Romans 1:1-17
When you write a letter, are you more likely to write until you run out of paper, or keep it short and to the point?
What is one place you have never seen that you would like to visit?
#God #People #Time #Place #Obedient faith #Sin #Key Idea
Greeting
1 Paul, a servant[a] of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David[b] according to the flesh 4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, 6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,
7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Longing to Go to Rome
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed
in all the world. 9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention
you 10 always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God's will I may now at last succeed in coming to you. 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— 12 that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers,[c] that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among
you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. 14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians,[d] both to the wise and to the foolish. 15 So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
The Righteous Shall Live by Faith
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone
who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith,[e] as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”[f]
- God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
- We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
- If you received a letter from Paul (a missionary) saying he wanted to visit your family or small group, how would you react?
- What do you know about Rome in the first century? What are the circumstances that caused Paul to write this letter?
- Note all the "I" statements. What do you learn about Paul in this passage?
- What do you learn about Jesus Christ in this passage?
- Reading between the lines, what is the problem in the church in Rome that Paul addresses in this letter?
- I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
- When did you first feel Jesus' call in your life? How has that call changed your goals? Your sense of obligation to others? How is that reflected in your prayers? Your actions?
- How would you compare your commitment to the Gospel to Paul's in verse 16?
- Who was the Paul in your life who encouraged you in the rookie year of your spiritual life?
- You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
The Fellowship of the Unashamed
#Discipleship
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I am a part of the fellowship of the Unashamed. I have the Holy Spirit Power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ.
I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tame visions, mundane talking, chintzy giving, and dwarfed goals. I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by presence, learn by faith, love by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power. My pace is set, my gait is fast, my goal is Heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions few, my Guide is reliable, my mission is clear.
I cannot be bought, compromised, deterred, lured away, turned back, diluted, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won't give up, back up, let up, or shut up until I've preached up, prayed up, paid up, stored up, and stayed up for the cause of Christ.
I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I must go until He returns, give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes. And when He comes to get His own, He will have no problem recognizing me. My colors will be clear for "I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes…." (Romans 1:16)
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Salvation By Christ Alone - Part 1 from North Boulevard Church of Christ on Vimeo.
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Shame, Shame, Shame...
#Shame of Sin
There is probably something in each of our lives that we are ashamed of. Take a few moments now and share with some of your friends or family the things in your life that have caused you the most shame. No, wait! Just kidding, don't really do that. For most of us, the things that cause shame are things that we would prefer not to tell anyone.
Compare your feelings to those of the people talked about in the Old Testament of the Bible:
"Are they ashamed of their loathsome conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush." Jeremiah 6:15
The sin in their lives had become so commonplace that they no longer even blushed when involved in sin. They were not ashamed of the sinfulness of their lives or of their society. They were much like our world today.
Romans 1:16 - "I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes..."
And into this world that is unashamed of their godlessness, Paul calls us to stand unashamed of the Gospel. While the world is seduced and destroyed by the power of sin, Paul reminds us that we overcome by the power of God. To a world that is lost and does not know who to trust, Paul offers Christ and Salvation to everyone who believes.
Are you ashamed today? Perhaps that's OK. Perhaps we could all do with a healthy dose of shame for some of the things we allow in our lives. But remember, Christ has a better option. Something that we never have to be ashamed of. Something that provides power and confidence and security: the Good News of Jesus Christ.
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COMPLAIN OR FISH?
A game warden noticed how a particular fellow named Sam consistently caught more fish than anyone else, whereas the other guys would only catch three or four a day. Sam would come in off the lake with a boat full. Stringer after stringer was always packed with freshly caught trout. The warden, curious, asked Sam his secret. The successful fisherman invited the game warden to accompany him and observe. So the next morning the two met at the dock and took off in Sam's boat. When they got to the middle of the lake, Sam stopped the boat, and the warden sat back to see how it was done.
Sam's approach was simple. He took out a stick of dynamite, lit it, and threw it in the air. The explosion rocked the lake with such a force that dead fish immediately began to surface. Sam took out a net and started scooping them up.
Well, you can imagine the reaction of the game warden. When he recovered from the shock of it all, he began yelling at Sam. "You can't do this! I'll put you in jail, buddy! You will be paying every fine there is in the book!"
Sam, meanwhile, set his net down and took out another stick of dynamite. He lit it and tossed it in the lap of the game warden with these words, "Are you going to sit there all day complaining, or are you going to fish?"
Seems to me we have two similar options as Christians -- we can spend our time complaining or we can "fish". Jesus, of course, used the concept of fishing to describe the work of evangelism ("Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." -- Matthew 4:19). The method we use does not involve dynamite, but it does involve the word from which dynamite comes to us -- "dunamis", the Greek word for "power".
"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." (Romans 1:16).
I've known some folks in the church who use the "dunamis" of the gospel to fish for souls, and I've known other folks content to do nothing but sit back and complain about what everybody else is or isn't doing. It's your choice -- Are you going to complain or fish?
Have a great day!
Alan Smith
Boone Church of Christ
Boone, NC
www.TFTD-online.com
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