Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Teaching Notes ROMANS Chapters 9, 10 and 11

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Teaching Notes ROMANS Chapters 9, 10 and 11

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Chapters 9,10,11. Problem of Jewish Unbelief


One of the greatest stumbling-blocks to the general acceptance
of the Gospel of Christ was Jewish Unbelief. While considerable
numbers of Jews, especially in Judea, had'become Christians, yet
the Nation as a whole was not only Unbelieving but bitterly
Antagonistic.

The Jewish rulers had Crucified Christ. At every— opportunity
they had persecuted the Church. It was Jewish Unbelievers that
made trouble for Paul in almost every place'he went.

If Jesus was really the Messiah of their own Scripture Prophecy,
how did it happen that God’s own nation thus Rejected Him?

In these .three chapters is Paul’s answer.

Paul’s Sorrow for Israel, 9:1-5. A very expressive way of saying
 it: would almost be willing to give his own soul.


                  Sovereignty of God, 9:6-24

In-this passage Paul is “not discussing the Predes’cination of
Individuals to Salvation or Condemnation, but is asserting God's

Absolute Sovereignty in the choice and management of Nations
for World Functions so as‘to bring all at last in subjection to
Him..The strong statement, 16, may include Individuals. Other
similar passages certainly do: Acts 2:23; 4:28; 13:48: Rom 8:28-30.

How to reconcile the Sovereignty of God and the Freedom of
the Human Will we do'not know. Both doctrines are plainly
taught in the Bible. We believe them both. But to explain how
both can be true we shall have to leave to others, for the present.

Some things we now see in a glass darkly. But some day we shall
Know, even as we are Known…

Foretold by the Scriptures, 9:25-33: Israel's Rejection, and the
Adoption of Gentile peoples. So, instead of stumbling at it, we
should have expected it.

Jews Themselves to Blame,‘10:1-21. God did not make the Jews
Reject Christ. They did it of their own accord. It was simply a
matter of Hearing, 8—17. The Jews  Heard,  and were wilfully
Disobedient, 18-21. How to reconcile this with 9:16 we do not
know. Maybe we will Understand better by and by.


                 Israel’s Future Salvation, 11:1-36

Israel’s Rejection of Christ is temporary. The” days will come
when all Israel shall be Saved, 26. When or how that will be is
not here stated. Nor is it stated whether it will be in connection
with their Return to Palestine, but merely the bare fact that it
will be.

One of'the darkest spots in the panorama of human
history is the age—long-suflering of this Sorrowful, Disobedient
people. But one day it will end. Israel shall turn in **** to
Lord.- And all creation shall give thanks  to  God for the
Unsearchable Wisdom of His Providence.             '



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Romans 9 New International Version (NIV)

Paul’s Anguish Over Israel

9 I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit— 2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, 4 the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. 5 Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised![a] Amen.

God’s Sovereign Choice

6 It is not as though God’s word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. 7 Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham’s children. On the contrary, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.”[b] 8 In other words, it is not the children by physical descent who are God’s children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham’s offspring. 9 For this was how the promise was stated: “At the appointed time I will return, and Sarah will have a son.”[c]

10 Not only that, but Rebekah’s children were conceived at the same time by our father Isaac. 11 Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God’s purpose in election might stand: 12 not by works but by him who calls—she was told, “The older will serve the younger.”[d] 13 Just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”[e]

14 What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! 15 For he says to Moses,

“I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,
    and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”[f]

16 It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy. 17 For Scripture says to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.”[g] 18 Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.

19 One of you will say to me: “Then why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will?” 20 But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’”[h] 21 Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?

