The Great Ingathering Text: Romans 15:7-13
Introduction: A Doxological Mandate
We come now to the practical hinge upon which Paul's entire argument about the strong and the weak turns. For several chapters, he has been addressing the pastoral mess in the Roman church, a congregation simmering with tension between Jewish and Gentile believers. The issues were not trivial in their minds. They revolved around food laws, Sabbath observances, and the entire legacy of Israel. These were not mere culinary preferences; they were identity markers that went back centuries. The temptation, then as now, was for each side to retreat into its own cultural bunker, lobbing proof texts at the other side, and calling it faithfulness.
Paul's solution is not a limp-wristed plea for everyone to just "be nice." He does not offer a program for conflict resolution or suggest they form a committee on multicultural awareness. His solution is theological bedrock. His solution is Christ. He takes their squabbles about vegetables and holy days and anchors the entire discussion in the eternal purposes of God, the integrity of Scripture, and the glory of the Father. What is at stake in their bickering is nothing less than the reputation of God in the world.
The command here is to accept one another. But this acceptance is not grounded in our shared feelings, our common interests, or our natural affinities. It is grounded in a stupendous, objective, historical reality: Christ accepted us. The unity of the church is therefore not a strategic option for more effective ministry. It is a doxological mandate. When a Jewish Christian and a Gentile Christian embrace as brothers, they are not just making a statement about their personal maturity; they are making a statement about the cross of Jesus Christ. They are declaring to a watching world that the blood of Jesus is thicker than the blood of Abraham, and that the grace of God is powerful enough to weld together the most hostile factions on earth.
So as we unpack these verses, we must see that Paul is doing far more than settling a dispute. He is unfolding the mystery of God's plan from the beginning of the world, a plan to create one new man from the two, a plan that proves His faithfulness to the Jew and extends His mercy to the Gentile, all culminating in a global symphony of praise to His name.
The Text
Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God. For I say that Christ has become a servant to the circumcision on behalf of the truth of God to confirm the promises given to the fathers, and for the Gentiles to glorify God for His mercy; as it is written, “THEREFORE I WILL GIVE PRAISE TO YOU AMONG THE GENTILES, AND I WILL SING TO YOUR NAME.” And again he says, “REJOICE, O GENTILES, WITH HIS PEOPLE.” And again, “PRAISE THE LORD ALL YOU GENTILES, AND LET ALL THE PEOPLES PRAISE HIM.” And again Isaiah says, “THERE SHALL COME THE ROOT OF JESSE, AND HE WHO ARISES TO RULE OVER THE GENTILES, IN HIM SHALL THE GENTILES HOPE.” Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
(Romans 15:7-13 LSB)
The Paradigm of Acceptance (v. 7)
The central command is laid down first, and it is the foundation for everything that follows.
"Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God." (Romans 15:7)
The word "therefore" links this command directly to the preceding argument. Because Christ did not please Himself, because He bore our reproaches, therefore, you are to do this. The command to "accept one another" is not a suggestion for a better church climate. The Greek word means to receive, to welcome, to take to oneself. It is the language of hospitality. It means you don't just tolerate the brother with the different scruples; you welcome him into your home, into your life, into your fellowship, with warmth and gladness.
But on what basis? The standard is not our capacity for tolerance. The standard is the gospel itself: "just as Christ also accepted us." How did Christ accept us? He accepted us when we were weak, when we were sinners, when we were enemies of God (Rom. 5:6-10). He did not wait for us to get our theology straight. He did not wait for us to clean up our act. He received us in our mess, at infinite cost to Himself. His acceptance of us was not a grudging tolerance; it was a bloody, substitutionary, wholehearted embrace at Calvary. This is the paradigm. Our acceptance of one another must be a reflection of His acceptance of us. It means we receive our brother not based on his performance, but based on Christ's performance for him.
And what is the ultimate goal of this mutual acceptance? It is "to the glory of God." When a church, fractured by cultural and historical animosities, demonstrates a robust, Christ-centered unity, it puts the majesty and power of God on display. It tells the truth about the gospel. Conversely, when a church is marked by bitterness, factions, and backbiting, it slanders the name of God and makes the cross of Christ seem weak and ineffectual. Church unity is not about us; it is about Him.
The Twofold Ministry of Christ (v. 8-9a)
Paul now explains the theological foundation for this unity by describing the dual nature of Christ's earthly ministry. He shows how Christ's work satisfies the claims of both the Jew and the Gentile.
"For I say that Christ has become a servant to the circumcision on behalf of the truth of God to confirm the promises given to the fathers, and for the Gentiles to glorify God for His mercy..." (Romans 15:8-9a LSB)
First, Paul addresses the Jewish believers. "Christ has become a servant to the circumcision." This is crucial. Jesus was a Jew. He was born under the Law, He was circumcised on the eighth day, He kept the feasts, and He ministered almost exclusively to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. He did this "on behalf of the truth of God." God had made unconditional promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. If the Messiah had not come to Israel, God would have been a liar. Christ's coming as a Jewish servant confirmed that God is a promise-keeping God. He is faithful. He does not go back on His word. This is the foundation. God's faithfulness to Israel is the bedrock upon which Gentile salvation rests.
