Roman Road

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"The Just Shall Live By Faith"

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For in it is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, The just shall live by faith. (Romans 1:16, 17)

These verses set before us the subject of the epistle. Although each word in the epistle is important, these are significant in their marvelous unfolding of the entire epistle.

The Structure of the Book of Romans

The book falls neatly into an introduction (1:1-17), a doctrinal section on justification (1:18—5:11), a doctrinal section on sanctification (5:12—8:39), a parenthetical section on Israel (9:1—11:36), a practical application section (12:1—15:13); and then a conclusion (15:14—16:27). A simple outline of this structure looks like this:

I. Introduction: The Revelation of Righteousness (1:1-17)

A. The Salutation (1:1-7)

B. Personal Items (1:8-13)

C. The Theme (1:14-17)

II. Justification, or the Imputation of Righteousness (1:18—5:11)

A. Condemnation, or the Universal Need of Righteousness (1:18—3:20)

B. Manifestation, or the Universal Provision of Righteousness (3:21-26)

C. Harmonization, or Justification and the Purpose of the Law (3:27-31)

D. Illustration, or Justification and the Old Testament (4:1-25)

E. Exultation, or the Certainty of Salvation (5:1-11)

III. Life in Christ, or Union With and Ultimate Conformation to the Righteous One (5:12—8:39)

A. The Reign of Sin and the Reign of Grace (5:12-21)

B. The New Relationship in Life (6:1-14)

C. The New Principle in Life (6:15-23)

D. The New Freedom in Life (7:1-25)

E. The New Power in Life (8:1-17)

F. The New Hope in Life (8:18-39)

IV. Vindication, or God’s Righteousness in His Relationship with Israel (9:l—11:36)

A. The Consideration of Israel’s Rejection (9:l-29)

B. The Explanation of Israel’s Rejection (9:30—10:21)

C. The Consolation of Israel’s Rejection (11:1-36)

V. Application, or God’s Righteousness at Work (12:1—15:13)

A. Application in the Assembly (12:1-21)

B. Application in the State (13:1-14)

C. Application in Doubtful Things (14:1—15:13)

VI. Conclusion, or Purpose, Plans, and Praise in Connection with the Dissemination of Righteousness (15:14—16:27)

Romans and Righteousness

(a) Righteousness needed by sinful men (1:17 — 3:20)

(b) Righteousness provided by God (3:21-26)

(d) Righteousness experienced in the soul (5:1 — 8:17)

(e) Righteousness guaranteed as permanent blessing (8:18-39)

(f) Righteousness rejected by the Jewish nation (9 — 11)

(g) Righteousness manifested in practical life (12 — 16)

Roman Road of Scriptures

Diligence

Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." (Romans 12:11)

Trust

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.(Rom8:28)

Romans 5:1

Therefore, since we are justified (acquitted, declared righteous, and given a right standing with God) through faith, let us [grasp the fact that we] have [the peace of reconciliation to hold and to enjoy] peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).

Romans 5:11

Not only so, but we also rejoice and exultingly glory in God [in His love and perfection] through our Lord Jesus Christ, through Whom we have now received and enjoy [our] reconciliation.

Romans 5:15

But God's free gift is not at all to be compared to the trespass [His grace is out of all proportion to the fall of man]. For if many died through one man's falling away (his lapse, his offense), much more profusely did God's grace and the free gift [that comes] through the undeserved favor of the one Man Jesus Christ abound and overflow to and for [the benefit of] many.

Romans 5:17

For if because of one man's trespass (lapse, offense) death reigned through that one, much more surely will those who receive [God's] overflowing grace (unmerited favor) and the free gift of righteousness [putting them into right standing with Himself] reign as kings in life through the one Man Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).

Romans 6:23

For the wages which sin pays is death, but the [bountiful] free gift of God is eternal life through (in union with) Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 7:4

Likewise, my brethren, you have undergone death as to the Law through the [crucified] body of Christ, so that now you may belong to Another, to Him Who was raised from the dead in order that we may bear fruit for God.

Romans 8:28

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Romans 11:12

Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness?

Romans 8:38-39

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 12:17-18,21

Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

Romans 5:18

Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.

Romans 11:11

I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.

Romans 8:15-17

For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

Romans 1:17

For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

Romans 15:13

Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.

Romans 4:20-21

He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.

Romans 16:25-27

Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen.

Romans 6:22

But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.

Romans 12:1-2

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Romans 10:17

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Romans 16:25-27

Romans 15:13

Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.

ROMANS ROAD - A Study Guide

01-FOR HIS NAME'S SAKE

Romans 1:1-17
Key Verse: 1:5,17

"For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written,’ The righteous will live by faith."

1. Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ (1)

Paul had been a servant of sin and a servant of the law. He said in 7:14, 'I am ... sold as a slave to sin.= And in 6:16 he said, 'Don't you know that you are slaves to the one whom you obey. He knew that no one lives in neutral territory. He had been a slave to sin; now he was a slave of Jesus Christ. He was writing to those who are >also among those called to belong to Jesus Christ.(6) A slave does not act on his own; he watches the movements of his master and listens to the voice of his master. He does not act according to his own will or ideas. What he does reflects the will and purpose of the one to whom he belongs. We must not live in the grey and sticky slough of ‘no commitments=-- for this is living a lie. We must live as servants of Jesus Christ. This means that I must do his will, not mine; I must be sensitive to what pleases him; I must do his business, not my own. Abraham's servant was such a servant. He did his master's work as if it were his own. He gave his whole heart to the mission his master had given him. (See 1:9)

2. Grace and apostleship

Paul was called to be an apostle. He had been an enemy of God; but through Jesus Christ's one-sided grace, he had been delivered from bondage to sin, forgiven, and he had been given a precious mission. This mission was also God's grace. In 15:16, Paul speaks of the grace God gave me 'to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.' In 1 Corinthians 15:9,10 he says, Afor I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them--yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.@ God's grace to every sinner is the grace of forgiveness and the grace of becoming a useful person in God's redemptive history. He created each of us for a purpose and his gracious salvation restores purpose and meaning to our lives. Ephesians 2:10 says, Afor we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.@

3. For his name's sake

Paul was called and sent as missionary for the sake of Jesus' name. His mission did not start with man's need, but with God's sovereignty. He went to call men to obedience so that God might be glorified. When all men everywhere repent and turn to God to obey him and serve him, the creation order will be restored; God will be glorified, man will be saved and all creation will be full of beauty and peace. The gospel itself glorifies God, for it reveals his hatred of sin and his love for sinful, fallen mankind. So when the gospel is rightly proclaimed, God is glorified. Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. Our purpose in life and in mission must be to glorify God. All people must live and work for the sake of his name.

4. To call people from among all the Gentiles

Paul was an apostle to the Gentiles. He was sent to those outside the circle of God's people--to the pagan world. He was a missionary. Rome was the center of the Gentile world. Paul had never seen Rome, but he was very eager to go there. He prayed for the Christians in Rome daily (10). He wanted to preach the gospel there. He wanted the church in Rome to have missionary vision based on the gospel. Because of the grace Paul had received from God, he felt a great obligation, a debt to the whole Gentile world. (14)

5. To the obedience that comes from faith

Jesus commanded his disciples to make disciples. They were instructed by Jesus not only to make converts, but to teach the new believers to obey the commands of Jesus. (Mt 28:19,20) Paul said that his mission was to call people to the obedience that comes from faith. He was called to be a disciple-maker. He trained men to obey God's word, to be Jesus' disciples. God wants our faith to be not just in our heads, but to be in our hands and feet, to be reflected in our practical lives as well. So we must be trained in obedience by the word of God.

When we receive God's gospel by faith, we have new life in Jesus Christ. God's children are saved by God's grace, through faith in Jesus, so that we may live by faith. People without God live by their human reason or by feelings or by watching and imitating other people. But to live by faith means to study God's word and pray and allow God's Holy Spirit to lead us step by step. It is important for Christians to challenge pagan culture by lives of faith.

6. The Gospel

Faith is not a vague thing. Faith means faith in the living God, our Creator. Faith means accepting God's gospel. Verse 1 says that the gospel is God's gospel. What is the gospel?

The gospel is Jesus Christ, our Lord. He is God's Son. He was also a perfect man. He is the Messiah, descended from King David. His Sonship and his deity are declared and attested by his resurrection.

The gospel is imbedded in history. And history witnesses to the faithfulness of God, to the truthfulness and authenticity of the gospel. God promised the gospel beforehand to Abraham. (Ge 12:2, 3) The prophets prophesied about this gospel. God kept his promise and fulfilled all the prophecies when he sent his Son to be our Savior. The good news is that we have forgiveness of sin through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross and new life and heavenly hope through his resurrection from the dead.

The gospel is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes. The power of the gospel is the almighty power of God, Creator of heaven and earth. The power that changes sinners into saints is the resurrection power of Jesus, applied to our lives by the Holy Spirit. This power is released by faith--and only by faith. There is no sinner so terrible that he cannot be saved by faith in this gospel. The gospel is sufficient to solve the fundamental life problem of any person.

In the gospel God reveals his righteousness. God is Sovereign. He is holy. He hates sin and loves sinners. He makes sinners righteous by forgiving our sins. But his forgiveness is not cheap. It cost God his very heart--the life-blood of his only Son. Jesus on the cross shows us the perfection of God's righteousness and the measureless depth of God's love.

By faith from first to last. Righteousness is defined as a right relationship with God. When God forgives sinners who repent and believe the gospel, he adopts them into his family. We Christians are sinners who have been forgiven, and who, by God's grace, have a right relationship with God. This relationship begins when we believe in Jesus. It continues as we continue to walk by faith--that is, as we continue to trust and obey God. It continues until we claim our heavenly inheritance; it continues forever. This phrase is also translated 'from faith to faith.' Faith produces faith. When we act in faith, faith grows. As our faith grows, we grow in our knowledge and love of God, and in our obedience to him. Abraham's faith was like this. AFor in the gospel righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith." (17)

Study Questions

* PAUL A SERVANT OF JESUS CHRIST (1-4)

1. How does Paul introduce himself? What does it mean that he calls himself a servant? (cf 6:16) An apostle? What does it mean to be called? (1,5,6,7) Set apart for the gospel?

2. Why does he say “the gospel of God"? What proves its authenticity? What can we learn In this passage about Jesus Christ?

* THE OBEDIENCE THAT COMES FROM FAITH (5)

3. What is apostleship? What is Paul’s mission as an apostle? What is the grace which he has received? (see 15:15,16; 1Ti 1; 15,16; 1 Co 15:10) In what sense is mission God's grace? Do all Christians have a mission from God?

4. What does it mean to be called to the obedience that comes from faith? Why does he describe the Christian life in these terms? (compare Mt 28:19,20)

5. Think about the words, “for his name's sake.” What does this phrase tell us about the underlying purpose of the gospel? What does the word “gospel” mean? Why is it good news for people? (16)

* PAUL'S PRAYER (6-15)

6. What can you learn here about the people to whom Paul wrote? (5,6,7,8) (See also 15;p)

7. What was Paul’s prayer request? Why do you think he prayed so faithfully for the Christians in Rome and wanted so eagerly to go there? (Think about the status of Rome in the world of Paul’s time.)

8. What do think the spiritual gift he wanted to impart to them was?

9. What was Paul’s attitude as a gospel worker? (9, 14) To whom and why did he feel a sense of obligation? Why? What should we learn from him?

* THE RIGHTEOUS WILL LIVE BY FAITH (16-17)

10. Why should we not be ashamed of the gospel? Why might some people be ashamed? Why is the gospel the “power of God”?

11. How is the righteousness of God revealed in the gospel? Why must it be revealed by

02-A WORLD THAT SUPPRESSES TRUTH

Romans 1:18-3:20
Key Verse: 1:18

"The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness."

In 1:17 Paul declared that the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel; therefore, the righteous will live by faith. But 1:18-3:20 reveals that the wrath of God is being revealed against those who suppress the truth, both Jew and Gentile. This contrast shows us man's absolute need for the gospel. Paul's purpose in 1:18-3:20 is to show that sin is universal problem--all men are infected by it, and therefore, the gospel--God's universal, one and only solution to the sin problem--is needed by all people. At the root of the sin problem is men's suppression of truth by their wickedness.

1. The truth suppressed

The basic truth that undergirds all truth is that God is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and all that is in them, and he alone is the sovereign Lord of all things. Verse 19, 20 says that what may be known about God is plain to all men, because God has made it plain. 'Since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and invisible nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse., God the Creator is the Sovereign Ruler and owner of all things. He should be honored and worshiped and obeyed. Verse 25 says that men deliberately 'exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. Amen. So the suppression of truth is deliberate and sin is deliberate, so men are without excuse. Every person is fully responsible for his sins. It is the tendency of a society that has been influenced by psychology to help people solve their guilt problem by putting the responsibility for sin somewhere else. One's parents or the social structures or one's community or other people are somehow responsible. This removes guilt feelings and gives temporary relief, but it does not solve the problem of sin. Only God can solve the problem of sin, and he has chosen to do so through the gospel alone. So sin must be repented of before God and his gospel of forgiveness must be accepted and believed.

These chapters show how men deliberately suppress the truth by their wickedness. Verse 21 says, "For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him...." Pride and ingratitude lie at the root of the wickedness that suppresses truth.

Verse 18 says that the wrath of God is being revealed against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth... How does God reveal his wrath?

2. The wrath of God

The greatest human problem is not poverty or even hunger or war. It is sin. Because all men have sinned, all humanity and all creation became the object of God's wrath.

God reveals his wrath in two ways against all the godlessness and wickedness of men. First, in verses 19-32, God reveals his wrath by removing his hand of restraint and protection from the godless world. Second, (2:1-3:20) on the day of God's wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed, every person must stand before him, give an account and be sentenced. On that day, everyone will be measured by the righteous standard of Jesus (2:16).

a. God's wrath revealed against the pagan world

When men do not honor God as God or thank him, they turn to idolatry, for man was created with a God-sized empty place in his heart. If the rightful Creator and Owner of mankind, the One worthy of his worship, does not occupy that place, then something or someone else will. Men who think they are so wise and smart that they can get along without God are fools. Without God in their hearts, their hearts become dark and their thinking becomes futile. How foolish it is for man to worship an image made of gold or stone; or to worship a cow and starve to death; or to worship money, fame, power, other men or women-- things which perish. But the problem is not just one of being foolish. When men abandon God, he takes his hands off their lives. He gives them the absolute freedom from God which they desire. And what happens? Verse 24 says, "God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity... " Man's godless heart lead to a corrupt life. He who so longs for freedom becomes a slave of his own or another's lust.

