Beloved Saints

Rom 1:1–7 – “Better than you think” – Romans 1–5 – Daniel J. Baker – Oct 13, 2024

Introduction

“If you’re able...” Romans 1:1–7 “...Thanks be to God.”

William Carey (1761–1834) was one of the pioneers of the missionary movement of the last several centuries. A Reformed Baptist born in England just before America was founded. He wrote letters on his birthday as a chance to take stock on his life and ministry. At the age of 70 he wrote to his son Jabez, his 3^rd son:

My Dear Jabez,
I am this day seventy years old—a monument of divine mercy and goodness; though, on a review of my life, I find much, very much, for which I ought to be humbled in the dust. My direct and positive sins are innumerable; my negligence in the Lord’s work has been great; I have not promoted his cause, nor sought his glory and honour, as I ought. Notwithstanding all this, I am spared till now, and am still retained in his work. I trust for acceptance with him to the blood of Christ alone; and I hope I am received into the divine favour through him. I wish to be more entirely devoted to his service, more completely sanctified, and more habitually exercising all the Christian graces, and bringing forth the fruits of righteousness to the praise and honour of that Saviour who gave his life a sacrifice for sin....
I am, &c., ‘W. CAREY.
Serampore,[1] May 17, 1831.

• “My Dear Jabez”
• “A monument of divine mercy”
• “I wish to be more entirely devoted to his service...”

A Father’s love for his child. A reminder of God’s love. A call to devotion. We’ll see the same in our passage.

Romans 1:1–7. First sentence of the apostle Paul’s letter to the church in Rome.

Ancient Greek letters typically had a very straightforward and short greeting: “A to B, greetings” (“greetings” in Greek being the verb chairein).

You get a taste of this in Acts 23:26:

“Claudius Lysias, to his Excellency the governor Felix, greetings.” (Acts 23:26)

And then the body of the letter follows.

What we have in Romans 1:1–7 is what is believed to be the longest greeting in any ancient Greek letter we know about.[2]

It’s a single sentence, and has the same elements, but it’s far more than Paul identifying himself and identifying who he is writing to.

Certainly far more than a polite greeting to begin a formal letter.

This morning we’ll focus on two aspects of his greeting. Our two points: (1) The gospel of God (Rom. 1:1–4) and (2) the people of God (Rom. 1:5–7).

• These are fundamental ideas.
• If you grasp them, your life will never be the same.
• There’s a right order here, too.
• You need to get the GOSPEL first, and THEN get what he says about being the PEOPLE OF GOD.

Our series in Romans is called, “BETTER THAN YOU THINK.” We’ll see this morning the gospel is DEEPER THAN YOU THINK. To be God’s people is BETTER THAN YOU THINK.

Prayer

I. The Gospel of God (1:1–4)

After identifying himself, Paul immediately goes to the GOSPEL, the GOOD NEWS God has revealed.

Good to understand this word “GOSPEL” a bit more—and how it ties to some words we use a lot: 

“Gospel”
The Greek word for “gospel” is euaggelion.
In the Latin Bible it became Evangelium.
From these words we get “Evangelical” and “evangelism.”

Immediately in Romans Paul begins to teach us about his “GOSPEL.”

First, it’s “the gospel OF GOD” (1:1).

The source of the gospel is GOD.

The gospel reveals GOD to sinners like us.

And the goal of the gospel is GOD. “To him be the glory forever. Amen” (Rom. 11:36).

Second, the GOSPEL was “PROMISED BEFOREHAND through his prophets in the holy Scriptures” (1:2).

One of the great themes of Romans is how much Paul’s gospel is simply a fulfillment of what was PROMISED IN THE OLD TESTAMENT.

What is found in those “HOLY SCRIPTURES” before Christ came talks about Christ and the work he did to save us.

For over a thousand years God had been speaking to his people about the GOOD NEWS to come. A Savior to come!

I’ll quote a bunch of Old Testament texts today that make this clear.

Third, the GOSPEL is “the gospel...concerning HIS SON.”

The centerpiece of God’s good news is God’s “Son.” A person.

Douglas Moo, one of the great scholars on Paul’s writings today says on this verse:

The focus of the gospel is a person, God’s Son.
Douglas Moo, The Letter to the Romans[3]

The heart of the gospel is the truth about “a person, God’s Son.” He is GREATER THAN WE THINK!

