Romans 1:1 "Intro to the Epistle"

Good Morning Calvary Chapel Lake City!

If you are not registered to vote… Monday, Oct 7th is your final day to register. Please make a point to vote… it matters… now more than ever.

If you’re new to Calvary Chapel… you’re timing is good… because today we begin the Book of Romans.

Please open your Bibles to Romans 1.

Last week we finished the Gospel of Mark… and yes Calvary Chapel does teach straight through the Bible…

And NO… Romans is NOT immediately after the Gospel of Mark…

BUT… since there are four Gospels… we are intentionally alternating between a Gospel and subsequent book… so we continue to come back to the Gospels, BUT also see church history… and the first epistles in the New Testament.

So… we taught through Matthew… then Acts… then Mark… NOW Romans… Next (Lord willing and if He doesn’t return)… Luke… then 1 Corinthians… John… 2 Corinthians… and from there… straight through to Revelation and repeat.

And, we are trying to figure out what a mid-week service will look like to teach through the Old Testament… more to come on that.

But, today… the Book of Romans.

As we enter into this book… in full transparency… I have been feeling the weight of this book for months now.

There is a healthy feeling of intimidation that I… and not I alone… even MY Pastor (Dan Sexton/ Calvary Chapel Ellicott City)… who has been preaching now for 20 years and has taught through the entire 66 books of the Bible…

In his second time teaching through Romans… in his opening message… he acknowledged feeling intimidated.

And, this is good… teachers of the word of God should hold the Holy Scriptures with a sense of reverent awe…

I often think of the writings of James… James 3:1 “My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.”

I take that seriously… desiring to “rightly divide the word of truth”…

As Paul exhorted Timothy 2 Tim 2:15 “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

And, that’s my heart… and please pray for me.

Part of the weight I feel is because THIS IS the Book of Romans…

Listen to some of these quotes from famous theologians and Church Fathers…

Samuel Taylor Coleridge… 18th century poet and theologian said, Romans is “the most profound book in existence.”

It’s been called "Paul's magnum opus," (his most important work)… and "the cathedral of the Christian faith."

So… no pressure.

John Calvin said, “… understanding Romans opens a pathway to understanding the whole Bible.”

Martin Luther is quoted saying, “This letter is truly the most important piece in the New Testament.”

Luther also said, “It is impossible to read or to meditate on this letter too much or too well.”

Fifth century preacher and early church father, John Chrysostom had the Book of Romans read over him 1-2x per week.

Today, we have apps for that… and I’m grateful… because my mind wanders.

Often I have to rewind or start a chapter over.

I cannot imagine having someone read a book over me… “Uhh… can you read that part again… just back up 15 seconds.”

I’d destroy that friendship.

Last quote, and then we will get into the text…

Swiss theologian Frédéric Louis Godet wrote of Romans, “The probability is that every great spiritual revival in the Church will be connected as cause and effect with a deeper understanding of this book.”

My understanding is that Calvary Chapel… in the beginning was going through a study on Romans when revival broke out in our country.

And, let it be so again Lord.

Now more than ever… we need revival in our country… and in the world.

Holy Spirit would you move again… reviving the hearts of many… as WE study through the Book of Romans.

Let’s read Rom 1:1-7 which is the first part of Paul’s “Intro to the Epistle”… and our message title for today…

But, we’re mostly going to discuss the first verse today, because… with the opening of any new book… I like to zoom out and introduce the book and author.

Kind of a “who, what, where, when, and why” of sorts.

It’s important to ground us in these things… especially since we’re going to be in Romans for the next year plus…

Lord willing and if He tarries.

Let’s pray.

In reverence for God’s word, please stand as I read our passage.

Romans 1:1-7 “Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God 2 which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. 5 Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, 6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ;

7 To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Praise God for His word. Please be seated.

The New Testament is comprised of 27 books… divided into 4 categories…

Gospels, History, Epistles, and Prophecy.