When God is not honored as God, creation order is turned upside down. Men first exchange the glory of God for images (23); then, they exchange the truth of God for a lie; (25) then, they exchange natural relations for unnatural ones. Homosexuality is not natural. It is a perversion.

“men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.” When God removes his hands of love and restraint from mankind, first the individual looses his freedom, then the family is destroyed, finally the whole society becomes like hell. (26-31) Society without God becomes senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Then those who know that this wickedness deserves death not only continue to practice evil, they try to teach others that such evil acts are right. They deliberately remove the moral guidelines from society, leaving the young people in a sea of sin and chaos and death. (32) God is not indifferent. He is a God who cares. He reveals his wrath in this passive way in order to allow men to experience hell and repent.

b. God's righteous judgment on moral and religious sinners (2:1-3:8)

Some who read the list of sins in 1:18-32 may say, 'I'm glad I'm better than those people. How terrible they are! In Paul's time, the Stoics and the Pharisees thought like this. The followers of Confucius also think this way. And some of us who call ourselves Christians also try to exclude ourselves from the sins of Romans 1. But Paul says to us, "You have no excuse for passing judgment on another, for you do the same things you condemn in others." My first reaction is to deny this. But I must listen to what God says. First, God is the righteous judge. He alone is qualified to judge a person, for his judgment is based on truth. He knows everything about all people. He is kind and patient and tolerant because be is waiting on them and on me to repent. If I only look at others with judgmental eyes, and self-righteously compare myself with them, I will miss the opportunity God is giving me to search my own heart and life and repent. He warns us, "By your stubborn and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God's wrath... "

God's judgment is righteous and impartial. He does not show favoritism. He judges each person, not according to what he knows but according to what he has done. He does not look at the outer actions of men, but at their inner motives. He looks at what men seek. Men are created for the glory of God. our chief end must be to glorify God. Those who by persistence in doing good seek God and his glory with every part of their beings will receive eternal life; those who are self-seeking, who seek their own glory and benefit, who reject the truth and follow evil will receive trouble and distress, wrath and anger. God will judge the Jews according to the law which they know so well. His test will not be a written test on how much they know; it will be a practical test on what they do. He will judge the Gentiles according to their consciences. They will also have a practical exam. The measuring stick for all men is Jesus Christ. God does not lower his standard. God's cut line is so high that no one can pass. The Jews do not live up to the perfect requirements of the law; the Gentiles cannot live up even to the standards their own consciences set for them.

We who have the Bible--Jew and Christian are judged most severely. (2:17-3:8) If we teach others what is right, and rejoice in our special privilege of being God's people, then dishonor God by breaking his laws ourselves, then God's name--which should be proclaimed to the ends of the earth--is blasphemed among the people and nations of the unbelieving world. (2:24) our hearts must be circumcised by repentance until the love of God fills us.

Conclusion: Paul's conclusion is simple: No one is righteous. He draws quotations from the Bible to show that no one is righteous, not even one person, for no one seeks God. He shows how all people are under the power of sin, and have become worthless. Men's mouths cannot glorify God; they only spew out the poison that is in their hearts. Their feet can only follow the way that leads to destruction. So, when they stand before God's judgment throne, they can't say anything. What we know only makes us conscious of our helpless sinfulness. unless God provides another way, there is no hope for anyone. But, praise God, he provided another way. That is what the gospel, the good news of Jesus is all about.

Study Questions

* THE PAGAN WORLD

1. Against whom is God’s wrath revealed? How do men deliberately suppress the truth? What is the truth that they suppress? (19,20,25) Why are people who reject God without excuse?

2. What is the root of sin? (21) Why should men honor and thank God? Why don't they?

3. What is the result of deliberately refusing to glorify God and thank him? What is futile thinking? What does it mean to have a darkened heart? How do men who claim to be wise become fools? (22,23,25,26)

4. Find the verses that say “God gave them over to...” What does this mean? What are the results when God is eliminated from a person’s heart? From his family? From society? (22-25) (26-27) (28-32)

5. Think about verse 32. Why is a world in which truth is suppressed such a pathless wilderness for young people? Why do religious leaders, teachers, educated people not teach young people clearly?

* GOD’S RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT (2:1-16)

6. Why does God alone have the right to judge men? Why do people want to judge others? What is the great mistake of the outwardly moral man who judges other?

7. Why is God so patient and kind toward sinners? What does God want of all people? Why don't people who know what is right and what is wrong repent?

8. When God’s righteous judgment is revealed what will be his just and impartial standard? What are the things that men seek and how does what a man seeks determine his life direction and whether he is good or evil?

9. How will God reward evil doers? How will he reward those who do good?

10. How does God judge Jews? (Those who have the Bible) and the Gentiles (those who do not have the Bible) without showing favoritism?

* THOSE WHO KNOW THE LAW (2:17-2:29)

11. What are the advantages of the Jews and of those who have studied the Bible? How can these strengths become weaknesses that make the people of God enemies of God’s redemptive work in the world? (2:17-24; 3:2)

12. What kind of circumcision is valuable? What does this mean? (2:25-29); Dt 10:16; 30:6; Jer 4:4)

13. From whom should God’s people seek praise? How can we please God?

* GOD’S FAITHFULNESS, MAN’S UNRIGHTEOUSNESS (3:1-20)

14. What is the advantage of being a Jew, or of being born into a Christian home? Does man’s failure to be a steward of his opportunities cancel God’s faithfulness?

15. What do the quotations from the Old Testament show about what it means to be under sin? What is Paul’s conclusion about the condition of all men? (3:23) What is the purpose of the law?

faith from first to last? What does it mean to live by faith?

03-THROUGH FAITH IN HIS BLOOD

Romans 3:21-31
Key Verse: 3:24

"...justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement through faith in his blood."

The great problem of all human beings is sin. We have many small and large problems in our lives, but sin is at the root of all problems. Sin separates us from God. So, because of our own sins and the sins of all mankind, we must live without God in a world under curse. All people are under the power of sin. There are no exceptions. Sin demands our lives. The wages of sin is death. Physical death is not the end. After death is God's righteous judgment. But God is merciful. He has provided a way of salvation.

1. God's righteousness

Our Creator God is righteous. He created the world for his own glory and he created people in his own image, to glorify him. He, himself, is the absolute standard of goodness and truth. The tragedy is that because of man's sin, no one can measure up to his standard. Romans 3:23 says that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Because of our sins we miss the mark; we are weighed on the scales against God's perfect standard, and found wanting.

God cannot look on sin and be indifferent, because he is righteous. He cannot ignore the situation of man whom be created and loves. God hates sin, but he loves sinful men and want to save them. He is just and righteous in all his dealings with us.

God gave us his law so that we might know what we are to believe about him and what he expects of US. His righteous requirements are revealed in the law. The law requires of us strong willpower and perfect discipline. The problem is that, although we know what God requires, we fail to do it because of our weakness and stubbornness. So we deserve God's judgment. God's judgment on all sinners shows his righteousness. Because he is righteous, he cannot ignore sin. Either the problem of sin is solved, or we are condemned to death and hell on the day of judgment. The whole world is accountable to God; no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather through the law we become conscious of sin. (3:19,20)

So God revealed his righteousness in another way, apart from law. The Law and Prophets testify to it. (This means that the Bible tells us about it.) It is the righteousness from God which comes through faith in Jesus Christ. (21,22) We cannot solve our sin problem or live up to his perfect standard, so he gives us his righteousness as a gift. Jesus Christ is God's righteousness; he is God's gift to us. When we accept him in faith, God forgives our sins and we are clothed in his righteousness. In sending Jesus, God extends to us his hand of mercy; we take hold of it by faith.

2. Costly grace

God's mercy and grace to us is free; we receive it as a gift because it costs too much for us to buy. It is free to us, but costly to God, for it cost him the life blood of his only Son Jesus. We are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood."

(i) Justified

We are "justified freely by his grace." (24) He "is just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus." (26) To be justified means to be declared innocent. Sometimes people try to solve their guilt problem by self-justification. They find many reasons and excuses for their sins, and try to justify themselves. But when we stand before God's judgment throne, we have no mouth to say anything. We stand there as condemned sinners, deserving the death penalty. But God looks at Jesus' blood sacrifice and says, 'Not guilty.' He forgives us for Jesus' sake. We are guilty and deserve to die, but God covers us with his own righteousness when we accept Jesus' death on the cross for our sins. He justifies those who have faith in Jesus. He gives us life instead of death.

(ii) Redeemed

Redemption is a term used in the slave market. A slave is redeemed when someone pays the price to set him free. He cannot set himself free. Roman 1:18-32 describes our slavery to sin. When we do not thank God or honor him as God, we become slaves to our own passions and emotional feelings. Romans 6:16 says that when we obey the demands of sin we are slaves to sin. Sin is a cruel taskmaster. He harasses us to death. If we are not joyfully and freely serving God, we are under the power of sin and Satan. When I do as I please, following my own feelings and ideas, I seem to be free; but when I try to change my way and obey God's law and will, I discover that the chains of sin's slavery are too strong to break. I am condemned to a useless, meaningless life and I must live under the shadow of the fear of death, judgment and hell.

Jesus paid the price of our redemption by his blood. 1 Peter 1:18,19 says that we were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to us from our forefathers, not with perishable things like gold and silver, but by the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish. He died the death I deserved to die. He offered his own life as a ransom for mine. (" ... the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." --Mk 10:45) Because he died in my place I am free from the power of sin and death. I am free to love God and serve him and walk in his righteous way, led by his Spirit.

(iii) Sacrifice of Atonement

When the people of Israel were living as slaves in Egypt, Egypt and Israel alike were under the Judgment Of God because of sin, God saved Israel and delivered them from slavery by the blood of the Passover lamb (Ex 12). Jesus is our Passover Lamb (1Co 5:7).

Romans 3:25a says, "God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood." In the Old Testament, blood represents life (Lev 17:11; Ge 9:4). The sacrificial system of the Old Testament lies behind the word that is translated “sacrifice of atonement” (NIV) or "expiation" (RSV) or "propitiation" (NAS).

In Exodus 25 God instructs Moses to make the ark, into which was put the Bible, the Law of Moses. This Law contains God's righteous requirements. The ark was covered by the atonement cover (mercy seat), which, once a year was sprinkled with blood from the altar. It was here that the righteous God met sinful man. Here righteousness and mercy met. God does not compromise with sin but he met man at the ark with its blood-sprinkled atonement cover, and unconditionally forgave him. This whole sacrificial system points to Jesus the Lamb of God. (Jn 1:29) It is the blood of Jesus that covers our sins and brings us into the presence of the Holy God. Because of Jesus' blood, we are we are forgiven. Through Jesus' blood, God's hand of wrath and judgment becomes his hand of mercy.

Jesus shed his blood to take away my sin. When I accept his blood and apply it to my heart by faith, through the work of the Holy Spirit, I am forgiven, cleansed, set free. God is righteous. He justifies those who have faith in Jesus. This is how he reveals his righteousness.

2. The universal requirement of faith

God's forgiveness is by grace alone, on the basis of faith alone. It is a free gift. There is no religious or charitable work that we can do to deserve God's grace. We must humbly accept what God has done.

So, there is no room for boasting. The ground is cut out from under all our pride. Pride is at the root of sin. When we accept God's forgiveness by faith in the blood of Jesus, we are humbled. We come to God as sinners, with no righteousness of our own. We confess our sin and receive his gracious forgiveness.

There are only two kinds of people in the world--forgiven sinners and unforgiven sinners. We are forgiven when we accept God's grace by faith. There are no exceptions. Race, nationality, material prosperity or poverty make no difference. God is one and he has chosen to forgive all sinners on the basis of their faith in Jesus Christ. There is no other condition. The righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no distinction.

Study Questions

* GOD'S RIGHTEOUSNESS (3:21-26)

1. What is the common situation of all people? What does it mean to fall short of the glory of God?

2. What do verses 21, 22 tell us about the 'righteousness from God"? What do you think the righteousness from God is? (Jer 23:5,6)

3. How do the Law and the Prophets testify to it? What does it have to do with man's sin problem as described in 1:18-3:20,23?

4. What does it mean to be justified? What does 'by his grace' mean?'

5. What is the redemption that came by Christ Jesus? What is a sacrifice of atonement? (Heb 9:14,22,26b; I Pe 1:18,19a; Lev 16:15,16; Lev 17:11; Ex 12:21-23; John 1:29)

6. In the light of the above study, what is the significance of the blood of Jesus? Why do we need faith in Jesus' blood?

7. How and why did God show his justice and forbearance toward sinners?

* THE UNIVERSAL REQUIREMENT OF FAITH (27-31)

8. How does God's grace get rid of human pride? Remember the root of sin in 1:21. Can all sinners be forgiven by faith alone? Why is this important?

04-IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ABRAHAM

Romans 4:1-25
Key Verse: 4:17

"As it is written: 'I have made you a father of many nations.' He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed--the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.'

Some people think that the story of Abraham in Genesis is just an old story, without any relevance to people today. But through the study of chapter 4 of Romans, we can see that Abraham's faith is the New Testament standard of faith. Abraham is the example of faith, and when we follow in his footsteps of faith, all of the blessings which God promised Abraham are ours. I want to know the Lord, who called Abraham, walked with him and blessed him.

The one thing God requires of all men is faith. This is not anything new. It has always been impossible to please God without faith. The Jews thought that being physical descendants of Abraham made them special--and they were proud of this. Paul affirmed the fact that God chose Abraham, and that Abraham's descendants receive God's special blessing. But the descendants of Abraham whom God blesses are not the physical descendants of Abraham--they are those who walk in the footsteps of the faith that Abraham had. This chapter describes Abraham's faith.

1. God who justifies the wicked (1-8)

Abraham's faith was credited to him as righteousness. This means that his sins were forgiven and he had a right relationship with God. The blessed or happy man is the man who knows that his sins are forgiven. Abraham and David shared a common faith. They both knew that they were sinners and each one believed in God who justifies the wicked (God who forgives sinners). when Abraham was full of doubt and despair and fear (Gen. 15), God's word of promise come to him. He believed that God would give him descendants as numerous as the stars of the sky, just as he promised, and he believed that God would give him one son of his own. God credited this faith to him as righteousness. Abraham was no longer full of doubt and despair. He had God's peace in his heart. He trusted God who justifies the wicked.

