Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,
Romans 1:1
And that’s all the further I made it before my mind started reeling. Thinking about Paul, who he was, who he became, and the fact I’ll meet him some day in glory! And the absolute fact that I am so not like Paul. He was so very committed to everything he did. It reminds me of the children’s rhyme:
There was a little girl who had a little curl
Right in the middle of her forehead
And when she was good, she was very very good.
But when she was bad, she was dreadful!
Sorry! But that’s how my mind works. And that’s kind of how Paul was. When he was a Jewish Pharisee, he was very good at being very bad to the Christians, but when he became a Christian, oh my stars!!! that same zeal that he used to persecute and kill saints of God, he used to spread the gospel every where he went. He sowed seeds that would no doubt harvest a mighty crop of kids for the Kingdom. Oh, that that would be said of me… or you!
We are people of purpose, but we tend to forget it; or at least I do. Maybe you’re better.
As we continue reading Paul gives us more insight on our purpose as he scribes his letter to the children of Rome.
The Gospel
Romans 1:2
(Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,)
Malachi 4:1-6
1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. 3 And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts. 4 Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. 5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
That’s the whole chapter, just 6 verses, but my what a kick in the pants and a reminder that this story wasn’t new in Paul’s day, and it isn’t new in ours, but what it is the prophecy fulfilled, for what the old testament revealed. And Paul’s reminding the church of that very thing.
And there in those 6 verses we see the reminder of why we should be far more diligent at getting the Gospel out. Just as Christ came the first time, He’s coming again; but this time He will not be the gentle man that the world loves to view Him as. He’s coming as King of all and Lord of all and He’ll judge the earth in righteousness. And those who do not know Him as Savior, our chance to see them saved will be gone. Who are we going to meet today that we’ll not see in Heaven? That’s a sobering question.
The Good News
The good news is that though His return is imminent, for the time being we still have time. So, what will you and I do with it? I’m asking myself that question in all seriousness.
Romans 1:3-6
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:
If you’re saved, you’ve been called. And unlike the iPhone, you can’t pretend you didn’t see it. You can reject the call, as many of His children do, but somebody is going to suffer the consequences of our disobedience. That’s the bad news.
The Grace
Thank God for it, I’m going to need an abundance.
Romans 1:7
To all that be in Rome,
- …or Mt. Zion, West Virginia
- Grantsville, WV
- Windom, MN
- Albuquerke, NM
- Manilla, Philippines
- Marietta, Ohio
Well, you get the picture.
beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Even in our failures, we are still His beloved. He didn’t die for perfect people, else there would have been no reason. He died for folks like us who failed before we were saved, and we’ve failed afterwards. But the difference is, we now know the whole story. It’s been revealed to us through His word that there is a purpose for us on this big ball of dirt! It’s to tell the world about the wonderful news of Jesus. And that the evilness of this world will be overcome. We will win the victory. But only those who know Jesus.
Who can you share that news with today?