Do I Ever Have Something To Tell You
Chapter 1:1 – 15
My goal is that you would “draw a line in the sand”, so to speak, that you would start believing things to die for.
Go over the Romans Outline.
Let’s Begin...
Rom 1:1-6
1 Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God
2 which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures,
3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh,
4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.
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;
V1 - Paul is a bound to Christ, a slave of Him. He is captivated or captured by Jesus. I am His slave, a willing slave. I have no other Master. He has won me.
-apostle -
Luke 6:12-13
12 Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.
13 And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles:
-an apostle is one chosen and sent with a special mission as the fully authorized representative of the sender.
Qualifications of an Apostle:
Acts 1:21-22
21 "Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,
22 "beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection."
a. had to have seen the risen Lord; to be a witness of the resurrection.
1 Cor 9:1
1 Am I not an apostle? Am I not free? Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?
b. must have been specially called as an apostle by the Lord.
c. given authority and a commission to do certain things. (work miracles) They could lay down doctrine of the church.
2 Cor 12:12
12 Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds.
-Called - not self-appointed.
Acts 26:16-18
16 ’But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you.
17 ’I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you,
18 ’to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’
The words, “to be” were added, it should just read, “called Apostle”
The authority of Paul’s words:
Gal 1:8-12
8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.
9 As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
10 For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.
11 But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man.
12 For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.
-Separated to the gospel
means “set apart” a pharisee is a “separated one”.
Paul was made a pharisee by God. God set him apart.
Gal 1:15-16
15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace,
16 to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood,
This is also true of all of us who are separated by God to Himself before the foundation of the world.
Eph 1:4-6
4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.
-the gospel - “good news”
The law had never been given as a means or a method or a way of salvation. God did not give the children of Israel the law in order to give them an opportunity to saving themselves. The gospel did not come as an afterthought, when the law failed. The gospel is not just an announcement that our sins are going to be forgiven. The message is not primarily an appeal to us to do anything.
It is something concerning God’s Son. Something concerning God Himself and what He has done. It is an announcement, a proclamation to us of what God has already done.
The forgiveness is there but this full exposition of this righteousness from God is new, and the special and unique thing which makes the gospel the gospel; and it is because he realizes this that the Apostle always thrills to it.
God has saved man, transformed him and dealt forever with his sin and sinfulness. We praise God.
The gospel is God’s doing. Worked out through His Son and lived forever in the Spirit.
1 Pet 3:18
18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit,
Everything done to the glory of the Father. The essence of sin is to fail to glorify God.
Christians are not men and women who believe in God. We are men and women who believe in the triune God, who has saved us completely.
v2 Which He promised...
Gen 3:14-15
14 So the LORD God said to the serpent: "Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life.
15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel."
Gen 49:8-10
8 "Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s children shall bow down before you.
9 Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; and as a lion, who shall rouse him?
10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes; and to Him shall be the obedience of the people.
Num 24:17
17 "I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; a Star shall come out of Jacob; a Scepter shall rise out of Israel, and batter the brow of Moab, and destroy all the sons of tumult.
2 Sam 7:11-13
11 "since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel, and have caused you to rest from all your enemies. Also the LORD tells you that He will make you a house.
12 "When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
13 "He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
Isa 9:6-7
6 For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
Jer 23:5-6
5 "Behold, the days are coming," says the LORD, "That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; a King shall reign and prosper, and execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.
6 In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell safely; now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Micah 5:2
2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting."
Deut 18:15
15 "The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear,
Ps 2:7-12
7 "I will declare the decree: the LORD has said to Me, ’You are My Son, today I have begotten You.
8 Ask of Me, and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession.
9 You shall break them with a rod of iron; you shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.’"
10 Now therefore, be wise, O kings; be instructed, you judges of the earth.
11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
12 Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.
Why did God wait so long between the garden and the cross?
a. It was God’s way of revealing the depth of sin to us.
b. Any attempt from man to save himself is futile.
V3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh,
-our Lord - This is something to die for.
_the Ceasars desired to be called “Lord”. Why the Christians were martyred was because they would not declare another as “Lord” other than Christ.
