Romans 15:22-33 | Life on Mission

As I was prepping the message this past Thursday a verse that I had committed to memory in high school came to my mind. I actually couldn’t remember the reference but I knew what it said.

9 A man’s mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.

Google had to help me, but I found the reference. It’s Proverbs 16:9.

I love this verse. It describes what the life of a Christian should be. We make plans and let God guide and direct those plans. And please take note of what I said. I said this verse describes what the Christian life should be not what it always is because many many times, we fail to make plans in regards to our faith.

Don’t we?

I’m not saying this to shame anyone this morning! Honestly, a lot of days, I’m right there with you all. Life has a funny way of distracting us from our faith and calling in Jesus doesn’t it?

We’ve been studying the book of Romans now for over 9 months and hopefully the truth of it and the person of Jesus has gripped your heart in a new and fresh way as we’ve studied. Romans has told us time and time again and in many different and beautiful ways that we can be saved by grace, through faith alone in Jesus!

The bad news of Romans 1 and 2 is that we’re all in the same sinful boat and it’s sinking, but in God’s grace He has offered to us a rescue, a life line when we express faith in Christ!

And when we first come to a saving knowledge of this truth it’s like we’re looking at the world in color. Right? Before Christ everything was black and white and then with Christ we see the world in 4K Mega Imax HD!

But then what happens.

The Bible tells us what happens; in Ezekiel 28 and Deuteronomy 8 we discover what happens to us is what happened to the Israelites time and time again in the Promised land. (Remember, the Bible doesn’t just tell us what happened, it tells us what always happens!) The Israelites, we experience success and became comfortable, and then forgetful of God, and finally disobedient to Him. Their bellies were filled with good food, they built, we build good houses and live in them; theirs and our possessions multiply, our wealth increases and then they and we “forget the LORD our God.”

Success inflates our pride and quietly derails our focus on God. And success is not the only thing that does this. Security, comfort and busyness do as well!

You see, as John Rinehart says in his book Gospel Patrons, “Our flesh, the world, and the Devil war against a life aimed at eternity.” It wars against us living a prayerfully focused and planned life in Jesus.

Many times, we start out on fire for Jesus, ready to change the world because we’ve been so gripped by Him and the truth, but then if we’re not careful we loose focus, we get sidetracked, the worries and cares of this life come in and put us in choke hold, suffocating and sidelining our faith and our ability to live eternally meaningful and fruitful lives!

Again from Rinehart, “One day we’re fired up for the right things, and the next we’re distracted with secondary causes, other passions, lesser things. Work gets all-consuming. It’s a busy season at home. We get run down and weary. And we coast in our pursuit of Jesus. We think, “I know Jesus, or at least I know all I need to know to cover my bases.” We get stuck in auto pilot, just taking life as it comes to us rather than taking it by the horns and submitting all of it to Christ in faith with prayerful planning and because of that we are sidelined and sidetracked from living eternally meaningful lives!!

Remember from last week why you were chosen!? You’ve been chosen to be a star player on team Jesus! You’ve been chosen to live out an eternally meaningful purpose!

As Rinehart says, “The Bible is clear: we are not saved only to relax, retire, and wait for heaven.

Yes we’ve been chosen and yes we’ve been saved by grace, but it’s for purposed! We’ve been saved for good works! After God saves us He intends to use us in His work on earth. “

You see, Jesus adopts us and then He invites us to serve in the family business!

Do you know what happens in most family businesses by the 3rd generation? They fail? Why? Because Jr. gets comfortable with the success and forgets what it took to be successful!

Family businesses are built and maintained with serious effort!

Auto Pilot will not do!

So too in the family business of God, You and I cannot be on autopilot in our faith and expect to become the kind of people God uses to change the world.

No you need I need a prayerfully focused plan to help the lost get found and the found live free in our marriages, in our families, in our work places, and in our communities. You need a prayerfully focused plan to live an eternally meaningful life.

