Paul begins by introducing himself. He calls himself a slave or servant of Jesus Christ. By this, Paul indicates that he does not act on his own will but that of his master (Galatians 1:10; I Corinthians 9:16-17). Such a designation has been common in both the Old and New Testaments (Deuteronomy 34:5; Joshua 1:1; Psalms 18:1 (title section); Jeremiah 25:4; James 1:1; II Peter 1:1; Jude 1). As Christ’s servant, he was called by Jesus to be an ambassador or apostle of Him (I Corinthians 9:1; I Timothy 2:7; II Timothy 1:11). His appointed task was to serve the Gospel of God (Galatians 1:11-24). The word aphorizo<\/i>, translated as “separated” or “set apart,” means to have a boundary or limits placed on him. It could refer to his personal selection from among the rest of mankind (Acts 9:15), or it could refer to the task he was given.<\/p>\n
That gospel was not a recent innovation. It was something God promised would come and was announced through the prophets (Luke 1:70; Acts 13:32-33; Galatians 3:8). The focus of this good news announced from old was Jesus Christ. A small sample can be found in Genesis 3:15; 49:8,10; Deuteronomy 18:18; Psalms 16:10; 22:1-31; 40:1-17; 110:1; Isaiah 7:14; 9:6; 53:1-12; 63:1-3; Daniel 9:24-26; Micah 5:2; Zechariah 9:9; and Malachi 3:1.<\/p>\n
Jesus was born of the flesh, being a descendant of David (Matthew 1:1; Luke 3:23-38; John 7:42; Acts 2:30). This was significant in the fulfillment of God’s promises. But even more significant is that Jesus was also shown to be the Son of God, the key witness being his resurrection from the dead (I Corinthians 15:3-11, 43). That power, though, is also evident earlier (Acts 10:38). Thus, according to the flesh, Jesus was the son of David, but according to the spirit of holiness (the opposite of flesh), he is the Son of God. Jesus was made<\/i>\u00a0the son of David, but he was\u00a0proven\u00a0<\/i>to be the Son of God (Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1, 14; I Peter 3:18).<\/p>\n
It was through this Jesus, the Son of God, that the apostles received grace and their duties as apostles (Galatians 1:12; Ephesians 3:1-3). The grace could be the gift given to all Christians, but Paul saw his appointment as a great gift (Romans 15:15-16; Galatians 2:9; Ephesians 3:2, 7-8). Their duty was to bring obedience to the faith among all the nations (Acts 6:7; Romans 16:26; Jude 3). The gospel was never limited to the Jews alone, as some contend (Romans 15:18; Mark 16:15-16; Matthew 28:18-20). The church in Rome is an example of this gospel being spread. They were called by Christ through his apostles. This commission was expressly given to Paul (Acts 9:15) and was given with Jesus’ authority.<\/p>\n
Paul’s letter is written to the Christians in Rome, but that doesn’t mean he expect the letter to be limited to Rome. Like all his letters, they would be circulated among the churches (Colossians 4:16).<\/p>\n
Having responded to the call of Christ among the nations, Paul reminds them that they are also called to be saints – people set apart for a special and holy purpose. God loves these people (Colossians 3:12), and Paul relays the Father and the Son’s blessings upon them (I Corinthians 1:3; II Corinthians 1:2; Galatians 1:3; Ephesians 1:2; Colossians 1:2; I Thessalonians 1:1; II Thessalonians 1:2; Philemon 1:3).. No one but a writer inspired by God could honestly speak on behalf of God in such a manner.<\/p>\n
Paul appreciates the existence of such a strong community of Christians in Rome. Their faith is talked about throughout the world. Here, the “world” is understood to be the world of the Roman empire. It was a city on the hill (Matthew 5:14). God is witness to the fact that Paul continually prays for them (Ephesians 1:15-16; Philippians 1:34; Colossians 1:3-4; I Thessalonians 1:2; 2:13).<\/p>\n
Paul serves God with his whole being by teaching the gospel of His Son. This isn’t only an outward service. Paul means everything he says, and he voluntarily gives it.<\/p>\n
In particular, Paul has been asking God for permission to go to Rome. Given that he arrives in Rome as a prisoner, it is ironic that he prayed to go by any means. His prayers were answered, but probably not in the way he expected.<\/p>\n
The desire to go to Rome has been a long one (Acts 19:21; Romans 15:23) and not without purpose. Paul wants to be able to bestow on them some spiritual gift to further establish them. Most assume Paul is speaking of giving spiritual gifts, such as in Acts 8:14-18. But notice that Paul is speaking of giving a part of a single gift. That gift would establish them and encourage both Paul and them. It is a topic that Paul returns to in Romans 15:19 and Romans 16:25. He is speaking of giving them a better grounding in the gospel (Ephesians 4:13; II Thessalonians 2:15-17). He also speaks of having fruit among the Romans as he had in other Gentile areas (John 15:16; Colossians 1:6).<\/p>\n
