8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, because your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world. 9 For God, whom I serve in my spirit in the gospel of His Son, is my witness as to how without ceasing I make mention of you, 10 always in my prayers earnestly asking, if perhaps now at last by the will of God I may succeed in coming to you. 11 For I long to see you so that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be strengthened; 12 that is, to be mutually encouraged, while among you, by each other’s faith, both yours and mine. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented so far) so that I may have some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles. 14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 15 In this way, for my part, I am eager to proclaim the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous will live by faith.” Romans 1: 8-17 LSB
Romans 1: 8-17
MacArthur notes that "A thankful heart for those to whom one ministers is essential to true spiritual service. The Christian who is trying to serve God’s people, however needy they may be, without gratitude in his heart for what the Lord has done for them will find his service lacking joy. Paul could usually find a cause for thanks so that he could honor the Lord for what had been done already and hope for what God would use him to do. Superficial believers are seldom satisfied and therefore seldom thankful. Because they focus on their own appetites for things of the world, they are more often resentful than thankful. A thankless heart is a selfish, self-centered, legalistic heart. Paul had a thankful heart because he continually focused on what God was doing in his own life, in the lives of other faithful believers, and in the advancement of His kingdom throughout the world. (MacArthur, J: Romans 1-8. Chicago: Moody Press)
Through Jesus Christ - This short phrase in essence summarizes the entire epistle to the Hebrews where we learn that Jesus Christ is the believer's Great High Priest, through Whom we have confidence access to the throne of God the Father (cp Heb 2:17, 18, 4:14, 15, 16, 10:19, 20, 21, 22). This phrase pictures Jesus' as our Mediator, elsewhere Paul writing that - PA
V. 8 First I thank my God through Jesus Christ - He uses the possessive "my" indicating intimacy, and made possible only through our great mediator and High Priest, Jesus Christ. It is He Who has restored the relationship between God and fallen mankind. Thankfulness should be the pattern of our prayer and worship, it helps us shift focus off of how it makes us feel and onto the object of our faith.
…3Know that the LORD is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture. 4Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and bless His name. 5For the LORD is good, and His loving devotion endures forever; His faithfulness continues to all generations.… Psalm 100: 3-5
…5Let your gentleness be apparent to all. The Lord is near. 6Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.… Philippians 4: 5-7
V. 9 Without ceasing I make mention of you - Not only does he lift them up before God unceasingly, but it is from the core of his being, not seeking praise from men or trying on Jesus to see what it gets him, what the result is, but he is here in earnest for the love of God and his brothers and sisters in Christ. It goes beyond mere duty, it is humbled at thought of being able to enter God's presence and to care for His people. The work is a gift and no bother.
Cottrell writes that "To serve God in one’s spirit is to serve him with deep, sincere motivation. Paul is saying that his service to God is completely sincere and internally motivated. Though he served from a deep sense of duty (“I am debtor,” Ro 1:14, KJV), his ministry was not just a job, not just an obligation. His heart was in it. Some do God’s work from selfish or legalistic motives (see Phil 1:15-note; Phil 1:17-note; 3Jn 9-note), but not Paul. Such a testimony should cause Christians everywhere to examine their own hearts and weigh their own motives for serving God." (Cottrell, J. Romans: Vol 1. College Press NIV commentary. College Press Pub) - PA
Vs. 10-11 That you may be strengthened - Paul has wanted to come to them to use his own gift of teaching, to preach the gospel, but as is his pattern he is probably wanting to build up others to teach as well.
…7On the contrary, we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother caring for her children. 8 We cared so deeply that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God, but our own lives as well. That is how beloved you have become to us. 9Surely you recall, brothers, our labor and toil. We worked night and day so that we would not be a burden to anyone while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.… 1 Thessalonians 2: 7-9
John MacArthur - The gift Paul wanted to impart was spiritual not only in the sense of being in the spiritual realm but in the sense that it had its source in the Holy Spirit. Because he was writing to believers, Paul was not speaking about the free gift of salvation through Christ about which he speaks in Ro 5:15-16. Nor could he have been speaking about the gifts he discusses in Ro 12:4ff-note , because those gifts are bestowed directly by the Spirit Himself, not through a human instrument. He must therefore have been using the term spiritual gift in its broadest sense, referring to any kind of divinely-empowered spiritual benefit he could bring to the Roman Christians by preaching, teaching, exhorting, comforting, praying, guiding, and disciplining. Whatever particular blessings the apostle had in mind, they were not of the superficial, self-centered sort that many church members crave today. He was not interested in tickling their ears or satisfying their religious curiosity. (MacArthur, J: Romans 1-8. Chicago: Moody Press) - PA
V. 12 That is, to be mutually encouraged - It is a great comfort to know other true believers, those who are focused on Christ, both to encourage them, but also because that iron rubs against our own. I can think of many people over the years that helped me physically, which I am grateful for, but I can think of only a few who took that to the spiritual end, so much so that looking at their life and walk with the Lord made me think I was missing something.
