August 28, 2026 • 25 mins
Rome wasn’t exactly famous for spiritual softness, so why does Paul sound so confident as he opens his greatest letter? We start a brand new “From Guilty To Glory” series in Romans with Dr. Timothy Mann’s message, “The Gospel That Shook the World,” and we begin where Paul begins: the gospel of God, centered on Jesus Christ, powerful enough to save anyone who believes.
We connect Romans to two historic flashpoints of renewal. Martin Luther’s awakening around Romans 1:17 helps ignite the Protestant Reformation, and John Wesley’s Aldersgate Street testimony shows how the same truth brings assurance and a warmed heart centuries later. That history isn’t trivia, it’s a reminder that Scripture still confronts “mere religion” and leads people to salvation by grace through faith.
Then we slow down in Romans 1:1-17 to see how Paul links himself to Christians he hasn’t met. He introduces himself as a bondservant of Jesus Christ, an apostle commissioned by the risen Lord, and a preacher separated to the good news. We talk about what the gospel is and what it is not, why the Old Testament promises matter, what it means to be “called” and already saints, and how Paul’s gratitude, prayer, and longing model a pastor’s heart. We also face the big question Paul answers head-on: will the gospel work in a city like Rome? Paul’s answer still stands in Romans 1:16-17, and it calls us to live unashamed.
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Episode Transcript
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SPEAKER_01 (00:00):
Welcome to Foundations of Truth, the
(00:02):
biblical teaching ministry ofDr.
Timothy Mann.
Our mission is to help you buildyour life on the unshakable
foundation of God's Word, rootedin Scripture, anchored in the
grace of the gospel of JesusChrist.
Each week, Dr.
Mann opens the Bible to bringclarity, conviction, and
encouragement for everyday life.
It's one New Testament letterthat takes us on an
(00:24):
extraordinary journey from theutter ruin of fallen humanity to
the breathtaking heights of thegrace and glory of God.
Today on Foundations of Truth,Dr.
Timothy Mann begins a brand newseries from guilty to glory, a
journey through the book ofRomans.
We'll begin today in Romanschapter 1 with verse 1, as Dr.
Mann begins our journey fromguilty to glory with a message
(00:46):
entitled The Gospel That Shookthe World.
Here now is Dr.
Timothy Mann.
SPEAKER_00 (00:51):
Romans chapter 1.
We begin this great book of theBible.
I believe it's a book that everyChristian ought to know, ought
to study, and ought toexperience.
Romans chapter 1.
On May 24th, 1738, long timeago, a very discouraged
(01:12):
missionary went to quote himvery unwillingly to a religious
meeting in London.
At that place, at that time, amiracle took place.
He writes in his journal, abouta quarter before nine, I felt my
heart strangely warmed.
(01:34):
I felt I did trust in Christ,Christ alone for salvation.
An assurance was given me thathe had taken away my sins, even
mine, and saved me from the lawof sin and death.
That missionary was John Wesley.
The message he heard thatevening, of all things, was the
(01:57):
preface to Martin Luther'scommentary on Romans.
Just a few months before, JohnWesley, and if you've ever gone
to Savannah and toured Savannah,you'll hear some of the stories
of Wesley there.
Wesley came and he writes in hisjournal and he says, I went to
(02:17):
America to convert the Indians,but oh, who shall convert me?
That evening at AldersgateStreet, his question was
answered.
And the result was the greatWesleyan revival that swept
England and transformed thenation.
This letter to the Romans,Paul's letter to the Romans, is
(02:41):
still transforming people'slives just the way it
transformed Martin Luther andJohn Wesley.
The one scripture, above allothers, that brought Luther out
of mere religion into the joy ofsalvation by grace through faith
was Romans 1:17.
The just shall live by faith.
(03:02):
Changed his life.
Protestant Reformation and theWesleyan Revival were both the
fruit of this wonderful letterwritten by Paul under the
inspiration of the Holy Spiritfrom the city of Corinth about
the year A.D.
56.
The letter was carried toChristians at Rome by one of the
(03:25):
servants of the church atChintria, Sister Phoebe.
It was Phoebe who carried theletter.
Just imagine this morning.
I mean, you and I here in thisplace today, we can read and
study the same inspired letterthat brought life and power to
both Luther and Wesley.
(03:45):
We can study that.
And the same Holy Spirit whotaught them can teach us.
Isn't that wonderful?
You and I can experiencerevival, as the choir sang
about, in our hearts, in ourhomes, and yes, even in this
church, if the message of thisletter grips us as it has
(04:07):
gripped people of faith incenturies past, I believe this
letter very well may producerevival in your life and in mine
and in our church.
In the opening verses of thisletter, Paul introduces himself
to the believers in Rome.
Some of them must have known himpersonally, since he greets them
(04:27):
in the final chapter, but manyof them he had never met.
So in these first 17 verses thatI'm going to teach through this
morning, Paul seems to linkhimself to his Roman readers in
at least three ways.
I want us to examine those waysthis morning.
So are you ready for Rome?
(04:47):
Are you sure?
All right, let's begin reading.
Chapter 1, verse 1.
The Bible says, Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called
to be an apostle, separated tothe gospel of God, which he
promised before, through hisprophets in the Holy Scriptures,
(05:09):
concerning his Son, Jesus Christour Lord, who was born of the
seed of David according to theflesh, and declared to be the
Son of God with power accordingto the Spirit of Holess by the
resurrection from the dead.