2. The sufficiency of faith alone (9-12)

Abraham did not depend on his own goodness, or on some ritual like circumcision or baptism. He simply believed God's word of promise. Paul says that those who walk in the footsteps of the faith that Abraham had before he was circumcised are the true children of Abraham, and the ones who are qualified to receive God's blessings. Paul emphasizes the sufficiency of faith alone. The true people of God are those who have the faith of Abraham. Those who have no faith, even if they are circumcised (or baptized) cannot receive forgiveness and salvation. They cannot be children of God. The Gentiles who only have faith--nothing else--can be forgiven and can become God's holy people.

The Jews thought that it was circumcision that made them a special people. They despised the Gentiles. But Paul says that circumcision is only a sign of the work that God has already done in Abraham's heart by his grace, because of Abraham's faith. Abraham is the father of all who walk in his footsteps of faith--whether they are circumcised or not. Neither circumcision or baptism or any other ritual can take the place of faith. No good work can take the place of faith. We are saved only through faith, by God's grace.

3. God who wants to redeem the world (13-15)

God chose Abraham so that through him, he might bless the whole world. So God promised Abraham that he and his offspring would be heirs of the world. He didn't call Abraham because he felt sorry for him and wanted to solve his small "no son' problem. He called him to make him the father of many nations. God planned to send the Savior of the world through Abraham, and he kept that promise by sending Jesus. God is still working out his world redemptive purpose. He calls and blesses the descendants of Abraham so that they can take the gospel of God's love and salvation to all the people of the world. God did not save us just so that we might enjoy his peace and forgiveness and be happy in our own self-centered or family-centered lives. He saved us so that he might use us in his world mission purpose.

God is also a God of history. He works out his redemptive purpose in the context of history. So the promise is to Abraham and his offspring. God works through his promises. A promise must be believed in order to be claimed. Abraham believed that God would make him the father of many nations. He accepted God's world mission purpose. Then God himself solved Abraham's own personal problem. Those who want to first solve their personal problems, then do God's work will never do either. But those who accept God's great purpose and give their lives to God for his use will find that God solves their personal problems in his own wonderful way.

4. God who raises the dead (16-25)

Biblical faith is resurrection faith. God's children must believe that God is the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and the giver of life; and that God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Abraham had this kind of faith. How could an old man with no children believe that he would be the father of many nations and that his descendants would inherit the world? He could not believe it if be only looked at himself and his own circumstances. But God promised him a son. That is a beginning. “Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ Without weakening in his faith he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead--since he was about a hundred years old--and that Sarah's womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God...”(18-20) This faith was credited to him as righteousness. We who believe that Jesus died for our sins and that God raised him from the dead share in Abraham's faith. This is the faith which God “credits as righteousness.”

what does it mean for me to have resurrection faith? It means that I believe that nothing is impossible for God who raised Jesus from the dead. He can raise up 561 sacrificial American shepherds who can love and serve with the word of God the young people of the “me” generation. He can used our loaves-and-fish-like one-to-one Bible studies to change the course of history and help directionless men and women find direction in Jesus.

Faith in the God of Abraham also means believing the God of history. I live and work believing God's promises, knowing that they most likely will not be fulfilled in my lifetime, but that God is faithful, and that he will fulfill them in his own right time. That is enough.

Study Questions

* GOD WHO JUSTIFIES THE WICKED (1-8)

1. On what basis was Abraham forgiven his sins and made right with God? What is the scriptural evidence for this?

2. Why is it so important that Abraham's righteousness was not earned by being circumcised or by doing some good work?

3. According to David, who is the really happy or blessed man? Why do you think David felt like this? Compare Psalm 31:1-5.

4. What was the common faith of David and Abraham? What does this mean to you?

* BY FAITH ALONE (9-12)

5. Why is it so important that Abraham's faith was credited to him as righteousness before he was circumcised rather than after? Of what is circumcision a sign?

6. What does it mean to walk in the footsteps Of Abraham's faith? What do all the descendants of Abraham have in common? Who are the true descendants of Abraham?

7. Why is it important to know that we are saved only by God's grace, through faith alone--and that nothing else is necessary?

* GOD WHO RAISES THE DEAD (13-25)

8. What promise did Abraham and his offspring receive? What do you think this means?

9. Why must the promise be received by faith rather than through the law? Why is this important to us? (13-16)

10. What did Abraham believe about God that his spiritual descendants also believe?

11. Why and how did Abraham become the “father of many nations'?

12. What was Abraham's specific problem? How did be apply his faith to his own problem? How did he give glory to God? what do you learn here about resurrection faith?

13. What must we believe, specifically, if we are to have our faith credited to us as righteousness? What does this mean to us?

14. What does this chapter teach us about the God of Abraham? How can we walk in the footsteps of Abraham's faith?

15. In what respect does this chapter lay a foundation for world mission? (Think especially about verses 13 and 17.)

05-OUR HOPE OF SHARING GOD

Romans 5:1-21
Key Verse: 5:2

“... through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.”

1. Peace with God (1-11)

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." To be justified means to be forgiven our sins; it means that we have a right relationship with God. Once we were God's enemies (10). We were ungodly sinners (6,8), and objects of God's wrath. We were powerless to help ourselves (6). But when we were in this helpless state, God demonstrated his love for us and sent Christ to die for us, his enemies. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we have been justified by his blood and reconciled to God. We are no longer his enemies; we are his precious possession, his own children.

The peace we have in our new relationship with God changes our lives. First, the foundation of life changes. "We have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand." (2) God's grace becomes the foundation of life. Once the foundation of my life was my own feelings and ideas; I depended on myself. This was a seemingly strong foundation, but actually it was very weak and shaky. Now, I stand in God's grace. I can only depend on him. I must listen to and obey his word by faith, and build my life on a foundation of rock.

Second, the destination of life changes. When I was living as an enemy of God, the destination of my life was hell--but I didn't know this. I thought I had no direction. I was like Cain, a restless wanderer. Now, my destination is the heavenly kingdom. I have hope of sharing in the glory of God, and I rejoice in this hope. Abraham seemed to be a wanderer, for he lived in tents and moved from place to place. But he was not a directionless wanderer. He was a pilgrim going toward the heavenly city, whose architect and builder is God (Heb 11:8-10). I follow in his footsteps.

Third, following the new destination is the new hope. Once my hope was in education or in money or the things that money could buy or in people or in some job or title or position. These are all things that perish. Now I rejoice in the hope of sharing the glory of God. Furthermore, this hope is a sure hope that will not disappoint me. It is a hope that is backed up by God's love. It is confirmed by the presence and work of the Holy Spirit in me.

Fourth, and directly related to the hope of sharing God's glory, I have assurance of salvation. "Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him. For if when we were God's enemies we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life? God loved me and saved me when I was his enemy; how much more he loves me and will complete that salvation now that I have become his precious child. My salvation does not rest on my changeable feelings, but on God's strong and sure grace and love. I cannot depend on my own faithfulness, for how unfaithful I am! But God who promised is faithful. Because of this, I can have assurance of my salvation. No one can snatch me out of the Father's hand.

Fifth, I can rejoice in all circumstances. 'Rejoice' is mentioned 3 times in verses 1-11. First, I rejoice in the hope of the glory of God; but not only this, I rejoice in suffering. This seems like a strange thing to say. How can anyone rejoice in suffering? This American culture is built on the idea of avoiding suffering as much as possible. Most people seem to be primarily interested in pleasure seeking. But one who is at peace with God learns to rejoice in suffering. Why is this? It is because God uses large and small sufferings to train us in faith. When we trust God and know that he loves us, we can have a positive attitude toward suffering. Then, when we suffer, we can learn perseverance; perseverance produces character. many people don't seem to know the meaning of perseverance. When things become a little difficult, they just quit or walk away. So people become weak and sick and easy prey for demons. If one learns overcoming faith, then he grows in the character and mind of Jesus. He can have real hope--hope that does not disappoint because it is hope in God's promises, not hope in the world. As we grow in the character of Jesus, God pours his love in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. When God's love fills us, we stop becoming beggars for love, and become people who can give love to others. How joyful our lives become.

But our greatest joy is joy in God himself. Verse 11 says, "not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ....' God promised Abraham, 'I am your shield and your very great reward.' The Levites were not given any land in the promised land--they were promised that God himself would be their inheritance. The Catechism says that man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. When this joy in God is in our hearts, then suffering draws us closer to God and the closer we come to God, the greater our joy. People who spend their lives seeking pleasure find that all the things they thought would bring them pleasure only bring them heavy burdens and meaninglessness. Worldly pleasure turns to dust and the imagined joys of a worldly life turn to hell. But joy in Jesus is real, and it is forever. The things men seek to quell and assuage their restlessness and give them peace become trouble and distress; but the peace that Jesus gives is real; it is in the heart and soul and it lasts forever.

2. In Adam, death; in Christ, life (12-21)

One person is very important. One person can change the course of history for a family, a campus, a city, a nation and for the whole human race. Adam was a man who changed the course of human history into a downward plunge toward destruction. Jesus also changed the course of human history. Jesus' death and resurrection is not only the turning point in the life of one individual person who believes in him, it is the turning point of human history. Verses 12-21 is a summary of what Paul has been saying about the universal problem of sin and the universal solution in the gospel in 1:18-5:11. Through this brief summary of history, Paul explains how sin came into the world through the disobedience of one man Adam. When Adam listened to the voice of his wife and disobey the word of God and ate the fruit of the forbidden tree, the order of creation was broken. Sin came in to rule and sin brought death. When Adam sinned, all humanity was infected with the sickness unto death. All mankind followed Adam down the road that leads to destruction. From Adam to Moses there was no law to expose sin. But even when sin is not called sin, it still leads to death. Sin spread to all mankind and brought death to all the race of Adam. In these days, people try to call sin by some other name. Psychology finds excuses for sin; pragmatism rationalizes sin. But sin is sin and it's consequence is death.

Jesus Christ was a new beginning for the human race. He is the starting point of a new humanity. His obedience to death on the cross for the sins of the world opened the way to heaven and to a new life for all who believe in him. Through his death, all men can have life. His blood, offered to God as a sacrifice for sin, justifies sinners who believe and brings peace with God. The problem of sin can be solved in no other way than through Jesus. People who accept God's free gift of grace are transferred from the kingdom of Satan, where sin and death reign, to the kingdom of God, where God rules by his grace.

Everyone is either in Adam or in Christ. If we are in Adam, we are under the power of sin and death. If we are in Christ we are under the reign of grace. When we have access to and stand in the grace of God, we rejoice in our hope of sharing God's glory. Our citizenship is in heaven and our inheritance is there. In Adam, all die; in Christ, all are made alive.

Study Questions

* PEACE WITH GOD [a changed life and a changed direction] (5:1-11)

1. What can we learn indirectly in verses 1-11 about our relationship with God and our inner condition before we were justified?

2. What is the fundamental change that takes place in our lives when we are justified through faith? What are some of the practical changes? What does it mean to have peace with God?

3. When we are standing in God's grace, what gives us joy? Why?

4. What is the worldly consensus regarding suffering and hardship? What should be our attitude toward suffering? How does God use suffering in our lives?

5. What is perseverance? What is character? What is the outcome of God's training through suffering?

6. How can we be sure that God will save us and give us eternal life and heaven? Can we have a sure hope in heaven? Why?

7. What does it mean to rejoice in God? What do verses 1-11 teach us about God's love? How can we learn to rejoice in God?

* IN ADAM OR IN CHRIST (12-21)

8. How did sin enter the world and spread? What was the result? Who was the one man and how did he sin?

9. Why was sin not clearly exposed as sin in the period from Adam to Moses? What is the consequence of sin, even when it is not called sin?

10. In what respect is Adam a pattern of Jesus? How is Jesus different from Adam? What do these verses (12-21) teach us about Jesus' significance in history? About the importance of one man and one act?

11. What is the difference in being in Christ and being in Adam?

is the difference in a son and a slave? What are the privileges of sons? What does this mean to you?

09-MORE THAN CONQUERORS

Romans 8:18-39
Key Verse: 8:37

1. Future glory (18-30)

In verse 18 Paul says, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” This verse tells us that even though we have a living hope in the kingdom of God in our hearts, we have much suffering to overcome in this present time. Paul speaks of present sufferings and future glory because the world still has not been restored to its former perfect state. This passage tells us that man and nature suffer together until the day of future glory, the day when Jesus come again.

First, creation is waiting. “The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.” The “creation” means the natural world, including animals and trees and everything. All nature waits eagerly for the time when the children of God will be completely set free from sin and death, and glorified with Jesus, the day when God's work of redemption is finished.

The paradise of Eden was lost when man sinned. After man sinned, God said to Adam, "Cursed is the ground because of you.” (Ge 3:17) But God subjected it to frustration in hope that the creation would be liberated...(21) God is a God of hope. God's great vision for the restoration of his creation was shared by Isaiah: “The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them...They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.' In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him and his place of rest will be glorious” (Isa 11:6-10).

The whole creation is still suffering the pains of childbirth (22). The pains of childbirth are pains full of hope, for through pain a new life is born into the world. So all creation eagerly waits for the day of future glory, the day when Jesus comes again to restore all things. Then all creation can serve the children of God (21) and glorify God the Creator. It is amazing that God included all nature and all the animals in his salvation plan. God wants to save the whole world and everything in it.

Second, we are waiting for adoption as sons. (23) Verse 23 says, “Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.” We are children of God, and the Spirit of God has already begun his work in us, changing us into the image of Jesus. He gives us a taste of heaven. He helps us in our weakness. He helps us pray. He intercedes for us in accordance with God's will. And what is God's will? God's will for us is that we be conformed to the likeness of his Son (29). God is working in us to restore his broken image, to mold us into the image of Jesus. This is the purpose of the gospel. For this, he predestined, called, justified and glorified us. He works in all the circumstances of life to accomplish his redemptive purpose in us who love him (28). He works in and through us to accomplish his redemptive purpose in the whole world. When Jesus comes and establishes his messianic kingdom, he will complete the work of redeeming our bodies as well as the work of restoring all nature.

This is our glorious hope. Verse 24a says, 'In this hope we are saved. Although we suffer because we live as Christians in a hostile world, we have this glorious hope in God's kingdom based on God's sure promise of future glory. If our hope is in the things of the world, then we will surely be disappointed. But if we hope in God who promised to restore every leaf of every tree, who promised to give us a glorious resurrection body like that of Jesus, then we must wait patiently and prayerfully. Hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? Worldly hope cannot be real hope, but hope in God's promises is sure hope.

