Sermon Tone Analysis

The letter to Rome

Tonight I am opening from the book of Romans a letter that is authored by the apostle Paul

Romans 1:1-7 Paul a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,

This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News.

God promised this Good News long ago through his prophets in the holy Scriptures.

The Good News is about his Son.

In his earthly life he was born into King David’s family line,

and he was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit.

He is Jesus Christ our Lord.

Through Christ, God has given us the privilege and authority as apostles to tell Gentiles everywhere what God has done for them, so that they will believe and obey him, bringing glory to his name.

And you are included among those Gentiles who have been called to belong to Jesus Christ.

I am writing to all of you in Rome who are loved by God and are called to be his own holy people.

May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

Paul is giving us an introduction of who he is.

I am Paul, a slave of Jesus Christ

I am completely at the will of God my life is disposable for the cause of Jesus

Paul’s first thing he tells us is that he is a slave to Jesus!

To be a slave of something is to state that you are obedient and that you are submissive to it.

Paul is declaring that he is in subjection to Jesus.

Paul could have led with I am Paul an apostle,

I am Paul a Roman,

I am Paul I have authority,

I am Paul a famous preacher,

I am Paul a great leader.

That is not what Paul led with his opening statement:

I am a servant!

He goes on to say I am an apostle.

The Five-Fold Ministry is a Biblical outline of offices that are held by those that have entered into service to the Lord

You have the Teacher, Evangelist, Pastor, Prophet, and the Apostle

We might see or hear the word apostle and think it has great meaning and there is an authoritative connotation behind the word but it does not mean that!

The word Apostle means “to be sent off!”

This term to be sent off means you would be a nomad that there would never be a home for you that everything that you have needs to fit into a small bag or container.

You're going to need to travel light and fast.

The danger is up ahead and so you better be willing to move.

This is what it meant to be an apostle of Jesus and honestly still means to be an acting role of being an apostle

For Paul, It was an identity found in turmoil and hardship.

Paul gave us a lot to think about in his opening of this letter just packed within the first paragraph!

He doesn’t stop there in giving his opening introduction to who he is.

It goes on to say that Paul is set apart for the gospel of God.

Wow!

Paul had his hands full!

If you thought that your responsibilities were heavy imagine what Paul is dealing with.

I am busy but I still have a bed to lay my head in at night I still have a home to go to after a hard day's work.

Not Paul he is dealing with hardships and burdens that are beyond the things that we deal with.

Paul is unpacking a lot of heavy things onto the reader of this letter and just when we think that Paul is done he goes on in verse 5 and tells us more that we need to think about.

Romans 1:5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,

A call from God comes with a heavy burden, a heavy price, and a great deal of learning and obeying.

This generation is called the greatest generation since the pentecostal movement began

You have the greatest opportunity to reach the world that you live in

You have the ability to reach the people that you spend time with at work, at school, at home, and wherever else that you spend time.

This is your time to shine the light in a dark world!

Like Diamonds, you are being formed under pressure and expectation.

You have in you the ability to shape the future of the world you live in.

I believe you understand that

I believe you want to see that

I believe you are doing that.

Amen?

Let’s do a little check box and go through the check box together.

Anointed and used by God? Check!

I see the anointed speakers in front of me, the anointed singers who use their talents to bring glory to God!

Devoted and dedicated to seeing the power and presence of God? Check!

I watch you pray and respond to messages and there is a hunger in you that longs to see God doing what only God can do!

Faithful in giving of your time, talent, and treasure?

Check!

You are here tonight and when the doors are open I see you here and serving!

Giving even when you have little to give!

And using your talents for the Kingdom over the world!

This generation gets it!

I am swept away by the response and desire to see God do great things in your lives and in your friends' lives.

I wish that I would have had friends like you in my life growing up!

You get it!

You understand!

God has called you to be that generation that has prophecy and the power of God flowing through you!

But, you have some things to work out as a generation as a chosen and peculiar people!

Here it is; here is the blunt honest truth; you have to believe that you are called.

Not just the older youth not just the hyphen but all of us!

Everyone living right now no matter how old we are no matter how young we are has to believe that we have been called.

Corinthians 1:26–31

For consider your calling, brothers, that not many were wise according to human standards, not many were powerful, and not many were well-born.

But the foolish things of the world God chose in order that he might put to shame the wise, and the weak things of the world God chose in order that he might put to shame the strong, and the insignificant of the world, and the despised, God chose, the things that are not, in order that he might abolish the things that are, so that all flesh may not boast before God.

But from him you are in Christ Jesus, who became wisdom to us from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “The one who boasts, let him boast in the Lord.

We want to define calling.

We look at things like this pulpit and we think that the pulpit is a declaration of calling.

This pulpit is nothing if Jesus is not in it

A preacher, teacher, evangelist, apostle, or prophet is nothing without God!

Only God determines success

Only God rises up and sets down

Those that are chosen are not for the reasons you would think or associate with success.

Yet the world wants to tell us what makes someone successful

How do you define success?

Was Paul successful in the eyes of the world?

Do you think that Paul was successful?

Paul had spent time in prison on multiple accounts,

he had been in dire straits with being shipwrecked and stranded for days on end,

Paul had to work two jobs to make ends meet and lived in lowly circumstances

Paul did not use elegant or high minded words to preach

Paul died a martyrs death

Was Paul successful?

Paul was a proclaimed slave to Christ

Paul was a man who died a martyrs death