BOOK : Romans

Description : An explanation of the basic Gospel and God's plan of salvation, for Jew and Gentile alike. A book that is entirely teaching (doctrine) and undoubtedly his biggest work in the New Testament canon. Purposeful theology!

Author: The apostle Paul

Date written : Probably 57AD

Chapters : 16

 

  

Brief Synopsis:

 

Outline :

 

 

 

Some Key Verses:

 

The heart of the letter, the Gospel of Jesus Christ

1:1-4 the gospel of God - the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures regarding his Son,

• who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, and
• who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.

The power of the Gospel

1:16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.

 

Our Problem – God's anger against our sin

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

 

Salvation is needed by all (Jew & Gentile) and comes through Christ's work on the Cross

3:22-25 There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and 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. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished

 

Made right by faith in what Christ has done, we now have peace with God & access to His resources

5:1 since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.

 

The way it works out

6:11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

 

Our need without Christ

7:15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.

 

The answer is the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus now living in us

8:9 You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.

 

An aside – Paul's sorrow over the failures of his own people

9:2-4 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race, the people of Israel.

 

The basis for living out the practicalities of the righteous life – surrender & a renewed mind

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.

 

The start of a final insight into the church people

16:1 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church in Cenchrea

 

 

Concluding Comments

 

Reading the book of Romans can be a formidable enterprise for the new reader of the Bible because of its author, its nature and its size:

•  Author: The apostle Paul was a bright guy and even the apostle Peter acknowledged that his writings were sometimes difficult to take in (2 Pet 3:16).

•  Nature: It covers our sinfulness and tendencies, the fact that we are prisoners to sin, even when we use self effort to try to be good and there is no way of making ourselves right with God except by accepting and believing in the salvation He has provided, the death of His own Son, Jesus Christ.

•  Size: Each of the main areas covers two or three chapters making a total of sixteen altogether.

 

There is a lot of reading but it is essential if we wish to understand our need of God's salvation, the nature of it and how it works out in us.

      

     

Additional Resources on this site