3. More than conquerors (31-39)

Verse 31 says, “If God is for us, who can be against us? This verse tells us that there is a spiritual battlefield in our lives. In a physical battle we can have many second chances. But there is no second chance in the spiritual warfare. If we are defeated by Satan, then we become war prisoners of Satan and there is no way out. Verse 31 also tells us that there are victors and losers in life. God wants us to be victors in life through Jesus. On the other hand, Satan does his best to defeat us. How can we be victors in life? Verse 32 says, “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” Paul teaches the secret of victory. It is to believe God's love absolutely, knowing that God gave everything when he gave his only Son for our sins. Those who hold on to God's love will be victors in life. God gave his Son. He gave up what he could not give up. His love is absolute. Verse 34 says, “Who is he that condemns?'”No person and no principle can defeat a Christian. It is because Christ Jesus who died is at the right hand of God and is interceding. No one can condemn Christians, for Christ who died for us defeated the powers of death and he is the judge of the living and the dead. Moreover, he prays for us. Those who seek to condemn us will be condemned.

Verse 35 says, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?' Paul's spiritual battle was a matter of life and death. But he conquered all hardship by believing the love of God, and he became more than a conqueror.

Verse 36 is a quotation of Psalm 44:22. It gives us some idea of how great was the Apostle Paul’s suffering in his battle with Satan. But verses 37-39 tell us that there was no defeat for him. His victory in Christ gave him the spirit of a conqueror.

There are two kinds of people: There are losers in life and there are 'more than conquerors.' Losers in life are filled with a spirit of defeatism. Even though they win a battle, they feel defeated. But those who are more than conquerors are victors in life and are filled with a spirit of victory. They cannot be defeated by circumstances--even by their own failures. They may lose a few battles, but they have already won the war. We can be more than conquerors through Jesus who overcame all the elements of human fatalism on the cross.

Study Questions

* OUR HOPE, TO SHARE HIS GLORY (18-30)

1. Why, when and by whom was creation subjected to frustration (futility)? What was the hope of him who subjected to futility?

2. What is our hope for our world and for ourselves? (18-25) Why is this a sure hope? How do our hopes affect our life direction and attitudes?

3. How does the Spirit continue to help us in the midst of suffering (18) and weakness (26) until God's glory is revealed and his will accomplished? What can we do?

4. What is God's will (27) or purpose (28) for us? How is God working to accomplish it? (27-30)

* MORE THAN CONQUERORS (31-39)

5. How can we know for sure that God loves us? What should this mean to us practically?

6. Why do we not need to fear those who accuse or condemn us? How can we live without fear and without a crooked mind, live as conquerors in world under curse? (31-37)

7. How dependable is God's love? What difference does this make in our lives? (38-39)

8. What does it mean to be a child of God? Think about the meaning of verse 17 in the light of the whole chapter.

06-FREEDOM FROM SIN

Romans 6:1-23
Key Verse: 6:5,6

"If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin."

In chapter 5, Paul said that the law did not solve the problem of sin. In fact, according to 5:20, "The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more..." Our sin problem can only be solved by God's grace, and our gracious God is ready to pour out his abundant grace on sinners who come to him with repentant hearts and faith in Jesus. Jesus makes it clear that a disciple of Jesus cannot compromise with sin. There is no middle ground between sin and righteousness.

But for legalistic people who are looking for a loophole that will give them an excuse to sin freely, this statement in 5:20 raises two important questions: "Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?" (6:1) and "What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace?" (6:15) These questions do not come from a desire to please God; they come from a desire to keep on sinning. One who thinks he can misuse God's grace and continue in his life of sin does not understand the meaning of grace and does not know what it means to be a Christian. In dealing with these questions, Paul has a chance to explain what being a Christian really means.

When we become Christians, we are no longer in Adam. We are in Christ. We are united with Christ and become a part of the new humanity which began with him. Chapter 6 shows us how this union with Christ frees us from sin and death. In this new freedom we may grow in holiness, that is, grow in the image of Jesus.

1. Baptized into his death

When Jesus' disciples asked him for seats beside him in glory, he asked them, "Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?" When they said, 'Yes,' Jesus said, "You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with...' (Mk 10:38,39) Jesus was talking about his cup of suffering and his baptism of death. Romans 6:3 says, "..Don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?" Becoming a Christian means being baptized into his death, that is, dying with Jesus. Paul said in Gal 2:20: "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." To die with Jesus means to repent sincerely; it means nailing sin and self to the cross with Jesus. God casts our sins in the depth of the ocean. When I died with Jesus, my old self was crucified with him. I am no longer a slave of sin, because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. If we die with Jesus, then we will rise with him to live a new life.

John the Baptist announced Jesus' arrival with the words, 'I baptize with water but he will baptize with the Holy Spirit.' The water baptism of John was a symbol of repentance. It is the baptism of the Holy Spirit which Jesus gives that unites us with Jesus in his death and in his resurrection. It is the Holy Spirit who applies the gospel to my life. He is the one who gives me new birth and enables me to live a new life as a child of God and a citizen of God's kingdom.

2. Instruments of righteousness (11-14)

When we become Christians we are no longer in Adam; we are in Christ. We are set free from sin. This is God's grace. This does not mean, however, that the spiritual battle has ended. The battle has just begun. It is not the time to relax, or be fooled by our feelings. He tells us that we must claim the victory by counting ourselves dead to sin but alive to God In Christ. (11)

Even though we are in Christ and sin and death have no power over us, Satan tells us lies and seeks to draw us back into slavery. Jesus calls him the "ruler of this world." We must know that we are living in enemy territory. The victory which we have in Christ does not mean that we have no battle to fight. Verse 12 says, "... Do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.." This verse makes it clear that we still have mortal bodies; we still have passions which make sinful demands. There would be no need for such a command if there were no battle with sin left to be fought.

How then do we claim the victory that Jesus promises? Paul says, "Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God .... offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.” (13) (The Korean Bible translates the word, “instruments” as “weapons.”) This makes it clear that we are in a war. No one can live in neutral territory. We must actively give our minds and hearts, our hands and feet to God to be used by him as instruments of righteousness. This means that we must make a decision of faith to live positively as servants of God.

3. Servants of God (15-23)

In verses 15-23 the word 'slave' is repeated. A slave belongs to another. We don't like to think of ourselves as slaves, but as a matter of fact, we are slaves of whoever we obey. (16) If we obey the demands of our sinful natures, we are slaves of sin. If we obey God and keep his laws, we are slaves of righteousness, slaves of God. The only truly free person is one who is a slave of God.

Verse 17 says, 'But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obey the form of teaching to which you were entrusted.' This means that we are set free from our slavery to sin. Our slavish natures are changed and with our whole hearts we may love and obey Jesus. We become like the servants at the wedding feast in Cana who filled the water jars to the brim, wholeheartedly obeying Jesus. We are free, and we joyfully use our freedom to serve God.

No one stays still; either sin is making increasingly greater demands on us and we find ourselves caught in a life of ever increasing wickedness, or we are yielding ourselves to God and growing in holiness. When we make a positive decision of faith to offer ourselves to God, he works in us by his grace to purify our hearts and lives and help us to grow in the image of Jesus. The outcome of the life of slavery to sin is ever-increasing wickedness which leads to death; the outcome of the decision to give ourselves and our members to God for his use is that we grow in holiness and grow in Jesus and the outcome is eternal life. We must make a choice. We cannot Just ignore the spiritual battle and go about our own worldly business, living our own selfish lives. To do so is to become a slave again of Satan.

Paul had lived under the law and had tried to serve God. He discovered that he could only serve sin. God's grace was wonderful. God's grace changed him from a servant of sin into a servant of righteousness. We are not under the law, but under grace. So we may serve God with thankful hearts and obey the gospel with our whole hearts. When we were in Adam, we gradually slipped deeper and deeper into sin until the fruit of death came. But in Christ, we have been set free to grow in holiness and righteousness. As we offer ourselves to God as his slaves, we reap the fruit of holiness and receive as a gift, eternal life. We are alive in Christ, so we must grow and bear fruit.

Study Questions

* BAPTIZED INTO HIS DEATH (6:1-10)

1. Where does the question in 6:1 come from? What is in the mind of a person who raises this question? What is the answer? What fundamental change takes place in a person when he becomes a Christian?

2. How does the baptism of the Holy Spirit consummate this change? (See also John 3:3; 1Pe 1:3;2Co 5:17) What does it mean to be baptized into Jesus' death? (See Mk 10:38,39; Gal 2:20)

3. How does Christ's death and resurrection set us free from the power and guilt of sin?

* INSTRUMENTS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS (11-14)

4. Is our battle with sin over when we are born again? How can we get rid of the desire to sin?

5. Notice the dos and don'ts in these verses. What can we learn here about the nature of the Christian's warfare?

6. In what respect is the Christian life more than just avoiding committing moral sins? Think about the positive warfare?

* SERVANTS OF GOD (15-23)

7. What is in the mind of the person who asks the question in verse 15? What determines a person's real master? (15-18)

8. What does it mean to "wholeheartedly obey the form of teaching to which you were entrusted?" (17)

9. In what respect is the life of slavery to righteousness (God) a process of growing? What is the outcome of the process? ("leading to holiness" = "sanctification" in RSV)

10. What cam we learn here about the downward progression of the life of slavery to sin? (19,21,23) Why is death call "wages"? Eternal life a "gift"?

07-FREEDOM FROM LAW [How Faith Grows -- (I)]

Romans 7:1-25
Key Verse: 7:25a

"So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God."

Law was a precious gift which God gave Moses for the people of Israel when they desperately needed life direction and training. They had just come out of 400 years of slavery in Egypt, and though they were free from the chains of Egypt, the slave mentality of Egypt still bound them. They could sing and dance and praise God for destroying Pharaoh and his army and opening a way through the Red Sea for them; then, 3 days later, they could forget all about it and grumble and complain and rebel against God's servant, threatening to go back to Egypt because they were hungry. The mark of a slave mentality is the lack of a thankful heart; no sense of history; lots of grumbling and complaining; a great interest in small physical pleasures and bodily comforts.

In Exodus 20-31 God gave Moses the Law. The core of the law is the 10 Commandments. The covenant ceremony in Exodus 24 was like a marriage ceremony which bound them to God to be his own people. - The Law was the centerpiece of the covenant. It was given so that they might be trained to overcome their slave mentality and grow into a holy nation and a kingdom of priests.

The problem was, the Israelites broke their covenant relationship with God. They worshiped idols. They could not keep the law because of their sinful Human nature. So the law became an unbearable burden and a cruel taskmaster who could not save them; it only condemned them .

When we are set free from slavery to sin through our union with Christ, we are also set free from bondage to law. Does this mean that the law has become obsolete for a Christian, and we can ignore it? Does the law have any function in a Christian's life? First of all, we are freed from the law so that we might belong to Jesus and bear fruit to God.

1. To bear fruit to God (1-6)

Paul uses an illustration from marriage to teach us our new relationship to the law, and our relationship to Jesus. Paul himself once married the Law because he thought this would make him a great man; he thought this would make his life fruitful and happy. So he pledged commitment to the Law. His commitment was like a marriage. So he became "Mrs. Law and the law was 'Mr. Law.' She did her best fir Mr. Law, but he was never satisfied. He only pointed out her weaknesses and made increasingly greater demands on her and condemned her for this and that. There was no good fruit--only fruit for death. She regretted her marriage, but she couldn't get away from him because she was bound by the law of marriage. She was a slave to Mr. Law. Only death could set Mrs. Law free.

According to the law of marriage, only death sets a person free to marry another. Such a death occurred when I accepted the gospel and died with Jesus. Paul says in verse 4, "So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead in order, that we might bear fruit to God." Because we died with Christ, our bondage to law is broken. We are no longer under the law; we are married to our true husband Jesus. The purpose of this union is to bear beautiful and joyful fruit to God. We do not serve Jesus in the old way, according to the written code, but in the new way of the Spirit.

We died to the law through the body of Christ so that we might belong to Jesus. We became his most precious and beloved ones, his brides. But Christ sacrificed his very life on the cross in order to make this new relationship with us. Our relationship with Christ is possible when we make a life commitment to him who died for us. He gives us a clear destination for our lived, the kingdom of heaven. How sorrowful it is to see so many people who don't commit themselves to God. They don't even commit themselves to their wives or husbands or children. Psalm 1 says that they are like chaff blown by the wind, Let's not be like chaff; let's take root in Jesus and be built up, and bear fruit to God.

2. The function of the Law (7-24)

These days many people have an attitude toward life which resembles very much the slave mentality. They brag about living naturally. They say, "If it feels good, do it", and "Do what ever you think is right." Like the lawless slaves just out of Egypt, they have no life direction, no sense of responsibility, and an unconditionally rebellious attitude toward all authority. Such people think they are free, but actually, they are slaves. Slave-class people have no law of marriage. Men and women enjoy free sex, but men take no responsibility for women they use, and women want no responsibility for human life created by their thoughtless actions.

In Chapter 6, Paul said that we are under grace not under law--but this by no means gives us license to follow our natural desires and live lawless lives. Rather, we must grow in holiness (19). To grow in holiness requires struggle with sin and Satan. The law serves two purposes: first, it helps us know what sin is so that we can repent; second, it helps us struggle so that we can grow in holiness.

a. The law is holy and good (7-13)

God's law is not sinful. God's law is holy and just, righteous and good. It exposes sin as sin. Most of the laws concern our actions; but the 10th commandment, "Do not covet" concerns the inner motives. Covetousness comes from an ungrateful heart. I want something that belongs to someone else. This means that I am not content with what God has given me. I am dissatisfied with the life God has called me to live. Covetousness can cause a person to steal or murder or commit adultery. It is a refusal to accept the sovereignty of God in one’s practical life. Much of the violence and unrest in our society is caused by covetousness. The so-called “rights” movements are, for the most part, rooted in covetousness. God’s law says “Do not covet.” When I examine my heart, grumbling or ingratitude or the competitive spirit that arises from time to time is a violation of this law. Perhaps this is why Paul wrote the Christians in Thessalonica, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1Th 5:16-18) A thankful heart is not an option for a Christian. It is obligatory if one is to obey the command, “Do not covet.”

Paul found that he could not obey this law. The harder he tried to do so, the more impossible it was. He found that the law makes us aware of sin, that is, it brings sin to life. But the law has no power to solve the sin problem. So the law makes us fatalistic and leads us to despair. Paul wrote, “sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death.” So “the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death.”

So, the first function of the law is to expose sin and make me know that I am a sinner. I must know that I am a sinner so that I may know my need for a Savior.

b. The law makes me struggle and grow (14-24)

The law exposes the fact that I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. It shows me that I must fight with my slave mentality. Verses 14-25 are written in the present tense. Paul is not just talking about his present situation; nor is he talking only about his past, pre-Christian life. He is stating a general principle that is true about all of us. As long as we are in the flesh we must struggle with our sinful human nature. Paul says, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” (15) He continues, “In my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind...” Tension and inner conflict are not necessarily bad. As we grow in Christ, the Bible shows us new areas of life that need to be cleansed of sin by the blood of Jesus. We must continue to fight sin in our lives in order to grow in faith and in holiness and in Christian maturity–and in usefulness to God.

