Sovereign Grace Chapel, located
at 135 Annabel Lane in Beaver, West Virginia, invites you to
listen to a gospel message concerning Jesus Christ our Lord. If you'd like to follow along,
please turn to Romans chapter one. Romans chapter one. I kind of got this in my head
the other day, and since Walter's on Romans 10 now, I figure this
is safe. And he's not here, so he can't
stop me. That's all right. Romans chapter one, I'm just
gonna read the first verse. Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ,
called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God. My title is going to be today,
Separated Unto the Gospel. Separated Unto the Gospel. Before I get started, I'm gonna
read you a quote here from Charles Spurgeon that I liked. Most true is the gospel, for
God is its author. Believe it. Most able is the
savior, for he is the son of God. Trust him. Most powerful is his precious
blood. Look to it for pardon. Most loving
is his gracious heart, run to him at once. I like that. I like that. That's pretty good.
But Paul here, this is the introduction, just the salutation of his letter
to the Romans. Paul wrote this. And he writes, Paul, a servant
of Jesus Christ. The one thing you can notice
about Paul is he did not give himself a title. And if you've noticed, men love
titles. Just talk to somebody who is
a doctor, but don't call him doctor, call him mister, and
you'll find out. Call me Dr. Thomas or Smith or
whatever, it doesn't matter. Call me major, commissioner,
president, vice president, preacher, reverend, oh, wait a minute,
the right reverend. Not to be confused with the wrong
reverend, the right reverend. or bishop, or cardinal, or even
pope. Men will get mad at you for not
addressing them by their title. But Paul didn't take one. He
just wrote this letter. Paul. Paul, a servant. Understand, men's self-esteem
and self-image will be hurt by you not remembering to address
them by their correct title. And here's Paul, just think of
it. Now if you look at the other
epistles, you'll see every one of them starts out the same way.
Paul, Paul, Paul, and then one couple of, Paul and Timotheus.
Doesn't give himself a title, doesn't give himself a title.
And this is the man, this is Paul. He used to be Saul of Tarsus,
one of the greatest enemies of the church, that's what he called
himself. And the one, this one, Saul of Tarsus, who was stopped
on the road to Damascus by Christ himself, knocked him off his
donkey, blinded him, blinded him. He was traveling at that
time for the reason of to cause mayhem for the church. He was
headed to Damascus. He had letters in his possession
from Jews in Jerusalem that said that he could put people in jail.
And they'd stand behind him for naming the name of Christ. And
yet this one was stopped on the road by Christ personally. And this man's name was changed
from Saul to Paul by Christ. This man. Doesn't give himself
a title. He just says Paul. I'm just Paul. Oh, I like this. He was taught the gospel by Jesus
Christ himself. And I'm gonna tell you this,
possibly, which I think it's probably, became the greatest
preacher of all time. Paul, the apostle. We call him
the Apostle Paul. He didn't call himself that.
but we do call him, and he says he's an apostle, we'll get to
that in a minute. But this man did not say, call me Reverend
Paul, call me Dr. Paul. He stated first and foremost,
what does he say here in this salutation to the church at Rome,
this is what he says, I'm a servant. I'm a servant, you understand? First and foremost, I am a servant. And that word is slave. And that
word means bond slave. He was a slave out of love, not
because of being forced. You understand? Paul wanted to
be a servant of Christ. That's where he wanted to be.
And his number one job, as far as he saw it, was to be a servant. And not only that, a servant
of Jesus Christ. Oh, I like that. That's where
he wanted to be. That's what he said he was. Didn't
take a title, didn't put on airs. Now, he wrote with a vengeance
sometimes. You read those letters to the
Corinthians, you understand there was some correction being applied
and being said to be warranted, and it was. But you understand,
he did not take on a title. He did not want a title. He wanted
to be the best servant of Jesus Christ that there was. That's
what he wanted. But then he does say this. Called
to be an apostle. Called to be an apostle. Understand
Paul considered being a bondservant of Christ recognition enough
and Fit credentials to entitle him to be heard, but he did add. I'm called to be an apostle I'm
called to because here's the thing Paul didn't take this responsibility
on himself. He was called to be an apostle
He was called by the Lord Jesus Christ. He's stating that God
put me in this ministry and entrusted this gospel to me. The gospel
that he gave me. Gave me the responsibility of
preaching this gospel. And Paul did know the office
that Christ had given to him. I'm an apostle, I'm an apostle.
He told the other apostles at Jerusalem that Jesus had sent
him to the Gentiles, just as Peter had been sent to the Jews. He was sent to the Gentiles as
an apostle, called to be an apostle. And Peter even joined Paul one
time in Antioch. There was some dissension there.
And Paul wrote it in the letter to Galatians, when he said Peter
joined them in Antioch, and Paul said he withstood Peter to the
face because he was to be blamed. There was certain came from Jerusalem,
and Peter withdrew himself from the Gentiles with whom he had
been fellowshipping, with the apostle Paul, and went to the
Jews. And not only that, Others were
carried away. Now you understand, you read
the scriptures in Galatians, it says it was carried away with
his dissimulation. You know what that word means?
