Chapter 44

We Are One ... Or Are We?

Romans 15:1-13

 

 

All of the ingredients necessary to make a church split were present in that congregation in Rome.  You see, there were differences in background (Jews and Gentiles), temperament, convictions, beliefs and spiritual maturity.  There were issues.  In that era the issues had to with diet and with days.  And there were attitudes.  Stir it all together and you have the ingredients to make a fine church split.  And so, Paul used a significant amount of inspired ink to summons the church to unity.  Recognizing that there have always been and will always be differences between Christians, and issues over which Christians disagree, Paul focused in these last chapters of Romans on attitudes.  That's where the real problem lies.  That's what needs to be changed.

 

All of the ingredients necessary to make a church split are present in our congregation, too.  There are differences, there are issues and there are attitudes.  We will never be identical.  There will always be issues over which we disagree.  But we can and must change our attitudes so that there can be unity in body of Christ, the local church.

 

It seems that Jesus Christ Himself knew and fully expected that there would be a constant and ongoing struggle for unity.  On the night before His death on the cross, Jesus prayed for our unity.  John 17:11, 21, 22  And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.  That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.  And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one...

 

Romans 15:1-13 is also about this oneness, this unity within the church.  Verse 6  That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

The question is, How is it possible for us to accomplish this oneness about which Christ prayed?  How can we overcome those differences that tend to divide us?  The first 13 verses of Romans 15 have the answer. 

 

 

The Attitude That Must Be Abandoned, vv. 1-2.

 

The truth is, beloved, that disunity has one basic cause.    It is addressed in these first two verses.  It is selfishness.  Verse 1 says that it's "not to please ourselves".  Verse 2  says that it's to "please our neighbor".  And isn't that when problems begin that disrupt the unity of the church.  Suddenly, some thinks or decides or says, "I'm not pleased with the way things are."  And the problem is selfishness.  Instead, according to Paul's words here, our main regard should be for others and not just for self.  Unselfishness is not just giving in the weaknesses and whims of others.  We ought to be thinking about helping them to carry their infirmities (v. 1) and concerned about their good and edification (v. 2).  It is the spirit of selfishness that produces the disunity that destroys the church.  And so, selfishness is the attitude that must be abandoned.

 

 

The Spirit That Must Be Spread, v. 3, 7.

 

The ultimate example of unselfishness is, of course, Jesus Christ.  He did not live to please Himself - "Even Christ pleased not himself" (v. 3).  To prove his point, Paul quotes from Psalm 69:9. 

 

Had Jesus wanted to please Himself, He would not have divested Himself of His glory and become a man.  He would not have endured the insults hurled at Him.  He would not have gone through the pain and humiliation of being scourged and then crucified, mocked, spat upon and ridiculed.  In fact, just moments before He was arrested, Jesus prayed, "If it be possible, let this cup pass from me."  But He had not come to earth to please Himself, and therefore added, "not as I will, but as thou wilt."    "My meat" Jesus said, "is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to accomplish His work" (John 4:34).  To the Philippians, Paul wrote that Christ "humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."  And the application that Paul made to them was to "let this mind be in you which was also in Christ" (Philippians 2:5).  We are to have the spirit and the mind and the attitude of Christ, which is an attitude that seeks not be pleased but simply to please the Lord.  That is the spirit that must spread among us if we are to have unity.  Abandon the attitude of selfishness and embrace the spirit of Christ, who sought not to please Himself but only and always to please the Lord. 

 

Verse 7 tells us something more about the spirit of Christ.    Not only are we to be like Christ in the area of unselfishness, but also in the are of acceptance.  Perhaps you remember the message from Romans 14:1 that we are to receive one another as God received us (Romans 14:3).  I said then that this word "receive" means to accept, to embrace, to welcome, to open our arms toward.  It is used of the way that Aquilla and Priscilla treated Apollos and of the way that Philemon was to treat Onesimus.  Here, that same theme is repeated.  We are commanded to receive one another the way that Jesus Christ opened His arms to welcome us to Himself. 

 

 

The Resources On Which We Rely, vv. 4-6, 8-16.

 

It's not easy being unselfish.  And it's certainly not easy to treat other people with the right attitude.  We must confess that we get impatient with each other just the way that parents grow impatient with immature children. 

 

We need help in this area!  And the Lord has given us the resources that we need to obey His commands.  He hasn't left us on our own, to figure it all out alone.  Nor does He expect us to be able to obey His commands because we somehow muster up enough willpower ourselves.  The Lord's commandments are the Lord's enablements.  What God commands us to do, He enables us to do.  He provides the resources through which we are able to obey His commands. 

 

In the rest of this passage, Paul lists those resources which are available to us, and which will enable us to become unselfish, to be more like Christ.

 

Resource #1 - The Word of God.  In verse 3, Paul has just quoted the Old Testament scriptures.  And then in verse 4, he says outright that the reason for the writing, that the purpose of scripture, is so that we can have patience and comfort and hope to obey God's commands.  From verse 8 on, is just one quotation of the scriptures after another. 

 

This Jew/Gentile thing is not new.  Jesus ministered primarily to Jews (read v. 8) and God has called Paul to minister primarily to the Gentiles (read vv. 15-16).  But all of these quotes between verse 8 and 15 are to remind us that God always had Gentiles in mind (read vv. 9-12). 

 

When can and must rely upon the Scriptures to help us have the right attitude toward those with whom we disagree.  We get strength and we get patience from God's word which constantly calls us to unity.  The word of God is a divine resource to help us have the right attitude.  It is essential, then, that we look to this wonderful divine resource for help.  You need to be in God's Word - hearing it at church, reading it at home, studying it, meditating on it, memorizing it.  If you will saturate your life with the Word of God, you will improve your attitude.

 

Resource #2 - Prayer.  This passage actually contains a couple of prayers from the heart of Paul and about the  Romans.  Verses 5-6 is a prayer (read) as is verse 13 (read).  Prayer is a valuable resource to help us deal with our differences, to overcome selfish tendencies, to have the right attitude, to receive others and to experience unity in the church.  The word of God reminds you of what God expects from you and prayer personalizes those commandments in your life.  So spend time in prayer for the unity of the church and pray specifically about what you need to do, in terms of your attitude, to promote the spirit of Christ and of unity in the church.  We often ask God to change other people, when we ought to be praying (as Paul did) that God would change us!

 

Resource #3 - The Holy Spirit, read vv.  13-14.  We have within us the power Holy Spirit of God who is able to fill us with joy and peace and hope and goodness and knowledge and the ability to admonish one another. 

 

We must rely on these three resources.

 

 

The Glory That Must Given, v. 6.

 

The consummate purpose of Christian unity is not to please other believers.  Ultimately, our desire is to give glory to God.  Our unity glorifies God and our disunity stains the name of God.  The watching world is drawn to God whose disciples love each other, who think with one mind and who speak with one voice.  It's not about you.  It's not about what pleases you but what pleases God.  And the unity of the church pleases God. 

 

As a parent, I am pleased when I hear stories about my children loving each other and caring for each other and helping each other and getting along with each other.  And I am hurt and horrified to hear the opposite.  Imagine how it must be for God, to watch us fuss and quarrel with each other while unbelievers watch.