Sermon Tone Analysis

Wenstrom Bible Ministries

Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom

Thursday May 13, 2010

www.wenstrom.org

Romans: Romans 15:7-Paul Commands Romans To Continue Welcoming Each Other Just As Christ Welcomed Them For The Purpose Of Glorifying The Father

Lesson # 502

Please turn in your Bibles to Romans 15:7.

This evening we will study Romans 15:7 and in this passage Paul commands the Roman believers to continue making it their habit of welcoming each other just as Christ welcomed all of them into His fellowship and family for the purpose of glorifying the Father.

Romans 15:7, “Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God.”

“Therefore” is the inferential conjunction dio (διό) (thee-owe), which denotes that the inference or conclusion Paul will present in Romans 15:7 from his teaching in Romans 14:1-15:6 is self-evident and is a summarization of his statements in Romans 14:1-15:6.

“Accept” is the second person plural present middle imperative form of the verb proslambano (προσλαμβάνομαι) (prose-lam-bano), which means “to welcome into one’s fellowship” and is used of both the strong and the weak.

This is indicated by the fact it is used in conjunction with allelon, “one another,” which is always used in Romans 14:1-15:6 with reference to the relationship between both groups.

Therefore, the second person plural form of the verb proslambano refers to both the weak and the strong.

The middle voice of the verb is focusing attention on the responsibility of the Roman Christians, both the weak and strong, to welcome each other into their fellowship.

The present imperative form of the verb is a “customary present imperative” indicating that Paul is commanding both the weak and strong “to continue making it their habit of” welcoming into each other into fellowship.

Paul’s statements in Romans 1:8 and 15:14-15 indicate quite clearly that they were in fact doing so.

Therefore, the present imperative form of the verb proslambano indicates that Paul’s command is simply giving a reminder to both the weak and strong to continue doing what they were doing and was designed to protect their fellowship with God and each other and their testimony among the unsaved.

“One another” is the accusative masculine plural form of the reciprocal pronoun allelon (ἀλλήλων) (ah-lee-loan), which is used with reference to the relationship between the weak and strong with each other.

It denotes that there was to be a mutual exchange between the two in that they were to welcome each other into their fellowship.

This exchange between the weak and the strong with each other is the proper, appropriate and obligatory response by them to each other since both were created by God, according to His image, redeemed at the Cross, justified through faith alone and Christ alone and fellow members of the body of Christ.

This mutual exchange is the result of the Roman believers experiencing fellowship with God by operating in God’s love towards one another and is an expression of that love.

“Just as” is the causal use of the conjunction kathos (καθώς) (kath-oce), which is used to introduce a statement that presents the basis or the reason why the weak and the strong are obligated to continue making it a habit of welcoming one another into their fellowship.

They are to do so “because” Christ welcomed both the weak and the strong into His fellowship through faith in Him.

The word is usually employed in a comparative sense and in our context that would indicate that Paul wants both the weak and the strong to continue making it a habit of welcoming one another into their fellowship “just as” Christ welcomed both groups into His fellowship through faith in Him.

However, Paul’s emphasis is not that the weak and the strong imitate Christ by accepting one another but that they accept one another because Christ accepted them, thus, they are obligated to accept one another because Christ accepted them.

“Christ” is the articular nominative masculine singular form of the proper name Christos (Χριστός) (cree-stoce), which designates the humanity of Jesus Christ as the promised Savior for all mankind who is unique as the incarnate Son of God and guided and empowered by the Spirit as the Servant of the Father.

“Accepted” is the third person singular aorist middle indicative form of the verb proslambano (προσλαμβάνομαι) (prose-lam-bano), which once again means “to welcome into one’s fellowship” but this time it is used with the Lord Jesus Christ as its subject and the weak and the strong as its object.

“To the glory of God” indicates that Paul’s purpose for wanting the Romans to obey this command to continue welcoming each other is that it would glorify the Father in the sense that it would manifest the love of God.

This prepositional phrase is connected to proslambanesthe allelous (προσλαμβάνεσθε ἀλλήλους), “accept one another” indicating that the Roman believers were to continue welcoming each for the purpose of glorifying the Father in the sense that it would manifest the love of God.

If it were connected to the subordinate clause ho Christos proselabeto humas (ὁ Χριστὸς προσελάβετο ὑμᾶς), “Christ accepted you,” this would indicate that the Roman believers would be giving the Father glory as expressed through adoring praise, honor, recognition and worshipful thanksgiving because they were declared justified through faith in Christ.

There are several factors that indicate that the prepositional phrase “to the glory of God” is not connected to the subordinate clause.

First of all, the phrase proslambanesthe allelous (προσλαμβάνεσθε ἀλλήλους), “of you continue making it your habit of welcoming one another into your fellowship” is resuming the thought from Romans 15:6.

Secondly, it would not make sense that Paul would persuade the Romans to obey the command to welcome each other by noting that the Lord Jesus Christ glorified the Father by welcoming them into fellowship with Himself when they were declared justified though faith in Him.

Rather, it makes much better sense for Paul to persuade them to obey his command by telling them that this would bring glory to the Father.

Though it is true that Christ accepting us glorified the Father and that He accepted us so that we could glorify the Father, the context indicates that Paul wants the Romans to obey his command so that they might glorify the Father in the sense that they would manifest the Father’s love in their relationships with each other.

Romans 15:7, “Therefore, all of you continue making it your habit of welcoming one another into your fellowship because the one and only Christ also welcomed all of you into fellowship with Himself for the purpose of glorifying God the Father.”

(My translation)

To summarize, in Romans 15:7, the apostle Paul issues a command that is direct at both the weak and the strong in Rome that is a self-evident inference or conclusion based upon his teaching in Romans 14:1-15:6 and is summarization of what he has taught in this passage.

He commands them both to continue making it their habit of welcoming one another into their fellowship because the one and only Christ also welcomed all of them into fellowship with Himself the moment they were declared justified through faith in Him.

The purpose for which he wants them to obey this command is that it would glorify the Father in the sense that it would manifest the love of God.