Your Parts in Christ's Mission

Romans fifteen. We're gonna be in verses eight through thirty three,

and then one more chapter, and then that's Romans unbelievable.

Bob Okay, I think it's unbelievable. Let's read Romans fifteen,

eight through thirty three. You can read along as I

read aloud. For I tell you that Christ became a

servant to the circumcised to show God's truthfulness, in order

to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, and in

order that the gentiles might glorify God for his mercy.

As it is written, Therefore, therefore I will praise you

among the gentiles and sing your name. And again it

has said, rejoice, o Gentiles with his people. And again

praise the Lord, all you gentiles, and let all the

peoples extol him. And again Isaiah says, the root of

Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the gentiles.

In him, will the gentiles hope. May the God of

Hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,

so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you

may abound in hope. I myself am satisfied about you,

my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled

with all knowledge and able to instruct one another. But

on some points I have written to you very boldly

by way of reminder, because of the grace given me

by God to be a minister of Christ Jesus to

the gentiles in the priestly service of the Gospel of God,

so that the offering of the gentiles may be acceptable

sanctified by the Holy Spirit in Christ Jesus. Then I

have reason to be proud of my work for God,

for I will not venture to speak of anything except

that which Christ has accomplished through me, to bring the

gentiles to obedience by word and deed, by the power

of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit

of God, so that from Jerusalem all the way to Illyricum,

I have fulfilled the ministry of the Gospel of Christ.

And thus I make it my ambition to preach the

Gospel not where Christ has already been named, lest I

build on someone else's foundation. But as it is written,

those who have never been told of Him will see,

those who've never heard will understand. This is the reason

why I've so often been hindered from coming to you.

But now since I no longer have any room for

work in these regions. And since I have longed for

many years to come to you, I hope to see

you in passing as I go to Spain, and to

be helped on my journey there by you. Once I

have enjoyed your company for a while. At present, however,

I'm going to Jerusalem bringing aid to the saints. For

Macedonia and Ikaya have been pleased to make some contribution

for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem if they

were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it

to them. For if the gentiles have come to share

in their spiritual blessings, they ought to also be of

service to them in material blessing. When therefore I have

completed this and I have delivered to them what has

been collected, I will leave for Spain by way of you.

I know that when I come to you, I will

come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ. I

appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ, by

the love of the Spirit, to strive to gather with

me in your prayers to God on my behalf, that

I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and

that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints,

so that by God's will, I may come to you

with joy and be refreshed in your company. May the

God of Peace be with you all amen. One of

the funnest conversations I've gotten to have with my kids

when they were very little is, you know, as they're

growing up and they come to understand that, yeah, I'm

their dad, but I'm also their mom's husband. Right. They're

starting to wrap around their mind around that. Then they

spend a little time with their grandparents and I go,

all right, so who's that And they go owe me, Yeah,

you know how, you're my son, I'm her son. They're

like just kind of blowing their minds a little bit

that I've got several roles in this family. There's different

ways you can see these angles, and similar to that,

Paul in this passage, this Romans fifteen passage, he just

takes the camera angle and he shifts it several times,

causing us to be aware that if we belong to Christ,

we have a variety of roles to play. Might blow

our minds a little bit as we consider them. If

you belong to Jesus Christ, you have a role to

play in his mission. In fact, you have more than one.

We're gonna look at three of them as we look

at Romans fifteen, and we just asked a question as

we go, what parts do I have to play in

the mission of Christ? What parts do I have to

play in the mission of Christ? At least three? Here's

the first. The mission of Christ involves you as a

recipient of hope, hope even for you. That's your first role.

Hope even for you. See that in verses eight through thirteen.

