A Hopeful Partnership (Romans 1:8–15)

If vv. 1–7 highlight Paul’s happy stewardship of the gospel, then vv. 8–15 highlight Paul’s hopeful partnership for the gospel (and vv. 16–17 highlight Paul’s hearty confidence in the gospel).

The theme of hope looms large in the book of Romans, the word appearing sixteen times. This is not surprising, since those who believe the gospel of God—the good news of what God has done for us in Christ Jesus (vv. 1–7)—have been reconciled to the God of hope (15:13a). This hope abounds as the believer is strengthened by the Spirit through the gospel (15:13b). This was Paul’s hope for the church(es) in Rome. He was hopeful both for their gospel maturity and their gospel partnership.

In the text before us, Paul shares his hope of visiting the church in Rome to partner with them for the sake of the gospel. He hopes for a gospel partnership for their spiritual benefit, for his spiritual benefit, and for the nations’ spiritual benefit to glorious “benefit” of the triune God. This is the purpose of Romans (see Romans 15:14–24ff).

In his hope-filled greeting, Paul declares that he is thankful (v. 8), that he is prayerful (vv. 9–10), and that he desires to be both useful (vv. 11–12), and faithful (vv. 13–15).

A healthy gospel partnership requires mutual appreciation. “First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world” (v. 8).

With the word “first,” Paul is probably highlighting the importance of what he is about to say: “Most importantly,” or, “Please pay attention.” His readers needed to know that he was grateful for what God was doing among them.

For Paul, the most important thing was the spread of the gospel, which would result in the planting of gospel-faithful local churches. Paul was therefore grateful that the gospel had gained a faithful foothold in Rome.

Appreciatively hyperbolic, Paul says that, as he travelled throughout the Mediterranean world (including Jerusalem) local churches were well aware (and well because aware!) that there were believers and thus local churches in Rome. In a city increasingly immersed in the worship of Caesar and the state, there were those characterised by “the obedience of faith” (v. 5), which arose from “faith” in “God through Jesus Christ.” Other local churches were encouraged that, in a culture confused about who is Lord, there were the faithful in Rome who submitted to Jesus Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords.

We should also be thankful for the spread of the gospel, indicated by the planting of faithful local churches. In our day, we should be especially thankful when we hear of this taking place in places like Rome.

The text addresses the kind of ministers we should partner with: “For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God’s will I may now at last succeed in coming to you” (vv. 9–10).

There seem to be two matters for which Paul made consistent and persistent prayers: the well-being of the church of Rome, and an open door to visit them.

It is important that we corporately pray for other gospel-faithful churches in South Africa and around the world. We do so because of our shared communion in the gospel of Christ and thus our shared communion with the triune God (John 17:20–21).

And as we pray for other churches, we are encouraged as we are reminded of the spread of the gospel elsewhere. The Great Commission is progressing despite human and satanic barriers. We are emboldened to remain faithful to the gospel, being assured that, indeed, the name of the triune God will be great among the nations.

Worshipful Gospel Ministry

In telling them of his prayers for them he includes an autobiographical statement—“For God is my witness whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son.”

This statement prepares the way for the Roman church to understand the heart behind Paul’s expressed desire to be with them—a desire expressed both to God in prayer and here expressed in writing.

Again, Paul had not been to this church (though he knew several of its members [16:3–16)). It was important that this largely Gentile church be assured of his apostolic, gospel credentials. They needed to know his commitment to the “gospel” of God’s “Son.”

The word “serve” refers to religious service. Paul saw his gospel ministry as worshipful (Luke 2:37; Romans 1:25; 22:3) service(Luke 1:74). And it was enthusiastic worshipful service. There was nothing superficial about his relationship with the gospel.

The use of “spirit” refers to Paul’s own spirit, his inner being, his soul, if you will. But it was a “spirit” that had been transformed by God’s Spirit. Moo summarises, “Paul’s own spirit has been caught up in God’s Spirit, and he now serves the gospel ‘in’ and ‘by means of’ that transformed spirit.”

