Slave of Jesus Christ

Today marks the first sermon in our series on Paul's letter to the Romans. John Calvin explains the significance of this letter, "When any one gains a knowledge of this Epistle, he has an entrance opened to him to all the most hidden treasures of Scripture" (Commentary on Romans). It tells us what Christianity is all about. Our focus today is on the first seven verses. The heartbeat of these verses is the demonstration of the grace of God in Paul's salvation and separating him for the gospel of God. These first seven verses set the stage for and summarize the doctrine contained in the entire sixteen chapters. Following are seven powers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

1. The transforming power of the gospel, v1a
2. The call of the gospel, v1b
3. The separation to the Gospel, v1c
4. The continuity of the everlasting Gospel, v2-3 5. The centrality of Jesus Christ in salvation, v3
5. The power of the Resurrection, v4
6. The grace of the gospel, v5-7