Through him we have receivedgrace and apostleship for
(05:32):
obedience to the faith of allnations for his name, among whom
you are also the called of JesusChrist.
To all who are in Rome, belovedof God, called to be saints,
grace to you and peace from Godour Father and the Lord Jesus
(05:53):
Christ.
First, I thank my God throughJesus Christ for you all, that
your faith is spoken ofthroughout the whole world, for
God is my witness, whom I servewith my spirit in the gospel of
His Son, that without ceasing Imake mention of you always in my
prayers, making request if bysome means now at last I may
(06:16):
find a way in the will of God tocome to you.
For I long to see you, that Imay impart to you some spiritual
gift, so that you may beestablished, that is, that I may
be encouraged together with youby the mutual faith, both of you
and me.
Now I do not want you to beunaware, brethren, that I often
(06:40):
planned to come to you, but washindered until now, that I might
have some fruit among you also,just as among the other
Gentiles.
I am a debtor, both to Greeksand to barbarians, both to wise
and to unwise.
So, as much as is in me, I amready to preach the gospel to
(07:05):
you who are in Rome also.
For I am not ashamed of thegospel of Christ, for it is the
power of God to salvation foreveryone who believes, for the
Jew first and also for theGreek.
For in it, the gospel that is,for in it the righteousness of
(07:25):
God is revealed from faith tofaith, as it is written, the
just shall live by faith.
This is the word of God thismorning.
So in this opening portion ofthis letter, the Apostle Paul is
seeking to link himself to hisRoman readers in a few ways.
Let's examine those ways.
(07:46):
What are the ways he does that?
The very first thing that we seehere in verses 1 through 7, in
the opening verses of thisletter, Paul presents his
credentials, for lack of abetter way to say it.
Now, in ancient days, a letterwas always written and always
opened with a person's name.
Whoever was writing the letteralways opened with his name.
(08:07):
However, there would be manymen, there were many men named
Paul in that day.
So the writer here had tofurther identify himself and
convince his readers that he hada right to send the letter.
Well, what are his credentials?
Well, first of all, immediatelyin verse 1, he says that he was
a servant, a slave of JesusChrist.
(08:31):
The word Paul used here forservant would be very meaningful
to the Romans because it is theword really slave.
A lot of our Englishtranslations render it servant,
but truly a better word would beslave.
It means slave.
There was an estimated 60million slaves in the Roman
Empire.
(08:52):
So it would have been verymeaningful.
And a slave was looked on as apiece of property and not a
person.
And in loving devotion, theApostle Paul had enslaved
himself to Christ to be aservant and to obey his will.
He says, I'm a servant ofChrist.
SPEAKER_01 (09:07):
You're listening to Foundations of Truth.
Today we begin our journeythrough one of the most
important books of the Bibleever written, the Apostle Paul's
Letter to the Romans.
At the heart of Romans standsthe gospel, the good news that
God saves sinners through JesusChrist.
That same gospel remains theheartbeat of Foundations of
Truth.
In a world overflowing withcompeting voices, shifting
(09:30):
values, and spiritual confusion,this ministry exists for one
purpose (09:34):
to faithfully open the scriptures and proclaim the
truth of God's word withoutcompromise.
If God is using the teaching ofDr.
Timothy Banner to strengthenyour faith and deepen your
understanding of the Bible,would you prayerfully consider
supporting Foundations of Truthfinancially?
Your gifts help us continuetaking sound biblical teaching
to people who need to hear thelife-changing truth of the
(09:57):
gospel.
Thank you for praying, forgiving, for listening, and
standing with us.
If you'd like to give a gift,you can go online to
foundationsoftruth.net.
That's foundationsoftruth.net.
Now let's return to Dr.
Timothy Mann and the gospel thatshook the world.
SPEAKER_00 (10:13):
He goes on to say in the second part of that verse
that he was an apostle.
An apostle.
Now this word means one who issent by authority with a
commission.
One who is sent by authoritywith a commission.
It was applied in that day tothe uh representatives of the
emperor or the emissaries of aking.
(10:34):
But as it relates to theapostle, as it relates to Jesus
specifically, one of therequirements for an apostle was
the experience of seeing therisen Christ.
When Acts chapter 9, Paul sawChrist when he was on the road
to Damascus.
And it was then that Christcalled him to be his apostle to
the Gentiles.
(10:55):
Paul received Christ's divinerevelations that he had to share
with the churches.
So he was a servant of Christ.
He was an apostle.
But he also says, and all theway down through verse 4, that
he was a preacher of the gospel.
As he's presenting hiscredentials here, he was a
preacher of the gospel.
Now, when he was a Jewish rabbi,Paul had was separated as a
Pharisee, of course, to the lawsand the traditions of the Jews.
(11:18):
But when he yielded to Christ,he was separated to the gospel
and its ministry.
The word gospel means good news.
That's what it means.
It is the message that Christdied for our sins, was buried,
and rose again, and now is ableto save all who trust him.
1 Corinthians 15.
(11:38):
In Romans 1, verse 1, it is thegospel of God.
Why?
Because it originates with God.
It was not invented by men.
It is the gospel of Christ, hesays in verse 16, because it
centers in Christ the Savior.
Paul says in verse 9, he callsit the gospel of his son, which
indicates that Jesus Christ isGod.
(12:01):
And then all the way at the endof the letter, we'll get there
in Romans 16.
