Wednesday, December 9, 2020

Paul's letter to the Romans 1:8-15 comments: Paul's mission

 

Romans 1:8 ¶  First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. 9  For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers; 10  Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you. 11  For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established; 12  That is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. 13  Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles. 14  I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise. 15  So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.

 

Here is an important point for Biblical understanding. When Paul says your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world in these early days of Christianity he cannot mean the entire earth as common sense tells us that Christ has not been preached in Tierra del Fuego or Lappland yet, at least not by human beings. When ancient Roman era writers writing in the Roman Empire and environs spoke of the whole world or earth they were referring to the world in which they existed and lived, the Mediterranean world. Keep this in mind when reading things like Revelation.

 

Paul serves God with his spirit, lowercase s.

 

The Spirit, uppercase S, is the mind and heart of God just as the spirit (lowercase s) of man includes the heart, reason, emotions, intellect, and talents. For contexts where the Spirit of God or the spirit of man can be synonymous with mind please see the following;

 

Romans 8:27  And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

 

1Corinthians 2:9  But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. 10  But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. 11  For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. 12  Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. 13  Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14  But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15  But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. 16  For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.

 

Ephesians 4:23  And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;

 

Philippians 1:27  Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;

 

2Timothy 1:7  For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

 

            Now for the heart, and we must understand that all of our decisions include our invisible minds and hearts. Here are just a couple of examples.

 

Exodus 35:21  And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the LORD’S offering to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation, and for all his service, and for the holy garments.

 

Deuteronomy 2:30  But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him: for the LORD thy God hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into thy hand, as appeareth this day.

 

Our spirit includes the talents and abilities God has given us.

 

 

See Exodus 31:1 ¶  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2  See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: 3  And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, 4  To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, 5  And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship. 6  And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan: and in the hearts of all that are wise hearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee; 7  The tabernacle of the congregation, and the ark of the testimony, and the mercy seat that is thereupon, and all the furniture of the tabernacle, 8  And the table and his furniture, and the pure candlestick with all his furniture, and the altar of incense, 9  And the altar of burnt offering with all his furniture, and the laver and his foot, 10  And the cloths of service, and the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, to minister in the priest’s office, 11  And the anointing oil, and sweet incense for the holy place: according to all that I have

commanded thee shall they do.

 

In Old English there was no distinction between uppercase and lowercase. By Middle English whether to capitalize the first letter was inconsistent, I have read. By the time of the KJV, called Early Modern English, capitalization of proper names and nouns had become more standard. See Shakespeare’s use of capitalization. So, at the time of this translation uppercase and lowercase had begun to mean something. Notice here that the word spirit starts with a lowercase ‘s’. In a prophecy of Christ in Isaiah it is written;

 

Isaiah 11:1 ¶  And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: 2  And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD; 3  And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: 4  But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.

 

The spirit with the lowercase ‘s’ is a reference to a trait, a quality, a skill, an emotion, the foundation of an ability, or the spirit of man, the part of man that God uses to know our thoughts and the function of our bodies.

 

Proverbs 20:27  The spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, searching all the inward parts of the belly.

 

Verse 13 says;

 

13  Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles.

 

Let is an interesting word in Early Modern English. We think of let as giving permission, allowing, or permitting but the context can give it opposite meanings. One meaning of Let, from the Old English Lettan was to hinder, obstruct, or impede.

 

Here are the two different meanings in the context of the Bible. Verse 13 is prevented from. In the following it is also prevented or held back temporarily.

 

2Thessalonians 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.

 

And here to permit or allow;

 

1Timothy 3:12  Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.

 

1Timothy 4:12  Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.

 

In 1:14 Paul makes a comparison between Greek and non-Greek, every one of which not in the Greek culture or speaking the Greek language they called barbarian. He speaks also of the wise and the unwise. Paul is stating that his ministry to the Gentiles is a debt he owes, something he is compelled to perform and he is glad to do it. Not only to the groups he has mentioned but to those at Rome as well he will preach the gospel, if at all possible.

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