❖ Video (Whole Worship Service)
❖ Audio (Message)
Why We Stay Connected to Other People
Romans 15:14-21
Mari Ikeda
We are back in Romans today after a long time. But actually we are finally approaching to the end of Romans. The text today, 15:14-21, is also the initial part of the closing dedication.
I gave my message today the title, “Why we stay connected to other people.” Because we can learn through the text today how active person Paul was in staying connected to others. However, it doesn’t mean that the text is pushing us to stay connected with others.
Or are you a type of person who enjoys being alone and is not good at engaging with others? It’s not a question of which is better. Everyone can be different.
The text today teaches us about the freedom that is given to our heart by knowing Jesus, regardless of our original personalities and ways of thinking. That freedom will naturally turn our hearts to others, change our original personalities and ways of thinking, and transform us into the ones who truly love others. Paul was also just one of those who were transformed.
Now, let’s start reading by a little at a time as usual, firstly v. 14-16.
A. To demonstrate the freedom that comes from following God (14-16)
14 I myself am convinced, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with knowledge and competent to instruct one another. 15 Yet I have written you quite boldly on some points to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles. He gave me the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
When I started the series of my sermon on Romans January last year, I introduced briefly in my very first sermon that Paul had never been to Rome when he was writing this letter and he only knew a few among those believers in Rome, who were the recipients of this letter. It is not natural to write such a long and difficult letter to people you have never met before. However, like other letters in the New Testament, this letter to the Romans was not a letter of updating each other’s lives between close friends, but it served as a textbook to teach about Jesus. In addition, because Paul had never met with the Romans, this letter also worked to introduce particularly the ideas of Paul. Therefore it was inevitable for this letter to become lengthy and difficult, but I think it’s still incredible that he could write so long to those whom he had never even met. Where did he get his energy from?
Here Paul himself says, he wrote this letter because he had the role as the priest for the Gentiles. In Paul’s time, a dispute happened between the Jewish Christians and the gentile Christians, as the Jews requested the Gentiles to follow the Jewish customs, while the Gentiles requested the Jews to get rid of the Jewish way of life. Both parties believed that they must keep their ways of living and control their behaviors as worthy and right as believers, in order to be accepted as God’s believers. They thought just believing was not enough. However, our lifestyle habits and ethical values can differ according to the time and culture we live in, and so there is no universal one that one can say, “This is the absolutely right one.” Yet, in the past and the present alike, people have the tendency to believe that one’s position is right and we all easily develop prejudice and discrimination against others. And furthermore we start to demand to each other what God never demands anyone and cause a conflict. The conflict between the Jews and the Gentile in Paul’s time was one of those, and so Paul could not keep silent.
What was the most important to Paul, which is also what is important to us as well, was that God never changes His attitude toward us according to how good or bad our action is, and that He demands us no reason or condition in our part in order for Him to love us.。 If God only loved us when we are perfectly good, there would be no one on earth who could be lovable to God. We are all so bad with no exception that we can only rely on God’s mercy. But just because Jesus sacrificed His life on the cross for all of us, we can boldly approach God just as the way we are, sinful and broken, and depend on Him without fear.。 To rely on our own strength or focus on how good or bad our action is means that we waste such a great love of God and that we say Jesus’ death on the cross was insufficient to save us. That’s why Paul could not help writing a long letter to instruct the Romans even though he had never met them, in order to prevent such a misunderstanding about God’s love from spreading.
It’s same for us. The freedom Jesus gave us has set us free, so that we remain neither a slave of our own sin nor a victim of other people’s sin any more. Once we get to know the greatness of the freedom, I don’t think we can help sharing it with others or resist to anyone who tries to bind us again in bondage.
Now let’s read from v.17 to the first half of v.19.
B. Because we know the power of Jesus that gives freedom to our hearts (17-19a)
17 Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. 18 I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done— 19 by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God.