But Christ's ministry had a second, glorious purpose. It was also "for the Gentiles to glorify God for His mercy." Notice the careful distinction. For the Jews, Christ's work was a matter of God's truth in keeping His promises. For the Gentiles, it was a matter of God's mercy in extending grace to those who had no promises. The Jews had a covenantal claim; the Gentiles were outsiders, strangers, without God and without hope in the world (Eph. 2:12). Their inclusion was not an obligation on God's part, but an act of sheer, gratuitous mercy. This reality should produce two things in the church at Rome: it should make the Jewish Christians marvel at the expansive grace of God, and it should make the Gentile Christians profoundly humble, knowing they have been grafted in contrary to nature.
The Prophetic Chorus (v. 9b-12)
To prevent any Jewish Christian from thinking this inclusion of the Gentiles was a last-minute innovation, a Plan B, Paul now unleashes a rapid-fire succession of Old Testament proofs. He is demonstrating that this great ingathering was God's plan from the beginning.
"...as it is written, 'THEREFORE I WILL GIVE PRAISE TO YOU AMONG THE GENTILES, AND I WILL SING TO YOUR NAME.' And again he says, 'REJOICE, O GENTILES, WITH HIS PEOPLE.' And again, 'PRAISE THE LORD ALL YOU GENTILES, AND LET ALL THE PEOPLES PRAISE HIM.' And again Isaiah says, 'THERE SHALL COME THE ROOT OF JESSE, AND HE WHO ARISES TO RULE OVER THE GENTILES, IN HIM SHALL THE GENTILES HOPE.'" (Romans 15:9b-12 LSB)
He begins with the Psalms. Quoting Psalm 18, he shows King David himself prophesying a day when the praise of Yahweh would erupt among the Gentiles. The worship of Israel's God was never intended to be a tribal secret.
Then he goes back to the Law, to Deuteronomy 32. Moses himself commands the Gentiles to "rejoice, with His people." They are not to form a separate club. They are to be brought into the one people of God, sharing in a common joy.
He returns to the Psalms, this time to Psalm 117, the shortest psalm in the psalter, which is a concise, explosive, global call to worship. "Praise the Lord all you Gentiles." The scope of God's salvific purpose has always been international.
Finally, he turns to the Prophets, to Isaiah 11. Here, the Messiah, the "Root of Jesse," is explicitly identified as the one who will "rule over the Gentiles," and more than that, He will be their ultimate "hope." The hope of the nations is not in their philosophies or their military might or their political arrangements. The hope of the nations is a Jewish man from the line of David. Paul's argument is overwhelming. From the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings, God's intention to save a people from every tribe, tongue, and nation is undeniable. Therefore, for a Jewish Christian to refuse to accept a Gentile Christian is to argue not with Paul, but with Moses, David, and Isaiah.
The Benediction of Hope (v. 13)
Having laid the doctrinal foundation and provided the scriptural proof, Paul concludes not with another command, but with a prayer. He knows that this kind of supernatural unity cannot be manufactured by human effort. It must be a gift of God, applied by the Spirit.
"Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." (Romans 15:13 LSB)
He addresses God as "the God of hope." This is the God who has just been revealed as the hope of the Gentiles. This is the God who makes promises and keeps them. This is the God who brings life from death.
He prays that this God would fill them. Not just give them a little joy, but fill them with all joy and peace. And where does this joy and peace come from? It comes from "believing." Believing what? Believing the glorious gospel truths he has just laid out. When you truly believe that Christ has accepted you, and that God has mercifully included you in His people, the inevitable fruit is joy in your salvation and peace with God and your brother. A lack of joy and peace in a church is a diagnostic of a failure to believe the gospel at a fundamental level.
And what is the result of being filled with this joy and peace? It is that you will "abound in hope." The Christian life is not meant to be lived with a trickle of hope, just enough to get by. We are meant to be overflowing, super-abounding in hope. A hope that is confident, certain, and future-oriented. And this is not the product of a positive mental attitude. It is accomplished "by the power of the Holy Spirit." The same Spirit who hovered over the waters of creation, the same Spirit who raised Christ from the dead, is the one who works this glorious, unifying hope in our hearts.
Conclusion
The application for us is as sharp and as relevant as it was for the church in Rome. Our divisions are often just as foolish, rooted in class, race, political affiliation, or worship style. We erect walls that Christ died to demolish. And every time we do, we slander His name.
The command remains: "Accept one another." Why? Because Christ accepted you. The ground at the foot of the cross is level. There are no strong and weak there. There are no Jews and Gentiles there. There are only sinners, saved by grace, accepted by Christ. And when we live this out, when we welcome the brother who is different from us, we are not just being nice. We are putting the glory of God on display. We are showing the world that our hope is not in our tribe or our traditions, but in the Root of Jesse, the one who rules the nations, Jesus Christ our Lord.
May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing this, so that we too may abound in hope by the power of His Spirit, for His great glory.