His entire existence was demarcated by the gospel of God. As Morris comments “The gospel is central to the living out of the Christian life as Paul sees it.”

The gospel of God informed Paul’s inclinations, decisions, values, and worldview. In other words, the gospel was not merely a message to be intellectually accepted but rather the fulcrum—the mainspring—of Paul’s existence. Everything he did and everything he believed was gospel shaped. So it is for every true believer.

The gospel is not only a message to be believed; it provides us with a mindset to be lived. It is not only a truth to be proclaimed but a truth that practically impacts all of life. Though none of us, of course, is an apostle, and though most of us are not called to vocational ministry of the word, nevertheless, each Christian is called by God to serve God by the gospel of God. In this way, every believer should be committed to worshipfully serving our God with a gospel-saturated life. We should set our hearts to worshipfully serve the Lord in all we do, informed by God’s good news of what he has done for us in Christ Jesus.

The good news of what God has done for believing sinners through his Son informs how we respond to the hardships of life (8 :32). The good news of what God has done for believing sinners informs our marriages (Ephesians 5) and our parenting (Ephesians 6:1–3). The good news of what God has done for believing sinners informs how we spend our money and how we plan our retirement. The good news of what God has done for believing sinners, and what he will do in the new heavens and new earth, informs us concerning our cultural engagement.

Driven by love for and gratitude to God for the gospel, Paul wanted to minister to this church as a means to worship God. This is to be our fundamental motive. God is to be our audience in our ministry.

Gospel partnerships should be mutually fruitful. “For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine” (vv. 11–12).

Paul saw himself as a missionary rather than as a “vacationary.” He was not interested in going to Rome as a tourist but rather as an evangelist. Being with faithful followers of Christ was far more important seeing the sights of a famed city.

Paul wanted to visit Rome precisely because of his ongoing gospel service. Paul was compelled by divine obligation (v. 14) to carry out gospel ministry in this predominately Gentile church. None of this was motivated to throw around his apostolic weight. Instead, Paul’s motivation was to “strengthen” them in the gospel, and to be strengthened by them. He was hopeful he could be a blessing to them and they to him. In other words, his intended visit was gospel motivated. A mutual strengthening would result in further gospel ministry to the regions beyond (15:18–24).

Paul’s pastoral passion is revealed by his intense desire (“long to see you”) to spiritually “strengthen” the saints at Rome. “Strengthen” carries the idea of stabilising, confirming, to make firm. No matter how healthy the local church there remains the ongoing need for edification, for the stability and the mobility of maturity. And the means for this is the gospel.

The “spiritual gift” that Paul wanted to “impart” to the church at Rome has been debated. Some suggest it was some kind of miraculous gift that would increase their faith. But the context provides a more credible suggestion. The greatest “gift” to strengthen their faith was a deeper understanding of the gospel. I do not mean some mystical “gnostic” kind of knowledge, but a clearer appreciation and increasing experiential knowledge of the gospel. In short, the “spiritual gift” was gospel communion resulting in gospel community for gospel commission. There is no more edifying spiritual gift than this.

How, practically, does the gospel strengthen us? By reminding us of God’s unchanging love for us. By reminding us of God’s unalterable faithfulness to keep his promises. By providing us with assurance of forgiveness. By reminding us of God’s unassailable purpose. By humbling us positioning us for greater dependence upon the Lord. By reminding us that nothing is impossible with God (v. 16). By grounding us in our identity in Christ, thereby equipping us to face the world, the flesh, and the devil. By empowering us for holiness (i.e. sanctification as result of regeneration sealed by justification).

The local church is to be growing in conformity to Christ as we carry out his commission. This, of course, is gospel-grounded. The gospel is essential for our holiness. And the holier we are, the more helpful we will be to a world that needs this holiness.