-this name for “Lord” is the same name applied to Jehovah, God Almighty in the Old Testament. When the NT calls Jesus Lord it is saying that He is Jehovah. The name means the one who holds all power and authority.
Matt 28:18-20
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name (NOT NAMES) of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 "teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
Acts 9:1-6
1 Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest
2 and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
3 And as he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven.
4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?"
5 And he said, "Who are You, Lord?" And the Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads."
6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, "Lord, what do You want me to do?" And the Lord said to him, "Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."
Matt 22:44-46
44 ’The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool" ’?
45 "If David then calls Him ’Lord,’ how is He his Son?"
46 And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.
You can not divide Jesus, as Savior or the Christ and not the Lord. He is one and the same. When you receive Him as Savior He comes as Lord.Col 2:6
6 As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,
-The flesh = this the human body, the human soul, the human mind and human reason. He did increase in wisdom and stature.
Luke 2:52
52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
So what is a Christian? One who fully believes that the eternal Son of God was made flesh. God has sent forth His own Son and made Him of a woman and the eternal Son took unto Himself human nature.
V4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.
-declared - not made. It was declared or “proved to be”
When was He declared? In the manager He looked helpless, as a child growing up, he looked weak, as a man living his life, he looked small but at the resurrection, at the gospel, He is proved to be the Son of God with power.
...according to the Spirit of holiness... not the Holy Spirit but a spirit that is holy. It is the parallel to the “according to the flesh.”
...by the resurrection from the dead...
Could say “by the resurrection of dead persons”.
There had never been a resurrection before this...
What about Lazarus? He was resuscitated. All those who came to life died again. Jesus is the first born among the brethren. This declares His Sonship.
Rom 8:28-29
28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Col 1:18
18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.
Jesus was declared to be the Son of God when He alone was the first to ever be resurrected from the dead. He is the Elder brother.
“Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee” - What is God saying, “This day in the resurrection I am inauguating You forever and ever as My eternal Son who has taken unto Himself human nature, who is the only mediator between God and man, the one to whom I hand the universe.”
V5 Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name,
-this probably should say, obedience of faith not obedience to faith, let’s look at why.
The whole thing is about obedience of faith. It does not mean the obedience which faith produces; it does not mean the obedience in which faith results, or the obedience to which faith leads. What Paul is saying is obedience of which faith is the central principle. Not law, not trying harder, not doing your best. It is in Christ that we have obedience to the ways of God but it comes out of faith.
Sin is disobedience. Sin is the transgression of the law. Rebellion against God. Sin is the refusal to listen to the voice of God. Sin is an arrogant independence that I will do things my way.
Sin is not just bad behavior. Good behavior can also be sin and often is.
Matt 7:21-23
21 "Not everyone who says to Me, ’Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22 "Many will say to Me in that day, ’Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
23 "And then I will declare to them, ’I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
What is the original sin? Was it not the suggestion from Satan, “Has God said?” The original sin of man did not consist of murder or adultery or any, what we may have considered, great sin. It consisted in just this, that Adam stopped listening to the voice of God. He stopped obeying God. That is sin in its essence.
Rom 8:6-8
6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.
8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
If sin is disobedience, what is right? Obedience. If sin is refusal to listen to the voice of the Lord, what is right? To listen to the Lord. That is the meaning here, Paul is saying you will hear God and do, that will not be good works it will be faith works that are good.
Rom 6:17-18
17 But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered.
18 And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.
Jesus is asked this question in His ministry.
John 6:28-29
28 Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"
29 Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent."
You are not saved if you merely say that you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. The whole personality must be involved. Faith is always an obedience.
V6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ;
-this means, called to belong to Jesus Christ, or called to be the people of Jesus Christ.
Some think the “of” should be “by”. Called by Jesus. But the teachings of Paul show that we are in Christ. We belong to Him.
John 17:6
6 "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.
Rom 1:7
V7 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.
Paul now points his letter to whom he is speaking. Not all Rome but the beloved of God, those called saints.
The words “to be” have been added. It should just say, “called saints”.
Why are these people Christians? Paul says it is because the love of God. “The beloved of God” it is obvious that the Lord has loved you because you would not have found Him without His revelation in your heart.
