God's Calling (1st in Romans series)

(My notes from Sunday's sermon from Dr. Chris Craig at FBC Ruston)

Romans 1: 1-6
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— 2 the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3 regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, 4 and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in powerby his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5 Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake. 6 And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

The book of Romans was written to the (mostly Gentile) church at Rome, by Paul, most likely from Corinth, about 20-25 years after the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ.

God is Calling You ...

1. To Salvation
Romans in summary: Humans have a terrible problem; God has a wonderful solution.
vs 5-6: "called" -- invited to a feast
Matthew 22:14 -- "...many are invited, few are chosen..." Few enter into the feast on the groom's terms
John 1:12 ' "To all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God."

2. To a Mission
v. 1 -- to be a servant/slave, to lose your will in the will of another.
This is an honored position under God's will
2 Cor. 5:20 .. "We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God."

Paul's life is an example of what a life in God's will can become. He was a Pharisee, a Green Beret of religious heirarchy, but became Jesus' greatest apostle.
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