Have you ever spent weeks, maybe months or years, trying to reason with a divisive person with a silver tongue? Whether it’s your extended family, your church, or your business­­—almost every place has a person who divides. Maybe the best policy is to stop listening to their speeches, give them a straightforward rebuke, and then, if they fail to respond, avoid them? The Apostle Paul closes the most powerful statement of the Good News about Jesus Christ in the New Testament with some closing words about Uniters and Dividers and then blesses us all with the benediction. Our passage is Romans 16:17-27. It could save you hours of pointless conflict.

The Samsung 500 powers up at the Texas Motor Speedway today. What makes NASCAR fans brave even the threat of Fort Worth tornados is not the speed, but the connections. NASCAR has become the largest spectator sport in the country because they have rushed to fill a vacuum. In a culture with no front porches but large treated wood decks and stainless steel grills in the backyard—all defended by a high privacy fence, NASCAR invites thousands to an old fashion area wide celebration and tops it off with the roar of engines. Will the Church rush into this passion for connections or will we leave the relationship building to NASCAR and tailgate parties before an A&M football game?

For two chapters, Romans 14 and 15, the Apostle Paul struggled to get believing Jews and Gentiles to unite as brothers and sisters.But Paul doesn’t just talk about the uniting power of Christ’s blood, he lives it. In his conclusion of chapter 15 in vv. 22-33, he explains his present mission. He is on his way to Jerusalem with Gentile body guards to deliver a large material gift to the Jewish Home Church.

It’s one thing to be excluded from a pick up basketball game. It’s another to be excluded when you come to church. Tragically, Sunday morning groups of believers can become one of the hardest games in town to crack. In the 1st Century Roman believers still keeping the Jewish law condemned those who didn’t, and the “liberated” distained the “legalists.” Why not simply divide the Church into a Jewish service where they played Jewish music and ate kosher and a Gentile service where they sang Roman praise songs to Jesus and ate ham? Why should believers in Christ welcome each other as family? The Apostle Paul in Romans 15:8-13 did not solve the problem of disunity by creating two homogeneous groups. Instead, he challenged them to think deeply about their true unity factor.

"I've got my rights!" "Why should his conscience dictate my behavior?" "Didn't Christ call us to be free?" The strong believer stands on solid ground. Jesus did declare all foods clean; thus destroying the legalistic system of the religious rigorists of His day who tried to conquer evil on the inside with rules on the outside. Does all this freedom mean that grace causes us to forget about the conscience issues of a more delicate believer? In a culture that worships personal rights does Christ call us to be willing to sacrifice our freedom for the sake of another? Romans 14:12ff gives us not my answer but the Apostle Paul's strong advice to arrogant believers who think they only have to worry about themselves.

What are the triggers that ignite fights, disunity, and then fracturing in a local church? To drink or not to drink? Hymnals or projected contemporary praise? Coats and ties or jeans and open shirts? African-American Soul and Tony Evans type oratory or Bach fugues and Max Lucado’s quiet story telling? Each of you could add to this list and you could also color in anecdotes of how church fights have divided friends, families, and wounded delicate new believers. The Apostle Paul knew the power of food fights in the church and the debates over when and when not to worship. In Romans 14:1-12 he took on this challenge.

"Did you know that Baghdad has the largest international embassy complex in the world and that there are already ten major Islamic nations united to make their mark on the stage of power politics?" My friend was breathless with excitement. Could the coming of Christ be near? Then in my Bible reading I turned to Romans 13 and discovered that the Apostle Paul thought the end was near in AD 57. Was he wrong to think so? Is my friend wrong to get excited about Christ's soon return today? And perhaps the more pressing question is --How should we prepare for Christ's return? Turn to Romans 13:11, read it for yourself, and then join Dave as he applies Paul's words to the Roman believers to our 2008 lives.

There are many reasons why we disobey the Law of the Land—“The speed limit was designed for power cars like mine!” “The politicians are only a bunch of liars. What right to they have to legislate my life.” “I don't need to report that income I received in cash. They will never know and they only abuse the money they do receive.” We live in a lawless society, but if you submit to Jesus, what does He tell you about obedience to the governing authorities?

There are many reasons why we disobey the Law of the Land—“The speed limit was designed for power cars like mine!” “The politicians are only a bunch of liars. What right to they have to legislate my life.” “I don't need to report that income I received in cash. They will never know and they only abuse the money they do receive.” We live in a lawless society, but if you submit to Jesus, what does He tell you about obedience to the governing authorities?

This present world is full of feigned love, jokes about sex, and biting disrespect for all in authority. It’s 2008 and the world hasn’t changed, but have we? What does it look like for a believer in Christ to live as a living sacrifice? What concrete actions result when believers are renewed in their core values by the Holy Spirit? The Apostle Paul’s exhortations in Romans 12:9-21 make a great New Year’s resolution list, but it will take the power of the Spirit every second for us to start to react and live with these Christ-like characteristics.

Christmas Gifts…unless you’re Scrooge, I pray that all the driving, sizing, debating, searching, and returning, and finally giving don’t smother your Christmas cheer. After all, we do all this not just to make sure that our friends in retail can make salaries for the year, we do it to get in the spirit of our Father who gave His most precious gift on the first Christmas. Did you know that God is still into gift giving? If you have entered into the faith that Paul has been telling us about in Romans, then you, too, have received a gift package. Do you know what is in your package?