CCC Livestream - It's All About The Gospel - Romans 15:22-33
Live Worship Gathering: 2/22/2026
Preaching: Jason Purdy
Jason Purdy
It’s All About The Gospel / Romans 15:22–33
I invite you to open your Bible to Romans 15.
We will complete chapter 15 today by looking at verses 22-33.
When Robin and I were in Bible college at Liberty University, we were both on
student leadership on our dorms.
And one of the requirements was to attend a weekly meeting led by a campus
pastor where he trained us in Christian leadership.
And this guy was one of those guys who had a quote for everything, and the
quote I believe he used most often was one that at the time, I hated.
He would always tell us: schedule time to schedule time.
Think about that one for a minute.
You must schedule time to schedule time.
Oh, I would roll my eyes every time he said it.
Yet now, here I am seventeen years into my marriage and Robin and I have a
longstanding meeting with one another every week where we get on our synced
iPhone calendar and talk through the next week and take a brief look at the next
month together.
No matter how much I hated it at the time, one of the pieces of advice that has
served my life, my marriage, the raising of four children, and my ministry well
has been to schedule time to schedule time.
We are by and large a busy people.
While so oftentimes I want to fight against being busy, the reality is the way the
world works, what it takes to work and make a living, what it takes to sustain a
healthy relationship with God, a healthy marriage, raise children, maintain
family relationships, and be a committed member of your local church makes
life extremely full.
Full is the word I like to use instead of busy.
Because life is this way, it is absolutely essential that if we are going to follow
Jesus, we must be intentional with our plans and our time, we must learn to
make the best use of our time as the Bible says, that means we must learn to
prioritize and say “no” to many things so that we can say “yes” to the right
things.
In a world of constant access and entertainment, we have to say “no” more than
ever.
Because if you are doing the things God has given you to do, you are not going
to have much time for anything else, and that’s a good thing.
My nineteen year old self would be shocked to hear me say this: but I believe
one of our greatest needs for maintaining a vibrant love relationship with God,
our spouse, our children, and our church while working and providing in the
way God has called, one of our greatest discipleship needs is developing the
habit of scheduling time to schedule time.
It may not sound very spiritual, but managing time with right priorities is
absolutely essential to loving God and others which is the very thing believing
the gospel produces in us.
We are in a final section of the book of Romans where Paul has completed the
main body of his letter regarding the power of the gospel and how we are to live
in light of it.
Paul is now writing very personally to the church in this final section.
Last week, we heard him assure the believers that they were filled with all
goodness and knowledge in Christ and are able to instruct one another.
They didn’t need to look down on their ministry just because an apostle had not
started their church.
And he explained that his ministry is to serve the Gentiles by ministering the
gospel to them so that they can offer their lives as a fragrant worshipful offering
to God.
And that he has made it his ambition to preach Christ where he had not been
named.
And Paul now continues, writing of his plans and priorities, which will teach us
much about the way we must think about our plans and priorities.
Please follow along as I read:
Romans 15:22–33 ESV
22 This is the reason why I have so often been hindered from coming to you. 23 But
now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions, and since I have
longed for many years to come to you, 24 I hope to see you in passing as I go to
Spain, and to be helped on my journey there by you, once I have enjoyed your
company for a while. 25 At present, however, I am going to Jerusalem bringing
aid to the saints. 26 For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make some
contribution for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem. 27 For they were
pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have come
to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought also to be of service to them in
material blessings. 28 When therefore I have completed this and have delivered
to them what has been collected, I will leave for Spain by way of you. 29 I know
that when I come to you I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ.
30 I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit,
to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf, 31 that I may be
delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may
be acceptable to the saints, 32 so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy
and be refreshed in your company. 33 May the God of peace be with you all.
Amen.
1. Plan To Help And Refresh Gospel Workers
Remember, the church in Rome probably felt inferior because their church was
not started by an apostle like many of the other churches, and an apostle had
never visited them,
An apostle was one of the twelve who had been with Christ throughout his
ministry.
So, Paul has been clear in saying that they have all they need in Christ to be who
God wants them to be.
It’s a wonderful reminder to us that we have all we need in Christ to do the
ministry He has called us to do even if your pastor doesn’t have a book deal, and
we don’t have a million dollar budget or whatever it is you are tempted to
believe we need.
And Paul explained that his primary ministry as an apostle is to preach the
gospel where Jesus has not yet been named.
