I Am Not Ashamed: The Gospel of God

I Am Not Ashamed: The Gospel of God

Text: Romans 1:1-13

Theme: An introduction to the Book of Romans, the Apostle Paul's testimony to the saving Gospel of God in Jesus Christ.

Date: 01/09/16 File name: Romans_2016_01.wpd ID Number: 174

For well neigh onto four years now, I’ve been debating with myself off-and-on about preaching through the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Christians at Rome, i.e. the Book of Romans. I have considered it again and again, and repeatedly backed off from the task — like a mountain climber gazing up at the heights of Mount Everest and then turning to lower peaks, and more accessible theological climbs. One of the reasons I’ve put off preaching through Romans is not only its depth, but also its length — sixteen chapters. Some pastors have plowed through verse-by-verse with no breaks, like Martin Lloyd Jones, who spent 13 years preaching through Romans and only made it to chapter 14 before he died. He preached 29 sermons just on the first chapter! We’re not going to go that slowly but we are going to take enough time to plumb its depths. And, from time-to-time we will take breaks from the book of Romans, but I’ll continually come back to it until we’re finished.

The Book of Romans has always been one of my favorite New Testament books. First, its doctrinal truths helped me understand God’s salvific work of justification, redemption and propitiation when I was a brand new Christian. Second, the practical truths about how to flesh-out the Christian life are a quintessential guide for living out the grace we have received in Christ.

Listen to what some of the great theologians past and present have to say about the Book of Romans.

• Martin Luther said that Romans is “The chief part of the New Testament, and the very purest gospel, which, indeed, deserves that a Christian not only know it word for word by heart but deal with it daily as with daily bread of the soul. For it can never be read or considered too much or too well, and the more it is handled, the more delightful it becomes, and the better it tastes.” (Jim McNiel, a Baptist Evangelist here in Missouri has committed the entire epistle of Romans to memory)

• John Calvin wrote: “When anyone gains a knowledge of this epistle he has an entrance opened to him to all the most hidden treasures of Scripture.”

• The noted scholar F.F. Bruce once said: “There is no telling what may happen when people begin to study the Epistle to the Romans.”

• Donald Barnhouse said, “Romans has the most complete diagnosis of the plague of man’s sin, and the most glorious setting forth of the simple remedy.”

Even though some of the Church’s greatest minds have studied and commented on the book, Paul the Apostle did not write The Epistle to the Romans for professors and theologians or academia. It was written to a congregation, to be read and explained to that congregation for its edification. My heart’s desire is to do similarly — to build up your faith by the faithful exposition of this book.

So this morning, let me introduce you to the Book of Romans: The outline for the first 13 verses includes, 1) The Apostle’s Credentials, The Apostle’s Christ, and The Apostle’s Congregation.

I. THE APOSTLE’S CREDENTIALS (1:1, 5)

1. the author is the Apostle Paul ... he is writing this letter while residing in the city of Corinth ... the letter is written about A.D. 55 — a mere 25 years after the death of Jesus ... the letter is to the Christian church at Rome, a congregation the Apostle has never met, but hopes to

2. in vv. 1 & 5 the author relates four facts about himself

A. HE IS A SERVANT OF JESUS (1:1a)

1. only the translators of the New American Standard Version of the bible translate the opening sentence as it should be — “Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus ... “

a. in describing his relationship to Christ Jesus, the Apostle uses a term that generations of bible translators have attempted to make more palatable be rendering it as servant

1) Paul refers to himself as a doulos — a slave of God’s Anointed One

2. but the Apostle is not just any slave, he is a slave by choice — he is a bond-servant

ILLUS. In the ancient world slavery was commonplace. A person could become a slave in several ways. You could be born a slave. You could be made a slave if your army was defeated and you became a prisoner of war. Such prisoners were usually sold off as slaves. Of, you might be kidnaped by slave traders. Slaves were considered property under Roman law and had no legal personhood. At the height of the Roman Empire, 10% of the total population were slaves. Once you were a slave, your children would also be slaves. Usually, your only hope for freedom was if a person or a group paid a ransom to redeem you from your slavery.

