Ministry Flows Through Relationships Romans 15:7-19 (NKJV)

Transcription

1 Ministry Flows Through Relationships Romans 15:7-19 (NKJV) Years ago, I was on a mission trip to Albania. I went with a team of guys that my father-in-law had put together a crazy group of guys that wanted to go into the unreached areas. There was an evangelist that was part of the faith movement, a worship leader that was part of the Vineyard movement, my father-in-law that was an entrepreneur with a vision to reach people who had never heard the Gospel, and me, a Southern Baptist youth pastor at the time. It was fun to say the least and life changing. The book of Acts truly came alive for me on that trip. It was there I realized the need for the empowering of the Holy Spirit. I was totally lacking. It was there the gifts came alive in me. It was there that I was totally out of my comfort zone, which is always good for me. And it was there that I saw thousands respond to the Gospel that had never heard the Gospel. With all that said, my roommate during those 10 days said something to me one evening, as we were worshiping together. He said, Ministry flows through relationships. It s something that made a powerful impact on my paradigm of ministry, my understanding of how ministry worked it flowed through relationships. Here in our text, we will see Paul talk a bit about how ministry and relationships work together. Vs. 7 Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God. Paul is closing his exhortation from chapter14 and the first section of 15. Notice the word, therefore. That s Paul s way of saying, in closing, and then notice he ends with what he started out with in 14:1 receive one another... That s the heart of the Father He demonstrated it when He sent His Son to bring reconciliation to the world. Copyright 2012 Chris Fraley 1

2 Jesus gave Himself fully to bring us to the Father, to deal with the sins in our lives that were separating us from the Father. He did it for the glory of God, to glorify God, because it was God s heart. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit were all in on it. Notice what Paul says here,...just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God. When Jesus received us, it was for the glory of God, and now He is asking us to live for the same purpose. When we receive one another, it will glorify the Father. How do we do that? Verse 6 reminds us with our minds and with our mouths. I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:1-2 (NKJV) It s when our minds are renewed by the daily washing of the Word, and the purifying and empowering of the Spirit, that it will have an effect on what we say. And then Paul will bring to memory what was written. He will quote a series of passages from the Old Testament to remind the Jews of God s plan to reach out and receive the Gentiles to the glory of God. Vs Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers, and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written: For this reason I will confess to You among the Gentiles, and sing to Your name. And again he says: Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people! And again: Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles! Laud Him, all you peoples! And again, Isaiah says: There shall be a root of Jesse; and He who shall rise to reign over the Gentiles, in Him the Gentiles shall hope. Copyright 2012 Chris Fraley 2

3 I will confess to You among the Gentiles is a quote from Psalm 18:49. It describes Jesus as the One who is given praise among the Gentiles. Paul quotes Deuteronomy 32:43, where he encourages the Gentiles to rejoice with the Jewish people. He quotes Psalm 117:1, calling the Gentiles to worship the Lord. And then he quotes Isaiah 11:10, where Jesus is spoken of in connection with Jesse, the father of King David. Jesus, the root of Jesse, would be the One who would bridge the gap for us to be a part of the family of God it would be in Jesus that we would have the hope of salvation. Encouraging the Gentiles and the Jewish people to find their common ground in praise it s what worship can do. I know we can forever debate on the vehicle of worship. Some like it fast, like a Ferrari let s get through it. Some like it small and econo don t make it big and flashy! Some like it luxury just relax and enjoy. Big is good too. Some of you like loud and rugged 4 x 4 worship. And then some of you like it classic old school. Here me in this: the vehicle is not as important as the destination. The destination, to worship the One who is worthy of our worship, that s what our eyes need to be centered on. The vehicle is just that, a vehicle by which we get from here to there. And when we are focused on Him, a great unity can take place. That s what Paul is getting at here Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14 (NKJV) Not the band, not the sound, not the timing, not the vehicle, but my mouth and my heart. Vs. 13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Notice, He is a God of hope all those in Christ Jesus have the hope of heaven. Copyright 2012 Chris Fraley 3

