Paul summarized his policy regarding preaching in Romans 15:20:

"It has always been my ambition ['I have strived': cp KJV] to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else's foundation."

Since that was his avowed intention, why did he choose to write his most comprehensive statement about the gospel to an ecclesia which he had not yet visited?

The church at Rome contained an extremely volatile mix of members in the first century. There were Jews, some who were still quite committed to the observance of the Law of Moses. There was also a large number of Gentile converts from the gross idolatry of the Roman world. In a number of cases, such Gentiles were from influential Roman families, but considering the makeup of Rome's population at that time, many more would probably have been slaves.

Harry Whittaker describes what he calls "the strange social situation" in Rome:

The Jewish Christians had lived all their days following the strict food laws and prohibitions which all through the centuries have done more than anything else to maintain Jewish separatism. These Jews would inevitably be infected with the spiritual snobbery which was very much a characteristic of Jewry at that time… They knew themselves to be the chosen race, "beloved for the fathers' sakes". [To these Jews] Gentiles were mere "dogs", ignorant idolaters, steeped in all kinds of abomination. Even believing Gentiles would be seen to be religiously much inferior to themselves, and accordingly many (or most) of these Jewish believers would look down on their Gentile brethren, who had not grown up in the nurture of the Scriptures, as though they were of lower status in the Faith.

On the other hand some of these Gentiles were from some of the highest families in the Empire. And practically all of them would be accustomed to thinking of themselves as members of the Master Race, the nation which had built the strongest Empire the world had ever known. Especially were they used to looking down their noses at Jews who [had] somehow managed to get themselves disliked by most Gentiles. Here, then, was a situation which from earliest days was fraught with difficulty. Oil and water do not mix. Then how much less the hope that Jews and Romans would join together in a fullness of fellowship so as to adorn the doctrine of Christ!

Bible Studies, p. 304

It was in this ecclesial environment that Aquila the Jew and Priscilla the Roman lived. They may have seen real evidence of the Body of Christ being split into two cliques organized according to nationality. What could be done about it? Since this married couple represented both sides of the great divide in their own marriage, and since they had been close associates and coworkers with the apostle Paul, it seems likely that they decided on a course of action designed to bring the Roman ecclesia or church closer together as One Body. They may even have requested that Paul write a letter to the Roman brethren in order to lay out the full gospel of Jesus Christ. But at the same time, his Letter to the Romans would also present that gospel in the context of the perceived differences between the two parts of the ecclesia (Romans 9-11), along with strong exhortations to develop and maintain true unity in the bond of the Spirit (Romans 12-15), despite those differences.

A microcosm of the Roman ecclesia

The "mixed" marriage of devoutly Jewish Aquila and aristocratic Roman Priscilla is a microcosm of the "mixed" ecclesia in Rome. It is evident from our previous article (#3: "Priscilla and Aquila") that this mismatched couple did remarkably well in blending their diverse backgrounds and experiences into "one body" ("A man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and they will become one flesh": Gen 2:24; cp Matt 19:5; Mark 10:8; Eph 5:31).

This particular "one body" or "one flesh" of Aquila and Priscilla achieved extraordinary success in preaching, guiding, and caregiving — quite literally because, wherever they went throughout the Empire, they never encountered a believer or a prospective believer with whom they had nothing in common. When Paul wrote: "Unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews… to them that are without law, [I became] as without law… that I might gain them that are without law" (1Cor 9:20,21, KJV), he could well have been describing the partnership of Aquila and Priscilla. Their respective heritages and upbringings had prepared this couple to be all things to all men and women — in one convenient package!

To develop such an effective "unity" between two very different people would not have been easy. It would have required an extended, concentrated effort — never mind a profound love for the Lord, the gospel, and one another.

However, once such a status was reached — and remembering the need to nurture and strengthen that unity — Aquila and Priscilla must have realized how much the Roman believers needed that same unity, but on a much wider scale. I think this is what they hoped the apostle Paul would help them to achieve.

As with a marriage, so with an ecclesia — whether that "ecclesia" is a single meeting, several congregations, or the broader body consisting of all individual believers who share a common faith and hope, wherever they live. One ingredient is especially necessary to bring together diverse elements, and that is the ability to overlook and then to live with the minor differences of opinion or practice which are naturally found in a community of likeminded but individual believers. We must remember that, as believers in Christ, we are all instructed to examine the Scriptures, to think for ourselves, and to prove all things (1Thes 5:21). If these guidelines are actually followed, then we may expect that a community based on such instructions will readily agree on the fundamentals of the faith, which by definition are supported by not one or two, but many passages. At the same time, we may also expect that its members would learn to tolerate the relatively minor differences of opinions on doubtful matters, because they have also been instructed to distinguish between what Robert Roberts called "true principles" and "uncertain details". *

How Paul dealt with the problem in Rome

The background of Paul's Epistle to the Romans is suggested in his introductory statement of purpose:

"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile" (Rom 1:16).

