Sunday School Notes: Romans 15:28-33

²⁸ Therefore, having finished this, and having set the seal on this fruit to them, I shall depart via you to Spain. ²⁹ And I know that when I come to you, I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ. ³⁰ I exhort you, [brothers], through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, to contend with me in prayers on my behalf to God, ³¹ such that I may be delivered from the disobedient [or unbelievers] in Judea, and my service in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, ³² so that coming to you in joy, through the will of God, I may rest with you. ³³ And the God of peace [be] with all of you. Amen.

We noted back in verse 24 that Paul started out talking about his plans to go to Spain, and then was sidetracked into explaining his visit to the church in Rome and about the collection for the Jerusalem saints. Now, in verse 28, he returns to the point he left hanging back in 24: once he has done what he needs to do in Jerusalem, he’ll drop in on the Roman church, and then on to Spain. This further emphasizes the fact that 1) his stop in Rome is not a full-scale ministry trip (though no doubt he will minister there), and 2) it is for pleasure–to fulfill his desire to spend some time with the church in Rome. He is not planning to stay for an extended period, building on someone else’s work.

The language Paul uses in this verse is a little odd: “set the seal on this fruit”–what does he mean by this? In the previous verse, Paul used the Greek verb leitourgeô speaking of “serving” the Gentiles in material things. This is liturgical language, the language of the temple priest performing his ministry. Perhaps Paul is carrying on this idea in his use of the word “fruit,” like the offering spoken of in Leviticus 27:30, where every tithe, whether of the seed of the land or the fruit of the tree is the Lord’s, and is holy to Him. The “fruit” Paul is speaking of is, therefore, the financial gift of the Gentiles to the Jerusalem church. It is their sacrificial offering to their Jewish brethren in their time of need.

As for “setting the seal” on the gift, I think this is a reference to Paul both assuring the churches that the gift will get to the Jerusalem church, and also personally vouching for both the gift and the givers to the believers in Jerusalem. In 1 Corinthians 16:1-4, Paul encourages the Corinthian church to take up an offering for the Jerusalem church; I believe this is their part of the same gift Paul is talking about in Romans 15. He asks the Corinthians to select worthy men to accompany their offering, but also indicates that he himself might take the gift. Now, in Romans, Paul is certain that he will take the gift himself. Perhaps sometime between 1 Corinthians 16 and Romans 15, Paul read or heard something that raised his concern for the safe delivery of this monetary contribution, such that he needed to take it himself. Perhaps the Gentile churches expressed the desire for Paul to see it safely to Jerusalem. Maybe he and they felt that it would only be accepted by the Jerusalem church is Paul himself took it. Whatever the case, by now Paul clearly believed he needed to be the one to take it.

Paul notes again in verse 29 how his visit to Rome will be one of mutual blessing (see also Romans 1:11-12). Since Paul had been hindered from visiting before this time, if God enables him to fulfill his desire, it will be a sign of His blessing on the endeavor. As we have seen, Paul not only expects to impart a blessing of the Lord to the saints in Jerusalem both in terms of his presence, and the gift, but he expects to be blessed by them. In this way, the blessing of Christ will be full.

Verse 30 starts a brief section where Paul asks for prayer. This is not unusual–Paul includes prayer requests in his letters to the Ephesians (6:18ff), Colossians (4:2-4), and Thessalonians (5:25). In these prayer requests, we get a bit more insight into Paul’s concerns for the trip to Jerusalem (and, again, why he may feel it necessary to take the gift himself). He exhorts (Greek: parakaleô)–not simply asks–the Roman church, both Jew and Gentile, to pray for him. Paul underscores the seriousness of this prayer in three ways. First, he asks for prayer “through our Lord Jesus Christ”–that is, through the Lord who saved them, the Lord they all serve, and in whom the church is united. Second, he asks for prayer “through the love of the Spirit,” not just “in the Spirit.” The love the brethren have for one another is Spirit-born; it is not something we can conjure up within ourselves. Paul recognizes that any unity in the church comes as God the Holy Spirit works in the lives of His people. It is this love of the brethren that binds the church together, both those within the same city, and those in other countries. Even though Paul, and the Jerusalem saints, were just names and stories to many in the Roman church, God the Holy Spirit places within the hearts of all Christians a love for the brethren that transcends distance and personal acquaintance. Paul appeals to that love, that the saints in Rome would pray for him earnestly, despite the fact they don’t really know him, and many of them have never seen him. Similarly, we should pray for missionaries, and believers in other cities and countries, with the same Spirit-given love of the brethren.

