The Greeting - Part One

"Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for His name's sake, among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ; to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." -Romans 1:1-7

Okay... So, right out of the gates, we have some very interesting things to cover. We're probably not going to cover everything in these seven verses, today. I'm not sure if we'll make it past the first verse, even!

The word that Paul used for bond-servant , in the original Greek, is doulos. A great definition of which is this:

"a slave"

"devoted to another, to the disregard of one's own interests" (From "The New Testament Greek Lexicon" )

"To the disregard of one's own interests..." This is an incredible concept that Paul just throws out there in the opening sentence of his letter to Rome. The first half-sentence of Romans 1:1 establishes Paul's view of his mission. "I am a slave to the will of Christ!" Is this a slavery of unwillingness? No, Paul used the word in its Hebrew sense to describe a servant who willingly commits himself to serve a master he loves and respects.

So, how does that translate to us? What are we doing that shows that we are willing slaves of the King? That we are serving Him with our best and with a humility that is typically associated with a slave? In opposition... what are we doing that rebels against this idea of being bond-servants? In what areas of our lives do we need to surrender control?

You see, a slave doesn't have control over his or her tasks. The Master directs and wills, the slave submits and obeys. This is a hard concept to teach to people who live in modern-day America... we are too proud, we have too high an opinion of ourselves, we are fed self-deserving thoughts through every media outlet and from on every side.

It is not a popular religion that says, "Deny yourself, and take up the work of another. Live for others, and forsake your own comfort!" However, Christianity is not a religion. Religion is a following of rules and regulations, in hopes of achieving a right standing with a higher power... Christianity is a reckless abandon of self, because of the realization that we were dead in our transgressions and sins, and that Christ died a brutal death on our behalf so that we might spend eternity in heaven with Him. There is a difference between these two ideas....

Religion says, "Follow these steps. Do these things, and don't do those things, and perhaps your righteousness will merit you a favorable position with god."

Christianity says, "There's nothing you can do to gain God's favor... any doing that there was to be done HAS ALREADY BEEN DONE! Christ died for your sins... believe in Him, serve Him, love Him... this is your responsibility in life. I can't wait to get to Romans 12, which talks about offering our bodies (lives, skills, abilities, spiritual giftings) as living sacrifices... we are a walking, talking testimony of the grace and mercy of a loving God upon an undeserving people.

So, back to Paul's opening statement. To paraphrase: "I, Paul, in light of Christ's mercy and grace upon my life, am a willing and humble slave to the will of God the Father and to the continuation of the work of Christ, here on earth." And this paraphrase of Paul's words is mirrored by the life we see lived out in Acts and in the letters that he wrote to the churches. I'm not making this up! Paul is an incredible example of what happens when a sinful heart collides with the realization and reality which is Christ!

My question for you today is this... How do our lives reflect that collision of sinful heart and sinless Savior? Do we express the same humble servitude as Paul and the other apostles? Do we give our lives over, completely to Him? Or do we portion out our Sunday MORNINGS, and then keep even the rest of that day for ourselves??? Friends, we are slaves unto righteousness, to the work of the cross, to the great commission of Christ... which is to go and preach the gospel to every tribe and nation! We cannot call ourselves Christians and then live a life of self-service and unchanged hearts.... it just can't be that way. If you truly call yourself a Christian and believe the Word of God, then you must lay down all pride... you must come to a place of humility and realize that your primary concern must be loving your Savior and King. You must understand that God has placed you WHERE YOU ARE, to be a light to a dark world, in your workplace, in your neighborhood, perhaps even in your own family... Your role, as a Christian, is the service and advancement of the Gospel. The word "Gospel" means, literally, "good news!" What better news is there in this world, than that of a Savior who has taken YOUR punishment for YOUR sins? Spread it! Obey! Become an obedient and willing slave to the King of Kings.

We'll pick up where we left off in the greeting, tomorrow. Friends, please dwell on this concept of total abandon... There is nothing in this world that is so important as the complete devotion of your heart, mind, soul and strength to Christ...

Let us say, together with Paul, that we are bond-servants of the King of Kings, and let us serve Him joyfully!

Grace and Peace!

Questions or Comments? E-mail me at afflquestions@yahoo.com .