March 1, 2013

Romans - Lesson 15


Text

3. Brothers and edification 15:1-13

Chapter 15
1 Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves.
2 Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to his edification.
3 For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, "The reproaches of those who reproached Thee fell upon Me."
4 For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
5 Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus;
6 that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
7 Wherefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God.
8 For I say that Christ has become a servant to the circumcision on behalf of the truth of God to confirm the promises given to the fathers,
9 and for the Gentiles to glorify God for His mercy; as it is written,
"Therefore I will give praise to Thee among the Gentiles, And I will sing to Thy name."
10 And again he says,
"Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people."
11 And again,
"Praise the Lord all you Gentiles, And let all the peoples praise Him."
12 And again Isaiah says,
"There shall come the root of Jesse, And He who arises to rule over the Gentiles, In Him shall the Gentiles hope."
13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

III. Conclusion 15:14-16:27
A. Paul’s personal plans 15:14-29
14 And concerning you, my brethren, I myself also am convinced that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able also to admonish one another.
15 But I have written very boldly to you on some points, so as to remind you again, because of the grace that was given me from God,
16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, ministering as a priest the gospel of God, that my offering of the Gentiles might become acceptable,
sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
17 Therefore in Christ Jesus I have found reason for boasting in things pertaining to God.
18 For I will not presume to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me, resulting in the obedience of the Gentiles by word and deed,
19 in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit; so that from Jerusalem and round about as far as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.
20 And thus I aspired to preach the gospel, not where Christ was already named, that I might not build upon another man's foundation;
21 but as it is written,
"They who had no news of Him shall see, And they who have not heard shall understand."
22 For this reason I have often been hindered from coming to you;
23 but now, with no further place for me in these regions, and since I have had for many years a longing to come to you
24 whenever I go to Spain-- for I hope to see you in passing, and to be helped on my way there by you, when I have first enjoyed your company for a while--
25 but now, I am going to Jerusalem serving the saints.
26 For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem.
27 Yes, they were pleased to do so, and they are indebted to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are indebted to minister to them also in material things.
28 Therefore, when I have finished this, and have put my seal on this fruit of theirs, I will go on by way of you to Spain.
29 And I know that when I come to you, I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ.

B. Paul’s plea for prayers 15:30-33

30 Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me,
31 that I may be delivered from those who are disobedient in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may prove acceptable to the saints;
32 so that I may come to you in joy by the will of God and find refreshing rest in your company.
  1. Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen.

Thought questions for chapter 15

a. From this chapter, what do you think Paul’s relationship with God was like?

A humble servant, trying to do the will of Christ. This caused him to trust in Jesus to accomplish the work through the Holy Spirit.


b. Why do Christians sometimes become zealous once again? What part does being active in the work of the church play in this?
The word of God has effect as it has effect. The more we do for Christ, the more we will want to do.
  1. What does following Christ’s example involve? See vs. 7-12
Reaching out to others.
  1. How does Paul describe the work he does? See verses 15-21
Paul’s work was Christ’s work.
  1. What was Paul concerned about in verses 20-25?
Seeing the Romans.
  1. What would Paul’s job description been like?
A church planter.
  1. What is the key to Christian unity?
Love.
  1. After reading this chapter, how would you define Christian freedom?
Christian freedom is doing good as Christ did.



For further thought

What sources of help do we find in verses 3-5 to aid us in following the counsel of the first two verses?
We have the example of Christ.


What should characterize the life of the Christian church? See vs. 2, 5-7, 13
A life of love that causes us to unify in gloryifying God.

What motivates Paul? (See vss. 15-22)
Christ, who gave Paul his mission to the gentiles.

Why does Paul switch to writing about himself?
In order to boast of what Christ has done through him. See vs. 17-18

What was the geographical extent of Pauls preaching?
Illyricum vs 19 (Yugoslavia), Jerusalem vs.19, Rome, and Greece.



Bound in unity
1. We are to have the same mind Acts 4:32; 1Cor 13:11; Phil 1:27; 2:2; 1 Pet 3:8
2. We are to have the same mutual reception of one another 1Cor 1:10; Phil 2:2; 3:16; 1Pet 3:8; 1Cor 8:9 (just as Christ did: Eph 4:1; 1 Cor 3:16ff.; Rom 5:2)

Purpose of his pleas
  1. Might be delivered from the disobedient in Judea 30b-31
  2. Brethren at Jerusalem will accept his gift 31b
  3. His coming to Rome might be in accordance with God’s will 32-33a
  4. That together they might find mutual rest 33b


By way of illustration

Perseverance
Climb every mountain, ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow, 'til you find your dream. Oscar Hammerstein (1895-1960)

Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failures, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory or defeat. Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919)

Press on! Nothing in the world can take the place of perseverance. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933)

The heights by great men reached and kept
Were not attained by sudden flight,
But they, while their companions slept,
Were toiling upward in the night. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)

Glorifying God
What God chooses, He cleanses.
What God cleanses, He molds.
What God molds, He fills.
What God fills, He uses. J. Sidlow Baxter

