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Lesson 18 Romans 2020
Verses | Romans 15:14-16:27
Key Verse | Romans 15:16

Priestly Duty of Proclaiming the Gospel

"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."

Today's statement is a conclusion of Romans. Through today’s verse, Apostle Paul tells us about what is the most valuable duty of the world. As the title says, it is the “priestly duty of gospel". Paul valued this position most of all and devoted his whole life to it. And he writes a letter of love for the saints of the Roman church who were forced to serve as priests of the Gospel. He values each and every one of them, thanks them and greets them. Through today's verse, I pray that we can strengthen our identity as the "priest of gospel" of this era and grow up in loving and caring for our fellow workers.

First, the priestly duty of the Gospel
Let's take a look at verse 15. "Yet I have written you quite boldly on some points to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me" Paul was given full grace from God. Especially, the thought of the grace that saved him, who was the enemy of God with an ignorant zeal, made him stay with tears. In addition, he was more grateful for the grace in calling him the apostle of the Gentiles who were dying, because they did not know Jesus. The saints knew gospel very well, but what is the purpose of Paul reminding them? It is in order to let them grow to the fullness of God. In order for our lives to change, our minds must be motivated strongly. When you deeply study the Bible verses and are overwhelmed with enlightenment and emotion, you gain a driving force of putting into practice. Therefore, it's important to rethink what we've learned.

Look at verse 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." The priest is the one who offers sacrifices to God. An offering is to give sacrifices to God, so that the people are free from their sins and be in peace with God. They also teach the people the words of God and go to God on behalf of the people to make an intercession. Paul was called the priest of the Gospel. He is full of enthusiasm to deliver the gospel to the ends of the earth. By the death and resurrection of the cross of Jesus Christ, all believers may be condemned and eternal. He ran all the way to deliver this vaccine against sin. He wants the Gentiles become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. Worship and preaching gospel are God's greatest concerns. After the salvation, we will worship God forever even if we go to the kingdom of God. But when we go to the kingdom of God, we don't have to preach any further. That is why the most important mission before going to the kingdom of God is to spread the gospel around the world and save more people.

Therefore he glory in Christ Jesus in his service to God. He does not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through him in leading the Gentiles to obey God. He does not want to brag about himself but about what God has done. What Paul has said and done — by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God. So he carried the gospel of Christ from Jerusalem to Illyricum He spread the gospel to important cities in the small Asian region through three evangelistic trips. Illyricum is a region of Yugoslavia and Albania today. Paul established leaders in each city so that the gospel could continue to spread throughout each region through them.

How was Paul's missionary policy? Look at verses 20, 21. "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.”"  He tried not to preach the gospel to areas where already gospel is known. It was in order to not build on someone else’s foundation. It was a strategy for preaching to those who have not yet heard of the Lord. It is the most precious and rewarding thing in the world to make sure that those who do not know the gospel are saved through the gospel and devoted to the service of God.

Life will never be in vain if even one person is saved through his or her life. Jesus said a soul is more precious than the world. He said He would leave ninety-nine sheep in the open country and go after one lost sheep until He finds it (Luke 15:4). So how valuable and glorious is the priest of the gospel, who delivers the gospel to the souls that are being destroyed by sin? If we were to be saved as one by preaching the gospel, our hard work and our devotion would never be wasted. Daniel 12:3 says, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever."

Second, Paul's frontierism
Look at verses 22-24. "22 This is why I have often been hindered from coming to you. 23 But now that there is no more place for me to work in these regions, and since I have been longing for many years to visit you, 24 I plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to see you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while." Paul fluently preached gospel in Anatolia(Asia Minor). Now he says he has no place for him to work. That's a great thing, but he even wants to visit Rome. The reason why he wants to go to Rome is because after having social relations and sharing joy with them, he wanted them to send him to Subana, Spain. Paul is over 60 and he needs to rest. He was able to live a stable life in his old age while being satisfied with the achievements he had. But Pual was filled with the desire to  preach the gospel beyond the precepts of Rome to Spain, the end of the earth,. This is because Jesus said to preach the gospel to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Until now, Paul had pioneered the region of Asia and Macedonia by using the Antioch Church as a missionary. But Spain was too far away from Antioch to be as a mission base. That's why he wanted to make the Roman Church a missionary base and carve out Spain. As such, Paul made a strategy for the future and served the gospel history.