3. Jesus Christ, the only Savior (25)

When we struggle with sin, we soon realize that we are fighting a losing battle. Paul cried out in verse 25, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” The law reminds us how weak and helpless we are. What can we do? Verse 6 says, “But now by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.” This verse opens a window into Chapter 8. Victory in the Christian life only comes when we walk by the Spirit, not by the flesh. So what can we do? We can go to Jesus. When we stop struggling on a human level and go to Jesus we can taste victory. So Paul wrote, “thanks be to God–through Jesus Christ my Lord!” He alone can rescue us from sin and death and enable us to enter into union with him. Because we belong to him we can walk in the new way of the Spirit and bear fruit to God (4,6,25).

Study Questions

* AN ILLUSTRATION FROM MARRIAGE (1-6)

1. To whom is Paul speaking in these verses? What is the absolute the limit of the law's authority?

2. How is one set free from the law of marriage? Whose death sets the Christian free from the law? What is the purpose of our being set free from the law?

3. With whom is our new union? What is its fruit? How is this fruit different from the fruit we bore when we were under the law? What other differences are there in these 2 unions?

4. What does the illustration from marriage teach us about the importance of commitment? Why is commitment necessary for fruitfulness? Why do you think Paul used the illustration from marriage to teach us about the relationship between Christ and the Christian?

* PAUL'S STRUGGLE (7:7-24)

5. Is the law sinful? (7,12) What is the function of the law? (7,13; 3:20; Gal 3:24)

6. Over which of the 10 commandments did Paul stumble? How is this commandment different from the others? How is it related to the others?

7. Why did he say that the commandment brought death to him? (see Eph 2:1; Col 2:13; Jn 5:24) How is this death different from that in verse 4?

8. What is the human condition of all men since Adam? (14) What is the struggle that goes on inside one who wants to do good? Why? (14-20)

9. Read verses 21-24,25b.Why does Paul cry out that he is a wretched man? (21-24)

* JESUS CHRIST, THE ONLY SAVIOR (25)
10. What is the only way out of this defeated situation? What is Paul's cause for joy and thanksgiving? What can we learn here?

11. What does this chapter teach us about struggle in the Christian life, and how Christians grow?

08-FREE TO WALK ACCORDING TO THE SPIRIT

Romans 8:1-17
Key Verse: 8:1-2

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the Law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.”

This chapter is the climax of Romans. What is the great joy and hope that belongs to Christians? It is joy of new and unimagined freedom that comes from being a child of God. A child of God lives in the absolute and unshakable security of the love of almighty God. We have a right relationship with our Creator that transforms and blesses all the other relationships of life. As children and heirs of God, we may share in Christ's suffering and share in his glory. This suggests to solution to life's two most important problems: One is where we are going and the other is how we get there. The first part of this chapter talks about our walk in the Spirit and the second part, the glorious hope we have in God's kingdom. The last part of this chapter is Paul’s confession of love for Jesus.

1. There is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus (1-4)

Verse one says, “Therefore, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” This points back to chapter 5, 6 and 7. Chapter 5 begins, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God...” We are not condemned because we have been justified by faith–we have been forgiven. In chapter 6 we find that we are united with Christ in his death and united with him in his resurrection. We are no longer slaves to sin because we died with Christ. “Anyone who has died has been freed from sin.” (6:7) So we have been set free from sin. The Law was given to help people to live the useful and fruitful and happy lives that God created us to live. But because we have a sinful nature, we cannot live according to God's good and holy Law. The law gives good advice, but it is powerless to help us. We have to be strong--but we are weak. Chapter 7 describes this struggle and ends with a cry to Jesus, who alone can deliver us. Chapter 8: 2-3 tell us that through the death of Christ on the cross God did for us what the Law could not do. God sent his Son, Jesus, to die for our sins. Jesus lived a sinless life and died on the cross as a sin offering for us. When I accept Jesus' death personally, my sins are forgiven and I am set free from the power of sin and death. In Chapter 7 we find that we are free from the law because, “by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, not in the old way of the written code.” (7:6) So, through the death of Christ, we have been set free from sin, set free from death and set free from the law. No one can condemn us because Christ Jesus has justified us. We are free to travel the pilgrim road to the heavenly kingdom.

We are pilgrims, for this world is not our real home. The Spirit of God leads us through a world fraught with all kinds of temptations and dangers, sorrows and joys to claim our inheritance in the kingdom of heaven. The problem is that we are slaves to sin. People have a false idea of freedom. They think that freedom is doing everything the sinful nature desires--with no restraints from parents, society or even from God. This is a deception perpetrated by the devil who wants to make us his prisoners. We want to be free to follow the Spirit, but we are slaves. How then can sinful man be free to live according to the Spirit of God? Verse 2 says, “Through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.”

So we are free to follow the leading of the Spirit. But as a matter of fact, our sinful human nature is in us as long as we have mortal bodies, and it continues to make demands. This means that life is a struggle between the spiritual nature which longs for God and the sinful nature which was corrupted in the Fall.

The good news of chapter 8 is that the Spirit of Christ is living in us to help us and lead us to victory. What then, must we do? We must set our minds on Jesus. When we set our minds on Jesus and the things of his Spirit, we have life and peace. We have freedom from fear and sin and death. But if we have our minds set on what our sinful nature desires we will die. The original meaning in Greek of the word translated "sinful nature” is "flesh." To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace." Furthermore, when we only think about the demands of our sinful nature, we become hostile to God. The mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God because it does not submit to God's law--indeed, it cannot. Man was created for God's glory and we should make it our aim to please God. But if we are controlled by the sinful nature, we cannot please God. (8)

But we who belong to Jesus are not controlled by the sinful nature but by the Spirit of Christ who lives in us. The Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is working in us. He gives us life. We should not be fooled by the demands of the sinful nature--we have no obligation to the flesh or to the sinful nature. We must put to death the deeds of the body by obeying the leading of the Spirit.

When we are led by the Spirit of God, we may claim the inheritance that belongs to us as children of God. We are set free from fear. We know God's love so personally that we call him “Daddy”. and his Spirit in us renews and confirms his love for us. As children we are heirs of God, co-heirs with Christ. We share in Christ's suffering as we seek to bring the gospel to the lost world; we share in the glory of the kingdom of God.

Study Questions

1. Why is there no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus? (5:1-11,16; 6:6,7; 7:6) What does this mean? What does it mean to you?

2. From what have we been freed? What is the nature of our new freedom? (7:6; 2ff) Why is the law unable to solve the problem of sin and death? How has God solved this problem for us? (1-4)

3. Read verses 5-8 using the footnote alternate readings. What does it mean to set one's mind on the flesh (6)? What is the result? If one’s mind is set on the Spirit, what is the outcome? Why is the mind set on the flesh hostile to God? Why can it neither please God nor bring us peace?

4. Who controls the Christian? What else does the Spirit who lives in us do for us? What is the source of his power? What does "give life to your mortal bodies” mean?

5. To whom do we have an obligation? Why is it important to know that we do not have an obligation to the flesh (sinful nature)?

6. How do we come out of slavery into sonship? What is the difference in a son and a slave? What are the privileges of sons? What does this mean to you?

09-MORE THAN CONQUERORS

Romans 8:18-39
Key Verse: 8:37

1. Future glory (18-30)

3. More than conquerors (31-39)

Study Questions

10-GOD'S SOVEREIGNTY IN WORLD MISSION

Romans 9:1-33
Key Verse: 9:33

“As it is written: 'See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.'"

Paul was missionary. His mission field was the Gentile world. He was a Jew, a Pharisee, and he loved his people, the chosen people of God. He loved God. His heart was in anguish because God's heart was broken. His sorrow at Israel‘s failure reflected the sorrow of God. God had poured out great blessings on Israel, but Israel had rejected the greatest blessing--the Christ. Israel rejected God's love. But Israel’s failure did not mean that God had failed. God had chosen Israel to be his own people, a holy nation, a nation of priests. Israel rejected the messiah and rejected her missionary responsibility to bring the world to obedience to God. But God is not defeated by man's failure. He continues to use his sovereign power to accomplish his redemptive purpose in the world.

In chapter 8, Paul describes the great privileges that our loving God has provided for his children--for those who are justified by faith in Christ. In Chapter 9, Paul weeps because his own people Israel--who are God's own people--have rejected this greatest gift of God's love.

1. Israel’s privileges

The privileges which God gave Israel were very great. They had been given (i) adoption as sons--Ex 4:22; (ii) divine glory--God's own glorious Presence dwelling in the midst of his people (Ex 40:34); (iii) the covenants--binding the people to God and making them his own (Ge 17:7-10; Ex 24:7-8; 19:4-6); (iv) the receiving of the law--the Bible (Ex 20-40); (v) the temple worship--the whole sacrificial system which opened the way for sinners to draw near a holy God for forgiveness and blessing; (vi) the promises--God's promise to Abraham in Ge 12:2,3 and his promise to David in 2 Sa 7:14. These are promises of the Messiah; (vii) the patriarchs--great men of faith who set the direction of the history of the nation. The greatest privilege of all was the one toward which all the others pointed: God sent his Son, the Christ, to be born a Jew. God sent his only Son into the world through the people of Israel. Wherever Paul speaks of God's dealings with people he says, "to the Jew first, then to the Gentile." Israel rejoiced in her special privileges. She was proud of them, although she had no reason to be proud, because the privileges were given by the sovereign grace of God--not because Israel deserved them.

2. Israel’s failure

The great tragedy of Israel was that she rejected the Christ-and she rejected God's missionary purpose. She missed the whole point of the privileges that God had given her. The privileges made her proud. She accepted and rejoiced in the fact that God had elected her to be his chosen people. She accepted God's ways of working and his sovereignty--until he worked in ways that she didn't like. Israel rejoiced in the fact that God chose Isaac instead of Ishmael; and she was glad that he chose Jacob, not Esau. She praised God for showing power and proclaiming the greatness of his name in all the earth through his hand of judgment on Pharaoh. But there were two things that God did that she could not accept. First, when God sent his promised Messiah to die on a Roman cross, she stumbled over the stumbling block of the cross. She did not accept him. Second, when God in his sovereign mercy and power chose to call Gentiles to be his people, she refused to accept them. She rejected her Messiah and she rejected her mission. Israel forgot that God had called her to be a holy nation, a kingdom of priests for the world (Ex 19:4-6). She rejected God's world mission purpose for her own life and became content to sit back and enjoy the blessings God had given her. But God's redemptive purposes for his world, and his sovereign will cannot be blocked. God actually used the rejection of Israel to bring the Gentiles into his Church.

If we who are God's new Israel, the Christian Church, do not accept God's blessings with a great sense of responsibility, we also will fail--and God will by-pass us and find another way to accomplish his world mission. We must learn to accept and rejoice in the sovereign ways of God who works in and among us. If we continue in our own stubborn ways and insist on our own righteousness, we cannot receive the blessings God wants to give us as his children. We must not become proud because of our privileges--we must walk humbly before God to seek and to obey his will.

3. God's sovereign ways

God's ways are not our ways. He does things that we cannot understand. But he is sovereign. He is our Creator. We are his creatures. He is the potter; we are clay. He has the right to make any kind of vessel he chooses. He is the Lord of history. He elects the people whom he desires to use in his redemptive history.

But God is not arbitrary in his ways of working. He has a purpose in history. God's purpose is redemptive. He wants his power known and his mighty name proclaimed to all the people of the world, so that all people might fear and worship him. When all creation acknowledges him as God and bows before him in praise and gratitude and obedience, then the broken order of creation is restored. God is glorified and the purpose of creation is filled.

God's method of working in history is by election. God works through people--through individuals. He chose one man, Abraham, and called him. Abraham obeyed God's call and God made a covenant with him and his descendants. God chose Isaac, not Ishmael to be the covenant son; he chose Jacob, not Esau. He promised Abraham that through his descendants the world would be blessed. He was not reneging on his promise because he did not chose Esau, but only chose Isaac and Jacob. Rather, he worked through Isaac and Jacob to carry out and fulfill his promise. God was glorified when Pharaoh, the oppressor of his people was crushed and Moses led God's people out of Egypt. God showed all the nations of the world that he is sovereign Lord of all the earth--even Lord of Pharaoh. He is sovereign Lord of all men and nations. He is the Lord of history.

God called the Gentiles. Paul gets to the point of why he has been talking about the sovereign purposes and work of God. God, in his own sovereign will and wisdom, elected to call people from among the Gentiles to be his people. This was not a sudden or hasty decision He spoke about his plans for the Gentile world through the prophets. How great is his mercy and patience. If he waits patiently, withholding his wrath from the Gentiles until finally he calls his own people from among these objects of his wrath, originally intended for destruction, how great is his mercyl How amazing it is that he could call Gentiles to become a part of his people, and include them with the objects of his mercy, prepared for glory--the Jews. His wisdom and power and mercy are beyond our understanding. Furthermore, Hosea, the prophet, predicted that God would do this very thing. When Hosea said, wI will call them my people who are not my people', he was speaking of the Gentiles who would be called to become God's people.

And what about Israel? God, in his mercy and love, chose to spare a remnant of Israel. Because of her unfaithfulness, Israel deserved God's wrath and judgment--but God elected to spare a remnant. Isaiah especially prophesies about this.

What can we learn here about God and his requirements for us? God, now, as in the past justifies all men on the basis of their faith. The Jews tried to establish a righteousness of their own. In doing this, they rejected the righteousness given by God. Our righteousness is nothing but filthy rags. We are sinners before God. Only he can make us righteous. He has chosen, in his own sovereign wisdom and love to cleanse us from sin and make us righteous by the blood of Jesus, shed on the cross for our sins. The word of the cross is a stumbling block for all who, in pride, refuse to repent. The Jews stumbled over the stumbling block. But all who believe in Jesus may obtain the righteousness that is through faith.

Now, as in the past, God longs for the redemption of all nations and peoples. The task of proclaiming the gospel to the world has been given to us--to those who have been saved by his grace through faith in Jesus. We who have received his Messiah have also been given his mission. We must not let the widness of God's love and mercy become a stumbling stone for us. If we do not repent and come to Jesus in faith we will stumble over the stumbling stone; if we reject or neglect God's mission for us because of our narrow and selfish hearts, we will stumble over the stumbling stone.