Encouragement
A number of years ago, in a mental institution just outside Boston, Mass., a young girl known as "Little Annie" was locked in the dungeon. This institution was one of the more enlightened ones for the treatment of the mentally disturbed. However, the doctors felt that a dungeon was the only place for those who were "hopelessly" insane. In Little Annie's case, they saw no hope for her, so she was confined to a living death in that small cage which received little light and even less hope.
About that time, an elderly nurse in the institution was nearing retirement. She felt there was hope for all of God's creatures, so she started taking her lunch into the dungeon and eating outside Little Annie's cage. She felt perhaps she could communicate some love and hope to the little girl.
In many ways, Little Annie was like an animal. On occasions, she would violently attack the person who came into her cage. At other times, she would completely ignore them. When the elderly nurse started visiting her, Little Annie gave no indication that she was even aware of her presence. One day, the elderly nurse brought some brownies to the dungeon and left them outside the cage. Little Annie gave no hint she knew they were there, but when the nurse returned the next day, the brownies were gone. From that time on, the nurse would bring brownies when she made her Thursday visit. Soon, the doctors in the institution noticed a change was taking place. After a period of time, they decided to move Little Annie upstairs. Finally, the day came when this "hopeless case" was told she could return home. But Little Annie did not wish to leave. The place had meant so much to her she felt she could make a contribution if she stayed and worked with the other patients. The elderly nurse had seen and brought out so much in her life that Little Annie felt she could see and help develop something in others.
Many years later, Queen Victoria of England, while pinning England's highest award on a foreigner, asked Helen Keller, "How do you account for your remarkable accomplishments in life? How do you explain the fact that even though you were both blind and deaf, you were able to accomplish so much?" Without a moment's hesitation, Helen Keller said that had it not been for Anne Sullivan (Little Annie), the name of Helen Keller would have remained unknown.
It's not too well known, but Helen Keller was a normal, healthy baby before some mysterious disease left her almost helpless and hopeless. Anne Sullivan saw Helen Keller as one of God's very special people -- treated her as she saw her -- loved her -- disciplined her - - played, prayed, pushed and worked with her until the flickering candle that was her life became a beacon that helped light the pathways and lighten the burdens of people all over the world. Yes, Helen Keller influenced millions after her own life was touched by "Little Annie!"
Expanded outline
3. Brothers and edification 15:1-13

a. Bear with the weak, you stronger ones! 1
b. Build up your neighbor 2
c. Basis for edification: Christ 3-4
d. Bond of unity 5-7
  1. Brethren, both Jew and Gentile are the result
Of Christ’s work 8-13
1.) The effects of Christ’s ministry 8-12
2.) The blessing of Christ’s ministry 13

4. Paul’s Personal Plans 15:14-29

a. Persuasion and purpose 14-21
1.) Assurance of their ability 14
2.) Admonition to them for remembrance 15
  1. Activity of Paul for Gentile
Gospel acceptance 16
4.) Aim to glorify Christ 17-21

b. Plans in specificity 22-29
1.) Desire to go to Rome 22-24
2.) Duty to return to Rome with gift 25-27
3.) Destination: Spain 28-29

5. Paul’s plea for prayers 15: 30-33

  1. Platform of Paul’s prayer:
The LORD CHRIST 30a
b. Purpose of his pleas 30b-33

Building up
Why?
1. The Bible says so Rom 14:19
2. To please others Rom 15:2
3. Love 1 Cor 8:1
4. Its from God 2 Cor 5:1; (see also Eph 2:19-22)
10:1-8; 1 Cor 3:9
How?
1. Love 1 Cor 8:1
2. Knowledge 1 Cor 14:1-3 (Hos 4:6)
3. Through what we say Eph 4:29
4. Encouragement 1Thess 5:11
5. The church Eph 2:19-22
6. The word of God 1 Pet 2:1-8; 2 Tim 3:16-17

The Example of Christ --- Matt 26:39; Jn 4:34; 8:29; Phil 2:8; Psa 69:9
The Scriptures encourage

By what they are called…

The Book of the LORD Isa 34:16

Good word of God Heb 6:5

Sacred writings 2Tim 3:15
Law of the LORD psa 1:2

Oracles of God Rom 3:2

Writing of the truth Dan 10:21

Sword of the Spirit Eph 6:17

word of Christ Col 3:16

word of life Phil 2:16

word of truth 2 Tim 2:15


By who they testify of ….. Jn 5:39; Acts 18:28; Heb 1:1-3

By their being fulfilled by Christ Matt 5:17; Lk 24:27

By their comparison to : 1. Seed Lk 8:5-15 2. A two edged
Sword Heb4:12

By their prophetic pronouncement fulfilled: Lk 4:21; Jn 13:18; 17:12; 19:24, 28

By their origin Rom 3:2; Matt 22:31-32; 2 Tim 3:16

By what they do Jn 2:22; Heb 1:1-3; Rom 10:11;
Gal 3:8; 2 Tim 3:16f.

And…

By the lifestyle they teach By the examples of people who followed God faithfully

By the comfort they give By the revelation of the future

By their unending spiritual application

And… so by so many other things we can not even conceive of now!

No comments:

Post a Comment