Rom 12, Rom 15 | ESV | STEP | I appeal to you therefore , brothers , by the mercies of God , to present your bodies as a living sacrifice , holy and acceptable to God , which is your spiritual worship .

1 ^aI appeal to you therefore, brothers, ^{▼▼Or brothers and sisters} by the mercies of God, ^cto present your bodies ^das a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. ^{▼▼Or your rational service} 2 ^fDo not be conformed to this world, ^{▼▼Greek age} but be transformed by ^hthe renewal of your mind, that by testing you may ⁱdiscern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. ^{▼▼Or what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God}

Gifts of Grace

3 For ^kby the grace given to me I say to everyone among you ^lnot to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, ^meach according to ⁿthe measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For ^oas in one body we have many members, ^{▼▼Greek parts; also verse 5} and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, ^qthough many, ^rare one body in Christ, and individually ^smembers one of another. 6 ^tHaving gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if ^uprophecy, ^vin proportion to our faith; 7 if ^wservice, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; ^xthe one who leads, ^{▼▼Or gives aid} with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with ^zcheerfulness.

Marks of the True Christian

9 ^aaLet love be genuine. ^abAbhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. 10 ^acLove one another with brotherly affection. ^adOutdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, ^aebe fervent in spirit, ^{▼▼Or fervent in the Spirit} ^agserve the Lord. 12 ^ahRejoice in hope, ^aibe patient in tribulation, ^ajbe constant in prayer. 13 ^akContribute to the needs of the saints and ^alseek to show hospitality.

14 ^amBless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 ^anRejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 ^aoLive in harmony with one another. ^apDo not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. ^{▼▼Or give yourselves to humble tasks} ^arNever be wise in your own sight. 17 ^asRepay no one evil for evil, but ^atgive thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, ^aulive peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, ^avnever avenge yourselves, but leave it ^{▼▼Greek give place} to the wrath of God, for it is written, ^ax“Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 To the contrary, ^ay“if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Romans 15

The Example of Christ

1 ^azWe who are strong ^bahave an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. 2 ^bbLet each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. 3 For ^bcChrist did not please himself, but as it is written, ^bd“The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.” 4 For ^bewhatever was written in former days was written for our ^bfinstruction, that through endurance and through ^bgthe encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. 5 May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you ^bhto live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, 6 that together you may with one voice glorify ^bithe God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 7 Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.

Christ the Hope of Jews and Gentiles

8 For I tell you that Christ ^bjbecame a servant to the circumcised to show God’s truthfulness, in order ^bkto confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, 9 and in order ^blthat the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written,

^bm“Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles,
and sing to your name.”
10 And again it is said,

^bn“Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people.”
11 And again,

^bo“Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles,
and let all the peoples extol him.”
12 And again Isaiah says,

^bp, ^bq“The root of Jesse will come,
even he who arises to rule the Gentiles;
^brin him will the Gentiles hope.”
13 May the God of hope fill you with all ^bsjoy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

Paul the Minister to the Gentiles

14 ^btI myself am satisfied about you, my brothers, ^{▼▼Or brothers and sisters; also verse 30} that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with ^bvall knowledge and able to instruct one another. 15 But on some points I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder, ^bwbecause of the grace given me by God 16 to be ^bxa minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles ^byin the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that ^bzthe offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 17 In Christ Jesus, then, I have ^careason to be proud of ^cbmy work for God. 18 For I will not venture to speak of anything except ^ccwhat Christ has accomplished through me ^cdto bring the Gentiles to obedience—by word and deed, 19 ^ceby the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God—so that ^cffrom Jerusalem and all the way around ^cgto Illyricum I have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ; 20 and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, ^chlest I build on someone else’s foundation, 21 but as it is written,

^ci“Those who have never been told of him will see,
and those who have never heard will understand.”

Paul’s Plan to Visit Rome

22 This is the reason why ^cjI have so often been hindered from coming to you. 23 But now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions, and ^cksince I have longed for many years to come to you, 24 I hope to see you in passing as I go ^clto Spain, and ^cmto be helped on my journey there by you, once I have enjoyed your company for a while. 25 At present, however, ^cnI am going to Jerusalem bringing aid to the saints. 26 For ^coMacedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem. 27 For they were pleased to do it, and indeed ^cpthey owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have come to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought also to be of service to them in material blessings. 28 When therefore I have completed this and have delivered to them what has been collected, ^{▼▼Greek sealed to them this fruit} I will leave ^crfor Spain by way of you. 29 I know that when I come to you I will come in the fullness of the blessing ^{▼▼Some manuscripts insert of the gospel} of Christ.

30 I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by ^ctthe love of the Spirit, ^cuto strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf, 31 ^cvthat I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that ^cwmy service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, 32 so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and ^cxbe refreshed in your company. 33 May ^cythe God of peace be with you all. Amen.