In ourselves we are not the members of the Body of Christ. If we are in ourselves, in practicality we are not the members of the Body. We are members one of another in Christ—not in ourselves—for Christ is both the element which makes us members one of another and the sphere in which we are members one of another. Hence, we should learn to enjoy Christ as the element and sphere of the members in the Body.
In Romans 14:9 Christ is presented as the Lord of the dead and of the living: “For Christ died and lived again for this, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.” In keeping with this, Paul declares, “For none of us lives to himself, and none dies to himself; for whether we live, we live to the Lord, and whether we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore whether we live or we die, we are the Lord’s” (vv. 7-8).
In Romans 15:7-12, Christ is revealed as the Receiver of all the believers.
Romans 15:7 says, “Therefore receive one another, as Christ also received you to the glory of God.” Verse 3 of chapter 14 says that we should receive people according to God’s receiving, but here we are told that we should receive people according to Christ’s receiving. Christ’s receiving is God’s receiving. What Christ has received, God has received. Those whom God and Christ have received we must receive, regardless of how they differ from us in doctrine or practice. This will be to the glory of God.
Christ receives all the believers, regardless of how different they are from one another in their doctrines and practices, as long as they believe the New Testament gospel and receive Him according to the New Testament economy. We need to learn to receive all the believers as Christ does. If a person believes that Jesus is the Son of God incarnated to be a man, that He died on the cross for our sins, that He was resurrected physically and spiritually, and that He is now at the right hand of God, then we must receive him.
Christ’s receiving is in accordance with our faith in Him. Whoever believes in Him, He will receive; whoever receives Him, He will never reject. Thus, in John 6:37 the Lord Jesus says, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and him who comes to Me I shall by no means cast out.” Since coming to Him, believing in Him, and receiving Him are the only conditions for Christ’s receiving, we must receive the believers upon the same basis without any additional requirement. As long as anyone believes in Christ and receives Him as his personal Savior, we have no choice but to receive him, for the Lord has received him.
Romans 15:12 continues, “Again, Isaiah says, ‘There shall be the root of Jesse, even He who rises to rule the Gentiles; on Him will the Gentiles hope.’” Although Christ is the root of Jesse, who was David’s father and who signifies the Jewish people, He will also be the Ruler of the Gentiles. Here we see the all-inclusiveness of Christ. He is the root of Jesse, meaning that He is the supply for the Jewish people. According to Romans 11, His being the root means that He is the source and supply for the Jews. In the future this root of Jesse will rise to rule over all the Gentile nations. Thus, He supplies the Jews and overshadows the nations. By being the root to the Jewish people and by being the overshadowing One, the Ruler, over the nations, He brings together the Jews and the nations and makes them one. Christ embraces both the Jews and the Gentiles and brings them together for one Body, for one new man, the church. Christ is all-inclusive and all-embracing. Since Christ is such an all-embracing One, bringing together the Jews and the Gentiles, we must receive all the different believers according to this Christ. We should never say that we cannot accept so many different people. Rather, we should consider Christ who is the root of one people and is the Ruler, the overshadowing One, over another people. He is all-inclusive. In receiving the saints, we must likewise be all-embracing, receiving people from every place, race, and nationality. Whoever they are and whatever they are, we must embrace all believers together in one Body. This is what it means to receive the saints according to Christ.
Verse 12 shows that the Gentiles will hope on Christ. This means that the Gentiles will have hope in Christ, that is, put their trust in Him. According to Ephesians 2:12, since the Gentiles were apart from Christ, were alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and were strangers to the covenants of God’s promise, they had no hope whatsoever. Yet now in Christ they can have hope and put their trust. Regardless of their races, nationalities, and occupations, the unbelieving Gentiles, both in the ancient and modern times, have no hope whatsoever. However, although the Gentile believers may come from different races and nationalities, they all have the same hope in the same Lord. Today we, as the believers, should enjoy Christ as the object of all our hopes.