Athletes understand this. They have focused plans for their nutrition and practice regimens. They devote serious effort in order to win and achieve their goals. Farmers do the same in order to harvest a big crop. Soldiers plan and devote serious effort in order to prepare for and win battles. Why would we expect this to be any different in regards to faith?

If you’re in Jesus this morning, you’ve been called to help the lost get found and the found live free. We’ve been called to seek God’s Kingdom first and above all else. We’ve been called to plan for and prepare to expend serious effort to advance Jesus’ Kingdom.

So, are you? Is your life shaped by a prayerfully focused plan to expend serious effort to advance Christ’s Kingdom or have you been sidetracked in auto-pilot focusing on secondary things?

I know it’s a mixed bag. I know it’s hard. It’s hard because our flesh, the world, and the Devil are in a war against us living a life that is aimed at eternity.

All the more reason why, we cannot be on autopilot and expect to become the kind of people God uses to change the world. Instead, we need to refuel our fire, refocus our passions, and remind ourselves often of Jesus. And to do this well we need a prayerfully focused plan!

Like Paul in Romans 15:23-33.

Now before we read this and I walk you through what kinds of things you need to be planning for in your lives, I can’t assume this first part. All the planning you might do is worthless unless you know Jesus! Right! If you’re planning isn’t guided and directed by Christ and His Kingdom, it’s worthless and you’re not going to want to do any of this unless you know who Jesus is enough to trust Him.

So please know that before you make a plan, you need to make sure that your heart has been firmly gripped by Jesus! Like Paul. Paul had a plan as Saul before Jesus and it was to murder Christians to advance his career… He was super good at it and super successful, but his plan wasn’t prayerfully focused nor was it producing eternally meaningful fruit! Only once He met Jesus and got to know Him personally did Paul’s planning and mission in life become eternally meaningful.

So let’s make sure to get first things first. Before we start planning, we need to get to know and love Jesus. Once we do only then can we start prayerfully planning our life’s purpose.

Now we’re going to read Romans 15:23-33 but before we do I’m going to give you the points I’m going to draw out by things I think these verses are inviting us to prioritize in our planning.

First you’ll see a commitment from Paul to live a prayerful focused and planned life. He committed to live out Proverbs 16:9. He planned his ways but allowed the Lord to direct His steps. So that’s the first thing. Commit to live a prayerfully planned life like Paul.

The rest of this passages then helps us understand what our prayerfully focused plan should include.

We will see that we should plan to serve God by serving others vv. 25

We should plan to trust God for the provision we need to live out our plans and we should also plan to be a part of God’s provision to others. vv. 26-27

We should also plan to seek out partnerships in the gospel! vv. 28-29

And lastly we should plan to cover everything in prayer because living out a prayerfully focused plan in our lives will be a struggle.

Alright let’s read it. We’ll take a few verse at a time and then I’ll make some comments.

Romans 15:23–33 (NIV)

23 But now that there is no more place for me to work in these regions, and since I have been longing for many years to visit you, 24 I plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to see you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while.

As you can see Paul lived a prayerfully planned life. He had a strategy for how to used the gifts God had given to him to advance Jesus’ Kingdom. Paul’s purpose on team Jesus was to preach to those who had never heard and never understood the gospel! That mission is what informed every decision of his life.

Who needs to hear!? Where can I go next and who’s help do I need in getting there!? Who else can I encourage along the way! Paul didn’t only think of the destination, he understood that God cares about the journey and that while living a prayerfully planned life, no time is ever meaningless or to be wasted. So as he plans to visit Spain, He plots his route to head through Rome so he can redeem the road time so to speak!

A buddy of mine occasionally models this for me, he’ll call me from the car to as he says, “redeem the car time for Jesus!” He sees himself as being called to pour into Pastors and Christian leaders while he does his own ministry and because he’s busy we don’t get a lot of face to face time, but He lives a prayerfully planned life and seeks to redeem all of his time for seeking first the Kingdom of God and because of that I occasionally get a call from the car as he seeks to redeem car time which might otherwise be wasted! He calls to check up and check in on me and encourage me with conversation and prayer!

