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The Grace of Jesus Be with You
The Grace of Jesus Be with You Romans 16:1-27 Key Verse: 16:20 “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.” Today we are finishing our study of Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome. This letter is certainly the best explanation of the gospel message every written. In short it says that, without exception, all men are sinners. Everyone deserves to have God’s wrath poured out on them and receive eternal punishment for their sins. However, God, in his great mercy, presented Jesus as a sacrifice of atonement for our sins. Through faith, those who confess Jesus as their Lord and Savior receive the forgiveness of sins, eternal life and the kingdom of God as their inheritance. Now, we have peace with God; we have joy and the hope of glory. In addition, we have been grafted into God’s redemptive history by God’s grace alone; this means that God has given each of us a priestly duty to bring the gospel to the world. We must live up to this great priestly duty by preaching the gospel and practicing its teachings in our daily lives. Paul always had God’s world mission vision in his heart, so he had a great desire to visit the church at Rome on his way to Spain. I believe it was his hope to establish that church as the world mission headquarters of the early Christian church. However, Paul was not just a visionary. He was a shepherd who was deeply concerned with people. He did not see people as mere tools with which to fulfill God’s plan, but as precious children of God. He saw them with great affection and deep respect. This is revealed in today’s passage. This entire chapter is Paul’s final greeting for his letter to the Romans. Usually when someone writes a letter in English they will end with one of three final greetings: “Sincerely,” “Yours Truly,” or “Cordially.” However, in Paul’s final greeting, he greets 28 different persons by name (one he calls Rufus’ mother and another he calls Nereus’ sister), and five other groups of people as well. As a conclusion to Romans study, let’s try to grasp the main point of the whole book and hold one word of God in our hearts. May God bless our study today. First, Paul commends Phoebe (1-2). Look at verses 1-2. “I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae. I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of his people and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been the benefactor of many people, including me.” In the old NIV Phoebe is referred to as “a servant of the church in Cenchrea,” but in the new version she is called a deacon, which simply means a servant-leader in the church. This means that her role in the church was not limited to cooking and cleaning; it must have included Bible teaching, shepherding and praying for other church members as well. Paul respected and trusted her enough to deliver this very important letter. We must remember that Corinth was very far away from Rome (1,195 km according to Google map), so Phoebe may not have been known to many of the Roman Christians. Therefore, Paul commended Phoebe, that is, he recommended that Phoebe “Be received in the Lord in a way worthy of his people.” (There is a difference here between the old and new NIV as well – the old NIV says “…in a way worthy of the saints.”) Paul recognized Phoebe as a woman of God, and in fact, one of God’s saints, and he asked the Roman Christians to view her in the same way, giving her any help and hospitality that they could. Women like Phoebe are precious in God’s work. We must honor and respect them, and make an environment in which they can work. Second, “greetings” (3-24). Look at verse 3. It begins with the word “greet.” Paul says, “greet” 17 times in verses 3-16 to 28 named persons and five groups of people. The word “greetings” appears 4 times in verses 16-24. These greetings are from “All the churches of Christ” and Paul’s coworkers who were with him in Corinth. This letter is full of greetings. What did Paul mean by, “greet,” or “send greetings?” When Paul sent his greeting to God’s people, he was not just saying, “hello.” Look at verse 16a, “Greet one another with a holy kiss.” Maybe we should not take this too literally. However, it teaches us that Paul’s greeting came from holy affection. Paul said in Philippians 1:8, "God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus." Paul was giving the affection of Christ to his coworkers. Paul’s greeting was spiritual. In the last verse of his letter to the Galatians, 6:18, Paul says, "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen." Again, in Philippians 4:23 Paul says, "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen." Here, when we see the word greetings we must think of the words of 16:20b, “The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.” This greeting uplifted the spirits of the recipients. How we greet others is really important. Failure to greet others properly has caused many unnecessary arguments. Christians must master how to greet others, especially in the body of Christ. To do so, we must remember the grace of Jesus. We must be filled with the Holy Spirit. Third, Priscilla and Aquila and the house church (3-5). Look at verses 3-4. “Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus. They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.” Priscilla and Aquila are mentioned several times in the Bible (Ac 18:2-3,18-19,26; 1Cor 16:19; 