Posts: Romans

Romans

Romans 1:3 – 4, “…Jesus Christ our Lord, who came of the seed of David, declared the Son of God with power by virtue of the Holy Spirit, by the resurrection from the dead.” Jesus was born into the predicted family, David’s, to qualify as the Messiah. He spoke remarkable truths, exercised many miraculous gifts, and demonstrated true godly character. But it was His resurrection that demonstrated that He was God come to earth. Faith is based on the evidence for that resurrection.

Romans 1:20, “Since the creation of the cosmos, His invisible qualities are clearly seen, being understood by the things made, His eternal power and divine nature, so they are without excuse.” Either the universe was created or it has always existed. Those are the only choices. Logically, the eternal existence of nature is disallowed by the observed decay of the system. So, creation is affirmed. The Creator must care about the system, since randomness is counter to the superb intricacy of it. Observation of this creation demands a response to the Creator.

Romans 1:21 – 22, “Although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools.” Logically, if a person rejects the notion of a purposeful and 100%-good Creator, all that follows will be intellectual folly, because a fundamental truth has been left out. Maintaining illogic leads inexorably into darkness, depression, and hopelessness, whereas the good news of God leads to joy, peace, and godly character.

Romans 2:4, “Do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?” Many people are drawn to churches with messages of judgment, or of eternal reward, or of health and wealth. All of those are self-centered, while the gospel is about becoming other-centered. God’s appeal to humanity is His goodness, not His wrath. Wanting to associate with Someone who is that good should prompt us to re-evaluate our priorities and policies and head in the other direction (repent).

Romans 3:21 – 22, “Now the righteousness of God apart from the Law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the prophets, even the righteousness of God through the faith of Jesus Christ to all who believe.” God’s reputation has been earned through doing the right thing for people, not by performing rituals and keeping holidays. Jesus on earth was the living demonstration of that rightness. As a result, those who trust the promises of God will be transformed into that same character of doing the right thing.

Romans 3:24, “…being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” The faithful are declared square with justice because Jesus paid all those debts to justice once for all (redemption). God’s character, which includes justice, would not allow Him to just sweep away the insurmountable debts to justice accumulated by people of all eras. Rather He resolved, before creation, to pay the debt Himself, and judge instead on the basis of Biblical faith (built on evidence, acting on His promises, growing constantly).

Romans 3:29, “Is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also.” Today, Jewish people account for about 0.2% of the world’s population. In Bible times, Israelites had a hard time accepting this fact. Even today, a persistent but unbiblical teaching demands that Gentiles enter their relationship with God through Jewish customs and some sub-set of the Law of Moses. The acceptability of Jew or Gentile, Paul wrote, is based on trusting and acting upon the promises of God.

Romans 5:1 – 2, “Having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” The faithful have peace with God plus access into His collection of integrated and consistent character traits (grace). This access provides a confident expectation (hope) that these earthly faithful can be a parade of those traits in this world (glory).

Romans 5:3 – 4, “We also exult in tribulations; knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Bad times are never good, but the faithful have a successful way to get beyond those times. Instead of focusing on the trouble and the loss, focus on the resolution and the overcoming. The faithful have a confident expectation that they will find the needed comfort and that joy will come again. The new normal can be full of joy, too.

Romans 5:5, “Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” Since the establishment of the kingdom of God in Acts 2, the faithful all have received special help to overcome themselves. Everyone else does the best they can, but eventually succumb to the accumulated damage they have done to themselves. A part of the transformation of the faithful is the development of selflessness: God’s version of love, doing what is best for others without regard to the effect on me.

Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” God did not require that we clean up our lives before being accepted into the family of God. Rather, His selflessness prompted Him to build into His plan for creation a bail-out. At the appropriate time (5:6), God came to earth as Jesus partly to become the payment to justice for all people, good and bad (1 John 2:2). Those who respond to that gift through trusting God (faith) are promised the power to be transformed into the character of Jesus.

Romans 5:10, “If when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.” Jesus was without sin in His earthly life, so was an appropriate sacrifice. Jesus rose as predicted and continues to live, so the faithful have evidence of their rescue. Jesus went back to heaven about 40 days after His resurrection and presented His own blood in the tabernacle in heaven, so the sacrifice has been completed because He lived and was qualified to do it. The faithful are saved by that life.