We learn a lot about this PERSON in these opening verses

• Christ is “descended from David according to the flesh”
• The Christ was promised to be David’s son.
• See this in 2 Samuel 7, where God says to King David:

When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men. (2 Sam 7:12-14)

And then it’s fulfilled. When Jesus was born we learn about his family tree. The first verse in the New Testament says this:

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. (Matt 1:1)

• As God’s Son, he is eternal. Pre-existent.
• But in the miracle of the incarnation, God’s eternal Son took on flesh.
• When he did that, he was conceived in the young woman Mary.
• Mary was a descendent of King David.
• She was poor and a woman of obscurity before this event.
• But Mary was in the line of David.
• So, YES, Jesus was “descended from David according to the flesh.”

Then in Rom. 1:4 we read that Jesus the Son was also “declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead.”[4]

• The word “declared” is better understood as “appointed.” It’s used 8x in the NT, and in the other examples “appointed” is the clear meaning.
• A good example is its use in Acts 10:42:

And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. (Acts 10:42)

• God “appointed” Jesus “to be judge of the living and the dead.”
• And in Romans 1:4, Jesus is “appointed to be the Son of God in power.”
• Christian Standard Bible:

[His Son]...was appointed to be the powerful Son of God according to the Spirit of holiness by the resurrection of the dead.
Christian Standard Bible, Rom 1:4

• But what do we mean by Christ being “appointed to be the powerful Son of God”?
• The idea is that when Christ was resurrected, it wasn’t just his body that was changed—going from a normal human body to a glorified human body.
• He entered into a NEW PHASE OF HIS WORK OF REDEMPTION.
• No longer is he in the STATE OF HUMILIATION.
• With his first heartbeat, he enters into his STATE OF EXALTATION.
• Psalm 2:7 and how Paul explains the fulfillment in his Acts 13 sermon:

I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. (Ps 2:7)
32 And we bring you the good news that what God promised to the fathers, 33 this he has fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus, as also it is written in the second Psalm, “‘You are my Son, today I have begotten you.’ (Acts 13:32-33)

• With the resurrection the Father is saying, “You are my Son” in a dramatic way.
• But the idea isn’t simply the Father identifying his Son.
• But it’s the Son entering into a new phase of his glory.

Similar to what we saw in the Great Commission:

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. (Matt 28:18).

• As the eternal Son of God, Jesus has ALWAYS had “all authority in heaven and on earth.”
• But he’s saying here that as the resurrected Son of God, he has been given “ALL AUTHORITY IN HEAVEN AND ON EARTH” in a new way.
• This has to do with his work as the REDEEMER KING.
• With the Father...
• Then leaves behind that glory to take on the humiliation of being a finite human...
• But then he’s resurrected...
• And ascended...
• All as part of his EXALTATION.

This Man is indeed “Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom 1:4)!

Application: This is the gospel, no human invention.

Truly, this gospel is DEEPER THAN YOU THINK. Prophesied for centuries. Centered on God’s Son who once walked in humility but now in exaltation.

II. The People of God (1:5–7)

First we grasp the glory of "THE GOSPEL OF GOD." Second we grasp the good of being "THE PEOPLE OF GOD." God has three things we need to see about what it means to be THE PEOPLE OF GOD. 

First, we are “CALLED.”

Rom. 1:6: “called to belong to Jesus Christ.” Literally, “the called of Jesus Christ,” but the phrase expresses who we belong to (see Moo, NICNT, 53).

Paul spoke of himself as “called to be an apostle” and now we read that the Romans are also “called to belong to Jesus Christ.” And in v. 7, again it’s the Romans who are “called to be saints.” Each time the same Greek word is used (klētos). Reason that matters is that being “called” in a special way by the Lord is not ONLY for apostles. It’s ALL CHRISTIANS.

Douglas Moo:

“Call” and its cognates are used by Paul to express an “effectual” calling. What is meant is not an ‘invitation’ but the powerful and irresistible reaching out of God in grace to bring people into his kingdom.
Douglas Moo, The Letter to the Romans[5]

We hear this “powerful and irresistible” call idea in Rev. 17:14:

“They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.” (Rev 17:14)

And the same idea is in Romans 8:30:

And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. (Rom 8:30)

Who are “called”? Those who will also be “glorified.” Not all are “called” in this way.

Just as God spoke all things into existence by saying, “Let there be” (Gen 1:3), so he speaks life into us. He “calls” us to himself and then we are his.

God’s Word is powerful and breaks down all resistance to him.

Second, we are “LOVED” by God.

Rom. 1:7: “loved by God” (lit., “beloved of God”).

God’s love is unlike the love of anyone else.

It began in eternity past:

“I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.” (Jer 31:3)

It was expressed by the greatest sacrifice in all of history:

God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Rom 5:8)

It is being brought into God’s own love.

We are brought into the love that we see among the persons of the Trinity—The Father’s love for the Son, the Son’s love for the Father. They delight in each other, glorify one another, are devoted to each other.

And God’s love is poured out on us in Christ and brings us into this eternal relationship.

