Good morning, everyone. Open up your Bibles to Romans, chapter 15.
Well, I hope you've enjoyed going through Romans verse by verse.
! I pray it's been a minister to your soul and encouragement to you.
! In these remaining chapters, there's a lot of practical application of what we've been learning in the book so far.
But really quickly, just by way of reminder, I kind of usually like to start with where we've been and where we're going
to help get people focused and know where we're at in the book.
But a lot of people will preach duty or obedience without a doctrinal foundation.
And others will preach duty without doctrine.
And both are kind of a worthless exercise. Both are essential.
And as Paul does in all his letters, he begins talking about our great salvation in Christ.
Talking about what Christ has done on our behalf.
The great grace that he's shown us.
And how we can have salvation and right relationship with God.
How to honor God, love God, and worship God in our lives.
He usually starts there, our identity in him, before turning his attention to just living obedience required by those who acknowledge those truths.
And that's important.
He's done that throughout Romans.
He's, for many, many, many chapters, talked about our great salvation, our great redemption,
and what has been accomplished by the grace of God in Christ.
And now he's turning attention to you.
Now, in light of these things, live this way.
In light of the fact that you have been chosen by God before the foundation of the world.
That you have been forgiven.
That your sins and your death that stood against you, that condemned you before God,
are now canceled because of the work of Christ.
That you are now justified in God's courtroom.
That you have right standing with him because of Christ's perfect life.
In light of all those things, adopted into his family.
A guarantee of eternal life.
In light of all these things, live this way.
And that's where these final chapters kind of take us.
In light of all that Paul has said, now live this way.
Our maturity means that our learning translates into living.
It's not just for our head knowledge or for us to debate other people or to make ourselves feel smart.
God's saving grace leads to a new life in Christ.
And so Paul begins probably the beginning of chapter 12, all the way up to where we're at today,
working out practical gospel living implications.
But knowledge has to be laid down first in many ways.
Matthew Henry, the Puritan commentator, once wrote,
The foundation of Christian practice must be laid in Christian knowledge and faith.
We must first understand how we receive Christ Jesus as the Lord.
And then we shall know the better how to walk in him.
So that's kind of where we've been.
And all these things.
So now where we're going today in chapter 15, Nathan did a wonderful job in chapter 14.
Just so you know, like as a pastor, talking to other pastors, those are hard chapters to navigate and talk through.
They tend to invoke a lot of emotion in the congregations.
And so I'm very thankful that God used him to help work us through some of the previous chapters.
And so where we're at today in chapter 15, Paul just continues expounding on what the new life in Christ looks like.
All right.
Every true believer is at the same place spiritually before God.
Okay.
As the saying goes, the ground at the foot of the cross is level.
Like no one is better than the other.
Every true believer has been justified, regenerated, loved, and accepted by God equally.
All right.
That is true.
However, they're not all equally mature as it goes to our progressive sanctification.
There are some believers who are further along in their walk with Christ and have a greater maturity.
They have more holiness in their daily life.
They obey with a greater fervor than other believers.
And so, so you follow me, all were equally, all believers are equally justified before God, but not all believers are equally sanctified before God.
As it translates into Christ likeness.
And, you know, all it takes is for you to remember maybe when you first became a believer and you knew some of those who were just older in the faith and you just thought, wow, like, I hope one day I can walk as they walk.
But then you find out they have their own issues as well.
But that's okay.
That's a normal thing.
That's the thing that's recognized in the scripture.
Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3, 1,
But brothers, I could not address you as spiritual, meaning mature, spiritual men, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ.
So making this comparison that some of you are just very young.
I can't address you as spiritual men or someone who has been grown up in the faith.
So some just grow faster than others.
And that's what Paul is trying to point out here.
And in 14 and 15, Paul makes the distinction of those believers who are equally justified, but not equally sanctified.
And he classifies them in two ways.
There are the strong and there are the weak believers.
So don't spend this whole time wondering if you're strong or weak or if the person next to you is strong or weak.
That's not really the point of the day.
But he makes a strong appeal to the strong to live in unity with those who are weak.
So what is on Paul's mind in these last two chapters, chapter 14, chapter 15, is unity in the body.
