Called to the Obedience of Faith (Romans 1:1–7)

Introduction

Attention

I'm excited for us to start a new series this year as we look into the book of Romans. Romans is an incredible book. It's the closest we have to a full theology from the Apostle Paul.

Expository vs. Topical Preaching

I love preaching through books. There are at least two different ways to preach.

One type of preaching is called topical preaching. In topical preaching, the preacher comes up with a certain topic in mind. The preacher may want to preach a series on parenting, or want to preach a series on something else. Then he takes that topic and finds Scriptures that speak to that topic.

The preacher may say, “I have a sermon on parenting, and this is what the Bible says about parenting.” He gathers some Scriptures together to support this topic.

Another type of preaching is called expositional or expository preaching. While topical preaching is fine, it’s limited to the knowledge of the preacher and the topic he wants to speak about. At Catalyst, we’re committed to expository preaching.

In expository preaching, we don’t approach the text with a topic in mind. We don’t say, “You know, I really want to talk about parenting, so let me find something about parenting.”

Instead, we go to the text. We preach through the verses in the book and say, “What is God saying in His Word?” We expose what God is saying in his Word, and preach it. We let the topic of the text be the topic of the sermon, and in this way, we as a church, are formed by God’s Word.

Today, in the beginning of Romans, God is calling his people to the obedience of faith.

The New Year

This is perfect for the beginning of our year. We’re at an incredible time of the year. There's something about the beginning of the year that makes us really think about our life and the things that we are prioritizing. It is a time when so many people make adjustments, at least for the first few days.

People starting their year want a fresh start. They may make new financial plans. They say, “This is going to be the year that I really build up that emergency savings. I’m going to put my financial life in order, and we will stick to a budget.”

Maybe it's a year where you're going to advance in your career. You're going to go get some extra classes in college, ramp up your productivity at work, and people are going to notice.

Maybe it's this part of the year that you are really going to make those lifestyle changes. You're going to get fit, you're going to join a gym and make changes in your diet. Or you're going to prioritize your mental health and get into a good place emotionally.

But what could be amazing for us as a church, as a people of God, is making a commitment this year that this is going to be a year where we are going to be a people obedient to faith in Jesus Christ.

Church Success: Be Obedient to Faith

We've seen God do incredible things this past year, haven't we? But we are entering into a time as a church and as a people of God where we expand the vision that God has for us. This is a time for faith.

We have to ask ourselves a question, “As a church and as a people of God, what is success for us?” Success for us always has to be a people who are obedient to faith in Jesus Christ. Success for us as a church is not going to be numbers, or programs, or anything else. Success for us as a church is, “Were we obedient to faith in Jesus Christ?”

What does that mean? What does it mean to be obedient to faith in Jesus Christ? We're going to be talking through that as we look into Romans 1:1-7. If you are in your pew Bible, Romans is on page 997.

Scripture Reading

Romans 1:1–7 CSB

1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— 2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures— 3 concerning his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who was a descendant of David according to the flesh 4 and was appointed to be the powerful Son of God according to the Spirit of holiness by the resurrection of the dead. 5 Through him we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the Gentiles, 6 including you who are also called by Jesus Christ. 7 To all who are in Rome, loved by God, called as saints. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Pray

Who is Paul?

The book of Acts tells us about this man named Saul whose name was later changed to Paul. We hear the story of the change in his life in Acts 9. There’s this incredible change in his life.

Saul was a man who was going out to terrorize Christians. If you ever wanted to know if a terrorist could become saved, look at the life of Paul. A man with a religious zeal setting out to murder infidels, to murder Christians.

He gets authority from the high priest to go out and find Christians and bring them back as prisoners. On his way to a place called Damascus a light from heaven causes him to fall down, and he hears the voice of Jesus.

In Acts 9:4–5, Jesus says to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” Paul replies, “Who are you, Lord?”, and he hears the voice say, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting.”

This testimony becomes the driving force in his life. He is someone who never forgets how Jesus changed his life. This testimony comes up three times in the book of Acts, as Paul repeats his testimony to others, and you also hear mentions of it in his letters. He is someone who Christ has radically changed his life and he has never been the same.

Intro to Romans

Now Paul in his ministry writes letters to churches. He writes a letter to a church in Galatia, and it becomes what we call the Book of Galatians. He writes a letter to a church in Philippi, and it becomes what we know as the book of Philippians.

Now the letter that he writes to the church in Rome is unique. Most of his letters are written to churches that he's started. He planted a church in Corinth, and then writes two letters to them which we have as 1st Corinthians and 2nd Corinthians.

