1 Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, Paul’s sentences are like equipment belts: there is the root or kernel thought, with loops, hooks, and carabiners to attach phrases, descriptions and other information. Romans 1:1-7 is one of these.
The kernel of the sentence is: Paul... to all... grace and peace. The rest, preposition and adjective phrases, has been clipped, snapped and Velcroed on. The added phrases and information are vitally important and set up the rest of the letter. This sentence is a summary paragraph for the letter. For example:
2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures,
3 concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh,
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Vs. 1 - Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,
“Bond-servant of Christ Jesus ” - This has been more fully discussed in the Bible Study Notes for Philippians 1:1.
A Jew, having served to pay the debt, could decide to stay with the ‘master’ - voluntary servitude. (Also called “bond-slave” or “bond-servant”.) If the person decides to be a bond-slave, they went through a ceremony in which a hole was punched in the servant’s earlobe, after which the servant served for life. The term ‘bond-servant’ refers to this voluntary service. This was a HUGE commitment - not at all like taking a job which you can leave for a better job or in a different location.
What a good picture of our relationship to the Lord Jesus. We are not forced to be saved. Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, calls us to believe and be saved. When we believe in our heart Jesus was raised from the dead, and confess Him as Lord and Savior, we will be saved. See: Rom. 10:9-10. Now, we are His. His friends. His servants. His bride. His glory. Our life is not our own, for we were bought for a price. (1 Cor. 6:20, 7:23) That price - a perfect sacrifice, is the Lamb who was slain.
The image of a bond-slave is a good picture of our Christian life. The indentured servant, after the debt is paid, volunteers to serve the master, and becomes a ‘bond-slave’, or ‘bond-servant’. We acknowledge that Christ paid our debt - one we can never pay in full. We confess that we believe He is our Lord and Savior. This confession is not forced from us, but is a vital to recognizing and declaring our intentions.
We do it by our free will. Remember, the former slave has no more obligation to the master, the debt has been paid. The former slave publicly announces the desire to serve the master permanently, for life. Our confession of faith is made before other people.
The ceremony for the bond-servant is public. All people now know the person is permanently connected to the master. Our ceremony - baptism in conjunction with confession of faith - is a public announcement we are Christ’s possession for life, both physical and spiritual, both here now and for eternity.
“ Called as an apostle ” - Paul is making the case for his authority as an apostle. As he grew up, his choice of career was to be a Jewish leader, a Pharisee. His education and training prepared him to eventually become the leader, or one of the leaders, of the Pharisees. He was taught by the premier teacher, Gamaliel. (See: Acts 5:34; 22:3) Then Paul was called by Jesus. ( Acts 9:1-16 ) An apostle was someone chosen by Jesus and trained by Him. The original twelve disciples qualify as apostles, as does Paul. They spent at least three years with Him. Paul was taken aside and taught by Jesus.
“ Set apart ...” - People knew Peter, James & John were disciples. (See: Luke 22:55-62) There was no question when they stepped into the roles of apostles. Many people wondered if Paul was genuine in his confession of faith - after all he had persecuted the same people to whom he was now preaching. We do not need to take Paul’s testimony alone. When people wondered if Paul was a good choice as an apostle, Jesus told them clearly Paul was chosen to serve! (Acts 9:15, 16)
“ for the gospel ” - The concept of being “set apart” for God’s plan or use is seen throughout the Bible. Abraham, Jacob, Moses, David are examples of people chosen for God’s purposes. There were artisans set apart and empowered to build the Tabernacle. ( Exo. 31:3; 35:21) The disciples were called by Jesus to become “fishers of men”. (See: Mark 1:17)
Vs. 2: - which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures,“
which He promised beforehand “ - The Good News was announced in the Old Testament.
“ Prophets and Holy Scriptures” - Whether in the Pentateuch (Torah) or other historical books, or the prophets, God has revealed that His salvation was coming. The mystery of the Scriptures was that salvation would be through God Himself paying the price.
Vs. 3: - concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh,
“ concerning His Son” - Jesus Christ is the gospel of God. Jesus was called “my Son” by God the Father. Jesus claimed the title as the “Son”. Promises and prophecies concerning salvation are about Jesus Christ.
“ descendant of David ” - See the genealogies in Matthew (Matt. 1:1-16) and Luke (Luke 3:23-38). Note the lists differ starting with David’s sons - Matthew follows Solomon’s family line, Luke follows Nathan’s family (both sons born to Bathsheba). Both of Jesus’ human parents were descendants of King David.
I have divided the first seven verses of chapter one into two sections. Otherwise, the notes for all seven verses together would seem excessively long.
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