The Book of Romans #2
November 9, 1997
(Romans 1:1 Being called is being Separated unto the Gospel)
Brian Kocourek
[Romans 1:1] Paul, a
servant of Jesus Christ, called [to be] an apostle, separated unto the gospel
of God, 2 (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the Holy Scriptures,)
Last Sunday we
began our new series on the Book of Romans at verse one with PaulÆs opening
statement where he introduced himself to the saints at Rome. In his
introduction in verse one, Paul laid out three specific points that we began to
examine.
#1) He begins by telling us that he is a servant of Jesus
Christ. There are many different duties that servants may do, but a servant is
not a slave, because although a slave may be put to the same task as that of a
servant, yet the difference lies in the fact that a slave is a servant against
his own will. On the other hand, a servant is a servant based upon free will.
Therefore, Paul was a servant because he decided to serve, and to do so
correctly he had to lay down his own ideas of what sort of service he would
render. Therefore, we find in point #2), that Paul defines what his servant
duties as that of an apostle. And he further tells us that he is an apostle
because he was called to be an apostle. Therefore, the choice of what his
service is to be is not of his own choosing.
Another interesting thing about this being called to be an
apostle is that this calling that he speaks of is not just a general call for
help and Paul decided that he would answer that call. But the word call here
suggests more than a mere invitation. It also speaks of a divine selection and
appointment. If you will remember, it was not Paul seeking Christ, but it was
Christ who sought out Paul. Paul was out trying to destroy the very workings of
the early church that Jesus had established. And when Paul was on the road to
Damascus where he intended to arrest the believers that were there, he met the
Lord Jesus Christ in the form of the Pillar of Fire. It was at this meeting that Paul was knocked off his high horse
and given instructions as to how he was to go about his ministry as a servant
of the Lord Jesus Christ doing the work of an Apostle.
Therefore, we can safely say that this calling has to do
with a pre-selection. It was not just a call that went forth and whosoever
comes, let him come. But it was a direct call to one individual, (Paul), and
therefore we can say that this call was part of the divine selection and
appointment that came forth from God Himself.
In [Romans 8:28] we hear Paul use the term, ôThe Calledö
when he is speaking of a specific group of people. ôAnd we know that all things
work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called
according to [his] purpose. Now, the
key here is to find out who this specific group of people are. The scripture
here tells us that these people are ôThe Calledö. And the qualifier is ôaccording to His Purposeö. Now what is the purpose of God? Can anyone
tell me? ___?___. Then can anyone tell me what the purpose of God sending forth
His Son into the world was? In other words, what is the purpose of the Son?
___?___.
We know God has a purpose that purposed in His Son Jesus
Christ. In [Ephesians 3:11] we read,
ôTo make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery,
which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all
things by Jesus Christ: To the intent that now unto the principalities and
powers in heavenly places might be made known by the church the manifold wisdom
of God, according to the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our
Lord:ö
Therefore we see that Paul speaks to us of God having a
purpose and that purpose was placed in the embodiment of His Son. We are told
what that purpose is in [1 John 3:8]. For this purpose the Son of God was
manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. So we see, then that this class of people
whom Paul describes as The Called, has
been called with a purpose in mind. Therefore, there is a connection between
their being called and being predestinated to receive that calling. 29 to them
who are the called according to [his] purpose. Now, watch here as we are told
what that purpose is. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate [to
be] conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among
many brethren. 30 Moreover, whom he did
predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called them he also justified:
and whom he justified them he also glorified.
Now this brings us to the third point that Paul makes in his opening address
in this epistle. And with this third point I would like to focus our attention
this morning.
The Book of Romans #2
Point #3) Paul tells us that with his being called, he has
been separated unto the gospel of God. Now, let’s begin our study this morning
by examining this statement that Paul uses to open this epistle to the Saints
at Rome. He says, Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called [to be] an apostle,
separated unto the gospel of God.
Called and Separated unto the Gospel of God.
Now, we have already examined what it means to be called. We
know that this being called is directly tied together with being divinely
selected and ordained to a certain position or place. But notice with this call
there comes a separation as well. You can not be called to the Gospel of God
without your being separated unto It as
well. Then what does it mean to be separated unto the Gospel, and why does Paul
speak of separation within the very first few words that he addresses to the
saints at Rome and to us whom God intended to read this Epistle. You know that is a very good question.
Most people in this Message have yet to fully understand
what the word separation means. There is a great move going on amongst those
who claim to be the mainstream message goers, of Evangelism. They claim that we
should open our pulpits to whosoever feels that they have a call to preach the
Gospel. And yet when it comes right down to it, they will have nothing to do
with those who believe that Christ is here. Yet they have opened their pulpits
to every sort of trash that is imaginable under the guise of preaching the Message, and as a result the
Faith of the people has ebbed to such a low degree that most do not really know
what the message is anymore. And when
they see that we, (those of us who associate with Brother Vayle), are very
careful as to who we have in our pulpit. And because we will not have their
super apostles into our pulpits, we are called separators as though the word
separation is a bad word.