So verse 22: This is the reason why I have so often been hindered from coming
to you.
Because obviously, the name of Jesus and his gospel already got to Rome and
the church is established there, so Paul had to prioritize other areas where
Christ had not yet been named.
Verse 23: But now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions,
and since I have longed for many years to come to you, I hope to see you in
passing as I go to Spain,
Notice, Paul tells us that he has wanted to go to Rome and see the church there
for many years,
But, he had a priority assignment to preach the gospel in order to establish
churches from Jerusalem to Illyricum which we read up in verse 19,
And that priority assignment from God kept him from doing something good
that he desired to do for many years.
Listen, there may be things that you desire and dream about doing, they may be
wonderful things, they may be things for the gospel and for ministry, but God
has placed a priority in your life that may hinder you from doing that thing that
you are desiring.
It may hinder you for years, or you may never get to do it.
The book of Acts tells us that Paul did finally make it to Rome, but he made it in
chains and was taken straight to the Roman prison.
But, Paul knew his place, and he knew his priority assignment, and he gave
himself fully to it at the expense of saying “no” to doing other really good things.
In the digital age of social media and 24 hour news outlets, it has become
increasingly difficult for us to know our place and to give ourselves fully to our
priority assignment.
It is as if we always have a million options to be somewhere else than we are and
to do something different than we are doing.
Our finances and our technologies lie to us and tell us that we should not accept
such limitations as one place, one focus, and one assignment.
But the truth is that God has sovereignly placed boundaries around your life,
your place, your position, and your calling in this season.
Prioritize where God has placed you and the season you are in, whether you are
a student, a mother or father, an employee, a church member, a grandparent, in
a discipling relationship, supporting someone is a difficult situation, whatever it
is.
Don’t get lost in the daydream of where you wish you were or what you wish you
were doing.
Be present and faithful where God has you and trust He will make it clear if and
when he wants to move you.
Paul had to stay focused on his assignment to preach the gospel and plant
churches even though he wanted to visit the Roman Christians for a long time.
But, now he says finally, he plans to visit them because he no longer has work in
those regions.
Remember, we saw last week, that certainly did not mean that everyone from
Jerusalem to Illyricum were Christians, but it did mean that God had used Paul
to establish enough gospel preaching churches to be a witness to all those
areas.
Now, it is instructive to us that Paul has longed and prayed for this church for a
long time although he has never been able to go there.
When it comes to the gospel partnerships we have with pastors and
missionaries around the world, many of us have never been there or met them,
but we can learn of them and pray for them and ask God if he would give the
opportunity to go at some point.
Verse 24: I hope to see you in passing as I go to Spain, and to be helped on my
journey there by you, once I have enjoyed your company for a while.
Notice, Paul is still prioritizing his mission to the unreached by saying he plans
to visit the Roman church on the way to Spain which is where Christ has not yet
been named.
But, to make sure the Roman church doesn’t think his only interest in them is to
help him get to Spain, he says he plans to enjoy their company for a while.
You see, God’s design for Christian fellowship is that it be sweet and life giving.
Paul looks forward to spending time with this church in Rome, who he has never
met personally, but he is confident the time will be enjoyable because it is
amongst brothers and sisters in Christ.
While Paul didn’t really have a home because he was always tentmaking as a
missionary, he found home and refreshment and life while spending time with
other believers.
Way back in Chapter 1, Paul wrote:
Romans 1:11–12 ESV
11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen
you— 12 that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both
yours and mine.
One of our international partners that we have gotten the closest to is Louis and
Suzannah in Scotland.
Our church was able to send a team over to them last summer to help them put
on their first VBS.
They would love for us to go on a mission to them like that every other year, so
pray for them and ask God if he would open the opportunity for you to go at
some point.
On this off year where they won’t be hosting a team from us, they have invited
Robin and I to come over in May and spend a week with them.
We are going to attend the Pillar international pastors conference with them for
two days then we are going to spend the rest of the time in their home and at
their church.
We will ask them about their marriage, their parenting, their ministry and seek
to encourage them with God’s word.
We will be able to attend church with them and I will preach at the church.
They are very much looking forward to this time as their ministry can be very
isolating.
I pray we will be used to God to provide refreshment to these faithful gospel
workers.
It was going to be refreshing for Paul to see and meet the Roman church in
person.
May we all be used in Christian fellowship to refresh one another and to
prioritize helping and refreshing gospel workers.
