Life Project Blog

Romans 15:14-22

At this point, Paul shifts entirely the focus of his message; what has been persuasive in nature now becomes more of a personal reflection. I hope you have read these verses, because we can glean a great insight about Paul’s attitude and frame of mind in general and then compare his attitude to our own.

Verses 14-16 begin this reflection in an interesting way: Paul acknowledges that his recipients are fully able to not only understand, but to instruct one another in matters concerning faith in Jesus Christ. Yet, he tells them that he has boldly repeated certain things to them in this letter, so that they might appreciate them fully, so that they might remember the amazing grace of our Lord.  He has done this by the grace God has given him as the Apostle to the Gentiles, and why was he sent as Apostle to the Gentiles? He did it so that they might be an acceptable offering to God. Notice that in all of this discussion, Paul is motivated to endless work for the sake of God’s purpose, and the well being of others; not for himself.

Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done— by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God.

Romans 15:17-19a

What does Paul do when he is serving God; where does his strength come from? He glories in Christ in his service; he is not taking glory from his own “greatness”. What is Paul willing to speak of? He is willing to speak only of what God has done through him, not what great things he himself has done. Whatever Paul may have accomplished for Christ has been done through the power of the Holy Spirit.

I should imagine that each one of us, and that certainly includes me, could benefit greatly by having a similar attitude.

Once again, he mentions that he has always wanted to work where no one else has already preached the Word, among Gentiles who have not yet heard about Jesus. Interesting isn’t it? God’s purpose is that the Gospel should be proclaimed to all people, and here is the great Apostle to the Gentiles, not only teaching this as a fact, but also putting it into action and going into mission fields where he had to start completely from scratch so that God might be glorified among the Gentiles. Here, dear reader is an example to follow: We should seek out ways to serve God’s purpose in a manner that would bring Him maximum glory, even though this may require greater effort from us; such is the lot of a servant of God, and a glorious lot it is!

The third and final supporting point in this section is found in 15:1-13 and shows us that we are intended to live in unity and hope. Paul has broken this passage into three sections:

First, he shows us that selfless service brings about a unified testimony:

We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. Each of us should please our neighbors for their good, to build them up. For even Christ did not please himself but, as it is written: “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.”  For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 15:1-6

In these verses, Paul seems to be raising the bar to the highest level, the level of Christ Himself. How are we to get through this life of serving others? By having a whole new attitude, that of Jesus, who, in everything that He said and did, put others first so that God’s purpose might be accomplished. Is this too much to ask of us?

No, not at all, for remember what we’ve learned about grace− it provides not only forgiveness of sins, but everything we need to live our lives as followers of Jesus, through the working of the Holy Spirit.

Second, through Christ’s selfless service, Jew and Gentile glorify God together:

Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews on behalf of God’s truth, so that the promises made to the patriarchs might be confirmed and, moreover, that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written:

“Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles;
I will sing the praises of your name.”

Again, it says,

“Rejoice, you Gentiles, with his people.”

And again,

“Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles;
let all the peoples extol him.”

And again, Isaiah says,

“The Root of Jesse will spring up,
one who will arise to rule over the nations;
in him the Gentiles will hope.

Romans 15:7-12

Through Jesus, God has been glorified through both Jew and Gentile. Through Jesus Christ, God can be glorified through both you and me. When we set aside our disagreements, our differences, our selves, we can be one in Christ, just as we were intended to be. This is a very simple idea; it is easy to say and easy to write, but it is not always easy to practice.

Yet it isn’t as hard as we might think. We have the Holy Spirit within us, to lead, comfort, instruct and strengthen us, just as soon as we are willing to hear what He has to say to us. Do you believe this? Abraham did, and it was credited to him as righteousness. To follow Jesus Christ, we must believe the promises of God, and to live as though they had all already been accomplished; this is faith in action, and faith in action must of necessity be exercised by putting love into action. This is Paul’s teaching in Romans, and it is the challenge before us today.

Finally, Paul offers a prayer that we might all live in hope:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 15:13

Amen.

After his discussion of judging others in verses 1-12, Paul moves onto Christian Liberty and the responsibilities that come with it. He divides this discussion into four points:

First, we should be willing to sacrifice some of our liberty for the sake of others:

Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean. If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died.

