Romans 1

3 Attitudes

To be very fruitful in God’s work you don’t have to have:

College education

Talented

Have a great personality

Look a certain way

Have the right amount of money and have the right possessions

Be the popular

Think of the disciples of Jesus. They were fisherman.

1) Servant

A) Paul Identified himself first and foremost as a servant.

The Bible says when see Jesus He will say well done good and faithful servant.

Not worship leader, pastor, apostle, teacher, prophet, evangelist, musician, singer, missionary, bishop, speaker, author

B) Greek Word for Servant ( Doulos)

Bond servant = is one who choose to be a life long servant out of ones free will.

Its not a picture of what slavery looked like in this country a couple hundred years ago.

It Jewish culture you became a servant slave to mainly pay off debt. No different than you working to pay off debt you accumulated on your credit card.

In Isreal though every 7 years every debtor was released of their debt and every 50 years called the year of Jubilee.

However if the servant wanted to stay for life they would be called a bond servant.

Spiritually speaking Jesus is our year of Jubilee paying the ultimate price for our debt of sin. And releasing us of our sins.

Romans (Paul’s Greeting / 1:1-7)

Paul, in using the term, expresses his absolute devotion and subjection to Christ Jesus.

The New Testament teaches that the true leader is servant of all.

Romans (Paul’s Greeting / 1:1-7)

WHAT IS A SERVANT?What is your attitude toward Christ, your Master?

Our willingness to serve and obey Jesus Christ enables us to be useful and usable servants to do work for him—work that really matters.

Obedience begins as we renounce other masters, identify ourselves with Jesus, discover his will and live according to it, and consciously turn away from conflicting interests, even if these interests have been important to us in the past.

Attitude #1: “A slave (doulos) of the Messiah Jesus”

To properly understand this statement we need to make an important distinction.

God didn’t make Paul His slave; Paul made Paul God’s slave.

When Paul was converted God immediately viewed him as His adopted son since he was joined to Christ (Ro 8:15–17; Gal 3:26)

• Paul has abandoned his rights and all control of his life in order to serve Jesus.

• God now considered Paul to be a son (Gal 3:26), but Paul chose to give himself back to God as a slave.

• He understood that the only reasonable response to God’s goodness is to abandon oneself to God’s plan (Ro 12:1). “Do you not know that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price …” (1Co 6:19–20); “with precious blood, as of a lamb, unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ” (1Pe 1:18–19).

• This is a mindset: here we work; in heaven we rest.

• Full surrender: abandonment of control, self-protection, personal comfort, daily agenda, finances …

• Where did this attitude lead him (2Co 11:23–33)?

2 Corinthians 11:23–33 ESV

23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant? 30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. 32 At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, 33 but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.

2) Called To Be An Apostle

It means to be a sent one - or one sent in the authority of the one sending.

title that means one sent forth with authority.

Paul wanted to let them know he didn’t pick his calling

Paul didn’t advance himself

3) Set apart

A) Set apart means a boundary or fence line- zoning

Zoning means that a piece of land is set apart for a purpose. Residential or commercial.

I have been zoned for God. One of the meanings of life is I have been zoned for the Gospel. This is one of the reasons why I’m here. Why I was born. My life has purpose.

B) Lets say I was to give you a piece of paper and asked you to wrote down your purpose. What would you write?

A culture without Christ would say their purpose is to be happy.

I would say my first purpose is to be a servant. My purpose is not all about me. Its all about Him!!

My natural human nature wants to make it about me. To please myself. To live for me.

4) Romans 1:2-3

Romans 1:2–3 ESV

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

Concerning = Peri in the greek means around or to encompass or encircling . It’s were we get the word Peri Scope. You could turn it 365 degrees to see all around.

Another words the Gospel is all about Jesus. It encircles Him, Surrounds Him, Encompasses Him. Its 365 degrees about Jesus.