Paul’s letter to the Romans is the longest of his letters preserved in the New Testament. It has often been called the first book of systematic theology, and rightly so. Yet his letter is not without love. It is personal.
Dozens of individuals are mentioned by name in Romans 16, ranging from the leaders of one of the major house church groups to people Paul may have only met in passing along the way. The fact that he mentions those he writes to by name reveals that Paul was not only a theologian, but also a friend to many of his letter’s recipients.
When we communicate God’s message to others, we would do well to share Paul’s example. We are called to teach truth and to love deeply. It has been said people don’t care what you know until they know that you care. There is much truth to this saying. To effectively share the hope within us, we must be givers of hope, friends to those around us, and willing to become personal with those we seek to impact.
Be personal.+++
Dillon Burroughs is the author and coauthor of numerous books and is handwriting a copy of all 31,173 verses of the Bible at HolyWritProject.com. Find out more about Dillon at Facebook.com/readdB or readdB.com.