He is coming, not to rule but to help (II Corinthians 1:24). To see others faithful to the Lord was a comfort to all the apostles (I John 1:4; II John 12; I Thessalonians 3:8). Paul has a debt to repay because he was made an apostle to teach the Gentiles (Acts 9:15; Romans 11:13; I Corinthians 9:16). His salvation is linked to the Gentiles’ need – both the cultured (Greeks) and the uncultured (barbarians), both the learned and the untaught.<\/p>\n
Though Paul had plans to go to Rome for a long while, he had been hindered from making the trip so far. Exactly what had prevented Paul is not mentioned, which means it is the subject of much speculation. However, what is important to understand is that Paul is as ready as he ever can be to preach the gospel in Rome.<\/p>\n
Salutation Who Paul represents\u00a0(Romans 1:1-6) Paul begins by introducing himself. He calls himself a slave or servant of Jesus Christ. By this, Paul indicates that he does not act on his own will but that of his master (Galatians 1:10; I Corinthians 9:16-17). Such a designation has been common in both the Old and New…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":22351,"menu_order":4,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-64586","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":40048,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/liberty-a-study-of-galatians\/marks-of-service\/","url_meta":{"origin":64586,"position":0},"title":"Marks of Service","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 27, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Marks of Service Galatians 6:11-18 In My Own Hand (Galatians 6:11) Paul didn't write most of his letters personally. Instead, he dictated them and someone else served as the scribe (Romans 16:22). Paul is stating that either this letter was personally penned by him or that he is writing this\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9407,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/letter-to-the-hebrews\/final-words-of-encouragement\/","url_meta":{"origin":64586,"position":1},"title":"Final Words of Encouragement","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 11, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Final Words of Encouragement Text: Hebrews 13:18-25 This last section of Hebrews hold items that are common to Paul\u2019s letters, which leads to the conclusion that Paul is the unnamed author. Pray for Us (Hebrews 13:18-19) Paul often asked for the prayers of the brethren (Romans 15:30; Ephesians 6:19-20; Colossians\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":674,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/letter-to-the-hebrews\/background\/","url_meta":{"origin":64586,"position":2},"title":"Background","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 12, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Background Christianity started among the Jews, but as time passed many Jewish Christians were abandoning the faith to return to Judaism. We can see the difficulty in Paul's travels and his letters as he confronted false teachers bent on making Christianity more a sect of Judaism. 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II.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Background of Titus \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Titus isn\u2019t mentioned in Acts, but he is mentioned in three other\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":55667,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/christ-in-you-a-study-of-colossians\/introduction-to-colossians\/","url_meta":{"origin":64586,"position":4},"title":"Introduction to Colossians","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Introduction to Colossians Text: Colossians 1:1-2 Purpose The church is facing pressure to accept Jewish doctrines (Colossians 2:5; 8, 16-17, 20-23). Paul is countering that everything needed is in Christ, not in the Old Law. All knowledge is in Christ (Colossians 2:2-3) and Christ fully represents God (Colossians 2:9-10). Thus,\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":30569,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/the-corinthian-letters\/comfort-in-afflictions\/","url_meta":{"origin":64586,"position":5},"title":"Comfort in Afflictions","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 14, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Comfort in Afflictions Greetings\u00a0(II Corinthians 1:1-2) Paul starts all of his letters in a similar fashion: Announcing who he is, the major people currently with him, and addressing for whom the letter is intended. 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