisasi ni chake; wito wa mwamini ni kupenda.The phrase heap coals of fire on his head has been read many ways, but the consistent Old Testament background is that coals of fire are a figure of God's judgment (2 Samuel 22:9, Psalm 11:6, Psalm 18:13, Psalm 140:9-10, Proverbs 25:21-22). The meaning is not that kindness shames the enemy in this life — though it sometimes does — but that the believer can return good for evil with the assurance that God will see to the final reckoning. Vengeance is His; the believer's calling is to love.

Mstari wa mwisho ni falsafa nzima ya Paulo kuhusu migogoro kwa maneno manane (katika Kiingereza). Usishindwe na ubaya, bali uushinde ubaya kwa wema. Huwezi kulishinda giza kwa giza zaidi. Huwezi kuishinda chuki kwa chuki zaidi. Lakini unaweza kuangaza nuru, na nuru huzima giza. Unaweza kuikabili chuki kwa upendo, na upendo hufanya kazi kama nuru ndani ya nafsi ya mwingine.The closing line is Paul's whole philosophy of conflict in eight words. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. You cannot out-dark darkness. You cannot out-hate hatred. But you can shine a light, and light extinguishes darkness. You can meet hatred with love, and love acts like light in the soul of the other.

4. Mkristo na Mamlaka ya Serikali (13:1-7)4. The Christian and Civil Authority (13:1-7)

Sasa Paulo anageuka kutoka mahusiano ndani ya kanisa kwenda mahusiano na mamlaka zinazotawala. Fundisho hili mara nyingi limekuwa na ubishi — hata hivyo Paulo aliandika chini ya utawala wa Nero — lakini kanuni iko wazi. Mwamini anapaswa kujitiisha chini ya mamlaka zinazotawala, kwa sababu hakuna mamlaka isiyotoka kwa Mungu, na mamlaka zilizopo zimewekwa na Mungu.Paul now turns from relationships inside the church to relationships with the governing authorities. The teaching has often been controversial — Paul wrote under Nero, after all — but the principle is plain. The believer is to be subject to the governing authorities, because there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist have been instituted by God.

Ufafanuzi mbili ni muhimu. Kwanza, Paulo hasemi tiini; anasema jitiisheni. Kujitiisha na kutii si kitu kimoja. Kujitiisha kunajumuisha kutii lakini pia kunajumuisha moyo wa heshima na utayari wa kubeba matokeo pale dhamiri inapodai kutotii. Mamlaka ya serikali inapoamuru kile ambacho Mungu amekataza — au kukataza kile ambacho Mungu ameamuru — mitume walijibu waziwazi: Imetupasa kumtii Mungu kuliko kuwatii wanadamu (Matendo 5:29). Lakini hata Petro na mitume, walipokataa, walijitiisha chini ya mamlaka ya baraza kiasi cha kukubali gharama ya kukataa kwao.Two clarifications matter. First, Paul does not say obey; he says be subject. Submission and obedience are not identical. Submission includes obedience but also includes an attitude of respect and willingness to bear the consequences when conscience demands disobedience. When civil authority commands what God forbids — or forbids what God commands — the apostles answered plainly: We ought to obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29). But even Peter and the apostles, when they refused, submitted to the authority of the council enough to accept the cost of refusing.

Pili, Paulo hatetei kuunganishwa kwa kanisa na serikali. Mamlaka ya serikali ina eneo lake — kuzuia uovu, kuwapa thawabu watenda mema, kuchukua upanga kwa ajili ya haki (mstari wa 4). Kanisa lina eneo lake — kuihubiri Injili, kufanya wanafunzi, kukusanyika kama mwili wa Kristo. Hizi mbili si taasisi moja na hazikukusudiwa kamwe kuunganishwa. Historia ya kanisa inaonyesha mara kwa mara kinachotokea zinapounganishwa.Second, Paul is not advocating a fusion of church and state. The civil authority has its sphere — restraining evil, rewarding good, bearing the sword for justice (verse 4). The church has hers — proclaiming the gospel, making disciples, gathering as the body of Christ. The two are not the same institution and were never meant to be merged. The history of the church repeatedly shows what happens when they are.