2. Plan To Be A Spiritual and Material Blessing
Verse 25: At present, however, I am going to Jerusalem bringing aid to the
saints. For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make some contribution
for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem.
Paul tells them here that now that he has completed the work of gospel
proclamation and establishing churches in the region, he has one more place he
has to go before heading to visit the Roman church, and that place is Jerusalem.
He is going to Jerusalem to bring aid to the saints there.
This was no menial task Paul was about to undertake, and he certainly didn’t
plan it on a whim.
When you read the books of Acts, Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, and Galatians,
they all help us understand that a central and strategic part of Paul’s missionary
work of preaching the gospel where it had not been named among the Gentiles
and establishing churches was to collect this offering from the Gentiles to help
and bless the church in Jerusalem.
You say, that’s nice, but how can you say it was central to his missionary efforts?
Think about the situation with me.
Jerusalem was the center of Jesus’ final week of ministry as well as his death on
the cross and his resurrection.
The Jewish hatred and persecution of Jesus and the early Christians was
centered in Jerusalem, so imagine what it was like for the church in Jerusalem.
Many of them had lost family ties as well as the ability to make a living because
they were now followers of Jesus.
There had also been a famine in the land that made things difficult for everyone.
Added to it all was the Jewish skepticism of Gentiles coming to true faith in
Christ.
As we have seen in the letter to the Romans, one of the main gospel works Paul
had to focus on as the apostle to the Gentiles is how to help Jews and Gentiles
come together and truly understand that the gospel of Jesus Christ has not only
brought reconciliation between themselves and God but also between peoples,
in this case, Jews and Gentiles.
So, Paul’s strategy was to share the needs of the church in Jerusalem with all
the majority Gentile churches he was planting and asked them to take up a
regular offering for the church in Jerusalem.
As you read Paul’s letters, you see that Paul used this offering to disciple the
Gentile churches in gospel centered generosity.
He also used it as a way to teach them how we are all one family in Christ who
cares for one another.
So, now that Paul has finished his church planting work in those regions, he is
going to Jerusalem to take the offerings that had been collected by the
churches.
Verse 27: For they were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if
the Gentiles have come to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought also to be
of service to them in material blessings.
I want us to think for a moment on the fact that the Gentile churches took
pleasure in giving these offerings, and it was also their duty.
The two ideas are not mutually exclusive.
One of the best ways to think about gospel centered obedience to Christ is
learning to take pleasure in doing the things you ought to do.
Paul made clear in 2 Corinthians as he was writing about this offering:
2 Corinthians 9:7 ESV
7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under
compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
And we only find joy in generosity when we are drinking deeply of the truth
found in
2 Corinthians 8:9 ESV
9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet
for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.
When we are drenched in the gospel of grace, generosity is a joy.
But Paul says it was also the Gentiles’ duty.
Paul shares a principle here that we see throughout Scripture:
If you have come to share in spiritual blessings, you should also share in
material blessings.
1 Corinthians 12:26 ESV
26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice
together.
The early church was known for giving to one another to the point where no one
had any need.
It was through the elect Jewish people that Christ was born and all believers in
Jesus have been grafted into the people of God who are Israel.
We have been spiritually blessed through the Jewish people, so it is only right
for the churches to bless the Jewish church materially in their time of need.
As the redeemed people of God, through whom Christ became poor so that we
might become rich, it is our pleasure and duty to both give and receive in the
body of Christ.
So, many times we seem to grasp and understand that we are called to be
generous, but do you realize at times, you are called of God to receive a gift?
Some people really struggle to receive a gift.
Are you one of those people who feels compelled to argue when someone else
offers to pay the check?
I remember when Robin and I were dating in college, we went to get ice cream
with some friends, and one of the dad’s offered to pay for everyone.
And Robin was mortified when I replied, “Hey, thanks a lot!”
She was mortified because she is one of those people who thinks the right thing
to do is argue, “Oh, no, you don’t have to do that!”
We are all blessed to be a blessing.
We are all called to give and to receive.
Everything that we have both spiritually and materially we have as a gift from
God not only for ourselves but that we would be generous with others.
That’s why if we have the Holy Spirit of God within us, we should be joyfully
sharing him with others.
If we are walking with Jesus, we should be discipling others to walk with Jesus.
The paycheck, the car, the house, and whatever else it is you have is not just for
you, but it is for you to use for the glory of God and in generosity to others.
