D:\Romans 1 Part 4.htm

The Gospel of God Chapter Four

Romans 1:1-7

Vince Lombardi was the head coach of the Greenbay Packers in the late 1950's through the 1960's. Football as America knew it would never be the same.

In the late 1950's it was felt that professional athlete's really did not need coaching. After all, professional athletes had arrived. They had paid their dues in college and now they were their own man. Professional athletes and especially professional football players played how they wanted. But, Vince Lombardi changed all this.

Vince Lombardi was the first coach to hold training camps where boot camp-like practices where held. If his team lost a game, they would often times wait for the crowds to leave the stadium and go out on the field and practice. He imposed strict fines for those who broke the rules. And his system worked--though initially his players came close to revolting. His football teams became the best football team in the game.

The secret to Vince Lombardi's success was that he stressed fundamentals. His first day as head-coach, he pulled a football out and said, "This is a football. It is made of leather!" And as a result of this he was nicknamed, Mr. Fundamental. Vince Lombardi took a bunch of rebellious, disorganized football players, and transformed them into a legend by stressing the fundamentals!

The apostle Paul is stressing fundamentals in the book of Romans. There is a lot that can be said about Christ and the gospel of God. According to John 5:39-40 and 20:30-31 both the Old and New Testaments are about Christ and the gospel. In fact, John closes his epistle saying,

John 21:25, "And there are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they were written in detail, I suppose that even the world itself would not contain the books which were written."

This is why so many books and commentaries have been written and are still being written about Christ and the gospel. Yet, as sinful and weak creatures we often times just need it put very simply. That is why Paul brings all that is written in the Old and New Testaments down to its essential elements in Roman 1:3-4.

Romans 1:3-4, "Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead."

If Christendom somehow lost from the pages of Scripture every reference to child rearing, husband/wife relationships our faith would go on because of the gospel. But if Christendom somehow lost from the pages of Scripture what Romans 1:3-4 teaches EVERY MAN would die in their sins! Our hope and our life would be gone. We would have no peace or confidence. We would have no salvation.

Every Christian must have a thorough understanding of these verses. If one misses these verses and he will miss salvation. If one grasps these verses he will take hold of life!

Now Romans is devoted to showing that what Paul preached was truth. Paul was burdened for Spain and wished to establish his European missionary base in Rome.⁽¹⁾ The Roman church had never seen Paul, but had most likely heard rumors that Paul was "teaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs." ⁽²⁾ Therefore this letter needed to show that Paul was not preaching fanciful fairy tales full of error and heresy, but that he was indeed preaching truth. And this brings us to the essence of the gospel. Paul gives us the fundamentals.

Christ has a Divine Title.

The first fundamental that Paul explains is the Christ's title.

Romans 1:3-4, "Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead."

This is a title of dignity. When used in reference to God it indicates a participation in the divine nature, and is therefore a statement of deity. It is used to express the relationship that Christ has with God the Father. Thus, it is does NOT refer to an office or a relationship assumed in time. Rather, it refers to Christ as God, who in relation to the Father is the eternal Son.

For example this is pointed out very clearly in John 1:1-14. Here the word Son is interchanged with the word word. Thus we know that it was the Son who in the beginning was with God. It was the Son who was God. It was the Son who created all things. It was the Son who is life. It is the Son who is the light of men.

Another example of this is found in John 5.⁽³⁾ Here Christ calls Himself the Son of God, thus making Himself equal to the Father. Christ has the same power, the same authority, and a right to the same honor as the Father. The Jews recognizing the implication of this claim and sought to kill Him.⁽⁴⁾

Christ declares God to be his Father in John 10. Here Christ makes Himself God, one with the Father. The Jews again recognized the implication of this phrase and therefore sought to stone Him for blasphemy.⁽⁵⁾

In Colossians 1 we read this:

Colossians 1:13-17, " Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.."

The Son is the image of the invisible God. He is the revealer of the Divine nature. He is the Creator. That is why when we read of God "sending His own Son,"⁽⁶⁾ "sparing not His own Son,"⁽⁷⁾ and "sending forth His Son"⁽⁸⁾ we are not surprised that the essence of the gospel is Christ.

Thus, the Gospel is not only God's Gospel, but it finds its essence in the Pre-existent Son of God identified here as...

Christ has a Historical Identity.

Romans 1:3-4, "Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead."

Paul uses Christ's full title. Jesus, refers to Christ's historical identity, the One who came to "save His people from their sins."⁽⁹⁾ Christ means messiah--the one anointed by God as King. This title is given in fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies, which foretold of a righteous ruler whom God, would send to rule and govern His people in righteousness.⁽¹⁰⁾ Lord is a title indicating our God and Sovereign Ruler. Indeed, Christ has been exalted to the Father's right hand and exercises all authority and power in heaven and on earth.⁽¹¹⁾ The essence of the gospel--that which makes the gospel of God truly GOOD NEWS--is God the Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Corinthians 2:2, "For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified."

