Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, (which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,) concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; and declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead: by whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name: Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ: To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. 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; making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you. For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established; That is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.
Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles. I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise. So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. ROMANS 1: 1-17a
Moses, at the end of his earthly ministry, wrote one of the greatest books that a believer might ever have the privilege to read; named Deuteronomy. It transcends a prophet speaking that which God has revealed to him. The intimacy of its writing makes the outward acts of the man become translucent and the inner workings of his relationship with YHWH, as his being, is made plain.
Paul also has written such a book titled Romans. However though these books stand as two of the most pivotal in scripture much of their truths are not seen without first understanding what came before them. So though I can understand the political reasons the church at Rome placed this epistle at the forefront; the understanding of first the general epistles and then Paul’s other writings are needed if we would take all that this epistle offers us.
This post and those that will follow in this series will attempt to show the majesty of that which was given to Paul. The gospel that The Father has given to His children is like a painting that at its revelation was more vibrant and beautiful than words can express. However over time as men battled to possess it for their own purposes the grime and sweat and bloodshed of the human condition has faded its glory. The gospel we see now while still recognizable as a master piece is not the clear, vibrant, living work it once was.
While comparing myself to these two men of faith seems to me a foolish thought at the same time I cannot avoid that which my Lord has shown me. Moses felt the desire to deliver God’s people from Egypt long before God had formed the humble servant who could see it done. Paul had a passion to see God worshiped in purity long before Our Lord opened his eyes to see the purity which can only come by grace. For myself, I have had a desire for all believers to live the life that is described by the witness of scripture and be free of every trace of the life of this world.
This call has been in me since I came to the Lord as a teenager. It remained when my way of trying to obtain to it drove me deep into failure. When I told God I could not serve Him; that it was not in me to be His son, it remained as an unrelenting blazing fire that would not allow me to lie down and die. When I surrendered my life to him completely without a definition of what that meant it remained.
When we are young and immature in the Lord we take our call as a proof of our own importance and approval from God. However our Father by longsuffering and patience brings us to a place where we are called for His glory alone. This is a place where we see His goodness and grace working through us instead of our consecration and position.
So it is with a humble heart that Paul proclaims his call and apostleship as a proof of God’s grace instead of, as some did in Paul’s time and continue in our own, a claim of position and authority. It is Paul’s desire to give blessing and establishment to the brethren; not to receive from them for him. Paul rather feels he is in debt to those to whom he preaches; for without them the life of God would not be working through and within him.
It is the good news of what Christ has done that receives all credit from Paul for it is not about the man speaking it but the man who is spoken of. This man’s life is the power of salvation to all men.
