“If it is possible, live at peace with everyone.”

Romans 12:18, 21                                                                                      Pastor. Songsoo Park

If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.                                         Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

In fact, verse 21 of Romans 12 that we read today is not only the conclusion of Romans chapter 12, but also a common conclusion found throughout all the letters written by the Apostle Paul.
Why? Because the message, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good”, is scattered throughout his epistles.

• 1 Corinthians 15:34 – “Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning.”

• 2 Corinthians 13:7 – “Now we pray to God that you do no wrong.”

• Galatians 6:1 – “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”

• Ephesians 6:13 – “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.”

• 1 Thessalonians 5:15 – “See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone.”

• 1 Thessalonians 5:22 – “Abstain from every form of evil.”

• 2 Thessalonians 3:2 – “That we may be delivered from wicked and evil men.”

• 2 Timothy 4:18 – “The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed.”

As you know, the life of faith is spiritual warfare.
It is not a wide road, but a narrow one.
As already implied in Revelation 12:12, the devil, full of wrath, is attacking us and sowing the weeds of sin in the world until the day Jesus returns as the Judge.

Therefore, it is said that the enemy continues to target two spiritual conditions to delay that Day of Judgment:

1.   Matthew 24:14 – “And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”

2.   Revelation 6:11 – “Until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.”

But who holds the key to these two conditions—spreading the gospel and the blood of martyrs?
Yes, it’s us—the people of faith.
So if we are ashamed of the gospel, fear persecution, and live cowardly lives without proclaiming it, then God's time of judgment will inevitably be delayed.
And in that delayed time, the evil one will continue to spread the power of sin more widely, leading many to destruction.

This is why Paul, fully aware of this spiritual reality, persistently urges the churches in his letters not to be overcome by evil, but to fight and overcome it.

Now, in those letters, the primary focus of spiritual battle is often on standing firmly in the Word and on personal piety through prayer.
However, in Romans 12, the depiction of spiritual battle includes another secret that goes beyond individual piety.

Let’s read Romans 12:5, 15, 16, and 18:

• Verse 5 – “So we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.”

• Verse 15 – “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.”

• Verse 16 – “Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty.”

• Verse 18 – “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”

Yes, the key is found in the words “we, together, with, among”.
What do all these four words have in common?
They all imply not being alone.
It’s not about walking the path of faith alone.
We do not walk the narrow path in isolation—we walk it together, with one another.

When do people become weary? When do our hearts grow heavy?
It’s when we feel alone...
When we feel we must bear all the problems, burdens, and responsibilities by ourselves.
When we feel that “together, with, among” doesn’t apply to us—that’s when we become exhausted.

Who’s a prime example of this?
The prophet Elijah.
He was a mighty man of prayer—he prayed and it didn’t rain for 3 years and 6 months; he prayed again and it rained.
He called down fire from heaven on Mount Carmel, destroyed 850 prophets of Baal, and rebuilt the broken altar of God.

Later, he even called down fire from heaven on soldiers sent by King Ahab.
He was so powerful, people called him the “prophet of fire.”

Yet even this powerful man grew weary, discouraged, and desired death.
Why?
1 Kings 19:10 – “I am the only one left.”
1 Kings 19:14 – “I am the only one left.”

What did God say to him then?
Did He promise Elijah greater power?
Did He say He would fight in Elijah's place?
No.
1 Kings 19:18 – “I have reserved seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed to Baal.”
God showed Elijah that he was not alone.

In the Paris subway system, there’s an annual poetry contest so commuters can gain comfort and courage from short verses.
In 1998, a poem titled “Desert” won first place out of over 8,000 entries.
It was a single line written by a woman named Hortense Blue:

“In the desert, he was so lonely that sometimes he walked backward, just to see his own footprints.”

The poem was posted all over the subway, and it’s said to have brought deep healing to many.
Later, a Korean poet, Ryu Shi-hwa, featured it in a poetry collection.
He tried to contact the poet for permission—by phone, by email—but couldn’t reach her.
Eventually, a friend in Paris tracked her down.

When they entered her home, something felt strange—furniture like chairs and tables were chained to the floor.
A woman in her 30s, limping with a hunched back, appeared.
That was Hortense Blue.

When asked for permission to include the poem, she refused, saying it wasn’t perfect.
Asked why, she replied by reading her poem again:

“In the desert, he was so lonely that sometimes he walked backward, just to see his own footprints.”

Then she said, “The word ‘so’ doesn’t fully capture the loneliness I felt.”
That loneliness, she said, couldn’t be expressed in just the word “so”.

She revealed that she wrote the poem while in solitary confinement in a psychiatric hospital.
After her divorce, with no one to care for her, she lived in her ex-husband’s home.
During episodes, she would scream and throw furniture, which is why the furniture was chained.

What tormented her more than the illness itself was the crushing loneliness.
So she walked backward to see the footprints she had just made, reassuring herself that she wasn’t alone.
That someone—somehow—was walking the desert with her.

Like her, Hortense intentionally thought of “we, together, with, among” to escape the desert of loneliness made up of thoughts like “me, alone, isolated.”
Even by looking at her own footprints, she reminded herself that she wasn’t completely alone.

Now, imagine putting the words “we, together, with, among” into today’s passage.
Verse 12 says:

“Be patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

Now apply the principle:

“Together, we are patient in affliction. Together, we are faithful in prayer.”

Verse 21 says:

“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Apply it:

“Together, with one another, we are not overcome by evil. Together, we overcome evil with good.”

When you read and meditate on these reworded verses, it feels as if someone is standing next to you.
It’s no longer a burden you carry alone—it becomes something we carry together.

But here’s the crucial part:
To make “we, together, with, among” a reality in our lives, we must spiritually commit and intentionally pursue it.

So ask yourself:

• In my family, what am I doing together with them?

• In my church, what am I doing together with fellow believers?

Some say the word “we” comes from the concept of a fence or enclosure.
That’s what we are to each other—not just people gathered randomly, but a protective fence for one another.

Does a fence build itself?
No—it takes sweat, time, and even money.
That’s why we hold small group worship at home—because being “we” requires intentional effort.

Inviting someone over requires cleaning, preparing food, spending time—all that means sacrificing your own comfort for others. That’s how you build fences.

“We, together, with, among” doesn’t happen just by thinking it.
When you give your time for others, share your resources, and pray not just for yourself but for someone else, that’s when true “we” is formed.

And those joined by that “we” are called co-laborers—partners in ministry.

When I was ministering in Korea, we once invited Pastor Lee Chan-Soo to preach at a Friday overnight service.
He asked to visit the library first, read books there, and then preached.
Something he said stayed with me:

“To make sure ‘we’ is not a selfish word, we must sometimes give up ‘us.’”
“If only our church grows, if only we receive blessings, that’s not a true ‘we’—that’s just a big ‘me’ disguised as ‘we.’”

A few years ago, they did something called “sending out 10,000 church members”—giving up their resources for the bigger “we.”
That’s the strength of a real church—sacrificing what’s ours for others.

Are you more used to the words “I, alone”?
Or “we, together, with, among”?

If you want to become part of the “we”, start by giving some of your time to others, sharing some of your resources, and lifting up prayers not only for yourself but for someone else.

Then, those people become your “we”.
Let’s make “we, together, with, among” a practical part of our daily lives.

That is how we create the three-strand cord that’s not easily broken, as written in Ecclesiastes 4:11–12:

“If two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone?
And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.”