a. in the spiritual realm, this is what God had done for the Apostle — and it is what He has done for you in Christ — redeemed you from your enslavement to sin and death, by the life and blood of His own Son

“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” (1 Corinthians 6:19–20, NIV)

b. Christ has purchased us with His own blood in order to set us free so that we might willingly become his bond-servant

ILLUS. Considering that the Hebrews spent 400 years as slaves in Egypt, it's hard for us to comprehend, that they Jews allowed for slavery within their culture. But under Jewish law, it was very different. There was written into Jewish legal code the opportunity for freedom. Suppose you're a Jewish business owner, and your business for some reason fails. You've got debts to pay, and groceries to buy, but you've got no money. Worse still, there is no social safety net for such instances. There's a very real possibility that your family could starve. But Jewish law allowed for you to sell yourself, and even your family, into slavery in order to pay off your debts and have a new start. However, once you've labored for six years you have to be set free at the beginning of your 7th year of servitude. Unless, that is, your choose to become a bond-servant. Exodus 21:5 reads, "But if the servant declares, 'I love my master... and do not want to go free, 'then his master must take him before the judges. He shall take him to the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life." Those whose ears were pierced become known as "bond-servants" because they had "bonded" themselves to their master. This ear piercing was not the kind you get at the mall so that you can put a small earring in your ears. It was a type of spike that left a gaping hole, easily seen. They were earmarked for life as a slave.

3. the question is not, "Why would anyone volunteer for slavery" but rather, if you’re in Christ, “Are you living as his bond-servant?” and if not, why not?

a. we become bond-slaves of Christ Jesus because of love for him

1) I have made my choice ...

2) I have declared my love ...

3) I have acknowledged my debt ...

4) I have announced my commitment ...

5) I have yielded my obedience ...

c. with Paul, I declare myself a bond-servant of Jesus Christ

1) will you?

B. HE IS AN APOSTLE (1:1b)

1. second, Paul says that he is not only a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, but also called as an apostle

a. he is not only bought and owned and ruled, but he is also called

2. to be an apostle was to be a person who had 1) seen Jesus Christ risen from the dead so that he could, 2) give a first-hand testimony of the resurrected Savior, and also 3) who had bee commissioned and authorized by Christ to represent him and speak for him and, 4) provide a foundation for his church through true and authoritative teaching

• “Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.” (1 Corinthians 15:7–8, NIV)

• “‘Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of me.” (Acts 26:16, NIV)

a. because of his unique calling, we are to receive the words of Paul, not just as a message from a man, but as the revelation of Christ himself

1) the Book of Romans is not great because it is the word of a brilliant Jewish rabbi, or the writings of a theological genius, but because it is the word of God

3. none of us here have been called to be Apostles in the sense that we have a unique authority, or a new revelation from God

a. all of us, however, have been called to a unique place of service within the Body of Christ just as Paul was

C. HE HAS BEEN SET APART FOR THE GOSPEL (1:1c)

1. Paul’s letter to the Romans, and so to us, is about the gospel of God, and this gospel of God is about God’s Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, and Savior, and about the salvation we have in him

a. before Paul names the Romans as the recipients of his letter ...

b. before he greets them with grace and peace ...

c. before he offers his prayer of thanksgiving for them ...

d. before he enters into the body of his letter ...

e. before all this, he proclaims the gospel of God concerning God’s Son

2. according to the Gospels, Jesus Christ is the turning point in the history of the world, the turning point in the history of humanity, and the turning point in your life and my life

a. Paul has been set apart for the Gospel ... I’ve been set apart for the Gospel ... and you’ve been set apart for the Gospel

3. Paul says that he is not only "a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, [and not only] called as an apostle, [but he was also] set apart for the gospel of God."

a. when did that happen — being set apart for the gospel of God?

b. Galatians 1:15 says, "God . . . set me apart even from my mother's womb."

1) this means that before he was called on the Damascus road, indeed before he delivered from his mother’s womb , God set him apart for the gospel of God

4. God the Father prepared Paul from his mother's womb to serve the gospel

a. which is an astonishing thing when you realize the pathway that led from the womb to the Damascus road, namely, Paul's unbelief and persecution of the church

b. how glorious a thought is this!!