22 What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction? 23 What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory— 24 even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles? 25 As he says in Hosea:

“I will call them ‘my people’ who are not my people;
    and I will call her ‘my loved one’ who is not my loved one,”[i]

26 and,

“In the very place where it was said to them,
    ‘You are not my people,’
    there they will be called ‘children of the living God.’”[j]

27 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel:

“Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea,
    only the remnant will be saved.
28 For the Lord will carry out
    his sentence on earth with speed and finality.”[k]

29 It is just as Isaiah said previously:

“Unless the Lord Almighty
    had left us descendants,
we would have become like Sodom,
    we would have been like Gomorrah.”[l]

Israel’s Unbelief

30 What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; 31 but the people of Israel, who pursued the law as the way of righteousness, have not attained their goal. 32 Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone. 33 As it is written:

“See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes people to stumble
    and a rock that makes them fall,
    and the one who believes in him will never be put to shame.”[m]

Footnotes:
Romans 9:5 Or Messiah, who is over all. God be forever praised! Or Messiah. God who is over all be forever praised!
Romans 9:7 Gen. 21:12
Romans 9:9 Gen. 18:10,14
Romans 9:12 Gen. 25:23
Romans 9:13 Mal. 1:2,3
Romans 9:15 Exodus 33:19
Romans 9:17 Exodus 9:16
Romans 9:20 Isaiah 29:16; 45:9
Romans 9:25 Hosea 2:23
Romans 9:26 Hosea 1:10
Romans 9:28 Isaiah 10:22,23 (see Septuagint)
Romans 9:29 Isaiah 1:9
Romans 9:33 Isaiah 8:14; 28:16

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Romans 10 New International Version (NIV)

10 Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. 2 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. 3 Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 4 Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.

5 Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law: “The person who does these things will live by them.”[a] 6 But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’”[b] (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’”[c] (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,”[d] that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: 9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 11 As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.”[e] 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”[f]

14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? 15 And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”[g]

16 But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?”[h] 17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. 18 But I ask: Did they not hear? Of course they did:

“Their voice has gone out into all the earth,
    their words to the ends of the world.”[i]

19 Again I ask: Did Israel not understand? First, Moses says,

“I will make you envious by those who are not a nation;
    I will make you angry by a nation that has no understanding.”[j]

20 And Isaiah boldly says,

“I was found by those who did not seek me;
    I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me.”[k]

21 But concerning Israel he says,

“All day long I have held out my hands
    to a disobedient and obstinate people.”[l]

Footnotes:
Romans 10:5 Lev. 18:5
Romans 10:6 Deut. 30:12
Romans 10:7 Deut. 30:13
Romans 10:8 Deut. 30:14
Romans 10:11 Isaiah 28:16 (see Septuagint)
Romans 10:13 Joel 2:32
Romans 10:15 Isaiah 52:7
Romans 10:16 Isaiah 53:1
Romans 10:18 Psalm 19:4
Romans 10:19 Deut. 32:21
Romans 10:20 Isaiah 65:1
Romans 10:21 Isaiah 65:2

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Romans 11 New International Version (NIV)

The Remnant of Israel

11 I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew. Don’t you know what Scripture says in the passage about Elijah—how he appealed to God against Israel: 3 “Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me”[a]? 4 And what was God’s answer to him? “I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”[b] 5 So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. 6 And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.

7 What then? What the people of Israel sought so earnestly they did not obtain. The elect among them did, but the others were hardened, 8 as it is written:

“God gave them a spirit of stupor,
    eyes that could not see
    and ears that could not hear,
to this very day.”[c]

9 And David says:

“May their table become a snare and a trap,
    a stumbling block and a retribution for them.
10 May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see,
    and their backs be bent forever.”[d]

Ingrafted Branches

11 Again I ask: Did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather, because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious. 12 But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their full inclusion bring!

13 I am talking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch as I am the apostle to the Gentiles, I take pride in my ministry 14 in the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy and save some of them. 15 For if their rejection brought reconciliation to the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? 16 If the part of the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; if the root is holy, so are the branches.

17 If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, 18 do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. 19 You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.” 20 Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.

22 Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. 23 And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 24 After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!

All Israel Will Be Saved

25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, 26 and in this way[e] all Israel will be saved. As it is written:

“The deliverer will come from Zion;
    he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.
27 And this is[f] my covenant with them
    when I take away their sins.”[g]

28 As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies for your sake; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, 29 for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. 30 Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, 31 so they too have now become disobedient in order that they too may now[h] receive mercy as a result of God’s mercy to you. 32 For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.

