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INTRODUCTION
The Gospel in Romans | the power of God for salvation
I hope you’ve already turned in your Bibles to Romans.
And for the next three months, I hope you remain there in your homes and in the break room and as you walk the dog in the morning.
That in many times as places …
… as a church together
… we take hold of this gift of God to us in his Word.
Our prayer for this series is that over the coming years the Lord would build for us a foundation for our faith in the power of God for salvation.
3:00
THE CHURCH IN ROME
Glance ahead to v7.
We know very little about the founding of the church in Rome.
We can be confident that it was not planted by the Apostle Paul … the author of this letter.
We know there were visitors from Rome, both Jew and proselytes (Acts 2:10), at Pentecost, in Acts 2.
A 4th century commentary on Romans(Ambosiaster)
The Romans had embraced the faith of Christ, albeit according to the Jewish rites, although they saw no sign of mighty works nor any of the apostles.
This church in Rome appears to be a church founded by visitors to Jerusalem at Pentecost …
… who, already faithful to the Hebrew scriptures,
… when confronted with the gospel of Jesus Christ
… when Peter made this call to faith
… repented and were baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins and received the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Having confessed faith in Jesus …
… they returned to Rome
… and sharing this gospel with others
… began to walk in faith as a body together.
This letter, then, is an apostle’s effort to bring …
… some theological clarity and unified foundation
… that the whole of the church
… both Jew and Gentile
… would stand on the power of God for salvation.
This one foundation is both theirs and ours …
… as we are together, Christ’s church.
Romans 1:8 — Their faith is “proclaimed in all the world.”
Paul is often is prayer (thanksgiving) for the church in Rome.
They are faithful, in the face of adversity and persecution …
… they have held to their hope in Christ.
I think it is instructive for us that when Paul considered what was needed …
… for this already faithful church
… was to be grounded all the more in the gospel.
Whether it was in the face of adversity or tensions from within or without …
… what is most needful for the church
… is to stand confident in the gospel
… for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.
7:00
PRAY
Transition
While we know little about this early Roman church, we know a great deal about the one who wrote this letter to them.
PAUL, A SERVANT OF CHRIST JESUS
Read Romans 1:1
Romans is written by Paul, but the message and messenger belong to Jesus are about Jesus.
Paul presses this point home with three statements about himself.
A Servant
This is not Paul’s letter nor Paul’s gospel.
Paul writes as a servant.
Servant does not mean, “as a humble guy”
1 Corinthians 7:23 (ESV)
You were bought with a price; do not become bondservants of men.
Paul knows that he has been purchased.
He is “bought and owned” (Piper)
INTRODUCE John Piper’s “The Great Letter Ever Written” Sermon Series
John Piper
Here in this history-making letter we are not dealing with a man and his genius.
We are dealing with a man and his Owner and Ruler and God.
Paul is writing as a servant of God.
As one who is bought and owned …
… whose pen moves at the behest of his master.
But here is the thing …
… as we listen to Paul’s words
… it is clear that he loves his Lord
… for it is by the Lord Jesus Christ
… that he has been set free from his slavery to sin and death.
12:00
Paul is in a long line of servants: Abraham, Moses, David, the prophets.
All of these saints in the scriptures …
… have spoken on behalf of the Lord
… not because they are great religious men
… but because they are servants of their great Master.
Paul is placing himself in this long line of those who speak as a servant of the Lord.
And so, he is acknowledging Jesus as the Lord of all those who speak in the name of the Lord.
Paul is writing this letter as a servant of Jesus.
What we find in this letter is not his idea or labor or authority.
He is a servant to this God.
And he is a servant of the gospel truth (see next point)
14:00
Called to be an Apostle
That is what it means to be an apostle.
The word “apostle” means “sent one.”
He has been commissioned by the Lord himself.
Galatians 1:11–12 (ESV)
For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel.
For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.
I encourage you to read Acts 9 for a fuller account of Paul’s (also called Saul) conversion.
Saul is not merely a church missionary.
He was not merely identified by a local church and sent in the name of the Lord.
He was called by the Lord himself …
… and having witnessed the resurrected Lord with his own eyes
… was sent as an apostle to testify to his gospel.
16:00
Set Apart for the Gospel
There are many valid interests for a person in this life.
Elsewhere Paul calls this other interests, “civilian pursuits.”
But … (2 Timothy 2:4)
No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.
Paul is an enlisted man.
He has been set apart for a specific mission …
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