But what does the Word of God tell us about separation. Is
it a good thing or is it a bad thing? Because, frankly, I am not interested for
one minute what anyone else thinks, but what the Word of God says. So let’s
look into this subject this morning on separation, because after all we hear
Paul introduce himself as one who has been separated unto the Gospel of God,
and he doesn’t say this bashfully as though he has committed some sin in doing
so. But, rather, Paul speaks of his separation in the same breathe as he speaks
of his calling, and therefore being called by an holy calling, he is also asked
to separate himself from anything which would be contrary to that call.
In [Matthew 25:32]
we read, And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate
them one from another, as a shepherd divideth [his] sheep from the goats:
Notice, in this scripture we see that it is the Lord Himself that is
responsible for this separation that will take place, and notice the separation
comes forth as one, a shepherd, who purposely separates his sheep from what he
thinks to be goats. Branham used to quote the church as singing this song, From
the sermon called Elijah that he preached in 1955, he said, Church all let down the bars, they all sing:
"They let down the bars; we compromised with sin. We let down the bars,
the sheep got out but, how did the goats get in?" You just let down the
bars, that's what it was. You let down the standards of Christianity. Amen. The
devil might've went out of fashions but he hasn't went out of business yet.
He's still in the business.
From the sermon, "Hear Ye Him" he said, See?
What's the trouble: they let down the bars, the old fashion standard of the
Holy Ghost that leads the church and guides it into all truth. Now, that's the
truth. That might be old fashion; it might hurt a little bit. And from a
message that Brother Branham preached when he visited brother Vayle’s church in
West Palm Beach, FL, in 53-1130 entitled, Has the Lord spoken only
to Moses? he said, ôthey used to sing a little song, "We let down the
bars; we let the bars; we compromised with sin. We let down the bars; the sheep
got out; but how did the goats get in?" You let down the bars, that's why
the goats got in. exactly. You begin
to take in anything in the church. Which reminds me of what God said in the
Book of [Malachi 1:7-10] A son honors his father, and a servant his
master. If I am a father, where is the honor that is due me? If I am a master,
where is the respect that is due me? Says the Lord Almighty. It is you, O priests,
who show contempt for my name. But you ask, æHow have we shown contempt for
your name? By saying that the Lord’s table is contemptible. When you bring a
blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice crippled or
diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would
he be pleased with you? Would he accept you? Says the Lord Almighty. Now
implore God to be gracious to us. With such offerings from your hands, will He
accept you? Says the Lord Almighty.
The Book of Romans #2
November 9, 1997
(Romans 1:1 Being called is being Separated unto the Gospel)
Now, I want you to listen closely to the next words the Lord
says here. Oh that there were one among you whose duty it is to minister to Me,
who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on My altar to no
purpose, (an empty futile, fruitless pretense)! I have no pleasure in you,
says the Lord of Hosts nor will I
accept an offering from your hands. God is a jealous God and He has strict
laws for worship, and that is this. They that worship God must worship Him in
Spirit and Truth. And how can we be so low as to just allow anything to be
preached from this table of the Lord. God holds us responsible. Therefore, God
loves separation. Look at what God did the very first time he spoke. He said,
let there be light and then he separated the Light from the darkness. Then the
very next time God spoke He separated the waters from above from the waters
from below. Look how discriminating God is? First Light from darkness and then
an even finer separation of waters from waters.
Then at the first Exodus when God was calling His people out
of Egypt, God was there to ensure that the separation that He called them to
would be accomplished. Pharaoh didnÆt
want separation, so he went after them when they did. But what did God do? He
sent His Pillar of Fire down and got in between them so that they could not
unite. Hallelujah. God wants separation. Paul a servant of our Lord Jesus
Christ called and separated unto the Gospel of God.
227 Demonology
The church is all polluted, and
the Pentecostal age is the Laodicean age, which gets lukewarm, and spurted out
of God's mouth. And out of the whole group, God calls His remnant and takes her
home
[Acts 13: 2] As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the
Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have
called them. God called them and told them to separate themselves from the
others.
[II Corinthians 6: 17] Wherefore
come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the
unclean [thing]; and I will receive you, What is the unclean thing? It’s unbelief, Unbelief in what? The Message
of the hour. And what is the Message of the hour? He said, My ministry is to
declare Him that He is Here! Therefore
anything outside of this teaching of ChristÆs presence among us is unbelief.
