Monday 12 October 2009

Background

Although Paul's letter to the Church in Rome comes after theGospels and Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament, it waswritten some time before - around 57AD (maybe 15 years before Mark,the earliest Gospel).

Unlike most of Paul's letters he was writing (probably fromCorinth) to a Church he hadn't founded or visited, although he verymuch hoped to get to Rome. The letter shows just how far Christianthinking had developed in the 25 years after the events of Easter,as well as revealing the 'big issues' that faced the spreadingearly Church as it moved out from its Jewish origins into the widerGentile (non-Jewish) world.

In these opening verses, Paul gave a very clear indication of whathis letter was going to be about. He was a "servant" (or slave) ofJesus Christ - one of his favourite words for 'Christian' (a wordhe never uses) - and an "apostle", or 'one who is sent on amission'. And that mission was to proclaim the good news (thegospel) that Jesus, the Jewish Messiah (or Christ), had died andbeen raised from the dead in order to create a new people of Godwhich included both Jews and Gentiles.

The word gospel, which we tend to think of in purely 'religious'terms, had a wider significance in the Roman world. It was the wordused to describe the announcement of a new emperor, or 'Lord'. SoPaul's mission was likely to upset both Jews (who believedthat they were the people of God) andthe Roman authorities (who would not welcome a rival 'Lord').

Paul addressed his letter to "all God's beloved in Rome", anaudience that included both Jewish and Gentile Christians, or"saints" (holy people) as Paul preferred to call them. The rest ofthe letter explores the issues that his opening words raised: ifGod had raised Jesus from the dead, and so declared him to be "Sonof God", then something extraordinary had happened that hadimplications for the whole of creation, and this challenged bothJewish and Gentile ways of looking at the world. And it stillchallenges us today.

To Ponder

What do you tend to think of when you hear theword 'gospel'?

What might be the political implications ofcalling Jesus 'Lord' today?

How does God raising Jesus from the dead 2000years ago challenge our way of looking at the world today?