Doxology

33 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and[i] knowledge of God!
    How unsearchable his judgments,
    and his paths beyond tracing out!
34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord?
    Or who has been his counselor?”[j]
35 “Who has ever given to God,
    that God should repay them?”[k]
36 For from him and through him and for him are all things.
    To him be the glory forever! Amen.

Footnotes:
Romans 11:3 1 Kings 19:10,14
Romans 11:4 1 Kings 19:18
Romans 11:8 Deut. 29:4; Isaiah 29:10
Romans 11:10 Psalm 69:22,23
Romans 11:26 Or and so
Romans 11:27 Or will be
Romans 11:27 Isaiah 59:20,21; 27:9 (see Septuagint); Jer. 31:33,34
Romans 11:31 Some manuscripts do not have now.
Romans 11:33 Or riches and the wisdom and the
Romans 11:34 Isaiah 40:13
Romans 11:35 Job 41:11

New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Some content adapted from Halley, Henry H., Bible Handbook, Grayson Publishing, Minneapolis, MN.  © 1927 - 1959.

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Hugh C. Wood, Atlanta, Georgia

END

Teaching Notes ROMANS Chapters 6, 7 and 8

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Teaching Notes ROMANS Chapters 6, 7 and 8

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       Chapter 6. What Motive, then to Right Living?

If we are no longer under the Law, and Christ Forgives our
Sins, then why not continue to Sin? Keep on Sinning, and Christ
keep on Forgiving.

Paul answers that such'a thing is unthinkable. Christ died to
Save us from our Sins. His Forgiveness is for the purpose of
making us Hate our Sins.

We cannot be servants of Sin, and servants of Christ. We must
choose one or the other. It is not possible to please Christ. and
continue at the same time to live in Sin."

This does not mean that we can entirely overcome All our
Sins, and place ourselves beyond the need of His Mercy. But it
does mean that there are two essentially different Ways of Life:
the Way of Christ and the Way of Sin. In heart we belong to
one or the other, but not both.

Christ, the perfect embodiment of the Law of God, furnishes
us with the Motive, and supplies us with the Power, to struggle
on“ unto the attainment for ourselves of' that Perfect Holiness
which, by His Grace, ultimately shall be ours.



                   Chapter 7. Why the Law?

If we are no longed under the Law, why then was the Law
given? It was not given  as a scheme of Salvation,  but as a
preparatory measure, to educate Man‘ to see his Need of a Sav-
iour: to make us know the difference between Right and Wrong.
Not until we realize our Helplessness is there desire for, and
appreciation of, a Saviour.

Struggle between our Carnal and Spiritual Natures, 14-25. We
wonder if this is a picture of Paul’s own inner struggle.

In I Cor 4:4 he says He Knew Nothing Against Himself. Yet he must
have felt powerful impulses within his nature against which he
had a continuous desperate struggle. Else he could never have
written  these words. His unspeakable Gratitude  to Christ for
Deliverance from that against which he felt himself powerless
reminds one of Luther‘s Unbounded Joy when he realized all at
once that Christ could do for him what he had vainly struggled
'to do for himself. It is an illustration of the power of the Law
on an earnest soul depressed by inability to live up to it, and
the Relief found in Christ.


               Chapter 8. The law of The Spirit

This is one of the Best Loved Chapters in the Bible *

The Indwelling Spirit, 1-11. In Christ, we not only have our Sins
Forgiven, but there is _also an impartation of a New Life. A New
Birth. Our natural Ще, so to speak, is Impregnated by the Spirit
of God, and a Baby Spirit, a Divine Nature, is born within us,
in a manner somewhat similar to that in which our physical life,
our Adam Nature, was started by our parents our Natural Life
from Adam. A New Divine Life from Christ.

