Called To Be Saints: Romans 1:1-7 Explained

Scriptures for Today: Romans 1:1-7

Romans 1:1-7 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, 2 (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,) 3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; 4 And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead: 5 By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name: 6 Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ: 7 To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are starting the book of Romans. The 45^th book of the Bible. It has 16 chapters. It takes about an hour to read the entire book.

Introduction of Paul

The book of Romans was written by the apostle Paul, who was formerly known as Saul.

Think about the events of the New Testament:
Jesus was born of the virgin Mary.
John the Baptist prepared the way for the Savior.
Jesus started his earthly ministry, preaching the gospel, fulfilling the scriptures.
He died on the cross. He rose again on the third day.
Jesus showed himself to the apostles and many others for forty days.
He taught them things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
Jesus ascended into Heaven.
10 Days later, Holy Spirit came upon all the disciples with power. They preached boldly.
The Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.
As the church continued to grow, the persecution of believers began. We see Saul come into the picture.

Saul was born and raised as a Pharisee. The Pharisees were a religious faction among the Jews who considered themselves to be more righteous than others because they strictly observed the rites, ceremonies, and traditions of the law. They were very zealous. They thought themselves to be in good standing with God based on their outward works.

That would be like someone today who thinks they are going to heaven because they go to church every Sunday, they read their Bible, they fast and pray, they repent of their sins, they give money to the church.

Romans 10:3 For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.

Saul, as a pharisee, was persecuting Christians. He was imprisoning them and having them put to death.  But he had an encounter on the road to Damascus and was called directly by Jesus Christ himself to be a minister and a witness of Jesus to the gentiles. Imagine your entire life changing in a moment.

Imagine persecuting the one that you thought you were serving. Saul thought he was doing the work of God. But he was actually going up against the Creator and Savior of the world. God could of destroyed Saul in a second. But He gave him a second chance. God took a broken, misguided man and allowed him to become one of the greatest missionaries ever recorded.

From that point forward God used Saul, who was now known as Paul, to be a powerful preacher of the gospel. Paul wrote a large portion of the New Testament scriptures. He made long perilous journeys to reach the lost, plant new churches, teach, exhort, and encourage believers, all over the eastern mediterranean world.

The same gospel that Paul helped spread back then, is the same gospel that is still being spread today throughout the entire world.
And let that be a reminder to all of us, that when God gives you a second chance, when He gives you that wake up call in your life and He shows mercy to you…you better answer that call or you’re going to miss out big time.

If you don’t answer, he’ll find someone else that will. Thank God Paul answered and obeyed the Lord. And because of his choice to obey, we are sitting here in this church thousands of years later as a result of the work that he accomplished through Jesus Christ.

During Paul’s ministry he helped start many churches and strengthened and encouraged them through the writing of letters or epistles. And that’s exactly what this Book of Romans is. It’s a letter to the believers in Rome at that time.

Apart from the direct teachings of Jesus Christ, The Book of Romans gives us some of the clearest teaching on how we are saved and justified before God.

Paul reminds the church at Rome that all are condemned under sin.
We are justified through faith without the deeds of the law.
Salvation has always been the same.
The same way that Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness, we receive that same righteousness today by believing and putting our faith in Jesus Christ.
Salvation is a gift from God that can not be earned.

That’s why many people use the book of Romans as one of the main sources for verses when preaching the Gospel.

So the book of Romans is an awesome book written by the most unlikely of persons. A former Pharisee whose zeal to persecute Christians was turned into an unquenchable fire to preach the gospel and serve Jesus Christ.

Let’s look closely at these Words.

Romans 1:1

Romans 1:1 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,

Paul starts out this letter to the romans by introducing himself as a servant of Jesus Christ.  

There is no greater title, no greater association, than to be called a servant of the most high God.

Many people think it’s cool to drop names and say, “I work for Bill Gates”, “I shook Jeff Bezos hand”
“Taylor Swift pointed at me at a concert”.
Understand this—I am a servant of the one who owns every billionaire on this planet, Jesus Christ.

John 12:26 If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.