Romans 14:13-15

It’s interesting to notice that this begins with Paul saying we should stop judging others, isn’t it? Once again, he uses the example of dietary practices, but this applies to many other things. If a brother or sister thinks rock and roll is the Devil’s music, then for his sake, I’ll play something else when he’s around. (My Grandmother used to think jazz was the Devil’s music!) The point is that we should have respect for the conscience of others, even though we may (rightly) believe them to be mistaken, for to get in their face may well cause them a crisis of faith and being “right” isn’t the point of love.

Second, don’t allow what your conscience knows to be good to be spoken of as evil:

Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.

Romans 14:16-18

There can be some natural tension between this point and the last point, but if we are careful in our discernment, we will notice the difference. In the first point, we are speaking entirely of opinions; what we eat or drink. The second point goes to matters of truth. Thus, there are two sides to Christian liberty: on the one hand, we may need to sacrifice minor matters of opinion for the sake of someone else. On the other hand, we must defend the truth of God and His Word. Here’s a different example: Suppose a brother announces that smoking cigarettes is a sin. He is exercising his right to his opinion, but in the process, he is falsely teaching the Word, for smoking is never mentioned in Scripture, and there is no principle to apply to it that does not involve taking something out of its context. As a teacher of the Word, I will feel obligated to correct the Scriptural error (in love) while acknowledging that he has every right not to like smoking, and I would sacrifice my liberty by not smoking around him. For the record, I am not now, nor have I ever been a smoker; I think it’s really stupid… but not a sin: See the difference?

Third, we should only do things that build others up in Christ:

Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble.  It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.

Romans 14:19-21

Being “right” isn’t the standard we are called to; the standard we are called to is love; putting the interests of others ahead of our own. Thus, in all that we do, we should do it for the benefit of others, and if that means that we skip something we like, so what?

Fourth, we should be true to our own convictions:

So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.

Romans 14:22-23

These two verses tie the first three points together, but in an awkward way, at least for the modern reader. Paul carried through his example of dietary practices, which are not nearly the big deal now that they were in his time. Yet the principle is clear enough; we should, in all things, act and live according to our faith. What does the Christian faith hold as a priority above everything else? Simply stated, it’s love God, love your neighbor. Thus, in all that we do, we must put God first and foremost, and then put our neighbor ahead of ourselves. I’m quite certain that if we remember to live that way, we’ll have nothing at all to worry about.

Romans 14:1-12

Paul’s discussion of our response to grace now takes a different path, for Paul is discussing different opinions among believers. He begins in 14:1-3. Verse 1 sets the tone for this discussion: Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. It could be that for many Christians, the concept of “disputable matters” is a little bit of a shock; yes, there are matters over which we can each have our own opinions!

Paul uses eating habits as an example; specifically over whether or not a person should eat meat, something that many discuss in our times. Who cares if someone else has a different opinion on eating meat? If you eat meat, good for you; if you don’t, good for you; there is nothing to fight about. Neither party is superior to the other, no matter what anybody says.

In verses 4-9, he raises the discussion up a notch: Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand (14:4). There is neither a brother nor sister in Christ anywhere on earth who is my servant; they are all servants of Jesus Christ just like I am, so how can I expect to be their judge? Our Lord will do the judging, and I must accept all of His servants, for if He has accepted them, I also must accept them in love.

Verses 10-12 bring this point all the way home:

You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written:

“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will acknowledge God.’”

So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

I can’t speak for anyone else, but I think that I have enough to worry about without compounding matters by trying to place myself above anyone else.

And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.

Romans 13:11-14

 These verses are the summation for this entire section (12:1-13:14) and serve to bring the message into sharp focus. Remember that Paul has been teaching about our response to God’s grace, giving us a clear picture of what our daily lives should look like. Here he sums it all up with a metaphor: Light.

And do this, understanding the present time (13:11) is the transition, referring back to the prior section discussing love in action. It is time to wake up, for the day is coming when the Lord Jesus will return. Notice the urgency in what Paul is talking about here; time’s a wasting! It may seem funny to us all these centuries later to read this urgency, but it is important for us to always bear in mind the fact that Jesus is coming. His literal return could be at any time, or it could be in 10,000 years, and no one knows for sure either way. Yet He came for every single recipient of this letter a long time ago. He came for all of those who have ever read this letter in the centuries that have followed, and He will come for us soon enough, thus Paul’s urgency applies to each of us: Wake up!

Paul’s metaphor of living in the light of day is clear enough; we are to behave in a respectable manner, not as people do in the wee hours when nobody is looking. In verse 13, he mentions several behaviors, and I think they are obvious, so I will only comment on two of them; dissention and jealousy.