At the end of the letter, Paulcalled it my gospel.
By this he meant specificallythe special emphasis that he
gave it in his ministry as itrelates to the doctrine of the
church.
The gospel was center always.
I want to say to you, that oughtto be the reality of your life.
The gospel is centered.
(12:23):
It ought to be the reality ofany church that it's
gospel-centered.
That's the heart, that's thelife.
And he's emphasizing the placeof the Gentiles in the plan of
God, the gospel.
The gospel is not a new message.
As a matter of fact, it waspromised in the Old Testament,
beginning in Genesis chapter 3,verse 15.
The prophet Isaiah certainlypreached the gospel in passages
(12:46):
such as Isaiah 1, 18, chapter53, chapter 55.
The salvation that we enjoytoday, if indeed you are a saved
person, if you are truly aChristian, one who's been born
again, saved by the grace ofGod, the salvation we enjoy
today was promised by theprophets.
Although they didn't fullyunderstand all they were
preaching and writing.
(13:07):
And the gospel has come, so muchnonsense and perversion has been
put into the so-called gospeltoday by so many churches, and
there's so many things calledthe gospel that are indeed not
the gospel.
It focuses on so-called benefitsof the gospel.
Understand, the center of thegospel message is Jesus Christ.
(13:27):
Jesus Christ is the center ofthe gospel message.
Paul identified him as a man.
He called him a Jew, the Son ofGod.
He was born of a virgin into thefamily of David, which gave him
the right to David's throne.
He died for the sins of theworld and then was raised from
the dead.
It is this, it is thismiraculous event of
substitutionary death andvictorious resurrection that
(13:50):
constitutes the gospel.
That's the gospel.
That's the gospel Paul preached.
So he says he was a preacher ofthe gospel.
He was a servant of JesusChrist.
He was an apostle.
He was a preacher of the gospel.
And then he mentions in verses 5through 7, he says basically
that he was a missionary to theGentiles.
(14:11):
The word apostleship, verysimilar.
Missionary is the Latin form ofapostle, one who is sent.
Now there were probably severalassemblies of believers in Rome
and not just one church, sincein Romans 16, Paul greets a
number of home church groups.
Now we do not know for certainhow these churches began, but it
(14:36):
is likely that believers fromRome who were at Pentecost in
Jerusalem in the early chaptersof Acts established these
assemblies upon their return toRome.
There were both Jews andGentiles in these fellowships,
because Paul addresses both ofthem in his letter.
Whatever the case, I want tosettle the issue and kind of
(14:58):
clear the matter, get this offthe table in case there's any of
you that might have thismindset.
Understand the churches in Romewere not founded by Peter.
They were not founded by Peteror any other apostle.
Because if they had been, Paulwould not have planned to visit
Rome.
How do I know that?
Because he says very clearly inhis writings, his policy was to
(15:20):
minister only where no otherapostle had gone.
Peter had not founded thatchurch.
This word, notice the repetitionof the word called here in these
early verses.
Called.
Paul was called to be anapostle.
The believers were the called ofJesus Christ.
They were also called saints.
(15:41):
Not to be saints, but they werealready saints.
A saint is a set apart one.
And the person who trusts JesusChrist is set apart and is a
saint.
You've trusted Jesus Christ.
The Bible says God says you're asaint.
You're a set apart one.
God already says you're a saint.
That's time for some of us tostart acting like it, right?
(16:03):
Few of us in this room need tostep up to that, probably.
I know I do more in my life bythe help of the Holy Spirit.
Salvation is not something we dofor God, it is God who calls us
in his grace.
It is God who calls us in hisgrace.
And when you trust Christ, youare saved by his grace and you
(16:24):
experience his peace that hementions in verse 7.
Well, Paul's commission was totake the gospel to the nations,
to the Gentiles.
The word nations means Gentiles,and that's why he was planning
to go to Rome.
The very capital of the empire.
He was a preacher of the gospel,and the gospel was for all
(16:44):
nations.
In fact, Paul was actually alsoanxious to go to Spain, even
with the message of Christ.
He talks about that in Romans15.
And so he presents hiscredentials.
Tries to make that link withthese Roman readers.
And after having presented hiscredentials, Paul then now
proceeds to forge a second linkbetween himself and the
(17:07):
believers in Rome.
He not only talks about his owncredentials, he now expresses
his concern for them.
His concern.
We see that in verses 8 through15.
He's concerned.
Now we can well understandPaul's concern for the churches
that he founded.
Sure.
But why would he be concernedabout the believers in Rome?
(17:28):
He was unknown to many of them.
And yet he wanted to assure themhere that he was deeply
concerned about their welfare.
I want you to note the evidenceshere of Paul's concern in these
verses, what he says to them.
In verse 8, he says he'sthankful for them.
He's thankful.
He talks about that.
And he mentions the whole world,right?
(17:49):
Which meant the whole RomanEmpire knew of the faith of the
Christians at Rome.
Travel was relatively common inthat day.
And after all, all loads, allroads led to Rome, right?
That's what happened.
And it was no wonder that thetestimony of this church spread
abroad.
And this growing witness madePaul's ministry easier as he
(18:11):
went from place to place, and hewas able to point to the
testimony growing out of theheart of the Roman Empire.
He was thankful for that.
He also talks about the factthat he's prayed for them.
He's showing his concern.
Verses 9 and 10, he prayed forthem.