But he did not plant the church in Rome. The church in Rome exists before he gets there. We don't know exactly who started the church in Rome. There are some theories. In Acts 2, there are visitors from different areas who hear the gospel preached to them. Acts 2:10 says there were “visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts),” so perhaps they brought the gospel back to Rome after Pentecost, and a church started from that. Paul knew some of the Christians in Rome, we see that in Acts 16. So perhaps the church in Rome could have resulted from Paul's missionary endeavors in other places.

We know there was a community of Jews very early on in Rome. There's an interesting story from a Roman historian named Suetonius That during the reign of Claudius “they expelled the Jews from Rome because they were constantly rioting at the instigation of a man he described as Chrestus,” which could be an early reference to an upheaval in the Jewish community because of Christ. (1)

Now when Paul is writing this letter he is in the area of Corinth towards the last leg of his missionary journey on the way to Jerusalem. Romans 16:22-23 tells us that he is in the home of a man Gaius, and is dictating this letter to man named Tertius, who acts as the scribe in writing the letter down.

Now since Paul has never been to Rome he is setting the stage for his arrival. He's got ambitions. He plans to get the gospel eventually to Spain and on his way to Spain he plans to stop off in Rome to sort of refresh and recharge, we see that in Romans 15.

When he gets to Rome, he wants them to know bit about who he is and what he teaches about Jesus Christ. He wants to get his teaching out ahead of him, especially since he's being warned that when he gets to Jerusalem, he's not going to have a friendly visit.

What ends up happening is he ends up being in prison after going to Jerusalem. He gets to Rome, but not in the way that he thought he would. He gets to Rome as a prisoner.

Romans 1:1-7

Paul is bursting to tell the church in Rome what he believes and teaches about Jesus. I know that because of the way he starts this letter. This letter could very well start in verse 1 and verse 7. Verses 4 through 6 is really a parentheses.

You know if this letter was written today, he could have just started this letter by saying:

“Hi, my name is Paul. You may have heard of me. I'm one of the teachers here in Jerusalem, one of the Apostles. I just want to send my greetings out to you. Shout out to my my friends in Rome. Greetings!”

That's it. He could have just said that. But instead, Paul just can't wait to tell them what he believes about Jesus.

He starts out the letter by describing a bit about who he is. He is a servant of Christ Jesus. Paul is someone called to be an apostle, we're going to talk about calling later on. He is someone set apart for the Gospel of God.

And then you enter into this big parentheses section, where he is elaborating on what the gospel is. Gospel means good news, there's good news of Jesus, and the gospel excites him. He can't wait to talk about it.

He says this gospel in verse two was something that was promised to us through the prophets in the Scriptures about the son of God, Jesus Christ.

Now remember the word Christ is not Jesus's last name. His driver's license doesn't say Jesus Christ, if he had a driver's license, don't know if they gave those in Jerusalem. But the word Christ is Greek for the Hebrew term Messiah, so when you see Christ, that is his title. He is Jesus the Messiah, or Jesus the Christ.

So just like the prophets say that the Messiah would come through the line of David, Jesus came and was a descendant of David according to the flesh.

Now this term in verse 4, that he was “appointed,.” I don't like the way the CSB translates this Greek word as “appointed.” In other translations, you'll see the word “declared” (NASB, NKJV, ESV), which I think is a better translation of the Greek. It could be translated “appointed,” but most prefer “declared.”

What he is saying there is that Jesus was resurrected from the dead, and that through his resurrection, he was shown to us something that was intrinsically inherent within him. Nothing was added to him. Instead, we saw the power of God in Jesus Christ. He was declared to the world as the powerful Son of God through his resurrection from the dead.

Now we're going to spend some time in verse 5 where Paul really gets to the core of his mission. He has received grace and apostleship for this purpose, this is what the Lord has called him to do. He is called “to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the Gentiles, including you who are also called by Jesus Christ.”

Three times in this introduction to the letter to the Romans, Paul uses this word, “called.” In verse 1, Paul is someone “called as an apostle.” He says in verse 6 that you are “called by Jesus Christ.” In verse 7, he says this letter is to everyone in Rome, “loved by God, called as saints.” What does it mean to be “called”?

That'll bring us to our first point:

Christians are called to be set apart for Jesus Christ.

Now if you've been in the Christian world for any amount of time, you'll eventually hear this term, “calling.” Christians use it in ministry contexts, saying this person, so and so “is called to be a preacher,” or “called to be an evangelist.”