Hypocrisy. That's what the word means, hypocrisy.
Peter had stood up for Paul in Jerusalem and said, you know
by my voice, talking about Cornelius, The Gentiles have been receiving
the gospel by faith, just like the Jews. But then when these
came, Peter was carried away, even so much that Barnabas was
carried away with his dissimulation. And Paul said, I withstood him
to the face. Why? Because he was to be blamed.
Why was he to be blamed? Because Peter knew better. He
knew better. But this is the man that's writing
this letter. And this is what he says. I'm
a servant of Jesus Christ and called to be an apostle. I'm
gonna tell you this. The gospel is for both Jew and
Gentile. And there is to be no division
between the two. If you believe Christ, you're
my brother or my sister in Christ. You're part of the family of
God. You're part of the church, the assembly of Jesus Christ,
his body. There is no difference. The fellowship
in the gospel is for both Jew and Gentile. And Paul was called
by Jesus Christ himself to be an apostle. What's that mean? God made him an apostle. He didn't
take it upon himself. He didn't take credit for it.
And then he says these very, very profound words here. Separated unto the gospel of
God. Separated. I'm not gonna keep
you long. I got a bunch of list here, but
it's nothing that's gonna take very long. But I do wanna say
this. I love how this, separated unto
the gospel of God. Of God. Are you ready? It's called the gospel of God.
It's called the gospel of his son. It's called the gospel of
Christ. It's called the gospel of peace.
It's called, and I like this one especially, the gospel of
your salvation. Oh, I like that one. It's called
the gospel of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Paul also calls it one
place, my gospel. Oh, I like that. Then he also
calls it our gospel. The gospel, Christ's gospel,
and the glorious gospel of the blessed God. Now that one's good
too. But here, if you look at this,
where he says Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be
an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, Jump across the
parentheses in verse two. Concerning his son, Jesus Christ
our Lord. That's the gospel of God. You
understand? The gospel of God is concerning
our Lord, Jesus Christ. The son of God, the son of God. Oh, I like that. Let me tell
you how important the word gospel is to the Apostle Paul. If you
look at his thing, now I did it on the computer the easy way.
In the New Testament, the word gospel is used 104 times. 76 of those are written by the
Apostle Paul. That leaves 28 outside of Paul's
epistle. And I can tell you this, I didn't
count them up to be sure, but some of those 28 extra ones not
written by the Apostle Paul were in the book of Acts where Luke
was writing down about Peter and Barnabas and preaching the
gospel. So understand, I mean, I know,
you know, numbers do mean things, but you can tell from some of
these things as often as this Paul was separated unto the gospel. The gospel was his main focus.
The gospel of Jesus Christ, the gospel of God concerning his
son. The gospel of your salvation. Oh, I like
that, I like that. Because even with all those names,
and I didn't count them, the gospel of God, the gospel of
peace, the gospel of Christ, it's one gospel. It's only one
gospel. Our gospel is one gospel. My
gospel is one gospel. The gospel of peace is the same
as the gospel of Christ. The gospel of God concerning
his son is the same as what? The glorious gospel of the blessed
God. There's only one gospel. And
Paul told the Corinthians that he was sent to preach the gospel. 1 Corinthians 1 and verse 17
put it this way. For Christ sent me not to baptize,
but to preach the gospel. Not with wisdom of words, lest
the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. Paul, let's
just say it, that's a perfect thing. Paul was not sent to baptize. What's that mean? Baptism is
not the gospel. Baptism is the answer of a good
conscience toward God. Baptism is an ordinance. Ah,
it's not the gospel. And I'm sorry to you people who
go to the Church of Christ, that's your problem, not the scriptures.
That's just the way it is. You understand, Paul said, for
Christ sent me not to baptize. That's what he says. But what's
it mean? But Christ sent me to preach
the gospel. He was separated unto the gospel
of God. Oh, I like that. Matter of fact, and just for
clarity's sake, three verses before that, he said, I thank
God I baptized none of you. That's what he said. And you
know what, Mac? I think that's what he meant.
I thank God I didn't baptize none of you. Otherwise, you'd
say I'd be baptizing under my own name. Paul was not against
baptism. I am not against baptism as an
ordinance, as a public confession that you believe Christ, that
you believe his gospel, the gospel. But no, it's not necessary for
salvation. And Paul was sent to preach the
gospel, the gospel. Oh, I like that. What's that
mean? Well, I want to tell you this
one thing. To be separated unto the gospel of God is to be sent
to preach the gospel of God. Oh, I like that. Oh, my. Paul preached the gospel of God
to the Jews. Paul preached the gospel of God
to the Gentiles. Paul preached the gospel of God
to the heathen in Athens. He got up and preached the message
to the unknown God. This is the one that I will tell
you about right now, because why? You don't know him. It's
the gospel of God. You've got a statue out here
that says to the unknown God, just in case they missed one.