Now they didn't know of Paul'sprayer support, but the Lord
knew about it and honored it.
I wonder how many of us know thepeople who are praying for us.
(18:33):
I sure don't.
But sometimes, I tell you, Iappreciate those who do.
We ought to be praying for eachother.
And it really encourages me whensomeone comes to me and says,
Pastor, I've been praying foryou, or how can I pray for you?
I've been praying for you andPatty.
Man, that means a lot to me.
We ought to be praying for eachother.
One of the burdens of Paul'sprayer was that God would permit
(18:53):
him to visit Rome and ministerto the churches there.
He would have visited themsooner, but his missionary work
had kept them very busy.
Let me give you kind of thehistorical, the chronological
situation here.
What's happening here is he'swriting this letter, is he was
about to leave Corinth forJerusalem to deliver the special
offering that he had receivedfrom the Gentile churches for
(19:16):
the poor Jewish believers, andhe hoped he would be able to
travel from Jerusalem to Romeand then to Spain, and he was
hoping for a prosperous journey.
Those of you who walked throughthe book of Acts with me know
actually what happened was Paulhad a very perilous journey.
He had a terrible time.
He arrived in Rome as a prisoneras well as a preacher.
(19:38):
Do you remember in Jerusalem hewas arrested in the temple?
He was falsely accused by theJewish authorities, and
eventually he was sent to Romeas the emperor's prisoner as he
was tried before Caesar.
And when Paul wrote this letter,he had no idea that he was going
to go through imprisonment andshipwreck even before arriving
in Rome.
He had no idea.
It's interesting.
At the close of the letter inchapter 15, he asked the
(20:01):
believers in Rome to pray forhim as he contemplated his trip.
It's a good thing they did pray,right?
I mean, who knows what wouldhave happened otherwise?
Well, he prayed for them.
He says he loves them.
Verses 11 and 12.
He said, I long to see you.
This is the pastor's heart inPaul, the great missionary.
Some of the saints at Rome werevery dear to Paul, such as
(20:24):
Priscilla and Aquila, who hadrisked their lives for him, and
there's others he mentioned,others who had labored and
suffered with Paul.
But he also loved thosebelievers he did not know, and
he longed to be able to sharesome spiritual gift with them.
He was looking forward to a timeof, he said, mutual blessing in
the love of Christ.
Mutual blessing.
(20:45):
Hey, that's what church ought tobe about is mutual blessing.
We ought to be a blessing toeach other.
We ought to be an encouragementto each other.
Mutual blessing.
Oftentimes it's all about whatkind of blessing can I get out
of this?
I want to ask you, how are youbeing a blessing to somebody
else?
What is God doing through you tobe a blessing?
Mutual blessing ought to be whatwe experience in the life of a
(21:07):
church.
I pray that'll be the reality inProvidence Church.
He loved them.
He says he's in debt to them,verses 13 through 14.
He was in debt to them.
As the apostle to the Gentiles,Paul had an obligation to
minister in Rome.
Now he would have fulfilled thatobligation sooner, but his other
labors, he says, hindered him.
(21:29):
Sometimes Paul was hindered bythe work of Satan, but in this
case, he was hindered because ofthe work of the Lord.
I mean, there had been so muchto do in Asia Minor and in
Greece that he could notimmediately spare time for Rome.
But Paul had to pay his debt.
He says, I'm in debt to bothGreeks and barbarians, both to
(21:52):
wise and to unwise.
Now, the interesting thing aboutthat was the Greek considered
every non Greek a barbarian.
Steeped in centuries ofphilosophy.
The Greeks saw themselves aswise and everyone else as
foolish.
But Paul felt an obligation toall men, all people.
(22:15):
Just as we need to feel a burdenfor the whole world.
All people groups.
Every person.
Paul could not free himself fromhis debt until he had told as
many people as possible the goodnews of salvation in Christ.
He says in verse 15 that he'seager to visit them.
(22:37):
Eager.
Now it's interesting, there'stwo different Greek words that
are translated ready in theEnglish Bible.
One means prepared.
As in Acts 21, 13, where hesays, I am ready to die at
(23:01):
Jerusalem for the name of theLord Jesus Christ.
The other one, though, that'sused here in Romans, Romans 1.15
means eager with a ready mind.
Paul was not eager to die, buthe was prepared to die.
But he was eager to visit Romethat he might minister to the
believers there.
(23:21):
And it was not listen, it wasnot an eagerness of a sightseer.
Oh, I want to go see Rome.
I've heard about it.
No, it was not the eagerness ofa sightseer, it was the
eagerness of a soul winner.
Someone who's going to take thegospel.
Well, after reading these fiveevidences of Paul's concern for
(23:42):
the Christians in Rome, thesesaints could not help surely but
give thanks to God for theApostle Paul and his burden to
come to them and minister tothem.
Actually, I want to remind you,I want you to understand that
the letter to the Romans inwhich Paul explained the gospel
he preached was actually hisletter of introduction that
(24:02):
prepared the believers for hisvisit.
No doubt false teachers hadalready gotten to Rome and they
were seeking to poison theChristians against Paul.
Some would say that he was atraitor to the Jewish nation.
Still others would twist histeaching about grace and try to
try to prove that he actuallytaught loose living.
(24:25):
No wonder Paul was eager to getto Rome.
No wonder he wanted to sharewith them the witness of the
gospel of Christ in its truth.
