Romans 1
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1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,
2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,
3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh
4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,
5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations,
6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,
7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
8 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, 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, both to the wise and to the foolish.
15 So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
Can you be a true follower of Christ, and NOT be fully devoted to Christ? The word Paul uses here is enslaved (GR. doulos) which is a literal or figurative, involuntary or voluntary. It leads to the understanding that we are under the total subjection to God. Today, we are slaves to many things: money, power, food, job, fame, drugs, alcohol, sports, hobbies, and many other things that we could go on and on... The main point is, when you are enslaved, it means you give up other things. You give up time, power, health, mind, money, etc. The one thing I notice is, many times when we give something up we can become bitter towards the one that keeps us enslaved. It doesn’t have to be that way, though. If we have a good master, that treats us well and provides for our every needs, guides and protects us, and allows us to be victorious over life’s trials and problems, being under their control could be seen as a good thing.
According to the Theological Dictionary, “the word doulos here is distinct from parallel groups, they denote compulsory service - one where there is dependence on their master. Greeks have a strong sense of freedom. Personal dignity consists of freedom. There is thus a violent aversion to bondage. Service may be rendered to the state, but by free choice. Slavery is scorned and rejected. This explains the fierceness with which the Greeks fought for political independence. The only slavery Plato will allow is to the laws. The laws, however, represent the goal of humanity, so that slavery to law is in no way derogatory.” Kittel, Gerhard, Gerhard Friedrich, and Geoffrey William Bromiley. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged in One Volume 1985: 183. Print.
Paul recognizes the submission to Christ, not as a slave, but as a child would to the Father. This changes the focus of submission - we belong to God, as His submissive servant, and should be under total obedience to the will of our Master. Tonight, as we look at these 15 verses, we see the emphasis Paul places in his relationship (and ours) with our Master.
Greeting
Greeting
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,
2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,
3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh
4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,
5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations,
6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,
7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
As a slave of Christ, are we totally 100% sold out to Him as our master? When we look at the times of Paul, a slave was owned (totally possessed) by his master. Paul here is saying he was totally possessed, purchased and possessed, by his Master Christ. However, the reason for the purchase is what is different. Christ saw the depraved state we were in, and purchased us for a price so that He could be spared from the state of life he was in.
Paul also states he is not only a slave, but an apostle of God. He recognizes he has been sent by God as a representative to the lost world. Notice the wording here he states he IS a slave, but was “called” to be an apostle. He recognizes he is not in the ministry because he chose to be, had the ability to be, or had been encouraged by others to hold this title. He had solely been called by God.
How many of us have ever had a phone call that we ignored? The same can be true to the call of God on our lives. We have a choice to ANSWER the call from God. In the Great Commandment, we are told we have two purposes when we accept the call of Christ; to serve and minister and to go forth and bear fruit. What are we to go forth with? The Gospel of Jesus Christ. We have been given a great responsibility as a slave to Christ.
What things can you think of that enslave us today?
What are we as Christians expected to give up?
Paul was set apart to preach the gospel of God. This is the reason God called Paul: that Paul might be separated (aphorismenos) or marked and set apart to preach the gospel of God. The word “gospel” simply means the good news of God.
Remember, God sent His Son to become man to minister to us and spread the Gospel, and we are sent to do the same. This proclaims the divine nature of Christ, but also eludes to the divine calling we have as Christians.
Paul had received God’s grace and God’s mission. Grace includes all that God has done for us and all the wonderful blessings He showers upon us. Note the word “we.” Paul now speaks of all believers, not only of himself. We, as adopted children, also receive His favor, His mercy, His love, and His salvation. By default, we have received the calling for a special mission - to take the Word into the world.
Paul acknowledged the enslavement of others. He said four things about believers. Believers are the “called” of Jesus Christ, called just as Paul was. Believers are called to be saved, to be “of Jesus Christ.” Believers are called to the mission and task of Jesus Christ. Believers are “beloved of God,” held ever so close to His heart, counted precious and dear to Him and deeply loved. Believers are called to be saints. Believers are recipients of God’s grace and peace.
Longing for Rome
Longing for Rome
8 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, 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, 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 had never visited the Roman church, and he had never seen the believers at Rome; yet here he is writing to them. How could he best reach them and express his purpose for writing them? How could he arouse their interest to such a peak that they would read what he was writing and heed it? This is the subject of the present passage. Paul wanted the Roman believers to know his great interest in them; therefore, to the best of his ability he shared why he was writing to them. Simply stated, he said he was writing because he could do nothing else; he was compelled to share the gospel with the whole world including the capital of the world, Rome itself. In fact he was enslaved by the gospel.