Here’s my point. Paul was committed to planning out his ways prayerfully and allowing the Lord to direct his steps and redeem all of his time! We too need to make this commitment!

If you never aim at the target you’ll miss every time! We cannot live a life of faith on autopilot and expect to become the kind of people God uses to change the world. We need to prayerfully plan how we think God wants us to help Him build His Kingdom here!

Now on to verse 25.

25 Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the Lord’s people there.

A commitment to live a planned life is important. That’s vvs. 23-24 and now in v. 25 we see what kinds of things need to be included in our prayerful plans.

Firstly, Paul planned to serve God by serving others!

Folks, it’s very difficult for most people to care about listening to what we have to say about Jesus until they know how much we care! If we’re going to prayerfully plan out our lives for Jesus, service to Jesus must include practical service to people! For Paul this meant spiritual instruction because he was a gifted theologian and preacher. You might not be and so your service to others wouldn’t look like this.

I know a lady here who lost her husband 20 years ago and one of the ways I’ve watched her plan to serve God by serving others is when someone looses a spouse in our community she is always one of the first people to call up them. She serves others by bringing the comfort of Christ she has experienced through her a great trauma. She’s allowed God to heal that trauma and because of that it’s become one of her greatest tools to testify about God to those who are walking where she’s walked.

She encourages and ministers to the grieving. She wouldn't call herself a pastor and would laugh at the idea and be supper uncomfortable with it, but this women is more effective than I will ever been in bereavement situations! This ministry, caring for widows and those in grief, is a way she has planned to use her life to serve God and she serves God by serving others in this way!

As you plan to serve God by serving others, think about traumas you can allow God to heal and turn into testimonies. Think also about the ways God has gifted you! What are you passionate about?

I know another couple here that the wife loves to bake and cook and the husband is a social butterfly. They are gifted in hospitality and even though their home is fully of the craziness of little children, they have people from this Church and the community into their house 3 to 4 nights a week! Hospitality is how they’ve planned to serve God and by serving others!

You get it? Plan to serve God by serving others with your passions, gifts and testimony!

v. 26

26 For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the Lord’s people in Jerusalem. 27 They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews’ spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings. 28 So after I have completed this task and have made sure that they have received this contribution, I will go to Spain and visit you on the way. 29 I know that when I come to you, I will come in the full measure of the blessing of Christ.

Ok we’ll stop here for a minute.

In your prayerful planning 2 things from verses 26-29. First plan for God to provide for you!

There will be times when God directs your steps and plans in such a way that you can’t make the math work. Right the income doesn’t match the spending. In those moments, if God’s directing you, trust his provision!

Church I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made a plan prayerfully that I couldn’t make the math work on financially! Ask me how many times God has failed to fund a plan that He has prayerfully focused in my life and in my family?” Seriously ask me! “How many times has God failed to provide?” Never once!

Plan to trust God to provide! Through people, through all kinds of ways you never expect! Plan to trust God more than you’re back accounts! Plan to trust His provision.

And Plan to be God’s provision to others who are living out a prayerfully planned life as well!

Do you know how God usually provides for His people? Through His people! If you’ve been blessed it’s so that you can be a blessing to others! Plan to be generous and to be the how that God provides for others!

and lastly, plan to seek out partners in the gospel and plan to pray a lot. V. 30

30 I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. 31 Pray that I may be kept safe from the unbelievers in Judea and that the contribution I take to Jerusalem may be favorably received by the Lord’s people there, 32 so that I may come to you with joy, by God’s will, and in your company be refreshed. 33 The God of peace be with you all. Amen.

