3. Even Christ did not live to please himself. It was as the Scriptures said: “When people insult you, it hurts me.”
4. Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that we could have hope. That hope comes from the patience and encouragement that the Scriptures give us.
5. Patience and encouragement come from God. And I pray that God will help you all agree with each other the way Christ Jesus wants.
6. Then you will all be joined together, and you will give glory to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
7. Christ accepted you, so you should accept each other. This will bring glory to God.
8. I tell you that Christ became a servant of the Jews. This was to show that God’s promises to the Jewish ancestors are true.
9. And he also did this so that the non-Jews could give glory to God for the mercy he gives to them. It is written in the Scriptures:“So I will praise you among the non-Jewish people.I will sing praises to your name.” Psalm 18:49
10. The Scripture also says,
11. Again the Scripture says,“All you non-Jews, praise the Lord.All you people, sing praises to him.” Psalm 117:1
12. And Isaiah says,“A new king will come from Jesse’s family.He will come to rule over the non-Jews;and the non-Jews will have hope because of him.” Isaiah 11:10
13. I pray that the God who gives hope will fill you with much joy and peace while you trust in him. Then your hope will overflow by the power of the Holy Spirit.
14. My brothers, I am sure that you are full of goodness. I know that you have all the knowledge you need and that you are able to teach each other.
15. But I have written to you very openly about some things that I wanted you to remember. I did this because God gave me this special gift:
16. to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the non-Jewish people. I served God by teaching his Good News, so that the non-Jewish people could be an offering that God would accept—an offering made holy by the Holy Spirit.
17. So I am proud of what I have done for God in Christ Jesus.
18. I will not talk about anything I did myself. I will talk only about what Christ has done through me in leading the non-Jewish people to obey God. They have obeyed God because of what I have said and done.
19. And they have obeyed God because of the power of miracles and the great things they saw, and the power of the Holy Spirit. I preached the Good News from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum. And so I have finished that part of my work.
20. I always want to preach the Good News in places where people have never heard of Christ. I do this because I do not want to build on the work that someone else has already started.
21. But it is written in the Scriptures:“Those who were not told about him will see,and those who have not heard about him will understand.” Isaiah 52:15
22. That is why many times I was stopped from coming to you.