 This is a Reality within ourselves. We may not feel it nor be
 conscious of. it. But it is there. We accept it as a matter of Faith.
There is within ourselves, beyond the realm of our Conscious
Knowledge, a Divine Life, the child of God’s Spirit, under His
loving care, working in stillness, ever unwearied; never ex-
hausted, to gain‚control of our Whole Being, and Transform us
into the Image of. God. This is the Life that Will blossom into
Immortal Glory in the day of Resurrection.

Our Obligation to the Spirit, 12-17. Walking after the Spirit
means that, while depending wholly and implicitly on Christ for
our Salvation, we still struggle to the utmost to Live up to His
Law. Paul is explicitly explicit that the Grace of Christ does not
release us'from doing everything in our_ power to Live Right.
~Walking after the Flesh means giving ourselves to the gratifica—
tion of our Fleshly Desires.

Our body is Flesh. Some Fleshly Desires“ are perfectly natural
and necessary. Some are Wrong. Those that are Wrong we must
abstain from altogether. The others We may enjoy, but be careful
to Keep our Affection Above the Border Line.

Suffering Creation, 18-25. The whole natural creation, including
ourselves, is groaning for a Better Order of Existence, to be
revealed in the day of God‘s-Completed Redemption, when the
Body of This Death, 7:24, shall receive the Freedom of Heaven’s
Glory, now in the various processes of creation. It is a .grand
conception of. the work of Christ.

Intercession of the Spirit, 26-30. Not only is the in-dwelling
Spirit our pledge of Resurrection and Future Glory, but through
His prayers in our behalf we are assured that God will make
Everything that might happen to us Work Together for Our
Good. We may' forget to Pray. The Spirit Never Does. God will
see _us through. Let us never forget to Trust Him.

The Inviolable Love of Christ, 31-39. He pied for us. Has For-
given us. Has given Himself to us in the person of His Spirit.
If we are His, no power ori earth or in heaven or in hell' can
prevent His bringing us to Himself in the Eternal Bosom of God.
This is one.-o£ the most magnificent passages in all the Bible.


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Romans 6 New International Version (NIV)

Dead to Sin, Alive in Christ

6 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,[a] that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.

8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13 Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. 14 For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.

Slaves to Righteousness
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! 16 Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. 18 You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

19 I am using an example from everyday life because of your human limitations. Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness. 20 When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. 21 What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in[b] Christ Jesus our Lord.

Footnotes:
Romans 6:6 Or be rendered powerless
Romans 6:23 Or through

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Romans 7 New International Version (NIV)

Released From the Law, Bound to Christ

7 Do you not know, brothers and sisters—for I am speaking to those who know the law—that the law has authority over someone only as long as that person lives? 2 For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the law that binds her to him. 3 So then, if she has sexual relations with another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress. But if her husband dies, she is released from that law and is not an adulteress if she marries another man.

4 So, my brothers and sisters, 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 for God. 5 For when we were in the realm of the flesh,[a] the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in us, so that we bore fruit for death. 6 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.

The Law and Sin

7 What shall we say, then? Is the law sinful? Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.”[b] 8 But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead. 9 Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. 10 I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death. 11 For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death. 12 So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good.

13 Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! Nevertheless, in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it used what is good to bring about my death, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful.

14 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18 For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[c] For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

21 So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!

So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature[d] a slave to the law of sin.

Footnotes:
Romans 7:5 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit.
Romans 7:7 Exodus 20:17; Deut. 5:21
Romans 7:18 Or my flesh
Romans 7:25 Or in the flesh

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Romans 8 New International Version (NIV)

Life Through the Spirit

8 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you[a] free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh,[b] God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering.[c] And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.

9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life[d] because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of[e] his Spirit who lives in you.

12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.

