========================================================================
  COMMENTARY ON ROMANS 1-2
  by Chuck Smith
========================================================================

------------------------------------------------------------------------
DESCRIPTION
------------------------------------------------------------------------


------------------------------------------------------------------------
CONTENT
------------------------------------------------------------------------

This time let us turn in our Bibles to Romans, chapter 1. Paul opens his
epistle to the Romans declaring:

Paul, a bond slave of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated
unto the gospel of God (Rom 1:1).

Twenty-five years before Paul wrote this epistle to the Romans he was on
the road to Damascus to imprison the Christians there. When suddenly
about noon there came a light brighter than the mid-day sun and there
the Lord said, "Saul, Saul why persecute thou me?" And he answered and
said, "Who art thou Lord, that I might serve thee?" Now twenty-five
years later Paul writes, "Paul, a servant or a bond slave, of Jesus
Christ."

Writing to the Philippian church concerning that same conversion
experience he said, "Those things which were gain to me I counted loss
for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ for whom I suffered
the loss of all things and do count them but refuse that I may know Him"
(I Corinthians 3:7-8). What I am seeking to point out is that the
commitment that Paul had made twenty-five years earlier was still being
honored.

There are a lot of people who talk about past experiences, but the past
experiences have not been translated into the present relationship, and
thus, past experiences become null and void unless they are translated
into present relationships. Those things which were gain to me I counted
loss, twenty-five years ago. "Yea doubtless I do count them," you see,
it is still going on. So past experience is only valid as it is
translated into my present walk and relationship. Twenty-five years ago,
"Who art thou, Lord, that I may serve thee?" Now twenty-five years
later, "Paul a servant of Jesus Christ."

We just finished the book of Acts, and to help place the book of Romans,
the writing of the book of Romans, into the study that we just had in
Acts, if you will remember when Paul was in Ephesus and Demetrius the
silversmith created a big ruckus and they brought all the people of the
city into the arena and they were chanting, "Great is Diana the
Ephesus," and so forth. How that at that point Paul said, "Well, I am
going to go to Macedonia and to Corinth and I am going to go to
Jerusalem and I must also see Rome." There Paul expressed his desire as
he left Ephesus going over to Macedonia and then to Corinth, ultimately
going on to Rome, "I must also see Rome." When he got to Corinth, before
going back to Jerusalem, it was from Corinth that Paul wrote this letter
to the church in Rome. That will help you place it historically in the
book of Acts. He wrote the letter to the church in Rome from Corinth. As
he got ready to leave Corinth to go back to Jerusalem, he found out that
there was an assassination, a plot against him. They were going to throw
him overboard, and so instead of taking the ship from Corinth, he went
back north to Macedonia, crossed over to Troas, and then made his way
around the coast catching ships back to Jerusalem. He gave up his hopes
of being there for Passover and intended to be there for the Feast of
Pentecost. In Jerusalem he was arrested, taken to Caesarea, held in
prison for two years. He appealed unto Caesar and now, of course, in the
book of Acts he was finally going to Rome. This was written some two
years, a little more than two years before Paul was able to go to Rome,
and he is going to express his desire to come to Rome and the purpose
for which he desired to go there.

"Paul, a bond slave of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle." The Bible
tells us that we should make our calling and election sure. Paul said,
"I was called to be an apostle." It is wrong for us to classify callings
of God as important or highest calling or greatest calling or whatever.
I don\

========================================================================
Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/chuck-smith/commentary-on-romans-1-2/
========================================================================