The Gospels include Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

History is the Book of Acts. The history of the early church.

There are 21 Epistles in the New Testament…

Epistles meaning “Letters.”

Paul… is the major writer of the Epistles… writing 13 letters total.

Maybe 14… Hebrews has an unknown author… some think Paul.

The other authors of epistles are James, Peter, John, and Jude.

Therefore, you can sub-categorize the epistles into “Pauline Epistles” and “General Epistles.”

And, within Paul’s Epistles are further sub-categories…

Paul’s letters to cities and to individuals.

The individual letters to Timothy and Titus are knows as “Pastoral Epistles.”

The last overall division is Prophecy (the Book of Revelation).

Gospels, History, Epistles, Prophecy… that’s how your New Testament is divided.

Today we enter into a new division of the New Testament.

Romans is the first epistle… in order… in the New Testament.

It’s not the first epistle written by Paul.

Paul wrote 5 other epistles before this one. First and Second Thessalonians, First Corinthians, Galatians, Second Corinthians… then Romans.

But, Romans is the longest… in words… of all the Epistles… 7,111 words.

And, of course, some say Romans is first in order of importance.

In the Gospel’s of Matthew and Mark… we observed the life and ministry of Jesus Christ… often finding ourselves in a direct teaching of Jesus’…

Or in a narrative about the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.

The Book of Acts was similar… teachings and mostly the life and ministry of Peter and Paul.

Romans is different… this is a letter from Paul to the Romans with key themes addressing sin, the Gospel, the righteousness of God… Justification, Sanctification… God’s future plan and restoration of Israel…

Grace… Romans is called “the Gospel of Grace.”

It answers the question, “how can a holy god… qualify an unholy person for the holiness of heaven… and remain holy in doing so?”

It’s a human dilemma. How is this even possible?

And, if this is possible, what is required of God in doing so?

So often we think of the Gospel as the free gift from God… and that man’s responsibility… to receive the free gift.

But, behind that free gift stands the plan of God… and the humility of God… and the sacrifice of God…

The Gospel was not free for God.

And, Romans displays how God, who is holy, makes sinful people righteous by grace through faith in Jesus.

All of this is reflected in the key verses for the Book of Romans…

Romans 1:16–17 “ For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

Thematic to Paul’s purpose of writing is “the gospel” V16…

AND… “the righteousness of God”…

The word “gospel” appears 16x in this letter.

‘Righteous’ or ‘Righteousness’ appears 44x.

And… again… there is man’s part and God’s part…

And, no one can fully appreciate the gospel of redeeming man back to God without understanding both… man’s part and gods part.

And that’s what Paul does in this great treatise of the gospel.

And, there are many suggested outlines for Romans.

In Bible college, we were tasked to create our own outlines for Bible books… and in so doing… I discovered that scholars often saw how to outline books of the Bible differently.

Which is ok.

Here and example… one of my favorite Pastors to listen to… Pastor Damien Kyle suggested Romans represents each Christian’s walk… and you can outline Romans in five words.

Chapter 1-3 Condemnation

Chapter 4-5 Justification

Chapter 6-8 Sanctification

Chapter 9-11 Vindication

Chapter 12-16 Application

Chuck Swindoll broadens this outline a bit, and I like what he does here:

Romans 1:1-17: Introduction

Romans 1:18- 3:20: The Bad News: We’re All Guilty

Romans 3:21-5:21: The Good News: God Has Given Us His Righteousness

That’s Justification.

J.B. Hixson also likes to share the Bad News and the Good News when sharing the Gospel.

Chuck continues… Romans 6-8: More Good News: We Don’t Have to Live as We Used To

That’s sanctification.

Romans 9-11: The Future of Israel

Romans 12:1-15:13 How, Then, Are We to Live?

Romans 15:14-16:27 Conclusion

Walvoord and Zuck… Dallas Theological Seminary… outline the exact same way in the chapter and verse divisions as Chuck… they just use slightly different words.