“See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”(33)

Study Questions

* PAUL'S AGONY (1-5)

1. What is the reason for Paul's great anguish of heart? How does he show the depth of his concern for Israel?

2. What are the privileges which God had given Israel? List them and explain to what each refers. Which privilege is the greatest? Which privileges had they enjoyed and which had they refused?

* GOD'S PURPOSE IN ELECTION (6-18)

3. What problem is raised by Israel's failure? How does Paul answer? In his answer, what does he teach about God and his ways of working? (6-13)

4. What is the significance of God's promises in his redemptive history? (6-9)

5. What does Old Testament history teach about God's purpose in election?

6. How did God use Pharaoh in his world mission purpose?

7. What do verses 6-18 teach about God's basic relationship with Israel?

* THE SOVEREIGN RIGHT OF THE CREATOR (19-29)

8. What is the point of the parable of the Potter? What can we learn from this parable about the Creator's purpose in each act of creation? Why is it important to accept God's sovereignty in history and in our own lives?

9. In this context (22-29), who are the "objects of wrath--prepared for destruction"? Who are the 'objects of his mercy, prepared in advance for glory'?

10. Is God's sovereignty so limited that he must destroy all the objects of wrath and must save all the objects of mercy? How is his sovereignty different from fatalism?

11. How did God use his sovereignty and make the riches of his glory known? What did Hosea prophesy about this?

12. What did Isaiah prophesy about Israel's future? What is the place of the remnant in God's redemptive history? In what respect can we say that God's salvation of the remnant of Israel is by grace alone?

* THE STUMBLING STONE (30-33)

13. Why did the Gentiles obtain righteousness, while the Jews failed to obtain it?

14. In what respect does Jesus fulfill the prophesy of Isaiah 8:14 and 28:16?

15. What was the Jews' problem? Why did they stumble over the stumbling stone?

16. What does this chapter teach about God's sovereignty? About his grace?

11-THE WORD OF CHRIST

Romans 10:1-21
Key Verse: 10:17

"Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ."

God is the sovereign Lord of history. He is the one who elects and calls and justifies and glorifies men. He is the almighty God, and he has the power to save or destroy; he can exercise his power in any way he chooses. It is amazing that he chose to use weak and foolish men as instruments for his redemptive work. And he chose to work through his word. I Corinthians 1:21b says, 'God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.'

Salvation is God's gift. It is foolish and useless to try to earn salvation by doing all kinds of good work for God or for people. We cannot earn salvation by going to church or by writing sogams or by participating in religious ceremonies. God gives his gift of salvation to everyone who believes in Jesus Christ. Those whom God saves through Jesus are given God's work to do. He does not save us so that we can sit down and do nothing; we were saved so that we might be used by God as instruments of righteousness. We were saved so that we might grow up in the image of Christ to be salt and light, and to preach his gospel to a dying world.

1. Believing the word (1-13)

Paul was still thinking about why the Jews failed to obtain the salvation which God had prepared for them. They had zealously pursued righteousness (9:31; 10:2). Paul himself had been among the most zealous to serve God. He had killed Christians, thinking that be was serving God. But God does not want our unenlightened zeal. He will not accept the righteousness that people try to establish by their own efforts. People who try to establish their own righteousness by keeping the law fail to do so for two reasons: First, they become proud. They are too proud to submit to God's righteousness. They are too proud and spiritually blind to come to God with uplifted hands, saying, "Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner." They are too proud to accept the shame of the cross as their glory. Second, they cannot fulfill the requirements of the law. Only Christ has completely obeyed and fulfilled the law. Verse 4 says, "Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes."

If one decides to depend on his own will power and faithfulness in keeping the law, then he must keep it all and he must keep it to the end. If he fails at any point, or if he takes even a short spiritual vacation he fails the whole exam. If a part of the law is broken, it means that the whole thing is broken. Those who break the law are condemned.

We can only be free from the law when we belong to Jesus, for Jesus alone has kept and fulfilled the law. Everyone who has faith in him is justified. Everyone who ignores him and tries to keep the law himself will fail. So the Jews, in spite of their zeal, missed the way of salvation.

Moses knew that God's provision for our salvation was simple and uncomplicated. He also knew that men couldn't live up to all the requirements of the law. (5) Earnest seekers expect some hard provision or impossible task, But Moses says in Deuteronomy 30:11-14, 'Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, 'Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it? Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, 'Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it? No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.w The word about which Moses and Paul spoke is the word of the gospel--the word of Christ.

Seekers after God sometimes fail to realize the utter simplicity of the faith which God requires. There are some who seek Christ, but seek him in asceticism or in various kinds of spiritual experiences. But Christ is very near. He is in the word of the gospel that has been preached to us; he is in the words of the Bible. That word is in our mouths and in our hearts. What is that word, and what must we do with it? It is gospel, and we must confess it with our mouths and believe it in our hearts. Confession and heart belief; Heart belief and confession--these cannot be separated.

First confess with your mouth. We confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord. He is our King. Isaiah called him 'Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace... I Peter confessed, wyou are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' Jesus wants us to confess him before all people. We must confess our sins (1 in 1:9) and we must confess his cross--and we must confess him as Savior and Lord. This is a love confession. He is Lord. We are no longer ruled by pride and passion, by our own feelings and plans and ideas or motivated by our own zeal. We are ruled by Christ. He wants us to have a clear identity as his people. When Peter confessed Jesus as Christ and Lord, Jesus promised to build his Church on his confessional faith. Later, Peter denied Jesus and wept bitterly because of his failure. Jesus came and loved him and forgave him and restored him. We must confess Jesus before all people, for we confess with our mouths and are saved.

Second, we must believe in our hearts that God raised Jesus from the dead. It is the fact of his resurrection that we must hold fast in our hearts. It is easy to believe that evil men crucified Jesus-because many people die unjustly in this sinful world. But to believe that God raised him from the dead is to believe something that is humanly impossible. With God, the Almighty Creator, all things are possible. Because God raised Jesus from the dead we know that his sacrifice for us was accepted and our sins are forgiven. We have new life in Christ. The key of victory is in the hands of God who raised Jesus from the dead--and he gives that key to all who believe in their hearts. It is resurrection faith that we must bold in our hearts. We believe in our hearts and are justified.

Third, everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, rich and poor, man and woman; human condition makes no difference. Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. To call on the name of the Lord is the most ancient way of saying that we must put our trust wholly in God, depending on nothing, on no one else. The people of Seth's line (Ge 4:26) called on the name of the Lord; Abraham built altars and called on the name of the Lord. This quotation in verse 13 is from Joel, and Peter quotes in in his Pentecost sermon in Acts 2.

2. Preaching the word of Christ (14-21)

When we believe in Jesus, we call on him for mercy and forgiveness. We come to him with repentant hearts, seeking his help. And he receives and forgives us. He saves and blesses all who come to him. How then can we believe? When we hear the word of the gospel and accept it in our hearts, faith is born. Just as God ordained that the problem of man's sin be solved by faith in Jesus, so he has ordained that this faith be planted in people's hearts by the bearing of the word of Christ. But how can people hear if no one tells them? Isaiah says that the feet of those who bring good news are beautiful But Jesus depends on his people in every age to go and tell, to share this word of Christ with the unbelieving world. It is Jesus himself who sends us into the unbelieving world to share the word of the gospel with people so that they might hear and believe. We do not go and proclaim the gospel because of human reasoning. The failure or success of our preaching cannot be our major concern. Computor calculations about human need and people's response do not send us out with the gospel. our Lord is the one who sends us. The Body of Christ, the fellowship of believers are the ones who ordain and send out and pray for--and go to unbelievers, at the command of Christ. Our call rests on the command of our Lord. (Acts 1:8; Mt 28:19,20; Mk 16:15)

Israel heard but did not believe. God continues to stretch out his hands like a loving Father, waiting for their return. He sought to stir them to belief by giving his love and his gospel to the Gentile world in order to make them jealous. He wanted to use any means to bring them to faith in Christ.

God works in the events of human history according to his own sovereign will and in his own way--but the basic method that he has chosen to redeem the world from sin and save men from wrath is the calling and sending of his people to preach the gospel of Christ to a world that is dying. He has no other plan or method. He works through weak men. We who have been saved, have been saved because we heard and believed the word. We have been saved so that we may tell the world that Jesus died for our sins and that God raised him from the dead. When dark, sin-enslaved hearts hear the word of Christ, they are warmed and faith is born. Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.

Study Questions

* BELIEVING THE WORD (1-13)

1. Why is zeal for God not sufficient to save Israel? Why do they not submit to God's righteousness? What is God's righteousness? What is Paulls desire and prayer? (1-4)

2. What is the difference in the righteousness that is by law and the righteousness that is by faith? (5-10) (See Dt 30:11-14)

3. What is the word of faith that Paul proclaims? What kind of faith is necessary for salvation? (8-10)

4. What does it mean to 'believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead'? Why is this faith necessary for justification? What does 'justification' mean?

5. What does it mean to “confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’”? Why is it necessary to make a confession of faith?

6. How does scripture support what Paul teaches in verses 11-13 about justification and salvation? (9-13)

* PREACHING THE WORD OF CHRIST (14-21)

7. What is the chain reaction of belief described by Paul? What is the catalyst of belief? How does this fulfill the words of Isaiah 52:7? (14-17)

8. Think about the practical meaning of verse 17. How has the sovereign God ordained that faith be planted in men's hearts?

9. What is the tragic exception to the principle in verse 17? What can we learn from this?

10. Did God give up when Israel did not believe? What can we learn about God and his ways of working?

11. What can we learn in this chapter about the relationship between evangelism and God's sovereignty?

12-THAT HE MAY HAVE MERCY ON ALL

Romans 11:1-36
Key Verse: 11:3

'For God has bound all men over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all."

I. God's remnant

Paul knew what it was to be lonely. He deeply understood Elijah's sorrowful cry, 'Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me.0 Paul had chosen a lonely road when he turned his back on fame and recognition, and on the strong religious and cultural community of Judaism and chosen to follow the Galilean. Where had Jesus led him? Jesus led him to take up the missionary calling which the people of Israel had rejected. Jesus led him into the Gentile world. Because of this, his own people hated him. Because of this, they put him in prison. But Paul knew that in spite of Israel’s rejection of the Christ and Israel’s rejection of himself, God was working to accomplish his own purposes through his chosen remnant.

Elijah lived during the times of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. Jezebel was a dedicated Baal worshiper, and she was determined to turn Israel from the worship of the Lord God of the Bible to the worship of Baal. Baal worship involved drunken orgies and free sex. Male and female prostitutes lived in the temples of Baal. Jezebel put the prophets of Baal on government payroll, and she put a price on Elijah's head. Even though he proved in a dramatic contest on Mount Carmel that the Lord God of Israel is the living and true God, and Baal is nothing, Jezebel didn't care. She still determined to kill God's servant and destroy the worship of God. Elijah stood all alone.

Paul saw his people knowingly reject the truth of God. He felt as lonely as Elijah. But he accepted God's word to Elijah, "I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal., He believed that God had spared a remnant, chosen by grace, to serve him those times with the word of God. God would not be defeated by evil. God's servants might lose a few battles, but God would win the victory in the long run. God always works through a remnant. He is not the God of *follow the crowd' or 'majority rule.* He is the God of the remnant. No matter how dark our times may be, let us remain as a part of God's remnant.

2 God's purpose in hardening Israel

The elected remnant obtained salvation, but what about the rest? Paul says the others were hardened. Surely, God wanted them to keep the covenant and become a nation of shepherds and Bible teachers. He wanted them to be a nation of priests, mediating his grace and love to the whole world. What had happened? First, they became proud and exclusive and refused God's love. Paul quotes Deuteronomy 29:4. Hearts are hardened by rejected love. With your eyes have seen all that the Lord did in Egypt to Pharaoh... with your own eyes you saw those great trials, those miraculous signs and great wonders. But to this day the Lord has not given you a mind that understands or eyes that see or ears that hear. During the 40 years that I led you through the desert, your clothes did not wear out, nor did the sandals on your feet...I did this so that you might know that I am the Lord your God." He trained them and he protected them and he provided for them. But they did not accept his love as love. So their hearts were hardened. The more he loved them, the harder they became; be hardened them by loving them. They rejected his love and their eyes became blind and their ears dull and their hearts hard. Second, hearts are hardened when God's servant, the man whom God sends is rejected. King David experienced this. Paul quotes Psalm 69:22,23. Verse 20-21 says, 'Scorn has broken my heart and has left me helpless; I looked for sympathy, but there was none, for comforters, but I found none. They put gall in my food and gave me vinegar for my thirst.' David cursed his enemies; Jesus blessed and forgave his. But Paul sees that to reject the Messiah whom God sent is to invite God's curse on oneself. So the Israelites' hearts were hard because they rejected God's love and because they rejected God's Messiah.

3. The olive tree parable

God is never defeated. He turns adversity into fruitful victory. The olive tree parable shows how God turned the rejection of Israel into riches for the world. He also uses this parable as a warning to the Gentile believers. They must not make the same mistakes which Israel made.

The Patriarchs to whom God's promises were given are the root of the olive tree. The root supports thetree. The natural branches are the Jews. The Jews were cut off from the tree of God's history and the Gentiles, the wild olive shoots, were grafted in. So the failure of Jews

became an open door to the Gentile world to come to God.

God did not act arbitrarily toward Israel. The Jews were broken off because of their unbelief and their proud hearts. So the Gentile believers must stand by faith. We began by faith; we must continue by faith. We must not be arrogant, but we must fear God. We are included in God's family by God's grace alone. if the Jews do not persist in their unbelief, they will be grafted in again, for God is able to do it. What a joyful day that would bel Our faith is faith in the promises of God. God longs for the Jews to repent and turn from their pride and hardness and receive the Messiah as their only Savior. They they will surely be grafted in again.

3. The Deliverer from Zion

Isaiah wrote about the Deliverer who would come from Zion. This Deliverer is Jesus. Isaiah 59:20 says, uthe Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who repent of their sins." God longs for all people to repent and accept his grace of forgiveness and be saved. This is his great redemptive purpose. Israells hardening opened the door of God's mercy for the Gentiles. They know that they are sinners who don't deserve Jesus' grace--like the Syrio-Phonecian woman who said, obut even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall under the table.' But God has not given up on the Jews. After the full number of the Gentiles have come in, then the Jews will repent and come to Jesus and again be grafted into the olive tree.

There is no way of salvation except through Jesus, the Deliverer who comes from Zion. As long as the Jews thought they were special people and were confident in their position as Abraham's descendants, their hearts were proud and unrepentant, and they did not come to Jesus. But after tasting the misery and meaninglessness of being cut off from fellowship with God, they could repent and come to the Savior whom God sent. Just as God poured out his mercy on the disobedient Gentile world, so he bound the proud and self-righteous Jews over to disobedience so that they might repent and receive his mercy.

