“A Call To Community” (Part Two)

This week we are considering Paul’s challenge to the church. It forms a “Call to Community” with strong counsel on how to deal with relationships in the family of God, and does so by issuing three distinct calls in Romans 15:1-7.

Yesterday we saw the call to compassion. Today we consider:

A Call To Endurance (vv.4-6)

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. (5) May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, (6) that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

So, what does this have to do with endurance? Everything, because Paul describes the very nature of what that endurance needs to look like and how it needs to work!

A. From the Scriptures (“what was written”)- we have been given this wonderful, fabulous, indescribable resource in the Bible to instruct us—why? So that we can endure in life with encouragement and hope! This is a reinforcing of what Paul had already written in 5:3-5:

More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

As we examine the scriptures, we can see the witness of lives that have suffered far more than most of us ever will, yet they endured—that drives us to hope in God’s ability to work on our behalf as well!

B. For harmony- with one another, in accord with Christ. And what will it take for the average group of average believers with average issues and average attitudes to live in harmony? Paul says it—it can only come from the God of endurance and encouragement! That tells us two critical things:

• It is absolutely impossible for us to simply “man up” and “just get along”
• It is absolutely possible for God to so dramatically work in the lives of His people so that, in His endurance and encouragement, we can get along!

We just have to make some choices—beginning with what our attitude will be toward the other people (other than ourselves) that Christ died for!

C. With unity- together, one voice glorifying God! Now, Paul really starts meddling. He is not content with us to just live in harmony because God makes us—he is determined that we be the Body of Christ. He is determined that we become this marvelously diverse assembly of people who all speak with one voice—and God is glorified by that voice! We tend to dismiss that voice when it doesn’t serve our purposes, but that is not an option to the child of God. We are called to endure—with one heart, one mind, and one voice.

The Call to Endurance: This is INTERNAL—and produces glory. We’ll see the final element of this call tomorrow.