Verse 1
Paul identifies himself as a slave to Jesus. One cannot be a slave to a dead master. The foundation of Paul's life was being a slave to a living Jesus. By implication if Jesus were living, then he is God.
Paul has been set aside for the gospel. So many times we get caught up in other causes such as social justice or environmental conservation that our time for the gospel is limited. Is it possible to be first set aside for the gospel then other causes? Is Paul special? Does Paul's separation indicate that some of us are not necessarily separated for the gospel? What does it mean to be set aside or the gospel anyway?
Verse 2
This gospel was promised beforehand. The implication is that Hebrew prophets and Hebrew Scripture had promised that good news was coming. A reading of these prophets should indicate good news coming to the Jewish people.
Verse 3
The gospel of God is about Jesus, a descendant of David. Paul believed that Jesus was both man and God.
Verse 4
It is the resurrection from the dead that declared Jesus God. He is our Lord and we are his slave.
Verse 5
Who are the "we"? Is it other apostles or other believers? They (or we) have received grace and apostleship to minister to the Gentiles so that they will by faith believe in Jesus.
Verse 6
The Romans (and by extension believers) are the called.
Verse 7
The believers in Rome are saints. May other believers enjoy the grace of God and the peace of God
Verse 8
Paul is often thankful for the believers. Are we thankful for other believers? The faith of the Romans was well know. Our prayer is that our faith would be well known too. But it is hard. However, it must have been hard being a believer in Rome also.
Verse 9
Paul is a man of prayer. He prays for other believers often.
Verse 10
Paul really wanted to go to Rome and meet these believers he had never met but had heard about.
Verse 11
Paul has a gift for them, but the gift is not a material gift, but a spiritual one. This gift will not fade because it is meant to establish them.
Verse 12
How wonderful it is to be mutually encouraged by other believers. We want to always be a blessing and receive from a blessing from others.
Verse 13
Paul wanted them to know that he really had wanted to come to them sooner, but he had been prevented presumably by God. We often plan to go here and there, but God has prevented us. It is because he is not finished with us where we are.
Verse 14
Paul cannot just go to Rome when he wanted. he had an obligation to the Greeks and barbarians and wise ones and foolish ones. He needed to fulfill that obligation first before he could go to Rome, where they were already believers.
Verse 15
How excited are we to preach the gospel among the brethren! Paul was excited and looked forward to preaching in Rome.
My personal spiritual thoughts...
Saturday, October 20, 2018
Introduction to Romans
Rome, often called the eternal city, is a place that draws tourists from all over to the world. The city has a long history and is significant to the development of Christianity. One cannot help but become enchanted by the events that have taken place in this city. It is a city that keeps drawing us to it.
The apostle Paul was also fascinated by Rome and had often hoped to go there in order to see the believers there (Romans 15:20-24). He was prevented (ἐνεκοπτόμην) from going to Rome several times (πολλά) seemingly because there were other places where he needed to bring the gospel first. Paul had said that he did not want to build on someone else's foundation but wanted to preach where Christ had not yet been "named" (ὠνομάσθη). This means that the church at Rome had been established without Paul but was known by Paul.
So, when was the church at Rome established and by whom? No one is sure of the answer to these two questions. A couple of theories have been put forward as possible answers. First, it may be a good idea to locate the story of the church at Rome and thus the book of Romans inside a historical context. Dr. Harold Hoehner has researched biblical chronology and has given us a reconstructed time line from the crucifixion to the death of Paul. The following is a dateline summary to help us put the book of Romans into a historical context.
According to Bruce (1994, p.16), there were Jews living in Rome from the time of Pompey. After conquering Judea, he brought some of them to Rome about 60 years before Christ. The Jewish community went through periods of being pushed out of the city and being allowed to come back. During the time of Emperor Claudius, who reigned from 41 - 54 A.D., the Jews were commanded to leave (Acts 18:2). With that expulsion there was a husband (Aquila) and his wife (Priscilla) who had recently come to Corinth. They were Jewish and made tents for a living. It is unclear if they were believers in Jesus while in Rome or became believers after meeting Paul in Corinth. What is clear is that when they returned to Rome and by the time Paul wrote the letter to the Romans, they had a church that met in their home. They had previously risked their lives for Paul.
