1:1 "Paul" / official apostle and preacher to the Gentile nations, a true bond-slave who would involve his whole life and being with God. Wrote 13 epistles (+Hebrews) totaling one half of the New Testament, preached across the continent starting churches and finally died in Rome. His life is chronicled in the Acts of the Apostles and 2 Corinthians.

Seed of Abraham, prisons, beaten three times with rods, five times beaten with whips, stoned once, shipwrecked three times, perils, thirst, hunger, fastings, care of all the churches.

"Servant" / douloV / slave, bondman, one in a servile condition, one who is given over to another’s will, devoted to others to the disregard of his own interests.

"Jesus Christ"
Prophet: the expression of God’s mind / revelation
Priest: the expression of God’s love / death, intercession
King: the expression of God’s wisdom and power

"apostle" / apostoloV / one sent with a message from God. Referred in nearly all epistles.

Qualifications of an Apostle:
*patience, signs, wonders, mighty deeds: 2 Cor. 12:12
*by the commandment of God: I Tim. 1:1
*by the will of God: Eph. 1:1
*not by the will of men: Gal. 1:1
*witness of resurrection, teaching, etc: Acts 1:21-26

"Separated unto the Gospel of God" / afwrismenoV / appointed for some definite purpose, set apart from one thing to a specific job. Cf. Gal. 1:15

1:2 "Which" / The Gospel of God (I Cor. 15:1-4). It is the good news because it takes care of the sin problem, reconciles men to God, allows Jesus to declare sinners righteous and not guilty before the Father.

Without the Gospel man would be on trial with no hope! The Judge must say, "Guilty." But with the Gospel it is declared, "You are not worthy, but Christ is! Believe in Christ and you are fully justified - not guilty."

"He had promised afore by his prophets" - I Pet. 1:9-10; Rom. 3:21-22; 15:8; Gen. 3:15; Deut. 18:15-19; Jer. 23:5: 33:14-16; Acts 13:31-33;

"In the holy scriptures"/ This same Scripture reveals truth for our lives today. It was only natural for Paul to glance back to the Old Testament prophets, showing their connection to New Testament truth. They speak of Christ. John 5:39

1:3 "concerning his Son" / peri / surrounding, involving, all events connected with His life described in the Scriptures and then fulfilled by Christ at His coming to earth. They are the pinpoint or finger pointing to Christ. They were a picture for the Jews to see who Christ is.

He is "Jesus" / humanity
He is "Christ" anointed of God, redemptive character
He is "Lord" the Revelation of God’s Person

In Romans the Lord Jesus is presented in 2 ways:
1. He is the Object of promises, the "son of David according to the flesh."
2. He is the Son of God with power, who tasted death for every man.

"made of the seed of David"/ Incarnation, fulfilling the promise as Messiah. "Made" \ gegomenou / meaning to come into existence as a human in the appointed time for a designated purpose. cf. 2 Tim. 2:8

In His humanity He triumphed over the cross! In His deity He triumphed over the tomb! He is the only One who can effectively mediate because He is the God-man.

1:4 "declared" / orisqentoV / to mark off boundaries, to determine time, to prove in a full and open way, *ordained, appointed by detailed description!

"to be the Son of God" / "to be" is in italics and added to explain the translation. Lit. "He is declared the Son of God" / Term used 1X by Daniel and 46x in the New Testament. He has always been the Son of God - He did not become the Son of God at His birth. Who knew this:

Satan: Matt. 4:3,6 Demons: Matt. 8:9
Disciples: Matt. 14:33 Jesus: Matt. 27:43
Mark: Mark 1:1 Centurion: Mark 15:39
Angels: Luke 1:35 John: John 1:34
Peter: John 11:27 Paul: Acts 9:20; Gal. 2:20
        cf. John 20:31; I John 4:15

"with power"/ *distinguished by power. This was proven in many ways: His personal character shown in His personal conduct, His perfection, miracles, resurrection.

"according to the spirit of holiness"/ That quality of holiness that is demonstrated by the complete and full purpose of God being accomplished in attitude, emotions, actions.