Kile ambacho kifungu hiki kinamtaka kila mwamini ni cha wazi: lipa kodi unazodaiwa, toa ushuru na mapato unayodaiwa, toa hofu na heshima pale zinapostahili. Mkristo ndiye raia mwenye dhamiri njema kuliko wote — si kwa sababu serikali ni takatifu, bali kwa sababu Mungu ameiweka ofisi hiyo ili kuzuia uovu katika ulimwengu ulioanguka. Wapeni watu wote haki zao.What the passage requires of every believer is concrete: pay taxes that are owed, give customs and revenue that is owed, render fear and honor where they are owed. The Christian is the most conscientious citizen — not because the state is sacred, but because God has appointed the office to restrain a fallen world. Render therefore to all their due.

5. Deni la Upendo na Uharaka wa Saa Hii (13:8-14)5. The Debt of Love and the Urgency of the Hour (13:8-14)

Kutoka kwenye wajibu wa kiraia Paulo anageukia deni kubwa zaidi ambalo Mkristo hawezi kamwe kumaliza kulilipa. Msiwiwe na mtu cho chote, isipokuwa kupendana; kwa maana yeye apendaye mwenzake ameitimiza sheria. Mkristo hulipa bili zake na kodi zake — lakini wajibu wa kupenda unabaki kudaiwa daima. Hauwezi kamwe kuandikwa kuwa umelipwa wote.From civic duties Paul turns to a higher debt the Christian can never finish paying. Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. The Christian pays his bills and his taxes — but the obligation to love is permanently outstanding. It can never be marked paid in full.

Paulo anaorodhesha amri kadhaa — uzinzi, uuaji, wizi, ushuhuda wa uongo, tamaa — na anasema zote zimejumlishwa katika sentensi moja. Mpende jirani yako kama nafsi yako. Upendo haumtendei jirani neno baya. Upendo ndio utimilifu wa sheria. Kila kitu ambacho sheria ilikuwa ikikilinda, upendo tayari unakiheshimu.Paul lists several commandments — adultery, murder, theft, false witness, covetousness — and says they are all summed up in one sentence. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no wrong to a neighbor. Love is the fulfillment of the law. Everything the law was protecting, love already honors.

Sura inaishia kwa hisia ya uharaka. Ni wakati wa kuamka sasa katika usingizi; kwa maana sasa wokovu wetu u karibu nasi kuliko hapo tulipoamini kwanza. Usiku umekwisha kuendelea sana; mchana umekaribia. Basi yavueni matendo ya giza — ulafi na ulevi, ufisadi na uasherati, ugomvi na wivu — mkavae silaha za nuru. Bali mvaeni Bwana Yesu Kristo, wala msiziangalie tamaa za mwili, kuziwasha tamaa zake. Mkristo huamka akiwa amemvaa Kristo.The chapter ends with a sense of urgency. Now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent; the day is at hand. So put off the deeds of darkness — revelry and drunkenness, immorality and indecency, strife and envy — and put on the armor of light. Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts. The Christian wakes up dressed in Christ.

Himizo hili la mwisho ni marudio ya 12:1-2. Itoeni miili yenu iwe dhabihu iliyo hai. Mgeuzwe. Mvaeni Kristo. Ncha mbili za sura hizi mbili ni zile zile: maisha ya Kikristo ya kila siku ni mwili uliotolewa, nia iliyofanywa upya, na Bwana Yesu akivaliwa kama vazi kila asubuhi.This closing exhortation is a restatement of 12:1-2. Present your bodies a living sacrifice. Be transformed. Put on Christ. The bookends of these two chapters are the same: the practical Christian life is the body offered, the mind renewed, the Lord Jesus worn like clothing every morning.

6. Uhuru wa Kikristo na Walio Dhaifu na Wenye Nguvu (14:1-23)6. Christian Liberty and the Weak and Strong (14:1-23)

Warumi 14 inageukia mtihani mgumu zaidi wa upendo ndani ya kanisa — kutokubaliana kati ya waamini wanyofu kuhusu mambo yasiyo kiini cha Injili. Wakristo wengine walijiona huru kula vyakula vyote; wengine walijizuia. Wengine waliziona siku zote kuwa sawa; wengine waliziheshimu siku fulani kuwa takatifu. Kila mmoja alikuwa akitenda kwa dhamiri yake. Kila mmoja alijaribiwa kumdharau mwenzake.Romans 14 turns to the hardest test of love inside the church — disagreement between sincere believers over matters that are not central to the gospel. Some Christians felt freedom to eat all foods; others abstained. Some treated all days alike; others honored particular days as sacred. Each was acting in conscience. Each was tempted to look down on the other.