2Ti 4:19). So who were they? They were Jews from Pontus who immigrated to Rome. They lived in Rome until A.D. 49, when Emperor Claudius expelled all Jews from Rome. Then they went to Corinth, where they met Paul. Like Paul, they were tentmakers, so they worked together and stayed together. They also became spiritual coworkers in Christ Jesus. They must have accepted Paul’s vision for world salvation based on the word of God because later, they followed Paul to Ephesus, leaving their business and property behind and starting all over again. Paul says, “They risked their lives for me.” They had a life-giving spirit and a life commitment to the work of God. They were Jews, but they served the Gentiles together with Paul. All the Gentiles were grateful to them. While in Ephesus, Priscilla and Aquila heard a scholarly messenger named Apollos preaching the baptism of John. His messages were excellent, but they were always about repenting. Every message was missing the part about the grace that Jesus offered when people did repent – his messages were missing the main point of the gospel. Priscilla and Aquila realized that he lacked the grace and spirituality of the cross. They did not try to correct him publicly, but invited him to their home and taught him the way of God more adequately. They helped him to know Jesus’ saving grace, the work of the Holy Spirit, and the practical love of God. They were shepherds and Bible teachers. Look at verse 5a. “Greet also the church that meets at their house.” Wherever Priscilla and Aquila went, they opened their home to be used as a “house church.” They had a house church in Corinth, in Ephesus, and in Rome. They gathered Christians or truth-seekers, taught the word of God to them, and gave them delicious food. An open door, open arms, and open hearts were the characteristics of their lives. Their house was also a place for prayer for coworkers throughout the world. When I think of their house I remember Jesus’ words in Mark 11:17b, “My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.” When we review church history, there is no record of a formal church buildings until the end of the second century. Rather, house churches, like that of Priscilla and Aquila, were the whole church of God. Notice that Paul did not address them as, “Aquila's family.” He said, “Priscilla and Aquila” – wife first. In a house church the wife's role is very important, because of this Paul saw them with equal honor and respect. In UBF the words “house church” are familiar to us – we use this term to describe a marriage. Yet probably the best example of a house church is that of Mother Barry’s home. Her front door is always open. She has led countless Bible studies in in her living room for many years. It has become a source of blessing for people around the world. Dr. Samuel Lee and Missionary Grace A. Lee also offered their home to serve many guests, sometimes for weeks and months. After Dr. Samuel Lee went home to his heavenly reward, Missionary Grace continued this house church tradition by welcoming Shepherdess Louise Wicken from London, England to stayed there for nearly one year. Through this Shepherdess Louise received much grace; she was strengthened to serve God as a mother of prayer for England and start a house church of her own with a man of God. There are countless examples of house churches in UBF around the world opening up their homes to pray with, study the Bible with, and even live with young people who need to meet God personally. Many wounded young people have been healed through these house churches, and, in turn, they have established their own house churches. In this age of the mega-church, we must remember that the house church of Priscilla and Aquila is the Biblical standard. Therefore, mature house church families must go out and pioneer new campuses until campuses around the world all have their own house church. Recently we have heard that China is changing through Christian house churches. Let’s pray for China, the Muslim world, and North Korea, that we can send small, humble house churches to all of their college campuses and change them into God’s holy nation one student at a time. Look at verse 5b. “Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia.” In any pioneering work, the first convert is very precious. It requires a special element of faith and courage to be the first believer in a region. This person becomes a sign of God’s work and encourages hope for future ministry. In Sudan, Shepherd Oyer Moses is like Epenetus. In India, Missionary Matthew Singh is like Epenetus among Hindu people. In Kazakhstan, Shepherdess Maria is like Epenetus among Muslims. UBF missionaries worldwide pray for one ancestor of faith. We, too, must pray persistently until God raises one “Epenetus” in of our personal ministries. Fourth, the saints in Rome (6-16). In verses 6-16, Paul greets many Roman Christians by name. Let’s think about some of them. Look at verse 6. “Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.” Who was Mary? We don’t know, but Paul knew her, and he said she worked “very hard for you.” Think about how hard Paul worked. If Paul said someone worked “very hard for you,” just try to imagine how hard this woman worked. Mary must have been a great woman. Look at verse 7. “Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.” Paul was a great apostle who had met the Risen Christ personally. His mission was great, but he did not exalt himself before