Lessons #21 and 22
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word Translation, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New American Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
+ 4. Text is based on 1984 edition of the NIV +
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Paul’s desire to visit the Romans (Rom 1:11-13)
11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— 12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.
This passage is the second paragraph of the second subsection of the introduction of Apostle Paul to his epistle to the Romans. We indicated that the second subsection covers Romans 1:8-15. Furthermore, we stated that there are three paragraphs of this second subsection. The first paragraph is concerned with the apostle’s prayer on behalf of the Romans in verses 8 to 10. The second paragraph is concerned with the apostle’s desire to see the Roman believers for mutual spiritual benefits as described in verses 11 to 13. Our last study focused on the first paragraph. Thus, it is with the second paragraph that we are concerned in the passage before us.
The second paragraph begins with a statement of the apostle’s desire to visit believers in Rome. This is followed by the purpose and or expected result of his visit to them. The paragraph ends with an explanation of his as yet unfulfilled plan to visit them. Hence, we can summarize the message the apostle conveyed to the Romans as that he planned to visit them for mutual spiritual benefits, but the plan had not materialized until the time he wrote as he conveyed to them. His message to the Romans leads to an application message we believe the Holy Spirit wants us to convey to you which is that You can plan what you want to accomplish but you should be aware that God determines when and if such a plan will be fulfilled. There are two aspects of this message that we should briefly mention. The first is that there is nothing wrong with making plans. A person who does not make plans is childish since only a child that would not have plans. If you are a normal adult human being, you should make several plans about your future. It is only after death that the idea of making plans no longer applies as stated in Ecclesiastes 9:10:
Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.
Otherwise, every person should live by making plans of what they are to do. The requirement of making plans is implied in the specific command of Proverbs 20:18:
Make plans by seeking advice; if you wage war, obtain guidance.
The point is that the first aspect of the message we have stated is that there is nothing wrong with making plans; in fact, there is something wrong with not making plans. The second aspect of the message of this section is that you should not become discouraged if your plan does not immediately materialize. This is because whether your plan materializes ultimately depends on whether it is in accordance with God’s plan for you as implied in Proverbs 19:21:
Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.
Anyway, we will reference these two aspects of the message of this section as we proceed to expound the passage before us.
Apostle Paul ended the first paragraph of this second subsection of Romans 1:8-15 by informing the Romans of his petition to God for the opportunity to visit them. There is no doubt that a believer should pray to God requesting wisdom and strength needed before embarking on any task. Consequently, it is possible for the recipients of this epistle to understand the petition of the apostle to God that he mentioned in verse 10 as an activity that is to be expected of a believer who knows the importance of reliance on the Lord for all that one does. However, to ensure that the Romans understood that there is more to his petition to God about granting him the opportunity to visit them, the apostle provided an explanation or reason for his petition. We assert that the apostle provided an explanation or reason for his petition to God because of a Greek conjunction used in the beginning part of Romans 1:11 that was not explicitly translated in the NIV. The Greek of verse 11 has as its second word a Greek conjunction (gar) that has several usages. For example, it can be used as a marker of inference with the meaning “so, then, by all means” or it can be used as a marker of cause or reason for something in which case it may be translated “for, because.” In our verse, it is used as a marker of explanation or reason for the petition the apostle offered that was stated in verse 10 so that the conjunction should be translated “for” as in majority of our English versions that begin verse 11 with the word. Of course, the NIV and a handful of English versions did not translate it probably because their translators considered the Greek conjunction to be used to indicate continuation of what the apostle stated in verse 10.
In any case, we indicated that the first aspect of the message of this section is that there is nothing wrong with making plans. This fact is implied in the desire of the apostle that is in essence a plan to visit believers in Rome as he stated in the first sentence of Romans 1:11 I long to see you.
The word “long” is translated from a Greek word (epipotheō) that may mean “to long for, desire, crave” that is, “to have a strong desire for something, with implication of need.” Thus, the word is used by Apostle Paul in his epistle to the Thessalonians to convey to them that Timothy reported of their strong desire to see him, and his apostolic team as recorded in 1 Thessalonians 3:6:
But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you.