Like instead of “The Bad News: We’re All Guilty”… Walvoord’s outline reads “God’s Righteousness Revealed in Justification.”

Anyhow… outlines are good… they give you a road map for where the book is going…

And, before you know it… we’re going to be in that “bad news” or “condemnation” section first.

Paul gives us the “bad news” before he gives us the “good news.”

You’re going to be ready for some good news by the time we get to chapter 3… where Paul is going to capstone his point saying “There is none righteous, no, not one” (Rom 3:10).

There is non who seeks after God. (Rom 3:11)

His Roman audience and whomever has read and understood this letter… throughout the ages… by the time you get to Rom 3:21…

You’ve cried out “Uncle” and you know you need a Savior… you need some good news.

And, then Paul tells us the Good News.

My Pastor (again Dan Sexton) simplified his outline stating… “The first 11 chapters of Romans are doctrinal and the final five chapters (12-16) are application.”

Dan also said Paul follows this pattern “doctrine, then application” throughout his epistles.

Paul teaches doctrine, and then applies what has been learned to the lives of the Christian.

And, it’s tremendously important to have this in the correct order.

There is a temptation in churches and amongst Pastors today to dumb down sermons… to not feed the meat of doctrine to the congregation…

And, only to feast on the richest of applications… so you walk away feeling good.

The problem with this… is that if you skip doctrine and jump right to the application… the application doesn’t make sense…

… because you’ve voided the application of it’s context.

You try to apply a truth to your life, but you don’t know why.

The application is then muddy… it’s becomes a yoke or a burden… and it can become legalism.

If you divorce an application from the context of doctrine… the application is very difficult to accept, internalize and live out.

This is why we teach systematically why we teach chapter by chapter and verse by verse…

… why we teach a whole council of God.

Pursuing only application creates confusion if you don’t marry it to doctrine.

Let me give you an example. The first 11 chapters of Romans are doctrinal.

What are the first words in the application section of Romans

Romans 12:1 “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service."

“Present my body as a sacrifice?” “Is that reasonable?”

Not if you don’t know why!

It’s reasonable to present your body as a living sacrifice to God IF you have study through the first 11 chapters… you’ll know why then.

Otherwise jumping right into that application doesn’t seem reasonable because you don’t know the reason… because you didn’t read the first 11 chapters.

True is the saying “a text without a context is a pretext.”

Some scholars have updated that saying as “Any Text Without A Context is Pretext for a Prooftext.”

MEANING… Any Bible text, without a context (historical, grammatical, literary), is a pretext (a reason to justify a false course of action) for a proof-text (a text abused by a teacher to make a point not actually being made by the text itself).

We have to read the text… zoom out from the verse to the segment… to the chapter... to the book… to the Testament (Old or New)… to the Bible in it’s entirety.

By the time we get to Romans 12… the application section… we will have covered all the doctrine explaining why we should apply Rom 12-15 to our lives.

So… Romans 1, Verse 1… Word 1… “Paul”…

“Paul” is the first word is all of his epistles…

This clearly identifies him as the author of the letter… and this was practical.

We sign our names at the end of a letter, but we don’t write on scrolls.

If your name was at the end of a scroll, it would be rather frustrating and inconvenient… having to unroll the entire scroll to see who sent it.

Seems like an ancient way to prank your friends.

The customary formula for greetings ancient letters was

First, naming and identifying the author…

Paul does this in V1… Paul (his name)… “a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God”… his identity…

The second custom in an ancient letter’s greeting was naming and identifying the recipient…

V7 “To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints...”

Paul wrote to Roman Christians… we don’t know if this was one church or multiple churches, but for sure he wrote to the saints… the Christians, in general, in Rome.

He does mention a church met in the home of his friends Aquila and Priscilla.

And, third… customarily an epistle’s greeting contained a ‘word of salutation.’

Also V7 “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

That’s a typical greeting.