his seniors. He had a deep respect for his seniors because they were in Christ before he was. He was genuinely humble. Look at verse 8. “Greet Ampliatus, whom I love in the Lord.” In verse 9, Paul calls Stachys “my dear friend.” Paul addresses them with the deep affection of our Lord Jesus Christ. We should express our affection of Christ for coworkers like Paul did. Sometimes we are too shy to do so, but Paul openly confessed his love to them in a public letter. Look at verse 10a. “Greet Apelles, tested and approved in Christ.” In the old testament, Joseph was tested and approved repeatedly until he became a shepherd to Pharaoh and prime minister of Egypt. Paul recognized Apelles as a great man of God, tested and approved in Christ. Look at verse 12. “Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord.” The names Tryphena and Tryphosa mean “dainty” and “delicate” – these words are used for very expensive things. They were probably from the privileged Roman elite, but their lives were empty and seemed meaningless. Then they heard the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ. They found the meaning of life, the joy of life and their true object of worship. They exchanged worldly glory for eternal glory in the kingdom of God. Then they began to work hard in Christ until they were recognized by Apostle Paul. Paul also remembered Rufus and his mother. Rufus may have been the son of Simon of Cyrene who was forced to help Jesus carry his cross. His mother, then, would have been Simon’s wife. Perhaps she had been there at the crucifixion and seen Jesus entrust his mother’s care to John and John’s care to her. Maybe, she had acted as a mother to Paul at one time. I don’t know, but Paul remember to greet them with the grace of Jesus. Fifth, the God of peace will crush Satan and Jesus’ grace will be with you (17-24). In verses 17-19, Paul warns the Christians in Rome to watch out for those who cause divisions. Why? Well, in John 17, Jesus prays for all Christians in this way, “I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” We are in a spiritual battle against the devil who does his best to weaken the Christian fellowship through division. Sometimes there is nothing we can do but watch and pray, but in the end, God gives final victory. Paul had assurance of God’s victory in the Roman church so he prayed, like Jesus, that they would be one with no divisions. Now let’s read our key verse again, 20. “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.” This verse is short but it summarizes, in a sense, the whole Bible. This is also our daily prayer. As God had promised, God sent his one and only Son as the Savior of the world to crush the head of Satan and give us the final victory. We also pray that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ will be with us always. When we look at people of the world we cannot find happiness. We see all around us the ugliness that fallen man can possess. We become too tired and weary to look at our world and the people in it, but when we look at our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross shedding his blood, we remember his grace that he died for the sin of the world as a Paschal Lamb. Sometimes we become selfish and our hearts are hardened and we cannot see the grace of God, but when we stand beneath the cross and look at him we realize the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. When we have the grace of Jesus Christ in our hearts the world looks different and each person looks beautiful. So Paul prayed, "the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you." The final greeting of Paul was, "The grace of our Lord be with you," to 28 individual persons and five groups of people. May God help us to seek the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ moment by moment. Look at verse 21. “Timothy, my co-worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my fellow Jews.” Paul not only sends his own greetings to Rome, but he also sends greetings on behalf of his coworkers who were with him in Corinth. Tertius, who transcribed the letter, Gaius, who provided a home for Paul in Corinth, and even the director of public works for the city of Corinth, Erastus, sent their greetings to their brothers and sisters in Rome. Sixth, to God be the glory (25-27). Look at verses 25-27. “Now to him who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey him–to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.” This is the conclusion of Romans. As we have studied, Paul wanted to visit Rome and impart a spiritual gift to make them strong. He wanted to have a fruitful harvest there, but it was uncertain that he could go there. Nonetheless, Paul believed that God would establish a world mission headquarters in Rome. Paul’s faith was rooted in the absolute sovereignty of God Almighty and his glorious world salvation plan revealed in the Bible. God wants all nations to believe and obey him. This had been hidden in God’s heart from eternity. Yet it was fully revealed through the coming of Christ. Paul caught God’s vision that the kingdom of God would come on earth as it is in heaven. Paul could only praise God as the conclusion of his letter. Through Romans study, let’s pray to have absolute gospel faith. Let’s pray to have God’s vision burning in our hearts. Let’s pray to have the affection of Christ Jesus, and advance God’s kingdom one person at a time. |
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