1) God did not leave anything to chance in the founding of his church through the writing of his apostles

2) God set him apart before birth; he purchased him by the death of his Son; he called him effectively on the Damascus road

3. here is a glorious truth ... if you are in Christ this morning, if you’ve been born from above, if you’ve been — in Evangelical lingo — ‘saved’ then you, too, have been set apart from your mother’s womb to glorify God and serve His Christ with the unique skills and capacities you have regardless of how your life may have been lived before

D. HE IS A MISSIONARY TO THE GENTILES (1:5)

1. Paul writes that Through him, that is, through the command of the risen Christ, the Apostle Paul received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake (Romans 1:5, NIV)

a. that calling is found in the Book of Acts

1) you know the story: Paul is on the main road to Damascus with the authority to arrest Christians on the charge of blasphemy against God and return them to Jerusalem for trial

2) on his journey Jesus appears to him in a vision, Paul is struck blind, and the Lord commands him to continue to Damascus where he is to wait for instructions

3) meanwhile, Jesus has appeares to a disciple named Ananias and commands him to go visit with this Saul of Tarsus, lay hand on him and restore his sight

4) Ananias is, to say the least, reluctant having heard the stories of Saul and this is where we pick up the story ...

“Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.” 15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel.” (Acts 9:13–15, NIV)

2. Jesus is the Anointed One promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures, and this Gospel is not merely for the Jew, but also for the Gentile — not merely for the Goldbergs of the world, but also for the Schaefferkoetters of the world! — and the Watanabe’s, and the Rodríguez’s, and the Gruber’s, and the Papadopoulos’s, and the O'Brien’s

II. THE APOSTLE’S CHRIST (1:2–4)

1. in vv. 2-4 the Apostle introduces his epistle by telling us four things about the Christ

A. JESUS IS THE ONE OF WHOM THE PROPHETS SPOKE

1. Jesus did not burst on the scene unannounced

a. he was not an afterthought with God ... he did not represent a change in God’s plan ... he was not an aberration ... he was not “Plan B” in case “Plan A” didn’t work

2. the Apostle is clear, the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets

a. God’s purpose has always been redemptive, and the climax of that redemptive plan has been Jesus from before the foundation of the world

1) salvation had been promised centuries earlier

2) Abraham had been promised that through him and his progeny all the people of the earth would be blessed

3) throughout the Old Testament — God’s Holy Scriptures of vs. 3 — we see God weaving His scarlet thread of redemption through the lives and the stories of His chosen people

b. the prophets repeatedly bore witness to the person and ministry of God’s Anointed One

ILLUS. Completed hundreds of years before his actual birth, the Old Testament includes about sixty different major prophecies, with more than 300 characteristics of the coming of the Messiah. All of them have been met in the person we know as Jesus from the four New Testament gospels.

3. throughout Romans, Paul will be anchoring his theological points in Old Testament truth

a. God eternal redemptive plan came to fruition in Jesus Christ and everything in the Old Testament points to that truth

B. JESUS IS THE DESCENDANT OF DAVID

1. the heart of the gospel is that the Anointed One of God will be descended from King David

a. speaking to David, God reveals ...

“When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with a rod wielded by men, with floggings inflicted by human hands. 15 But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.’ ” (2 Samuel 7:12–16, NIV)

2. when the Apostle writes in vs 3, referring to Jesus who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, he is essentially saying that

a. God’s Son has entered the scene of history by natural descent through the Jewish people as promised

b. he belonged to the lineage of David, and participated fully in our humanity

c. he was truly man, and His blood line may be traced back to David

C. JESUS IS THE HOLY SON OF GOD

1. not only is this Jesus of royal descent from the line of King David, he is also the Son of the Most High God

a. Paul writes in vs. 3 according to the spirit of holiness, he was declared to be the Son of God

b. do you see the subtle difference here?

