Romans 15:1-6 – True Unity
Do you
care what others think of you? Are you a
people pleaser? Or do you try to do what
is pleasing to God?
People
pleasers avoid speaking their mind afraid of what other will think. It’s difficult for them to say No and to set
limits. They avoid conflict of any kind. They want the approval of others at any
cost.
Does
this describe you?
In this
chapter Paul is writing to those believers who are strong in their faith saying
that they should support those whose faith is weak. Paul calls himself a strong Christian. He says that we should encourage others by
using our freedoms in a responsible way by building up weaker Christians. He uses Jesus as an example by using words
from the Old Testament in Psalm 69:9 – “For even Christ did not please himself but,
as it is written: ‘The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.’”
Why would
Paul quote the Old Testament? The Old
Testament gives us the hopeful promise of the Messiah to come. The whole Bible is from God. It encourages us and instructs us in godly
living. “For
whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that
through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have
hope.” - Rom. 15:4. To overcome our problems in this world we
need the hope that God gives.
There
are many verses that prove that Jesus didn’t live to please Himself. In Matt.
4 Jesus fasted for 40 days and nights and was tempted by Satan, but never
gave in to His own needs. People
constantly followed Him, but He always took time teaching and healing
them. In Matt. 19 He took time for little children. In Matt.
27 He saved others by His death instead of saving Himself. In Phil.
2:6-8 tells us He made himself nothing and took on the nature of a servant.
People
who live to please themselves are selfish, conceited, greedy, jealous, and
prideful. They are self-centered,
self-absorbed and live for their own interests.
They can be mean and some are even plain evil. I think deep down they are unhappy.
Do any of these similarities describe you?
We as
believers have Christian liberties not for our pleasure, but for the glory of
God and others. Jesus’ whole life was that
of denying Himself. If we are trying to
please men, we are not true follower and servants of Christ. To be true followers we must imitate
Jesus. We may not be perfect at it, but
we must try.
Paul
tells believers that they have the responsibility of unity. True Christian unity doesn’t care about race,
culture, age, gender or background. True
unity comes from God and is based on Christ Jesus. We are to appreciated and support each other
recognizing our differences while realizing we are all part of God’s
family. We need to work on our
relationships at home and in the church.
We are to pursue things that bring peace and build others up. We are to be considerate of others. We are to be careful not to put stumbling
blocks in our brothers’ way. If we Christians
don’t argue, our churches will be strong and then will be able to declare the
gospel in a powerful manner. Our unity
is based on our common salvation in Christ.
As
believers we also have privileges. Our
sins are forgiven. We are sons of God
and part of His family and get all that goes with it. Our one purpose is to glorify God and Jesus
Christ.
How
have you been especially considerate of another Christian?
How are
you building them up?
Where
do you need to work on your relationships?
Principle: True unity comes from Jesus Christ.
Romans 15:7-12 – Christian Acceptance
“Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to
bring praises to God.” – Rom.
15:7. This is a summary of what Paul
has said. Christians are to accept one
another to God’s glory just as Christ accepted us to God’s glory. He accepted you when you didn’t deserve to be
accepted. You were His enemy and were
not seeking after Him. He came looking
for you. He died for you!
To accept
means more that tolerating other Christians.
It means to welcome others, especially those who are different. We are not to hold on to our small prejudices. We are to extend the same mercy to others
that we received. When we show our love
for other Christians, God will receive honor.
When we show love to those who don’t deserve it, God gets the
glory.
Paul
goes on to say that Jesus accepted both Jews and Gentiles in order to bring
praise to God. He became a servant of
the Jews on behalf of God’s truth to confirm the promises made to the Old
Testament patriarchs so the Gentiles may also glorify God. Paul
quotes The Old Testament in verses 9-12
reminding the Jews of the promise to the Jewish fathers included the Gentiles
and that neither Jew nor Gentile should look down on the other.
What has
kept you from accepting another Christian who has different beliefs?
Principle:
Believers are to be accepting of other believers in order to
bring praise to God.
Romans 15:13 – Hope
Paul
prays that all believers will know joy and peace completely. He prays that the Holy Spirit will give hope
to them and that hope will encourage their Christian life. Christians eagerly wait for Christ’s
return. Then He will complete their
salvation by giving them a new body and a new life in heaven. “We wait for the
blessed hope – the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus
Christ.” – Titus 2:13.
Are you
earnestly praying for complete joy and peace?
Principle: Believers wait for the completion of their
salvation.
In verse 5 Paul calls God one who gives endurance and
encouragement. In verse 13 he calls God “the God of
Hope”. In verse 33 He is called “the God of peace”. What beautiful names he gives to God.
How
could you describe God?
Next time
we will finish the study Romans 15. Have a blessed day and thanks for visiting my
site. Hope to see you here again. -- I
encourage you to trust in Jesus.
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