E-49 Eagle Stirs Her
Nest "Come out of that stuff. Come out from among them; be ye
separated, saith God. Touch not the unclean thing, and I'll receive you. You'll
be sons and daughters to Me, and I be God to you. Don't yoke yourself up with
unbelievers, but come out of it." If there ever was a coming out time, it
ought to be right now
E-44 Jehovah
Jireh Anything that's contrary to God's Word, separate yourself from it.
Don't care what it is. Come out from among them. Touch not their unclean thing.
That's good sound sense, spiritual speaking, understanding. The Bible said so,
"Come out from among them. Touch not their unclean things; I'll receive
you." Can't bring the world, He just won't do it. No, sir. When you're
circumcised, the world's cut off of you. That's right. Then you're Abraham's
seed. God has recognized His promise
like He did with Abraham, circumcised him. And that's the same thing it is when
God recognizes your faith, and He cuts the world off of you, and give you the
Holy Ghost, and you really believe God then for whatever He says. That's right.
Until then, you're just a professor, not a possessor.
E-64 Faithful Abraham Now, God wants separators.
Now, the people wants mixers. Oh, my. Today they got to have a little Hollywood
guy, you know, and, you know, and all this, and there has got a lot of flowers,
and just color up. They don't want the old fashion preacher that lays it right
on the hewing line. They won't have it. He's a fanatic. He's a holy-roller.
That's what they want. They want mixers, somebody that'll go swimming with
them, and somebody will play bunco with them, and somebody will go to dances,
and not fanatics. See, they don't want that. But God wants separators. Separate
yourself. The very word "church" means, "separated, called
out." "Come out from among them," saith God, "and I'll
receive you and touch not their unclean thing.
Separators... Oh, Christians. Separate yourself from everything of the
world, brother, sister. Get away from the things of the world: separate. Then what about the preachers that try to
act like the denominational preachers. What about the smooth guys that are so
politically correct in their delivery.
The Book of Romans #2
Now, when God called Paul to be His servant, He also called
Paul to separate himself from everything that was contrary to that calling.
Brother Branham said, in the message E-47
ôFrom That Timeö Abraham had to separate himself from all the
unbelief. And that's what God calls to
every man or woman. When He meets you, and forgives your sins, and calls you to
be His servant, He expects you to separate yourself from all unbelief. Disassociate
yourself from all things that's ungodly. Look not at the world. Come out from
among the world. "Touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you,
saith the Lord. And you'll be My sons and daughters, and I'll be God to
you." Yeah. Come out from among
unbelief. Separate yourself. Segregation. God is a segregationalist. Called
Israel out. He called His people out. He calls His... The very word Church
means called out.
[Romans 1:1] Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called [to be]
an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, 2 (Which he had promised afore by
his prophets in the Holy Scriptures,).
Notice, Paul tells us in verse two that this promise of our
being called and separated untot he Gospel of God is not a new thing, but the
promise had been made by God through His Prophets aforetime. That means before.
The promise which was made before. Now, we have already shown you how that God
has always called for separation from unbelief. God did it in the days of
Moses. He did it is the days of Paul. HeÆs doing it again in this hour under the same circumstances,
where He has come down in the form of the Pillar of Fire and has performed the
very same things in this hour that He has done in the first and second Exoduses,
proving that He is the same yesterday,
today and forever.
And each time He came, He expected those who believed in
that coming to separate themselves from the rest of the church world. That is
why I do not consider whether a person claims to believe this message or not. I
look at what he or she really believes. Are they just a Pentecostal person who
has added another notch to their belt with a few more doctrines. Or are they
truly sold out to God, Lock, stock and barrel. It this message to them, Live,
die, sink or swim? Or is it just a nice social club.
To Daniel it was a live or die situation. To Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego it was the same. They said, whether our God delivers us or
not we still wonÆt bow down and serve your idols. [Daniel 3:14-25]
Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, [Is it] true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have
set up? Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet,
flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall
down and worship the image which I have made; [well]: but if ye worship not, ye
shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who
[is] that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? Shadrach, Meshach, and
Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we [are] not careful
to answer thee in this matter. If it be [so], our God whom we serve is able to
deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver [us] out of
thine hand, O king. But if not, be it
known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the
golden image which thou hast set up.
Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his
visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: [therefore] he
spake, and commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more
than it was wont to be heated. And he commanded the most mighty men that [were]
in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, [and] to cast [them] into
the burning fiery furnace. Then these men were bound in their coats, their
hosen, and their hats, and their [other] garments, and were cast into the midst
of the burning fiery furnace. Therefore because the king's commandment was
urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire slew those men
that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And these three men, Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into
the midst of the burning fiery furnace. Then Nebuchadnezzar
the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, [and] spake, and said unto his
counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They
answered and said unto the king, True, O king. He answered and said, Lo, I see
four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and
the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.