Colossians 2:16-17, " Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ."

The gospel is Christ. This is the fundamental truth of the Scriptures. Remove Christ and you destroy the gospel. Submit to Jesus Christ as Savior and sovereign Lord and you establish the gospel! One could stop with these two statements and essentially have the gospel. Yet, Paul goes on to explain HOW Christ is the essence of the gospel by examining Christ's nature.

Christ was made flesh.

Romans 1:3-4, "Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead."

Here we are told plainly that Christ was made "according to the flesh." The term flesh is broadly used in the New Testament and generally refers to moral frailty. When applied to Christ it refers to the totality of His humanness as a man.⁽¹²⁾ It does not refer to Christ's human body over against His human spirit, but refers rather to His being totally man.⁽¹³⁾ This phrase establishes that Christ is a complete man--as a complete man, body and soul!

Christ's form as a man is tempered by the phrase "according to the spirit of holiness." This stands in contrast to "according to the flesh," and refers to Christ's divine nature, to what He is as the Son of God. Of course, Christ has the nature of man (according to the flesh) and a divine nature (according to the spirit). To further examine this point it is necessary for us to avoid reference to the Holy Spirit and man's spirit because Paul qualifies spirit with holy which means perfect, complete, or set apart. The term Paul uses is not used in the Bible in reference to the Spirit of God, and yet it is a term unable to be applied to man. Paul is looking at Christ's two-fold nature in His description of the gospel's essence.

Christ was a descendant of David. This has reference to the incarnation. And it is therefore to that which Christ became in respect to his human nature. The emphasis is on the lineage of Christ, namely, the Davidic line. Both Mary,⁽¹⁴⁾ Jesus' natural mother, and Joseph,⁽¹⁵⁾ Jesus' legal father, were descendants of David. Paul is giving more than just the genealogy of Christ, rather he is stressing that Christ came in fulfillment of the Messianic prophecies.⁽¹⁶⁾

Jeremiah 23:5-6, "Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS."

The fact that Christ was a descendant of David shows Christ's royal dignity as Messiah.⁽¹⁷⁾ Christ is royalty. As such, His birth in the Davidic line marks His work as a majestic king! This is a clear statement by Paul the Christ was the promised Messiah! This establishes the gospel of God.

The world is crowded with men who would be god. There is Adolph Hitler, Joseph Smith. Napoleon Bonaparte, Vladimir Lenin, Stalin, Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, Alexander the Great, and numerous others who wanted to be god, or lived like they were god.^(18)(19) But the world and all of creation only knows of one God who would be man-- Jesus Christ.

Philippians 2:6-8, "Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."

And in Christ's willingness to become a man, we His people become rich.⁽²⁰⁾ It is through Christ that we receive sympathy.⁽²¹⁾ It is in Christ that we receive rest.⁽²²⁾ It is in Christ that we experience true life.⁽²³⁾ It is in Christ that we can and do experience true peace.⁽²⁴⁾ It is in Christ that we are comforted, satisfied, and receive mercy.⁽²⁵⁾ It is in Christ that we receive aid when tempted.⁽²⁶⁾ It is in Christ that we behold God.⁽²⁷⁾ The gospel of God is truly and genuinely GOOD NEWS--it finds its essence in Jesus Christ, God become man!

Christ has a divine nature.

Now Paul explains the other aspect of Christ nature--Jesus is God.

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."

Christ was declared. This means he was marked off by boundaries. This term is used in the Septuagint to refer to fixing, marking out, or delineating boundaries.⁽²⁸⁾ Its noun form is used in both the Septuagint and the New Testament to refer to boundaries or borders.⁽²⁹⁾ It is from this term that we get our English word horizon, which refers to the demarcation line between the earth and the sky. Thus, Christ was "marked off by bounds," or better yet, "shown to be" the Son of God

The phrase Son of God refers to Christ's deity! Christ's deity was veiled upon this earth. However, there came a time in His life in which His deity became fully manifest to all of mankind. This is why the phrase with power is used.⁽³⁰⁾ This refers to the DECLARATION that Christ is the Son of God. We can render this "Christ was powerfully declared the Son of God."

Throughout His earthly ministry, Christ purposely concealed His identity. He chose as His favorite Messianic reference a title which was unknown to the established religion of His day, "Son of Man." When He cleansed a leper, He said this:

Matthew 8:4, "And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them."

When His brothers mocked Him and told Him to show who He really was, we read these words:

John 7:8, "Go ye up unto this feast: I go not up yet unto this feast; for my time is not yet full come."

Now the reason Christ did this is found in John 6.

John 6:14-15, "Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone."

