United for the Mission

Introduction

Please turn with me in your Bibles to Romans 15, were looking at Romans 15:23-16:27. Were going to begin our time in the word together by just reading vv. 23-33 of Romans 15.

Romans 15:23-33

Read Romans 15:23-33

Romans 15:23–33 ESV

But now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions, and since I have longed for many years to come to you, I hope to see you in passing as I go to Spain, and to be helped on my journey there by you, once I have enjoyed your company for a while. At present, however, I am going to Jerusalem bringing aid to the saints. For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem. For they were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have come to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought also to be of service to them in material blessings. When therefore I have completed this and have delivered to them what has been collected, I will leave for Spain by way of you. I know that when I come to you I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ. I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf, that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company. May the God of peace be with you all. Amen.

Exposition

Hope to Visit Rome (vv. 23-24)

At the very beginning of the book of Romans Paul had expressed his sincere desire to visit the thriving church in Rome.

But we saw last week in v. 20 of Romans 15 that he has not visited Rome because he was busy preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ where it has not yet been preached.

Since there was already a thriving church in Rome, Paul had been concentrating his efforts in Asia minor, Macedonia, and Greece.

He goes on to say in our passage, in vv. 23-24,

Romans 15:23–24 ESV

But now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions, and since I have longed for many years to come to you, I hope to see you in passing as I go to Spain, and to be helped on my journey there by you, once I have enjoyed your company for a while.

Here we see Paul’s long term plans, that he hopes to visit the Romans while en route to Spain.

Paul was very intentional about where he went on his missionary journeys.

His goal was to extend the message of the Gospel throughout the Roman world.

Personally, I believe Paul’s mission to the Roman world was in fulfillment of Jesus words in Matthew 24:14.

There Jesus says that the Gospel of the Kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole οἰκουμένη, meaning the Roman world or the civilized world.

And so Paul is eager to take the Gospel to the region of Spain which had long been ruled by Rome.

And his hope is to utilize the church in Rome as a base of operations for that mission to Spain.

Now, there is some disagreement on whether Paul ever made it to Spain.

We get only get a few details about Paul’s time in Rome in Acts 28.

Some believe that Paul actually did make it to Spain and then returned to Rome for another imprisonment and ultimately his martyrdom.

Others believe he never made it to Spain.

But whether or not Paul was able to fulfill all of his plans, he knew he was on a mission.

Point 1 - We are on a Mission

Just like Paul knew he was on a mission to the οἰκουμένη, the civilized world of the Romans,

you and I are on a mission. To make disciples with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to disciple nations with the commands of the Lord.

This is my first point this morning: We are on a mission.

We refer back to this all the time, but I don’t think we can be reminded of this enough.

Jesus gave his disciples the great commission in Matthew 28:18–20. He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

We have been given a mission as believers, a mission given to us by the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

And that mission is not merely our own salvation.

But it is to go and make disciples of the nations, baptizing them, and teaching them to obey Christ.

We saw that this was at the heart of Paul’s missionary journeys in our passage last week, where Paul says in Romans 15:18 “For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to bring the Gentiles to obedience.”

But the great commission is not just for missionaries like Paul.

Though we are thankful for, and ought to celebrate , those men and women who make incredible sacrifices in order to take the gospel into foreign lands as missionaries, we are all part of the same mission.

And this mission is not just for the “spiritual professionals”.

This mission of bringing the gospel to the nations, and teaching them to obey Jesus Christ is also for mothers and fathers, for grandparents, for aunts and uncles.

This mission is for engineers and teachers, artists and store clerks, business owners and construction workers.

Nowhere are we told to make a choice between serving God and working a job, or serving God and having a family.

Now sometimes, in order to be obedient to God we have to be willing to give those up.

But more often than not, God uses those whom he has saved, who have a desire to be used by him, in the situation where he has placed them.

Whether that is the mission field, the household, the office, the job site, or in the public square.

Though we need those who are gifted and called to go to the mission field, and we pray that we would see more sent out,

most of us are called to the mission right here.