The word may mean “to have a great affection for someone” as that is the sense of the word when Apostle Paul used it to describe the prayer that believers, especially in Jerusalem, will pray because of the gifts they receive from Gentile churches of which the Corinthians were included as stated in 2 Corinthians 9:14:
And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you.
In any case, in our passage of Romans 1:11, the word has the sense of “to deeply desire, to long for.” The Greek tense (present) the apostle used conveys that he had a persistent deep desire for what he stated he did. In effect, the apostle was in a sense focused on a plan of how to visit the Romans. To convey the persistent, deep desire of the apostle that he expressed in the Greek in our verse, the sentence of Romans 1:11 I long to see you may be translated I am longing to visit you.
We use the word “visit” to describe the apostle’s desire because of the word “see” in the sentence of Romans 1:11 I long to see you is translated from a Greek word (horaō) that may mean “to perceive” mentally or spiritually as the word is used to describe what Apostle Peter became aware about Simon, the Sorcerer, as stated in Acts 8:23:
For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.
Peter did not just mean to see an object with the eyes. No! He meant he perceived the spiritual state of Simon as being filled with bitterness at the success of Philip’s preaching and the ability of the apostles to confer the Spirit. The word may mean “to see” in the sense of perceiving with the eyes as it is used to describe those who saw the Lord Jesus after His resurrection as Apostle Paul stated in Acts 13:31:
and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to our people.
The word may mean “to see” in the sense of “to meet” as it is used to described what Paul and Silas did after they were released from the prison in Philippi in that they met and encouraged believers as reported in Acts 16:40:
After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and encouraged them. Then they left.
The sentence they met with the brothers is literally they saw. Considering that Paul and Silas encouraged the believers in Philippi, the word “saw” has the sense of “met with.” The Greek word may mean “to see” in the sense of “to visit” as that is the sense the word is used to describe Apostle Paul’s plan to travel to Rome as stated in Acts 19:21:
After all this had happened, Paul decided to go to Jerusalem, passing through Macedonia and Achaia. “After I have been there,” he said, “I must visit Rome also.”
The sentence I must visit Rome also is more literally it is necessary for me to see Rome also. Paul does not mean that he wants to see Rome as someone would see an object; instead, he means he wanted to visit Rome. In our passage of Romans 1:11, the word is used with the meaning of “to see” in the sense of “to visit,” that is, “to go to see for a visit.” Hence, when the apostle wrote I long to see you we could render his statement as I am deeply desiring to visit you.
The pronoun “you” is in the plural in the Greek and so refers to believers in Rome. This is because of the phrase of Romans 1:7 To all in Rome who are loved by God. We argued that this clause refers to believers in Rome since Apostle Paul further described the recipients of this epistle in the clause of Romans 1:7 who are loved by God. The point is that the apostle’s desire that is tantamount to a plan was to visit believers in Rome, and this desire was persistent with him.
Visiting people is an important activity that a believer should engage in, but visitation should have a purpose. A reason to visit people is sickness as implied in the declaration of Jesus Christ about the need to care for others as we read in Matthew 25:36:
I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
The Lord included visiting someone in prison in this passage and so it is not surprising that Apostle Paul commended Onesiphorus for visiting him while in prison in Rome as we may gather from what is stated in 2 Timothy 1:16–17:
16 May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. 17 On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me.
Another reason to visit someone is when an individual has lost someone. The Jews certainly practiced visiting the bereaved as implied in the fact that when Lazarus died some of them came to visit Martha and Mary as implied in John 11:45:
Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him.
So, we should recognize that visiting someone usually has a purpose that is concerned with the physical as well as emotional or spiritual wellbeing of a person. Consequently, Apostle Paul communicated the purpose for his burning desire to visit believers in Rome.
Apostle Paul’s yearning or desire to visit Roman believers has a purpose which is for the sharing of spiritual blessing that he described in the clause so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift.
