Five Things I Learned from Romans 16: we can act in a way that is pleasing to God, and noticeable by the world.

Five Things I Learned from Romans 16: we can act in a way that is pleasing to God, and noticeable by the world.

We can learn a lot simply by reading the Bible. Romans 16, the concluding chapter of Romans, shows us how we to treat the people in our church and that we can act in a way that is pleasing to God, and noticeable by the world. This is Five Things I Learned from Romans 16.

One: 1 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea; 16  Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you. Romans 16:1, 16

Paul greets the people he knows and urges us to do the same. This is how the church should operate: friendly and welcoming. We should greet everyone in the church and be thankful for their work. It takes a lot of dedicated people working together for a church to succeed  and working-we should be thankful for them.

Two: 17 Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them. Romans 16:17.

At the same time, we must watch for those who want to break things rather than build things. We are to stay true to the gospel as preached in the bible and not add our own thinking trying  make it more appealing-which we can never do anyway. There are a lot of things that God says that people do not like-leave them be and let God handle it! The gospel message as presented in the bible is all we need.

Three: 18 For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. Romans 16:18

One way that people destroy a church is by “flattering speech”. They make themselves appealing to us by falsely telling us how good we are, that we do not need to listen to our leaders, that we are mature enough to discern for ourselves the truth without guidance from the people God has placed in authority over us. We can combat this by being humble before God and those in our church.

It is, in our world today, considered a sign of weakness to be in submission to authority. But God takes this even further: we are to listen to our brothers and sisters in the church and learn from them. In fact, in Ephesians, we are told “and be subject to one another in the  fear of Christ” Ephesians 5:21. We are to be governed by humility, not pride! We are to reach out with the gospel and not hide in our homes and churches.

Four: 19 For the report of your obedience has reached to all; therefore I am rejoicing over you, but I want you to be wise in what is good and innocent in what is evil. Romans 16:19.

First, how we act in and outside of the church is seen and noticed, therefore we must be mindful of its impact. Paul goes on to encourage us by saying we should be innocent of the evil we see around us. Do not compromise with it for any reason. Rather, look for ways to be good at what is good. We can help people, be generous, and look for simple ways to extend the hope of the gospel.

Five: 25  Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past, 26 but now is manifested, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, has been made known to all the nations, leading to obedience of faith; 27 to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, be the glory forever. Amen. Romans 16:25-27.

This prayer is the closing of the book of Romans. We have just read the “revelation of the mystery”, in other words, we cannot know about God except that He reveals (or manifests) Himself to us. No one is smart enough or educated enough to understand God unless God first reveals who He is to them, Ephesians 3:18-19.

At the very end Paul declares the full glory of “the eternal God” who we see firsthand in Jesus-who is God, Hebrews 1:1-4 (among many, many others). Jesus is the true source of our life and hope, and the hope we receive is eternal because Jesus and His work are eternal.

This is not an in-depth study of Romans 16, but this is what I see about our relationship with our brothers and sisters in the church and with God. In it we see that we can act in a way that is pleasing to God, and noticeable by the world, and that is good news!