We'll put it up on the slide, even for you, hope,

even for you. If you actually, if you look at

verses twelve and thirteen, you see those key words in him,

will the gentile hope. May the God of Hope fill

you with all joy and peace and believing, so that

by the power of the Holy Spirit, you may abound

in hope, in hope. Hope that you, in grace and forgiveness,

would be reconciled to the Living God. Hope that you

would increase in victory over sin and selfishness as you

grow in becoming like Christ. Hope in God's promise to

one day make all things new, without sin or pain

or death. Where people from every tribe, tongue, and nation

are truly obeying Him and worshiping Him forever. That's where

this is all headed. If you're him, you are recipient

of hope, even you. For some of you, the fact

that it's even you is like, oh yeah me. For others,

it's like unreal. Let me just say the latter group

is closer to the mark. That's Paul's point in this

whole first section is that, unbelievably, God's mission has always

been about every kind of person, even you. Right. He

starts with this word four verse eight four because that's

connected to last week. He's saying, because we're going to

be coming from all kinds of cultures and all kinds

of backgrounds, and all kinds of families, and all kinds

of sins and all kinds of mistakes, we're going to

have very different understandings of what's okay with our consciences.

Remember that from last week. If you were here and

you remember, just give me this. I'm with you. You're

with me, all right. So because of that, I tell

you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to

Israel to show God's truthfulness, in order to confirm the

promises to the patriarchs. Right what did he promise Abraham

that through Abraham all the nations of the world would

be blessed? And in order verse nine, and in order

that the gentiles, even you might glorify God for his mercy.

Do you know what central to Christ's mission is that

even you in San Antonio, Texas, ends of the earth,

San Antonio, Texas, are glorifying God for his mercy mission Christ,

his entry point in the world was Israel, to show

mercy throughout the world, that God would be glorified all

over the world, including ends of the earth, San Antonio, Texas,

even by you. So if you are are raising your

voice in glorifying God with genuine worship and adoration, you

are actually demonstrating the accomplishment of the mission of Christ

right here, right here on Sunday morning. Or if you

were there on Wednesday night, Man, if you weren't, just

to say you missed it. As we had our prayer service,

prayer and praise service. That praise service, it was loud,

even you coming from the family that you're coming from,

coming from the background that you're coming from, even you

coming from the sins and the mistakes that you're coming from.

If you are singing in genuine praise, glorifying God for

his mercy that is central to Christ's mission. This is

mission accomplished, at least in part hope even for you.

And Paul says, this has always been the mission. That's

what he's saying with the rest of these verses in

this section is as he quotes these Old Testament passages,

it seems like he's like saying the same thing over

and over again, like four different times from the Old Testament.

Right Therefore, I praise you among the gentiles. You understand

what he's doing when you realize where these quotes are

coming from. He says. The first one is from David.

It's David's last song, and he's saying, even the Jewish

King in his last song, recognize that hope for the

entire world, even you, was a part of the mission

from the beginning. The vision from the beginning was even you.

And then the next quote is from Moses, Paul saying,

even the Jewish lawgiver, even Moses saw from the very

beginning the mission was always to include the whole world,

even you. And then the third quote is from the Psalms.

Even the Jewish hymn book saw from the very beginning

that the mission, the vision was always to include all

the whole world, including even you. And the fourth is

from Isaiah, even the great Jewish prophet saw from his

time that the mission of Christ was to include all

kinds of people, from all kinds of places, including you

in San Antonio, Texas. Hope even for you. That's the

first part you play in christ mission. You're a recipient

of hope. If you're not a Christian, you should know.

And the New Testament makes pains to show you. There

is nothing about you that keeps you from hope in Christ.

There is nothing about your background. There is nothing about

your education, there is nothing about your culture. There's nothing

about your sins and mistakes of the past. There is

nothing about you that keeps you from hope in Christ.

From the very beginning, the mission has all that the

hope of Christ would reach all kinds of people everywhere,

from all kinds of backgrounds, even you. And that's the

first way that Christ's mission of hope has to do

with you. If you're his, you're a recipient of hope.

But you're not just a recipient of hope. Just like

I'm not just my kid's dad, I'm also their mom's husband.

