Paul's Epistle to the Romans — page 48

Ch. 15:8-13 – In chapters 1 to 3, we saw Jews and Gentiles in very different positions – in fact, at opposite poles, naturally speaking. But having failed in their responsibility toward God, their sins reduced them to a common denominator as sinners. In chapters 3:21-8:39, we saw believers from among Jews and Gentiles together blessed by the righteousness of God. Then, in chapters 12-15:7, Jewish and Gentile believers were exhorted to walk together in practical unity, not allowing old prejudices and lifestyles to interfere.

Vs. 8-12 – To help them with this, in the next five verses, Paul shows that the ministry of “Jesus Christ” to the “circumcision” actually includes Jews and Gentiles. Indeed, it was always His intention “that the Gentiles glorify God for His mercy” (ARA) and thus be blessed in connection with Israel. Four Scriptures are cited from the three main parts of the Old Testament

• the Law, the Psalms, and the Prophets (Luke 24:44) - to prove this.

1. 9 – In Psalm 18:49, David anticipated a day when the Lord

“will sing” to God in the midst of a multitude of believing Gentiles.

1. 10 – In Deuteronomy 32:43, Moses announces that the

time would come when converted Gentiles would “rejoice” in the blessings of salvation “with His people” Israel.

1. 11 – In Psalm 117:1, we hear Israel inviting the Gentiles to

“praise the Lord” with them.

1. 12 – In Isaiah 11:10, the prophet speaks of the inclusion of the Gentiles in the

reign of Israel’s Messiah.

These Scriptures do not teach that believers from among the Gentiles would be part of the Church – which is revealed in the Mystery. But they show that God wants converted Jews and Gentiles to rejoice together as they trust in Christ. In stating this, Paul implies that our hearts, therefore, should be wide enough to include both (Jews and Gentiles) in matters of practical fellowship. Since many of the differences between believers in the early Church had originated from their former lives as Jews and Gentiles, he wanted this truth to encourage them to use diligence to walk together in practical union. This formally concludes the exhortations of the epistle.

1. 13 – Paul concludes with a blessing recommending the saints

in Rome to “the God of hope” who would fill them with “joy and peace” and “believing” with confidence that they “would abound in hope” to the end. Essentially, his desire for them is that they be found in a good spiritual state of soul, and thus be able, “by the power of the Holy Spirit” (ARA), to put into practice the exhortations he had given.

Summary of Practical Righteousness Demonstrated in the Christian Life

This practical section of the epistle has shown that there are now entirely new motives and attitudes in the believer, and they are manifested:

• Ch. 12:1-8 toward God.

• Ch. 12:9-13 toward believers.

• Ch. 12:14-21 Toward the world.

• Ch. 13:1-14 Toward civil authorities.

• Chaps. 14-15:13 Toward those weak in the faith.

PAUL’S ITINERARY

Chapter 15:14-33

This last section is supplementary to the previous doctrine in the epistle. Paul informs the Roman saints of his personal circumstances and his intentions in service regarding the gospel “in the regions beyond” (2 Cor. 10:16).

Thus, he closes the epistle by declaring his reasons for writing to them and expresses his great desire to visit them. He explains that he did not write to them because of any particular fault on their part, but simply to communicate to them the gospel he preached among the Gentiles; promising that when he came to them, he would give them “the fullness of the blessing of Christ” (v. 29 – ARA) – which he did not expound in this letter. This is a reference to the truth of the “Mystery”, which was a special revelation given to him and to other apostles and prophets (Eph. 3:5), to communicate to the saints. He mentions this in chapter 16:25.

Vs. 14-15 – He said: “I myself am persuaded concerning you, my brothers, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able to admonish one another. But I write to you in part more boldly, as bringing this again to your remembrance, because of the grace given to me by God”. We see from this that Paul was convinced that the brothers in Rome were in a good state – “full of goodness” – and thus would receive his admonitions. Therefore, he wrote to them with considerable boldness. He was also confident that they were mature Christians and well able to admonish one another in love, and thus guide themselves regarding the difficulties that might arise among them, without him being present to do so. This is a sign of a healthy assembly. Paul, therefore, had no intention of coming to them as an arbiter or regulator. Those who imagine themselves to be arbiters or regulators can cause harm among the Lord’s people. It is not that an assembly cannot ask for help and counsel, but under normal conditions, local assemblies should resolve their own difficulties in the fear of God (Phil. 2:12). An assembly that habitually has its problems resolved by brothers from other locations may lose the practical blessing and spiritual education that the Lord intends for them in the problem.

