Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God (2) which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, (3) concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, (4) and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. (5) Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, (6) among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ. (7) To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

The letter to the Romans was written by the apostle Paul. Our verses today are the clearest statement of the gospel in the New Testament; Paul lays out God’s plan for saving sinner through justification by faith wholly apart from man’s works. The great doctrine of salvation is clear; trust Christ and Christ alone for salvation. All who have accepted Christ as Savior are justified, sanctified and accepted. In Christ we have peace with God.

The gospel was “good news” but not new news; it was foretold by the prophets in the Old Testament and proclaimed in the New Testament. Jesus Christ is our Savior and our Lord. He is the Messiah which is not a name but a title. Jesus is truly human and fully divine. He was born according to the flesh of a human genealogy – He was the linear descendant of the House of David. Jesus is an historical person and His name was given by divine revelation. Without being human He is unable to obey the Law for us and unable to die for us. Jesus never sinned which was Gods original plan for humans. We are less human when we sin .Jesus is more human when He doesn’t sin. He is the only Son of God and fully divine. Jesus Christ is the one about whom the Old Testament prophesied. If Jesus is not fully divine we are still in our sins. Our salvation is lost. But by His resurrection from the dead Jesus was marked as God’s Messianic Son.

The audience for Paul’s letter was the faithful in Rome but this letter was written for all of us. It is a reminder that salvation begins with God, not man. Our response determines our destiny.

Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and the latter rain. (8) You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. (9) Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door! (10) My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience.

The author of the epistle of James was the half brother of Jesus and the head of the church in Jerusalem. This practical letter teaches us to act as we believe, and specifically advises the faithful who suffer from no fault of their own to live in the light of eternity as God will ultimately judge us all – to respond rightly when wronged. James tells his readers it is wrong to take personal vengeance and we are to wait on the Lord remembering that we will also be judged. The faithful are not required to be passive doormats but to make sure our focus is on the second coming of the Lord and eternity. We are not to take judgment into our own hands – if we attempt revenge we also fall under condemnation. James illustrates his command of patience, steadfastness and endurance with the examples of the farmer waiting for the crop, the suffering and endurance of the prophets; to always remember that the Judge is standing at the door.

Christian patience is not calm resignation to God’s will in face of the inevitable but steady and determined perseverance, in spite of difficulties, toward the goal of God’s will for our lives. And no grumbling. If life is so uncertain; man so vulnerable; material things so perishable, then disaster could come at any moment. We are to put our trust in that which we cannot lose, which is God alone. We don’t need to practice patience when things are going well but there is always, for everyone, a time of testing.

C.S. Lewis addressed the dangers of complaining: “Hell begins with a grumbling mood, always complaining, always blaming others…….but you are still distinct from it. You may even criticize it in yourself and wish you could stop it. But there may come a day when you can no longer. Then there will be no you left to criticize the mood or even to enjoy it, but just the grumble itself going on forever like a machine. It is not a question of God “sending us” to hell. In each of us there is something growing, which will BE hell unless it is nipped in the bud.”

For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. (5) Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be likeminded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus, (6) that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. (7) Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God. (8) Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers, (9) and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written: “For this reason I will confess to You among the Gentiles, And sing to Your name,”

The letter to the Romans was written by the apostle Paul. Our verses today address the ultimate ability of the faithful – the Christian Jews and the Gentiles, the strong and the weak, who may differ on non-essential issues – to pursue spiritual harmony in regard to matters in which the Bible is silent (issues of conscience). God was faithful to the Jews in fulfilling promises made to the patriarchs in the Old Testament, and God showed mercy to the Gentiles without any promises at all. The ministry of Christ Jesus did not end in Israel but the Gentiles share the blessing. There was not to be any unnecessary dissension among His people but a harmony of feeling, if not necessarily of opinion.

The motive for patience and forbearance is Christ who came to save man from his sins and the design of divine instruction is to sustain us in present trials. Our verses are not about receiving unbelievers here but are a recognition of those already in faith. Christ Jesus came as the minister to the Jews (circumcised) for the truth of God to confirm the covenental promises of the Old Testament. Though Israel as a nation rejected Him does not invalidate His ministry but opened the door of mercy to the Gentiles in a wider way, in full accord with Jewish scriptures. It was foreknown and predetermined that the Gentiles would hear the gospel and be given the same opportunity as the Jews enjoyed and is entirely consistent with what God had made known beforehand. The Old Testament was the only Bible the Jews knew. It was the Bible of Jesus, Paul and the apostles. My question here is how did the Jews misconstrue the message of hope for the Gentiles?

Our verses deal with right relations of the faithful; doctrine comes first, followed by exhortation, and deals with man’s response to God’s actions. We the faithful, are to receive (accept) one another as Jesus Christ has received us, as fellow members of the family of God. This is how we confirm our calling. It is inconsistent for a Christian to reject someone whom God has accepted. This is the message of Christmas.