Unity makes the gospel more attractive to an unbelieving world.
When they see our love and our care and our fellowship together.
As it says in Psalm 133, how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity.
So unity, we would like to say, sort of adorns the gospel.
And it glorifies God.
On the other hand, whenever there's conflict, quibbling, and jabbing over minor secondary issues,
it's repulsive to the lost world around us.
Paul wrote to the Philippians that he longed to hear that they were standing firm in one spirit,
with one mind, striving side by side for the faith of the gospel.
That's Philippians 1, 27.
And what's very interesting, and we agree that there are some major first-tier doctrines that we cannot compromise on.
Like if you don't believe in the virgin birth, if you don't believe in salvation by grace alone,
through faith alone, and Christ alone, if you don't believe in the inerrancy of Scripture,
we probably need to part ways, right?
But however, what's really interesting is a lot of the infighting that happens
are usually over non-essential disagreements that cause conflict in the body.
And Paul is saying here, the strong are called upon to bear with the weak.
So he identifies them as strong and weak.
And so as we get into this chapter 15, with that in mind, let's read 1 through 7 today.
Paul says,
We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak,
and not to please ourselves.
Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.
For Christ did not please himself, but as it is written,
the reproaches of those who reproach you fell on me.
For whatever was written in the former days was written for our instruction,
that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures,
we might have hope.
May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another,
in accord with Christ Jesus,
that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Therefore, welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you.
Now, just some more background.
I just kind of thought it would be helpful to kind of say this,
particularly what Paul is addressing.
It kind of translates maybe into some different issues.
In our day, it was at this time,
there were Jewish believers who were weak
because they had difficulty abandoning all the rights and prohibitions
that they felt compelled to follow in the Mosaic law.
Dietary laws, certain days, Sabbath observance, circumcision,
all these different things.
They just had a hard time detaching from those things.
Weaker Gentile believers,
who were really steeped in their pagan idolatry,
who worshiped the gods of Rome or the gods of Greece,
Apollo, Zeus, Jupiter, Mars, take your pick.
They had a hard time just coming in contact with anything
that just reminded them of that lifestyle,
like eating meat that had been offered up to pagan deities,
and celebrating certain festivals or days,
or just observing certain days that were tainted by idolatry,
and immorality and adultery.
So they just had to pull away from those things,
but both had very sensitive consciences as new believers.
They weren't mature enough to be free from those convictions at that time.
However, the strong Jewish believer,
who knew their freedom in Christ,
understood that the ceremonial requirements of the law,
the Mosaic law, were no longer binding on them.
Mature Gentile Christians understood that these idols,
that they had been offering up meat to,
weren't real.
Like, they could be knocked over.
They weren't a live thing.
So they could, therefore, eat that meat
that had been worthlessly offered to them.
Right?
But saying, Paul is saying,
act in accordance with your conscience on matters
that are not specifically commanded or prohibited in the Scripture.
So whether weak or strong,
the motive behind the weak or the strong believer,
that the motive is to please the Lord
and for them to bear with one another.
So that is the context, I guess,
in which he's addressing these specific things.
He doesn't want them to quibble and fight and divide over such issues.
Again, it's those non-essential issues
that often cause us to do that.
And so, he addresses the strong and the weak.
So in this first set of heartfelt appeals to the saints in Rome,
Paul calls them to please one another,
looking to Christ as the example.
So there's just, I think there's just five different points for you today.
But number one, just to help us walk through this,
this could have been two different points,
but I was just, as a good reform guy,
I was trying to have five points.
But the first point is,
look to others and away from self.
Look to others and away from self.
That's verses 1 and 2.
Let's read.
We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak
and not to please ourselves.
Let each of us please his neighbor for his good to build him up.
So this is an exhortation.
We see this distinction of those who are strong.
So, I guess you could define those who are strong as those who are strong in faith,
strong in truth,
strong in their convictions,
and in their character before God.
He says,
That word obligation that we see here means like an owing of debt.
Someone that you are bound to repay.
It's also used in John 4,
the same word,
1 John 4,
Beloved,
if God so loved us,
we ought,
there's the same word,
to love one another.