What is the spirit of holiness?

*God’s operative power to produce all that is pleasing
*He did everything with perfect confidence in the Father
*His life was the true expression of His power

"Be ye therefore perfect even as my Father which is in heaven is perfect." cf. 2 Cor. 7:1; I Thess. 3:12-13

"by the resurrection from the dead" - the resurrection is the proof of His full power, holiness and position as the Son of God. - Because:

*It is God’s seal of Christ’s life and work
*It is the declaration of His finished work
*It discharged completely the debt of sin
*Provided hope out of despair
*It provided an incorruptible inheritance for the saints, cf. I Peter 1:3-4

Romans 1:5-7 Pass the Torch

Introduction: "By whom we have received grace and apostleship" and "Ye also are called"

The Natural Leading of God

WHY? "for" / ina / "for obedience to the faith among all nations"

What is Obedience To the Faith

WHY? So that all nations will recognize that salvation is wholly of God and Christ is honored among all nations!

1:8 "first, I thank"/ Paul was very sensitive to the amenities and kindness to people, but was obviously thankful to the Lord

"my God" / real personal appropriation, a reverent and loving relationship to the Father. This realization is essential if we are to communicate with God daily, moment by moment, and see Him involved in every facet of our lives.

"through Jesus Christ for you all" / thankful for their testimony, because their lives had an affect on the lives of others. The love, righteousness, holiness and faith of Christ was perpetuated in the lives of others through the saints!

1:9 "For God is my witness"/ Lit. "I tell you under oath" / cf. 2 Cor. 1:23; Phil. 1:8

"whom I serve with my spirit"/ zeal, wholeheartedness with no selfish motives or pretense, walking in the spirit, doing all for the honor and glory of God. "Serve" for spiritual service as a priest in the temple.

"in the Gospel of his Son"/ His work and ministry were defined - He knew where he stood and why he stood for it! Many things needed to be taught, but the Gospel had to be preached.

"without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers"/ Depth of prayer was a reality to Paul. He saw the Lord as his sufficiency. His life reflected this truth and he experienced that things in his life that required complete trust and much prayer.

These horrendous events in his life, although painful and debilitating, were worth the trade to have close communication with God.

"without ceasing" / adialeitwz / without intermission, incessantly!

1:10 "making request"/ for a prosperous journey by the will of God to come to them.

1:11 "For I long to see you"/ Great yearning, earnest desire for a designed eternal purpose. WHY?

"that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift"/ For what purpose? To impart some spiritual gift to them for the benefit of their lives in Christ! They were also an encouragement to him in the ministry.

Impart means to distribute, entrust or spend himself on their behalf. A gift from the Holy Spirit to Paul to distribute by human instruction and demonstration. WHY? Acts 20:28-30

Paul wanted to teach doctrine, give exhortation, the Gospel or use his pastoral gifts and character to enhance their personal lives for the task that was before them.

"to the end that ye may be established"/ sthricqhnai / to be formed, fixed, rooted, fashioned, grounded. This was Paul’s ministry to the church!

WHAT WAS THE CHURCH’S MINISTRY TO PAUL?

1:12 "That is, that I may be comforted together with you"/ sumparaklhqhnai / consoled, reassured, encouraged - producing joy and edification. cf. Rom. 15:32; I Thess. 2:17

"by the mutual faith of you and me"/ pollakaiV / the faith which we all have in common. Reciprocal faith which results in a defined love demonstrated by both parties.

1:13 Notice that Paul’s desire to be with those that he loved, but the ministry often drew him apart geographically. Paul wanted them to understand that this was for the purpose of God. 2 Tim. 1:4; 2 Cor. 1:15

He also wanted to be with them so that they would have "some fruit" in their lives. Phil. 4:17; Col. 1:6; John 15:16

1:14 "debtor"/ one who owes another - but it is more than that! *Paul had an obligation to these people - he was bound by duty and had not fully made amends. He had a continuing ministry.

"Greeks"/ Ellesin / all nations not Jews that made the language and customs of Greece part of their culture.