Romans 5:21, “As sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” This death is a figure of speech for separation from God, utter loneliness. Eternal life is not that of the physical body, but of connection of the spirit to God and fellow faithful spirits. Physical death is part of the human condition. Separation or connection to God are the conditions of a spirit. Grace, the collection of godly character traits, gains control as the faithful are transformed into the character of Jesus.

Romans 6:3, “Do you not know that as many of us as were immersed into Christ Jesus were immersed into His death?” Paul’s choice of “into” is important. Among the ten symbols combined in baptism is that of being hidden or surrounded by Jesus. Another is that the faithful are completely devoted to the same love that prompted Jesus to voluntarily submit to an horrific manner of death. The faithful become “living sacrifices.” (12:1). They take on His character. When outsiders see the faithful, they see those with the mastery of life Jesus had.

Romans 6:6, “Our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.” The faithful have been liberated from the downward spiral that is characteristic of this creation. Their histories no longer hold them back. The vast majority of people see their own flaws but have become convinced that, after countless attempts, overcoming themselves is just not possible. So, they become slaves of the accumulated damage they have done to themselves. The faithful have been freed from that baggage.

Romans 8:9, “But you [faithful] are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” All the faithful since the events recorded in Acts 2 have the Holy Spirit deposited in their hearts, who is responsible for character development among other promises. This may explain why the faithful of the Old Testament went downhill with age, whereas the faithful of the New Testament improved.

Romans 8:11, “If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” All the faithful are given the indwelling Spirit. In addition to eternal life, the faithful are promised “life” while they are alive on earth as well – a life worth living, a life of joy, a life with purpose, a life characterized by overcoming. Of course, the next life will be better, if only because they will not need to interact with a broken world any more.

Romans 8:13, “If you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” Note that overcoming does not arise from superior self-control, or by harsh treatment of the body, or by forbidding enjoyment (Colossians 2:23). Rather, the faithful overcome through the indwelling Spirit who is given to them when they believe and when they allow the Spirit to do its job.

Romans 8:26, “Likewise the Spirit also helps our weaknesses. For we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession with groanings which cannot be uttered.” All the faithful are given the indwelling Spirit, one of whose jobs is to edit and forward our prayers. While this is comforting, knowing that my ineptitude for expressing myself clearly will not be a hindrance, nevertheless, I wish I got to read the edited copy.

Romans 8:29, “For whom God planned long ago, He determined in advance that they be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren.” Before creation, God planned for those spirits who would have earthly bodies to become like Jesus, setting up in advance the tools needed to reach that goal, not simply reacting to the messes people make of themselves. If earth-bound spirits will trust the multitude of promises about character development, they can all have the mastery of life that Jesus demonstrated.

Romans 8:37, “Yet in all these thing [the difficulties of life on earth], we are super-conquerors through Him who loved us.” The faithful are given the tools to deal with the struggles of physical life. Those on the outside have only as much self-discipline as they can muster on their own. Some have more, some have less, but none have enough. In contrast, the faithful are enabled by the indwelling Spirit to handle, at a super-human level, the fallout from the brokenness of this world.

Romans 10:14 “How shall they appeal into Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear apart from a proclaimer?” Most churches insist that one must accept Jesus as risen and King of heaven and earth to reap the benefits of becoming a part of the eternal family. But many ask the obvious: what about those who have not heard the message? The answer is simple. The faithful are responsible for proclaiming the message to everyone in every generation.

Romans 10:20 [quoting Isaiah 65:1] “I was found by those who did not seek Me; I was made manifest to those who did not ask for Me.” Isaiah was describing the results of the Messianic kingdom that would arise about seven centuries later. Paul quoted Isaiah to remind his readers of their responsibility as citizens of that eternal kingdom. As long as the earth exists, the faithful will take the message to those who were neither asking nor looking. That’s the job.

Romans 12:1, “Present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.” The faithful are living sacrifices: they celebrate forgiveness. As Jesus’ sacrifice redeemed all, the sacrifice of the faithful is to introduce others to that gift. The faithful are holy not to earn or win something, but because outsiders will not believe the message of overcoming if no success is being observed. An other-centered attitude is what is acceptable to God (love). It is only reasonable that the faithful respond in that way.

