Peter Barnes | Romans 15:25-29
SERMON NOTES
TAKING THE COLLECTION TO JERUSALEM
(Romans 15:25-29)
– there was a famine in Palestine in A.D. 46-48; see Acts 11:27-30; 1 Cor.16:1-4; Gal.2:10; 2 Cor.8-9; hence the Gentile Christians sought to help the Jewish Christians.
1. Ministry to the poor.
– 15:25-26; note Gal.2:10); sets aside Acts 6:4 as he sees it as so vital
Robert Haldane: ‘Union among Christians we here see even placed before the carrying of the Gospel to new countries.’
2. Gentile Christians and Jewish Christians.
– 15:26-28
(a) they were pleased to give. Paul says that twice, in verses 26 and 27.
(b) it was an expression of fellowship. Verse 26 has koinonia, and is often translated as ‘fellowship’.
(c) it was a duty (15:27). See 2 Cor.8:8; 9:5, 7. John Murray: ‘Charity is an obligation but it is not a tax.’
(d) it was a ministry. The ESV has ‘service’.
(e) it showed the genuineness of the Gentiles’ commitment to the gospel.
3. Providence and the fullness of the blessing of Christ.
– 15:29; Paul knows the will of God but is not aware e.g. that he will spend two years in gaol (Acts 24:27); Philip Henry: ‘Duty is ours, and events are God’s.’