We use the word “sharing” because the word “impart” is translated from a Greek word (metadidōmi) that means “to give, to share, to impart.” It is used by the apostle for the sharing of the gospel in 1 Thessalonians 2:8:
We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.
However, the apostle also used the Greek word in connection with giving to meet needs of others in Romans 12:8:
if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
The clause if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously of the NIV is more literally one who gives, with sincerity so that our Greek word is translated “give” in Romans 12:8. The implication is that it is the context that determines whether the word “share” is to be understood to involve spiritual sharing or material sharing. In our passage of Romans 1:11, it is in the sense of sharing something spiritual.
The thing to be shared is given in the phrase of Romans 1:11 some spiritual gift. The apostle no doubt has a general idea of spiritual blessings that God can bring to a group of believers, but he was not certain of the extent of the blessings the Lord would bring through him unlike today when some visiting pastors or evangelists promise such things as physical healing as the blessing that will come to some who attend their evangelistic meeting. Therefore, the apostle was indefinite in his description in the phrase some spiritual gift. The word “some” is translated from an indefinite Greek pronoun (tis) that may mean “someone, something” or it can mean “someone important” as in the claim made by someone that Gamaliel referenced in his speech to the ruling authorities about being careful how they deal with the disciples of Jesus Christ as we read in Acts 5:36:
Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing.
But in our verse of Romans 1:11, the sense of the word is “some” to refer to indefinite quantity of spiritual blessings the apostle will share with the Romans as in the phrase some spiritual gift.
What does the apostle mean by the phrase spiritual gift he is to impart or share with the Romans? To answer this question, it will be helpful to understand how the apostle uses the two words in the phrase spiritual gift.
The first word “spiritual” is translated from a Greek word (pneumatikos) that means either “belonging to the Spirit” or “determined by the Spirit.” Apostle Paul used the word to describe the water and food God provided Israel in the desert as stated in 1 Corinthians 10:3–4:
3 They all ate the same spiritual food 4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.
As an adjective, the word means “spiritual” as it is used to describe the believer who is filled of the Holy Spirit, that is, the person controlled by the Holy Spirit in 1 Corinthians 2:15:
The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man’s judgment:
The phrase spiritual man is translated in NIV 2011 the person with the Spirit. The apostle used the word to describe the special gifts God gave to the church for building up believers as indicated in 1 Corinthians 14:1:
Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy.
The apostle used the word to describe the special blessing God gave to Jews that they shared with Gentiles, to indicate that Gentiles owe sharing their material blessings with the Jews since the Jews through the apostles have shared their spiritual blessings with them as stated in Romans 15:27:
They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews’ spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings.
The phrase Jews’ spiritual blessings is literally their spiritual things. In our passage of Romans 1:11, the word has the sense of “spiritual,” that is, that which belongs to the immaterial and supernatural order of being. Here it is used to modify the second word “gift” in the phrase or Romans 1:11 some spiritual gift.
The word "gift" is translated from a Greek word (charisma) that may mean that which is freely and graciously given hence “favor bestowed, gift.” Apostle Paul used the word to describe eternal life that God graciously gives as stated in Romans 6:23:
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The apostle used it to describe different special gifts God gave to the church for its edification as stated, for example, in 1 Corinthians 12:4:
There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.
The apostle used our Greek word to describe the special gift God gives that is necessary for carrying out special tasks as mediated to Timothy by the laying hands of the elders, presumably during his ordination, as stated in 1 Timothy 4:14:
Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you.
In our passage of Romans 1:11, it is used in the sense of “blessing,” that is, “divine favor that is graciously granted.” With this meaning, we return to answer the question of what the apostle meant in the phrase spiritual gift of Romans 1:11.