You have another role to play. If you are a

recipient of this hope, then you are a participant in

the proclaiming of this hope. And that's the next kind

of shift in the camera angle that we see, as

Paul writes to the Romans, We'll put it this way,

hope proclaimed through you, Hope proclaimed through you. The next

several verses, Paul gives us an example of the kind

of mission we are a part of with Christ. With Christ. Now,

I say he gives us an example of the kind

of mission because in some ways Paul's role is a

bit unique to Paul. When you say, I mean his

work was attested with signs and wonders as an apostle.

You see that his work was set apart for him,

that he would be the apostle to the Gentiles specifically,

and in those places where Christ had never been named before.

That's unique. Yeah, they're waiting for the butt. But there

are so many ways in which his proclamation of hope

and our role of proclamation of hope are the same.

Let's look at some of those. First of all, this

Paul says this odd thing. In verse seventeen, he says

he has reason to be proud of his work for God.

Verse twenty says he is ambitious. Doesn't that strike you

as odd? Right? Things like pride and ambitions seem instantly ungodly.

It can be if our pride is ultimately in ourselves,

if our ambitions are ultimately for ourselves. But as much

as Paul desires to bear much fruit, to be the

sharpest instrument he can be in God's hands, he makes

it clear this isn't ultimately about him. What does he

say in verse eighteen? What does he say? For I

will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ

has accomplished through me. What Christ has accomplished through me,

It is the spirit of Christ at work through you.

That is the proclamation of hope when you open up

your mouth, Christ accomplishing his work, and the one who

supplies the power gets the glory. By the way, he says,

there are those who would have no background to see

the light of the truth of Christ. And yet, and

then he quotes Isaiah fifty two. He says, those who

have never been told of him will see, those who

have never heard will understand. Right God is speaking to

Isaiah at this point, saying, Hey, there are the people

that you've been prophesying to. They should get it, but

they don't. There and then there are those gonna be

those people who shouldn't get it. They don't have the background,

they haven't they haven't seen what these people have seen.

They haven't heard what these people have heard. But even

though they don't have it, they're gonna get it. Their

eyes will be open. And let me just say, like you,

you might feel like you aren't able to proclaim hope

to some people because they don't you're not sure that

they could even understand what you're saying. Just get started,

open up your health. Christ has a way of accomplishing

the opening of eyes. That's true for all of us,

not just Paul, right, it's for all of us. Paul

just calls himself a minister of Christ in priestly service.

That's the same way that the New Testament talks about

all believers, saying that we are priests to our God,

that we are ministers of reconciliation God making his appeal

through us be reconciled to God. That's your job, that's

your role. That's a part that you play in this mission.

Hope proclaimed through you, and the one who provides the

power gets the glory. Christ is alive and at work

through you. He is right now softening some people and

you don't even see it. He is right now humbling

hearts around you. He's right now preparing soil. He is

emboldening you. He's giving you courage to speak boldly. Christ

died and was raised not just to give you hope

in believing, but also to proclaim hope through you, and

he's doing it. That is what's happening. When you open

up your mouth with an appeal of reconciliation to God

through the Gospel, be reconciled to God, Christ himself blaming

hope through you, and you can be proud and ambitious

that Christ would be at work as you open your mouth.

Whether they seem to have enough of him, are they

have seen, maybe even to have already heard it all?

Are you willing to let hope be proclaimed through you? You

maybe hears someone who's living without this hope. Are you

willing to let hope be proclaimed to you? Not just

by me, not just by maybe somebody who you came

with today. Are you willing to open your ears and

open your heart to a risen savior who is proclaiming

hope to your soul through the words of another, that

you can be reconciled to God, that you can stand

in grace before a living God. Will you trust him

for hope. So those are the first two roles that

you have in this mission of Christ. You are first

of all a recipient of hope. You're second of all

a participant in proclaiming that hope. Here's the third role

you have. Put it this way, hope spread by us

all together, including you. Hope spread by us all together,

including you, all over the Bible, especially in these paragraphs.