14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.[f] And by him we cry, “Abba,[g] Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Present Suffering and Future Glory

18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that[h] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[i] have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

More Than Conquerors

31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 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? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;
    we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[j]

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[k] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Footnotes:
Romans 8:2 The Greek is singular; some manuscripts me
Romans 8:3 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit; also in verses 4-13.
Romans 8:3 Or flesh, for sin
Romans 8:10 Or you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive
Romans 8:11 Some manuscripts bodies through
Romans 8:15 The Greek word for adoption to sonship is a term referring to the full legal standing of an adopted male heir in Roman culture; also in verse 23.
Romans 8:15 Aramaic for father
Romans 8:21 Or subjected it in hope. 21 For
Romans 8:28 Or that all things work together for good to those who love God, who; or that in all things God works together with those who love him to bring about what is good—with those who
Romans 8:36 Psalm 44:22
Romans 8:38 Or nor heavenly rulers


New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Some content adapted from Halley, Henry H., Bible Handbook, Grayson Publishing, Minneapolis, MN.  © 1927 - 1959.

& & &

Hugh C. Wood, Atlanta, Georgia

END

Teaching Notes ROMANS Chapters 3, 4 and 5


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Teaching Notes ROMANS Chapters 3, 4 and 5

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                            ROMANS

Chapter 3.  Christ The Propitiation for Man's Sin

Why the Jews? 1-20. If Jews, in the. matter of Sinfulness, are
on the. same standing before God as other nations, why then the
necessity of there being a Jewish Nation at all?

The answer; to  be  entrusted with the Oracles of God, and
Pave the Way for the Coming of Christ. Under God, the Hebrew
Nation was founded to serve a special purpose in the working
out of God’s age-long Plan for Human Redemption. But that does
not mean that intrinsically within themselves they are any better
in God's sight than other nations.

One of the purposes of the Law was to make Man understand
that he is a Sinner, 20, in need of a Saviour.

Christ our Propitiation, 21-31. In the Eternal Nature of things,
as Sin is Sin, and Right is Right, and God is Just, there can be
No Mercy apart from Justice. Sin must be Punished. God Himself
took upon Himself the Punishment of Man’s Sin, in the Person
of Christ.

Therefore He can Forgive Man’s Sin, and regard those who, in
gratitude,  accept  the  Saviour’s  Sacrifice.  as  possessed of  the
Saviour’s Own Righteousness.


               Chapter 4. The Case of Abraham

This is taken up because those who were teaching that Gentiles
must become Jewish Proselytes in [made it harder] to be Christians were
basing their  claims for Circumcision  on the Promise made to
Abraham, that it was to his seed; that, if one Was not of the
seed of Abraham by nature, he would have to become so by
Circumcision.  Paul  explains  that  the  Promise  was given  on
Abraham’s Faith,  while he was still Uncircumcised;  and that
Abraham’s Heirs are those Who have the same Faith, rather than
those who are Circumcised. The grand thing in Abraham’s life
was his Faith, Not his Circumcision.


                  Chapter 5. Christ and Adam

Paul bases the Efficacy of Christ’s Death as an Atonement for
Human Sin on the Unity of the Race in Adam.

How could One die for Many?- One might die as a Substitute
for another One,—same justice in thats But for One to Die for
Millions,—how_ could it be?

Paul’s answer is that Men are not to blame for being Sinners.
They. are born that way, brought into Life without being asked
if they wanted Existence. Just woke up in this World to find
themselves in a Body with a Sinful Nature. But, says Paul, the
Founder of our Race; Adam, did not start with a Sinful Nature.

Paul explains the doctrine of Christ's Atonement for our Sin,
not by setting Him over against each one of us singly, but by
setting Him over against the Head of our Race.

Adam the Natural Head of the Human Race. Christ the Spiritual
Head. What One Head Did, the Other Head Undid. One Man's
Sin brought Death to our race. Therefore One Man's Death is
sufficient to bring Life to'those who will accept it.

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Romans 3 New International Version (NIV)
God’s Faithfulness
3 What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? 2 Much in every way! First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God.

3 What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? 4 Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written:

“So that you may be proved right when you speak
    and prevail when you judge.”[a]

5 But if our unrighteousness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly, what shall we say? That God is unjust in bringing his wrath on us? (I am using a human argument.) 6 Certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world? 7 Someone might argue, “If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner?” 8 Why not say—as some slanderously claim that we say—“Let us do evil that good may result”? Their condemnation is just!