Next, one may ask why Paul wrote to the church in Rome. Paul indicated in the letter that he had wanted to visit them (Romans 15:20-24) and would plan to see them on his way to Spain. He also wanted to impart a spiritual gift and enjoy mutual encouragement (Romans 1:11-15). The content of the letter seems to suggest that Paul wanted to fully explain the gospel to the believers in Rome.
In conclusion, Paul was in Corinth after his 3rd missionary journey. He wrote to the church in Rome in the winter of 56-57 A.D. to a mixed congregation composed of Jewish and Gentile converts to Christianity. His purpose in writing was to tell of his desire to come to them and give them a full account of the gospel message that he preached.
The apostle Paul was also fascinated by Rome and had often hoped to go there in order to see the believers there (Romans 15:20-24). He was prevented (ἐνεκοπτόμην) from going to Rome several times (πολλά) seemingly because there were other places where he needed to bring the gospel first. Paul had said that he did not want to build on someone else's foundation but wanted to preach where Christ had not yet been "named" (ὠνομάσθη). This means that the church at Rome had been established without Paul but was known by Paul.
So, when was the church at Rome established and by whom? No one is sure of the answer to these two questions. A couple of theories have been put forward as possible answers. First, it may be a good idea to locate the story of the church at Rome and thus the book of Romans inside a historical context. Dr. Harold Hoehner has researched biblical chronology and has given us a reconstructed time line from the crucifixion to the death of Paul. The following is a dateline summary to help us put the book of Romans into a historical context.
- The Crucifixion - Friday, April 3, 33 A.D.
- Stephan stoned to death - April 35 A.D.
- Paul's conversion - summer 35 A.D.
- Paul's 1st missionary journey - April 48 to September 49 A.D.
- (Galatians written in autumn of 49 A.D. = southern theory and written from Antioch)
- Paul's 2nd missionary journey - April 50 - September 52 A.D.
- Paul's 3rd missionary journey - Spring 53 - May 57 A.D.
- Arrives in Corinth - last part of November 56 A.D.
- Romans written - winter 56/57 A.D.
- Departs Corinth - last of February 57 A.D.
- Voyage to Rome as a prisoner - August 59 - February 60 A.D.
- Arrival in Rome - last of February 60 A.D.
- 1st Roman imprisonment - February 60 - March 62 A.D.
- Ephesians written - autumn 60 A.D.
- Colossians and Philemon - 61 A.D.
- Philippians - early spring 62 A.D.
- (Peter in Rome - 62 A.D.)
- 2nd arrest and imprisonment in Rome - autumn 67 A.D. (see also 2 Timothy 1:8; 2:9)
- Paul beheaded - spring 68 A.D.
- Jerusalem destroyed - 70 A.D.
According to Bruce (1994, p.16), there were Jews living in Rome from the time of Pompey. After conquering Judea, he brought some of them to Rome about 60 years before Christ. The Jewish community went through periods of being pushed out of the city and being allowed to come back. During the time of Emperor Claudius, who reigned from 41 - 54 A.D., the Jews were commanded to leave (Acts 18:2). With that expulsion there was a husband (Aquila) and his wife (Priscilla) who had recently come to Corinth. They were Jewish and made tents for a living. It is unclear if they were believers in Jesus while in Rome or became believers after meeting Paul in Corinth. What is clear is that when they returned to Rome and by the time Paul wrote the letter to the Romans, they had a church that met in their home. They had previously risked their lives for Paul.
Next, one may ask why Paul wrote to the church in Rome. Paul indicated in the letter that he had wanted to visit them (Romans 15:20-24) and would plan to see them on his way to Spain. He also wanted to impart a spiritual gift and enjoy mutual encouragement (Romans 1:11-15). The content of the letter seems to suggest that Paul wanted to fully explain the gospel to the believers in Rome.
In conclusion, Paul was in Corinth after his 3rd missionary journey. He wrote to the church in Rome in the winter of 56-57 A.D. to a mixed congregation composed of Jewish and Gentile converts to Christianity. His purpose in writing was to tell of his desire to come to them and give them a full account of the gospel message that he preached.
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