We have an obligation to love one another.
And then you see the word that's used here,
bear.
We have an obligation to bear,
which means picking something up to carry a heavy burden.
It's used of carrying a pitcher of water in Mark
and carrying a man in Acts 21.
But those of us in the body who are strong have an obligation.
We must bear for those who are weak.
Paul wrote in Galatians 6 something very similar.
He said,
Bear one another's burdens and moral faults,
and in this way fulfill perfectly the law of Christ,
complete what is lacking.
So the strong have a non-negotiable obligation,
responsibility to graciously support those who are weak
instead of making fun of them or belittling them
or selfishly just trying to satisfy their own desires.
So Christian living focuses on honoring God by serving others,
by serving our brothers and sisters particularly.
All right?
So he says,
that's the exhortation.
Strong should bear the failings of the weak.
Then if you notice,
he says,
pleasing ourselves.
Man,
there is a verse that wraps up what sin kind of does to us.
This could be a good one.
Our sin has corrupted us in such a way
where we have a fallen inclination always to please ourselves.
It is what we wake up with every day.
It's what follows us around.
And I'm not saying it's wrong for you to have,
you know,
desires that are God-given,
but we're speaking in terms of those things
where we seek to please ourselves at the expense of someone else.
Some people,
just without remorse,
will stomp or ride right over the interest of others
and pursue their own fallen selfish desires.
Maybe others may use their intellect
to maybe put on a cloak of humility,
but in the end of the day,
they use their intellect to manipulate the other person
to get their own desires served in the end,
pleasing themselves.
And in a world that yells at us,
you know,
protect yourself,
preserve yourself,
promote yourself,
entertain yourself,
and comfort yourself,
Christ comes along and He says,
deny yourself,
slay yourself,
and follow Me.
That doesn't just mean to not do certain things.
It's this idea of relinquishing absolute control
of our lives to Christ.
And this includes that fallen desire to always please ourselves
at the expense of others.
All right?
And so,
the other side of that is,
don't seek to please yourself,
but please others.
All right?
If you look in the next part of this,
but you see that the gospel beckons us,
the us is connected to the strong,
if you look at your pronouns
and who he's referring to there.
The us refers to the strong,
the we,
in verse 1.
To please his neighbor.
The neighbor is the weak believer here.
For his good,
to build him up.
I love that word.
The old word,
if you have an older Bible,
New American Standard,
King James,
or something like that,
I use the word edification.
Good old word.
But it really just means
this idea of almost building up a house,
like building,
strengthening,
to build someone up.
Instead of tearing something down,
you should seek to build them up,
to edify them.
And this is done through teaching,
through discipling,
by humbly serving them,
loving them,
sacrificing them.
So,
sin causes us to please ourselves,
but the gospel
brings about this revolution
in our understanding,
our relationships,
where we think of ourselves
with humility.
As Paul wrote earlier,
if you just want to look
back at chapter 12, verse 3,
he just says,
I say to everyone among you,
not to think of himself
more highly
than he ought to think,
but to think
with sober judgment.
To not have
an over-inflated view
of ourselves,
but to think of ourselves
in humility
in light of what Christ
has done for us.
So,
God has graciously sought
our greatest good
in Christ,
so the goal of all true believers
should be seeking
the good of others,
especially our brothers
and sisters
in Christ.
Paul kind of echoes that
in Philippians chapter 2.
Let each of you
look not only
to his own interests,
we're all familiar with this,
but also to the interests
of others.
Have this mind
among yourselves,
which is yours
in Christ Jesus.
So,
this is this idea
of being built up
such that believers
will one day
be conformed
to the likeness
of Christ.
That's what
the good is.
That's what
Christ's likeness
is what Paul talks about
as being the good
in Romans 8.
And so,
we're not
to merely just
tolerate,
that can be
very like us,
right?
We may tolerate
the failings
of the weak,
but we're not really
helping them.
Some people,
I've done it myself,
we can be just critical,
condescending,
rather than showing
respect for their
sincere views
that they hold
by not being that way
and just agreeing
like,
it's alright,
you know,
we don't have to
quite see eye to eye
on things.