God's ways are inscrutable. We cannot understand him. But we know that his gifts and his call are irrevocable. And we know that he longs to pour out his mercy and forgiveness on all people. He wants all people to realize that the life of disobedience is miserable and meaningless, and he wants all people to come to him for his mercy. Even though we cannot understand the inscrutable ways of God, we worship him. We cannot do anything for him, but he has done everything for us. To him be the glory for ever. Amen.

Study Questions

* GOD'S REMNANT (1-6)

1. In what respect is Paul's situation similar to that of Elijah? What did he learn from Elijah about God? What can we learn here?

2. How can Paul say with confidence that God has not rejected Israel, but is accomplishing his redemptive purpose through Israel? What can we learn here about God's ways o working?

3. On what basis is the remnant saved? How is this consistent with Paul's teaching in Romans to this point? Can the Jews be saved on any other basis?

* GOD'S PURPOSE IN THE HARDENING OF ISRAEL (7-32)

4. How does the Scripture show that God's hardening of Israel is a result of Israel's rejection of his love (Dt 29:2-6) and the reject on of his man? (Ps 69:16-23) (Ro 11:7-10)

(In verses 11-32 there are 2 questions raised by Israel's rejection of God's Messiah
and God's redemptive histor lst, did Israel stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? 2nd, how did God use IsraeTls fall to accomplish his redemptive pur ose? Paul's answers to these questions gives us deep insight into the mind and heart of God.)

5. How did Israel's failure result in riches for the Gentiles? How does Paul regard his own ministry? (11-15) What does this teach us about God?

* THE OLIVE TREE PARABLE (16-24)

6. To whom does Paul address this lesson in history? What does the parable of the olive tree teach about God's purpose to redeem the Gentile world?

7. What do the branches represent? The wild olive shoot? What is the tree? The root?

8. Why were the branms of Israel broken off? (20) Is their fate sealed? Why is there no fatalism with God? What does Paul want us Gentile believers to learn from this parable? (11-24)

* THE DELIVERER FROM ZION (25-36)

9. What is God's good purpose for Israel and for all people? Who is the Deliverer from Zion of whom Isaiah and Paul speak? How does this fit into God's way of salvation already explained in Romans?

10. Why does God not give up on Israel? Why did God bind the Jews over to disobedience? What do verses 25-32 teach about God's mercy? His way of salvation?

11. What is Paul's attitude toward God's sovereign ways of working? What can we learn here?

12. What can we learn from Chapters 9,10,11 about God's unchanging purpose and main point in exercising his sovereign power?

13-TRANSFORMED LIVES

Romans 12:1-21
Key Verse: 12:1,2

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

Paul begins this chapter with the words, "therefore", and "in view of God's mercy." Christians are not people who transform themselves. We are sinners who have received God's mercy, God's grace of forgiveness through the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are great debtors to God's grace. Therefore, we must worship God our Savior.

1. A living sacrifice (1-2)

But what kind of worship is pleasing to God? It is not the offering of sheep and goats on a bloody altar. Jesus' perfect sacrifice on the cross as the Lamb of God ended all of that. God wants from us an act of spiritual worship; he wants us to offer our own bodies as living sacrifices to him. How can we do this? Romans 1:17 says, 'The righteous will live by faith.' We began by offering ourselves to God by faith. We make a decision to live by faith, to live according to God's word--not by our human calculations.

Before we knew God's love and Jesus' grace, we lived according to the patterns of the world. We did not question the standards and values of the people around us, but fit easily into the pattern and lived like everyone else. But as the people of God, we should not be conformed any longer to these worldly patterns. Rather, we should try to please God. This means that our way of thinking about ourselves, other people and the world must be changed. We must learn to think about these things from God's point of view. Instead of naturally acting to please myself, I must ask, “How can I please God?” When my mind and heart are renewed by God's grace and by his forgiving, transforming love, then I can discern what his will is, and, with his help, I can live a life that pleases him.

2. Sincere love in the body of Christ (3-13)

The first evidence of a transformed life is a changed relationship with other people. The Bible commands us to love Cod and love our neighbors. When we become children of God, we suddenly have many brothers and sisters, and our first priority is to love them. This is often the hardest part of being a Christian. It's easy to love Jesus, who is my shepherd and who laid down his life for me, but it's hard to love fellow Christians. However, when Peter confessed his love to Jesus, Jesus first, second and third commands to him were 'Feed my lambs'; "Take care of my sheep"; and "feed my sheep." If we are Christians, we must have a close relationship with other Christians. How close? Paul says that we are like hands and feet and eyes and ears on the same body. (1 Co 12) Verse 5 says, "So in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others."

In order to have a right relationship with others, we must not think of ourselves more highly than we ought. We must be very realistic about ourselves. We must not compare ourselves with others, for if we do, we began either to feel inferior or to feel superior to them. Both of these attitudes are wrong and keep us from loving our brothers and sisters.

Paul tells us to think about the gifts God has given us and how we can use those gifts to serve the fellowship of Christ. Some of these gifts are for anyone who claims them by faith. For instance, the gift of prophesying is very close to being a Bible teacher. This is God's grace, and it is claimed and exercised by faith. Some of these gifts seem to be opportunities to minister to other believers, and the eyes to see those opportunities. These gifts are given so that we may use them--not just hide them away and become proud. If God gives us the opportunity to serve, we should serve; the opportunity to teach, or encourage or give material things to someone in need, then we should do these things, by faith. Those put in a position of leadership must work harder than anyone else. Those who forgive others who have sinned against them should do it cheerfully. God's gifts are given to be used in humble service of others. They are not given to make believers proud.

The most important one factor in the body of Christ is love. God's people must love each other with sincere love. This means that we must learn how to love from Jesus. If we really love our co-workers and our sheep, then we must hate the things that weaken and damage their faith. We must seek their highest good, and earnestly pray for them to grow up in the image of Jesus.

To be devoted to one another in brotherly love means that we must make a commitment to the body of Christ. Commitments are not vague; they are specific. Christians should be committed to the particular body into which God has led them. Church tramps, who go here and there looking for human or spiritual benefit, never making a commitment to a particular church or community of believers can't please God or learn what it means to be a Christian, for they are always getting, never giving.

Christians should also be aware of their influence in the body of Christ. So we should not live by our feelings. We should never lack in zeal, but keep spiritual fervor; we should be faithful in prayer, and be joyful in hope--gloomy faces are not a good influence on others. we should share freely and always welcome one another with the hospitality of Christ.

3. Christians in a hostile world (14-21)

Jesus wanted his disciples to live in the world--but not be worldly. When we live a life of faith in a world that is in rebellion against God, we can expect to be persecuted and misunderstood. But we must bless those who persecute us. We are misunderstood. but we must be understanding--we must overcome ourselves and rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn. (Our human tendency is to do the opposite.) We must live in harmony with believers, so as not to invite the scorn of the non-Christian world. We must not become proud and self-righteous, but humbly associate with all kinds of people in order to share the gospel with them.

Revenge is one of the big underlying motives for much of what goes on in a non-Christian society. People are created with an innate sense of justice. If they don't believe in God, they seek revenge on those who they think have wronged them. There are so many lawsuits in our present society. Of course, some of them are entered into because of money, but many lawsuits are brought for the sake of revenge. Even when we drive on a busy street, the spirit of revenge sometimes takes over at a red light, when somebody in a fast car zooms ahead when the light changes. The thought that crosses the mind is, 'I'll get him at the next light or worse, "I hope be gets a ticket." But what does Paul, reflecting the mind of Jesus, say, “Do not repay anyone evil for evil.” “Don't take revenge.” God said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay.” Paul says, “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath.” But even more, he tells us to feed our enemy if he is hungry, and if he is thirsty, give him drink. We must overcome evil with good.

Study Questions

* A LIVING SACRIFICE (1-2)

1. To what does "therefore" refer? What does he mean by "God's mercy"? What must we do because of God's mercy?
2. What is a living sacrifice? How can we "offer our bodies"? Why is this called a "spiritual act of worship"?
3. What is the pattern of this world? How had we conformed to it in the past? How can we be set free from the pattern of this world?

4. How can we know God's will and live lives that please him? Why is the renewal of the mind essential to a transformed life? How can our minds be renewed?

* SINCERE LOVE IN THE BODY OF CHRIST (3-13)

5. How are we to think of ourselves? of my relationship to other believers? Why can't I keep my faith personal, just between me and God?

6. See verses 3-8. What are the different gifts mentioned here? Why are they given and how are they to be used? What does this paragraph teach us about opportunity and responsibility, and the importance of life together?

7. what is sincere love? Why is hate mentioned as a part of sincere love? What does it mean to “be devoted"? How can we honor others above ourselves?

8. What do verses 11 and 12 teach about how to be a good influence? Why is this important as one reflection of sincere love? What else do these verses teach about practical love?

* CHRISTIANS IN A HOSTILE WORLD (14-21)

9. How should we act toward those who actively try to harm us? Why? (14)What does verse 15 mean? Why is this hard to do?

10. Why is it important for Christians to live in harmony with one another? Why might pride and conceit be a problem for Christians and how can we overcome this?

11. How pervasive is the spirit of revenge in the world? Why? What Is the Lord's command to us about seeking revenge? What can we do to live at peace with everyone? Is it always possible? Why?

12. How can we overcome evil with good?

14-PUT ON THE ARMOR OF LIGHT

Romans 13:1-14
Key Verse: 13:14

“...Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.

Paul was writing to Christians living under an anti-Christian, totalitarian regime. The Roman Christians were aware that they were living in a war zone. The pressures of the corrupt and pagan Roman culture were very great. So it was not without reason that Paul said, 'Your faith is being reported all over the world.' (1:8) How easy it would be to compromise with Roman culture and be melted into life in the political and cultural hub of the world Furthermore, any deviation from the norms of the Roman way of life invited persecution. So it would seem that the enemy of Christians, and of all freedom-loving people was the oppressive Roman government. So, resisting this pagan government in every possible way seemed to be the task of Christians. Some Christians probably thought that to rebel against the government and strive to change the structures of society was a task that they should actively pursue. It was a dangerous and heroic way of life. But Paul points out that the front line is somewhere else. The real battle is spiritual; it is not against the Roman Empire; the real battle is against Satan. For this reason, God's people must put on the armor of light.

1. Submit to authorities (1-7)

What should a Christian do when he lives under a freedom suppressing, totalitarian government? Paul’s surprising answer is in verse 1. “Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.” God is the sovereign ruler of history. He knows how corrupt man's nature is. He established governments to bring order to human society and to maintain that order.

Some governments are better than others; some allow more personal freedom; some maintain tight control of people's lives. A benevolent dictator maintains order while seeking to help his subjects live in peace and harmony, with justice. A cruel dictator doesn't care about the people--he exercises his authority arbitrarily, and people suffer under his rule. But they would suffer more in a chaotic anarchy. Perhaps a democracy based on constitutional law is the best form of government--but evil and corrupt men can always find a way to twist even good laws to their own advantage. A socialist form of government seeks to establish economic justice, but it cannot deal with problems of morality, or with the sinful human natures of those who control the system.

This chapter teaches us clearly that the Christians' task is not to change the structures of government by rebelling against those in authority. Nor may Christians excuse themselves from obeying distasteful and burdensome laws, such as paying taxes or serving in the army, on the grounds that Christians don't have to support pagan governments.

Verse 2 says that those who rebel against the authority are rebelling against what God has instituted.

Verse 3 says, “...rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right...” Basically, the Roman government promoted peace and order. Those who were a part of the empire were protected by the Roman army. But surely Paul knew that the Roman government also persecuted Christians, even though Christians did what was right. Christians who did not worship the Emperor or honor the pantheon of gods were called atheists. Paul himself was later martyred in Rome because of his Christian faith. However, it is true that even though we may suffer, if we live before God and seek to do what is right, we do not need to fear. if we suffer for doing right, God will reward us. We should not suffer for doing wrong. A Christian who lives by faith does not have to fear, for his life and his death are in the hands of God.

We should regard the ruler, whether king or dictator, policeman or judge as God's servant, put in power to do us good. He has the right to use the sword to establish and keep order. We should pay our taxes and respect our rulers for 2 reasons: first, so that we will not be punished; second#, because of conscience--for it is right to do these things.

2. Put on the armor of light (8-14)

We are fighting a war, however. it is a spiritual war. in it we have weapons and armor. The main weapon is love. It is not easy to fight with love, because overcoming ourselves to love others is difficult. According to verses 8-10, if we love our fellowman, we fulfill the law. God gave the law so that sinful people might be restrained from hurting one another; more than this, he desires that we positively build up one another and help one another. We must love others with the love of Jesus; this is love which seeks the highest good of another; it is love that builds up. Christian love does not tear down or plant doubt and fear; it builds up and plants hope and faith.

The best defense against our enemy Satan is light. When we lived in the dark, we enjoyed dark pleasures. Some of the deeds of darkness are listed in verse 13: orgies, drunkenness, sexual immorality, debauchery, dissension and jealousy. Each of us can add to the list. They are the deeds of darkness because they are things of which we are ashamed, things which we don't want to be brought into the light. They are the things that we would not like to be doing when Jesus comes again. Jesus told Nicodemus, 'Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. (in 3:19-20)

So, we must put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. This means that we must repent. We must let the light of God's word and Spirit shine into every corner of our lives and expose all the things that need cleaning up. We must make a decision of the heart to give up all the things that do not please God. We must repent. We must not put off doing this, for Jesus may come anytime. The hour has come to wake up. Our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.

We cannot fight the devil in our own strength. If we try to do so, we will surely be defeated. This is why many people would rather rebel against the government or participate in some 'anti-' this or that activity. It's too hard to fight the devil. But we don't have to fight the devil in our own strength. And we must go one step beyond repenting. Verse 14 says, “rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” We must invite Jesus to come in and rule our hearts and lives. We must put on Jesus every morning and go out to the front lines of the world to do battle against Satan. We must not spend our time thinking about how to please ourselves or how to provide for our flesh desires. we must think about how to please God, and how to obey Jesus our Lord in every situation. He will be with us to crush the head of Satan.

So God's people are free to submit to the governing authorities. We are free to love and serve one another. We have the assurance of victory when we put aside the deeds of darkness, put on the armor of light and clothe ourselves with Jesus.

Study Questions

* SUBMIT TO AUTHORITIES (1-7)

1. What should be the Christian's attitude toward the government under which he lives? Why? What do you know about the government under which the Romans lived?