Finally, Paul doesn’t just ask them to pray for him, but he urges them to “contend with me in prayer.” He uses the verb sunagônizomai, which is made up of the verb agônizô, with the prefix sun-. The sense of agônizô is that of fighting, struggling, or engaging in conflict. It’s where we get the English word “agonize.” The sun- prefix simply means “with.” Paul is invitingt the Roman brethren to engage in struggle with him by praying for him. This is the language of spiritual warfare. The conflict between Jew and Gentile within the church was certainly damaging, but in this, and in the persecution of the church by the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem, Paul also recognized the hidden battle raging, as the enemies of the faith sought to bring down the work of God and undermine the gospel.

The nature of the spiritual battle comes out in verse 31, as Paul explains what they need to pray for: 1) his deliverance from the unbelievers in Jerusalem, and 2) the acceptance of the gift by the Jerusalem church. Acts 21:15-17, 27-32, and 23:12-15 provide insight into Paul’s request. In those passages we see what actually transpired when Paul went to Jerusalem. He was received by the brethren there, and he was warned about how his teachings were being understood by the Jewish people. The church encouraged Paul to show good faith to the Jews, but the hard-liners (i.e., the “unbelievers”) just wanted him dead. Paul ended up being put in chains by the Romans for his own protection, and he actually left Jerusalem for Rome under Roman guard. So it turned out that Paul’s concern for his safety on this trip was well-founded

The “service” Paul refers to is, no doubt, the collection for the Jerusalem church. Given his experience with Rome and Galatia, Paul knew it was not a given that the offering from the Gentiles would be accepted by the Jewish believers. However, this display of solidarity from the Gentiles to their Jewish brethren was very important to Paul. And if the Jewish saints in Jerusalem received the gift, not only would this help them out physically, but it would also show their acknowledgement and acceptance of their Gentile brethren, something that has been on Paul’s heart this entire letter. As we see in Acts, Paul’s prayer was answered positively.

In verse 32, Paul again expresses his expectation that he will come to the Roman believers “in joy,” and that he will “rest” with them. But notice he adds “through the will of God,” and this turned out to be a very important caveat. Things did not go quite as Paul expected. Without doubt, he anticipated trouble in Jerusalem, but his hope was that he would leave Jerusalem after meeting with the church there and delivering the gift, and then make a joyful stop in Rome, where he would have some time to rest and be refreshed before heading for Spain. Thanks to Luke’s record in Acts, we can compare Paul’s expectations with what actually happened:

• Was the gift received by the Jerusalem saints? Yes, I think we can assume it was from the account in Acts. Paul was received with gladness, though he was warned that the Jewish people were harboring ill-will toward him.
• Was Paul protected from the Jews in Jerusalem? Again, I think we can say, on the whole, yes–though not without being beaten and harassed. Given they wanted to kill him, I would say he was protected. But remember the form in which Paul’s protection came: Roman house arrest! This wasn’t exactly what Paul had in mind.
• Did Paul get to Rome? Once again, yes, but under Roman guard. The nature of his arrest would have been such that he was able to meet with the believers in Rome (see Acts 28:14-16; 30-31)–but this wasn’t quite the restful pit-stop he planned. Indeed, Paul could have been set free, except that the circumstances of his arrest gave him the opportunity to appeal directly to Caesar. Paul could have had a refreshing visit with the Roman church, and then sailed off to Spain, but instead, he traded this for the opportunity to present the gospel to the highest authority in the Roman Empire. Perhaps he saw in this a more fitting end to his Gentile ministry? Whatever he thought, he clearly saw the hand of God at work, and rather than being angry and frustrated, he embraced God’s will for him, and tried to make the most of the opportunity the Lord was giving him, for the sake of the gospel and the glory of God.

He finishes the section with a prayer that the God of peace be with all of them. This goes back to the theme of unity, and ending strife within the church. There is no reason for Jewish and Gentile believers to be quarreling. Paul’s prayer is that the God of peace would bring reconciliation to them. And no doubt he hoped this letter would be used by the Lord to help bring about that peace.

We will begin chapter 16, the final chapter, next time!