Sometimes it’s used as a term towards a career. For instance, when I was in the police department, there were some people who I could just tell, I would say, “Man, you were designed to be a cop. If I were going to put a picture of a police officer in a dictionary, t would look like you.” If I were to put it in Christian terms, I would say, “There is a calling on your life to be a police officer.” I knew that wasn't me. I am 5 foot 5 on a good day and out of shape. But there were some people that I would look at them and just say, “Man, you are called to be a cop.”

The word “called” comes from the Greek root word καλεω (kaleō),

Let’s learn some Greek today. Say the word, “καλεω.” (kaleō)

This word καλεω (kaleō) means that your participation, your presence has been officially requested, and especially in the sense that refusal is not an option. You are summoned, you are called to, “An offer you can't refuse.” It also can mean an invitation, meaning your participation or presence is requested for something.

Romans 1:1 CSB

1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God—

Paul does use this term in a ministry context. He describes himself as someone who is called to be an apostle, as someone who has been set apart for the gospel of God. He'll repeat that again in the opening of his letter to the Corinthians, 1 Corinthians 1:1, where he says he is called as an apostle.

Romans 1:6–7 CSB

6 including you who are also called by Jesus Christ. 7 To all who are in Rome, loved by God, called as saints. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

But the greater sense of this term calling is in verses 6 through 7, where he puts all of us who are Christians together as people who are called. He says in verse 6, including you, speaking to the church in Rome, who are also called by Jesus Christ. He is saying there is this calling on all of our lives, and what is this calling? In verse 7, Christians are people loved by God, called as saints.

Who have been summoned, you have been called to be someone set apart for Jesus Christ. You are called by God to be a saint, set apart for him and for his glory.

You see this again in 1 Corinthians 1:2 where Paul is writing to the church in Corinth.

1 Corinthians 1:2 CSB

2 To the church of God at Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called as saints, with all those in every place who call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord—both their Lord and ours.

He describes them as those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called as saints. So when Paul uses this term calling, he's not just using it for himself. He's not just saying, “I'm the only one called,” since he is someone called to be an apostle.

He is saying that we all have a calling together. There is a calling on each one of our lives. In his life he may have the specific calling as an apostle, but we all are summoned and called to be set apart for Jesus Christ. All of us as Christians have a calling on our life to be set apart for him. We are called to be saints.

I don't get to do this too much, but if you are a Christian today, turn to your neighbor and say, “I am called to be a saint.”

You say, "Jason, what do you mean I am called to be a saint? During the week, I haven't been acting too saintly. I understand. If you read the book of Corinthians, there's some folks there, this church has some issues. But Paul still says, the church of God in Corinth, people who are called to be saints.

Now this word “saint” has roots in the Hebrew. It comes from things placed into the sanctuary, things placed into the temple of God. The things in and of themselves didn't have spiritual value, but once they were placed into the sanctuary, they have now been transferred into the possession of God. God has set these things apart for him and his glory.

This is exactly what has happened to us as Christians. Because of Jesus Christ, God has set you apart for him. Paul describes it this way in Colossians 1:13:

Colossians 1:13 CSB

13 He has rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son he loves.

God has entered into this world to come on a rescue mission, to rescue us from this domain of darkness, a place that we were stuck in, and transfer us, set us apart for him into the Kingdom of God through Jesus Christ.

Peter describes it this way in 1 Peter 2:9:

1 Peter 2:9 CSB

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

You are a chosen race and a royal priesthood you are a people for the possession of God. God has set you apart and summoned you into his kingdom, through the preaching of the gospel. You heard the gospel, you were drawn in. God has set you apart.

We are not saints because of our own doing. We're not saints because we've made the right decisions or lived a perfect life. We are saints because God saw value in us and set us apart for him. Through the preaching of the gospel, an invitation goes out to the whole world, and we want to see more people drawn to Jesus and experience a new life in him because of the power of Christ in their life.

I remember when my wife and I were dating, we just couldn't get enough of each other. I'd spend all day with her hanging out. I'd go home, and then we'd get on the phone and talk some more. I was I was drawn to her.

In the same way, Christians are drawn to Jesus Christ. We can't get enough of him. Why is that? Because God has set us apart for him. God has brought us into his kingdom. We've been transferred from darkness to light, and because of the light of Christ in our lives, we are changed. We have been sanctified in Jesus Christ.

Christians are called to be set apart for Jesus Christ.

