Grace, Enthusiasm and Power (Romans 1:1-17)

"As it says in the Bible, 'the just shall live by faith'" (Rom 1:17b, The Kingdom New Testament, N. T. Wright). " "The righteous by faith will live" (NET Bible).  "The people God accepts because of their faith will live" (CEV).

Romans 1:16-17 is the gospel, the theme and the thesis statement of Romans in summary form and the essence of Christianity. It summarizes Paul's theology as a whole.

"The gospel is not advice to people, suggesting that they lift themselves. It is power. It lifts them up. Paul does not say that the gospel brings power, but that it is (present tense = continually) power, and God's (omnipotent) power at that." Leon Morris.

Ø  Do you have a gospel/good news story to share (Rom 1:5)?

Ø  How eager are you to share the good news (Rom 1:15)?

Ø  How have you experienced the power of God (Rom 1:16-17)?

"I greatly longed to understand Paul's epistle to the Romans, and nothing stood in the way but that one expression 'the justice of God,' because I took it to mean that justice whereby God is just and deals justly in punishing the unjust. My situation was that, although an impeccable monk, I stood before God as a sinner troubled in conscience, and I had no confidence that my merit would assuage him.

Therefore, I did not love a just and angry God, but rather hated and murmured against him. […] Night and day I pondered until I saw the connection between the justice of God and the statement that, 'the just shall live by his faith.' Then I grasped that … through gift and sheer mercy God justifies us through faith. Thereupon I felt myself to be reborn and to have gone through open doors into paradise. When I saw that Law meant one thing and Gospel another, I broke through." Martin Luther.

Romans 1-3

1. Gospel of God's Grace (1:1-6): We received grace.
2. Gospel Enthusiasm (1:7-15): Eager to preach the gospel.
3. Gospel Power (1:16-17): The gospel is the power of God.
4. Gospel Suppression (1:18-2:5): Wickedness suppresses the gospel.
5. Gospel Impartiality (2:6-29): God does not show favoritism.
6. Gospel Accusation (3:1-20): No one is righteous.
7. Gospel Righteousness (3:21-26): Righteousness is through faith.

In Rom 1:1-6, John Stott explains the gospel as follows:

1. The origin of the gospel is ________ (1:1).
2. The attestation/preparation of the gospel is ___ (1:2).
3. The substance or center of the gospel is _____ (1:3-4).
4. The scope of the gospel is ________________ (1:5-6).
5. The purpose of the gospel is ________________ (1:5).
6. The effect of the gospel is __________________ (1:6).
7. The goal of the gospel is ___________________ (1:5).

 Questions:

1. What is the gospel? Explain compellingly what it is.
2. How striking is it being a "slave" and "apostle" (1:1a)?
3. What is the origin of the gospel (1:1b; Gal 1:11-12)? Why is this conviction important for authentic evangelism?
4. What attests to or prepares for the gospel (1:2; Jn 5:39, 46; Lk 24:27, 44)?
5. What is the substance/center of the gospel (1:3-4, 3:21-26; 1 Cor 15:3-4)?
6. What is the scope of the gospel (1:5-6)? What implications does this have for you? What is the role of "grace" (1:5; 12:3; 15:15; 1 Cor 15:10; Gal 1:15)?
7. What is the purpose of the gospel (1:5; 16:26)? How can you differentiate between the obedience of faith and the obedience of law? (In your own life?)
8. What is the effect of the gospel (1:6-7)? Do you know that you are loved (Jer 31:3)?
9. What is the goal of the gospel (1:5, 4b, 7b)? How does your Christian experience match up to this (1 Cor 10:31)?
• Extra: What do you know about the New Perspective of Paul?
10. Do you have a sense of debt/obligation (1:14)?
11. Why was Paul so eager to preach the gospel in Rome (1:1, 9a, 15; 15:15-16, 20; 1 Cor 9:16; Ac 14:21-22)?
• How eager/enthusiastic are you about preaching the gospel?
• As we get older do we lose our initial enthusiasm for Jesus?
• Does it seem that many Christians start out full of zeal, but over time lose their initial excitement?
• Do new converts seem to be most on fire for Christ?
• Are you jaded/cynical/bitter because of church experiences?
12. Why was Paul not ashamed of the gospel (1:16a)?
• How might "liberals" (Gentiles), "conservatives" (Jews) and "intellectuals" (Greeks) find the gospel offensive?
13. How might "first to the Jew, then to the Gentile" (1:16b) offend both Jew and Gentile?
14. What does the gospel reveal (1:17)? Explain the "righteousness of/from God" in three ways (3:21-26; Phil 3:9)?
15. Contrast "the righteous will live by faith" and "the righteous by faith will live."