2. Why did God institute governments? Why is it wrong to rebel against the governing authorities? Does this apply to oppressive, pagan governments or only to just and moral governments?

3. Generally speaking, who are the ones who are fearful of rulers? How can we be free of such fear? Do you think Paul was aware of governments which persecuted Christians? Why didn't he mention this?

4. What are the limits of a Christian's obedience to government? Do you think Paul and the Christians of his day obeyed laws which forbid the practice of Christianity or insisted on emperor worship? Why didn't Paul mention this?

5. What does verse 4 teach about the morality of using force to maintain order? What are the 2 reasons Paul gives for submitting to governing authorities? (5)

6. Why should Christians pay taxes? What other responsibilities do we have toward those in authority? Why? (6,7)

7. What guidance do verses 1-7 give to Christians living under totalitarian regimes?

* CLOTHE YOURSELVES WITH THE LORD JESUS CHRIST (8-14)

8. What is the one outstanding debt which Christians should permit? Why? Why pay off the others?

9. How does loving one's fellowman fulfill the Law? (8-12) What is the positive side of the 'Do not's' in verse 9? -

10. What must we understand about the present time? (11,12) What does it mean that the night is nearly over and the day has almost come?

11. In the light of this understanding, what must we do? (12b) What are the deeds of darkness?

12. What is the armor of light? How can we put it on? How can we clothe ourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ? Why should we do this?

15-WITH ONE HEART AND MOUTH GLORIFY GOD

Romans 14:1-15:13
Key Verse: 15:6

"...so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ."

The Christian community in Rome was a diverse one. There were both Jews and Gentiles, and they had gathered in Rome from all over the Roman Empire. They brought with them a diversity of cultural backgrounds. How could they overcome their human differences and glorify God with one heart and mouth? Paul gives some clear directions about how to maintain their unity in Christ and build one another up in faith. Their diversity of backgrounds could then become a big plus in reaching the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

1. When Christians differ (14:1-12)

The Jewish Christians had grown up keeping the dietary rules of the Old Testament. They also believed that they should keep Saturday as the Sabbath. Paul calls them “those whose faith is weak.” They were not like the self-righteous Jews who thought that the Gentiles were second-class Christians if they had not been circumcised. They simply had a hard time giving up the customs of a lifetime. Paul says that Christians should accept one another without passing judgment. We should not argue about food or about days. If a person is a vegetarian because of his religions scruples, then that's fine. Or if he wants to keep Saturday as the Sabbath and celebrate Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, we should not argue with him or judge him. Verse 3 says, “the man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him.” And verse 5 says, “Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.”

The important thing is that each person acknowledge Christ as Lord and Master. We belong to Jesus. Whatever we do, we should do for his glory. We don't have to judge one another because each of us must stand or fall before our Master. We must strive to please him and glorify him in everything we do. Paul says that whatever we do we should do “to the Lord.” Whatever we eat, we should thank God for it; whatever day we observe should be a day of worship of God. “If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.” (8)

Jesus himself gave us an example. He is everything to everyone. He died and came to life so that he might be Lord of both the living and the dead. He died for Jews and for Gentiles. Everyone for whom Jesus died is my brother or sister.

Someday, each of us must stand before the judgment seat of Christ and give account of his life to God, for God has promised that every knee will bow and every tongue confess to God.

2. Act in love (13-23)

Christ sets us free. We are free to live according to our own consciences. We do not have to be slaves to the scruples of others; and we should stop passing judgment on others. But there is a higher law that has something to say about how I use my freedom. It is the law of love. We are called by Christ to love one another. This means that I am responsible for my influence on others. my life and actions should build up and encourage others. I must make up my mind not to put a stumbling block in the path of another; I must not cause distress or discouragement to another believer because of what I do or say. As a Christian, I must make every effort to do what leads to peace and mutual edification.

In regard to my personal convictions about customs and food and rules of etiquette, I must live before God (keeping in mind my responsibility to love others). Whatever I do, I must do by faith. If I have some doubt in my heart about some action, it's better not to do it, because "everything that does not come from faith is sin.,

3. Accept one another as Christ accepted you (15:1-13)

There may be people in the Christian fellowship with whom we are humanly incomparable. Perhaps there is someone whose way of talking or acting is offensive. Perhaps there are ethnic or racial differences that are natural barriers to close friendships. But Jesus' word to us is very clear: Accept one another as Christ accepted you. When we belong to Jesus, our life purpose changes. We no longer live to please ourselves; we live to please God. How can we please God? *Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.0 "Jesus first; others next and yourself last" is the Christian's key to a joyful life.

Jesus accepted us Gentiles in order to bring praise to God. The Jews were called to be a holy nation, a kingdom of priests. They should have accepted God's mission and brought the Gentile world to God, but they rejected their Messiah and the rejected their mission. But Christ became a servant of the Jews on behalf of God's truth to confirm the promise God made to Abraham. He died for the sins of the world to bring the world to God. He became the source of blessing for all the nations of the world. He enabled the Gentiles to glorify God for his mercy. He fulfilled all of the promises of scriptures regarding God's purpose for world evangelization. Christ fulfilled Isaiah's promise, 'The Root of Jesse will spring up, one who will arise to rule over the nations; the Gentiles will hope in him.” (12; Isa 11:10)

Only through Jesus Christ can people of all nations and races and tongues be united to praise God with one heart and one voice. John looked forward to this in his hymn of praise to the Lamb that was slain: I ... you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God and they will reign on the earth.' Rev 5:9,10

Study Questions

* WHEN CHRISTIANS DIFFER (14:1-12)

1. What should be the attitude of strong and knowledgeable Christians toward those whose faith is weak? (14:1; 15:1)

2. What are the 'disputable matters' about which Paul speaks? Why should Christians not dispute about these things? Why might the believers in Rome need these instructions?

3. How many times is the phrase “to the Lord” or its equivalent repeated in verses 4-12. What does it mean to do things, to hold convictions, to live or die "to the Lord'?

4. Why should we not judge our fellow Christians? What does verse 11 mean?

ACT IN LOVE (13-23)

5. Instead of passing judgment on those with whom we disagree, what should we make up our minds to do? (13)

6. Why and how do we sometimes put stumbling blocks in the way of others? How should we regard our brothers? (15b) What difference does this make?

7. How did Paul regard "clean” and “unclean” foods? Why did he make concessions to those with different scruples? How can we please God in these matters? (14-17)

8. What does "mutual edification” mean? Why and how must we work for peace and mutual edification? (19-21)

9. What is the general rule of thumb about questionable matters? (22-23)

ACCEPT ONE ANOTHER AS CHRIST ACCEPTED YOU (15:1-13)

10. Whom should we try to please and what should be our guiding principle in pleasing him? What is the example of Jesus? What can we learn from the Scriptures to help us bear with others? (15:1-4)

11. What is Paul’s prayer for a fellowship whose members have no human
grounds for unity? How can we glorify God with one heart and mouth? (15:5,6)

12. Read 7-14. What has Christ done to join Jewish and Gentile Christians into one body? What does the Old Testament teach about God's purpose for the Gentiles? How and why does Paul emphasize hope?

16-VISION FOR THE WHOLE WORLD

Romans 15:14-16:27
Key Verse: 15:16

“...to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.”

The small Christian community in Rome had been pioneered by immigrants to Rome from all parts of the Empire. Many of them had co-worked with Paul to proclaim the gospel in Ephesus or Corinth or Antioch or in some other place. Paul also knew and respected them. Verse 14 says, 'I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another.” But they had one spiritual problem: In their struggle to maintain their faith in the vortex of the Empire, their world mission vision had become weak. So Paul wrote to remind them of what they already knew--God's great world mission purpose. “I have written you quite boldly on some points, as if to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.” (15,16)

1. A priestly duty (15:14-22)

Who were the Gentiles? From the Jewish point of view, everyone who was not a Jew was a Gentile. The Jews considered themselves to be descendants of Abraham and inheritors of God's covenant and promises. The Gentiles, on the other hand, were rebels against God. They were idol worshipers. They were destined for destruction. Jews did not associate with Gentiles. From our point of view, in a general sense, the Gentile world stands for the non-Christian world.

Paul was a Jew. He grew up in Tarsus, a small city in one corner of the Empire. He had been educated in Jerusalem, and trained as Pharisee. He was a part of a narrow-minded and exclusive group of men who were adamantly opposed to Christianity. Then, one day the Risen Jesus met him. Paul repented. He accepted Jesus' call to be an apostle or a missionary to the Gentiles. He regarded his forgiveness and his missionary calling as God's great grace in his life.

In verse 16 he describes his ministry as a priestly duty. A priest is a mediator between God and man. He brings men to God and God to men. He prays for others. He studies God's word and teaches it to the people. In the old Testament, the priest offered sacrifices for the sins of the people. The Holy God provided a way for sinners to come to him and be forgiven so that he might come and dwell in their midst.

Paul says that proclaiming the gospel of God to the Gentiles is a priestly duty. The gospel is the good news that Jesus died for our sins and was raised from the dead by the power of God. Through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross we are forgiven. When we accept this gospel for ourselves, our sins are washed away and we are made new. our relationship with God is made right. We have peace with God and God's peace in our hearts.

When the nation of Israel was born in the desert of Sinai, just after the Exodus from Egypt, God told them his purpose for them. He said, "Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, out of all the nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. (Ex 19:5,6a)

God chose Israel because he wanted them to be a kingdom of priests. This meant that they should be a missionary people. He wanted them to grow from a nation of slaves into a holy people. He wanted them to be trained in obedience to God's word and to reach out to all the nations of the world to bring them back to God. The people of Israel received God’s blessings and privileges, but they kept them and enjoyed them for themselves and their families. They didn’t become a nation of priests for the whole world. Instead, they became proud and they despised the Gentiles. Furthermore, they envied the pagan peoples and adopted many of their ways and could not be a holy nation. God disciplined them until a remnant survived spiritually. Through this remnant God continued to work.

God raised up a new people of God through Jesus. Peter writes about the Church. I Peter 2:9: "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." The Risen Jesus met Paul and appointed him to be a missionary to the Gentiles so that he might fulfill God's purpose for Israel and for the Church to be a kingdom of priests. He proclaimed the gospel of God to the Gentiles so that they might repent and be forgiven, be sanctified by the Holy Spirit and become God's treasured possession. So Paul saw his calling and work as a priestly duty.

Many people criticized Paul and actively opposed his ministry. But nothing discouraged him or made him give up his vision for the whole world. Why? It was because he knew that his ministry among the Gentiles was not something he had invented. It was God's command and God's work. Scripture supported it; the Spirit of God himself confirmed it. See verses 17-19. God had blessed his ministry and made it fruitful. Paul saw men's lives changed. He saw men full of hatred and bitterness become shepherds and fathers of faith. He saw men whose eyes were dull with despair become bright and full of hope and life. He saw Samaritan women become beautiful mothers of prayer. He knew that this was not because of his skill or ability--it was because God had worked in men’s hearts. In verses 19b-22, Paul gives his missionary principle. He is a pioneer. He laid the foundation of gospel faith by teaching men to repent of sins and accept Jesus forgiveness through his death and resurrection. Forgiveness is by God's grace alone. Paul taught men and women to obey the word of God just as Jesus had commanded. (Mt 28:19,20) By proclaiming the gospel and training disciples in obedience to the word of God he laid a solid foundation.

2. Paul’s plan (23-33)

Because Rome was the center of the Gentile world, Paul wanted to visit Rome. First, he wanted to encourage the faith and world mission vision of the Christians there. Second, he wanted to practically act out that vision by going on from Rome to Spain and to the ends of the earth. He wanted the Christians in Rome to participate in this mission.

Before going to Rome, he had one important job to do. He wanted to visit Jerusalem, taking with him an offering from the Gentile churches. This also came from his world mission vision. He wanted to plant missionary faith in the narrow-minded church in Jerusalem. His work as a missionary among the Gentiles was not popular in Jerusalem. Non-Christian Jews hated him; Christian Jews just barely tolerated what he was doing. Paul loved his people. He didn't want them to miss God's blessing. He also loved his Gentile sheep and he wanted them to have a sense of history. He wanted them to be humbly grateful for God's grace to them.

It was dangerous for Paul to visit Jerusalem, so he asked the Romans to pray for him (30). He asked them to pray that God might deliver him from the hands of the unbelieving Jews; he asked prayer for the church in Jerusalem, that they might accept the offering he brought and thank God for his amazing work among the Gentiles.

3. Personal greetings (16:1-27)

From these personal greetings, we realize that Paul was no stranger to the Christians in Rome. Even though he had not been there, he had worked with many of the leaders in pioneering churches throughout the Empire. There were many great women who had encouraged Paul during his pioneering days. The church in Rome was evidently scattered--perhaps because of persecution. They seem to meet in various houses.

Paul closes his letter with an assurance of victory based on Genesis 3:15: “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” He concludes with a benediction. (25-27) “Now to him who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey him--to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ Amen.” The mystery that has now been revealed is God's great desire for all the nations of the world to believe and obey him and be saved. God longs to see creation order restored. So he wants his people to be a missionary people.

Study Questions

* A PRIESTLY DUTY (15:14-22)

1. What does Paul say about the general spiritual maturity of the Christians in Rome? (see also 1:8)

2. What has he written about in this letter, and why? (15) What, in particular, do these things concern? Why is Paul qualified to write about them?

3. Who were the Gentiles? How were they different from the Jews? What is the modern spiritual equivalent to the Gentiles of Paul’s day? Why did Paul’s ministry to Gentiles make him so unpopular?

4. Why does Paul see his work of proclaiming the gospel of God to the Gentiles as a 'priestly duty"? (See Ex 19:4-6; l Pe 2:9,10)

5. What does he mean by, “so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God”? Why “sanctified by the Holy Spirit”? How does becoming an offering to God affect the lives of those offered?

6. How does he describe his past service to God? What was the main point of his teaching? (17-21) What was the extent of his ministry? In what respect was he a pioneer?

7. What is the project in which he is involved as he writes this letter? What are the dangers and difficulties involved? Why is it so important to him that he visit Jerusalem with this gift?

8. What is his plan for the future? How and why does he want the believers in Rome to share with him in his ministry? What are his prayer requests?

* PERSONAL GREETINGS (16:1-27)

9. What can you learn from these greetings about the church in Rome? What was Paul’s relationship with the believers there?

10. What warning does he give, and what promise? (17-20) what does this mean to us?

11. Who were Paul’s coworkers at the time of his writing this letter?

12. In his benediction, what is the hidden mystery he mentions? (Eph 3:4-6) What is his hope--his great missionary goal? (25-27)

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