But the question would be wouldthe gospel of Christ work in
that great city of Rome as ithad worked in other places?
I mean, would Paul succeed thereor would he fail?
(24:48):
The apostle no doubt had thesefelt these objections and raised
these questions in his own mind,and that's probably why he
forged a third link betweenhimself and his readers.
He presents his credentials, hetalks about his concern for
them, but then he talks abouthis confidence.
That's what verse 16 and 17 isall about.
SPEAKER_01 (25:10):
Thank you for joining us today for Foundations
of Truth, the biblical teachingministry of Dr.
Timothy Mann.
If you'd like to hear thismessage again or get more
biblical resources or give afinancial gift, you can do so
online atfoundationsoftruth.net.
That's foundationsoftruth.net.
Foundations of Truth is madepossible in part by the generous
(25:30):
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We're grateful for theirpartnership in making this
ministry possible.
Welcome to Foundations of Truth, the
(00:02):
biblical teaching ministry ofDr.
Timothy Mann.
Our mission is to help you buildyour life on the unshakable
foundation of God's Word, rootedin Scripture, anchored in the
grace of the gospel of JesusChrist.
Each week, Dr.
Mann opens the Bible to bringclarity, conviction, and
encouragement for everyday life.
It's one New Testament letterthat takes us on an
(00:24):
extraordinary journey from theutter ruin of fallen humanity to
the breathtaking heights of thegrace and glory of God.
Today on Foundations of Truth,Dr.
Timothy Mann begins a brand newseries from guilty to glory, a
journey through the book ofRomans.
We'll begin today in Romanschapter 1 with verse 1, as Dr.
Mann begins our journey fromguilty to glory with a message
(00:46):
entitled The Gospel That Shookthe World.
Here now is Dr.
Timothy Mann.
SPEAKER_00 (00:51):
Romans chapter 1.
We begin this great book of theBible.
I believe it's a book that everyChristian ought to know, ought
to study, and ought toexperience.
Romans chapter 1.
On May 24th, 1738, long timeago, a very discouraged
(01:12):
missionary went to quote himvery unwillingly to a religious
meeting in London.
At that place, at that time, amiracle took place.
He writes in his journal, abouta quarter before nine, I felt my
heart strangely warmed.
(01:34):
I felt I did trust in Christ,Christ alone for salvation.
An assurance was given me thathe had taken away my sins, even
mine, and saved me from the lawof sin and death.
That missionary was John Wesley.
The message he heard thatevening, of all things, was the
(01:57):
preface to Martin Luther'scommentary on Romans.
Just a few months before, JohnWesley, and if you've ever gone
to Savannah and toured Savannah,you'll hear some of the stories
of Wesley there.
Wesley came and he writes in hisjournal and he says, I went to
(02:17):
America to convert the Indians,but oh, who shall convert me?
That evening at AldersgateStreet, his question was
answered.
And the result was the greatWesleyan revival that swept
England and transformed thenation.
This letter to the Romans,Paul's letter to the Romans, is
(02:41):
still transforming people'slives just the way it
transformed Martin Luther andJohn Wesley.
The one scripture, above allothers, that brought Luther out
of mere religion into the joy ofsalvation by grace through faith
was Romans 1:17.
The just shall live by faith.
(03:02):
Changed his life.
Protestant Reformation and theWesleyan Revival were both the
fruit of this wonderful letterwritten by Paul under the
inspiration of the Holy Spiritfrom the city of Corinth about
the year A.D.
56.
The letter was carried toChristians at Rome by one of the
(03:25):
servants of the church atChintria, Sister Phoebe.
It was Phoebe who carried theletter.
Just imagine this morning.
I mean, you and I here in thisplace today, we can read and
study the same inspired letterthat brought life and power to
both Luther and Wesley.
(03:45):
We can study that.
And the same Holy Spirit whotaught them can teach us.
Isn't that wonderful?
You and I can experiencerevival, as the choir sang
about, in our hearts, in ourhomes, and yes, even in this
church, if the message of thisletter grips us as it has
(04:07):
gripped people of faith incenturies past, I believe this
letter very well may producerevival in your life and in mine
and in our church.
In the opening verses of thisletter, Paul introduces himself
to the believers in Rome.
Some of them must have known himpersonally, since he greets them
(04:27):
in the final chapter, but manyof them he had never met.
So in these first 17 verses thatI'm going to teach through this
morning, Paul seems to linkhimself to his Roman readers in
at least three ways.
I want us to examine those waysthis morning.
So are you ready for Rome?
(04:47):
Are you sure?
All right, let's begin reading.
Chapter 1, verse 1.
The Bible says, Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called
to be an apostle, separated tothe gospel of God, which he
promised before, through hisprophets in the Holy Scriptures,
(05:09):
concerning his Son, Jesus Christour Lord, who was born of the
seed of David according to theflesh, and declared to be the
Son of God with power accordingto the Spirit of Holess by the
resurrection from the dead.
Through him we have receivedgrace and apostleship for
(05:32):
obedience to the faith of allnations for his name, among whom
you are also the called of JesusChrist.
To all who are in Rome, belovedof God, called to be saints,
grace to you and peace from Godour Father and the Lord Jesus
(05:53):
Christ.
First, I thank my God throughJesus Christ for you all, that
your faith is spoken ofthroughout the whole world, for
God is my witness, whom I servewith my spirit in the gospel of
His Son, that without ceasing Imake mention of you always in my
prayers, making request if bysome means now at last I may
(06:16):
find a way in the will of God tocome to you.