Thus when it came time to reveal His true nature to the world, it was done WITH POWER. This means it came with much force and conclusiveness, for it was demonstrated by the resurrection from the dead.⁽³¹⁾ The resurrection is proof of Christ's deity.⁽³²⁾ For only God the giver of life has the power to conquer death. Thus Christ's ability to raise Himself from the dead⁽³³⁾ demonstrates to all that He is God. This is why after Thomas saw the resurrected Christ we read this:

John 20:28, "And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God."

Romans teaches that through the resurrection, Christ declared to all the world that He is God! And this establishes the gospel of God. The world is indeed crowded with men would be god. But the world only knows of one man who IS God- Jesus Christ.

Titus 2:11-13, "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ."

And because Christ is God, we who are His people receive, through His resurrection deliverance from the agony of death.⁽³⁴⁾ Christ's resurrection also guarantees the certainty of our resurrection,⁽³⁵⁾ our deliverance from the power of the Devil,⁽³⁶⁾ our certainty of new life,⁽³⁷⁾ our assurance of salvation,⁽³⁸⁾ our deliverance from spiritual slavery,⁽³⁹⁾ and it assures us of our ultimate glorification.⁽⁴⁰⁾ Yet, the power of the resurrection does not stop simply at this point. The power of the resurrection assures us that the gospel will go forth as a light to all people.

Acts 26:23, "That Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew light unto the people, and to the Gentiles."

This is why the gospel is truly GOOD NEWS. The gospel finds its essence in Jesus Christ, the man who is God!

So far we have seen that Jesus Christ is the essence of the gospel. Secondly we see that Jesus became a man and thus understands and knows our weaknesses. And we see that as a man, He broke the power of Satan and death, demonstrating His divinity, and thereby freeing His people from their sins! These two truths provide the fundamentals of the good news--the gospel.

Yet what is our response to this truth? While there are many appropriate things we could say, there are at least three responses that this text demands: we must live in light of Christ's humility, we must live in light of Christ's resurrection, and we must preach the good news.

We must live in light of Christ's humility.

Philippians 2:3-4, "Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others."

Paul commands us in light of Christ's humility to be selfless. He says, "let each esteem other better than themselves." This is a command to regard others in the body in light of Christ's humility. The means to do this is set in our attitude--"let nothing be done through strife or vainglory." Verse 5 explains this by saying, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." Literally this teaches that we need to think the thoughts of Christ.

Many say that the next verse tells those thoughts, but Christ did this in view of His thoughts. The mind of Christ is found elsewhere in Scripture. It is found in the gospels.

John 6:38, "For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me."

Christ's thoughts are found while He struggled with the prospect of His coming sufferings.

Luke 22:42, "Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done."

How can a Christian live a selfless life, intent on serving the Father? A Christian does this by serving others.⁽⁴¹⁾ One serves the Father when his mind joyfully and willingly ACCEPTS God's plan for his life which will no doubt include persecution;⁽⁴²⁾ suffering;⁽⁴³⁾ distress, weakness, difficulties, and insults;⁽⁴⁴⁾ humility,⁽⁴⁵⁾ and lack of recognition.⁽⁴⁶⁾ These things are only possible when the believer has the mind of Christ. This is an attainable attitude as long as the Christian is empowered by the Holy Spirit and sets his heart on serving God in God's way. David C. Needham wrote these words:

"What could be more frustrating than being a Christian who thinks himself primarily a self-centered sinner, yet whose purpose in life is to produce God-centered holiness?"⁽⁴⁷⁾

A Christian will fail to live the life that God has called him to unless he longs for God's will. When one understands that the gospel-- to which all Christians have been bound--is fundamentally a message of humility, he immediately will see that he is called to live in light of Christ's humility.

We must live in light of Christ's resurrection.

Romans 6:4, "Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."

A corollary to Christ's resurrection is that the Christian must walk in newness of life! The word newness refers to the newness of quality and character, not newness in point of time. The newness referred to here is that of a sinless life--a holy or set apart life.⁽⁴⁸⁾

Those who walk in newness of life walk as men freed from sin! Freed from sin's power.⁽⁴⁹⁾ And freed from sin's mastery. The very moment one becomes a child of God he is indwelt by the Spirit of God⁽⁵⁰⁾ and becomes a new creature.⁽⁵¹⁾ Thus the believer is freed from sin's power.

1 Corinthians 15:56 identifies the law--legalism--as the power of sin. This means that the Christian no longer seeks to make himself acceptable in the sight of God. Those who walk in newness of life realize that all that he does will not make God love him, but rather he does all because he loves God. So to walk in newness of life is to walk as men freed from the power of sin.

However being freed from the power of sin also frees us from practicing sin. Christ's resurrection frees us from practicing sin.

Colossians 3:5-8, "Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them. But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth."