No One Is Righteous
9 What shall we conclude then? Do we have any advantage? Not at all! For we have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under the power of sin. 10 As it is written:

“There is no one righteous, not even one;
11     there is no one who understands;
    there is no one who seeks God.
12 All have turned away,
    they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
    not even one.”[b]
13 “Their throats are open graves;
    their tongues practice deceit.”[c]
“The poison of vipers is on their lips.”[d]
14     “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”[e]
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16     ruin and misery mark their ways,
17 and the way of peace they do not know.”[f]
18     “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”[g]

19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. 20 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.

Righteousness Through Faith
21 But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness is given through faith in[h] Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement,[i] through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26 he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

27 Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. Because of what law? The law that requires works? No, because of the law that requires faith. 28 For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. 29 Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, 30 since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. 31 Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.

Footnotes:
Romans 3:4 Psalm 51:4
Romans 3:12 Psalms 14:1-3; 53:1-3; Eccles. 7:20
Romans 3:13 Psalm 5:9
Romans 3:13 Psalm 140:3
Romans 3:14 Psalm 10:7 (see Septuagint)
Romans 3:17 Isaiah 59:7,8
Romans 3:18 Psalm 36:1
Romans 3:22 Or through the faithfulness of
Romans 3:25 The Greek for sacrifice of atonement refers to the atonement cover on the ark of the covenant (see Lev. 16:15,16).


& & &

Romans 4 New International Version (NIV)
Abraham Justified by Faith
4 What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter? 2 If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about—but not before God. 3 What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”[a]

4 Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. 5 However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. 6 David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:

7 “Blessed are those
    whose transgressions are forgiven,
    whose sins are covered.
8 Blessed is the one
    whose sin the Lord will never count against them.”[b]

9 Is this blessedness only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness. 10 Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before! 11 And he received circumcision as a sign, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them. 12 And he is then also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but who also follow in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.

13 It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. 14 For if those who depend on the law are heirs, faith means nothing and the promise is worthless, 15 because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression.

16 Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. 17 As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.”[c] He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.

18 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.”[d] 19 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. 20 Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21 being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. 22 This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.” 23 The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, 24 but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 25 He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.

Footnotes:
Romans 4:3 Gen. 15:6; also in verse 22
Romans 4:8 Psalm 32:1,2
Romans 4:17 Gen. 17:5
Romans 4:18 Gen. 15:5

& & &

Romans 5 New International Version (NIV)
Peace and Hope
5 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we[a] have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we[b] boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we[c] also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

9 Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! 10 For if, while 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! 11 Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Death Through Adam, Life Through Christ
12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—

13 To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. 14 Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.

15 But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! 16 Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. 17 For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!

18 Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. 19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

20 The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, 21 so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Footnotes:
Romans 5:1 Many manuscripts let us
Romans 5:2 Or let us
Romans 5:3 Or let us
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Some content adapted from Halley, Henry H., Bible Handbook, Grayson Publishing, Minneapolis, MN.  © 1927 - 1959.

& & &

Hugh C. Wood  Atlanta, Georgia

END




Teaching Notes ROMANS Chapters 1 and 2



ROMANS 1



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Paul’s Life Prior to Romans 1

                       Paul's later life

It is generally accepted that Paul was acquitted, about 63 or
64 A D. Whether he went on to Spain, as he had planned, Rom
15:28, is not known. Tradition indicates that he did. But if he
did. he did not remain long. It seems certain that he was
back in Greece and Asia Minor about 65 to 67 AD, in which
period he wrote the Epistles to Timothy and Titus. Then, re-
arrested, he was taken back to Rome, and beheaded about 67 A D.
See further page 528.

                   Summary of Paul's Life
             With Tentative Approximate Dates

Paul first appears as a persecutor of Christians, resolutely deter-
mined to blot out the name of Jesus._No doubt he thought the
Resurrection of Jesus from the Dead was a fixed up story.