I try not to miss opportunities to make a plea for Christian unity, and this is certainly such an opportunity. Must we continue fighting among ourselves, arguing over every little doctrinal difference of opinion? Must we be jealous about the name on the sign in front of the building? Is all of that really so essential?

I don’t believe that it is, do you?

Maybe I’m just a fool, but I think that the times we are living in today are much too serious to indulge ourselves in this sort of thing. Our calling is to build the Body of Christ, so let’s get to building instead of tearing it apart. Let’s clothe ourselves in Christ, and answer our calling instead of glorifying ourselves in endless arguments.

Incidentally, this is a transitional thought that leads us into the next section, verses 14:1-15:13 which discuss our liberty to hold different opinions.

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Romans 13:8-10

In this short passage, Paul is nothing short of profound; deep in fact. Yet it is so simple that we might just fly past it and not notice how profound it is; a second grade child can easily understand it, and it requires a mature adult to miss it− that is how simple it is.

Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

If we think of love as a mere emotion or feeling, maybe we can miss this, but godly love is not an emotion, it is a commitment to put the interests of other people ahead of our own, and love in action puts the interests of everyone ahead of our own. If we actually do this, then we will not do anything to offend or hurt them, and if we love God we will not do anything to hurt or offend God. We will not do this because somebody told us that we must, we will do this because we want to.

In short, this is the transformation that Paul spoke of in 12:1-2; this is love in action from 12:9-16.

There are times when I grow weary of people telling me that the Bible never tells us how we should accomplish the Christian life; yes, dear reader, I grow weary of such remarks:

Put your love into action!

“But how do I do that?”

Love your neighbor as yourself.

“But that is too hard.”

No, it isn’t too hard! Love God with your whole heart, soul, mind and strength.”

“But how do I do that?”

Make a decision that you love God, and then commit to stick with it and trust the Holy Spirit to give you the strength you need.

“But that’s too hard.”

Dear Lord, open our ears that we might hear, open our eyes that we might see, open our hearts that we might believe so that we might become like little children and enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.

Romans 13:1-5

Paul’s message, simply stated, is that human government is ordained by God, and that’s all I should have to say about it. Yet even though human government is ordained by God, human government exists in a corrupted world environment, and we should not pretend to be shocked when it turns out to be corrupt: It happens. What is really instructive in this teaching is that the government Paul was referring to had a nasty habit of persecuting Paul and his readers; yes, maybe we should reflect on that for a while.

If I had been Paul, I might want to write something quite different on this topic, but if I had, or if he had, then a great disservice would have been done to the Gospel. God did not call us to serve His kingdom so that we could engage in political action, for His Kingdom is not of this world. Instead, He has called us to share the Gospel, to share His love with those who have not yet heard it, to nurture and mentor other, younger Christians to maturity in the faith, not to protest stupid court decisions or corruption in Congress or the White House… or wherever it may exist in your location. I will add that if we did a better job of serving His purpose in a free society, it is quite likely that a very different group of people would be elected to represent us, without our ever needing to bring up politics.

By the way, when I teach such self-explanatory texts as this one, this is often where I toss out a question, a rhetorical one of course: When you are driving your car around town, do you observe the speed limit, or do behave as the pagans do?

That one gets a groan from the group every time…

This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

Romans 13:6-7

Taxes: Nobody likes taxes, except the ones somebody else must pay. Here in America, we have a horrible tax system, and I will boldly declare that if the entire Tax Code went up for a vote as is, and if it didn’t already exist, no one would vote for it; no one has even read the whole thing, and the people who enforce it don’t even understand it, and if you don’t believe me, ask a tax lawyer!

Now ask yourself, how was the tax system Paul lived under? Well… it was horrible as well. Money is not supposed to be our primary concern in this life; our priority is supposed to be on things that are above, so why should the inequities of the tax system be our priority? Paul’s message is pay them what they want and get on with serving our Lord in peace and love, for that is what we are here for.

Yes, I know… I’m gritting my teeth too, but that only goes to show that we have a long way to go to attain maturity in the faith.

Romans 12:17-21

In 12:1-16 Paul has discussed our response to grace with a series of short statements that stem from the theme of sincere love, but in 17 ff. he seems to focus on one particular subject: Revenge. While the previous section can be said to deal mostly with our relationships within the Body of Christ, this section would seem more (hopefully) to deal with those outside of the Body of Christ. Paul set up his new theme in verse 17:  Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. Our natural human inclination when we have been harmed or insulted is to strike back, to get even, but that is not the reaction of sincere love, and it has been rendered obsolete by grace.

