Romans 15.31-32-Paul Presents Three Prayer Requests To The Roman Believers
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Sunday July 25, 2010
Romans: Romans 15:31-32-Paul Presents Three Prayer Request To The Roman Believers
Lesson # 541
Please turn in your Bibles to Romans 15:30.
In Romans 15:30, Paul requests that Romans pray for him on the basis of their common relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ as well as on the basis of the divine-love produced by the Spirit.
He then requested that the Romans fight together with him by means of their prayers in the presence of the Father on his behalf.
In verse 31, he requests that he would be rescued from those who are disobedient to the gospel in Judea and that his service for the poor Jewish believers in Jerusalem would prove acceptable to the Jewish believers in that city.
Then, in verse 32, he reveals another objective he wants them to pray for, namely that by the Father’s will he would enter into their company with joy and find refreshing rest.
Romans 15:30, “Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me 31, that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may prove acceptable to the saints 32, so that I may come to you in joy by the will of God and find refreshing rest in your company. 33, Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen.”
Romans 15:31 is a purpose clause, which contains two reasons why Paul is requesting that the Romans intercede in prayer on his behalf.
Paul’s purpose for appealing to the Romans to fight together with him by means of their prayers on behalf of him was so he might be rescued from those Jews in Judea who are disobedient to the gospel.
He then presents an additional request that they would fight together with him by means of their prayers on his behalf so that his service to the poor Jewish believers in Jerusalem in delivering to them the contribution from the Gentile churches in Macedonia and Achaia would be acceptable to the Jewish saints in that city.
“I may be rescued” refers to God the Father delivering Paul from physical harm and death at the hands of the unsaved Jews in Judea who threaten his life.
It is a good thing that he requested this prayer for his personal safety since after delivering the contribution from the Gentile churches in Macedonian and Achaia to the poor Jewish believers in Jerusalem, the Roman military had to deliver him from the unsaved Jews in Jerusalem in order to keep them from killing him.
Acts 21:21-36 records the riot that ensued when some of the Jews accused Paul of desecrating the Temple.
In Acts 21:37-22, Paul is rescued from the mob by the Roman military and then presents his defense to the mob.
The hostility of the unbelieving Jews towards Paul is well documented in the book of Acts (Acts 9:23-29; 13:45-50; 14:19; 17:5-8; 18:12-17; 19:9; 20:3, 23).
“From those who are disobedient” describes the unbelief of the Jews in Israel in the first century, and which unbelief manifested itself in the rejection of Jesus Christ as their Messiah.
The second request that appears in verse 32 pertains to Paul’s service on behalf of the poor Jewish saints in Jerusalem being acceptable to the Jewish saints in that city.
Romans 15:30, “Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me 31, that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may prove acceptable to the saints.”
“And that my service for Jerusalem may prove acceptable to the saints” is an additional purpose for Paul appealing to the Romans to fight together with him by means of their prayers on behalf of him.
The first purpose for Paul desiring the intercessory prayers of the Roman believers was so he might be rescued from those Jews in Judea who are disobedient to the gospel.
The additional request is that the Romans would fight together with him by means of their prayers on his behalf so that his service to the poor Jewish believers in Jerusalem in delivering to them the contribution from the Gentile churches in Macedonia and Achaia would be acceptable to the Jewish saints in that city.
“My service” refers to Paul’s service on behalf of the poor Jewish Christians in Jerusalem in delivering the contribution from the Gentile churches in Macedonia and Achaia.
“For Jerusalem” indicates that Paul is requesting that the Roman believers pray that his ministry on behalf of the poor Jewish Christians in Jerusalem would be acceptable to the Jewish saints in that city.
Wuest writes, “The reason for Paul’s apprehension of what he might encounter in Jerusalem is made clear in Denney’s note; ‘It was not the unbelieving Jews only who hated Paul. To them he was an apostate who had disappointed all their hopes; but even Christian Jews in many cases regarded him as false to the nation’s prerogative, and especially to the law. There was a real danger that the contribution he brought from the Gentile churches might not be graciously accepted, even accepted at all; it might be regarded as a bribe, in return for which Paul’s opposition to the law would be condoned, and the equal standing of his upstart churches in the Kingdom of God acknowledged. It was by no means certain that it would be taken as what it was—a pledge of brotherly love; and God alone could dispose ‘the saints’ to take it as simply as it was offered.’” (Wuest’s Word Studies in the Greek New Testament).
The acceptance of this offering by the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem was important because it would serve to build unity among Jewish and Gentile believers and thus it would serve as a symbol of unity among believers.
This prayer request was answered according to Acts 21:18-21.
In Romans 15:32, Paul expresses the ultimate goal of his two requests in Romans 15:31, namely that when he enters into the company of the Roman believers he will find rest for himself.
Romans 15:30, “Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me 31, that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may prove acceptable to the saints 32 so that I may come to you in joy by the will of God and find refreshing rest in your company.”
Romans 15:32 is a purpose clause that does not present two more requests that parallel the two in Romans 15:31 but rather they express the ultimate goal of the two requests in Romans 15:31.
This interpretation is indicated by Paul’s statements in Romans 15:24-28, which reveal that Paul would not go to Rome until he delivered the offering from the Gentile churches in Macedonia and Achaia to the poor Jewish Christians in Jerusalem.
“I may come to you in joy by the will of God” indicates that the Father’s sovereign will is the intermediate agency that the Father employs to determine when Paul arrives in Rome.
“Find refreshing rest in your company” refers to Paul relaxing in the company of the Roman believers.