Evangelist James Stewart once said that a holy life is the greatest gospel witness to a watching world. Paul knew that. He knew and was encouraged by the maturity of this church in Rome (15:14). But his enthusiasm for the gospel meant that he wanted more for them. Love for one another moves us to help one another to grow as a gospel community.

A Strong Sending Church

Paul was aware that further gospel ministry to the regions beyond would require a strong local church from which to be sent, like the one that had initially sent him (Acts 11:19–30; 13:1–5).

It should not be surprising that BBC has historically been missions focused, missions faithful, and missions fruitful while at the same time growing in gospel maturity “at home.” As we have been strengthened in our understanding of and our commitment to the gospel, our ability to spread the gospel has correspondingly been strengthened.

Mutual Strengthening

“Mutually encouraged” is found only here in the New Testament. It means to “comfort or console together.” The local church is to be a symphony of faith harmoniously sounding forth the gospel. As each member lives out the same gospel with their unique personality and unique circumstances of life, we are jointly strengthened in our faith. Schreiner comments, “What inspires and fortifies other believers is when they perceive faith in other Christians. Seeing other believers trust God in the course of everyday life reminds us that God is indeed faithful and encourages us to trust him as well.”

In his book Persecution in Missions, Matt Rhodes quotes Dietrich Bonhoeffer who wrote,

A healthy local church experiences gospel mutuality. If the great apostle could be, and needed to be, encouraged in his gospel growth, do you think you and I might also need this? Paul was hopeful that the church in Rome would be spiritually useful to him. We should have this hope as we gather with one another. Daniel Doriani observes, “Let everyone adopt Paul’s attitude: He has much to give, yet he knows his needs. Blessed be the missionary who travels to distant lands and cultures, expecting both to give and to receive. Blessed be the pastor who expects to learn from his congregants.”

Engage thankfully, meaningfully, and usefully. That is, gather to be a blessing. Seek to be an encouragement, including sometimes saying the difficult thing.

Further, realise that, in the trials of your life, you are being provided with the opportunity to display the grace of God. Display the Spirit’s strength. Remind each other of the gospel. Regularly preach and teach the gospel. Counsel with the gospel. Behave like you believe the gospel. Evangelise like you believe the gospel.

Finally, the text addresses faithfulness as a non-negotiable for gospel partnership.

Paul expresses his long-nurtured desire to visit the church in Rome (Acts 19:21–22). He was hopeful to be fruitful in Rome and beyond by being as faithful there as he had been elsewhere.

In case criticisms preceded him, Paul explained that the reason for not already doing so was not by choice. Instead, he had been “prevented” from doing so. What or who had prevented him? His faithfulness (see 15:19–25ff) and presumably his Father!

According to Acts 16:6, Paul and his coworkers were “forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.” They then attempted to go into Bithynia but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them (v. 7). God, in his providence, blocked his attempts to go somewhere as a means of getting Paul elsewhere—Macedonia (vv. 9–10). This is seemingly what was happening doing here.

The church in Rome must not draw an erroneous conclusion that Paul was reluctant or ashamed of preaching the gospel in Rome (v. 16). On the contrary, he was most keen to do so (vv. 14–15)! Rather, the Lord was hindering him from doing so.

This might strike us as strange. After all, did not the Lord tell the disciples to make disciples everywhere? Did not the Lord specifically assign Paul as missionary to the nations (“Gentiles”) and was not Rome filled with them? Yes. But God’s ways are above our ways. His thoughts are way beyond our thoughts. His wisdom far exceeds our wisdom. And therefore Paul was content to rest in the God who had saved him (see 11:34–36).

We can summarise that Paul was strengthened by the gospel to be patient about the gospel.