We are maintaining social distance from each other and taking online classes, because of Corona. This has caused a disturbance in freshman prospects. But the word of God is not tied or blocked. I pray for God to give us wisdom and open the way for the gospel. I pray that we can plan our mission to an unexplored country or university, prepare for the actual needs, and serve with the support of our fellow workers. Whether we go out or support them, I pray that in any shape we can be used in the history of God's mission.

Third, Paul's Volunteer work and Prayer Request
Look at verse 25. "Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the Lord’s people there." Paul wanted to go to Jerusalem first and serve the saints before he went to Rome. The Church of Jerusalem has long had many difficulties due to persecution and famine. Upon hearing this news, Paul collected offerings (donation) from churches of the Gentiles such as Macedonia, Achaia and Corinthians to help the ‘Mother’ of church in need. The Gentile Church owed spiritual debt from the Church of Jerusalem. They were forced to repay the spiritual debt they received through material support. An offering is the fruit of the Gentiles' Mission, and a tie that bind the Jerusalem Church and the Gentiles' Church together. So Paul took the risk and gave the offerings to the Jerusalem church before going to Rome.
See verses 30 and 31. “I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. Pray that I may be kept safe from the unbelievers in Judea and that the contribution I take to Jerusalem may be favorably received by the Lord’s people there.” After Paul tells the Roman Saints what he wants to do in future, the last thing he asks them is to pray. His first prayer was to not let the Jews have anger at Paul, when he arrives to Jerusalem. The Jews considered Paul, the Pharisee, to be the betrayer of the nation when he spiritually changed and preached the Gospel. They wanted to kill Paul, because they thought that he was the enemy trying to destroy Judaism. Some Jews in Jerusalem pledged not to eat until Paul was killed. Paul asks to pray for him to be kept safe form those people. We must also pray that our co-workers and missionaries will not be harmed by the Corona 19. We also pray for the recovery of those who have corona. We must pray that our eagerness for preaching the gospel will not fade away or be gone. Evangelism does not progress without prayer. We must pray together for God’s ability and his help will be with us.

  Paul was a powerful servant of God and an apostle to the Gentiles. The Holy Spirit was with him, showing great signs and wonders. Nevertheless, the Roman Saints were asked to pray for him. This is because he knew the power of prayer very well. We can also preach the gospel through prayer of faith. The Lord hears without missing any of our prayers on the earth and He works in us. The work of Missonary is a fierce spiritual battle with Satan at the forefront. To win a spiritual battle, we must pray. We must continuously pray for the missionaries in the mission field and for the sheep (disciples) and co-workers. Whenever we fall on our knee and pray, God works with great power and helps us to win the spiritual battle.

  Fourth, beloved co-workers. Paul recommends them their sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae. Phoebe’s task was to give Paul’s letter to Roman Saints on her way to Rome. At that time, society ignored women and treated them impersonally. Even in this social situation, Paul entrusted Phoebe with the book of Romans on her way to Rome. Paul also encouraged the Roman Saints to welcome Phoebe. She is a worker of the church in Cenchreae. 'Worker' is 'Diaconos', which means 'Deacon' in the church. The main task for the deacon was to rescue the poor, sick and those who are lonely. She devoted her life to the Lord and the Gospel. She also became a benefactor of many people, including Paul. She provided Paul and his companions, who worked for evangelism, with accommodation, food, and needs. Due to Phoebe's serving Paul was able to focus on the work of the gospel. Paul received Phoebe in the Lord in a way worthy of the Saints and asked the Roman Saints to give her any help she may need.

