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Pathways Through Paul
Daily Devotional
May 17
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Today's Pathway:
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Paul finishes chapter 15 by calling upon the Roman church to pray for Him. He begs them to do so because of what Jesus has done for them, and because of the love that the Holy Spirit has for them. He asks them not just to pray, but to "strive together" with him. The Greek word translated "strive" is the basis for our English word "agonize". This word was originally used for athletic events in which contestants, such as wrestlers or boxers, struggled against each other. This implies that proper prayer is not always an easy thing to do. It is simple enough to pray "Bless the missionaries" in the course of a ritualistic prayer, but it is more difficult to be burdened for them and send petitions before the Lord that deal with their specific needs. Each of us needs to consider how much time and effort we really put into our prayer lives. In our church we share prayer requests on Sundays and in our midweek Bible Study. We send out prayer letters from our missionaries to the congregation, and also read the highlights from those letters in church. Yet how many of us can honestly say that we "agonize" over those requests? Do we strive to overcome our laziness or our busyness so that we can invest the time that is necessary to talk to God about the needs of others? It is apparent that Paul was praying for his own needs, and it seems that he wanted the Romans to pray as diligently for his needs as he did himself.
Paul then lists several things that he wanted the Roman church to be praying about. First, he wants to be protected from the unbelievers in Israel. The word used here implies that Paul could be in great danger, and that he was going to need God's help to accomplish his mission. Unbelievers were constantly rejecting, ridiculing, abusing, threatening, and persecuting him, and he needed his fellow Christians to pray that they would not be able to stop him. Second, he wants the offering that he is taking to be accepted by the saints in Jerusalem. Bruce Hurt wrote,
"Because he and his Gentile companions from Macedonia and Achaia were bringing a financial contribution to the church at Jerusalem, which was still largely Jewish, he wanted the saints in Rome to pray with him that the gift would not offend Jewish believers in Jerusalem but rather would prove acceptable to the saints there. He wanted it to be received with loving gratitude for what it was, a gesture of brotherly love and conciliation."
Sometimes people, because of their pride, refuse to accept charity. Paul knows that the Jerusalem believers need these funds, so he asks prayer that they would not allow their prejudices to keep them from receiving them. Third, he asks for prayer that it would be God's will that he get to visit with the Roman believers, and that their time together would be joyful and refreshing. These are all valid requests that we should be praying for missionaries that we know. We need to pray that they would be kept safe from the opposition that they will face. We need to pray that their ministry will be accepted by those that they have been sent to, and that people will respond to the Gospel message. We need to pray that they will someday return back to us and that we can be a blessing to them when they do.
Paul concludes in verse 33 by praying for the Romans. In spite of all the needs that he had, he took time to pray for the Roman believers. This is important as well. Churches need to pray for their missionaries, but missionaries need to pray for their supporting churches as well.
How is your prayer life?
Pastor Mark J Montgomery
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