Note that he mentions “full of goodness” before being able to “admonish one another”. To admonish effectively, we first need to have hearts full of goodness toward those whom we seek to help, and we also need to have the “knowledge” that is practical of the biblical principles concerning the person's situation. Without that grace and knowledge, we could cause harm to the person and aggravate the problem. Ch. 15:16-17 – Paul had another reason to go to them, and that is because he had been “officially employed” (v. 16 – JND footnote) by God as a “minister of Christ Jesus among the Gentiles” (TB). He had a special commission from God for the Gentiles (Acts 9:15, 22:21; Gal. 2:7; Eph. 3:8; Col. 1:27). Since they were predominantly a Gentile assembly – if not exclusively Gentile, for Claudius Caesar had expelled all the Jews from Rome (Acts 18:2) – Paul felt that he should make sure that “the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable” (JND) to God. That is, that they would stand before God in all the truth of the gospel and of the Mystery. He adds: “sanctified by the Holy Spirit”, because he fully understood that this work among the Gentiles was truly a work of God by the Spirit, and he wanted to give God the credit for what He had conceived. Paul was therefore justified in his desire to have “glory in Jesus Christ in the things that pertain to God”. Vs. 18-19 – If there was any doubt whether he really had that commission, it could easily be resolved by his proofs. He said: “For I will not dare to say anything that Christ has not done through me, to make the Gentiles obedient, by word and by works” (ARF). That is, he did not want to comment on what others were doing for the Lord, but on what he knew firsthand from the Lord working through him. There was a demonstration of “power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Holy Spirit” (ARA). And this had happened in many places – “from Jerusalem, and round about, unto Illyricum” (northern Macedonia, on the Adriatic Sea). Essentially, this happened in every place where he “fully preached the good news of the Christ” (JND). This is an account of the geographical extent of his ministry, not of its chronological order.

Vs. 20-21 – Paul's intention was to continue pressing the Gentiles with the gospel, “not where Christ was already announced” (ARA). His ministry consisted more in penetrating new regions and leaving the work of shepherding and teaching his converts to others. He did not intend to work where others had worked and built on the “foundation” – which is Christ (1 Cor. 3:11). He quotes Isaiah 52:15 to show that the principle of reaching the Gentiles in this way was according to God – “as it is written: Those to whom it was not announced, they will see, and those who did not hear will understand”. Paul's ministry was not the fulfillment of this prophecy. He does not say that it was – stating only that the principle on which he acted was in accordance with what had been “written” in the Old Testament. (As a general rule, when something from the Old Testament is fulfilled in the New Testament, this is stated. See Matthew 1:22, 2:23; John 19:36-37, etc.)

Vs. 22-24 – Being thus occupied in the service, Paul, who had often sought an opportunity to come to them, said: “many times I have been hindered from coming to you” (compare chapter 1:13). However, having been especially commissioned with a ministry to the Gentiles, Paul hoped that an occasion would open for him to come to them soon. And now, as his ministry of presenting the gospel in new areas was largely completed “in these regions” (ARA) – Asia Minor (Turkey) and Achaia (Greece) – he was free to advance into new regions, and so reach them on his way to Spain.

Vs. 25-27 – But Paul had one last responsibility to take care of before he went to the Gentiles. He was going to Jerusalem with the collection from the brothers of “Macedonia and Achaia” (provinces of northern and southern Greece) to give to the “poor among the saints who are in Jerusalem”. We read about this in 2 Corinthians 8-9. Paul and Barnabas delivered a similar offering for the saints in Jerusalem in their early days (Acts 11:29-30). There appear to be two reasons for the poverty of the Jews in Judea:

There was a great famine in that land (Acts 11:28).

• The communal life that they had practiced in Jerusalem left them without lands and means to support themselves (Acts 2:44-45, 4:34-35). (The

Scriptures do not say that this was something the Lord asked them to

do.)