Sermon Tone Analysis

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Romans: Set Apart for the Good News

First of all, I want to thank you all for your prayers last week!

Apparently if you show up to the doctor with one swollen leg and no bruising or pain you set off some type of – let us make sure you are not going to drop dead on us protocol… Thankfully all the testing came back negative, so that is positive!

Also, Wendy is not here today because she had her wisdom teeth removed yesterday, she will not be operating heavy machinery this week, but could possibly end up on America’s Funniest Home Videos…

What I learned from my trip to the hospital last week is that you will be treated according to what you present.

When I sat down in front of the doctor the first question was, “Why are you here?”

There was no real exchange of pleasantries, this was a purposeful visit, so after getting my age weight and blood pressure we got to the point of the visit…

The opening lines of New Testament letters play the important role of introducing what follows.

Paul adapts the basic “From Paul, to the Romans” format into something that better accomplishes his purpose for writing this particular letter.

(Next Slide: Romans 1:1)

He first supplies a description of who he is.

Since letters were hand-carried, the Romans would have no doubt which “Paul” was writing them.

Instead, the description functions more like a business card, presenting a specific set of credentials.

If you compare the greetings of Paul’s letters, you’ll see that he introduces himself differently depending on the material he intends to discuss.

Paul’s greeting in Romans is the only one that mentions the gospel, for which he is set apart (1:1).

By characterizing himself as a slave/servant of Christ Jesus, set apart for the gospel, Paul lays the groundwork for declaring his obligation to preach it to all people (1:14), especially to those in Rome (1:15).

His self-description makes sure the Romans think about him in a particular way.

Who knows what they may have heard about him, or what would have come to mind when his name was mentioned.

Adding this extra information shapes (or even corrects) how they think of him.

I actually carry 3 different (digital) business cards and I share them according to what is most appropriate to the situation…

Paul introduces himself differently in his various letters.

The introduction he chooses seems to reflect the types of problems or issues he will address with that church.

Romans is the only letter that mentions the gospel.

His description points to the gospel as his mission in life and sets the stage for the exposition that follows.

This shaping of people’s ideas also applies to how Paul characterizes the gospel in 1:2.

(Next Slide: Romans 1:2)

The gospel is far more encompassing for Paul than our modern notion of the gospel being a plan of salvation.

It is impossible to know exactly what a mention of the gospel brought to mind for the Roman believers.

Based on Paul’s exposition, he wants them to understand that the gospel message of salvation and restoration is not some new thing; instead, it has been part of God’s plan all along.

He drives this point home in 1:2, characterizing the gospel as something God had announced through the prophets centuries earlier.

Paul uses Old Testament quotations throughout his letter to reinforce this point.

All of the anticipation in the Old Testament is less about the gospel than it is about the Son (1:3).

“concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations,” (Romans 1:3–5, ESV)

In verses 3–5, Paul provides intentional characterization of Jesus, just as he provided for himself.

He does not intend to narrow down which “gospel” or “Jesus” he has in mind.

This characterization sets the stage for how we think about the ideas Paul introduces in the rest of the letter.

1.Verse 3 emphasizes that Jesus was fully man, descended from David, is critical for understanding how He was able to conquer the power of sin.

2.Verse 4 highlights another important aspect of His nature: being God’s Son.

What proof is offered?

Jesus’ resurrection from the dead is a declaration by the Holy Spirit of His divine Sonship.

3.In Verse 5 Paul extended his characterization of Jesus by describing his own connection to Christ.

He is the source from whom Paul received grace and his apostleship.

These gifts drive Paul’s desire to preach the gospel in Rome, as he states in 1:6, explicitly referring to the Roman congregation as those loved and called by God.

Paul is not offering hollow pleasantries to break the ice; he is carefully selecting images he calls upon later as he outlines his understanding of the gospel and its implications for everyone.

This entire section introduces key ideas he will elaborate upon later.

Who Is…

Paul uses a long string of descriptions to refer to Jesus before actually using His proper name.

By delaying this specific reference, Paul not only builds a little suspense, but he ensures that readers conceptualize Jesus in a particular way

Take a look at how Paul has ordered his description of Jesus.

It is almost like the old game “Twenty Questions,” where a person has to guess who the other has in mind by learning different facts about them.

Paul builds a mental image of Jesus while at the same time delaying His introduction.

He provides titles and roles before actually mentioning Jesus’ name.

A reader would likely not have struggled to determine who Paul was talking about, but for our purposes, it is important to recognize the effect of Paul’s strategy.

If he had begun with Jesus’ name, the descriptive expressions that followed would have had a different effect.

Instead, Paul is able to shape how the reader views Jesus by painting the picture before assigning a label.

The opening of the letter is much more than just a simple greeting.

Paul uses it to introduce ideas that will play a key role in the exposition that follows.

It is as if he is placing items onto the table of the discourse to make it easier to unpack each one when the time comes.

This part of the book is not something to hurry past to get to the “good stuff.”

This introduction should be carefully digested; it sets the stage for all that follows.

(Next Slide: First – Romans 1:8-17)

First...

Romans 1:8–17

“First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world.

For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God’s will I may now at last succeed in coming to you.

For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.

I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles.

I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish.

So am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.””

(Romans 1:8–17, ESV)

As stated earlier, Paul’s fundamental intention in writing seems to be the exposition of the gospel rather than the announcement of his plan to visit Rome.

Several times in the letter Paul begins a sentence with “first,” creating the impression he will add a number of related points—only there aren’t any others.

Verse 8 is the first of these “firsts” in Romans, and it presents two possibilities: Paul intends to move on to other items in the list but gets distracted, or the “first” is rhetorically motivated to make it look like he is going to continue.

In my view, the second option best explains what we see in the letter.

It allows Paul to fake going one way so that he can go a different way, just like a pump fake in basketball.

Here’s what I mean:

We can see this in verse 8, where Paul presents what seems to be the first of several things for which he is thankful.

But Paul gives thanks, but Paul mentions only one thing.

This is not to say that Paul isn’t thankful for many things; it means he quickly moves on to the real purpose for writing by offering the reason he gives thanks (1:11–12).

“For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.”

(Romans 1:11–12, ESV)

(Next Slide: Romans 1:9)

We find a different rhetorical device in 1:9: extra thematic information.

This device separates Paul’s declaration that God is his witness from what it is that God witnesses.

Since we already know which “God” he is referring to, the extra information shapes how we think about Him (and Paul).

This delay draws extra attention to the final part of the sentence: Paul constantly making mention of the Romans in his prayers.

Let’s read vv.8-12 (Next Slide)

Delay Tactic: Paul begins a statement about God being his witness, but then interrupts this idea with a description of the God whom he serves.

This extra descriptive information delays revealing what God is a witness of, drawing extra attention to it based on this delay.

We find digressions into supporting material in verses 9, 10b, and 11.

“For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you” (Romans 1:9, ESV)

“always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God’s will I may now at last succeed in coming to you.” (Romans 1:10b, ESV)

“For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you—” (Romans 1:11, ESV)

These “for” digressions serve the same kind of purpose as a rhetorical question, but without the need for interrupting the flow.

Each statement strengthens the one immediately preceding.

These statements not only offer support, they also sidestep off the main line of argument onto what can become an embedded theme line.

This is just like when we go off on a tangent in the middle of a story, filling in important information before coming back to the main storyline.