4 He is also a God of joy and peace. Paul said the kingdom of God is righteousness that s our standing in the kingdom of God, it s what gets us to heaven. Peace that comes from the Prince of Peace. And joy that is a byproduct of the Holy Spirit, it s the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives, but it s also a byproduct of believing. The Holy Spirit grants hope, peace, and joy. We must receive it by faith and then walk in it by faith. It s what again unifies us. We all have the same hope of heaven, we re all going to the same destination, and we all have the ability through faith to walk in His peace, that peace that surpasses all understanding, and every Spiritfilled believer should know and enjoy the joy that comes from not only our salvation, but it s also a fruit of walking in the power of the Holy Spirit. Abounding in hope, enjoying His peace, and overflowing with joy these are the byproducts of walking in the Spirit. Now we are going to see Paul shift gears. After spending the first half of the chapter speaking on unity in the body, he will now move onto ministry in the world. Why? Because they are related, they are connected. When the body is unified, we are going to see effective and fruitful ministry. And when the body is ministering, we are going to see effective and fruitful unity. They go hand-in-hand. One must follow the other or we won t have the heart of the Father. Vs Now I myself am confident concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another. Nevertheless, brethren, I have written more boldly to you on some points, as reminding you, because of the grace given to me by God Paul is not writing because he thought that the believers in Rome were off, or needing correction, or given to heresy, or out of sync with the Spirit. Copyright 2012 Chris Fraley 4

5 He was writing to remind them, encouraging them, to do what was right in the Lord. Notice he said that he was confident they were full of goodness, with all knowledge, and able to admonish one another. Sometimes Wendi and I will remind our kids of something that they already know. We remind them because they have a tendency to forget. They will say to us I know, but then totally forget to do what they said they knew. Paul believes the things that he is speaking are things that they know, but he wants to remind them. I think it would also help those who are admonishing the brethren to feel like what they were doing was a good thing. Paul is reminding to admonish one another. So when they do admonish one another, they have a license to do so. It helps when you re admonishing the team to know that the coaching staff has encouraged you to do so. Vs. 16 that I might be a minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. Paul calls himself a minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles... The word here for minister is different than the word typically used for minister. It s usually the word deacon. But here it s connected to the priesthood like one who is handling spiritual things that only a priest can handle. Vs. 17 Therefore I have reason to glory in Christ Jesus in the things which pertain to God. Paul was ministering the things that pertain to God. In verse 16 he uses the words offering, acceptable, and sanctified. Paul understands the platform that he has been given he sees the great privilege and responsibility to that calling. He has been sent to deliver the hope of salvation to the Gentiles. Copyright 2012 Chris Fraley 5

6 Something that was in the master plan of God from the beginning, and Paul is getting the great privilege to handle spiritual things, to handle the master plan of God for the Gentile nations. I remember delivering Oakley sunglass bags to Oakley. There were tens of thousands of dollars in that truck, as my brother-in-law and I drove and delivered them to Irvine. You and I have the great privilege to handle spiritual truths from God Himself, and be the delivery boy to a people who have not yet heard. Paul also pointed out that when the Gentiles were living for the glory of God, that it was a type of offering that was being lifted up to the Lord. That s how He would measure the success of the ministry. Were the Gentiles living for the glory of God? If so, then he was doing his job. Vs For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ has not accomplished through me, in word and deed, to make the Gentiles obedient in mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and round about to Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. Paul was only interested in those things that God had done through him, he s not interested in trying to bring attention to himself the theme here is he wants to celebrate what God has done. There are three principles here that we should make note of 1. In word For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:13-14 & 17 (NKJV) Copyright 2012 Chris Fraley 6

7 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. 1 Corinthians 1:21 (NKJV) God chose to use His Word, and the one who preaches the Word, as a way for faith to be imparted, as a way for the Gospel of salvation to be presented. It s how it worked in the early church. And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness. Acts 4:31 (NKJV) It s also how the Lord works in the last days of the church. I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name. Revelation 3:8 (NKJV) It s the Word of God that when used properly, can be the very tool that God uses to bring transformation to the heart, to the church, even to the community that we live in. For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Hebrews 4:12 (NKJV) 2. In deed It was not only the preaching of God s Word in word, but also in deed. Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. James 1:21-22 (NKJV) Copyright 2012 Chris Fraley 7

8 It was not just a message to be delivered, but it was also a relationship that was to be experienced and modeled. And that relationship would affect their relationships with one another. But then Paul also adds there was a demonstration of power that came from the Holy Spirit. 3. Mighty signs and wonders accomplished through the power of the Holy Spirit You almost sense here that Paul saw that just preaching the Gospel without the miraculous work of the Spirit would fall short of what God wanted to do in the life of the believer. And these signs will follow those who believe And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Mark 16:17 & 20 (NKJV) Copyright 2012 Chris Fraley 8