Then, on the road to Damascus. as by a stroke from heaven, he
was smitten down. Jesus Himself spoke to him, about 32 AD.
 From that moment he was a Changed Man. With zeal and devo-
tion unparalleled in history, he went up and. down the highways
of the Roman Empire crying out, Jesus Did Rise from the Dead,
It is True, It is True, IT IS TRUE, He is Risen, He is Risen,
HE IS RISEN.

 n Damascus they tried to kill him. He went into Arabia. Then
back to Damascus. Then returned to Jerusalem, about 35 AD.
They tried to kill him. Then he went to Tarsus.
In Antioch, about 42 to 44 A D. Went up to Jerusalem, about 44
A D, with an offering of money for the poor.

 FIRST MISSIONARY JOURNEY, about 45 to 48 A D. Galatia: Písidian
Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe. Returned to Antioch.
 Conference at Jerusalem about Gentile Circumcision, about
50 A D.



SECOND MISSIONARY JOURNEY, about 50-53 A D: Greece: Philippi,
Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, Corinth: return to Jerusalem,
Antioch.



THIRD MISSIONARY JOURNEY, about 54-57 AD: Ephesus, Greece.
 To Jerusalem, 58 A D, with great, offering of money.
 In Caesarea, 58-60 A D, a prisoner in the governor’s castle.
















?? FOURTH MISSIONARY JOURNEY ??
In Rome, 61-63 A D, a prisoner. Here the book of Acts ends.
 Back in Greece and Asia Minor, about 65-66 A D.
 Beheaded in Rome, about 67 A D.
 His ministry lasted about 35 years. In those 35 years he won
vast multitudes to Christ.
 At times God helped him with Miracles. In almost every city
he was persecuted. Again and again they mobbed him, and tried
to kill him. He was beaten, scourged, imprisoned, stoned, driven
from city to city. On top of all this, his “thorn in’ the flesh”,
II Cor 12. His sufferings are almost unbelievable. He must have
had a constitution like iron. God must have used supernatural
power to keep him alive.



                  












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                           ROMANS


             Fundamental Nature of Christ’s Work
          Basis of Man’s Standing before his Creator

Paul was chosen of God to be the chief expounder of the Gos—
pel to the world, and his Epistle to the Romans is Paul's com—
pletest explanation of his understanding of the Gospel. Coleridge
calls it, “The most profound work in existence."

               Date and Occasion of the Epistle

Winter of 57-58 A D. Paul was in Corinth, at the close of. his
Third Missionary Journey, on the eve of his departure to Jeru
salem with the offering of money for the poor saints. 15:22-27.
A woman named Phoebe, of Cenchreae, a suburb of Corinth,
was sailing for Rome, 16:1,2. Paul availed himself of the oppor—
‘tunity to send this letter by her. There was no postal service in
the Roman Empire except for official business. Public Postal
Service as we know it is of modem origin. Then personal letters
had to be carried by friends or chance travelers.

                      Purpose of The Epistle

To let the Roman Christians know that he was on his way to
Rome. Then, too, this was before God had told Paul that He
 would see him to Rome, Acts 23:11. and Paul did not as yet
 feel sure that he would get away from Jerusalem alive, Rom
 15:31: in which case, it seemed proper that he, the Apostle to
 Gentiles, should leave on file, in the Capital of the World. a
 Written explanation of the Nature of the Gospel of Christ.

                       The Church In Rome

 Paul had" not yet been there. He reached Rome three years
 after he wrote this Epistle. The nucleus of the Roman Church
 probably had been formed by the Romans who were at Jeru-
 salem on the Day of Pentecost, Acts 2:10.
 In the intervening 28 years many Christians, from various parts
 of the East, for one cause or another, had migrated to the
 Capital City, some of them Paul's own converts and intimate
 friends, see Ch 16.

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                  Background of the Epistle

Common Jewish Belief in the Finality of Mosaic Law as the
expression of the Will of God, and of Universal Obligation, and.
Jewish insistence that Gentiles who would be Christians must be
Circumcised and keep the Law of Moses. Thus the question
whether a Gentile could be a Christian without becoming a
Jewish Proselyte was. one of the great problems of the time.
Christianity started as a Jewish Religion, and certain powerful
Jewish leaders were determined it should remain so. Circum—
cision was a physical rite which stood as the initial ceremony in.
Jewish naturalization of Gentiles.