We tend to like
put our stake
in the ground
and want to show
that they're wrong
about everything.
Rather than doing that,
we genuinely love them
in Christ.
The way that Christ
loves us
is 1 Corinthians 13
is love,
Christ-like love
is not arrogant
or rude.
It does not insist
on its own way.
It is not irritable
or resentful.
So,
there's a lot
in all this,
but I think
Nathan just covered
so much of this
so well
that I've been
just thinking
through this.
And if Paul is
continuing to write
about this,
it's because he knows
it's a serious thing
that you should
pay attention.
some of you
are older enough
in the faith
to witness
divisions in churches
and splits in churches.
And most of the time,
they're founded
in like very
non-essential things.
It's people's pride
being wounded
is quivling over
just earthly things
that are in the church.
and God is telling us
to not act that way.
So,
that's why there's
instruction on these things.
A lot of these
modern day things
that believers
may have disagreeing
things on,
I mean,
the big one,
obviously,
is just alcohol,
things like that.
I personally
don't drink alcohol.
I think it's kind of gross.
I just don't like it.
It's just nasty to me.
I've had it before
in the past.
But,
there are,
I kind of grew up
in the,
what you might call
the young,
restless,
reformed movement.
And,
there was like
this movement
where
they wanted to
replace
the Christian man
who was like,
kind of like
quiet,
meek,
and
dead fish,
handshake,
and
didn't cuss,
didn't drink,
you know,
and
never fought anything.
They wanted to
replace him
with the loud,
beer drinking,
cigarette smoking,
or,
you know,
cigar smoking,
you know,
and cussing,
you know,
kind of guy.
And,
I just felt like
something was just
not right about
either one of those.
Like,
wait a minute,
this is not
how Christ has
called us.
Eve had
liberty in Christ
to drink.
they were like
flaunting it around.
They were like
boasting about it.
And wounding
the consciences
of a lot of
other believers
who still had
an issue with it.
Right?
But I had,
you know,
one particular friend
who did do that.
He kind of boasted
about his liberty
a lot.
And,
another friend,
a different friend,
who was,
I would classify
as a strong believer,
a mature believer,
who liked to drink
on occasion,
usually just at home.
We were out,
we were out
meeting with
another brother
who was just
younger in the faith.
He was a new Christian,
but he had had
kind of a past
with alcohol,
with addiction.
And,
before we actually
went to meet up with him,
I just told
the strong brother,
hey,
like,
let's not tonight.
You know,
let's just not,
don't order,
don't order a beer.
Because,
like,
he,
one,
he may be tempted
by it,
but two,
his consciousness
isn't in a good place
to see things like that.
And,
he was just like,
no problem.
Like,
I'll gladly just
throw it all away
if that would help him.
You know,
just a mature response.
Not like,
well,
I'm a,
I'm gonna,
I'm in liberty,
so I'm gonna drink,
you know,
and do what I want to do.
But,
he,
he easily just said,
no big deal.
I'll,
I'll seek to please him,
you know,
more than myself here.
And,
like,
that's,
those are the examples.
They extend beyond
a lot of things.
But,
we must please others.
We must seek to please others.
We can't control the weak
or difficult brothers,
but with God's help,
we can,
he can help control us
as we react to them.
And,
God often uses difficult,
weak brothers or sisters
to reveal sin
in our own life.
how much patience we lack,
how angry and irritable
we can be
with their issues.
It keeps us dependent
on God.
So,
that's the first one,
is look to others
and away
from ourselves.
Number two,
you knew this was coming,
look to Christ.
Look to Christ.
See this in verse three.
Now,
this is the reason,
right?
For Christ did not
please himself,
but as it is written,
the reproaches of those
who reproached you
fell on me.
So,
it would be great to know
what this looks like.
But,
in Christ,
we have the perfect pattern
to follow,
the perfect example
in Christ.
Believers are to follow
the self-denying
example of Christ
and thereby live
in harmony
with one another.
And,
get what Paul is saying here.
This isn't just a random,
just be like Jesus
kind of
exhortation.
He really means this.
So,
why is he
pointing this out?
He's trying to say
that someone
who was the strongest
bore the weaknesses
of those without strength.