Paul deviates from the customary greeting… in vv 2-6…

In those 5 verses… Paul qualifies what the “gospel” is… speaks about Jesus… and links calling to Jesus Christ.

And this deviation from the typical greeting is rather unique for Paul.

In all his other letters, except for Titus… he uses a standard greeting… author, recipient, salutation..

But, this letter to the Romans is also unique for Paul.

Paul had not been to Rome yet upon writing this letter.

Many of Paul’s epistles were written to churches HE planted… but he did not plant the church in Rome.

He desired to go to Rome… he said that in V13… “I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now)...”

And we know at the end of the Book of Acts… Acts 27… Paul indeed sets sail for Rome… not as he anticipated… as a prisoner, but he would make it there.

We don’t know exactly how the church in Rome was planted.

In an indirect way… Paul may have had his hand in the cause that sent Christians out to fulfill the Great Commission of taking the gospel everywhere.

Acts 8:1 reads… “Now Saul [that’s Paul… pre-conversion which happened in Acts 9] was consenting to his [Stephen’s] death. At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.”

Acts 8:3-4 continues “As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison. 4 Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word.”

Of course Jesus would later appear to Saul on the road to Damascus…

“Saul, Saul why are you persecuting Me?”

Saul replies, “Who are You, Lord?”

“… Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”

That sermon from Stephen in Acts 7 was likely still rolling around in Paul’s mind.

Like a rock in his shoe… wearing on him.

And, as Jesus reveals Himself… Saul cries out to him as his “Lord.”

That was somewhere around 35 A.D.

A little over 20 years later, Paul would write the Epistle to the Romans… and still Paul was in submission to Jesus as His bondservant.

Quick Sidenote: Saul and king Saul of the OT… both were from the Tribe of Benjamin… both were pursuing the Lord’s anointed… David & Jesus… and both David (in 1 Sam 26) & Jesus (in Acts 8) asked Saul “Why are you pursuing” or “Why are you persecuting Me?”

Interesting parallel. Praise God for Paul's conversion... and the GRACE bestowed upon him by the Lord.

But, before all that… while Saul was still persecuting the church…

God used Saul’s persecution to fulfill what Jesus said in Acts 1:8 “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

And in Acts 1-7 they indeed were witnesses in Jerusalem, but there was no mention of them going out.

It took persecution from Saul in Acts 8… to get the program moving.

Again… we don’t know exactly how… but as the gospel goes forth… some Christian or group of Christians go to Rome.

In Acts 18, Paul is at Corinth… and we meet Aquila and Priscilla… who were Jews “who had recently come from Italy… (because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from Rome).”

They were of the same trade as Paul… tentmakers… and Paul stayed with them and worked with them… and did ministry with them.

Did God use them to plant a seed in Paul’s mind about the ministry needed in Rome?

It was at this time that the Jews had opposed Paul and blasphemed…

And, Paul… says, 'That's all I can stands. I can't stands no more.'

Like Popeye

He actually shook his garments and said, “Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”

Which was a major turning point for Paul… soon after he would begin his Third Missionary Trip… and that happened somewhere around 54 A.D.

And at the tail end of that missionary journey… Paul would return for three months to Corinth…

And, it’s well accepted at this time that he wrote this letter… what we call the “Book of Romans.”

Paul in Romans 16:1 commends Phoebe… a servant in the church in Chenchrea… a port city of Corinth…

Which is strong internal evidence that Paul wrote Romans from Corinth… and Phoebe would be Paul’s emissary to deliver this letter to the saints in Rome.

And, scholars place the date… of when the Book of Romans was written… somewhere around 56-58 A.D.

Of Phoebe Paul wrote in Rom 16:2 “… receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and assist her in whatever business she has need of you; for indeed she has been a helper of many and of myself also.”

I look forward to meeting Phoebe…

What trust Paul placed in her to carry this letter from Corinth to Rome!

But, she had also demonstrated she was worthy of his trust.

