Called To Belong | Romans 1:1-7
Scripture Reading:
Salutation | Romans 1:1-7
This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News. 2 God promised this Good News long ago through his prophets in the holy Scriptures. 3 The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David’s family line, 4 and he was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord. 5 Through Christ, God has given us the privilege and authority as apostles to tell Gentiles everywhere what God has done for them, so that they will believe and obey him, bringing glory to his name.
6 And you are included among those Gentiles who have been called to belong to Jesus Christ. 7 I am writing to all of you in Rome who are loved by God and are called to be his own holy people.
May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.
1. Key words are those which, because of emphasis or repetition, stand out as being central to the message of the passage. What are some key words or phrases in this passage?
2. SERVANT
(a) What do you think of when you hear the word "servant"?
(b) What is Jesus’ attitude toward being a servant? (Mark 10:43-45; Luke 22:24-27)
(c) How do the attitudes of Paul (v. 1) and Jesus toward servanthood differ from those of most people?
3. What can you learn about the gospel (literally, "good news") from this passage? (vv. 2-3)
4. Why does it matter that the gospel of Jesus Christ was anticipated in the Old Testament? (v. 2; see Luke 24:25-27; Acts 26:22-23)
Word Study
5. Word study - "called". The goal of a word study is to understand the meaning of a word in a specific passage by examining how it is used in other places in the Bible.
(a) For each of the following verses, briefly state the purpose of God's call.
Romans 1:5, 6, 7
1 Corinthians 1:9
2 Thessalonians 2:14
1 Peter 3:8-9
1 Peter 5:10
Romans 8:28-30
Colossians 3:15
1 Timothy 6:12
1 Peter 2:20-21
(b) What does 2 Timothy 1:8-9 tell us about God's call?
(c) In light of your word study, what does Paul's use of the word "call" in verses 5-7 tell us about our relationship with Christ?
6. What can you learn about Jesus from this passage? (vv. 3-4)
7. Why do you think Paul specifies that Jesus' descendancy from David was "as to his earthly life"? (v.3)
8. What does Jesus' resurrection reveal about him? (v. 4; see Acts 2:22-36)
9. Why is it significant that Paul received his apostleship from God? (vv. 1, 5)
10. What people were the primary "target audience" of Paul's ministry?
Do you think of yourself as a servant of Christ? Of other people? How does your life reflect this attitude, or lack of it?
How did God call you to belong to Jesus Christ? How is your life different as a result?
Further Study
vv. 1-7
v. 1
Paul writes his introduction in the form common to letters in his day; this included the name of the sender, the name of the recipient, and a greeting. However, the greetings in Paul's letters are longer than normal, because he often uses them to communicate some aspect of the gospel (see the introduction to 1 Corinthians for an example). This one is rather formal in comparison with his other letters.
“a servant of Christ Jesus” The word translated "servant" here, doulos, is also used of a literal slave (see Eph. 6:5-9). For the people of Paul's time, freedom and independence were highly prized; it would be unusual for someone to willingly refer to himself as a servant or slave. But Paul has a different attitude, as reflected also in 1 Cor. 9:19 and 2 Cor. 4:5.
“called to be an apostle” The basic meaning of apostle is that of a messenger or representative, one who is sent out with a purpose. Paul here stresses that he was not a self-appointed apostle, nor one appointed by men, but rather by God (see also the account of his call in Acts 9:1-19 and Galatians 1:11-24). At times, he felt it necessary to defend his apostleship, as in 2 Cor. 12:11-12 and Galatians 1:1.
“set apart for the gospel of God” We typically think of being "set apart" as negative—being separated from something. But Paul uses it here in a positive sense, to be separated to the gospel. This separation includes his work of preaching the gospel, but also refers to the fact that his whole life is influenced and controlled by the "good news".
v. 2
v. 3
“the gospel he promised beforehand” Paul here emphasizes that the gospel is part of God's eternal purpose. The fact that it is a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy shows that God can be trusted, because He keeps His promises, and also that the gospel of Jesus Christ is true, because it comes from the same God whose acts in history are recorded in the Old Testament (see Luke 24:25-27; Acts 26:22-23).
“regarding His Son” The gospel is essentially concerned with the person and works of Jesus Christ, especially His death and resurrection.
“who as to His earthly life was a descendant of David” Jesus was qualified to fulfill the Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah, or "anointed one," because he was from the royal line of Israel's King David. The phrase "as to his earthly life" carries the implication that His life extended beyond this world.
Jesus' resurrection from the dead demonstrated once and for all that He is both the Son of God and our Lord, as Peter's sermon on the day of Pentecost expresses (Acts 2:22-36). In the Septuagint, the Greek version of the Old Testament, the proper name for God, Yahweh, was translated "Lord," so that Greek Christians familiar with the Bible would likely understand calling Jesus "Lord" to be as a reference to His deity.
v. 4
v. 5
“we received grace and apostleship” Paul tells us several things about his ministry of apostleship ("we" is probably an editorial "we," referring to Paul only): (a) it comes from Christ; (b) it was granted for Christ's glory, or his "name's sake"; (c) it was received by grace; in other words, it was not earned or deserved in any way; (d) it was given for a purpose, "to call people".
“to call all the Gentiles” Paul's special area of ministry was to the Gentiles, just as the apostle Peter's was to the Jews (Gal. 2:7).
“obedience that comes from faith”
Paul's mention of obedience as the goal of his ministry fits well with his reference to himself as a servant, since a servant or slave owes his master complete obedience. The order, however, is essential. The faith produces the obedience, not vice versa.
“And you also are among those Gentiles who are called” Paul reminds his readers that it is not only apostles who are called by God, but all believers.
“his holy people” This is another term for "Christians", having the basic meaning of being set apart or separated. It does not refer to unusually pious or spiritual people. Rather, it highlights the fact that believers belong to God and are set apart to Him.