Romans Chapter 15 Vs. 30

 

Paul's Plan to Visit Rome

Now I beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, and for the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me; Rom 15:30

Now I beseech... Paul explains here that their prayers for him should not be just because they love him, but for the sake of all Christianity.

love of the... The phrase “love of the Spirit” appears only here in Scripture and refers to Paul’s love for the Holy Spirit, not the Spirit’s love for him.

that ye strive... It is noticeable that Paul never got so full of the fullness of God that he felt he did not need prayers of the saints and continued blessings of God.

We see a simple request from Paul here. He just says pray for me. It is such a shame that he would even have to ask.

Your pastor needs your prayers. In our society today, it seems the pastor is ridiculed from all sides and few think to pray for him.

If the enemy can stop the pastor of a church, he can usually destroy that church. In the next Scripture, you can see why you need to pray for the preacher.

2Cor. 4:5: “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.”

The Apostle Paul recognized his need for intercessory prayer support from his readers and asked for it again and again (Eph. 6:19-20; Col. 4:3-4; 1Thes. 5:25; 2Thes. 3:1-2; Phlm. 1:22). Here he entreated the Romans by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit to join him in his struggle through prayer. “The love of the Spirit” is probably the love given by the Spirit (cf. Rom. 5:5), not love for the Spirit. Recognizing that divine love, they would be motivated to pray. A Christian’s intercession is a means of sharing in the ministry of others.