1) Jesus became a descendant of David, but he was declared to be the Son of God

2) within the first three verses of his epistle, Paul absolutely defends the preincarnate existence of the Second Person of the Godhead

c. Immanuel was already the Son of God before he was born

1) he didn’t become a Son of God; he was the Son of God

d. why is this important?

2. it is Jesus’ Sonship that defines his entire earthly ministry

a. in the 2 Samuel passage we read, I will be his father, and he will be my son

b. at both his baptism and his transfiguration, we hear the Father’s voice revealing, “This is my Son whom I love. Hear him!”

c. the Anointed One of God fully participated in our humanity as a descendent of Davidic dynasty

1) but there is more!

d. he is the very Son of God

“Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:6–11, NIV)

3. now here’s why this is important ...

a. God comes down (God incarnate, God descending, God becoming human, the Son of God becoming the son of David) and takes our place on a cross at a place called Calvary

1) why?

b. because we need it

1) there’s the glory of the doctrine of the incarnation — unless he was fully God and fully man, he could not be your place-taker

2) Acts 20:28 tells us that the church of God was bought with his own blood

D. JESUS IS THE POWERFUL RESURRECTED LORD

1. the Son of God, rejected and despised by men, was beaten, crucified, buried, and left for dead, has been raised from the dead, and lives eternally with God His Father

a. all of this was according to the plan of God

b. on the Day of Pentecost Peter preached the very first Gospel message saying ...

“Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.” (Acts 2:22–24, NIV)

2. as a result of Christ’s resurrection, the grace of God is not limited to the Jew, but is also extended to all the world through the new birth

3. the grace of God, the mercy of God, the favorable disposition of God the Creator toward his rebellious creation, including even us, is made available to us in and through Jesus, who is the Christ, the Son of the Living God?

a. are you interested?

III. THE APOSTLE’S CONGREGATION (1:6–15)

1. Paul writes this epistle to a local church assembly

a. it’s the Christians in the city of Rome

1) Paul did not start this church, and no one knows who did

2) it may have been some of the people who were visiting Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost and were converted and returned home to start a church

“Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome” (Acts 2:10, NIV)

b. regardless of who started the church, there is a growing congregation in the Empire’s capitol city, the Apostle has heard of them and he desperately desires to visit them

2. what do we know about this congregation?

A. THEY’VE RESPONDED TO THE GRACE OF GOD IN CHRIST

1. wherever you find people redeemed by the blood of Christ, you find a Church

a. in the case of Rome, multiple house churches

2. these are people who have experienced the effectual calling of the Gospel that results in the regeneration of the believer by God’s Holy Spirit

a. God does not call us to turn over a new leaf, or resolve to live a better life, or to practice a set of religious rituals

b. God, through His Spirit, calls us to belong to Jesus Christ, to follow Christ, and to serve His Christ

3. the Christian life is not about ritual but about relationship

B. THEY’VE BEEN CALLED TO BE HOLY

1. God, through His Spirit, calls us to belong to Jesus Christ, and those called to belong to Jesus Christ will, according to v. 7, be his holy people

C. THEIR FAITH IS AN EXAMPLE TO ALL

1. the Apostle writes, your faith is being reported all over the world

ILLUS. If I have a heart’s desire, it’s that these three things be the characteristics for which this congregation is know. I don’t care that we’re not the biggest church in town. I don’t care that we’re not the wealthiest church in town. I don’t care that we may not be the most popular church in town. I do care that those who identify with this congregation have authentically responded to the grace of God in Christ. I do care that those who identify with this congregation take holiness of heart and life seriously. I do care that those who identify with this congregation have a faith that is an example to their friends and associates.

a. if, at the end of my pastorate of this congregation those things are true, I’ll consider my ministry here a success

Romans was a letter introducing himself to a church already established. In the last five verses of our passage, we see the Apostle’s passion for this congregation of Christian brothers and sisters and longs to visit with them. “God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you 10 in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you. 11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— 12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles. 14 I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish.” (Romans 1:9–14, NIV)

In the weeks and months ahead we will discover that to know the Book of Romans is to know the faith once delivered to the saints.