Romans 15:7 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.

NIV: Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.

NASB: Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us, for the glory of God.

CSB: Therefore accept one another, just as Christ also accepted you, to the glory of God.

NLT: Therefore, accept each other just as Christ has accepted you so that God will be given glory.

KJV: Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.

NKJV: Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God.

Paul has prayed for the unity and harmony of the church in Rome. Now he instructs them one more time to welcome each other as Christ has welcomed them. This is not merely a nice-sounding phrase to tack on the wall. Paul is commanding believers to fully accept and include other Christians in community with themselves, including those who disagree strongly about what is and is not permitted (Romans 14:1–2; 14:20–21). He is commanding them to set their Christ-won freedoms aside, if necessary, to build up the church (Romans 14:13).

Why would they do this? In the end, it is all to add to God's glory. Put negatively, a refusal to welcome Christians who disagree with my convictions will keep me from participating in bringing glory to God. It will keep me from achieving the very purpose of my life. Acting as if my own convictions are beyond doubt—as if I were infallible or beyond reproach—makes it difficult for me to appreciate God's holiness and majesty, let alone my own role in the body of Christ.

Romans 15:1–7 concludes Paul's teaching on how Christians with strong faith, those who understand their freedom from the law, should live with those of weaker faith. All Christians must please each other and not themselves. After all, Christ didn't come to please Himself. With God's help and encouragement, everyone in the church can live together in harmony and glorify God with one, unified voice, as they serve each other ahead of themselves. They must welcome each other as Christ has welcomed them.

Romans 15 begins with Paul's encouragement to those strong in faith: to please other Christians before themselves so the church can be unified. Christ came to fulfill God's promises to Israel and about the Gentiles. Paul is satisfied with the faith and practice of the Roman Christians. His work of taking the gospel to unreached regions of Gentiles in his part of the world is completed, and he longs to come see them. First, he must deliver financial aid to Jerusalem, a trip about which he asks them to pray along with him.

Romans 15 concludes Paul's teaching that those strong in faith ought to sacrifice their own desires to live in harmony with other believers. Paul shows that God always planned to welcome the Gentile nations, and his mission is to introduce Gentiles to the message of salvation by faith in Christ. He longs to visit the Christians in Rome and plans to do so as soon as he delivers financial aid to poor Christian Jews in Jerusalem. He begins Romans 16 by greeting many friends and acquaintances in Rome by name, as part of a drawn-out ending to this letter.

The book of Romans is the New Testament's longest, most structured, and most detailed description of Christian theology. Paul lays out the core of the gospel message: salvation by grace alone through faith alone. His intent is to explain the good news of Jesus Christ in accurate and clear terms. As part of this effort, Paul addresses the conflicts between law and grace, between Jews and Gentiles, and between sin and righteousness. As is common in his writing, Paul closes out his letter with a series of practical applications.

Accessed 11/21/2024 7:06:24 AM