GOD'S NEW WORLD, DAY 4 (new covenant, new family)

 

“Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for

the gospel of God…the gospel concerning his Son…Jesus Christ our Lord… 

I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 

For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, “The one who is righteous will live by faith.” (Romans 1.1-4, 16-17) 

     There can be no doubt about it – Paul’s letter to the Romans is concerned with one thing – the gospel.  As we shall see, as he writes to the Christians of the imperial capital, Paul is concerned especially with how the gospel is to be both understood and lived out in community – one composed of both Jews and Greeks (Gentiles).  The communities of Jesus-followers which were scattered throughout the Eastern end of the Roman empire were a unique phenomenon in the history of the world.  That is to say, a first-century local “church” – a community where ethnic, social and gender divisions were not the defining factor – was an unprecedented phenomenon.  There were indeed many “social clubs” in the first century – all of which were defined by something all the members had in common, whether that be the same profession, social class, or the same mystery-cult of some divinity (e.g., Mithras).  But for communities composed of both men and women, rich and poor, educated and uneducated, and yes, both Jew and Gentile – this was unheard of.  And it created many challenging situations, many of which are addressed by Paul in his letters (e.g. Rom. 14-15).

     Paul opens the introduction to his letter by describing the essence of his gospel – it is God’s “good news” concerning his son who was a descendant of David (1.3).  This is crucial – the Son of God is also the “son” of David.  In 2 Sam. 7.1-17, God had promised David that one of his descendants would always rule over God’s people, forever.  Moreover, God promised to be a “father” to the original son of David, Solomon (2 Sam. 7.12-14).  Therefore, David’s son was also God’s son.  So, for Paul to call Jesus both the Son of God and a “son” of David is for Paul to say one thing about Jesus – he is Israel’s anointed king, i.e., Messiah – the long-awaited Davidic king who would save the people of God and establish God’s kingdom “on earth as in heaven” (cf. Mt. 6.10).  The Scriptures of Israel were clear – the king of Israel was destined not only to reign over the people of God, but also over all the nations (Ps. 2.7-9; Zech. 9.9-10; Dn. 7.13-14; Ps. 110.1).  This is why Paul is keen to point out that “through Jesus we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles…including yourselves who are called to belong to Jesus Christ” (Rom. 1.5-6).  As far as Paul was concerned, the mission to proclaim the gospel to non-Jews was part and parcel of the biblical message about Israel’s Messiah, the Son of God.

     Paul declares that “in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed” (1.17).  The “righteousness of God” is an important theme in this letter.  Much ink has been spilled over the centuries in countless attempts to articulate precisely what this expression means, and there are no signs of a scholarly consensus emerging.  However, among those things that are beyond dispute is the fact that the expression is prominent in the Hebrew Scriptures, and its meaning there must be near the heart of what Paul – a deeply biblical person – meant by it.  In the Psalms and the Prophets, “the righteousness of God” refers to an attribute of God – that of his faithfulness to his covenant promises to his people Israel (e.g. Ps. 98.2; 103.6; Is. 45.23; 46.13).  In the Scriptures, for God to declare someone “righteous” meant that God declared them to be a member of his covenant people (cf. Gn. 15.6).  As Paul will spell out in great detail in chapter 4, this all began with Abraham, when he “believed” God’s promise to give him countless descendants, and in return, God “reckoned it to him as righteousness”.  The descriptions of God establishing his covenant with Abraham are found in Genesis chapters 12, 15, and 17.  In several places, Paul claims that the inclusion of Gentiles into the people of God is the definitive fulfillment of God’s covenant promises to Abraham (e.g. Rom. 4.13; Gal. 3.14, etc.) and Isaac and Jacob, etc.  Christ had provided the means for all the nations to be integrated into the covenant-people of Yahweh, and thus Gentiles who have faith in Jesus become “descendants of Abraham” (cf. Rom. 4.11-12).  In Gn. 12.3, God had promised Abraham that “all the nations” would be blessed through him.  Now, claims Paul, that promise has come true as the gospel is proclaimed to Gentiles and as many join the community of Jesus-followers, the renewed people of God, the people of the new covenant.  This is radical at every level – theological, social, and political.  As Paul says, the gospel is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith” (Rom. 1.16).  Paul is proclaiming a new world, one where everyone – Jew and Greek – is welcome to belong to the one creator God who promised a worldwide family to Abraham so long ago… a family that would be the centerpiece of a new creation (cf. Rom. 4.13).