John 6:44
44 "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.
There are two calls in the Bible. One, that is general and one that is effectual, it does a work.
Whenever the gospel is preached God calls men everywhere to repent. It is a universal call. But many do not respond to the call.
1 Cor 1:26-27
26 For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.
27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty;
These beloved people are called saints. What is a saint? It is a holy one. Its meaning to be separated to God and to His glory and service. That is what happened in the Old Testament when something or someone was made holy. People or utensils all were separated to God.
Notice how sanctified is before justified.
1 Cor 6:9-11
9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites,
10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.
Rom 8:30
30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.
A saint is not a person who never does bad, never sins in the flesh. He is a man who has been set apart by God for God. We do not die as a saint if we live righteously, we begin as a saint and are expected to live to the glory of God. We work this out.
7b Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Sentence really goes from middle of verse 7 to end of verse 15.
Grace - undeserved kindness. Opposite is working for something. Wage. Payment for something rendered. This is the Greek way of saying, “Hello”.Peace - absolute calm. Opposite is restlessness, strife, uncertainty, or unhappiness. This is the Jewish way of saying, “Hello”.
God is Father to the Christian. He is not Father to anyone else in this sense. God is the maker of all and all would be the offspring in that sense. But Paul is saying God is our Father.
John 8:40-44
40 "But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this.
41 "You do the deeds of your father." Then they said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father-- God."
42 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me.
43 "Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word.
44 "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.
The “and” connects and puts Jesus equal with the Father. It would never happen by a orthodox Jew to ever put a name or another beside the name of God.
Matt 28:19
19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Rom 1:8-15
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.
V8 We know that Paul was a man of prayer and here we get to see what he is praying. He is praying for people he has never met.
Notice Paul does not thank them but thanks God for them. Another lesson to us that it is not about us but Him who works in us.
-The Roman Christians were making an impact in the Christian church. Many were hearing about them.
“World” does not mean all the real world. It is a term used in other places to mean the Roman empire world.
Luke 2:1
1 And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.
Acts 11:28
28 Then one of them, named Agabus, stood up and showed by the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine throughout all the world, which also happened in the days of Claudius Caesar.
Matt 24:14
14 "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.
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,
-Many times in our walk with God He will be our only witness because many of the things we do in the faith are before God and not before men. Anything Paul did he considered it worship to God.
“With my spirit”
1. Sincerely
2. Contrasted against the external
3. Not in the flesh
4. From within.
Paul is praying for them who he has never met. It reveals something about the seriousness of our prayer life.
10 making request if, by some means, now at last I may find a way in the will of God to come to you. -Paul wants to come to them but not outside of the will of God. God must order the event.
11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established--
“For I am homesick for you”
The way that he would impart a spiritual gift to them would be to teach them.
Established - strengthened
12 that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.
Paul knew that every Christian has the potential to teach another because of the Holy Spirit in each of us. What an encouragement it is to grow together.
Testimonies of how the Lord is working in our lives is so strengthening to another.
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.
Paul’s central thought is he wants to have fruit among them also. Paul wanted to be working where the Lord was working.
The Bible uses the word “fruit” in three ways:
1. It is used as a metaphor for the attitudes that are a Spirit-led believers’. Gal 5: 22-23
2. It is used to refer to action. The active fruit of a Christian’s lips is praise and hands are giving.
3. It is used to speak of addition. The increase of converts or spiritual growth.
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.
Paul was in debt to give the message not in the things of the world. This debt was like a fire fighters debt to someone’s house that is on fire. He is trained and able to help. Or a doctor with a patient.
1 Cor 9:16
16 For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!
The “Greek” here is the civilized person.
The “Barbarian” here is the uncivilized person.
“The wise” is the philosopher
I am ready to preach - or eager to preach the gospel. After he uses the word gospel he decides to explain exactly what he means by “Gospel”.
Paul is excited because he has something to tell them that is so grand, so great that it is really the center of all truth on the planet.
Isn’t it good for us that he was not there in Rome and had to write his thoughts down? These words have become the life changing words to many people. These words started the reformation in 1551AD by Martin Luther!