Your family is the mission field, your business is the mission field, your school is the mission field, our community is the mission field…

And we are the missionaries.

Whether we are sent out or not, we have a mission, and that mission is executed wherever God, in his sovereign plan, has placed us.

Don’t think that just because the mission you are on is right here that it is not important.

And even here, with paved roads and flush toilets, the mission can be difficult.

Which takes us to the next section of our passage and my second point.

Serving the Believing Jews in Judea (vv. 25-29)

Before Paul embarked on his trip to Rome and then to Spain, his plan was first to go on a dangerous journey to Jerusalem.

Romans 15:25-29 gives us the details of Paul’s immediate plans.

Romans 15:25–29 ESV

At present, however, I am going to Jerusalem bringing aid to the saints. For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem. For they were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have come to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought also to be of service to them in material blessings. When therefore I have completed this and have delivered to them what has been collected, I will leave for Spain by way of you. I know that when I come to you I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ.

Here we learn that Paul is collecting money from the Gentile regions he has ministered in to help the poor believers in Jerusalem.

Paul had been instrumental in bringing support from the church in Antioch to the believers in Judea years before as we are told in Acts 11.

We see similar monetary gifts mentioned in several of Paul’s other letters (in Galatians and 1&2 Corinthians) so collecting for the mission in Judea was a regular part of Paul’s ministry.

And the churches where Paul raised funds gave cheerfully from their hearts,

but they also out of a sense of duty.

Just because something ought to be done, doesn’t mean it can’t be done cheerfully or from the heart.

In the case of the gentile believers; they gave of their material blessings out of the duty to return the favour of the spiritual blessings that they received from the Jews and their messiah.

Without the witness of Jews like Paul and like Peter as we saw last week, the Jews would not have received the Gospel.

So they gave in order to meet the needs of the struggling Jews in Judea from whom they had gained the Faith that leads to eternal life.

Likewise, as those who have received the spiritual blessing of the Gospel ourselves,

we have a duty to give of our material blessings to the mission of God in the world;

whether that is giving to our church, or to missionaries and organizations that are working to fulfill the great commission in the world.

Prayer for Paul’s Trip to Judea (vv. 30-33)

And though Paul is not able to collect funds from Rome on his way to Jerusalem, he does ask them to make another type of contribution to his mission.

At the time he is writing this letter, Paul is preparing to collect money from the churches in Macedonia and Achaia and bring it to Jerusalem.

And that would put him in a great amount of danger, from robbers and pirates who were very common in the Mediterranean world.

But even more concerning than that; Paul’s destination was the epicenter of Christian persecution at this time.

Before the Roman persecutions against the followers of Christ began with the Emperor Nero, the Roman world was relatively safe for Paul and his companions.

Roman courts and officials actually came to Paul’s rescue several times as both unbelieving Jews and pagans sought to harm him on his missionary journeys.

But Jerusalem at this time was a hotbed of persecution against the believers.

This was a persecution that Paul, before his conversion helped start.

Persecution in Jerusalem would ultimately lead to Paul finally travelling to Rome in order to appeal to the justice of Caesar.

We read about that in the closing chapters of the book of Acts.

So because of the great danger that Paul is facing in going to Jerusalem, he appeals to his brothers and sisters in Rome,

not to give of their money, but instead to commit to praying for him.

Strive Together

He writes in Romans 15:30-33:

Romans 15:30–33 ESV

I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf, that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company. May the God of peace be with you all. Amen.

I love how Paul asks the Roman church to “strive together with him in prayer.”

I love it, but I found that seriously convicting.

I in studying for this message I read that line, “strive together with me in your prayers,” and thought. “What does that even look like?”

Striving means - “to make great efforts, or to struggle or fight vigorously.” (Oxford)

I confess that when I look at my own prayer life, I wouldn’t call it “striving.”

Even when I have prayed through a real hardship for myself or for others, I wouldn’t call it that.

And I certainly wouldn’t call it striving when I pray for the fulfillment of the great commission.

That left me feeling convicted, maybe it does that to you as well.