Second and last point,

Christians are called to live in obedience of faith in Jesus Christ.

Why are we set apart? Why are we called to be saints in Jesus Christ? We are called to be a people of God who live in obedience of faith in Jesus Christ.

Faith is not just a passive thing. Faith is meant to play a meaningful and active role in our life.

For many of us we need to build a bridge from the aspiration of faith to the action of faith.

The aspiration of faith says intellectually I believe these things I aspire to live out this way I don't necessarily find that I do but I in my life I want to live this way.

The action of faith says that there is a change in my life and that change has a real consequence a real result that faith plays out in my everyday actions in my everyday life.

In Romans 1:5

Romans 1:5 CSB

5 Through him we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the Gentiles,

Paul says that he is called to bring about the obedience of faith. The obedience of faith is more than aspiration, it is action. There is a faith in your life, a faith in Jesus Christ. There's a seed planted in you and it is growing and it is bearing fruit and as a consequence and result of that faith, that fruit of faith is shown in the things that you do and the things that you say in your life.

James says this in James 2:18:

James 2:18 CSB

18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and I will show you faith by my works.

James will say that faith without works is dead in James 2:26, and God has not called you to a dead faith. God has called you to a living faith, a living faith that shows.

God has set you apart as a person who is holy in him. That holiness will come to a place that it shows in your life. That holiness will take you to a place where you just say, “This is God. I have nothing to do with this.”

Because of God, there is a change in my life. Because of God, there is a change in my marriage. Because of God, there is a change in my family. Because of a faith that has born fruit in my life, there is a freedom that I have in Jesus Christ. I have been freed, set apart from the yoke of sin, and I am living a new life in Jesus Christ. Yes, I make mistakes. Yes, I mess up, but there is a fruit of faith in my life that is changing me, and changing the way I see the world around me.

I was having a conversation with my dog yesterday. Yes, sometimes I talk to my dog but I he doesn't talk back to me. He might bark back, that's about it.

But my dog, he knows he's not supposed to go into our room. I walked into my room yesterday, and there was my dog laying next to the bed in our room.

So I looked at him and said, “You know, how many times have we told you not to go into this room?” He just kind of looked up and stared at me. I said, “You know we've told you many times not to be in this room.”

He stared at me some more, and finally he figured out he wasn't supposed to be in the room. He started walking slowly out. He's not happy about it. I said, “You need to go think about your life.”

I walked out of the room for some reason, came back and there was my dog again. I said, “How many times have I told you that you're not supposed to be in this room?” This time, he got up and upset that he had to leave again, but he kind of walked a little bit quicker out of the room. I said, “You need to go to your bed.”

I left the room again was walking back, and don't you know it, this time the dog had kind of figured out he better walk out before I tell him something. I said, “You were in the room again? Go to your bed.”

He’s just not respecting the boundaries I had set for him.

I got to thinking, we do that don't we? So often God has been talking to us, and we listen to him, but time and again we still find ourselves wandering away from the boundaries that he has set for us, boundaries that are for our good.

Romans 1:5 CSB

5 Through him we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the Gentiles,

What if this is the year that we say, “God I want to walk in the boundaries that you have set for me. I want to walk according to the calling that you have put on my life. I want to be the person that you have summoned me to be, the person set apart for you and for your glory. I want to be a person obedient to faith.”

Maybe faith for you today is the first step that you need to take. Maybe you hear this today and you say, “I don't know if there is faith in my life.”

Faith in Jesus is the first step. There is a summoning, there is a call in your life. You are hearing the good news about Jesus, that there is a God that loves you, that sent his Son for you, and took your place on the cross, and that through faith in him that you can be saved. This can truly be a new year for you as a new life is formed in you in Jesus Christ.

For those of us who believe in the Lord, maybe we haven't been walking in the boundaries that he has set. This is the time for obedience of faith. This can be a revolutionary time in your life.

As we set out for this new year, let us be a people obedient to faith for him and for his glory. Amen.

Conclusion

Christians are called to be set apart for Jesus Christ.

Christians are called to live in obedience of faith in Jesus Christ.

Conclude

Prayer

Communion

We will have communion, remembering Jesus and his sacrifice for us. Meditate on the Lord and where your heart is with him.

1 Corinthians 11:23–26 CSB

23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, and said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Last Song

Doxology

Numbers 6:24–26 CSB

24 “May the Lord bless you and protect you; 25 may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’

Jude 24–25 CSB

24 Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.

You are dismissed. Have a great week in the Lord!

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