For I long to see you, that Imay impart to you some spiritual
gift, so that you may beestablished, that is, that I may
be encouraged together with youby the mutual faith, both of you
and me.
Now I do not want you to beunaware, brethren, that I often
(06:40):
planned to come to you, but washindered until now, that I might
have some fruit among you also,just as among the other
Gentiles.
I am a debtor, both to Greeksand to barbarians, both to wise
and to unwise.
So, as much as is in me, I amready to preach the gospel to
(07:05):
you who are in Rome also.
For I am not ashamed of thegospel of Christ, for it is the
power of God to salvation foreveryone who believes, for the
Jew first and also for theGreek.
For in it, the gospel that is,for in it the righteousness of
(07:25):
God is revealed from faith tofaith, as it is written, the
just shall live by faith.
This is the word of God thismorning.
So in this opening portion ofthis letter, the Apostle Paul is
seeking to link himself to hisRoman readers in a few ways.
Let's examine those ways.
(07:46):
What are the ways he does that?
The very first thing that we seehere in verses 1 through 7, in
the opening verses of thisletter, Paul presents his
credentials, for lack of abetter way to say it.
Now, in ancient days, a letterwas always written and always
opened with a person's name.
Whoever was writing the letteralways opened with his name.
(08:07):
However, there would be manymen, there were many men named
Paul in that day.
So the writer here had tofurther identify himself and
convince his readers that he hada right to send the letter.
Well, what are his credentials?
Well, first of all, immediatelyin verse 1, he says that he was
a servant, a slave of JesusChrist.
(08:31):
The word Paul used here forservant would be very meaningful
to the Romans because it is theword really slave.
A lot of our Englishtranslations render it servant,
but truly a better word would beslave.
It means slave.
There was an estimated 60million slaves in the Roman
Empire.
(08:52):
So it would have been verymeaningful.
And a slave was looked on as apiece of property and not a
person.
And in loving devotion, theApostle Paul had enslaved
himself to Christ to be aservant and to obey his will.
He says, I'm a servant ofChrist.
SPEAKER_01 (09:07):
You're listening to Foundations of Truth.
Today we begin our journeythrough one of the most
important books of the Bibleever written, the Apostle Paul's
Letter to the Romans.
At the heart of Romans standsthe gospel, the good news that
God saves sinners through JesusChrist.
That same gospel remains theheartbeat of Foundations of
Truth.
In a world overflowing withcompeting voices, shifting
(09:30):
values, and spiritual confusion,this ministry exists for one
purpose (09:34):
to faithfully open the scriptures and proclaim the
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(09:57):
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Now let's return to Dr.
Timothy Mann and the gospel thatshook the world.
SPEAKER_00 (10:13):
He goes on to say in the second part of that verse
that he was an apostle.
An apostle.
Now this word means one who issent by authority with a
commission.
One who is sent by authoritywith a commission.
It was applied in that day tothe uh representatives of the
emperor or the emissaries of aking.
(10:34):
But as it relates to theapostle, as it relates to Jesus
specifically, one of therequirements for an apostle was
the experience of seeing therisen Christ.
When Acts chapter 9, Paul sawChrist when he was on the road
to Damascus.
And it was then that Christcalled him to be his apostle to
the Gentiles.
(10:55):
Paul received Christ's divinerevelations that he had to share
with the churches.
So he was a servant of Christ.
He was an apostle.
But he also says, and all theway down through verse 4, that
he was a preacher of the gospel.
As he's presenting hiscredentials here, he was a
preacher of the gospel.
Now, when he was a Jewish rabbi,Paul had was separated as a
Pharisee, of course, to the lawsand the traditions of the Jews.
(11:18):
But when he yielded to Christ,he was separated to the gospel
and its ministry.
The word gospel means good news.
That's what it means.
It is the message that Christdied for our sins, was buried,
and rose again, and now is ableto save all who trust him.
1 Corinthians 15.
(11:38):
In Romans 1, verse 1, it is thegospel of God.
Why?
Because it originates with God.
It was not invented by men.
It is the gospel of Christ, hesays in verse 16, because it
centers in Christ the Savior.
Paul says in verse 9, he callsit the gospel of his son, which
indicates that Jesus Christ isGod.
(12:01):
And then all the way at the endof the letter, we'll get there
in Romans 16.
At the end of the letter, Paulcalled it my gospel.
By this he meant specificallythe special emphasis that he
gave it in his ministry as itrelates to the doctrine of the
church.
The gospel was center always.
I want to say to you, that oughtto be the reality of your life.
The gospel is centered.
(12:23):
It ought to be the reality ofany church that it's
gospel-centered.
That's the heart, that's thelife.
And he's emphasizing the placeof the Gentiles in the plan of
God, the gospel.
The gospel is not a new message.
As a matter of fact, it waspromised in the Old Testament,
beginning in Genesis chapter 3,verse 15.
The prophet Isaiah certainlypreached the gospel in passages
(12:46):
such as Isaiah 1, 18, chapter53, chapter 55.
The salvation that we enjoytoday, if indeed you are a saved
person, if you are truly aChristian, one who's been born
again, saved by the grace ofGod, the salvation we enjoy
today was promised by theprophets.
Although they didn't fullyunderstand all they were
preaching and writing.