Interpreters have offered three general interpretations of what the apostle meant in the phrase spiritual gift of Romans 1:11. One interpretation is that the apostle meant the charismatic gifts that he described later in chapter 12 of Romans or in chapters 12-14 of 1 Corinthians. This interpretation is unlikely because the apostle indicated that he would share or impart the spiritual gift he had in mind with those in Rome. There is no example of the apostle imparting or sharing spiritual gifts of the type listed in Romans 12 or 1 Corinthians 12-14 with those who are already believers. The closet example we have is the case where God the Holy Spirit mediated the gift of speaking in tongues or prophecy through him to the Jewish converts he met in Ephesus, recorded in the nineteenth chapter of Acts. The Holy Spirit is responsible for imparting spiritual gifts and not the apostle. It will be presumptuous on his part to make such a promise to the Romans. The second interpretation is that the spiritual gift refers to the gift of understanding his apostolic message, a message that declares the union of Jews and Gentiles in Christ and which would edify and strengthen them to endure in their faith, be freed of their own divisions, and be able to support him in his quest for evangelizing Spain. A third interpretation is that the phrase refers to some spiritual blessing or benefit that Paul hopes will result from his visit. It is this third interpretation that I agree with as what the apostle meant. This is because the second interpretation is implied in the third interpretation. Furthermore, the use of the word some in the phrase some spiritual gift implies that the apostle was indefinite or uncertain of the blessings that his visit would bring to the Romans but was certain that his visit would bring blessings of the type not yet known by him.
This spiritual blessing or gift will produce a beneficial result, or it will lead to another purpose that will be beneficial to the Romans as stated in Romans 1:11 to make you strong or literally in order for you to be strengthened. We used the word “result” or “purpose” because the Greek phrase used may be interpreted as conveying result or stating a purpose. Of course, it is often difficult in some contexts to differentiate purpose from result. However, because of what the apostle wrote in verse 12 that we will get to shortly, the apostle meant that the spiritual blessing or spiritual gift has a purpose that is contained within the first stated purpose of Apostle Paul’s strong desire to visit the believers in Romans.
The purpose within the purpose is given in the verbal phrase in Romans 1:11 to make you strong. The expression “make … strong” is translated from a Greek word (stērizō) that may mean “to fix firmly in a place” as it is used in Abraham’s description of the chasm that separates two parts of hades before Lord Jesus’ resurrection as narrated in Luke 16:26:
And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’
The word may mean “to cause to be inwardly firm or committed” and so it means “to establish” as in Apostle Paul’s final prayer wish for the Romans in Romans 16:25:
Now to him who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past,
Under the general meaning of “to cause to be inwardly firm or committed,” the word may mean “to strengthen,” that is, “to cause someone to become stronger in the sense of firmer and more unchanging in attitude or belief” as the word is used to describe the purpose of Apostle Paul sending Timothy to the Thessalonians as we read in 1 Thessalonians 3:2:
We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God’s fellow worker in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith,
In our passage of Romans 1:11, it is used in the sense of “to be confirmed or to be strengthened,” that is, “to cause someone to become stronger in the sense of firmer and more unchanging in attitude or belief.”
The expression “make…strong,” as we have noted, is translated from a Greek word with two general meanings of “to fix firmly in a place” or “to cause to be inwardly firm or committed.” The apostle did not leave us to guess which category of meaning he meant, so he proceeded to explain what he meant as introduced with the expression of Romans 1:12 that is. Literally, the Greek reads now this is. The literal translation is to be understood as providing explanation. You see, the word “is,” is translated from a Greek verb (eimi) that may mean “to be.” That aside, our Greek word has several meanings. For example, the word may mean “to live” as the Lord Jesus used it to report what the Jews who were alive during His earthly ministry said about not killing the prophets as recorded in Matthew 23:30:
And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’
The word may be used in explanations to show how something is to be understood so that it may be understood as “is a representation of, is the equivalent of” and so may be translated “to mean” as the word is used to report the question of some Greek philosophers to Apostle Paul regarding the gospel message he preached at Athens as we read in Acts 17:20:
You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean.”
The clause what they mean is literally “these things to be.” Thus, the word is used in our passage of Romans 1:12 in the sense of “to mean” to provide an explanation of what Apostle Paul stated in verse 11. We are saying that the literal translation of the first sentence of Romans 1:12 now this is, should be translated as reflected in the NIV as that is or that means, that is to say, to reflect that what follows in verse 12 explains what is stated in verse 11, specifically, the verbal phrase of Romans 1:11 to make you strong.