"Barbarians"/ barbarioV / Used by Greeks or Romans to describe people who were ignorant of the Greek language, having harsh or rude speech.

"both to the wise and the unwise"/ He was obligated to the teacher, theologian, philosopher, as well as the foolish and unlearned men of this time.

1:15 Exegete simple

1:16 "For I am not ashamed"/ epaiscuomai / not humiliated, embarrassed, distressed, dishonored, disgraced, etc.
Luke 9:26; 2 Tim. 1:12

"Gospel of Christ"/ The Gospel is the reversal of Satan’s lie in the Garden of Eden. I Cor. 1:18

"for it is the power of God unto salvation"/ the power to change lives immediately and forever. New creatures at the instant of the new birth. No excuse for failure or disobedience any more. Col. 1:15

"to every one that believeth"/ Notice that the Gospel is for everyone! The power of God to fulfill His Word is the power of the Gospel.

"to the Jew first"/ Paul preached to Jews first. WHY?

*Judgment begins with Israel (Rom. 2:6-10). Why? They had more light than any other people. God choose them to be His witnesses, every prophet was sent to them first, every apostle and evangelist had a message for them, Messiah came to them, the Word of God is addressed to them, and the church started in Jerusalem.

*God loves the Jew with a special love: Deut. 7:7

*There is a peculiar access to the Jews: They live in every nation in the world. "Go gather the lost sheep of the house of Israel."

*They are being preserved for some great eternal purpose in the world: Zech. 8:23

*There is a reward for reaching the Jew: Gen. 12:1-3

"and also the Greek"/ God’s love transcends time and people, and the Gospel was a reality to all people in the plan of God. God loves all men equally, regardless of His expressed love to Israel. Therefore, because of His complete sacrifice for all men of all time, all have been included in the atonement.

1:17 "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed"/ apokaluptetai / The righteousness of God is revealed in the Gospel and its power to save all men. It is this righteousness that God imputes to the sinner, allowing the sinner to experience eternal and infinite grace. 3:25-26

God is the Justifier of him who believes in Christ. This is only possible because the demands of God have been completely met by the work of Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. God, in His righteousness, receives the believer, because the righteousness of Christ has now become his gift or possession.

This is the only way that justice, righteousness and mercy are brought together in salvation. It is a full dealing with sin! The believing sinner is now united with Christ!

"from faith to faith" / ek pistewV, eiV pistin / out of faith, resulting in faith.

"the just shall live by faith" / lit. "the just out of faith shall live" / Notice the use of the word ek used in both instances. it is the beginning faith which provides the life and the faith that we now live by comes from this beginning faith. Gal. 2:16, 20

1:18 "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven" John 3:36 Eph. 5:6

"ungodliness"/ asebeia / lack of reverence for God

"unrighteousness"/ adikia / against justice and the law

"who hold the truth in unrighteousness"/ opposite of the real truth, to hold back, detain, resist truth by unrighteousness - even when they know what the truth is! John 3:19; 2 Thess. 2:10

1:19 "because that which may be known of God is manifest in them"/ all the truth that they need in order to know God has been revealed to them.

"for God hath showed it unto them"/ this is a good picture of the grace of God

1:20 "...so that they are without excuse"/ anapologghtouV / without any defense at all! No hope, no possibility of parole, no bondsman, etc.

1:21 "knew God"/ gnonteV / perceive or understand

"neither were thankful"/ eucristew / Psalm 100:4; Col. 3:15 - ungratefulness is a sin that dishonors God - not being grateful to God is the same as not being thankful. This causes us to be disloyal to the one who leads us to Christ, leave our spouse, backslide, to think that God has failed, to call God a liar, to lose compassion for others and be self-centered. / I Thess. 5:18; Eph. 5:20

"but became vain in their imagination"/ I Cor. 3:21; Gen. 6:5

"foolish heart was darkened"/ Matt. 6:23 / eskotisqh / covered with darkness, etc.

1:22 "Professing themselves"/ faskonteV / Pres Act Ptc / affirming or alleging in public.

