A Personal Prayer Request | Romans 15:30-33

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  • A Personal Prayer Request | Romans 15:30-33
  • My prayer life has richly benefited from studying the prayers of Paul. In his letters, the apostle assures the church he is praying for them. He also records what and why prayed for the saints. These prayer reports display Paul’s devotion to intercessory prayer. When he could not get to his pulpit, he went to his closet with confidence God would hear and answer.

    Paul’s belief in the power of prayer is seen in his prayer requests, as well as his prayer reports. Paul is the only apostle who asked the saints to pray for him. He asked young Christians and new congregations. In our text, he asks for prayer from Christians in Rome whom he had never met. 

    Romans 15:30-33 is the most outstanding of Paul’s prayer requests. It is deeply personal. I, me, or my occur six times in verses 30-32. Paul, who focused on the needs of others, admits he needed prayer. It is also brutally honest. Paul was concerned for his physical safety and gospel labors. He expresses those concerns to his friends to ask for their prayers. This prayer request is also blood earnest. Paul was not nonchalant about the urgency of the matter. His success and survival depended on saints striving together with him in prayer to God. 

    Romans 15 records Paul’s goodgodly, gospel plans. He planned to travel to Jerusalem to deliver a collection for the needy Jewish Christians. Afterward, he planned to visit the saints in Rome on his way to preach the gospel in Spain. Yet Paul knew his big plans were doomed to fail without God’s help. He prayed over his plans and asked the Roman Christians to join him in prayer. This personal prayer request is a testimony of faith: Divine intervention happens as a result of intercessory prayer. 

    John Murray wrote: “The lessons to be derived from verses 30-33 are numberless.” Romans 15:30-33 teaches five lessons about intercessory prayer. 

    The Earnest Appeal

    Verse 30 begins, “I appeal to you.” “Appeal” literally means “to call alongside” to help. It is to ask, beg, or plead. Romans 12:1 says, “I appeal to you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Romans 16:17 says, “I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught, avoid them.” With the same earnestness, Paul appeals to the church to pray for him. It humbling to see this champion of the faith vigorously solicit prayer support. 

    If Paul needed prayer, who are you?

    Paul appeals to the Roman Christians as “brothers.” The term is not gender-specific. It’s brothers and sisters. Paul had never visited Rome. He did not know most of the members of this congregation. Yet their common faith in Christ turned strangers into family. 1 John 3:14 says, “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death.”

    • The church is not a place you attend. 
    • It is a family to whom you belong. 

    Paul appealed to his faith family “to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf.”“Strive together” occurs only here in the New Testament. It is our word for “agonize” strengthened by the proposition “with.” It is to be co-laborers in a conflict. Prayer is striving with God for others against the flesh, the world, and the devil. When was the last time you meant business in prayer? Who are you linking arms with in warfare prayer? 

    Paul appealed to the saints to strive together with him in prayers to God on his behalf. Matthew Henry wrote: “Those who beg the prayers of others must not neglect to pray for themselves.” To win spiritual battles, you must fight on your knees. Don’t get to battle by yourself! Ask your brothers and sisters in Christ to strive together with you in prayer to God on your behalf. 

    The Gospel Motives 

    Paul’s requests were personal but not selfish. The selfless nature of his requests is seen by the incentives in verse 30: “by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit.” Paul does not command the church to pray for him. He appeals to them with two gospel motives. 

    The Lordship of Christ. Paul appeals to the saints to pray for him “by our Lord Jesus Christ.”

    • Lord is his divine title. 
    • Jesus is his saving name. 
    • Christ is his messianic office. 

    The preposition “by” or “through” states the basis of the appeal. The confidence with which Paul prays and asks others to pray with and for him is that Jesus Christ is Lord of all. Some respond to the Lordship of Christ fatalistically. Why pray if the Lord is going to do as he wills? Others, who downplay the Lordship of Christ, pray manipulatively. They think their faith is a blank check the Lord is obligated to sign. Both views are wrong. 

    Matthew 28:18 says, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” We cannot do his will without his authority. We cannot use his authority to do what he does not authorize. The Lord Jesus Christ should move us to pray sincerely, specifically, steadfastly, strategically, and submissively.

    The Love of the Spirit. This appeal for prayer is Trinitarian. Paul asks the saints to strive together with him in prayer to God the Father. He bases his appeal on the Lordship of Christ. The parallel incentive is “the love of the Spirit.”The language is profoundly obscure. It may refer to the Holy Spirit’s love for the saints. Romans 5:5 says, “God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” It more likely refers to Spirit-induced love for one another. Galatians 5:22 says, “The fruit of the Spirit is love.”

    • The indwelling Spirit invokes love for Christ. 
    • The indwelling Spirit invokes love for Christians. 

    You do not love Jesus if you hate his church. Spirit-led love should move and motivate us to pray for one another. The love of the spirit is ministered by our presence with others. But saints go through things and we cannot be there with them. Through prayer, you can be there for them when you cannot be there with them. Ray Pritchard said, “Distance doesn’t matter when we are on our knees. We can be anywhere in the world and yet in the realm of the Spirit through prayer, we can be joined with brothers and sisters thousands of miles away.”