What we see is that our involvement in the mission

of Christ is always and has always been a team effort.

It's a team effort. Right away he gets started in

verse twenty two, he's saying like, Hey, I've been working

over here. Way he puts it, I love it. It's

like I've been wanting to come to you. I've been

wanting to hang out. I love you guys, even though

I've never met you yet. But I've been wanting to

get over there, and I've been hindered because I've had

this work over here where I've been proclaiming Christ where

he's never been named. But now I'm done. My work

is done in these regions. The Gospel has been proclaimed.

And so I'm gonna come see you, because when I

get there, I hope to be able to hang out

and be refreshed by you, and for you to send

me to Spain. And although he doesn't say it directly,

I think there's an understanding between him and the Roman

Church that it's going to be expensive. I need your help.

It's a team effort. We're in this together, then he says,

but before I get there, there's this other team effort

thing that I'm in the middle of the team in Macedonia,

and the team and IKEA have collected up some money

to send to the team in Jerusalem, and they've sent

it by way of me, and they the people in

Jerusalem they really need it. So I'm in the middle

of that part of this team work. And then when

I finish with that, I'm gonna come see you, and

I'm expect you to support me in sending me to Spain,

because we're all in this together. And when I come

Verse twenty nine, I expect to come in the fullness

of the blessing of Christ. In other words, it's gonna

be great. We're all gonna hang out as team Jesus.

Then he says this, I appeal to you, strive together

with me in your prayers. Strive together with me. He's

expecting them to strive together with him in support and

strive together with him and encouragement. And here, strive together

with him in prayer. One that I don't get arrested

in Jerusalem because that's where most of the wanded posters

for Paul are. And two that I get to be

with you, enjoy and refreshment as team Jesus. Because we're

all in this together. We strive together. And it just

reminds me of so many aspects of our work together.

Planting churches here in San Antonio. Yeah, Lord willing next year,

planting two more churches here in San Antonio. Seamus Drake, right,

Tony Oleajo, Yeah yeah. If you hadn't heard, yes, give

Shamus a hug and Tony two And as we send

them out, listen as we send them out. What you

have to realize is there are dozens of churches whose

pastors are coming here or connecting with these church planters

to train them for church planting. It's a team effort.

We strive together. There are hundreds of churches that are

all pitching in to help fund that training and fund

those plants. It's a team effort. We strive together. The

money that we collect here is also going into planting.

Do you realize ten other churches all over the world

as we strive together. It's a total team effort here

in our congregation. There are probably twenty parachurch ministries that

are represented here of staff people and high level leaders,

people that are serving in foster family equipping, in teen outreach,

in reaching international students, pastors, for preaching. It's a team effort.

We're all striving together outside of the walls of this church.

This mission of Christ is one that we do together

as a team, and inside the walls of this church

as well as we go to small group. But this

small group is not just about growing yourself. It's about

helping other people grow as well. We strive together on

this mission in our ministry. Teams, as you help to

if you as you help families, parents make disciples of

their little ones and medium sized ones. It's a team effort.

It is always and always has been striving together. Everyone

has parts to play. Those roles change, they develop, they grow. Listen.

If you're His you are not meant to be a spectator.

In fact, you have several roles. Like my kids were

surprised to learn I had several roles, You've got a few.

You are first and foremost a recipient of hope, but

you're also a participant in proclaiming that hope all while

you assist others in spreading that hope all over the world. So,

as a recipient, glorify Him, lift your voices. Remember verse nine.

That's mission accomplished, least in part all by itself. When

you glorify God for his mercy. The mission of Christ

is that is meeting its end. It's meeting its goal

in you, with just your face lit up, glorifying God

for his mercy, and as a participant in the proclamation,

just open your mouth and let hope be proclaimed through you.

Jesus Christ is the one who's at work. And as

you assist others strive together in prayer and in support

and an encouragement, as the mission of Christ gathers those

who are His. You have several parts to play.