“Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,)” Romans 1:1-2

The Apostle Paul typically opens each of his letters with the pattern we find in the Roman letter. He states who he is, to whom he is writing, and then gives some form of prayer or thanksgiving for his recipients. While these openings may seem generic, they are far from repetitive.

Paul will very often give hints to the content of the letter by the way he addresses his title or position. In this case, he tells us what Jesus assigned to him to do. He has been “separated unto the gospel of God.” This means that Jesus called him into this position. It was not self-appointed. Since he is separated for this job, this means he must devote his life’s energy and focus to fulfilling this task. Further, we see that the gospel that he is to proclaim is not his own, it is God’s. Paul did not have the liberty to change or altar the message that God would have him deliver, and neither does any other minister of the gospel.

By telling us that his primary job in life is to preach the gospel, Paul has also given us a huge hint of the content of the letter. His focus is going to be on the good news of the finished work of Jesus Christ. 

As we go through this letter we should hold it in the highest regard as the perfect systematic theology that it is. It is God-spoken. What Paul will say about the character of men, the sovereignty of God, and in particular the gospel of Jesus Christ is to be taken as the final authority.

As Paul will later state, the gospel of Jesus Christ is “the power of God unto salvation,” but we must not take that statement out of context and run in our doctrine with it. Paul states for us in these opening verses that this gospel not only belongs to God it about God.  It describes the work that God has done through Jesus Christ for fallen men.

Therefore, the gospel is not a recipe to get people to heaven. It is the good news of what God has done through Jesus Christ to save His people from their sins.

The gospel is not a proposition – it is a declaration!