Gtcotr/ss050717
Romans 1 NKJV
1 Paul, a bondservant of
Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God
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.
Our
theme for the month of May 2017 is Power. Today we are going back in time to
the year AD58 and try to imagine ourselves attending Church in Rome where this
letter from the Apostle Paul is being read. At that time Rome was the center of
the world. A very famous emperor named Nero was the ruler of the Roman Empire
and Christianity was relatively new in the world. It had only been about 30
years since Jesus had been crucified.
Jews
had maintained a growing presence in the capital city of Rome ever since they
had been taken captive and brought there by the Emperor Pompey about 50 years
before Christ. By AD41 there were about 4000 Jews living in Rome who had been
liberated from their slavery and were working in the city. They stuck together
and kept their religious practices intact and had established at least 4
different synagogues in the city. Historical records indicate that the Roman
government began noticing some problems within the Jewish community. It seems
that there were some divisions among them and this was causing trouble in the city.
Of
course, we know what these divisions were all about. Acts 2:10 tells us that on
the Day of Pentecost devout Jews from Rome were visiting Jerusalem and heard Peter
preaching the Gospel. They were converted to become Believers in Jesus as
Messiah, were filled with the Holy Spirit and began spreading the Gospel
throughout the world.
It
is certain that these newly Born Again Jews returned to Rome and shared the
Good News that Messiah had come and that His name was Jesus! Even though these
were ordinary nameless, faceless, common people of the day … yet because of
their witness others began to accept Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior
and the Church in Rome was birthed.
The
division between the Jews who believed in Jesus and those who didn’t
caused trouble and created division within the Jewish community. Both secular and
Biblical historical records serve to confirm that in the year AD49 the Emperor
Claudius expelled all Jews from Rome.
Acts 18: 2 And he found a certain
Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his
wife Priscilla (because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from
Rome); and he came to them.
Nonetheless
the Church in Rome continued to grow in numbers and diversity. Gentiles had
been converted to Christ and added to the Church and several home Churches began
meeting under one umbrella of general leadership. Paul heard about these
Believers and wanted to help them.
Romans 16:3ff Greet
Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus … and the Church that
is in their house.
By
the time the Apostle Paul wrote his letter to the Church in Rome in AD58 both
the Emperor Claudius and his edict had expired and we find Aquila and Priscilla,
who had once been exiled as Jews, back in the Rome pastoring a congregation of
Believers in their home.
The
Apostle Paul desired to visit Rome which indeed he did within a few years of
writing this letter. In fact, he was imprisoned there and ended up having his
head cut off by the Emperor Nero during the beginning of the great persecution
of Christians by the Roman government. However, in AD58 when Paul felt led by
the Holy Spirit to write his letter to the Church in Rome, he was hoping to
strengthen their faith and encourage them to hold fast to the doctrines of
grace which had been taught to him by Jesus.
Today
we still read the Book of Romans to strengthen our faith and doctrine in
Christ. The Romans Road to Salvation is the most
widely used evangelistic tool around the world. It simply states that:
1.
Romans 3:23 – All have sinned …
2.
Romans 6:23 – The punishment for sin is death …
3.
Romans 10:13 – Whoever calls on the name of Jesus will be saved!
We
can find no better treatise on salvation than the Book of Romans. Romans is
often referred to by scholars and laymen alike as the heart of the Bible. I
believe reading the Book of Romans will help any Believer to better understand
the simple teachings of Christ.
That
being said let’s turn our attention to our text for today: The Apostle Paul
said …
Romans 1:16 For I am not
ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to
every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
·
The Gospel of Christ is the Power to Save
·
The Good News Truth about Jesus contains the Ability to make any
person completely whole, Spirit, Soul and Body.
Continuing
throughout Romans Paul conveys God’s hope to strengthen Believers and to save
them in every area of life. The Good News Truth of the message we find in
Christ will save our soul from an eternity in hell while at the same time save
us from the hell of this life. The Gospel Message is fully intended to positively
impact your:
1. Family
a. Acts 10:24 –
Cornelius gathered all of his relatives and friends
b. Acts 16:34 – The
jailer believed in Christ with all his household
c. Deuteronomy 7:9 –
Righteousness endures to a thousand generations.
2. Finances
a. Matthew 6:33 – Seek
first the kingdom … all these things will be added to you …
b. Luke 6:38 – Give and
it will be given to you …
c. 2 Corinthians 9:7 –
God loves a cheerful giver …
3. Future
a. 2 Timothy 4:8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of
righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that
Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.
b. John 14:3 – Jesus is
preparing an eternal home for us and He will come again for everyone who
believes in Him …
Do
you believe?
The
Gospel of Jesus Christ has the power to save…
·
Save
your family
·
Save
your finances
·
Save
your future