(13:07):
And the gospel has come, so muchnonsense and perversion has been
put into the so-called gospeltoday by so many churches, and
there's so many things calledthe gospel that are indeed not
the gospel.
It focuses on so-called benefitsof the gospel.
Understand, the center of thegospel message is Jesus Christ.
(13:27):
Jesus Christ is the center ofthe gospel message.
Paul identified him as a man.
He called him a Jew, the Son ofGod.
He was born of a virgin into thefamily of David, which gave him
the right to David's throne.
He died for the sins of theworld and then was raised from
the dead.
It is this, it is thismiraculous event of
substitutionary death andvictorious resurrection that
(13:50):
constitutes the gospel.
That's the gospel.
That's the gospel Paul preached.
So he says he was a preacher ofthe gospel.
He was a servant of JesusChrist.
He was an apostle.
He was a preacher of the gospel.
And then he mentions in verses 5through 7, he says basically
that he was a missionary to theGentiles.
(14:11):
The word apostleship, verysimilar.
Missionary is the Latin form ofapostle, one who is sent.
Now there were probably severalassemblies of believers in Rome
and not just one church, sincein Romans 16, Paul greets a
number of home church groups.
Now we do not know for certainhow these churches began, but it
(14:36):
is likely that believers fromRome who were at Pentecost in
Jerusalem in the early chaptersof Acts established these
assemblies upon their return toRome.
There were both Jews andGentiles in these fellowships,
because Paul addresses both ofthem in his letter.
Whatever the case, I want tosettle the issue and kind of
(14:58):
clear the matter, get this offthe table in case there's any of
you that might have thismindset.
Understand the churches in Romewere not founded by Peter.
They were not founded by Peteror any other apostle.
Because if they had been, Paulwould not have planned to visit
Rome.
How do I know that?
Because he says very clearly inhis writings, his policy was to
(15:20):
minister only where no otherapostle had gone.
Peter had not founded thatchurch.
This word, notice the repetitionof the word called here in these
early verses.
Called.
Paul was called to be anapostle.
The believers were the called ofJesus Christ.
They were also called saints.
(15:41):
Not to be saints, but they werealready saints.
A saint is a set apart one.
And the person who trusts JesusChrist is set apart and is a
saint.
You've trusted Jesus Christ.
The Bible says God says you're asaint.
You're a set apart one.
God already says you're a saint.
That's time for some of us tostart acting like it, right?
(16:03):
Few of us in this room need tostep up to that, probably.
I know I do more in my life bythe help of the Holy Spirit.
Salvation is not something we dofor God, it is God who calls us
in his grace.
It is God who calls us in hisgrace.
And when you trust Christ, youare saved by his grace and you
(16:24):
experience his peace that hementions in verse 7.
Well, Paul's commission was totake the gospel to the nations,
to the Gentiles.
The word nations means Gentiles,and that's why he was planning
to go to Rome.
The very capital of the empire.
He was a preacher of the gospel,and the gospel was for all
(16:44):
nations.
In fact, Paul was actually alsoanxious to go to Spain, even
with the message of Christ.
He talks about that in Romans15.
And so he presents hiscredentials.
Tries to make that link withthese Roman readers.
And after having presented hiscredentials, Paul then now
proceeds to forge a second linkbetween himself and the
(17:07):
believers in Rome.
He not only talks about his owncredentials, he now expresses
his concern for them.
His concern.
We see that in verses 8 through15.
He's concerned.
Now we can well understandPaul's concern for the churches
that he founded.
Sure.
But why would he be concernedabout the believers in Rome?
(17:28):
He was unknown to many of them.
And yet he wanted to assure themhere that he was deeply
concerned about their welfare.
I want you to note the evidenceshere of Paul's concern in these
verses, what he says to them.
In verse 8, he says he'sthankful for them.
He's thankful.
He talks about that.
And he mentions the whole world,right?
(17:49):
Which meant the whole RomanEmpire knew of the faith of the
Christians at Rome.
Travel was relatively common inthat day.
And after all, all loads, allroads led to Rome, right?
That's what happened.
And it was no wonder that thetestimony of this church spread
abroad.
And this growing witness madePaul's ministry easier as he
(18:11):
went from place to place, and hewas able to point to the
testimony growing out of theheart of the Roman Empire.
He was thankful for that.
He also talks about the factthat he's prayed for them.
He's showing his concern.
Verses 9 and 10, he prayed forthem.
Now they didn't know of Paul'sprayer support, but the Lord
knew about it and honored it.
I wonder how many of us know thepeople who are praying for us.
(18:33):
I sure don't.
But sometimes, I tell you, Iappreciate those who do.
We ought to be praying for eachother.
And it really encourages me whensomeone comes to me and says,
Pastor, I've been praying foryou, or how can I pray for you?
I've been praying for you andPatty.
Man, that means a lot to me.
We ought to be praying for eachother.
One of the burdens of Paul'sprayer was that God would permit
(18:53):
him to visit Rome and ministerto the churches there.
He would have visited themsooner, but his missionary work
had kept them very busy.
Let me give you kind of thehistorical, the chronological
situation here.
What's happening here is he'swriting this letter, is he was
about to leave Corinth forJerusalem to deliver the special
offering that he had receivedfrom the Gentile churches for
(19:16):
the poor Jewish believers, andhe hoped he would be able to
travel from Jerusalem to Romeand then to Spain, and he was
hoping for a prosperous journey.
