Hi All, This Is Paul Series

Romans 1: 5 – 16

Hi All, This Is Paul

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. 8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. 9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers, 10 making request if, by some means, now at last I may find a way in the will of God to come to you. 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established— 12 that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. 13 Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now), that I might have some fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles. 14 I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to wise and to unwise. 15 So, as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also. 16 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.

I remembered when I first was going through the Bible how I was bothered when I read about how God selected the tribe of Levi along with appointing Aaron and his sons as the chief priests. In confession my first thought questioned God’s use of people. What was He doing, making slaves of people to wait on His every need? I was stupid then and have only come a little way for the better.

I read about Moses arguing with Jehovah Elyon – The Lord Most High about not being picked as Israel’s rescuer from the evil Egyptians. There was Jeremiah saying he was too young and Jonah mad at God for sending him to vicious evil people to tell them to repent.

You see I needed also to repent. I did not understand or come to realize what a privilege and honor it is to be allowed to serve the Creator, that is until in His Grace He also said, ‘Hey, you come and follow Me.’ My response was, ‘Is there anything I can do for you my Lord?’ You see once you realize how I and you have hurt our Holy Master by our sins, and what He did and presently does and will do for us in the future, I bow my head in shame. I am so thankful I want to serve Him in any manner I can. I now see how Paul thought the same way as we pick up in chapter 1.

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;

As I mentioned in our last study the church at Rome developed without any of the top guns. You know like Peter or Paul and the other apostles. Paul recognized this and did not lay any claim that they existed as a church because of his influence. No, all he wanted was to share with them some great insights from God’s word. This is what I like to do also.

There is a thrill I get when I come across something that I fell would greatly benefit others. I cannot wait to share the good news.

I can relate to Paul in many ways. Serving the Lord I have been daily mistreated, insulted, abused, and misused. As the Lord Jesus Christ has forgiven me so also I forgive all those brothers and sisters who like to set me out for their satanic pleasure. Paul had to constantly defend his commission from the Lord. I guess all his life he felt that he did not fit in with the other apostles because he didn’t have the opportunity to walk with the Lord as the other disciples did. Many people forget that in fact he had more quality time with the Lord than the others because the Lord spent over 3 years with Paul all by himself. We read in the book of Galatians this, “But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb and called [me] through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those [who were] apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and remained with him fifteen days.”