In the resurrection of Christ, the Christian receives the power to walk in newness of life. Our sanctification or holiness boils down to choices. Will I in the power of Christ deny myself? Will I allow myself to indulge in bitterness or in the power of Christ deny myself? Will I allow myself to indulge in envying or in the power of Christ deny myself? Will I allow myself to indulge in lust, or will I deny myself? Will I allow myself to indulge in lying, cheating, stealing, murder, etc. or will I deny myself? The Gospel to which I have been bound is essentially a message of resurrection. This is my call to live in light of it, and this means I am to be holy!

We must preach Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Corinthians 2:2, "For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified."

Colossians 2:16-17, "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ."

Brothers and sisters, this is the Gospel! To preach "Jesus" is to preach that God has provided a solution for our sins. To preach "Jesus Christ" is to preach that God has provided a solution for our sins through the infinite God/man who cam as the Messiah, the anointed One of God. To preach "Jesus Christ our Lord" is to preach that God has provided a solution for our sins through the infinite God/man who cam as the Messiah, the anointed One of God to whom we must submit our whole being extending to our heart and conscience as well as to our outward conduct! We do the greatest injustice to God and to mankind if we preach only part of the gospel.

If we preach "Jesus" at the exclusion of "Christ" and "our Lord" we preach heresy. To preach "Christ" at the exclusion of "Jesus" and "our Lord" is to preach heresy. Knowing that everyone of us has been enslaved to preach the gospel of God⁽⁵²⁾ we must not only be a faithful witness OF the Gospel, BUT we must also be faithful TO the gospel.

Conclusion

We have seen that the gospel of God essentially is Jesus Christ our Lord. The Lord Jesus Christ who became man understands and knows our weaknesses. Yet, as a man He broke the power of Satan and death, demonstrating His divinity, and thereby freeing His people from their sins! These two truths together provide for the good news of the gospel.

We also must live in light of the truth that we know. Whether this truth cause you to respond in praise and rejoicing one must be faithful to his responsibilities in the kingdom. Make sure that this truth causes you to live in light of Christ's humility, live in the power of Christ's resurrection, and to preach the gospel to all men by preaching the Lord Jesus Christ! The gospel compels us to do nothing less.

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These footnotes are added by the editor to aid the reader in their study

¹ Compare Romans 15:24

² Compare Acts 21:21

³ Compare John 5:17-31

⁴ Compare John 5:18

⁵ Compare John 10:29-42 and specifically John 10:31

⁶ Compare Romans 3:3

⁷ Compare Romans 3:32

⁸ Compare Galatians 4:4

⁹ Compare Matthew 1:21

10.

¹⁰ Compare Jeremiah 23:5-60

11.

¹¹ Compare Matthew 28:19

12.

¹² Compare John 1:14; 6:51; Romans 8:3; 9:5; Ephesians 2:14; Colossians 1:22; 1 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 5:7; 10:20; 1Peter 3:18; 4:1; 1 John 4:1, and 2 John 7.

13.

¹³ This indicates that Christ was made with both a material--body--and immaterial--soul/spirit--nature.

14.

¹⁴ Compare Luke 3:23-31

15.

¹⁵ Compare Matthew 1:6-16 and Luke 1:27

16.

¹⁶ Compare also 2 Samuel 7:12, 13, 16; Psalms 89:3, 4, 19, 24; 132:17; Isaiah 11:1-5, 10; Jeremiah 23:5-6; 30:9; 33:14-16; Ezekiel 34:23-24; 37:24; Matthew 1:1; Luke 1:27, 32, 33, 69; 3:23-31; John 7:42; Acts 2:30; 2 Timothy 2:8; and Revelation 5:5; 22:16.

17.

¹⁷ Compare B. B. Warfield, Person and Work of Christ, page 79

18.

¹⁸ This is the way of the world. Recently we see the nations of the world seeking to establish the religion of statism. In this religion the political party, political leader or both are the salvation of the nations people. The people are to look to the governing party as their security, and hope. It appears that the state is to be the sole source of wisdom for rearing families, moral values, etc.

19.

¹⁹ In the original message a reference was made here to David Koresh as wanting to be god. At the time this was a popular misconception that was being said about the group in Waco, Texas. In the 1994 accounts about David Koresh, the media demonized him as being a cult leader who they claimed wanted to be Christ. This was the reason the government gave in killing him and numerous others who were innocent. Recent evidence indicates that the accounts, which stated that he claimed to be Christ, were fabricated. While his theology was not mainstream (multiple wives and his belief that he was one of the 24 elders of Revelation) and was unusual, it was not a valid reason to murder him and his followers.

20.

²⁰ Compare 2 Corinthians 8:9

21.

²¹ Compare Hebrews 4:15

22.

²² Compare Matthew 11:28-30

23.

²³ Compare John 1:12-13

24.

²⁴ Compare Romans 5:1-2

25.

²⁵ Compare Matthew 5:3-7