No one
was as strong,
perfect,
and innocent
as Jesus.
And,
no one
was more weaker,
broken,
and guilty
than us.
And,
Christ denied
himself.
He didn't seek
to please
himself,
but to please
the Father.
You see that in
John 5,
verse 30.
John 8,
39.
My desire is to do
the will of him
who sent me.
It was extremely
difficult and painful
and eventually
cost Jesus'
his own life
on the cross
to seek to honor
and please
his Father.
So,
both in his life
and in his
agonizing death,
we vividly see
his utmost concern
to please the Father
and to seek
our good
and accomplishing
the work
of redemption.
He didn't look
to his own desires.
He didn't look
out for his
own benefit.
Christ,
I mean,
the ultimate example
of that is in
Gethsemane where
he basically just
prays like God,
Father,
with drops of blood,
right?
If there is any
other way
for this cup
to pass from me,
nonetheless,
let your will be
done
and not mine.
He has submitted
himself to that.
So,
Christ is the
highest,
supreme example
of living
for God's glory
under hardship.
And showing that,
he quotes a
messianic psalm,
Psalm 69,
verse 9,
which reads,
in its context,
For zeal for your
house has consumed
me,
or eaten me up,
and the reproaches
of those who
reproached and
insulted you
have fallen upon
me.
So,
reproach means
reviled,
persecuted,
insulted.
That's what
reproach means.
And Paul applies
this text to
Jesus,
expressing those
words of a
righteous man
who endures
insults and
scorn for the
sake of God's
glory.
We need to
understand that
it was Christ's
zeal and passion
for God that
brought suffering
upon him.
Passion actually
means the
degree of
difficulty that
you're willing to
go through to
accomplish the
goal.
That's what a
passion means.
It isn't like
rah-rah or
passionate.
It's like
whatever you
say, that
thing is worth
everything, worth
sacrificing for,
worth dying for.
And for Christ,
it was zeal and
love for his
father, and that
brought great
suffering upon
him.
And that's what
Paul is challenging
us with here,
for us to bear
the weaknesses
of others in
living to
please God by
pleasing our
neighbor, and
making real
everyday choices
of self-denial,
even limiting our
liberties if
necessary, giving
them up for the
spiritual good of
those who are
weak.
But it's almost
sort of laughable
though, to be
honest.
It's yet, when it
comes to us, by
comparison, that
scale is like
Christ gave up
all he had to
suffer and endure
for our good.
It just makes
what he's asking
us to give up,
just a little bit
of liberty, kind
of seems like
trifling a little
bit.
Almost just like,
yeah, I don't
have any excuse
to complain because
of all that he
sacrificed for me.
The scale of his
personal passion and
sacrifice in
comparison to the
restriction of our
liberty for the
sake of weaker
brothers is a
trifling thing,
really.
But he's
highlighting that,
like follow
Christ's example.
But how many of
you just the, I
kind of grew up as
a really early
Christian wearing
the WWJD
bracelet, and then
it just kind of
donged at me, I
really, really
stink at doing
what Jesus does.
And it kind of
occurred to you
that it's not
just be like
him and that's
it.
It can be
discouraging.
We all have
failed to live
like Christ
day after day.
And an
encouraging word
for those of you
who may feel
that way is that
it's been said
by Wiser
Man that Christ
is first our
Savior before
he's our
example.
All right?
So he, we
come to him as
broken sinners in
need of his
saving grace.
And he
transforms us
and promises
never to leave
us or forsake
us.
And he gives
us his
resurrection life.
Give us what
we need to
serve him as
we come to
him daily.
So if you're
having an issue
with that, he's
provided a way
for you to
follow him by
going to him.
So look to
Christ.
Then number
three, look to
the scripture.
Verse four.
For whatever
was written in
former days was
written for our
instruction that
through endurance
and through the
encouragement of
the scriptures,
we might have
hope.
So as it is with
all things in the
Christian life,
we are to look
upon God's glory
in his word and
be transformed
by it.
I think I fell
into a habit
maybe in the
last few months
of just more
or less reading
the scripture out
of duty rather
than delight,
more out of
obligation than
desire, and
failing to
recognize that
God will use
this to help
make me more
like Christ.
