Romans 15:14-22

14 I myself am convinced, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with knowledge and competent to instruct one another. 15 Yet I have written you quite boldly on some points to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles. He gave me 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 wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God. 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. 21 Rather, as it is written:

“Those who were not told about him will see,

    and those who have not heard will understand.”

22 This is why I have often been hindered from coming to you.

I am struck by the fact that Paul considered his ministry to the Gentiles a “duty.” This may sound legalistic to some, but he clarified in v. 15b that it was God’s grace that enabled him to discharge his duties.

I have been called by God to continue proclaiming Him on campus. Like Paul, I desire to continue walking on His grace and mercy as I struggle to serve in His ministry.

I may be changing strategies, but one thing I desire to continue doing is one-on-one, stranger evangelism. I just feel the need to sow seeds continuously. I haven’t been faithful in this area, but I continue to ask God to enable me and to sustain me, and to raise up more students who can help on campus.

I long to feel the burning passion and desire I once had earlier in the ministry. It’s not that I’m giving up on God’s call, no. I’m just going through a transition time, and I’m contemplating on many things, trying to discern God’s next move for me as I continue to serve Him.

I am also blessed by Paul’s humility in vv. 17-19. He is not claiming glory for himself but is bringing all glory back to God. Even if he accomplished so much, he clarified that he was just an instrument in the hands of the Living God. God alone can save people. He is the one who seeks them out and convicts them of sin. He is able to save inspite of our weaknesses as workers in His vineyard.

May I never forget this truth. I am practically no one before God. He doesn’t need me to save people, but in His grace He allowed me to take part in the joy of His ministry. He did this, despite my weaknesses and shortcomings. God is truly a wonderful, loving God. I will never regret giving my life to Him.

Finally, v. 20 rings true to me. I’ve been praying for several days now for an opportunity to minster in the colleges of UP. One specific college in my mind is Fine Arts. As early as now, I can sense God’s leading because of the key people He placed in FA. In fact, one of them already expressed the same desire to be used in her college.

I am praying that we will be able to discern God’s leading and heart on the matter. And I pray that we will be able to connect with the students as we allow God to use us in accompanying them in their journey of faith.

There are so many places in UP that need to hear the Gospel. We may have several Christian organizations on campus, but we are not strategically reaching out to all sectors and areas of our university. I hope that we will go not only to places where the soil is ready and good, but even in the hard and dry colleges so that Christ’s Gospel may take root, and His Kingdom advance.

I thank God for His wonderful encouragement:

“Those who were not told about Him will see

and those who have not heard will understand”

Let this come to pass, Lord! Amen.