The explanation the apostle provided is given in the clause of Romans 1:12 that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. Literally, the Greek reads to be encouraged together (while) among you through the faith (which is) in one another both yours and mine. The word “encouraged” is translated from a Greek word (symparakaleō) that appears only here in the Greek NT and it means “to be encouraged together,” that is, “to be encouraged at the same time with another.”
Encouragement is an important activity as it relates to believers. Thus, as soon as the church in Jerusalem learnt of the conversion of some in Antioch, they sent Barnabas to go and carry out this activity that involves urging the new converts to remain true to the Lord Jesus as recorded for us in Acts 11:23:
When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts.
Likewise, Apostles Paul and Barnabas were involved in the encouragement of those who were saved during their first missionary journey. They encouraged these believers to remain faithful to what they had believed that will include being true in their trust in Jesus Christ as that was what is narrated in Acts 14:22:
strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.
Encouragement of individuals is primarily done through spoken words or written words of God. Even when words are spoken by humans, they are most helpful if the words are based on God’s word or an application of God’s word. We can see this fact in the encouragement King Hezekiah offered to his soldiers in time of the war with the Assyrians under Sennacherib as narrated in 2 Chronicles 32:6–8:
6 He appointed military officers over the people and assembled them before him in the square at the city gate and encouraged them with these words: 7 “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. 8 With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said.
The verbal phrase encouraged them with these words indicates that encouragement is primarily through spoken words. The words of Hezekiah to his soldiers are based on his confidence in God’s word. He would probably have recalled God’s promise to Israel about being with them in their wars as recorded in Deuteronomy 20:1:
When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you.
Hezekiah could also have heard of a prophetic assurance given to his great grandfather Jehoshaphat when he faced a large army in a war as recorded in 2 Chronicles 20:15:
He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.
The point is that encouragement is primarily through the word of God. Thus, the Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul conveyed to Titus that a man that is appointed an overseer of a local church must be an individual that is capable of encouraging believers through sound doctrine as stated in Titus 1:9:
He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
That encouragement involves sound doctrine, or the use of God’s word is evident in the instruction of the Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul to the Thessalonians regarding this activity of encouraging each other as we read in 1 Thessalonians 4:18:
Therefore encourage each other with these words.
The phrase these words refer to the content of the section of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17. The summary of which is that those who have departed to be with the Lord will not miss the resurrection event as some of the Thessalonians may have been led to believe. But, in reality, those who have died in Christ will receive their eternal bodies before those who are physically alive at the second coming of our Lord. It is understanding the facts about resurrection and the resurrection body that will be the basis of encouraging other believers, especially those who have lost their loved ones that are believers in Christ. The point is that true encouragement of the believer is based primarily on the word of God which is the objective means of being encouraged in the spiritual life.
There is also another means of encouragement that a person receives that we may regard as a subjective means of encouragement that involves hearing a report about something or observing something. This means of encouragement was demonstrated when Gideon was involved in a battle with the Midianites. He was encouraged in his battle with them because of the report Yahweh caused him to hear as narrated in Judges 7:9–11:
9 During that night the LORD said to Gideon, “Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands. 10 If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah 11 and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp.
The thing Gideon heard was a dream by a Midianite that implies their defeat by the Israelites. Thus, it is evident that hearing a report encouraged Gideon to attack the Midianites. The report that could encourage someone may be that which involves observation of the performance or faithfulness of another believer. Such observation or hearing of report would serve to encourage others, especially those who teach the word of God. This kind of encouragement is what Apostle Paul meant in 2 Corinthians 7:13:
By all this we are encouraged. In addition to our own encouragement, we were especially delighted to see how happy Titus was, because his spirit has been refreshed by all of you.
The apostle was encouraged because he learnt from Titus about the positive response of the Corinthians to his letter to them as evident in the repentance of those who needed to do so. Thus, learning that another believer is doing well spiritually would encourage a fellow believer, especially, as we have stated, a teacher of God’s word.