Jews and Gentiles were in the same situation regarding salvation: they were all sinners, and all in need of God's mercy (Rom 1:18-3:20). The Jews were the "first" to believe the gospel, because the Law's inability to save weak and sinful mankind had prepared them to accept a Savior. "Then" the Gentiles began to realize, through the preaching of Jewish converts, that they had the same need for a Messiah as did the Jews. Given their respective circumstances, how could either group look down upon or feel superior to the other? Each needed the grace of God in equal portions.

"Is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith" (Rom 3:29,30).

In many cases, Jewish and Gentile believers had followed very different paths to accept the same gospel. As Paul also explained, God had indeed promised that Abraham would be the spiritual father not just of Jews, but of all who had faith. In fact, he was destined to become "the father of many nations" (Rom 4:17) — Gentiles as well as Jews. No matter where they started, Jews and Gentiles heard the call to repent and, led by faith, they followed — until they all arrived at the same destination: the mercy seat, where salvation was found in Jesus Christ.

Going on from the earlier chapters of Romans (chapters 1-5), Paul led his readers on through baptism, the beginning of a new life, and to the great joys of belonging to the family of God in Christ (Romans 6-8). These steps were what all believers held in common with one another — no matter their ethnicity or language, social standing or background. And thus, Paul arrived at the section mentioned above (Romans 9-11), where he analyzed the respective situations of Jews and Gentiles. In doing so, Paul assured all believers that, no matter how far away any believers might think to remove themselves from the mercies of God, He is able to graft them back into His own "tree", His own spiritual family, and include them in the One Hope again.

Then finally, Paul led the Roman believers — the formerly devout Jews as well as formerly idolatrous Gentiles — to Romans 12:3-8, and the wonderful allegory of the One Body (which he developed even further in 1 Corinthians 12). In both Romans and Corinthians he painted the beautiful picture of disparate elements brought together, against all expectation, to create a new and glorious unity. In such a unity, all the components miraculously worked together for the benefit of the whole, and with a greater energy than the sum of the parts.

Finally Paul brought his audience to the powerful and practical exhortations of the last major section of the letter (Rom 12:9-15:13) — exhortations about hope and love, prayer and peace, patience in affliction, decency and restraint, kindness toward all mankind, help and comfort for those whose faith was weak, respect for those with slightly different ideas and emphases, restraint in judging and criticizing others, and — no matter what — joy in sharing fellowship with one another.

It is instructive for us modern readers to see how all of Paul's exhortations in these chapters were intended to lead that odd collection of first-century Roman believers to a greater unity with one another. It was perfectly obvious that, left to themselves, they had nothing in common; they were Jews and Gentiles, poor and rich, slave and free. They had different customs, different traditions, different foods, and different perspectives on the world. Left to themselves, they were aliens to one another and — perhaps most telling of all — they simply did not like each other!

How could this be changed? What could make sworn enemies like Jewish rebels and Roman soldiers come to respect and even love one another? What could make the richest and poorest elements of Mediterranean society live together in goodwill and unity of mind? The answer, I believe, was love. One Man lived, taught, healed, and finally died, only to be raised from the dead — all to show the world what an absolute self-sacrificing love could achieve. And in doing this, he called upon all mankind to follow his example.

Is it enough, however, to study the first-century church from a safe distance? Should we not also ask ourselves: Is there a lesson in all this for believers in modern times? And if there is a lesson for us, what does it mean in practical terms?

Perhaps we can consider those questions in our next article.

* Note: “True Principles and Uncertain Details; or, The Danger of Going Too Far in our Demands on Fellow-Believers” is a lengthy article written by Robert Roberts, one of the last articles he wrote before his death. It first appeared in the magazine which he edited, The Christadelphian, Vol. 35, No. 407 (May 1898), pp. 182-189. This article has been reprinted at least twice, by later editors of the same magazine: by C.C. Walker (Vol. 60, No. 708 — June 1923, pp. 248-256) and by John Carter (Vol. 92, No. 1097 — Nov. 1955, pp. 414-418).