In this life you can be honored by presidents, pastors, celebrities, the rich and famous, powerful men.
Understand that man is created from the dust of the earth. Is that really what you want in life? Do you want to be honored by dirt? Do you want to spend your life chasing honor from man?

What greater honor is there to receive than being honored by your Father in Heaven?

Paul did not care about the praise of man. He chose to be a servant of the most high God, a servant of Jesus Christ.

In your life, you have to make that choice as well. Will you serve yourself? will you serve other men? Or will you serve Jesus Christ? Only one will earn you everlasting rewards in heaven. It should be an easy choice, but many people choose to not serve Jesus. Many people choose to lay up treasures on this earth. Don’t spend your life doing things that have zero eternal value. Serve Jesus Christ.

Romans 1:1 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle…

That word “called” means invited or appointed. Think about who invited or appointed Paul to be an apostle. It wasn’t another man that appointed him as an apostle. There are thousands of people today that call themselves apostles. They were ordained by other men to be apostles. Those people are a sham.

Galatians 1:1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)

The apostles were men who saw Jesus and were appointed by God himself. Paul was personally invited and appointed by Jesus Christ to be a minister and a witness of the things that he seen and heard.

Romans 1:1 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,

Paul was a servant, he was an apostle, and he was also separated unto the gospel of God.

It’s important to understand the significance of this statement. Remember that Paul was formerly a Pharisee who was persecuting Christians. He was having them put to death.

The meaning of the word Pharisee means “to separate”. The Pharisees literally separated themselves into their own group of people because they thought themselves to be more righteous than others. They separated themselves from publicans and sinners. They separated themselves from the common people. Paul was part of that separated group.

But now as a servant of Jesus Christ, he had a new calling. He was no longer separated by the will of man based on his own self-righteousness. He was now separated unto the gospel of God—preaching the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

You also have to make that same choice. Will you separate yourself unto the gospel? Unto the things of God pertaining to His kingdom? Or will you separate yourself unto the things of this world?

Jesus said you can’t serve both God and mammon. You have to choose one or the other. Paul chose to put away the past, Put away the former things of his life, and he separated himself to a new calling, something much better with eternal value.

Romans 1:2

Romans 1:1-2 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, 2 (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,)

The gospel that Paul was separated unto was not some brand-new, unheard-of gospel; it was the long-promised message foretold in Scripture.  Just like we talked about last week,
over 1500 years before Paul, God made the promise that a prophet would be raised up from among the children of Israel. That prophet was Jesus Christ.

Jesus was foretold all the way back in Genesis 3:15 from the garden of Eden. The seed of the woman would bruise the head of the serpent.  

In verse 2, Paul is reaffirming the authority and truthfulness of the scriptures. They are not myths or legends. They are the Words of God himself. God made the promise, and the promise was fulfilled.

When you go out and preach the gospel you might run into people that say Jesus is not in the Old Testament. You can reaffirm that this is the same Jesus who was promised from old times. The Lamb slain from the foundation of the World. Eternally existing. He can be found on every page of the scriptures. The problem is most people choose not to see Him.

Romans 1:3

Romans 1:3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;

This verse is a continuation of Paul’s statement from verse 1.

Romans 1:1-3 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, 2 (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,) 3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;

The gospel of God is concerning His Son Jesus Christ. The gospel is the glad tidings, or good news that Jesus Christ died, was buried, and rose again as THE payment for our sins.

The world likes to use the label of gospel. Just slap the word gospel on anything and it automatically becomes Christian. Did you know that Snoop Dogg has a gospel album? 
Kanye West has a gospel album. That is another gospel. The gospel of God is concerning His Son Jesus Christ. Don’t be fooled by the world’s gospel.

Romans 1:3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;

Jesus Christ eternally existed as God, but when He came into this world in flesh and blood, it was through the seed of David.

Psalm 89:34-36  My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.  35 Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David.  36 His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me.

That was a promise that God made, and it was fulfilled when the virgin Mary, who was from the seed of David, conceived of the Holy Ghost, and gave birth to the Savior.