Those of you who walked throughthe book of Acts with me know
actually what happened was Paulhad a very perilous journey.
He had a terrible time.
He arrived in Rome as a prisoneras well as a preacher.
(19:38):
Do you remember in Jerusalem hewas arrested in the temple?
He was falsely accused by theJewish authorities, and
eventually he was sent to Romeas the emperor's prisoner as he
was tried before Caesar.
And when Paul wrote this letter,he had no idea that he was going
to go through imprisonment andshipwreck even before arriving
in Rome.
He had no idea.
It's interesting.
At the close of the letter inchapter 15, he asked the
(20:01):
believers in Rome to pray forhim as he contemplated his trip.
It's a good thing they did pray,right?
I mean, who knows what wouldhave happened otherwise?
Well, he prayed for them.
He says he loves them.
Verses 11 and 12.
He said, I long to see you.
This is the pastor's heart inPaul, the great missionary.
Some of the saints at Rome werevery dear to Paul, such as
(20:24):
Priscilla and Aquila, who hadrisked their lives for him, and
there's others he mentioned,others who had labored and
suffered with Paul.
But he also loved thosebelievers he did not know, and
he longed to be able to sharesome spiritual gift with them.
He was looking forward to a timeof, he said, mutual blessing in
the love of Christ.
Mutual blessing.
(20:45):
Hey, that's what church ought tobe about is mutual blessing.
We ought to be a blessing toeach other.
We ought to be an encouragementto each other.
Mutual blessing.
Oftentimes it's all about whatkind of blessing can I get out
of this?
I want to ask you, how are youbeing a blessing to somebody
else?
What is God doing through you tobe a blessing?
Mutual blessing ought to be whatwe experience in the life of a
(21:07):
church.
I pray that'll be the reality inProvidence Church.
He loved them.
He says he's in debt to them,verses 13 through 14.
He was in debt to them.
As the apostle to the Gentiles,Paul had an obligation to
minister in Rome.
Now he would have fulfilled thatobligation sooner, but his other
labors, he says, hindered him.
(21:29):
Sometimes Paul was hindered bythe work of Satan, but in this
case, he was hindered because ofthe work of the Lord.
I mean, there had been so muchto do in Asia Minor and in
Greece that he could notimmediately spare time for Rome.
But Paul had to pay his debt.
He says, I'm in debt to bothGreeks and barbarians, both to
(21:52):
wise and to unwise.
Now, the interesting thing aboutthat was the Greek considered
every non Greek a barbarian.
Steeped in centuries ofphilosophy.
The Greeks saw themselves aswise and everyone else as
foolish.
But Paul felt an obligation toall men, all people.
(22:15):
Just as we need to feel a burdenfor the whole world.
All people groups.
Every person.
Paul could not free himself fromhis debt until he had told as
many people as possible the goodnews of salvation in Christ.
He says in verse 15 that he'seager to visit them.
(22:37):
Eager.
Now it's interesting, there'stwo different Greek words that
are translated ready in theEnglish Bible.
One means prepared.
As in Acts 21, 13, where hesays, I am ready to die at
(23:01):
Jerusalem for the name of theLord Jesus Christ.
The other one, though, that'sused here in Romans, Romans 1.15
means eager with a ready mind.
Paul was not eager to die, buthe was prepared to die.
But he was eager to visit Romethat he might minister to the
believers there.
(23:21):
And it was not listen, it wasnot an eagerness of a sightseer.
Oh, I want to go see Rome.
I've heard about it.
No, it was not the eagerness ofa sightseer, it was the
eagerness of a soul winner.
Someone who's going to take thegospel.
Well, after reading these fiveevidences of Paul's concern for
(23:42):
the Christians in Rome, thesesaints could not help surely but
give thanks to God for theApostle Paul and his burden to
come to them and minister tothem.
Actually, I want to remind you,I want you to understand that
the letter to the Romans inwhich Paul explained the gospel
he preached was actually hisletter of introduction that
(24:02):
prepared the believers for hisvisit.
No doubt false teachers hadalready gotten to Rome and they
were seeking to poison theChristians against Paul.
Some would say that he was atraitor to the Jewish nation.
Still others would twist histeaching about grace and try to
try to prove that he actuallytaught loose living.
(24:25):
No wonder Paul was eager to getto Rome.
No wonder he wanted to sharewith them the witness of the
gospel of Christ in its truth.
But the question would be wouldthe gospel of Christ work in
that great city of Rome as ithad worked in other places?
I mean, would Paul succeed thereor would he fail?
(24:48):
The apostle no doubt had thesefelt these objections and raised
these questions in his own mind,and that's probably why he
forged a third link betweenhimself and his readers.
He presents his credentials, hetalks about his concern for
them, but then he talks abouthis confidence.
That's what verse 16 and 17 isall about.
SPEAKER_01 (25:10):
Thank you for joining us today for Foundations
of Truth, the biblical teachingministry of Dr.
Timothy Mann.
If you'd like to hear thismessage again or get more
biblical resources or give afinancial gift, you can do so
online atfoundationsoftruth.net.
That's foundationsoftruth.net.
Foundations of Truth is madepossible in part by the generous
(25:30):
support of AMN public, proudlyserving Digital Beach, Ormond
Beach, Port Orange, and NewSparta Beach communities.
Also at Care Planning of OrmondBeach, providing compassionate,
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We're grateful for theirpartnership in making this
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