Romans 12:2, “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and consistent desire of God.” Our respective cultures are comfortable and normal to those who live in them. The faithful are promised a renewal of thinking that allows them to see through the illogic as well as to demonstrate consistently what is actually good, leaving behind what our various societies call good. God’s desire is that we learn reality.

Romans 12:4 – 5, “For as we [the faithful] have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.” Unity is not uniformity. The church is composed a very different personalities, histories, and customs. All, not just some, have different functions, but all are essential to the proper operation of the body. Further, the spirit of each one has merged with the spirits of all the others. Division would be schizophrenia.

Romans 12:16, “Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.” The New Testament was written to ordinary faithful people. The inspired writers expected the readers to understand. Further, since copying was laborious and materials expensive, people were expected to understand when they heard it read aloud, not after intensive dissection. No professional explainers were necessary. The wise were those who could keep it simple and obvious.

Romans 12:18, “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.” The sentiment is lovely. Of course, some people refuse peace because they insist on their own way. If confrontation and division occur, make sure the reason is them and not you. Unfortunately, many have hidden behind claims of “following the Scriptures,” when, in reality, they follow their own perceptions of the Scriptures, not allowing that the other person may have a valid point. Peace happens when we listen for the good in different ideas.

Romans 12:19, “Do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath: for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord.” Revenge generally involves doing something unpleasant to someone who wronged you. Notice the reason for the admonition to refrain from avenging a wrong. The idea is not that the faithful should not cause harm to another. Instead, Paul cites the Law of Moses, saying, “Leave vengeance to the professional. We are just a bunch of amateurs.” All it takes is patience and trust in God.

Romans 12:20, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.” The best explanation for the ancient Hebrew figure of speech, “burning coals,” is that being nice to your enemy will make him feel really guilty. Most outsiders assume that others will react in the same way that they themselves would. The faithful know that everyone thinks differently, so the task is to understand others. This technique throws the outsider off enough to want to know how it works.

Romans 13:1, “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.” Consider the government in Paul’s day: ruthless, violent, corrupt. Persecution of Christians was sporadic since Christians were generally poor, so they had little to take or with which to bribe. Yet, he wrote this. The faithful may not like their various governments, but they creatively obey. Consider government to be just another natural disaster that we need to work around.

Romans 14:1, “Receive one who is weak in faith, not into passing judgment on reasonings.” The weak in faith substitute ritual and tradition for the transformation promised through the indwelling Spirit. They have enough faith to want to please God, but not enough to believe God’s promises of superhuman character development. Paul reminds the strong not to drive away the weak, but rather to build them up, to do what is best for them, to develop peace. The strong use their wisdom to develop the weak without ruining them.

Romans 14:23, “That not out of faith is sin.” Often, people ask the question, “Is it a sin if…” Paul redirects the focus. The question is not whether some activity is a “sin,” but rather whether the activity is the result of faith. Certainly, we are capable of crafting creative excuses for our temptation-guided choices. However, finding a connection between trusting God and marginal behavior makes self-deception much more difficult.

Romans 15:4, “For whatever things were written before were written into our learning, that we through the perseverance and encouragement of the Scriptures might have hope.” The world has been a mess for a very long time. The faithful can become discouraged by their small percentage of the population, by the tenacity of evil, and by the brokenness of the system. The history of the faithful recorded in the Bible reminds us that disaster on earth is normal, that the faithful can have joy and peace in the midst of it, and that God will get them through.

Romans 15:7, “Receive one another, just as Christ also received you, to the glory of God.” The faithful are to grow continually, which implies that, yesterday, more things needed to be outgrown. Some have more to fix than others. Plus, the faithful come from a multitude of cultures and traditions. Paul reminds the faithful that Christ accepted each of them, warts and all. Certainly they can be equally accepting of those with different warts. Such tolerance is unexpected in our judgmental world, which displays the character of God (His glory).

Romans 15:13, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, into you to abound in hope in the power of the Holy Spirit.” Joy, peace, and hope have been in short supply in this world for all of recorded history. Self-deception and self-medication are the two most popular routes, but both ultimately fail. The faithful may be filled with all three through the work of the indwelling Spirit. They just need to know what the promises are, set out as though the goal were already in hand, and let the Spirit do its job.