If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone (12:18). We are not to stir up trouble or carry on in a provocative manner with other people, we should not be tossing insults and unkindness around, nor should we be looking for disputes, for our response to grace makes that kind of living hypocritical. God has forgiven us, He has shown love and mercy to us; do we honor Him by stirring up trouble with other people?

Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.

Romans 12:19-20

If we are harmed by another, even if it is a violent attack; our response is to show God’s mercy and love to the other party, it is not for us to avenge the wrong we have suffered. If avenging or retribution or punishment is required, that is God’s job, and since God has been faithful in dealing with us, He can be counted on to be faithful in the final disposition of our having been wronged.

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (12:21).

There, that’s the “official” lesson portion− now let’s get real.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Romans 12:1-2

As we saw when we covered these verses earlier, this is not empty talk; there are serious implications in these words. These injunctions require a response to grace, a response that brings about a whole new way of living and thinking, and more than anything else, they require that we trust God like never before. Yes, dear reader, these verses call upon each of us to put it all on the line in faith. I can’t think of anything that puts this new way of life to the test more than being the victim of a violent attack of some sort, for these are the things of nightmares, fear and emotional as well as physical trauma. As though that isn’t enough, here we are called to respond in love to the very one(s) who have caused it all; this is about the most counter-intuitive thing I can think of… but that’s just me.

Paul still has not mentioned the word, but what he is describing is forgiveness.

The reality is that a victim of violence will not move on in life if they cannot find a way to let go of the anger, rage and hurt of their experience and this is not likely to happen if they lust for revenge. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I’m not sure if I can do this on my own, in fact I doubt it very much.

But there is good news…

Grace has a dual purpose. First grace takes our sin away, making it possible to receive the gift of eternal life, and second it provides us with the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit, and it is by the strength and mercy of the Holy Spirit that we can overcome serious traumas of whatever kind in this life, not by our own will. God has given us the path and the resources to travel the path of this life; the only question that remains is that ancient question we all must answer: Will we trust God?

And with that question, we have come full circle; back to the where we began.

Romans 12:9-16

Paul continues in these verses with his discussion of our response to grace. Here, he sets the tone with verse 9: Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Our response to God’s grace must be one of love, both love for God and love for others, and this love must be sincere. It is interesting that Paul should modify this sincere love statement with the concept of hating what is evil and clinging to what is good; it would appear that in our sincere love, we are to maintain the highest of ethical standards, not allowing ourselves to misuse our new freedom.

So then, what does love in action look like in practice?

Paul begins shedding light on this question in the verses that follow, first of all with an emphasis on what we should do to put love into action:

Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves (12:10). Because our response to grace is that we love others, we should be devoted to one another, and we should put others ahead of ourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord (12:11). Because our response to grace is that we love God, we should serve Him with enthusiasm always. Because our response to grace is one of love, our attitudes should reflect that love for God and other people: Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer (12:12). Since we have a whole new attitude because of the grace we have received, our love should result in generosity toward other people: Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality (12:13).

Many commentators refer to this section as the “Law of Christ” but at least for me, it doesn’t really read that way; I highly doubt that Paul is intending to give us a list of rules that we check off as we go. Instead, I think he is simply pointing out some no-brainers as if to say that since we love God and love others, these are the natural kinds of things that should follow. In the next three verses, his emphasis shifts slightly, but he is still speaking of sincere love:

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.

Romans 12:14-16

As we read these verses, notice that they are not things that are common in this world. I’ve never met someone who blessed their oppressors, for instance; have you? I don’t always see people rejoicing with their friends who are rejoicing, for all too often a person sees their friend rejoicing while harboring resentment because their friend was fortunate in an area where they hadn’t been as fortunate. Harmony is surely lacking in our world, while pride and conceit are commonplace; and so many decline to associate with the less fortunate. Real sincere love is a very rare thing in our world, but within the church, it is supposed to be a given.

In fact, the apparent lack of love in some church bodies is a sore subject for many people. Some of them complain loudly and criticize bitterly about the lack of love in this or that church, some even leave church entirely because of it. While on the one hand I might be inclined to feel for such people, on the other hand, after going through these verses, I can’t help thinking that they aren’t exhibiting love either. Thus, I’ll add a response to grace that Paul alluded to in verse 14, but hasn’t mentioned yet by name: Sincere love requires quite a lot of forgiveness, for all of us are works in progress.