Plans. Romans 15:22-33 V.22-24. Ambition is not just the desire to reach for the top and be successful in the eyes of people around us. There is a holy ambition that is very commendable when one is ambitious in their service for the Lord. There is something very special when the Spirit of God guides one to take the truth of the Gospel to areas where they are not building on the work of others. That does not mean there is no undone work in cities or areas of North America. There are as many or more unreached people in this area of the world as there are in many other countries. Like Paul had plans for his service of God in his day, so we have the privilege and joy of laying plans according to the will of God in our day.
Paul’s desire was to take the Gospel to the western edge of the Roman empire and evangelize Spain. The Jerusalem trip was an immediate obligation that would likely involve opposition and he knew that. He knew the religious leaders there because he had been one of them and knew that they wanted to stamp out Christianity. Therefore, he requested prayer. He had finished his work in Corinth from where he likely wrote this epistle.
V.25-27. One of the commands given to the Lord’s people in this New Testament age, is to show kindness toward other believers. The saints who show mercy and compassion to others, will obtain mercy from God. Kindness to others is a response to God’s grace and kindness to us. When we are born again, a new nature changed us from being “takers” to “givers.” To want to reach out to others is natural to a child of God. When we bless others, we find ourselves blessed in spirit and soul – and when it is most unexpected, in body. Physical and practical support is a most welcome blessing to those in need who would not ever ask for help.
When we have a work already cut out before us, we need to finish it before trying to start something else. The “hindrance” was not something that was negative, but rather a positive statement indicating his responsibility to fulfill a task already committed to him. He had been entrusted with finances from believers in Macedonia to pass on to poor saints in Jerusalem. The new believers in Paul's day were willing to support those who had sent Paul to them to preach the Gospel to them. There never was a request made by those who preached the Gospel for the "support" of those in their home assembly. The plans to fulfill the mandate the Lord gave to "go into all the world and preach the Gospel" is reason enough for us to press ahead with our plans.
Whether Paul ever got to Spain is uncertain but he did get to Rome in a way he probably didn't expect or at least plan for. Making plans is not wrong. It is just that we must be willing to submit to the fact that our will is to be subservient to God's will. In the service of the Lord, we can be ambitious for reaching out with the Gospel, helping believers grow in their faith and meeting material needs of others without these being conflicting plans.
V.28-29. Opposition to the Gospel in a place does not necessarily means we should move on to an easier place. Satan does not give up his subjects or his territory without opposing the light of the Gospel in one way or another. When no one shows any interest and people will not even listen to the Gospel, then we need to consider it is time to “wipe the dust from off our feet” and move on to another place. "The fullness of the blessing of the Gospel of Christ" is our empowerment to carry out those God-given plans.
In reaching out with the Gospel, it is important that we have the fellowship of God’s people. One reason is we need to be held accountable for both our behavior and the message we proclaim. Representing Christ also involves representing His people morally, spiritually and doctrinally. The Lord’s people need to know personally who represents them when they preach the Gospel and teach believers. A spiritual people need to be assured of a spiritual ministry that identifies them whenever a servant of the Lord goes out from among them. Paul intended to stay in Rome long enough for the saints to know him personally and then they would be able to send him on to Spain with their full support spiritually and financially.
V.30-33. There is a special kind of unity when believers join together by striving together in prayer. An urgency is evident when we struggle together before the Lord as opposition from the forces of evil unite to hinder the work of the Lord. Prayer is the unseen part of the whole armor of God that is a special weapon for both offensive and defensive uses. Christians in difficult places who face difficult circumstances, appreciate knowing there are brothers and sisters in Christ who are sharing their burden before the throne of grace.
Paul had an important mission to fulfill by delivering the collection that had been made by the Macedonian believers. Even as he wrote this letter likely from Corinth, there was foreshadowing of opposition that would come against him at Jerusalem. We know from the written account by Luke in the book of Acts, that when he got to Caesarea, he was made fully aware of plans being made against him. In a conscious desire for the fellowship of the saints at Rome, he specified three concerns for their prayerful participation. He asked for deliverance from unbelievers in Judea, success in delivering what he had been given to pass on when he was in Jerusalem and for a visit to Rome.
Paul was assured by the Holy Spirit he was going to Rome and that he would be going with a work for God to fulfill. It is never wise for us to pre-plan how we expect God to complete the work He calls us to. We act in faith as a result of knowing that prayer works in our service for God. Our privilege is to move ahead confidently in faith to the call of God. Then we can rest assured the God of peace will be with us.
The last verse of this chapter is a benediction and sounds like the end of the book. It does end the teaching part of the epistle, but it also reveals his understanding of the need of God working in places where there is a potential for disunity. He is the God of peace and we should be men and women of peace as those who are in in His family. We should always be unified in peace even when we are from different countries, cultures, races and families. There is real blessing when the saints of God in an assembly are united in peace.
ROMANS 16 As a sort of background and summation of why the teaching of the Gospel to the Romans was so important, it may be a help to understand the areas of opposition facing believers then. We have similar opposition now. There were five major heresies in the time of the writing of the New Testament.