I. INTRODUCTION (1-17)
A. Greetings (1-7)
1. From Paul, an apostle separated unto the gospel of God. Contrast Paul/Saul, Greek/Hebrew, God's servant/Satan's servant. See 8:8 for freedoms accorded Christ's (God~s) servants. Paul emphasizes his full apostleship. (2 Cot. 11:5; Gal. 1:1) Paul equates himself with the original twelve.
2. The gospel, promised by prophets concerning Jesus.
a. Descendant of David in the flesh. The good news concerns Jesus Christ, the son of David (2 Sam. 7:12; Ps. 89:3,4)
b. Son of God by the power of the resurrection Paul examines the need for the resurrection in Cor. 15:17. Consider the pure spirit of Jesus. The title Christ means the "anointed one." The title Lord means "master."
3. Through whom Paul received his apostleship. Grace - unmerited favor. Paul received grace and apostleship for the purpose of bringing salvation to the Gentiles, while the other apostles were sent primarily to the Jews (Gal. 2:7,8) Obedience - a test of your faith (Abraham, Heb. 11:17). "Obedience to the faith" here equates to "works of faith" in James 2:21.
4. To the beloved ones in Rome, called as saints. "called of Jesus Christ" indicated possession by Jesus and Jesus as the source of their calling. This calling takes place through the gospel (2 Thes. 2:14). Paul concludes his greeting with his traditional Greek/Hebrew salutation, grace and peace. The addressees are the saints in Rome. A personal letter to Christians as contrasted to some of Paulís other letters to Churches.
B.. Thanksgiving and his desire to come to Rome. (8-17)
1. Thankful for their faith and its reputation. Paul uses verses 8-13 to personalize the letter. Paul was interested in having a strong church in all the central locations of the world. There was no more prominent location at this time than Rome.
2. His desire to come to Rome.
a. Always a subject in his prayers. Even though Paul wanted to come to Rome, he realized his movements were dictated by God (Jas. 4:13-15).
b. Wants to share in their faith. These are the spiritual gifts that would come through the apostles hands. For a partial list of spiritual list see 1 Cot. 12:8-10. There are two purposes for spiritual gifts, (1 Cot. 14:22) 1) to confirm the word and 2) to establish the church. Mark 16:17 says the believers will perform these signs.
c. Looking forward to bearing fruit with them. We know Paul previously planned to go to Rome (Acts 19:21). He explains why he did not come in 15:20
d. Under obligation, he is eager to preach to them. The Greeks and Barbarians had done nothing for Paul to put him in their debt. His personal salvation through Christ obligated him to all men of every nation and every station.
3. Paul's bold conviction and theme of this epistle.
a. The gospel is God's power to save. It is interesting to note there is no mention of the direct operation of the Holy Spirit, just the gospel. Acts 1:8 and 13:46 explains how the gospel will come: to the Jews first and then to the rest of the world. Why7 God offered it to His chosen first because of their advantage in already recognizing Him as the Supreme Being.
| GOSPEL | LAW | TEXT |
| power | weak | 8:3,4 |
| of God | human righteousness | 10:1-3 |
| unto salvation | unto condemnation | 7:9-10 |
| everyone | Jews only | |
| faith | works | 9:30-32 |
b. It is revealed in God's righteousness. God is the source of all righteousness (Phil. 3:9). Righteous indicates justified or sanctified. So righteousness by faith as opposed by law can be induced by following God's plan.
II. THE DEPRAVED STATE OF THE GENTILES (18-32)
The Gentiles had a knowledge of God that came from nature. Paul lists sins that are characteristically Gentile. Chapter 2 contrasts the Jews to the group from this chapter. Chapter 3:9 mentions this contrast. These four clues lead us to believe these verses are referring to the Gentiles.
A. The reason for such depravity. (18-23)
1. It is an indication of God's wrath. The plan of righteousness was given so man might avoid the wrath of God.
2. Which results in their refusal to acknowledge God. If you commit ungodliness and unrighteousness then you have made yourself an object of God's wrath.
a. By suppressing the truth revealed in nature The Gentiles knew God, because God had revealed himself to them in two ways: (1) Specifically, through His spoken and written word ñ direct contact. (2) Generally, through the creation, nature -indirect contact. Ps. 19:1-6.
b. By exalting man and following idolatry. They did not honor God, but instead showed contempt for Him and turned to their own wisdom. By their way of living they became fools in the eyes of God. To replace God, they chose idolatry.
B. The extent of depravation to which God gave them over. (24-32)
1. To impurity, that their bodies might be dishonored. God allowed them to exercise their Tree will. When left to their own choice, notice the contrast: trade the Truth (God), the Creator for a lie, the creature.
2. To degrading passions (e.g. homosexuality). Idolatry leads to immorality. These verses teach strongly against any type of homosexuality as an alternative lifestyle. This lifestyle is unnatural and indecent in the eyes of God.
3. To a depraved mind, even though they know better. After rejecting God and abusing themselves there is one more place to turn: their fellow man. There are at least 20 different sins listed here by Paul including: fornication, greed, a vicious, conniving nature, showing God no respect, having a wanton sadistically cruel nature, without that family love that includes child to parents, parents to child and child to child. God has given man a natural knowledge of right and wrong. We see this in the laws of the land of predominantly heathen nations and primitive tribes. The Gentiles had chosen to ignore this ingrained sense of right and wrong.