…4Great is my confidence in you; great is my pride in you; I am filled with encouragement; in all our troubles my joy overflows. 5For when we arrived in Macedonia, our bodies had no rest, but we were pressed from every direction— conflicts on the outside, fears within. 6But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the arrival of Titus,…
…7and not only by his arrival, but also by the comfort he had received from you. He told us about your longing, your mourning, and your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced all the more. 8 Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Although I did regret it, I now see that my letter caused you sorrow, but only for a short time. 9And now I rejoice, not because you were made sorrowful, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you felt the sorrow that God had intended, and so were not harmed in any way by us.… 2 Corinthians 7: 4-9
V. 13 And have been prevented so far - The lack of Paul's physical presence was not from avoidance, but rather being God's slave and on His time. He really had a heart for them, and it shows in his prayer life. We tend to think if we aren't there then there is nothing we can do, but this greatly exaggerates our physical presence and minimizes the power of prayer.
Vs. 14-15 In this way, for my part - This is his great calling, his burden, and the only relief of it is to preach the gospel. He is talking to the church at Rome here too, so keep that in mind, he still wants to preach the gospel. It is something to rehearse in our hearts, homes and gatherings daily.
…15But I have not used any of these rights. And I am not writing this to suggest that something be done for me. Indeed, I would rather die than let anyone nullify my boast. 16Yet when I preach the gospel, I have no reason to boast, because I am obligated to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! 17If my preaching is voluntary, I have a reward. But if it is not voluntary, I am still entrusted with a responsibility.… 1 Corinthians 9: 15-17
…8For whenever I speak, I cry out; I proclaim violence and destruction. For the word of the LORD has become to me a reproach and derision all day long. 9If I say, “I will not mention Him or speak any more in His name,” His message becomes a fire burning in my heart, shut up in my bones, and I become weary of holding it in, and I cannot prevail. 10For I have heard the whispering of many: “Terror is on every side! Report him; let us report him!” All my trusted friends watch for my fall: “Perhaps he will be deceived so that we may prevail against him and take our vengeance upon him.”… Jeremiah 20: 8-10
V. 16 For I am not ashamed of the Gospel - This has thundered as the battle cry for every true believer since. It is a powerful summation and answer to the culture in every day that asks us, "why, why do you have to tell us what we don't want to hear? Who are you to judge? What right have you to say that Jesus is the only way?" If you are stopped by rolling eyes or public discomfort, then don't kid yourself that you are like Paul. If you will only tell the truth when the truth is in fashion, then you don't love it, you love what's popular. We saw in Acts what Paul was willing to do for the sake of the gospel, walk hundreds of miles, almost perish at sea, be beaten and imprisoned.
The fellowship of the unashamed - When we have opportunity to speak for Christ, we often do not. We know the Gospel is unattractive, intimidating, and repulsive to the natural, unsaved person and to the ungodly spiritual system that now dominates the world. The Gospel exposes man’s sin, wickedness, depravity, and lostness, and it declares pride to be despicable and works righteousness to be worthless in God’s sight. To the sinful heart of unbelievers, the Gospel does not appear to be good news but bad, and when they first hear it they often react with disdain against the one presenting it or throw out arguments and theories against it. Fear of men and of not being able to handle their arguments are some of the greatest impediment to being a bold witness for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
It is said that if a circle of white chalk is traced on the floor around a goose that it will not leave the circle for fear of crossing the white mark. In a similar way, the "chalk marks" of criticism, ridicule, tradition, and rejection prevent many believers from leaving the security of Christian fellowship to witness to the unsaved. - PA
V. 17 But the righteous will live by faith - We are not justified by our own righteousness, and this is the glory of the gospel, that we are justified by the righteousness of Jesus Christ through God's gift of faith to us.
Righteousness (1343) (dikaiosune see adjective dikaios) is derived from a root word that means “straightness.” It refers to a state that conforms to an authoritative standard or norm and so is in keeping with what God is in His holy character. Righteousness is a moral concept. God’s character is the definition and source of all righteousness. God is totally righteous because He is totally as He should be. The righteousness of human beings is defined in terms of God’s. In short, the righteousness of God is all that God is, all that He commands, all that He demands, all that He approves and all that He provides (through the Gospel). - PA
…7in order that in the coming ages He might display the surpassing riches of His grace, demonstrated by His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9not by works, so that no one can boast.… Ephesians 2: 7-9
…15We who are Jews by birth and not Gentile “sinners” 16 know that a man is not justified by works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified. 17But if, while we seek to be justified in Christ, we ourselves are found to be sinners, does that make Christ a minister of sin? Certainly not!…
…18If I rebuild what I have already torn down, I prove myself to be a lawbreaker. 19For through the law I died to the law so that I might live to God. 20I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.… Galatians 2: 15-20
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