Paul’s Epistle to the Romans is usually acknowledged as his Magnum Opus, the book of the Bible that contains more rich theological ideas than any other, yet it is also the book that can be the most challenging for us to read as a result of that fact.
Paul wrote this letter in the late 50’s AD (there’s a good bit of debate as to the exact year), which means that the crucifixion and resurrection were still recent events, and the church to which he wrote was different from the other ones to which he had written. The Roman church was not one that was planted by Paul or one of the other Apostles, but rather had grown as early Christians traveled to Rome and Romans had returned home from interactions with Christians in the cities where the Apostles had established churches. The combination of the date of the letter and this more haphazard growth of the church meant that the Romans did not have some of the same infrastructure around themselves as was enjoyed by other churches. They did not have what we would think of as a complete New Testament (this letter was written prior to any of the four Gospels), and they did not have ordained leadership, so all of this letter was focused on trying to give the information that this Roman church needed.
While Paul had never been to Rome when he wrote the letter, he was familiar with the issues that the Romans faced, as he had been in correspondence with them, and he sought to help shepherd them as best he could from where he was.
The letter begins with a familiar structure: he greeted the Romans and established his own credentials within the structure of the Church, before offering thanks to God for them, while offering the twist that he desires to meet them face to face.
With the groundwork set, Paul immediately dove into the true thesis of the letter, “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” Everything else within this letter points back to those twenty-one words. When Paul pointed out the places where the Romans were in error, he was in fact trying to recenter them on the power of the Gospel. When he delved into the theological depths that these new Christians should learn, he was seeking to remind them of the power of the Gospel, of which he was not ashamed.