Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews on behalf of God’s truth, so that the promises made to the patriarchs might be confirmed and, moreover, that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written:
“Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles;
I will sing the praises of your name.”
Again, it says,
“Rejoice, you Gentiles, with his people.”
And again,
“Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles;
let all the peoples extol him.”
And again, Isaiah says,
“The Root of Jesse will spring up,
one who will arise to rule over the nations;
in him the Gentiles will hope.”
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (New International Version)
Anyone who desires to follow the pattern of Christ, actively seeks and promotes the acceptance of one another.
Jesus is the Christian’s model: Christ did not seek to be served, but to serve, and give himself for the benefit of others. The ministry of Christ was meant for the whole world, and not just for some persons. Christ’s mission and ministry included non-Jews, and not only his own Jewish people.
The person and work of Jesus Christ confirmed the promises made to the original Jewish patriarchs of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jesus did nothing brand new; he was simply upholding and actively seeking to accept Gentiles and bring them to God. This has always been true of God’s plan and purpose – which is why the Apostle Paul cited four different Old Testament passages.
All four references are to the Gentiles, to non-Jewish persons. And this is why Paul himself had a ministry to Gentiles. The biblical verses mentioned by the Apostle include Gentiles who offer praise to God; Gentiles engrafted alongside Jews as God’s people; and Gentiles who put their hope in the root of Jesse, the Messiah.
The good news of Jesus Christ is an inclusive – not exclusive – message. Thus, Christian ministry is designed to include others, to bring them into the fold of those who are redeemed by God.
Christian community is made up of all kinds of people from every race and ethnicity – without exception, and without favoritism.
The Apostle Paul made it clear to the Roman Church of both Jew and Gentile that his bedrock Christian ethic was one of inclusion and care for others. He supported his ethical understanding from Holy Scripture.
Paul was concerned that the Church include all sorts of Christ followers who may have some differing understandings and practices in living out their own Christian faith.
The Body of Christ is designed and meant to be big enough, strong enough, and resilient enough to handle all sorts of people who together want to follow Christ and serve others, like Jesus did.
The Apostle’s prayer is one of hope, having everyone in the church be accepting of one another. Paul wanted all Christians to work and worship together as the one people of God who live according to the pattern of Christ.
The Christian model of living is based not upon dietary laws or special days; it instead has it’s foundation in the example of Christ’s earthly ministry. All Christians are to:
- glorify God together for the divine mercy shown to them
- rejoice together as a unified voice expressing faith, hope, and love
- share together in the hope that God’s promises are and will be fulfilled completely in Christ
God fills us with joy and peace, and causes us to overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit – made possible because of the person and work of Jesus Christ.
Since God grants faith to whomever God wants to grant faith; and since the Holy Spirit fills whomever the Spirit wants to fill, we are, therefore, to accept those whom God has already accepted – without exception, and without prejudice.
For the Apostle Paul, the church’s identity was at stake. Paul was concerned for two questions:
- Will the church be, at its core, a community of redeemed persons by the grace of God who center all their lives around the person and work of Jesus?
- Or will the church be a community of opinionated individuals and groups all jockeying for position to have their way on how they believe things should go?
You can tell what a person’s identity is by their “identity markers.”
For the Jewish Christians, Sabbath-keeping, circumcision, food laws, and holding to certain days on the calendar marked their identity as God’s people. Those issues were so important that if you took them away, there would be an identity crisis; the people felt totally lost without their traditions.
For Gentile Christians, their identity was built around being more free-thinking. So, if you take away their freedom and ability to choose, the Gentiles will go nuts and have an identity meltdown.
Paul’s answer was for both Jew and Gentile to accept one another and build their unity around Jesus, period. They needed to be sensitive to each other and focus on their shared identity of Jesus as the center of the Christian life.
It is very difficult to have hope, peace, and spiritual power, whenever there is disunity. The lack of acceptance is typically like a cancer which invades the Body and destroys it, unless there is a spiritual intervention.
Acceptance of others is more than a nice idea; and it doesn’t mean that we overlook differences of convictions or dogma. It just means that we choose to focus on what is most important. And for the Apostle Paul, that meant having a unity around the pattern of Christ.
Loving Lord, you came not to be served but to serve. Empower us to bless one another and our neighbors, so that your spirit of generosity, compassion, and selfless action transform us and the people in our midst. We pray together, as the one people of God, that you will guide us in your way; through Jesus Christ our Savior, in the strength of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Rev. Tim Ehrhardt 