Kingdom Disciples

Paul wrote  Romans with at least two purposes in mind. First, to prepare the ground for his visit to the city and his planned missionary trip to Spain. Second, to deal with conflicts between Jewish and Gentile believers in the assemblies of Rome. In the Letter’s first half, he explains his Gospel. In the second, he addresses the status of the Jewish people and the specific conflicts in the congregation.

In Romans , Paul presents his most detailed explanation of the “Good News of God,” a message centered on His Son, Jesus Christ. He was dealing with conflicts between Gentile and Jewish believers in the Assembly of Rome and preparing the ground for taking the Gospel to the western regions of the Roman Empire. In the process of doing so, he addressed several related topics, including death, redemption, the Law, resurrection, and the New Creation.

Paul opens Romans with an introduction that describes his apostolic mission. The calling and “ grace ” of God equipped him to preach the “ Good News of God ” to the nations, and the center of this proclamation is Jesus Christ (“ concerning His son ”). His goal is to establish the “ obedience of faith ” among the “ Gentiles .” He included a list of the messianic qualifications of the “ Son ,” and he also linked what God did in Jesus to His promises made “ in the prophets ” in the “ Holy Scriptures .”

In his  Letter to the Romans , Paul describes in detail the message of salvation that he proclaims among the nations. He declares that it is the “ power of God for salvation ” to all men who accept it. Due to humanity’s sin, two forces are at work in the world -  Righteousness  and  Wrath . In Jesus of Nazareth, God has provided the solution to humanity’s desperate plight and made it available to all men through the “ faith OF Jesus Christ .”

The covenant with Abraham is fulfilled in Jesus, the Patriarch’s seed and heir, including the promise of the Earth . In his  Letter to the Romans , Paul presents Abraham as the great exemplar of the faith, the model for all men to emulate who choose to live from the “ faith of Jesus .” God counted the Patriarch’s faith as “ righteousness ” while he was yet uncircumcised, and thus He justified him apart from the “ works of the Law .” Consequently, he became the father of everyone who is “ from faith ” whether Jew or Gentile, moreover, he is the “ heir of the WORLD ” or  Kosmos .

The righteousness of God refers to His faithfulness to fulfill His promises, and this is demonstrated by the salvation He has provided in Jesus . In Romans , Paul stresses the “ righteousness of God ” that is revealed whenever the Gospel is proclaimed. It is the “ power of God for salvation to everyone who believes .” In this message, His “ righteousness ” is proclaimed on the Earth to “ Jews and Greeks ” alike. Salvation is now available to all men through the “ faith of Jesus Christ ,” His “ Righteous One ” (“ From faith for faith… My Righteous One will live from faith ”).