The gospel stirred Paul to thank God for the church because of its worldwide testimony. The church at Rome was a great church—so great that Paul thanked God for the church “always” (v. 9). The word “always” shows that the church held a very special place in Paul’s heart. This is significant, for Paul had never been to the church. He did not know the church personally; he only knew what he had heard about it. Note: the church’s testimony for Christ was so strong it was being talked about throughout the whole world. It had a powerful testimony, and wherever Paul traveled he heard about the strength of the church. What made the church at Rome so solid and focused? Two significant things can be gleaned from Scripture. The believers were living pure lives in the midst of an immoral, base, and unjust society. The citizens of Rome were known for their … immorality, fleshiness, drunkenness, partying, gluttony, extravagance, hoarding, materialism, greed, selfishness, indulgence, idolatry, pride, sin and wickedness
Nevertheless, the believers were standing firm for Christ and living pure lives, proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ and the need for morality and justice among men. The believers were serving Christ faithfully and laboring ever so diligently for the Lord. Wherever they were, at home or away traveling, they were sharing Christ and ministering to people—so much so that some of them were known by name all around the world. Paul himself apparently had run across quite a few of them as they were traveling about and ministering.
The Roman church stands as a testimony for every church. No matter how immoral and base, polluted and corrupt a society is, we are to stand firm for Christ. No matter where we are, at home or travelling away on business or for pleasure, we are to be witnessing and ministering for Christ. Every church and every believer should have a strong testimony, a testimony so strong that it is talked about everywhere.
Every man should subject his spirit to God’s Son. Why? Because of the gospel, the glorious salvation that is in Christ Jesus: the deliverance from sin, death, and hell. When a person considers that he is enslaved by sin and that he is actually going to die and have to give an account to God, he is most foolish …
• not to accept the salvation that is in God’s Son
• not to subject his spirit to God’s Son
• not to serve in the gospel of God’s Son
The gospel stirred Paul to pray without ceasing. Paul was a man of intercessory prayer, a man who always prayed for others. Note two points.
Paul called upon God to bear witness that he prayed. He did not …
• just talk about praying
• just tell people he was praying for them as a courtesy
• just pretend to pray
• just spend a few minutes in a religious exercise of prayer
Paul really prayed; he took time to ask God to strengthen and help others. Paul even prayed for believers and churches whom he did not know. Remember he knew only a few of the believers in the Roman church; he had never met most of them. They were totally unfamiliar and unknown to him, yet he prayed for the church.
Scripture is strong in its charge to us. We are to pray constantly and we are to pray for all believers throughout the world. Our prayers are not to be limited to a few minutes each day nor to our loved ones and close friends.
The gospel stirred Paul to seek people personally. He did not leave the ministry and the sharing of the gospel up to others. He became personally involved, so much so that he begged God to give him opportunity after opportunity—even to the point of letting him travel to the capital of the world itself to share Christ with its citizens. Note how deeply he was stirred: he made a request—if by any means, now at last—that he might be allowed to preach the gospel at Rome.
The point is forceful: Paul was stirred to seek people, for he longed to reach people for Christ. Paul wished to impart some spiritual gift to the believers. Why? So that they might be more deeply established in the faith. Paul realized the gift God had given him, to share the truths of the gospel with believers, here specifically in Rome.
What a testimony to us today! Are we so full of the gospel that we have the same desire to share as Paul does? Do we even know the gospel well enough that we know the feeling of overflowing with God’s gifts and blessings?
Note that God’s spiritual gift establishes the believer. The word established means to fix, set, make fast, and strengthen. Paul wished to be encouraged together with other believers. The word comforted means to be strengthened and consoled together. Paul expected to be taught and strengthened by the believers as well as to teach and to strengthen them. There was to be a mutual sharing among all. Paul expected all believers to be actively sharing the gospel. He even expected them to share with him so that he might grow and be more firmly rooted in the faith.
How many believers are actively grounded enough in the faith to share with Paul? What an indictment! Yet the expectation is that we are to be deeply rooted, ever studying the Word and learning. How much we need to awaken and arise from our sleepy state.
By sharing his faith, Paul recognized the desperate needs of all those within the world who were lost. Paul goes on to describe the debtor - someone who owes, or is obligated by something. He recognized the debt he owed to God because of what Christ had done for him (saved him)!
The indebtedness was deeply felt by Paul. The idea is that it was intense, unwavering, unrelenting, powerful. The sense of debt just would not let Paul go. He was compelled to preach the gospel; therefore, he could do nothing else. He was obligated and duty-bound to preach it. He actually felt that he owed the gospel to the world; therefore, if he kept quiet, it would be worse than knowing the cure for the most terrible disease of history and refusing to share it. He owed the gospel to all nationalities and cultures, to all the peoples of the earth whether civilized or uncivilized, industrialized or primitive, rich or poor. He owed the gospel to the educated and the uneducated, the learned and the unlearned, the motivated and the unmotivated, the seeking and the complacent.
The answer to eternal life is now known and must be proclaimed to the whole world. To keep the message to oneself is the most inexcusable and criminal act in all of human history. The glorious news that death has been conquered and that man can now live eternally must be proclaimed. We who know the wonderful news are indebted to get the news out to the world.
Paul experienced both a willingness and an urgency to preach the gospel. Note the words, “as much as in me is.” Paul wanted to take all that was in him and pour it into people—all the energy and effort, all the truth and knowledge of the gospel. There was nothing that could keep him from sharing the gospel, not if he had a chance to share it. He allowed no hindrance to enter his life that would affect his message. He was possessed and obsessed with a readiness to preach the glorious message of the living Lord.
Leadership Ministries Worldwide. Romans. Chattanooga, TN: Leadership Ministries Worldwide, 1996. Print. The Preacher’s Outline & Sermon Bible.