I see a great application for us to emulate some of the qualities of Phoebe as Paul listed…

She is a “servant”… Gk. diakonos… a deaconess for the church in Cenchrea.

Paul asks the Christians in Rome to ‘receive her' and ‘help her’ for she has helped many including Paul.

She had a good reputation of being there for others… and therefore the church should reciprocate.

In Rom 16:3-5, Paul also wrote “Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, 4 who risked their own necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles. 5 Likewise greet the church that is in their house.”

So… his friends eventually made it back to Italy… for a season… they would later return to Ephesus (2 Tim 4:19)…

A town they travelled to as they travelled with Paul on his third missionary journey.

They too had a good report… they risked their necks… their very lives for Paul…

Paul and many Gentiles were thankful for them…

And, now a church met in their home in Italy.

They led open handed lives… models for us today.

If you count the number of Christians Paul greets 26 Christians by name in Rome… plus their households… and those with them… and the church that met at Aquila and Priscilla’s home.

So Paul knew quite a few people in Rome, BUT there were many he did not know.

And, you feel that in how he opens this letter.

Just imagine if you were writing a letter… to a place you had never been… and to many people you did not know.

How would you open the letter, and what would be the content of what you would write?

Paul begins with this description of himself to introduce himself to those in Rome… V1 “Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God...”

This would have shocked the readers in Rome.

Rome had a population of some 50-60 million and about a 1/4 of that were slaves…

So upwards of 15 million slaves.

And, Paul’s word here “bondservant” in Gk. is Doulos. Lit. a “slave.”

And, not just any slave… but it was understood that a doulos was the lowest of slaves.

Pastor Joe Focht out of Calvary Chapel Philly has said that Rabbis, Aristotle, Plato… they all agreed that the worst insult you could hurl at someone was to call them a doulos.

And, this is how Paul identifies himself…

Straight out of the gates… “Paul, a bondservant...”

But NOT of any man… he was a slave to Christ.

We’re all slave to something. Some serve their careers… some have so many possessions and properties and investments… that all their time is spent serving their wealth…

They become a slave to their wealth.

Paul… prior to the Damascus road experience… he was a slave to religion… a slave to legalism.

Spending his days and energy defending Judaism…

We all serve a master. The problem is there are many cruel masters that will exhaust and drain us and have to hope for an eternal future.

The trick is to find a master who is not cruel. Who is loving. Who is eternal.

And, some 20 years after the Damascus road… Paul still knows who his master is and is not ashamed to be His bondservant.

That’s how he saw himself… which is quite a beautiful picture… especially when you look historically at what a bondservant is.

Quickly in Deut 15… if a person was unable to pay their debts… they would sell themselves to their creditor…

… and if the size of their debt was high enough, they would work six years, but would be released in the seventh year per the law.

NOW… if that slave did not want to part from their master… here’s the law of the bondservant…

Deut 15:16-17 “And if it happens that he says to you, ‘I will not go away from you,’ because he loves you and your house, since he prospers with you, 17 then you shall take an awl and thrust it through his ear to the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Also to your female servant you shall do likewise.”

This law was first spoken of in Exo 21:5-6… and this is essentially how Paul identified himself.

Paul knew what was in the world… he knew all that religion had to offer… he walked that road and there was NOTHING the world had to offer that could compare to Christ…

And, thus in essence… he said, “I love my Master… and I will not go out free.”

In essence, Paul served his six years… and if anyone had a debt to pay it was Paul…

And, symbolically, he chose NOT to be released, but to remain the bondservant of Jesus Christ… because there IS NO BETTER Master to serve.

And truly, this should be our posture as well… this should be true of us… and how we view our relationship to the Lord…

… upon serving Him… and truly knowing His character… we should come to that place where all of us PROUDLY would take on the title of “bondservant of Jesus Christ”…

If you serve Him… not your church… not your religion…

If you offer your service to the Lord for a period of time… you will know there is no greater… no more loving Master to serve in the entire world.

