The Epistle of Romans 

Chapter 1

Greetings

1 Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the Gospel of God,

A large portion of the Christians the apostle wrote to in this letter to the Roman churches were slaves, having masters over them. In order for them to relate to him, Paul started out his letter by saying that he is a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle to preach the Good News. And if you notice, not only in this letter to the Romans, as well as every other letter the Apostle Paul writes to the churches, he calls himself an apostle of Jesus Christ, appointed by God. There was a definte reason why he did that, and that being many accused him of not being a follower of Jesus while Christ walked the earth. Some claimed he was a traitor to the Jewish faith and was not an eye witness to Jesus - furthermore, he was a fraud. All we have to do is look in the Book of Acts - chapter 9, and we will see that Paul - then a Pharisee known by the name of Saul, became an eye witness to Jesus in the Spirit when Jesus came to him on the road to Damascus, and that God called him to be a witness to the Gentile people. The meaning of an apostle is one sent forth, and Paul was most definitely sent forth by Jesus.

Through Christ, we have been called by God, as He given us the grace, privilege, responsibility, and authority to be emissaries, which means apostles, to tell Gentiles everywhere what God has done for them, so that they too will believe and obey Christ, which brings glory to the name of Jesus, the Son of God.

As the Apostle Paul wrote, these Gentile believers in Rome, no matter their status in life, have been called to belong to Jesus Christ. This calling then gave them to be apostles for Christ, giving them the responsibility to tell other Gentiles what God has done for them, so others can come to Christ and be His followers.

As followers of Christ, the apostle is telling each of us that we too are sent ones, emissaries, or ambassadors and have been given the grace, privilege, and responsibililty to tell others what God has done for them. Why? So they too can come to Christ and be His followers. All believers are called by God as His ambassadors being given God's grace, privilege and responsibiity to tell others of Christ. The perpetual replication of God's command is extended to all of us so that the Gospel can be spread throughout the world - to all people.

• While we may not carry the "office of an apostle," God wants to use all of us to go forth to the whole world to preach, teach, and bring others to Christ with the gifts He has given each one of us.

      Matt 28:19  Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...

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.

Paul is affirming that this letter is written to everyone in Rome who is called to be God's holy people - loved by Him. This I will say...while God does reach out and call all people, giving everyone a chance, only those who choose to accept and receive that call can then become the "called of God" in Christ. So then, all of God's people are called to be His "holy" people, meaning they are "set apart for God to do a work of "holiness" within them. That then would mean that we, as God's people, are set apart by God for Him to do a work of holiness within us.

The apostle, as always when he sent a letter to the churches, gave out his personal greeting of "grace and peace" be given to them. In that greeting, he was praying the all of God's grace and His peace would fill their hearts.

⁸ First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.

Before the apostle begins his purpose in writing to the Roman churches, he first of all wants to thank God, through Jesus Christ, for each one of them. Because of their faith, they are being talked about throughout the known 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.

To emphasize the truth of that statement, the Apostle Paul now swears before God that he is telling the truth in that he prays regularly for these believers in Rome. He consistently brings their needs before the Lord in prayer, claiming God is his God in whom he serves by spreading the Good News of Jesus wherever he goes. His hopes and plans are, as the Lord is willing, that soon he will be able to come to Rome to see them personally. He is encouraging these believers to continuously grow in the Lord and that he would have an opportunity to lay hands on them to receive some spiritual gifts so they can minister out to others.

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.

The apostle now emphasizes that he has wanted to come to Rome for some time, but every time he has been hindered in some way from coming. As we learned from the Introduction to this study, the apostle was hindered again while he traveled to Jerusalem to deliver some offerings to the poor churches in that city, with intentions to then come to Rome was on his agenda. He, however, was arrested and eventually did come to Rome; however, he came in chains as as prisoner to spend the next two years under house arrest.

