Romans 1:7

Romans 1:7 says, To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Paul was addressing all the believers in Rome, whether rich or poor, Jew or Gentile.  We are all indeed equal through our belief in Christ, even if in earthly terms we are not.  Belief in Christ as our Savoir does not mean everything will be equal in this world, but in our relationship to God, we are all equal.  We are beloved of God and set apart for His purpose in our life.  To be a saint does not make us perfect, but simply set apart from the world.  Paul wished them grace and peace.  The usual greeting was for peace, but Paul knew that only by the grace of God could we have peace.  Verse eight adds, First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.  Paul thanked God that the faith of those early believers was spoken of throughout all the world .  We as followers of Christ today need to have that same testimony.  Our faith needs to be known by all the world.  I know that not all the world is aware of who we are, but anyone we encounter should be aware of our faith in Christ, and we should always be thankful to God that Christ died and arose to make our salvation possible.  Even though the world may not know us personally, our faith, the belief in Christ as our Savior, needs to be spoken of throughout the world.  Verse nine continues, 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;  Paul was very earnest in his prayers for other Christians.  He called God to be his witness to this fact.  We need to be just as earnest in our prayer life.  I will pray for you can be an empty promise made to help us feel or look good if we aren't careful.  Verse ten concludes, Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you.  After praying for others, then Paul made his request for his desire.  It wasn't for things, but for being able to visit those that he was writing to and praying for.  We need to pray for others first, then share our desires, not demands, with God, and these should have to do with the advancement of His kingdom and the welfare of His people.