Romans 1:1

Introducing Romans

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— ~Romans 1:1

The Letter That Changed The World“I think that Paul’s letter to the Romans is the most profound work in existence.”

~Samuel Taylor Coleridge

“Romans is unquestionably the most important theological work ever written”

~John Knox

The Witness of History• Augustine was converted reading Romans 13

• Martin Luther had a transformative revelation of faith from Romans 1:16-17

• John Bunyan studied Romans in the Bedford jail and penned Pilgrim’s Progress

• John Wesley “converted” listening to a sermon from the preface of Luther’s commentary on Romans

• Karl Barth demolished liberal theology with his arguments on Romans

Paul: The Man, The Message & The Mission

Paul is a former religious lawyer who writes Romans in the form of a legal argument.

Romans is a legal brief that presents arguments for a divine verdict.

The Verdict: The righteous are justified by faith and not by works.

Paul: The Man, The Message & The Mission

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” ~Romans 3:23

“The wages of sin is death…” ~Romans 6:23a

“But the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” ~Romans 6:23b (NLT)

Paul’s Message• Only Christ can pay the debt I owe.

• Only by trusting in Christ’s death and resurrection alone will I be declared “not guilty”.

• Only by standing before God in the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ will I be freed from the law of sin and death.

• Only by the righteousness of Another will I be saved.

That the righteous shall live (be made right with God; inherit eternal life) by faith is sum and substance of Paul’s legal argument in Romans and the epicenter of the Gospel of God.

Paul’s Message

Paul’s argument is brilliantly compelling precisely because he himself had experienced a radical transformation from the works plan to the grace plan.

Paul, The Man

5 “Circumcised on the 8th day [ritual], of the people of Israel [race], of the tribe of Benjamin [rank], a Hebrew of Hebrews [reputation]; in regard to the law, a Pharisee [rules]; 6 as for zeal, persecuting the church[passion]; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless [perfectionism]...”

Paul’s Works PlanPhilippians 3:5-8

7 “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8 What is more...”

• “What is more” — an untranslatable string of five Greek participles — ἀλλὰ μεν-οῦν-γε καὶ — to introduce the next thought. Literally, “but indeed therefore at least even!”

• In the strongest possible way Paul contrasts what he previously did to achieve righteous-ness with the pure joy he discovered when Jesus found him on the Damascus Road.

8 “What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.”

Paul’s Works Plan

“Rubbish”• Greek — skubalon • Dung, waste, garbage, manure • Literally — human excrement

“Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus.”

~Romans 1:1

Paul, The Mission

“For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.” ~Romans 11:36

“To argue with God is to argue with the very power that makes it possible to argue at all!” ~C.S. Lewis

Paul: The Man, The Message & The Mission“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer yourselves as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—which is your spiritual worship.” ~Romans 12:1

“Spiritual worship” — Greek logikan: logical, that is, “Which is your only logical response.”

It is only logical for me to see myself as Paul saw himself: a slave to God; a servant to his glory.

Soli Deo Gloria!Soli Deo Gloria!