The fact that encouragement involves teaching of God’s word and personal report or observation regarding another individual’s spiritual life raises the question of how we should understand the word “faith” in sentence of Romans 1:12 you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.
The word “faith” is translated from a Greek word (pistis) although often translated “faith” has several other meanings. The Greek word may mean “faith” in the active sense of believing or trusting in someone; the kind of believing that brings salvation. It is in this sense that Apostle Paul used our Greek word to describe faith-righteousness instead of law- righteousness in Romans 3:22:
This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference,
Another meaning of the Greek word translated “faith” is true piety or genuine devotion or even firm commitment. Stephen was described as one who had a genuine devotion or firm commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ in that he did not waver in what he believed but was fully devoted to the Lord. This is the sense of the word “faith” in Acts 6:5:
This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.
Another meaning of the Greek word translated “faith” is as an important virtue that Christians should have, or they have as a result of believing in Christ or as a result of the Holy Spirit operating in them. So, it is used to describe “faithfulness” that is an aspect of the fruit of the Spirit given in Galatians 5:22:
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
That faith refers to an important Christian virtue is evident in the fact that it is often associated with the virtue of love and so Apostle Paul used it in his epistle to Timothy in 2 Timothy 1:13:
What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus.
Another meaning of the Greek word translated “faith” is a reference to a religious movement such as the Christian faith, which is essentially the same as “the Christian religion.” It is in this sense that Apostle Paul used it to describe what people heard about him following his conversion as stated in Galatians 1:23:
They only heard the report: “The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.”
Paul’s former effort was focused on exterminating Christians and so the Christian movement. Thus, what he tried to destroy is not so much the preaching of the gospel but the Christian movement since if he stopped the movement, he would have destroyed the Christian religion. Of course, that was not to be the case as he was converted and became one of the most fervent advocates of the Christian movement.
Still another meaning of the Greek word translated “faith” is “body of teaching” or “doctrine.” It is in this way that the word “faith” is used to describe what will happen to some at a later time as we read in 1 Timothy 4:1:
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.
It is possible that “faith” here can also be interpreted as the “Christian faith,” but it is more likely the apostle meant Christian doctrine especially because of the expression things taught by demons. It is the sense of doctrine or body of teaching of the Christian faith that “faith” is used in Jude 3:
Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.
In our passage of Romans 1:12, our word has the sense of “firm commitment” that leads to “genuine devotion.”
The meaning of the Greek word translated “faith” in Romans 1:12 as “firm commitment” that leads to “genuine devotion” is certainly applicable to both the Romans and Apostle Paul. On the one hand, Apostle Paul would be encouraged as he observes the genuine devotion or faithfulness of the Romans. It is certainly pleasing to a teacher of the word of God to see that those taught are progressing spiritually. Apostle Paul was delighted and encouraged because of the spiritual progress of Philemon as he wrote in Philemon 7:
Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints.
Apostle John expressed similar sentiments as he learned of the spiritual progress of the believers that he wrote his third epistle as we read in 3 John 4:
I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
Hence, when the apostle visits Rome and sees that the believers there have genuine devotion to the Lord Jesus, he would be encouraged. On the other hand, the Romans would be encouraged when they see the devotion of the apostle to the Lord Jesus and to the ministry of the gospel of Jesus Christ. However, because Paul is an apostle that was involved in teaching God’s word, the Romans would be encourage by the word of God that would be communicated to them by him. The situation would be that both the Romans and Apostle Paul would benefit from his visit to them. It is probably because of this that the apostle used the rare Greek word (symparakaleō) that we indicated means “to be encouraged together,” that is, “to be encourage at the same time with another.” It would appear the apostle was looking forward to this mutual blessing, so to say, from the time he planned to visit them. Nevertheless, this has not happened as of the time of writing this epistle. Therefore, we are reminded once more of the first aspect of the message of this section that there is nothing wrong with making plans. Anyway, let me end by reminding you of the message of this section which is that You can plan what you want to accomplish but you should be aware that God determines when and if such a plan will be fulfilled.
06/14/24