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Pastor's Blog November 18, 2021

"View of God in Romans XXXVII"

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You've probably heard it said several times: "We need to be united with each other.  We need to love one another."  Loving one another and being united with each other are wonderful sentiments.  But did you know that our call to love each other and our need for unity are grounded in God's character? 

In Romans 15:5-7, Paul states, "Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God" (NASB).  The point Paul is making is very clear: we need unity amongst ourselves and we need to love each other.  What is truly amazing, however, is Paul's two-pronged rationale for unity and love. 

First, Paul focuses on unity.  The apostle prays in verse 5 that "the God who gives perseverance and encouragement" would give to the Roman Christians "the same mind with one another" - which echoes his later words in Philippians 2:1-4 about the kind of wholehearted and all-encompassing unity that should exist among followers of Jesus.  And the reason for this unity is given in verse 6: so that "with one accord" believers may be enabled to glorify our God and Father "with one voice."  In Paul's thinking, God is so worthy of our worship that the only fitting worship to God is one practiced in unity among his worshipers. 

Paul then turns his focus on love.  In verse 7, the apostle explicitly states, "Accept one another" - and the reason given is because "Christ also accepted us to the glory of God."  Apparently, our call to accept each other (which is another expression of loving each other) is grounded in the character of the God who has already accepted us: because it is glorious for God to include us in a relationship with him, rather than exclude us.  And do you notice who plays a consistent role in our experience of unity and love in these verses?  It's Jesus!  The same mind God wants to give us, our worship of God, and our call to accept each other are all rooted in the Lord Jesus. 

Friends, let Jesus animate love and unity among you today.

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