Introduction to Romans (Rom 1:1)

Grace Bible Church

4000 E. Collins Rd. P.O. Box #3762 Gillette, WY 82717 (307) 686-1516

- Preaching the Living WORD through the Written WORD - 2 Tim 4:2 -

(INTRODUCTION & Rom 1:1)

Grace Bible Church, Gillette, Wyoming

Pastor Daryl Hilbert

I. INTRODUCTION

A. The Magnitude of the Epistle

1. Romans stands first in every list of the Apostle Paul’s writings, though it was not first in time of composition. This bears witness to the importance of the work both in its theme and in its content.

2. Romans has been called, “The Gospel of God;” Luther called it the “purest Gospel;” and the seventeenth English Puritan, Thomas Draxe said it was, “the quintessence and perfection of saving doctrine.”

3. The Reformation, revivals, and the salvation of certain pillars of the church (Augustine, Luther, and Wesley) stem from the book of Romans.

B. The Background of the Epistle

1. Since the Apostle Paul had not yet visited Rome (Ro 1:13), how had the Christian faith been introduced to the city?

2. According to Ambrose (4th century), the church in Rome was not established by an apostle (which removes Peter from consideration) but by unnamed Christians (Acts 2:10). By the time Paul wrote to the Romans, it had become famous far and wide for its faith (Ro 1:8).

3. Paul desired to go to Rome (Rom 15:22-24) but could only write to the church in 57-58 AD from Corinth on his third missionary journey (Rom 16:1-2). Paul eventually arrives at Rome but only under arrest and imprisonment (Acts 28:16) from 61-63 AD, where he writes the Prison Epistles (Philemon Colossians, Ephesians, and Philippians). Paul is released but later arrested again, only to be martyred (2Ti 4:6) at the hand of the Roman Emperor Nero in 68 AD.

C. The Theme of the Epistle

1. In view of the fact that the church in Rome was not founded by an apostle, Paul was desirous that the doctrine of the true gospel would be established. Thus, he writes to them concerning the theme that is central to Paul’s apostolic ministry, “the gospel of God” (Rom 1:1; Rom 15:15-16).

2. At the heart of the gospel is the doctrine of “justification by faith.” Justification by faith is revealed in the key verses in Rom 1:16-17. Justification is the judicial imputation of Christ’s righteousness to the believing sinner. Justification is obtained by faith and faith alone as opposed to adding the deeds of the Law (Rom 3:27-28). This truth became the heart of the Reformation cry, “sola fide.”

D. The Outline of the Epistle

GOD’S GOSPEL OF RIGHTEOUSNESS

I. INTRODUCTION (1:1-17)

II. SIN: RIGHTEOUSNESS IMPOVERISHED (1:18-3:20)

III. SALVATION: RIGHTEOUSNESS IMPUTED (3:21-5:21)

IV. SANCTIFICATION: RIGHTEOUSNESS IMPARTED (6-8)

V. SOVEREIGNTY: RIGHTEOUSNESS INSURED (9-11)

VI. SERVICE: RIGHTEOUSNESS IMPLEMENTED (12-15:13)

VII. CONCLUSION (15:14-16:27)

II. EXPOSITION OF ROM 1:1

A. Paul’s Servant Heart

1. Paul calls himself a “bond-servant” of God before qualifying himself as an apostle.

2. “Bond-servant” used here is the Greek word, doulos and literally means slave.

3. Paul’s heart was, first and foremost, a servant’s heart in that he was bought with Christ’s blood (1Co 7:23), a freeman in Christ to serve Christ (1Co 7:22), and places himself under Christ’s Lordship (Luk 6:46 cp. Deut 15:16-17).

4. In addition, the title “Servant” was an official title given to choice servants of God (Moses - Ps 105:26; David - Ps 78:70; Apostles - 2Pe 1:1; James 1:1: and Christ himself - Isa 49:3 cp. Mk 10:45).

B. Paul’s Apostolic Office

1. There were three criteria for being a bona fide apostle and Paul met all three:

a) Witnessed the resurrected Christ (Acts 1:3 cp. Paul - 1Co 15:8).

b) Commissioned by the resurrected Christ (Acts 1:8 cp. Paul - Acts 26:16).

c) Empowered by the resurrected Christ (Acts 2:43 cp. Paul - Acts 19:11-12).

2. There were other apostles who were commissioned by men but not by the Lord. These were assistants to the apostles but they were not apostles in the strict sense (Gal 1:1).

3. By his apostolic authority, Paul teaches the true gospel of God in Romans (Rom 16:25 cp. Gal 1:8-9)

C. Paul’s Evangelical Purpose

1. Paul was “set apart” (perf pass part - aphorizo - mark boundaries; set apart) for the gospel in the sense that he was given a special calling by God to preach and defend it (Gal 1:15-16 cp Acts 13:2).

2. The theme of the book of Romans is the, “gospel of God.” Gospel (euaggelion - good news) is the good news of man’s salvation through Christ.

III. PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS

A. The True Gospel

1. Sadly, in our present day, to some degree, the true biblical Gospel (1Co 15:3-4) is not being preached, nor is it being understood.

2. The book of Romans is crucial for the believer so that he is able to understand the Gospel, preach the Gospel, and defend the Gospel.

B. The In-depth Gospel

1. Though the gospel is simple enough so that a child can grasp it, the extent of the gospel deals with every area of the believer’s spiritual life.

2. Romans teaches that the gospel deals with man’s total depravity, salvation by faith alone in Christ alone, the believer’s position in Christ, victory over sin, hope through trials, the sovereignty of God, the believer’s civic integrity, spiritual service, and Christian liberty.

C. The Triumphant Gospel

1. A proof that Jesus is faithful to his promise to “build his church” (Mt 16:18) is the fact no apostle established the church at Rome.

2. The gospel will go forward because Christ will build his church. This truth is an encouragement to any small church in that it is God’s sovereign work to save and sanctify. Believers are privileged to be able to cooperate with the ministry of reconciliation.

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