“I don’t want to serve anyone but you, Lord!”

“I voluntarily submit and commit my life to serving my good Master.”

That’s the posture of a bondservant.

And, then Paul writes, “… called to be an apostle.”

More times then not in Paul’s epistles, Paul writes that he is an apostle…

An Apostle, Gk apostolos means “a messenger or one sent on a mission.”

The word “missionary” is not in the Bible. The word apostle is the closest that captures the heart of a missionary… a sent one.

And, Paul was indeed a missionary at first to the Jews… but ultimately to the Gentiles.

I used to think Paul held the seat of the Twelfth Apostle after Judas Iscariot fell.

That his name would be written on the Twelve Foundations of the New Jerusalem in Rev 21:14.

I was skeptical that Matthias in Acts 1 was truly chosen as the Twelfth Apostle.

But, as you read through the Book of Acts… Acts 6:2 reads “Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples...”

The book recognizes there were Twelve Apostles in Acts 6… PRIOR TO Saul’s conversion in Acts 9.

And so, as Paul identifies himself as an Apostle… understand he is one of many who hold NOT THE OFFICE of the Twelve Apostles, but he is a called apostle…

… to take the Gospel to the world.

And, Paul was called… and it’s important to know your calling.

If you feel called into ministry… how did you get to that place?

If it’s just what you think is a “good idea” of yours or someone elses… a career move… a J.O.B… or starting a business…

Go do something else.

Those who enter ministry simply as a hireling… meaning “a hired man”… they cause harm to the ministry and the name of God.

Jesus spoke of this in John 10:11-13 where Jesus said,“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. 12 But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. 13 The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep.”

And that’s tragic when that happens.

This was not the heart of Paul… Paul was a bondservant of Jesus Christ… FIRST.

He does NOT write that he is first an apostle or a missionary… or a church planter.

That’s what he did. That was his vocation.

Those were his calling, but first he identifies WHO he was called by… WHO he is in relationship with… FIRST.

His Master… Jesus Christ.

And if you get this mixed up… if you get this out of order and put your calling above your relationship with Jesus Christ… you will find trouble… and likely cause trouble in life.

Paul was NOT self appointed… that’s evident in Acts 9… as Jesus appeared to him on the Damascus Road.

Paul was not appointed by the Twelve Apostles. Nor was he led by them…

In Gal 1:15-18 Paul wrote, “But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, 16 to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to Damascus. 18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter...”

Paul’s calling… very interesting… pre-dates the Damascus Road… he was ‘separated from his mother’s womb’…

In Rom 8:30 we will read “Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called...”

And given his past… what else could his calling be but “through His grace...”

And, Paul testifies that he was free of human influence in his calling.

He met other Christians after his calling… on matters of doctrine… but, he sought the Lord… he went immediately into Arabia for alone time with Jesus… no doubt to study the word… and to wait for further revelation and direction from Jesus.

And in part from Paul’s diligent study to show himself approved unto God… a workman that needeth not to be ashamed…

And in part from the inspiration of the Holy Spirit…

Some years later… Paul would be used to produce the product of what we are reading today… the Book of Romans.

In Paul’s other letters… it is abundantly clear that His calling and his appointment as an apostle was from God…

Gal 1:1 “Paul, an apostle (not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father...”

Eph 1:1 “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God...”

Same greeting in Col 1:1 & 2 Tim 1:1.

1 Tim 1:1 “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope...”

Paul’s calling to be an apostle was through Jesus Christ and God the Father… it was His will… it was His command.

And, in combining Gal 1:1 (Paul was an apostle through Jesus Christ and God the Father)… combining that verse with Acts 13:2-4…

… we see a beautiful picture of the Trinity in Paul’s calling.

Acts 13:2-4 reads, “...the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away. 4 So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.”