But I tell you, conviction of the soul is useless to us unless we also take it as a challenge.

Why don’t we learn, as individuals, as families, as a church, what it means to strive together in prayer?

And let’s do this especially for our missionaries, and for the mission that God has us on!

When Jesus taught his disciples how to pray in Matthew 6, the first thing that he teaches them to ask the Father was that “[His] kingdom [would] come, [and that his] will would be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

Let’s strive to pray for the mission of Christ and the for the building of his kingdom.

Deliverance

Paul here in our passage asks that the Roman church pray specifically that he would be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea.

Once again, Paul is about to head to a very dangerous situation in Jerusalem.

He was well known to the Jewish leaders and was already a marked man.

So he asks that he would be protected, delivered from the unbelievers.

But even more than safety, Paul’s desire was that his ministry would be acceptable, of real benefit to the saints in Jerusalem.

This is why he was headed there, risking his life, in order to serve his Jewish brothers and sisters.

Point 2 - We Fulfill the Mission Through Our Giving, Prayers, and Service.

All of this takes me to my second point.

Point 1 was that you and I are on a mission; To make disciples with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to disciple nations with the commands of the Lord.

My second point is that we fulfill the Mission of God through our giving, through prayer, and through our service.

Just like the churches in Macedonia and Achaia had the duty and the delight to give materially in worship to God and for the building of his Kingdom, so do we.

Just like the church in Rome had the opportunity to join in on the mission of Christ by striving in prayer, so do we.

And just like Paul had the calling to serve the world through proclaiming the Gospel and teaching obedience to Christ, so do we.

But Paul did not do this alone, and neither do we.

Personal Greetings to Those in Rome (C. 16, vv. 1-16)

In this next section in c. 16 v. 1-16, Paul greets several people who would have been in the congregation in Rome. The original audience of this letter. He says:

Romans 16:1–16 ESV

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae, that you may welcome her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself as well. Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks as well. Greet also the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in Asia. Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you. Greet Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners. They are well known to the apostles, and they were in Christ before me. Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys. Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus. Greet my kinsman Herodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus. Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; also his mother, who has been a mother to me as well. Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers who are with them. Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.

Paul was not a lone wolf.

He did not work in isolation. But all of the believers worked together for the mission.

In this passage Paul lists the many contacts that he had or at least heard about in Rome, a city he had never been to.

In this list we see Jewish names like Mary, Latin and Greek names. Even the name “Persis” might point to that particular man having Persian ancestry.

The group mentioned here is truly an example of the Gospel reaching out to both Jews and Gentiles.

And in Paul’s descriptions of the people, we see an assortment of backgrounds, ranks, and gifts.

But all of those whom Paul names are united for one purpose, fulfilling the mission of God.

Due to just the sheer number of people mentioned here were can’t to go through all of them.

But I want to just quickly highlight a few of these men and women who serve as examples to all of us - of commitment fulfilling the mission of God.

Pheobe

We read in Romans 16:1,

Romans 16:1 (ESV)

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae,

Phoebe in all likelihood carried this letter to the church in Rome from Paul in Corinth.

The church where she served in Cenchreae was not far from Corinth, where Paul probably wrote the book of Romans.

He goes on to say in Romans 16:2,

Romans 16:2 ESV

that you may welcome her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself as well.

Scholars believe Phoebe was probably a wealthy woman who travelled to Rome on business.

And her fruitfulness in business allowed her to be a patron of the church, and to missionaries like Paul.

Priscilla and Aquila

In v. 3 Paul mentions Prisca and Aquila, two familiar names from the Book of Acts.

Prisca (or Priscilla) and her Jewish husband Aquila met Paul in Corinth as Acts 18 tells us.

And this couple was highly effective in their service to Paul and to the church as a whole, as is demonstrated in the book of Acts.

Paul says of them in vv. 4-5 of our passage.

Romans 16:4–5 (ESV)

[They] risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks as well. Greet also the church in their house.

The Households of Aristobulus and Narcissus

In vv. 10-11 we read about another group of people. Paul says:

Romans 16:10–11 ESV

Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus. Greet my kinsman Herodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus.