Paulo anawaita wale ambao dhamiri zao zilidai kujizuia zaidi "walio dhaifu wa imani" — si kwa sababu imani yao ilikuwa na upungufu bali kwa sababu dhamiri zao zilikuwa bado hazijatulia katika uhuru kamili ambao Kristo aliupata. Anawaita wale ambao dhamiri zao ziliruhusu zaidi "wenye nguvu." Wote wawili wamekubaliwa na Bwana. Hakuna anayepaswa kumdharau au kumhukumu mwenzake.Paul calls those whose conscience demanded more restraint the "weak in faith" — not because their faith was deficient but because their conscience had not yet rested in the full liberty Christ won. He calls those whose conscience permitted more the "strong." Both are accepted by the Lord. Neither is to despise or judge the other.

Hoja inasimama juu ya misingi minne. Kwanza, kila mwamini ni mtumishi wa Bwana, na kwa bwana wake mwenyewe yeye husimama au huanguka — na Bwana aweza kumsimamisha. Sisi si mabwana wa dhamiri za wenzetu. Pili, kila mmoja atatoa hesabu kwa Mungu kwa ajili ya nafsi yake, si kwa ajili ya ndugu yake. Tatu, ufalme wa Mungu si kula wala kunywa, bali ni haki na amani na furaha katika Roho Mtakatifu. Hatimaye Ukristo hauhusu orodha ya vyakula wala kalenda. Nne, lo lote lisilotokana na imani ni dhambi — yaani Mkristo anayetenda kinyume na dhamiri yake mwenyewe anatenda dhambi kwa kuivunja dhamiri, hata kama tendo lenyewe lilikuwa halali.The argument turns on four foundations. First, each believer is the Lord's servant, and to his own Master he stands or falls — and the Master is able to make him stand. We are not the masters of one another's consciences. Second, each will give account to God for himself, not for his brother. Third, the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. Christianity is not finally about menu or calendar. Fourth, whatever is not of faith is sin — meaning a Christian who acts against his own conscience sins by violating conscience, even if the act itself was lawful.

Jambo hilo la mwisho linakata pande zote mbili. "Wenye nguvu" hawapaswi kuwasukuma "walio dhaifu" katika matendo ambayo dhamiri zao haziwezi kuyastahimili. Ni vema kutokula nyama wala kunywa divai, wala kufanya neno lo lote ambalo kwa hilo ndugu yako ajikwaa, au akwazwe, au awe dhaifu. Kanuni ya Paulo kutoka 1 Wakorintho inatawala hapa pia — Vitu vyote ni halali kwangu; lakini si vyote vifaavyo (1 Kor 6:12). Uhuru ni halisi; matumizi ya uhuru yanatawaliwa na upendo.That last point cuts in both directions. The "strong" must not push the "weak" into actions their conscience cannot bear. It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak. Paul's principle from 1 Corinthians governs here too — All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful (1 Cor 6:12). Liberty is real; the use of liberty is governed by love.

Kanuni ya kufunga sura ya 14 ni mojawapo ya sentensi zinazopuuzwa zaidi katika Agano Jipya. Basi kama ni hivyo, na tufuate mambo ya amani, na mambo ya kujengana. Kanisa hujengwa si kwa kila mtu kuwa na maoni yanayofanana kabisa juu ya mambo yanayobishaniwa, bali kwa kila mtu kumshikilia Kristo na kushikamana na wenzake katika upendo. Wenye nguvu hujizuia pale ambapo kutetea uhuru wao kungejeruhi. Walio dhaifu hukataa kuwafunga wengine kwa jambo ambalo Biblia haidai. Wote wawili humtumikia Bwana yule yule.The closing principle of chapter 14 is one of the most overlooked sentences in the New Testament. Let us therefore pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. The church is built up not by everyone holding identical opinions on disputable matters but by everyone holding to Christ and to one another in love. The strong defer where defending liberty would wound. The weak refuse to bind on others what is not biblically required. Both serve the same Lord.

Sura tatu, matumizi matatu. Mwili uliotolewa. Serikali iliyoheshimiwa. Ndugu aliyependwa. Kila moja ni sura maalum ya kujitoa kwa namna ile ile ambayo Paulo aliiomba katika 12:1 — dhabihu iliyo hai ambayo ndiyo ibada yenye maana ya wale walioonyeshwa huruma za Mungu.Three chapters, three applications. The body offered. The state honored. The brother loved. Each one a particular face of the same surrender Paul asked for in 12:1 — the living sacrifice that is the reasonable service of those who have been shown the mercies of God.