Our advent series has us considering the hope of the gospel as Paul unpacks it in Romans 15. The hope of the gospel is for our good and for the glory of God. When we come to share in the hope of Christ, this hope overflows from our lives in worship and honor to God.

Romans 15 reminds us that the hope of the gospel is for all people. As gospel people, this hope should overflow from us into serving those around us in Jesus’s name.

Not only does the hope of the gospel unite us as a community of believers, it is precisely this community that causes such hope to flourish. We learn the Scriptures that bring encouragement in the community of the church. Together, we work to spur one another toward endurance in our faith. The God of endurance and encouragement has given us one another to remind each other of shared gospel hope. Often, it is through our lives together in the church that he grants the endurance and encouragement we need.

As a church, we are turning to Romans 15 for this Advent. Over the next four weeks, we’ll read and consider the first thirteen verses of this chapter. Like Advent, this passage helps us look back to Christ’s first coming and to look forward to his second. In doing so, it calls us to center our lives on the hope of Jesus Christ.

In a time when feelings of fear, worry, and anxiety seem to be on the verge of overwhelming us, Jesus speaks peace to the troubled in heart. He speaks this peace as one who himself knew what it was to be troubled in heart, and he brings us peace by entering into our ultimate trouble on the cross.