The “Kingdom of God,” is the last theme to look at based on Paul’s letter to the Romans. It builds on what we’ve seen before:
Below is a picture to give you an idea of the major themes we’ve studied in Paul’s letter to the Romans, which are still so relevant even in the 21st century.
Paul talks of God’s Kingdom as something that does not have to do with drinking or eating only, but primarily with the following:
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- Righteousness.
- Peace.
- Joy. Read Romans 14: 17.
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He’s so clear that the above – righteousness, peace, and joy – are grounded in the Holy Spirit (God’s dwelling and working Presence in us).
This specific text sums everything up for the Romans, just as it does for us today. Of course, you may wonder why Paul is talking of “eating and drinking” in Romans 14.
[bctt tweet=”Even though our physical needs are important to us, but they are not as essential as the Kingdom of God is.” username=””]
Just to give you some background here. In Rome, the members of the Church were both Jews and non Jews (Gentiles).
Like in many other places then (as the number of Christians was growing in the first century), the question whether non Jews should follow Moses was on the table. It started from the very beginning (see Acts 15).
So, Paul was writing this section of Romans (13-15) to resolve a similar tension, but this time, it had to do with eating and drinking.
Paul’s encouragement through Romans is everyone should get back to the idea that the Kingdom of God is all, which should always matter the most.
My take away from that scripture, therefore, is that God wants us to focus more on His Kingdom rather anything else. To do that we need to go with what Paul talks about in chapters 13 through 15:
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- Owe no one anything, but to love them (Romans 13: 8).
- Judge not and make no one stumble (Romans 14: 1-23).
- Welcome others as Christ has welcomed you, and do it for the glory of God (Romans 15: 7).
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[bctt tweet=”God would like you to be the ambassador of His Kingdom here on earth. The only way to do it is by loving all people, judging no one or making anyone stumble, and sharing Christ’ radical hospitality with all! ” username=””]
