In his letter to a community of faith in Rome, Paul acknowledges that a life of faith in God will not be easy, but can be bearable and even, eventually, hopeful. Jesus began his work toward the renewed kin-dom of God and, even while he was still alive, he brought together a rag-tag group of people who would share in his mission. He sent them out with the message he was sharing, a message of good news that was to be both spoken and enacted.