    The God-Sized Requests

    Verse 31 records Paul’s two prayer requests: “That I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints.” These requests are associated with Paul’s travel plans. Yet he does not simply ask for prayer for traveling grace to and from. These personal requests are people-centered. What he wants God to do for him is what he wants God to do in, through, or for others. People-centered requests are God-sized requests. Prayer changes things and people. God can change people’s wills. 

    God can restrain ill-will. Paul asks the saints to pray “that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea.” Paul was convinced it was God’s will to deliver an offering to the needy saints in Jerusalem. He was equally convinced it was a perilous assignment. “Unbelievers” awaited his arrival to do him harm. The Greek term is literally “the disobedient.” These Jews who did not believe were zealots who actively opposed the gospel. One way to stop the gospel was to kill Paul. By traveling to Judea, Paul would place himself in their hands. He was not afraid to die. But he didn’t have a death wish. He asked to pray saved, rescued, or delivered from murderous plots and plans.

    Paul believed God could restrain man’s wicked intentions. Do you? The world is sin-stained, self-centered, and Satan-dominated. Don’t be surprised when unbelievers work seek to destroy believers. Pray! Acts 21-23 report that Paul was attacked in Judea but not murdered. Roy Laurin wrote: “God never promises a shielded life, but he does grant a delivered one.” Pray with confidence that God can deliver us from evil. 1 John 4:4 says, “Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”

    God can produce goodwill. Paul asked “that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints.” Many saints in Jerusalem were impoverished by famine and persecution. In his travels, Paul urged Gentile Christians to help these saints. It was important to Paul to personally deliver these love offerings. He called it “my service” – the common word for “ministry” and the official term for “deacons.” His arrival in Jerusalem would put him in personal danger. But there was another concern. The saints may turn down the offering. 

    Why would needy people turn down free money? Jewish Christians harbored ethnic hostility against Gentiles. In ignorance and animosity, they may view receiving money from Gentiles as a sin against God. Paul addressed this error in his letters. Yet sound doctrine was not enough. God needed to make his service for Jerusalem acceptable to the saints. God answered this prayer. Acts 21:17 says, “When we had come to Jerusalem, the brothers received us gladly.” God can restrain the ill-will of unbelievers and invoke the goodwill of believers. 

    The Strategic Purpose

    • Verse 31 is about Paul’s trip to Jerusalem. 
    • Verse 32 is about Paul’s trip to Rome. 

    The opening purpose clause of verse 32 is a key to effective prayer: “so that.” Paul often prayed this way. Romans 15:13: “So that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” Ephesians 3:17: “So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.” Philippians 1:10: “So that you may approve what is excellent.” 1 Thessalonians 3:13: “So that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father.” 2 Thessalonians 1:12: “So that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you.”Romans 15:33 is Paul’s strategic purpose: “So that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company.”

    God listens to your requests and looks at your reasons. What you pray matters. Why you pray matters more! Paul asked for prayer that his trip to Jerusalem would go well so that he could make it safely and successfully to Rome. As important as his service to the saints in Jerusalem was, it was only a means to an end. Paul wanted God’s blessings on his ministry in Judea so that he could finally visit the saints in Rome. Is there a “so that” in your prayers? We pray for things. God does not answer. We become disappointed with God. Could the problem be that our “that” didn’t have a “so that”? If you lose your why you lose your way – even in prayer. Make sure your prayer requests have a strategic purpose.

    Paul prayed so that “by God’s will I may come to you with joy.” Paul was confident but not presumptuous. His plans were subject to God’s will. James 4:15 says, “Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” Sincere prayer bows the knee of your intent in humble submission to God’s will. Paul prayed it would be God’s will that he come to Rome with the joy of work well done. He also wanted to be physically and spiritually refreshed by their company. 

    Romans 1:11-12 says, “For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you – that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.” What you get out of your time with the saints is determined by what you put into it. Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”

    The Mutual Concern

    • Verses 30-32 request prayer from the saints. 
    • Verse 33 offers prayer on behalf of the saints. 

    Intercession should not be one-sided. Prayer should express our mutual concern for one another – I pray for you, and you pray for me. After requesting the prayers of the saints, Paul ends with a benediction: “May the God of peace be with you all. Amen.” This is the third benediction in Romans 15. Each invokes the name of God in unique terms: 

    • Verse 5 appeals to the God of endurance and encouragement.
    • Verse 13 appeals to the God of hope.”
    • Verse 33 appeals to the God of peace.”

    Peace is a divine attribute. A.W. Pink wrote, “Ineffable peace is one of the jewels of the diadem of Deity.” There is no confusion, division, or anxiety in him. God is the source, standard, and supplier of true peace. Peace is not merely the absence of hostility and animosity. It is the presence of the God of peace. Do you know the God of peace? You only know the God of peace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. 

    Romans 5:1-2 says, “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” If you turn trust in Christ, you can live with the assurance that the God of peace is with you. There is no reason to worry, doubt, or fear. Isaiah 26:3 says, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.”

    • God’s sovereign presence is with you. 
    • God’s saving presence is with you. 
    • God’s sanctifying presence is with you. 
    • God’s strengthening presence is with you.
    • God’s sustaining strength is with you. 
    • God’s sufficient presence is with you. 
    • God’s satisfying presence is with you. 
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    H.B. Charles Jr.

    Pastor-Teacher at the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church of Jacksonville and Orange Park, Florida.