  Next, Paul tells us to greet Priscilla and Aquila, who are in Christ Jesus. See verse 4. “They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.” Priscilla and Aquila are Paul's close friends and co-workers. They were Jews living in Rome and serving Jesus even before meeting Paul. In AD 49, the Roman Emperor Claudius ordered the deportation of the Jews when the Jews rioted. So, they left Rome and came to Corinth. There they met Paul on their second preaching (Acts 18: 2). They made tents as Paul did. So they worked with Paul and invited him to their house to work for the home church. They helped Paul preach the gospel in the daytime, and at night they built a tent with Paul. Since then, they have worked deeply with Paul. When Paul was in great danger while preaching the gospel, Priscilla and Aquila risked their lives to save Paul. They were people who gave their lives for the Lord and the gospel. They also used their house as home churches. They opened their house to serve the flock of the Lord. They were exemplary workers who valued the highest priesthood of the gospel and gave everything for the life of Jesus. Paul was overjoyed when thinking of Priscilla and Aquila. It gave him a great power.

  Paul greets the twenty-six individuals in Rome. Epenetus was the first convert to Chirst in the province of Asia. How difficult is it to believe in the first gospel and live as a disciple in a world where no one has a belief? Because there are no religious people around that place, he may feel isolated and lonely. There is no one who can be an example because no one has received the gospel first. So he had to be an example of himself. There are many people are called, but they often leave without becoming an ancestor of faith. Only faithful and loyal people can become ancestors of faith. Therefore, establishing an ancestor of a person's faith is difficult and takes a long time. God worked for 25 years to build up one Abraham as the ancestor of faith.

  In today's verses, Paul refers to a total of 33 people, of which 24 are Roman Saints and 9 are Saints of the Corinthian Church. Here we can see that Paul is trying to help the Saints of Corinthian and Roman Churches to associate with each other. In addition, 9 out of 33 are women. Most of those who praise Paul for their hard work are women. In the history of the gospel, women are generally more sacrificial. The people who served Jesus were also mostly women. They served the Lord with time, needs, and sincerity. Even when the disciples left Jesus and fled, the women remained with Him until the very end. Our meeting, like Mary, is hardened by her diligent and hardworking women who serve the Lord's history.
 
  See verse 13. “Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.” Rufus is the son of Simon the Cyrene, which comes out in Mark 15:21. Simon the Cyrene came up from the countryside to Jerusalem and was taken by soldiers and forced to take the heavy cross of Jesus. He did not blame Jesus and the soldiers while ascending the heavy cross. He thought of why Jesus had to suffer. He eventually accepted Jesus as Savior and was saved. In addition, his entire family was saved. After receiving the gospel, Rufus and his mother actively served the Lord. In particular, Rufus's mother loved and cared for Paul as her son. Whenever Paul was tired and exhausted, he embraced with loving mother's love.

  The Roman Church had a diverse group of people. There were Jews and Romans and other Gentiles. There were some people who were freed from slave, while others were rich or royal. Roman society at that time was extremely patriarchal and hierarchical. Although there were racial and status discriminations between the rich and the poor, the Roman Church became a brother and sister in Christ. They had fellowship of holy love.

  Paul says to watch out for those who cause division and put obstacles in the way that are contrary to the teaching, which were learned, and to keep away from them. Those who do not serve Christ our Lord, serves only for themselves. Their purpose is money. With sly words and flattering words, they deceived the hearts of the innocent. Today there are such people. There are wolves wearing sheep's costume. Therefore, we must be awake and discern and protect the sheep (disciples).

 We thank God for calling and giving us the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God. The gospel is worth our life. The gospel is God's power to save all believers. We have a lot to do in the world, but it is important to make one person disciple and give it to God. How blessed it is to make disciples and to be used as co-workers in the gospel. We pray that we will stand firm on the Gospel faith in difficulties and live a life of keeping and preaching the Word. I pray that only God will be glorified through our lives.