Romans 1:4

Romans 1:4 And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:

Paul is continuing to define the gospel that he is separated unto. The gospel of God is concerning His Son Jesus Christ, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh.
And declared to be the Son of God with power… How do we know for sure that Jesus Christ is the son of God? We know he is the Son of God because He rose from the dead. That is power that no man has.

How did He rise from the dead? He rose from the dead by the Spirit of God, the spirit of holiness.

1 Peter 3:18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:

Jesus was not declared to be the Son of God in word only; He rose from the dead as a demonstration of the Spirit and Power of God. Even after that demonstration, His people still rejected Him and would not believe.  

The Jews wanted a sign and they got their sign…

Matthew 12:39-40 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: 40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Jesus said the only sign you’re getting is the sign of the prophet Jonas (talking about Jonah)
The story of Jonah is a prophecy and picture of Jesus Christ being dead and in Hell for 3 days and 3 nights and rising again. That was the sign of the power of God. They didn’t see it back then, and they still don’t see it today.

And understand that same spirit of holiness, that same power that raised Jesus Christ is in you, if you believe on Him.

Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

That is an awesome power to have inside of you.

Romans 1:5

Romans 1:5 By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:

In verse 5 we see that because Jesus rose from the dead, Paul was able to receive grace and apostleship. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then Paul would still have been a pharisee dead in his sins. We all would be dead in our sins without Jesus Christ.
But Jesus did rise from the dead, therefore Paul and the other apostles did receive grace and the calling to be an apostle. And what was the purpose of that calling?

“for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:” What does that mean? It means that Paul and the other Apostles were sent to preach so that people in every nation would obey the gospel by believing in Jesus.

Understand that call to preach to all nations was not just for the Apostles. We too have received that same grace because of the resurrection of Jesus. We all are called to share that grace with everyone through the gospel.

Romans 1:6

Romans 1:6 Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ:

Remember that word called means to be invited or appointed. Jesus Christ did not personally come to us the same way that he called Paul or the other Apostles. So how are we the called of Jesus Christ?

2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: 14 Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

We are called by Jesus Christ by His gospel that was preached unto us. It is an open invitation for all of mankind. And it’s important to understand what we are called to be.

Paul was called to be an Apostle for a very specific purpose—to lay the foundation of the gospel to all nations.

We also have a specific calling…

Romans 1:7

Romans 1:7 To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

For those of us who have received the gospel of God, for those who have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, we are called to be saints.

What does it mean to be a saint?

According to the Catholic church, a saint is someone who is officially recognized as being entitled to public veneration (honor) and capable of interceding for people on earth.

What is the Biblical definition of a saint?

1 Corinthians 1:2   Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

A saint is someone that has been sanctified by the blood of Jesus Christ. Sanctify means to be cleansed, to be made holy, to be separated unto God.
If you believe in Jesus Christ, you are sanctified, you are cleansed from all of your sins. You are a saint. Not by water baptism, not by you giving your life to Christ, but by the offering of Jesus.

Hebrews 10:10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Sanctification is not a lifelong process like many people think.
You are cleansed the moment you believe in the offering of the body of Jesus Christ.

As Paul makes his opening introduction to the believers in Rome, he’s reminding them that the gospel that he was separated unto, the gospel that called him to be an apostle, that same gospel is calling us to be saints.

If you are sitting here today and you believe that salvation comes only through Jesus Christ, then you are a saint. And if you are a saint, then you should act like a saint. Acting like a saint doesn’t mean you act like you are perfect. Acting like a saint means you act like Jesus saved you from all your sins…

2 Timothy 2:19-21 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. 20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. 21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.

As you go from here today I want you to make a choice. If you believe in Jesus Christ for salvation you are going to heaven no matter what. But you still have your life to live.

You can choose to live your life for yourself…
you can choose to seek honor from the dust of the earth (from man).
you can choose to be a vessel unto dishonor…

Or you can be like Paul and choose to serve Jesus Christ…
You can choose to separate yourself unto the gospel of God.
You can choose to be a vessel unto honor.
You can choose to act like a saint that is sanctified and meet for the master’s use.

Please make that choice today. Don’t waste any more time. Let’s Pray