Romans 15:14–20

14 I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another. 15 I have written you quite boldly on some points, as if to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
17 Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. 18 I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done— 19 by the power of signs and miracles, through the power of the Spirit. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ. 20 It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation.

The Gospel Has Fully Been Proclaimed to You.
I. Filling you with Goodness
II. Completing Your Knowledge
III. Preparing You to Proclaim.

Dear brothers and sisters,

A.    Does any teacher begin a lesson by saying, “You’re doing great. You know it all!” Maybe if the teacher has an extraordinary student. But usually beginning  a lesson by saying “You’re doing great! You know it all!” will shut down the learning process, because the student will say to himself, “I don’t have any more to learn.” It sounds as if St. Paul is beginning our lesson that way. He says, “I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another.” Paul is writing these words near the end of his letter to the Romans– near the end of the most doctrinal book in the whole Bible. He had given his readers 14 chapters of thorough, clear and complete instruction, along with all the Roman Christians had already learned. They were mature Christians who had been hearing the Gospel and taking it to heart for a long time. Paul said that their faith was being reported everywhere (Romans 1:8). Today’s reading comes near the end of Paul’s instruction– not at the beginning. They had come a long way. Paul sees this and so he commends them on their progress. The Gospel had fully been proclaimed to them– (as it has been to us, [and especially as it has been to you, Confirmation class.]). This is why we are filled with goodness, complete in knowledge and prepared to proclaim.

I.    Filled with Goodness.

A.    There surely is enough evil in the world. Surely enough evil out there... the evil you hear about in the news. On a news website last week, I saw links to these stories: “Man Choked To Death By Clerk For Stealing Crayons...” “87-year-old woman arrested for selling crack...”  “Man Uses Hatchet to Rob HOME DEPOT...” Those are the unusual stories. The list could go on with the ordinary murders, thefts, frauds and scandals. Then there’s the evil that is reaching out to you– leading you away from loving God and his commands– leading you in a path of selfishness. Often the temptations are sneaky– getting you to laugh at God’s commands as something old fashioned or un-cool–  leading you to forget about a God who interferes with your fun. Much of what is on TV, even cartoons, much popular music, many movies, magazines have this goal of setting things before you that look free and fun. The reality is they are filling you with evil and leading you away from God.

B.    St. Paul says to the Roman Christians, “I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness.” He knew the reports about their faith that he had been hearing.  He wanted to visit them to share in their joy. And in this letter, Paul himself was filling them with goodness. Pointing them away from the evil of the Roman culture they were living in, away from the evils of human nature, to the goodness of God who loves us as his own children because of Jesus Christ our Lord. He promises to work all things for the good of those who love him, and even when everything goes bad, hardships, danger and death cannot separate us from him. He leads us to live in our baptismal grace and baptismal power to live renewed in Christ Jesus, filled with his love, and to offer ourselves to him daily as living sacrifices– not in death but in life– in all we do. This was what Paul taught the Roman Christians. This is what he saw in the Romans Christians. You also have been taught, in school, Sunday School, Catechism and Sunday worship. The same gospel truths the Romans heard, you also have heard. The holy life, sacrificial death and glorious resurrection of Jesus have been put before you. The meaning of it all has ben set before you, too— that you should not live enslaved by the world and the devil– that you have a victory over your own human weakness– the victory of forgiveness and renewal through Christ. “All this he did that I should be his own and live under him in his kingdom and serve him in everlasting righteousness, innocence and blessedness, just as he has risen from death and lives and rules eternally. This is most certainly true.” This is what you learned. This is the goodness that fills you. This is the goodness that fuels your new life in Christ.

II. Complete in Knowledge.

A.    We live in foolish times. There are people who are famous for the foolish things they do. People do dangerous stunts and film them for TV or movies. People who are successful blow it all in a foolish lifestyle or they throw their success away with one rash decision. Sometimes people are so blind to their foolish self-destruction that when someone objects or provides some guidance, the response is, “But this is my choice. I’ve got to be me.”
B.    In the Gospel our Lord Jesus Christ, we have knowledge. Knowledge that is not just “smarts,” but holy wisdom. St. Paul said the Roman Christians were complete in knowledge. Not complete because they know all that there is to know, but that they know what God wants them to know. To know who they are as creatures of God, as children of God born again and connected to Christ in baptism, as people not slaves to fear, but warmed by the spirit of adoption, crying out Abba, Father, and to know that the heavenly Father is working all things for good. In this holy wisdom, we then know who we are– we know what price has been paid for us– and then we know our true value. “God did not spare his only Son, but gave him up for us all– and along with him he will graciously give us all things.” This holy wisdom teaches us to say no to the devil who would destroy us, to the world that wants us to perish with it, and to human nature that so often knows good but fails to do it.  (See also Titus 2:12-13). With the Gospel of Christ we have knowledge and power to live as people who are his very own, eager to do what is good.

III. Prepared to Proclaim.

A.     St. Paul wrote about himself and his work: “I have written you quite boldly on some points, as if to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.” He knew the goodness and wisdom that God had put on him and he saw it as his holy duty to share– to proclaim that goodness and wisdom of Christ.

B.    Paul tells the Roman Christians, “You are competent to instruct one another.” You know what you need to know. God has laid the foundation in your heart with that Gospel of Jesus.  You know what to say. You only need to be careful that the evils of the world don’t wear that holy truth away. Find your glory in Christ Jesus, because he found glory in reaching out to you, making you a child of God by his life, death, resurrection and connecting it all to you in Holy Baptism and in the teaching of his Word. He is continually leading you to obedience and faith. So remain in him. He is faithful. He will not forget you. Hold on to the promise you make today. Do not forget what you have learned. “You are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another.” This is what God has made you. Go forward in Christ.

Amen.

© 2010 Rev. Paul C. Stratman
St. Stephen’s Ev. Lutheran Church, Beaver Dam WI
http://www.saintstephen.org
pastorstratman@saintstephen.org
pcstratman@gmail.com