Here Paul says that he is proud of his service. However, he is not proud of his own abilities or successes of his service, but rather the power of Jesus revealed through him. To say specifically, it was found in the events where many Gentiles accepted Jesus through Paul’s words and actions, and received the freedom in their hearts, and also in many wonders and revelations of the power of God’s Spirit. Experiencing these things also became the source of strength for Paul to actively stay connected with people.
Do we know well enough the joy of witnessing how the love of Jesus sets people’s heart free? Letting people know about Jesus’ love is not the work only for pastors and ministers, but it is the duty and privilege given to everyone who has received His love. It is a duty and a privilege at the same time, because it can encourage ourselves when we can witness how people’s heart are set free just as our hearts were set free by Jesus.
I believe the best occasion we can have to practice this work is what we call as mini-church in this church. In mini-church, we gather in a small group to share with each other how each of us live our daily lives with Jesus. Although we may not be able to solve each other’s problem directly, it helps to hear how others have overcome, or are trying to overcome, their own problems with Jesus. Moreover, as we spend time together, we can share the joy of getting an unexpected plan of God revealed. Although it may be still difficult for us to meet in person regularly due to the pandemic, I want more of you to enjoy the good taste of mini-church.
Now let’s read from the second half of v.19 to v.21.
C. Because we cannot help sharing with others (19b-21)
So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ. 20 It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation. 21 Rather, as it is written: “Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.”
“From Jerusalem to Illyricum” meant almost all areas of the east half of the dominion of the Roman Empire at that time. Paul traveled so vast areas within 10 years, and now was about to set off to the west side. In those days, not just Paul but all leaders of the early church had the sense of duty to bring the good news of Jesus to the end of the earth. It was partly because it was what Jesus himself ordered them, but I suppose it was also because they just could not help doing so, as I have been explaining today. Particularly Paul had the strong conviction in Jesus’ love to set all people free from the bondage of sin, regardless of ethnicity or language.
What does it mean for us to tell the world about Jesus in Japan today? One of the possible answers is our actions as Peas we re-started last April in a new way. To me, the Peas activity is something that we could not help but start. It has no religious or evangelizing purpose. We really don’t care whether people get interested in church by coming to Peas. Our hope is just that people can feel they are accepted and loved just as the way they are when they come to Peas. There are people who need to be set free from prejudice and discrimination everywhere in our society. It is only us who can tell people with a proof and conviction that God loves all people and that everyone is worthy of love, because we know the meaning of Jesus’ death. That’s why we cannot help stay connected with others. Jesus can use us even though we ourselves are broken and weak.
When we get ourselves involved with others, we tend to focus too much on how others think about us or become preoccupied to find a solution to their problems. However, the love we received from Jesus can set us free from such mind of ours and teach us that we can just rely on him Because He knows us and others more than we do and loves all of us. That’s why we can stay connected with others and even enjoy doing so, by always resting easy in Jesus and looking forward to what He would do for us.
(Prayer)Dear our Lord Jesus, thank you for your love you taught us through your death on the cross.。 May we not forget the joy we were given by knowing your love, so that we can always receive a new power from you. Increase the opportunities for us in this church to share with each other the joy of living with you and to pray for each other.。 Help us not forget that you use our weakness to make your love revealed to the world. Dear Lord Jesus, we pray this in your name, Amen.
Summary
Paul couldn’t stop sharing with others about Jesus’ great love that frees us from all kinds of prejudice and bondage. At the same time, he couldn’t stop opposing teachings that went against the love of Jesus, promoting prejudice and bondage. Herein lies the reason why we stay connected with others. Regardless of our individual personalities and abilities, the joy of receiving Jesus’ love and being set free turns our hearts toward others, and gives us the desire to stay connected with others in order not to control them but to set them free.
For Discussion
1. What is “an offering acceptable to God” (vs. 16)?
2. Share why you choose to connect with other people and what helps you not lose hope