Paul was sent by the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit… AND… what a beautiful invite…

The saints at Antioch in Acts 13 were also invited to fast, pray, to lay hands on Barnabas and Saul and end them out on their first missionary journey.

The Lord invites us into His work. It’s HIS kingdom… but we are part of it… and we play a role as He leads us.

You have a calling… you have a role to play in God’s kingdom…

There were those in Jesus’ ministry… and those in Paul’s ministry… who were the grease to the engine.

They helped keep things moving. Like Lydia… the seller of purple…

A wealthy, God-fearing Gentile…

First to be recorded in the Bible as a Christian in Europe.

Her home appeared to be the meeting place for the church at Philippi (Acts 16:40).

And in Paul’s letter to the the Philippians, he praised them for their care for him… for financially supporting his ministry… he wrote “you sent aid once and again for my necessities. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account. ” (Phil 4:17)

They had a calling to come alongside Paul… and God took note of their faithfulness.

On their eternal accounts… fruit abounded.

In whatever God tells us to do… in our faithfulness… and with pure motive to glorify God…

… we store up treasures in heaven.

At the Bema Seat of Christ… there shall be crowns awarded to those faithful and wise stewards.

And, for Paul… He was in relationship with Christ… he knew his calling… and in V1, he also writes he was “separated to the gospel of God...”

Paul was separated… “set apart” or “singled out” to the gospel of God.

And, it is the gospel of God.

It is not the gospel of men…

It is not a gospel that has been fastened or created or invented by the workings of man. It is the gospel of God.

It is not a gospel that is based upon good works, but through faith in Jesus Christ.

It’s the gift of God. It’s grace.

And if you hear any other gospel… it is not a true gospel… it must be THE gospel of God or it’s not good news.

Paul rebuked the Corinthians for giving heed to those preaching another Jesus and another gospel.

2 Cor 11:4 “For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!”

In that same passage, Paul also said, “I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.”

If you entertain another Jesus… or another gospel… there is danger.

Eve was deceived by Satan… and the church in Corinth was in danger of being led astray as well by crafty men… they were in peril.

There are many slick teachers out there today… who either knowingly… or misguided and simply spewing what they were taught…

And, they’re leading people astray… down a road away from the simplicity of Christ.

But if you’re grounded in the word and doctrine and prayer… if you’re abiding in Christ… and spiritual disciplines…

How much more difficult will it be to be deceived and drift away?

When Satan deceived Eve in Gen 3… he was described as cunning.

Gen 3:1 “Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field...”

Cunning.... crafty… shrewd…

Adam and Eve being oblivious to evil were taken advantage of.

People today… not grounded in God’s word…

How will they stand when Satan poses the same question he asked Eve?

“Has God indeed said…?”

After Adam knowingly transgresses (1 Tim 2:14) and Eve is deceived…

God, in that same passage, would confront Adam and Eve for their sin…

They would be punished… and God would provide "tunics of skin” to clothe them… which required the demonstration of a sacrifice.

And, God would preach the first Gospel to them.

Genesis 3:15 “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”

Gen 3:15 is known as the “protoevangelium.”

This is a compound word… Gk. “protos” meaning "first" and evangelion meaning "good news" or "gospel."

One scholar wrote, “The verse introduces two elements previously unknown in the Garden of Eden, elements that are the basis of Christianity—the curse on mankind because of Adam’s sin and God’s provision for a Savior from sin who would take the curse upon Himself.”

In my personal devotions… this past week I finished the New Testament and started over again…

And at the end of Matt 1… the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph and told him Mary would “bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.” (Matt 1:21)

The name “Jesus” lit. means “Savior.”

His name defines His mission… and because of Him… we have Good News.

It’s this Jesus and this Good News… that are central to the Book of Romans.

Read ahead.

Let’s Pray!

Our prayer team is coming forward if you have prayer needs.

I pray you all go forth this week living out the calling God has placed upon your lives.

Foremost… to be abide in Christ.

God bless you as you go!