The apostle now expresses another reason for coming to Rome to them was so that he could bear fruit among them - meaning they would be ministered to so they too would chose to go out and present Jesus within their sphere of influence.

Paul, being a former Pharisee among the educated people was now given the assignment to be an apostle for Christ among the uneducated and uncivilized people. He has learned through experience to speak to all walks of people - no matter their status. In that, he is grateful for that kind of learning. To all men then, he is now ready to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to those in Rome as well. 

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. ¹⁷ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

As an apostle of Christ, representing Jesus to the world, Paul is not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ that he presents to all who would listen. Why? It tells us about the power of God at work to everyone who believes. This wonderful news was first given to the Jews and now is given to the Gentiles.

This Good News of Jesus Christ tells us how God makes us right in His sight, giving us salvation, here on earth and forever with Him.This is accomplished from start to finish by our faith in Christ and the promises He gives to us. As the Scriptures say, the righteous in God lives by faith in trust in Jesus. 

This familiar scripture verse has been quoted by Christians all over the world as a confessional statement for boldly standing up for Christ. This is such a good verse to continually confess as a reminder to strengthen our faith - especially when we feel down and need to be lifted up.  

The wrath of God

It is not popular these days to point out that God is a God of wrath. People would rather keep claiming that God is love and look no further. But it is in the context of God's holiness, meaning His hatred for sin, and His justice, meaning His dispensing the punishment that sin brings on itself, that His love, mercy and grace becomes so precious. It is here where we see how God can be both just and merciful. (1)

¹⁸ For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, ¹⁹ because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. ²⁰ For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 

²¹ because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. ²² Professing to be wise, they became fools, ²³ and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.

For those who did know that God existed, or even those who claim they know God, but didn't worship Him as God or thank HIm for His goodness, their undiscerning, foolish ideas of Who they think God is only brought confusion and darkness. They claim themselves to be wise; however, they are utter fools. Instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worship idols that resemble people, physical or otherwise, birds, animals or even self. As a result, man can have many gods to appease his own pleasures.

• Sadly, we live in a very narcissistic age where man is consumed with self. Whatever gives pleasure becomes an idol to worship. 

²⁴ Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, ²⁵ who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

Because those who refuse to follow God and His righteousness, being consumed with self, God has abondoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desire. As a result, their behavior against their body and the bodies of others have been vile and degrading.

• We are in a day when "uncleanness" means more than homosexual behavior, but anything that defiles the body, including beastiality, trans sex, or any kind of behavior that defiles the human body.

These revilers have traded the truth about God for a lie. Because they did, they end up worshiping and serving the things God created instead of the Creator himself. Only God, Himself is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. 

²⁶ For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. ²⁷ Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

Here the Apostle Paul tackles the heart of man and what happens when man lives without God. The heart of man is centered around self. In the area of sex, it begins with sex outside of marriage and can degrade to homosexual or lesbian sexuality, beastiality and other vile sexual behavior. Here is as perfect example of why God tells mankind not to engage in sex outside of marriage. It only leads to other sinful behavior that violates God's law for mankind.

The heart of man without God remains the same - no matter what century he lives in. When man choses to leave God out of his life, his heart will automatically turn to selfish debachery living. Rome, in the 1st century, was a debaucherous society, including sexual behavior of all kinds. Mankind here in the 21st century is no different. We live in a world of selfish immoral behavior,  filled with sexual behavior of all kinds - probably worse than what was happening in Rome 2000 years ago. God leaves these people alone to live in their vile nature to automatically suffer the consequences of their sin. 

• Women having sex with other women, which goes against the nature God created within them.
• Men lusting after other men (homosexuality) goes against how God created husband and wife to have sex together as normal sexual behavior.
• Any sort of homosexual or lesbian behavior is shameful and God's warning is they will suffer the penalty of their behavior.

Sin breeds sin

²⁸ And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; ²⁹ being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, ³⁰ backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,  ³¹ undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; ³² who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.

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