When Paul writes “those who belong to the family of,” twice in these verses, it is likely that he is referring to slaves working in the households of the elite of the city.

Aristobulus was probably the grandson of Herod the great who was living in Rome.

And Herodian, may have been a very famous and wealthy freeman in the city of Rome who is known to us from history.

Even those these men were probably not believers themselves, the Gospel had gotten to the slaves in their households, and God was using them in the Church in Rome, to fulfill the mission of God.

Writing from Rome later on, Paul says to the Philippians in Philippians 4:22

Philippians 4:22 ESV

All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar’s household.

Because of their heart for the mission of God, Slaves were being used even as they served in the houses of the rich and powerful, even in the household of Caesar.

Rufus’ Mother

There are so many more great examples we could look at, including the list of those where were with Paul in Corinth who send their greetings in vv. 21-23.

But the last person I want to highlight is in v. 13 of our passage.

Romans 16:13 ESV

Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; also his mother, who has been a mother to me as well.

Paul gave up a lot when he came to Christ.

He says in Philippians 3:8 that he suffered the loss of all things for the sake of Christ.

We never hear about Paul’s family, but we can say with some confidence that Paul probably became estranged from his family because of his conversion to Christ.

Though he doesn’t give her name, Paul mentions Rufus’ mother. This is a woman who’s maternal gifts allowed her to serve as a mother to Paul.

And this is a lesson to all of us.

The nature of your service to the kingdom and to the mission of God might not seem like a big deal to you.

Serving according to your gifting often doesn’t feel like serving at all.

But when we serve faithfully, out of love for God and for the purpose of fulfilling his mission, theres no telling what God might do with our work for the Lord.

Two thousand years later, we are reading about this woman who humbly served out of her gifting, and out of her own heart, to care for the greatest evangelist in history.

And her service was used by God in the fulfillment of his mission.

Point 3 - Strive Together

This brings me to my final point.

The first point was that you and I are on a mission,

The second point was that we fulfill this mission materially and spiritually through our gifts, our prayers and our service.

My last point is this: We must work together to accomplish this mission.

The Apostle Paul was not a lone wolf. His ministry to the Roman world was bolstered and supported by all kinds of people, from different backgrounds and with different gifts.

From power-couples like Priscilla and Aquila,

to slaves in the houses of the Roman elite.

All had a part to play, and all played their part, because the mission of Christ was at the heart of all they did.

Warning Against False Teachers (vv. 17-20)

Paul warns the church in vv. 17-20 to watch out for those who don’t serve the mission of Jesus Christ.

Romans 16:17–20 (ESV)

I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

There are many who want to look like they are serving the cause of Christ,

but instead are serving themselves.

We need to be on guard.

We need to avoid those who are interested in using smooth talk and flattery to deceive the naive.

There are many of these people today.

This is why we need to cling to the word of God, and test what is said by the standard it gives us.

To protect the people of God, so we can fulfill the mission Christ has given us.

Conclusion

We’ve looked at a lot in our study of the book of Romans, but the heart of it is this.

You and I have been given the Gospel of Jesus Christ, as Romans 1 calls it, “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.”

You and I have been given it for our own salvation.

And through that salvation, we are free to walk in obedience, worshipping God through our bodies as Romans 12, tells us.

But we have not just been given the Gospel for ourselves.

We have been entrusted with it to fulfill the great commission that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ has given to us.

The mission to bring the nations to salvation and obedience.

May we as individuals, as families, and as a church be a people who give, pray and serve together toward the fulfillment of that mission. For the good of the world, and for the Glory of God.

Prayer and Doxology (vv. 25-27)

I want to conclude our time together in the Book of Romans by reading to you the doxology at the end of the letter in vv. 25-27.

Please stand as I close our time in the word in prayer.

Then I will dismiss us with the reading of this doxology.

[Pray that we will take up the mission of God, that we will strive towards it’s fulfillment together in our giving, prayer and service]

Romans 16:25–27 ESV

Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.