God will use
this to help
strengthen my
heart.
So although the
New Testament is
inspired by God,
that's a whole
other message.
Paul specifically
has in mind the
Old Testament
scriptures here.
He says,
for whatever is
written in the
former days,
and I mean,
just read Romans,
right?
Like he references
the Old Testament
many, many, many
times to prove
his point,
and he just did
by quoting
Psalm 69.
He's reminding
us of this
importance,
that full
confidence that
the Old Testament
was written down
for our instruction
in the encouragement
of God's people.
Sort of indirectly
implying that all
of God's words
scriptures are God's
words.
He inspired them.
He put them down
for us.
And those things
that were written
a long time ago
don't just serve
the needs of those
people, but continue
on to serve the
needs of his people
today.
It goes on for
later centuries.
So, saying to the
strong believer,
then, go back
and read the
scriptures.
If you're struggling
with being patient,
if you're struggling
with being discouraged
at the growth of
these weaker
brothers or sisters,
if you're struggling
with that,
if you feel
faint-hearted,
go to the
scriptures.
If you're feeling
exasperated,
in the scriptures
you will find
instruction.
That means like
teaching,
training,
to help us
know how to
bear with
the weaker
believers.
And then,
that will also
help us establish
endurance,
which this word
endurance means
to bear up
under extreme
difficulty
and to persevere.
So, just think
about it.
Does the Bible
have any stories
like that?
Many, many.
Noah,
Joseph,
Moses,
David.
Take your pick.
Like, all stories
of God
helping His
people bear up
under extreme
difficulty.
So, look to
those
in the
scripture
who look to
God to go
through difficult
times.
And then,
beside that,
if you're feeling
disheartened,
like massively
discouraged,
it says that the
scriptures can
give you
encouragement.
That means
comfort,
strength,
consolation.
So, far
beyond the
limited value
just for
Christians,
the record of
all God's
dealings with
His people
in the past
have been
deliberately
preserved for
our good,
our encouragement,
spiritual benefit.
There's just one
place I have for you
to turn today.
Well, actually two,
but before we
close, but look at
Psalm, hold your
hand in Romans,
but look at
Psalm 119.
Look at
Psalm 119,
verse 49.
Psalm 119.
The psalmist,
speaking of the
goodness of God's
Word, God's
law, he says
in verse 49,
remember your
word to your
servant in which
you have made
me hope.
So, God's
voice, God's
Word incites
real hope in
His people.
Verse 50,
this is my
comfort and
affliction that
your promise
gives me life.
Maybe go down
to verse 52,
the whole thing,
but really just
for sake of time.
Verse 52,
when I think
of your rules
from of old,
I take comfort,
O Lord.
The saying that
God's Word gives
us genuine
comfort and
life.
Verse 54,
your statutes
have been my
songs in the
house of my
sojourning.
So, God's
Word is the
song that we
sing as we
travel through
this foreign
land called
earth.
This life
that gives us
joy and hope
to press
forward.
It's to our
H81.
My soul
longs for
your salvation.
I hope in
your Word.
So, if you're
feeling discouraged,
you feel like
your endurance
is wavering,
God's Word is
meant to give
us hope,
to hold fast,
to cherish
hope,
so that we
will believe
that those
weaker brothers
or sisters
may one
day mature,
overcome.
Fourthly,
back in
Romans,
verse 5,
and he
goes from
talking about
the Scriptures
to prayer,
and Paul
says,
may the
God of
endurance and
encouragement
grant you
to live in
such harmony
with one
another in
accord with
Christ Jesus.
So, there is
a dependence
on God's
power here.
This cannot
be done.
Have you ever
just tried
putting up
with somebody
in your own
strength?
Putting up
with your
own friends
or family
that can
sometimes just
be hard to
deal with,
or just a
weaker brother
in the Lord?
Try doing it
in your own
strength,
and you'll be
pulling your
hair out
and throwing
things.
But God
gives us
what we need.
He alone
can give us
what we need
to patiently
endure and
persevere.
Whatever He
requires of us
in His commandments,
He gives us
the grace
to follow.