They had statues of, I'm sure, Diana, the great goddess of the
Ephesians. Oh, you know, they had statues
of Zeus and Hera and whoever else was in the Greek pantheon,
Hephaestus. That's a good word, ain't it?
In the Romans, it's Vulcan. Doesn't matter. But he said,
I see you people are too superstitious. You see a god everywhere and
then you put up one for an unknown god. That's the one I want to
preach to you. And what did he preach? He preached
Jesus Christ. He preached the gospel at Athens. And they said, maybe we'll hear
something about this later. You're a little bit too far out
there for us. Oh my. You understand, he was separated
unto the gospel. He preached it to the Gentiles
at Athens, Corinth, Ephesus, Thessalonica, et cetera. He preached it wherever he was.
As was his habit, you'll read in Acts. They'd go to the synagogue
if there was one in the new town. And then wherever he went that
he met Lydia, he went down to the river where prayer was wont
to be made. And what did he do? He preached
the gospel of God. He was separated unto the gospel. That's why he traveled, that's
why he went where he was, where he went, that's it. He went to preach the gospel,
the gospel of God. And the gospel is Jesus Christ,
our Lord. Christ's life, Christ's love,
Christ's obedience, Christ's crucifixion and death, Christ's
resurrection, Christ's ascension, and Christ's intercession. He put in 1 Corinthians 1 again,
verse 23, but we preach Christ crucified. Oh, under the Jews,
a stumbling block. Under the Jews, a stumbling block. And to the Greeks, foolishness. Foolishness. But, and this is
one of them great buts. unto them which are called. Both, Jew and Gentile. Jew and Gentile, Jews and Greeks,
Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Paul was separated
unto the gospel of God. Oh, the gospel is good news. That's literally what it means.
The gospel, the good news is the same. Jesus Christ died for
the ungodly. Jesus Christ came to save sinners. That's good news. That's good
news. Oh my. The gospel, the good news,
he died for the ungodly and he brings them to himself. To himself. Because he has, past
tense, redeemed them to God. Oh, I like that too. He is calling
them to himself. He says, come unto me. All ye
that labor and are heavy laden, and I, I will give you rest. Oh, that's good news. There's rest for those who labor. There's rest for those who are
weary with sin and guilt and their own self. Oh, sinners,
sinners. As Walter is fond of saying,
even ungodly sinners, especially ungodly sinners. Oh, I like that. He died for the ungodly. Is that
you? Do you qualify? You understand,
that's the whole thing. He says, come, but he says, come
all ye that labor and are heavy laden. Are you weary within from the
burden of your sin? If you're not, he's not talking
to you. Oh my. But if you are, he says come
and I'll give you rest. Come, the gospel is good news
to the sinner. And here it is, I will give you
rest. And those that hear his voice
to those whom he has given circumcised ears and a circumcised heart,
they'll hear. They'll hear. Oh, and they'll
come. They will come. Oh, I like that.
Matter of fact, Paul just stated a few verses later, in 1 Corinthians
2 and verse 2, for I determine not to know anything among you
save Jesus Christ and him crucified. Paul was separated unto the gospel. The gospel was his main concern
and preaching it. I was sent by Christ to preach
his gospel. Okay, bug. Sorry. Anyhow, where was I at? Oh, Paul was separated under
the gospel of God because the gospel is the message of God,
the message of Jesus Christ. Oh, to those that are called,
Christ is the power of God and Christ is the wisdom of God.
To those who have ears to hear, Christ is our wisdom and our
righteousness and our sanctification and our redemption. He is wisdom
and righteousness and sanctification and redemption to us. And before that it says, but
of God are ye in Christ Jesus. Oh my, and he has made that unto
us. Oh, I like that, I do. To those
that have eternal life, Jesus Christ is the light that shines
all the time. To those that have been given
faith, Christ is the gracious, sovereign Lord of glory. Oh, I like that. He is a just
God. and a savior. Oh, let's see. To those who know the scripture,
Jesus Christ is the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and Noah
and Enoch and Daniel and David and Matthew, Mark, Luke, John
and Paul. There is no Old Testament God
and a New Testament God. I know a lot of people have that
division in their heads. They're wrong. There is only
one God. There's only one Lord among men
who saves sinners. That's Jesus Christ, it always
has been. Oh, oh my. To those who know the scripture,
Jesus Christ is our great high priest. Christ is the King of kings and
the Lord of lords. To those who believe him, Jesus
Christ is the way and the truth and the life. He's that narrow
way. Broad is the way that leadeth
to destruction, and many there be that go on it, but narrow
is the way, straight is the gate, and narrow is the way, what?
That leadeth to eternal life. He is that way, he is that way. Oh my, no man cometh to the Father
except by him. By him, what's that? That's the
gospel, that's the gospel. Excuse me. He's the way, the
truth, and the life, and no man comes to God except by him. And those given to Christ by
the Father shall come unto him.