1:23 "changed"/ hllaxan / to change one thing for another - Deut. 5:8; Isa. 40:18; Acts 17:29

1:24 "God gave them up"/ paredwken / delivered to custody for punishment / 2 Thess. 2:12

"uncleanness"/ impurity, lustful motives, luxurious living

"to dishonor their own bodies between themselves"/ they treated themselves shamefully, insult, despise/

I Cor. 6:13; I Thess. 4:4; Lev. 18:22

1:25 "changed the truth of God into a lie"/ 2 Thess. 2:10

"worshiped and served the creature more than the creator, who is blessed for ever, Amen. Romans 9:5

1:26 "For this cause God gave them up to vile affections" - evil passions: disgrace, reproach, dishonor, sometimes translated inordinate affections, calamity, affliction of the mind, depraved passion / Without God sin runs rampant because man has no control over his sinful nature. I Cor. 6:9; I Tim. 1:9-10; Jude 1:7

"changed the natural use...against nature"/ Exchanged that which was agreeable with natural order of things, against the law, doing that which was abnormal and against nature.

1:27 "burned"/ orecei / longing, desire, craving, obsession

1:28 "...and did not like to retain God in their knowledge"/ did not want to consider, regard, hold, possess in their mind about God / Tit. 1:16; Job 21:14-15; Hosea 4:6; Rom. 8:7

"God gave them over to a reprobate mind"/ adokimon / debased, castaway, rejected mind / Lit. "a mind not standing the test"/ They had proven by their actions what was in their mind and came to a place of total rejection; therefore God "gave them over" to their reprobate mind, which was full of rottenness and godlessness.

1:29 "being filled" - Rom. 3:10

"unrighteousness"/ injustice, iniquity, deceit, distaste for the truth.

"fornication"/ porneia / illicit sexual activity, also used of incest, sodomy, lesbianism, worship of idols. - I Cor. 6:13,18

"wickedness"/ ponhria / depravity, malice, vicious disposition, evil purpose - Ps. 7:9; Prov. 10:2; 11:5; 13:6; Acts 8:22; Eph. 6:12

"covetousness"/ pleonexia / greedy, avarice, possess by extortion - Prov. 28:16; Col. 3:5

"maliciousness"/ kakia / ill-will, not ashamed to break the law, desire to hurt

"full of envy"/ corrupt, defiled, hatred for others - Prov. 14:30; Tit. 3:3

"murder"/ slaughter, disregard for humanity

"debate"/ strife maker, causing contention, always disagreeable

"deceit"/ guile, subtlety, crafty - Job 31:5-6; Ps. 36:3; Col. 2:8

"malignity"/ bad character, cancerous, destructive to others

"whisperers"/ secret slander - Prov. 16:28; 26:20

1:30 "Backbiters"/ defaming of someone’s character, evil speaking

"haters of God"/ defaming God and His character, insolent contempt for God and presupposes that they know that God exists, because they are insolent toward Him.

"despiteful"/ superior to others, uplifted with pride, insulting language, treat shamefully.

"proud"/ arrogant, pre-eminent, over estimate of one’s self or personal merits./ uperhqanouV / self manifesting or promotion of self, rather than God. - Ps. 12:3; Prov. 16:16-17

"boasters"/ alazonaV / imposters, vagabonds, quack, empty pretender

"inventors of evil things"/ efeuretaV kakwn / contrive wickedness

"disobedience to parents"/ apeiqeiV / obstinacy, not persuaded by parents, refusing godly structure of authority - 2 Tim. 3:2

1:31 "Without understanding"/ asunqetouV / ignorant of truth, no discernment, foolish thinking, not caring for the circumstance or their actions. Prov. 18:2; Rom. 3:11

"covenant breakers"/ no agreement, not faithful to keep their word in or out of business - Is. 33:8

"without natural affection"/ astorgouV / no real love for parents, or parents to their children, unsociable, not knowing what it means to cherish someone.

"implacable"/ aspoudouV / refusing to make treaties, abstinent when correction is given (even when wrong(, never forgiving, refusing to make things right.

"unmerciful"/ anelehmonaV / non-caring