After the greeting which shows the fellowship of concern among the saints and between the churches, the Apostle declared that the God of peace would crush Satan, and would crush him soon under the feet of the saints who are in the church life (16:20). This indicates that the crushing of Satan by God is related to the church life. If we are not in the church and do not practice the church life, it will be difficult for us to have Satan crushed under our feet by God. The church life is the strongest means by which God overcomes Satan. Whenever we are separated from the church, we become a prey for Satan, for it is difficult for us to fight Satan individually. But, praise the Lord, that when we are in the church and are one with the Body, Satan is under our feet, and we enjoy God as the God of peace in the church life. We experience and participate in the peace of God by our victory over the troublemaker, Satan. As long as Satan, the troublemaker, is not under our feet, it will be difficult for us to have peace. When he is crushed under our feet in the church life, we have the peace of God as a token of our victory over him. So, both the crushing of Satan and the peace of God are experienced in the church life.
Following his declaration that God will crush Satan under the feet of the church people, the Apostle gives his blessing to them, saying that the grace of the Lord Jesus would be with them (16:20). This indicates that it is in the church life that the grace of the Lord Jesus is dispensed to all the saints. A great many believers miss this grace because they are separate from the church life. We all can testify that we have a rich enjoyment of the Lord’s grace when we are living in the churches and practicing the Body life with all the saints. The church is the place where the Lord dispenses His grace and where we may partake of it. The church is not only the place where we have Satan crushed under our feet and experience the God of peace, but also the place where we enjoy the rich grace of the Lord.
Let us read 16:25-27. “Now to Him Who is of power to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which has been kept in silence in times of the ages, but now has been manifested, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the command of the eternal God, has been made known to all the nations unto obedience of faith, to the only wise God through Jesus Christ be the glory forever and ever! Amen.” This concluding praise is like a melody. Paul refers to God as the One who has “power to establish you.” In Romans 16 our need is no longer salvation or sanctification; our need is to be established. Everything has been accomplished, and we only need to be established. We are not established according to doctrines or dispensational truths, but according to the gospel, the preaching of Christ, and the revelation of the mystery. Oh, how the saints today need to be rescued from the divisive doctrines and dividing practices and to be established by the pure and full gospel of God, by the preaching and ministering of the living and all-inclusive Christ, and by the revelation of God’s mystery! Only the pure gospel, the living Christ, and God’s revealed mystery can establish us and keep us in unity for the church life.
This mystery, which has been kept in silence in the times of the ages, and has not been revealed, is mainly of two aspects: one is the mystery of God (Col. 2:2 ASV), which is Christ, who is in the believers (Col. 1:26-27) as their life and their everything that they may become the members of His Body; another is the mystery of Christ (Eph. 3:4-6), which is the church as His Body to express His fullness (Eph. 1:22-23). Therefore, Christ and the church are the great mystery (Eph. 5:32). Romans firstly tells us how the believers have been baptized into Christ (6:3), how Christ has been wrought into the believers (8:10), and how the believers have put on Christ (13:14). Then it reveals how all these believers are built together into one Body (12:4-5) to express Christ. Thus the churches have come into existence in many cities in a local and practical way, with all the saints loving one another and fellowshipping with one another among all the churches to express the Body of Christ for the fulfillment of God’s mystery. This is the ultimate consummation of the full gospel of God. It is through this that Satan is crushed under the feet of the saints (16:20), that the grace of Christ is dispensed to all the saints (16:20), and that the glory is and will be to God unto the ages of the ages (16:27). The eternal God has made known this mystery to all the nations unto obedience of faith.
In Romans 15 and 16 God is called the God of endurance and encouragement (15:5), the God of hope (15:13), the God of peace (16:20), the eternal God (16:26), and the only wise God (16:27). Our God is a rich God in many aspects—in endurance, encouragement, hope, peace, wisdom, and being eternal—and the gospel in Romans is the gospel of such a rich God. The gospel of such a rich God consummates in the practical church life. Hallelujah!