Brackenhurst Baptist Church does not have a mandated, confessional position on the millennium. I personally lean postmillennial. Postmillennialism holds that immense gospel blessings will be experienced globally before the Lord Jesus Christ returns. It is an “optimistic eschatology.” Anyone who knows me well realises that my eschatology and my personality are not on the same dispositional page! The glass for me often seems half-empty. Postmillennialism also calls for something that is not innate to me—patience!

However, the gospel is powerful to overcome such dispositional inadequacy. Because the gospel is true, because the gospel points me to God and to his promises, purposes, and power, I can overcome my natural impatience and rather wait patiently on the Lord. This is precisely what Paul did.

Perhaps there were times when Paul scratched his head, wondering why he, the God-appointed apostle to the Gentiles, was being hindered from an expanded ministry? With all of his work now completed in Asia Minor and environs, why must he now be delayed in Corinth?

And once he did finally leave Corinth, it was perhaps another two years before he finally arrived in Rome—as a prisoner! (Acts 28:14–16ff). On the surface, such delays make little sense—at least to our puny minds. But God had his reasons and therefore all Paul could and (should) do was to wait patiently.

Think about this: If Paul had been able to easily get to Rome, it is likely that we would not have the book of Romans. So while he, at times, might have been frustrated at best and anxious at worst, the Lord knew what was needed: Paul needed to be prevented from getting to Rome until this letter was written!

Consider the multitudes upon multitudes of people who have been converted through the means of this epistle.

Think about the sixteenth-century Reformation and multitudes of local churches that have been reformed through the exposition of this book.

The point upon we need to rest is that the gospel provides us with a God-centred perspective that equips us to patiently rest in the sovereignty and thus in the good providence of God (8:28–30). The gospel calls us to faith and therefore, as exemplified by Paul, to a life of faithfulness.

God’s preventions are designed by God’s providences. The gospel equips us with this perspective. Be patient with partnerships. If our partners are faithful, God will produce his fruit.

Paul’s gospel obligation was tied to his gospel vocation. His call to conversion was simultaneously a call to apostleship. As he wrote to the Corinthian church, “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” (1 Corinthians 9:16). That is, “What a fool I would be to not fulfil this glorious ministry!”

Again, though none of us is in Paul’s position, there is a sense in which each of us should embrace the glad privilege to preach the gospel and make disciples. And to do so as hopefully as did Paul.

Paul concludes his greetings with the words: “So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.” He doubtless means that he wanted to evangelise there, but also that he wanted to disciple believers in the gospel. He wanted to do gospel work, which is both evangelistic and pastoral.

Paul was not selective in those to whom he proclaimed the gospel. Whether cultured Greeks or uncultured Romans, whether worldly wise or the worldly ignorant, he was eager and not ashamed to preach the gospel. He knew that the gospel is God’s powerful means to save sinners, reconciling them to himself. Whether wise or ignorant, whether sophisticated or unsophisticated, Paul was persuaded that the gospel-believed is the gospel-strengthened. The gospel applies everywhere.

While holding tightly to the “simple” message of the gospel, we must at the same time hold tightly to the truth that the gospel is for all of life. By faithfully clinging to this we will experience hope in all of life. Wherever we are in life. Paul was not ashamed to preach this gospel in a place like Rome—Washington DC, London, Paris, or Shanghai of the day. The gospel provides the believer with an all-encompassing worldview. The gospel is for all of life in all the world.

As I said at the beginning, the theme of hope is woven throughout Romans. It is the fruit of the gospel.

Christians should be characterised by hope—about sanctification (chapters 6–7); about eventual glorification (chapter 8); and, in the meantime, about evangelisation (chapters 9–11). This should motivate our gospel partnerships. Thank God for the ones we have. May God give us more of them. May we encourage our gospel partners as they encourage us.

Non-Christian, seeing you become a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ is the purpose of our partnerships. Hear the good news that you can be reconciled with and know the God of hope. Turn from your rebellion, trust in the Lord Jesus Christ alone, and the God of hope will fill you with peace as you believe.

AMEN