Paul’s relationship with the Roman Church at the time of his letter
Rome was the most important city in the world at the time of Paul's writing of his letter. He had not visited Rome at the time of the writing of this letter. Paul wrote most of his letters to churches that he himself had established. But the church at Rome was different. There were already many Christians in Rome long before Paul wrote this epistle to the Roman Church
1. About 30 A.D.. The first Christian church began in Jerusalem, on the day called Pentecost. On that day, Peter preached to many visitors to Jerusalem. Among them were ‘visitors from Rome, both Jews and Gentiles who believed the Jewish religion. Some of these were probably among the 3000 that became Christians (Acts 2:9-11; 2:41). They carried the gospel to Rome.
2. 49 A.D.. The Emperor Claudius ordered Jews to leave Rome. There had been some trouble among the Jews. A Roman called Suetonius wrote that someone called ‘Chrestus’ had caused the trouble. Chrestus may have been a Jew who caused the trouble. But ‘Chrestus’ may be the same as ‘Christus’ (that is, Christ). Jews opposed those who preached the message about Christ. So the trouble might have begun at that time.
3. 57 A.D.. Paul probably wrote this letter about 57 A.D.. He had not yet visited Rome. But he knew many people in the church at Rome. Many Gentile as well as Jewish Christians were already members of the church there. In his letter, Paul says that Gentile Christians must not consider themselves more important than the Jewish Christian brothers (Romans 11:18-20).
4. Aquila and Priscilla from Rome were probably Christians before they met Paul in Corinth (Acts 18:1-3). They probably returned to Rome, after they worked in Corinth and Ephesus. Christians used to gather in their home, (Romans 16:3-5).
The book of Romans is a Pauline Epistle. The Apostle Paul wrote his letter to the Romans about 56-57 A.D. The book of Romans reveals the answers to important questions and supplies information on many topics, such as salvation, the sovereignty of God, judgment, spiritual growth, and the righteousness of God. Many scholars also describe it as The Gospel and the Righteousness of God, which can be received only by faith in the atoning death of Jesus Christ.
The focus of the “righteousness of God” is foundational throughout the book of Romans. Paul reiterates this so that the reader may realize that salvation cannot be attained through man’s good deeds but only through faith in God’s righteousness: One cannot repair a relationship with God through good deeds; this is only accomplished through faith in the perfect and finished work of Jesus Christ.
• In chapters 1-8, Paul explains the fundamentals and foundations of the Christian faith. This is the Gospel Message, which all believers are commanded to share with the entire world. Paul teaches about the sinful nature of all men in the eyes of God, justification by faith in Jesus Christ, freedom from sin, and victory in Christ.
• Chapters 9-11, Paul explains God’s sovereignty over salvation. He also spells out how an individual may come into a right relationship with God: "if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation." (10:13). Place your faith and trust only in what Jesus Christ has already done on the cross and make Him the Master of your life and trust He raised Himself from the grave conquering death. His promise is "You will be saved''.
• In chapters 12-16, Paul gives instructions for all Christians about how to live a holy lifestyle. In the beginning of chapter 12 he writes, “Present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice”, and “Do not be conformed to this world” (vs. 1-2). Much of the errors and trials that Paul dealt with in his “Epistles”, were because the believers had conformed their lives to the world and not to God.
· Practical Application: The Book of Romans makes it clear that there is nothing we can do
to save ourselves. Every “good” deed we have ever done is as a filthy rag before God. So dead in our trespasses and sins are we that only the grace and mercy of God can save us. God expressed that grace and mercy by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross in our place. When we turn our lives over to Christ, we are no longer controlled by our sin nature, but we are controlled by the Spirit. If we make confession that Jesus is Lord, and believe that He is raised from the dead, we are saved, born again. We need to live our lives offered to God as a living sacrifice to Him. Worship of the God who saved us should be our highest desire. Perhaps the best application of Romans would be to apply Romans 1:16 and not be ashamed of the gospel. Instead, let us all be faithful in proclaiming it!
The following are some key verses from Romans
Romans 1:16, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of every one who believes, first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.”
Romans 3:9-11, “What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. As it is written: ‘There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.’”
Romans 3:21, “But now a righteousness from God apart from the law, has been made known, to which the Law and Prophets testify.”
Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8:9, “You however, are controlled not by the sinful nature, but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.”
Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:37-39, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 10:9-10, “That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.”
Romans 12:1, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, this is your spiritual act of worship.”
Romans 12:19, “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord.”
Romans 16:17, “I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them.”
For each of the 16 chapters of Romans our study plan will consist of one or more sessions for each chapter.
My recommendations are that you read the chapter for each study session a day or two before we do the study. However we will have the scripture print out as well, included with each study. We will have no Study on this Wednesday the 14th of October. We will begin the new study the next week, on the 21st of October with a study of Romans, chapter one, vs 1-17, this will be a two part study.
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