"First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. 9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you 10 always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God's will I may now at last succeed in coming to you. 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you—12 that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers,3 that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. 14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians,4 both to the wise and to the foolish. 15 So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome."
Paul is thankful that there is a strong group of believers in Rome, and he knows that Rome is a very difficult place to believe in Jesus, as the government there publicly persecuted and martyred believers. Perhaps that is why Paul prayed so fiercely for this group.
He not only wanted to strengthen them, but sought to be strengthened by their fearless faith as well. And he longed to share the gospel with all those who lived in Rome in order to support the believers there and add to their numbers.
May I today, like Paul, live out God's command to love and support other believers:
1 Corinthians 12:25, "So that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other."
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