“I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father.” (John 14:31)
As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. (John 15:9)

That’s what it means to be “the beloved of God.” It is to be welcomed into the most loving family that ever existed, the family of God.

Some of us had families where our parents loved each other, and they loved us. But not like the family of God, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. That family love is perfect, unchanging, eternal, entirely self-less, continually joyful.

And the fact we are “BELOVED” by this God means that we get to share in this—now and forever.

He even “POURS IT OUT” upon us:

Hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Romans 5:5

Third, we are “SAINTS.”

Rom. 1:7: “called to be saints.”

Typically when the word “saint” is used about a person it’s used wrongly:

• “I’m no saint.”
• “Mother Teresa became a saint on Sept 4, 2016, almost two decades after her death” (history.com)

Not just the typical Christian but Christians who lived exemplary lives.

But that’s not what God himself says. God himself says what a saint is, and a saint is a Christian. All Christians are saints. Rom. 1:7.

“Saints” is more literally, “holy ones.” We are those designated as “holy” by the Lord. To be a “saint” means God has set us apart to be his, to belong to him.

“Called to be saints” means that when God called you, he made you a “saint.” Not a commandment but a declaration. Declaration about WHAT YOU ARE.

Like the utensils connected to the temple in the Old Testament. In many ways they were normal bowls and tables and candlesticks and plates. They made of gold and bronze, but that’s not what made them special.

What made them special was that they were set apart for a special use. To be used in the sacrifices and worship in the tabernacle (temple). They were “holy” because they were set apart for God’s special use.

That’s what we are as “saints,” set apart for God’s special use.

Leon Morris:

Saint...reminds us of the essential character of being Christian. The word basically signifies ‘set apart,’ ‘separated.’ We normally use this concept in a negative way and after ‘separated’ we naturally supply ‘from.’ But the separation of which Paul writes is not so much a separation ‘from’ anything as a separation ‘to’ God. It is positive, not negative. The saints are peculiarly God’s. They are set apart for him, ‘called to be his dedicated people’ (NEB).
Leon Morris, The Epistle to the Romans[6]

Sinclair Ferguson, Devoted to God, says,

If this is what holiness means in God, then in us it must also be a corresponding deeply personal, intense, loving devotion to him....Simply put, it means being entirely his, so that all we do and possess are his....To be holy, to be sanctified, therefore, to be a “saint,” is in simple terms to be devoted to God.
Sinclair Ferguson, Devoted to God[7]

Conclusion

The Gospel of God is Deeper than you think. Being the people of God is better than you think—chosen, loved, set apart for Christ.

But how do we become part of “the people of God”? How do we enter in to this amazing destiny?

Paul points to it in Rom. 1:5, where he talks about his ministry. It was “to bring about the obedience of faith.” Not just “obedience.” Not just “faith.” But “the obedience of faith.”

• A key Christian truth is that all true obedience springs from faith.
• And true faith will always lead to obedience.
• Faith begins the process, but that faith will lead to obedience.

Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is where you begin. It’s what starts the process. It’s how you enter into this amazing destiny.

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).

A key application: ASSURANCE and PURPOSE

ASSURANCE: You are “Beloved.” God wants you to know this, experience this, in some way to feel this. To enjoy the ASSURANCE that comes from knowing this.

But also, in this idea of being a “Saint” is a life purpose. God has set you apart to be his. To belong to him. And he calls you to be devoted to him.

Finding God’s will for you life has a lot of pieces and parts to it. But for all of us, God’s will for us begins with being devoted to him.

I mentioned William Carey’s letter at the beginning. A father's letter to his child. What if you woke up tomorrow with this letter inscribed on your wall?

My dear child,

You are mine. You are loved. You are set apart for me forever.

Your heavenly Father

P.S. Now go and live like this is true!

But...that's exactly what we have in the Bible! It's as if our heavenly Father inscribed this very message on our wall. May we know it and believe it and feel the glory of it—and "go and live like this is true!"

Prayer and closing song

[1] Serampore, West Bengal, India, eastern edge of the country.

[2] See Douglas Moo, The Letter to the Romans, NICNT, 38.

[3] Moo, The Letter to the Romans, NICNT, 42.

[4] The interpretation I will teach that this is about Christ and his going from one state of his work of redemption (humiliation) to the next state of his work of redemption (exaltation) is also found in Douglas Moo (NICNT), Thomas Schreiner (BECNT), and Herman Ridderbos, Paul: An Outline of His Theology (66–67).

[5] Moo, The Letter to the Romans, NICNT, 53.

[6] Leon Morris, The Epistle to the Romans, PNTC (1988), 52–53.

[7] Sinclair Ferguson, Devoted to God (Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth, 2016), 4.