What would it say of the witness of Christ if someone in the body of Christ were
suffering without proper food, clothing, and shelter, when many of us have
more than enough?
But, it takes time and intentionality to be a spiritual and material blessing.
You have to say “no” to other things in order to invest time and effort in God’s
church, in a community group, in a ministry, in a discipleship relationship.
You have to say “no” to other things in your budget in order to give generously
to God’s church and others in need.
Do you have a line in your personal budget for missionaries? What about for
others with material needs God puts in your life?
Plan to be a spiritual and material blessing.
Verse 28: When therefore I have completed this and have delivered to them
what has been collected, I will leave for Spain by way of you. I know that when I
come to you I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ.
Paul will be confident that Christ fully blesses his coming to the Roman church
because he first completed the priority of taking the offering to Jerusalem.
3. Plan To Pray For Others In Their Gospel Work
Verse 30: I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of
the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf, that I
may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for
Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints,
Notice the intense language Paul uses in his appeal for prayers to be made on
his behalf.
By our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of the Spirit, strive together with me in
prayer.
You see, Paul’s plan to head back to Jerusalem to take the gift to the Jewish
church was an extremely risky plan.
Paul was previously a Jewish zealot persecuting the church of God, I guarantee
you the Jewish establishment who had Jesus killed was not happy Paul was
now a missionary for Jesus.
So, Paul asks the Roman church to pray earnestly that God would deliver him
from the unbelievers there.
But more than that, the Christian church in Jerusalem struggled with this new
era of Gentiles being equal under the gospel.
There was a lot of Jewish skepticism toward Gentile conversion to Christianity,
and Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles,
So, there was no guarantee that Paul’s coming with this Gentile offering to the
Jewish church was going to be welcomed and received.
Paul’s hope was that this gift would strengthen the relationship between Jewish
and Gentile believers and so strengthen the witness of the gospel in the world,
but he couldn’t guarantee it.
So, there were many dangers and obstacles in the way as Paul fulfilled his plan
to go to Jerusalem.
So, he asked the Roman church to strive together with him in prayers to God on
his behalf.
When was the last time you considered your prayers to be a work of striving?
When was the last time you labored in prayer?
Sometimes the reason we don’t pray more is that we are not really on mission
with God.
So, there are no real dangers or obstacles because we aren’t attempting
anything for God, HIs church, and His kingdom.
But even when we do pray, we talk about speaking a prayer or remembering
someone in prayer, lifting them up before the Father, those are all wonderful
things.
But may we be challenged that the Bible speaks of striving in prayer, laboring in
prayer, Jacob wrestled with God all night as a picture of fervent prayer, Jesus
wept and prayed in the garden.
I’m convicted this week that I spend way too much time considering how I’m
going to handle and situation, or what I am going to say in an upcoming
situation, when I should be spending my time laboring in prayer believing it is
God who will provide the wisdom, the strength, and the words at the proper
time.
Our gospel partners need us not only to give offerings of material blessings to
their work, they also need us to strive in prayer for them.
You know a new church plant, and a missionary venture in a new place or a
foreign land comes with many dangers, risks, and obstacles.
Do you schedule time to labor in prayer?
Do you see prayer as the first and primary ministry understanding that we can’t
but God can?
Verse 32 so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in
your company.
We always seek to labor in prayer as we trust in God’s will.
The book of Acts tells us that Paul did finally make it to Rome, but in chains as a
prisoner.
He was under house arrest, so the Roman Christians had to go visit him in
prison.
It is not the way we would have expected God to answer Paul’s prayers, but God
is always working for His glory and our good, even in the most mysterious of
ways.
Paul concludes the section in verse 33: May the God of peace be with you all.
Amen.
The Bible is clear that we are all sinners who desire our own kingdom and our
own glory instead of the glory of God.
Because of this, we are at a place of hostility with God, and we spend our time
living for self and hurting others.
Yet, in God’s perfect plan, He sent His son Jesus to take the wrath of God in our
place on the cross so that all who would repent and believe in the Lord Jesus
would be reconciled to peace with God.
Having the peace of God in the gospel means that God is always with you.
And He empowers you to be intentional with your time and to make the best use
of the time and establish right priorities:
To seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will
be added unto you.
So, plan to help and refresh gospel workers.
Plan to be a spiritual and material blessing.
And plan to labor in prayer for gospel work.