That famous
prayer by
St. Augustine,
Lord,
grant,
command what
you will,
but grant
what you
command.
Give us
the grace
to follow
your commands.
So,
God grants,
you see this
word,
graciously
supplies us
the ability
to live in
such mutual
harmony
and understanding
with one
another
in accord
with Christ
Jesus.
So,
Christ is
that unifying
point.
We all
come back
to Him.
So,
just sort of
stating it
very plainly
to wrap
this up
here,
your hope
and mine
is not
found in
our ability
or our
willingness
or our
resolve
to endure,
but in
God's
unshakable
enduring
commitment
never to
turn from
the work
of grace
in us.
our hope
to be
faithful
is that
we have
been welcomed
into
communion
with the
one
who will
endure
no matter
what.
Right?
So,
why is that
important to
learn?
It's important
because at
best,
our endurance
is just
spotty.
We forget
who we are
and we think
that grace
is just not
essential
throughout our
daily lives.
We get
discouraged
and throw
in the towel
on doing
good things
and serving
people.
We rebel.
There are
times that
we,
myself,
I fail
and I
attack those
around me.
Not because
I don't know
it's wrong,
but just in
that moment,
I just
don't care.
Sin has
caused me
to forget.
So,
our hope
of endurance
is not
found in
our own
strength
and character,
but in
God's
alone.
So,
Paul wrote
that to
the Colossians
that he
prayed that
they would
be strengthened
with all
power.
according to
his glorious
might,
for all
endurance
and patience
with joy.
Colossians
1,
11.
So,
may that
be our
prayer.
So,
Paul is
sort of
wrapping
that up
saying to
the believers,
despite your
differing views
on some of
these things,
be loving
and live in
harmony with
one another
with the
common Savior
Jesus Christ.
Right?
So,
what's the
goal of
everything we've
just said?
What's the
purpose?
That leads
to the
last point.
Look to
God's
glory,
verse 6
and 7.
He says,
so that
together you
may with
one voice
glorify the
God and
Father of
our Lord
Jesus Christ.
Therefore,
welcome one
another as
Christ has
welcomed you
for the
glory of
God.
And so,
Paul continues
praying,
says,
main purpose
here being
Christian unity,
the main
point of
unity,
being just
for the
sake of
other
believers.
That's
important.
But,
the purpose
is to
honor and
please God
both in
our
individual,
public,
corporate
lives.
So,
here's the
beautiful
thing.
When we
love one
another in
Christ,
when we
bear with
the failings
of the
weak,
when we
bear
patiently
their
failings
and their
issues,
when we
endure with
those who
are difficult
to live
with,
and when
we love
each other
despite minor
differences,
it reflects
God's unity
in Himself
and it
brings Him
glory.
And this
is the last
thing I
wanted you
to turn
to.
This was
Christ's
prayer for
us.
He prayed
this.
You could
say one
of His
dying
prayers,
one of
His
dying
desires
was for
unity.
John 17
verse 21.
John 17
verse 21.
He's
praying for
all future
believers here,
including us,
and He
prays in
verse 21,
that they
may all
be one,
just as
You,
Father,
are in
Me,
and I
in You,
that they
also may
be in
us,
so the
world may
believe that
You have
sent Me.
You see,
that idea of
our unity
reflects the
relationship
between the
Father and
the Son and
the Spirit.
Verse 22,
the glory
that You
have given
Me,
I have
given to
them,
that they
may be
one,
even as
We are
one.
I in
them,
and You
in Me,
that they
may be
perfectly
one,
so that
the world
may know
that You
have sent
Me,
and love
them even
as You
have loved
Me.
So in
conclusion,
when God's
people live
together in
one accord
and we
worship Him
together with
one voice,
we can
truly glorify
the God and
Father of
our Lord
Jesus Christ.
He's promising
to empower
us to do
that,
and therefore
He wraps it
up.
Therefore,
welcome one
another as
Christ has
welcomed you
for the
glory of
God.
So whether
we're strong,
whether we're
weak,
whether we
need help,
we all
ought to
seek to
please one
another.
The mutual
acceptance of
one another
will bring
glory to
God.
Let's pray
together.