I love this. Paul writes to the men and women of Rome and calls them brothers and sisters! He knows them. They know Him. He loves them and their feeling is mutual! They are brothers and sisters in the faith. So much so that he has no problem asking them for some money! You gotta really be in life together, a true fridge friend to be able to ask for some money from someone don’t you and even then it ain’t easy!

Folks, plan to seek out fridge friendships! Plan to seek out partnerships in the gospel! Plan to need to be around other people who are trying to live prayerfully focused and planned lives in Jesus just like you! We need each other! We can’t do it alone!

And also, how great is it that Paul says he struggled! I love this!

Paul struggled to live a prayerfully focused and planned life! Join me in my struggle he says! This is and will be a struggle friends and that’s why you need to pray! Don’t just plan. Cover your plans in prayer and watch as the Lord will direct your steps in a way that allows you to live an eternally meaningful life.

That’s Romans 15:23-33. It’s nice on paper but now I want to take it even more practical and help you understand why this is so important.

And I’m going to use parenting as the hypothetical to work out why this is so insanely important.

As a parent if you roll on auto pilot in regards to your faith and your children’s faith you’re in trouble and so are your kids!

As a parent, your primary objective is to help your child become a productive member in the family business of Jesus! They aren’t just supposed to become productive citizens. No we want them to know and love Jesus and train them to live their lives prayerfully planned so they that they can enjoy the blessings of living eternally meaningful lives!

The problem for parents is that everything in our world is fighting against this. We’re told we have to think about their schooling and their academics. TV, social media, and extracurricular activities of every kind are constantly vying for their time and attention. The worries and cares of this life are every baring down on us and them, to the point that if we’re on auto-pilot just going with the flow of culture decisions that we should be making for our children to help shape their priorities and purpose in this life and the next will be made for them, not by you but by our world!

Parents, Your kids’ faith cannot afford for you to go on auto-pilot! They don’t know what they need! The world doesn’t know what’s important. This is your job! It’s your job to show them! It’s your job to help them plan their lives prayerfully so that they not only learn to love Jesus most but that they also learn to live an eternally meaningful life for Jesus!

And here’s what I want you to know, every time you say yes to something, you’re saying no to countless other things! As you prayerfully focus and plan your children’s lives, please, I am pleading with you for the sake of their eternities! Choose eternal things over things that may be good but are not eternal, especially of they are happening at the same time!

Many of you are doing a great job of this. You are the one setting your kid’s agenda. You are the parent. You as the God given authority have recognized your responsibility and know that your children don’t know what’s best for themselves and you have taken on the hard and not so popular job at times of setting their agenda for them! You’ve made it a priority for your kids to be in youth group, You haven’t told them what they need to believe, but you’ve let them know that if they are in your home, being a part of the Church community is an important thing and an expectation. You’ve got them signed up in VBS and let them know for this week they may miss an extracurricular because VBS is eternally significant! To you parents who aren’t living on auto pilot allowing culture to set your children’s priorities. To you parents who are helping you kinds learn to live a prayerfully focused and planned life for Jesus… The Lord commends you! Keep it up! Stay strong! We’re praying for you! We join you in this struggle to help our Kids love Jesus and learn to live lives that are prayerfully focused and planned with a purpose to build Jesus’ Kingdom!

Church, one day, all of us are going to have an eternity to think about what we did or didn’t do with what God gave to us! The only thing that is going to matter then is whether or not we hear from Jesus, “well done good and faithful servant.” Don’t you think we should plan to live in such a way that we hear those words from Christ!!? Paul did. We should too.

A Christian plans his or her ways, but the Lord directs His steps!

Commit to prayerfully plan your life and your children’s lives.

Plan to serve God by serving people.

Plan to trust Gods provision and to be God’s provision to others.

Plan to seek out gospel partnerships and fridge friends and plan to pray frequently and often

Plan prayerfully and then stand back and watch amazed as the Lord directs the steps of you life towards an eternally meaningful and fruitful end.

Pray.