Page 8 - Romans Student Textbook.doc

Places

Where is the Author when he
writes this letter? How could his
location influence what he has to
say?

Paul’s location when he wrote this
letter is revealed in his
commendation of Phoebe. He is
being hosted by the church in
Cenchreae that met in the home of
its pastor Gaius. Cenchreae is a
suburb of Corinth which is a place
where Paul reasoned and taught
God’s word for a year and a half. 15
From the letters that Paul wrote
back to the churches in this area
after he moved on to other places,
we find that the same type of
16
problems that they were experiencing in Rome — specifically dividing into factions — were the
problems that the churches in Corinth were going through. Much of what Paul writes to the Roman
churches he has already taught to the churches in Corinth. Paul was writing to the Roman churches
about a problem that he had experience in addressing in other locations where he had planted
churches. The things that those churches and Paul had experienced in dealing with those problems
added a level of urgency to what he has to say to the Roman churches in this letter

Where are the recipients of the letter? How would their location impact their reception of the message
of this letter?

The common dictum of the day was “All roads lead to Rome.” Paul addressed this letter to
believers who were part of local churches scattered around the city of Rome. Paul gives the
letters address this way, “To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace
to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” 18 Rome was the capital of the
Roman Empire which means it was the center of political and social power. It was also the
economic hub of the world and as a result attracted people from all the corners of the Roman
Empire to pursue business. This meant that the people in the Roman churches came from a variety
of cultural, economic, and racial backgrounds. They spoke different languages and had differing
customs that were often carried along into how they personally lived out their faith in Christ.

From the book of Acts, we learn that one of the significant events that had impacted the churches in
Rome was the expulsion of all Jewish people from Rome under the reign of Claudius.17 This had left a
hole in the churches in Rome as the believers who were Jewish were banished from the city for a time. It
also illustrated the weak social and political positions in society that those people endured while they
lived in Rome.

15 Acts 18:11.
16 1 Corinthians 1:10-17; 3:1-4:21.
17 Acts 18:1-4.

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