                    Paul’s Main Insistence

 In this Epistle is that Man’s Justification before God rests
fundamentally, not on the Law of Moses, but on the Mercy of
Christ. It is not a matter of Law at all, because Man, on account
of his Sinful Nature, cannot fully live up to God’s Law, which is
an expression of God’s Holiness. But it is wholly because Christ,
out of the Goodness of His Heart, Forgives Men's Sins. In the
last analysis, Man's Standing before God depends, not so much
on what Man has done, or can do, for himself, as on what Christ
has done for him. And therefore Christ is entitled to the Abso-
lute and Whole-Hearted Allegiance and Loyalty and. Devotion
and Obedience of Every Human Being.

CHAPTERS 1 and 2

        Chapters 1,2. Universal Need of The Gospel

Universal Sinfulness of Mankind, 1:1-32. The first sentence is
a long one, 1-7, summarizing Paul's life: Jesus, Foretold in
Prophecy, Risen from the Dead, commissioned Paul to Preach
Him to All Nations.
Paul’s long time desire to come to Rome, 9-15, hindered by
evangelized fields elsewhere, 15:20.
Not ashamed of the Gospel, 16, even in Rome, the gilded and
haughty cesspool of every foul thing. The terrible DepraVity of.
Man, pictured in 18—32, had reached its depths in Rome, specially
the sexual practices of 26,27.
  Jews Included, 2:1—29. Paul’s frightful picture of Man's Sinful-
ness is true of the Jews also, even though they were God's own
nation, for they practice the sins common to mankind.
  Whosoever, 1, includes every one of us. Not that every one
does All the things mentioned in 1:29-31..That is a picture of the
race as a whole. But each one of us is guilty of some of the
things there mentioned.    

The Day when God shall Judge the Secrets of Men, 2:16. In
That Day, the test will be, not race, not whether one is a Jew
or a Gentile, but the Inner Nature of the Heart and its attitude
toward the Practices of Life.

                         

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Romans Chapter 1 New International Version (NIV)

1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— 2 the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3 regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life[a] was a descendant of David, 4 and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power[b] by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5 Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from[c] faith for his name’s sake. 6 And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

7 To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul’s Longing to Visit Rome
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. 9 God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you 10 in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you.

11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— 12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters,[d] that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.

14 I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. 15 That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome.

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last,[e] just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”[f]

God’s Wrath Against Sinful Humanity
18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.

24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.

28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

Footnotes:
Romans 1:3 Or who according to the flesh
Romans 1:4 Or was declared with power to be the Son of God
Romans 1:5 Or that is
Romans 1:13 The Greek word for brothers and sisters (adelphoi) refers here to believers, both men and women, as part of God’s family; also in 7:1, 4; 8:12, 29; 10:1; 11:25; 12:1; 15:14, 30; 16:14, 17.
Romans 1:17 Or is from faith to faith
Romans 1:17 Hab. 2:4

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Romans Chapter 2 New International Version (NIV)

God’s Righteous Judgment

2 You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. 2 Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. 3 So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? 4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?

5 But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. 6 God “will repay each person according to what they have done.”[a] 7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. 9 There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; 10 but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 11 For God does not show favoritism.

12 All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. 13 For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous. 14 (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law. 15 They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.) 16 This will take place on the day when God judges people’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.

The Jews and the Law
17 Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God; 18 if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; 19 if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— 21 you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24 As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”[b]

25 Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised. 26 So then, if those who are not circumcised keep the law’s requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? 27 The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the[c] written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker.

28 A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. 29 No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.

Footnotes:
Romans 2:6 Psalm 62:12; Prov. 24:12
Romans 2:24 Isaiah 52:5 (see Septuagint); Ezek. 36:20,22
Romans 2:27 Or who, by means of a
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Some content adapted from Halley, Henry H., Bible Handbook, Grayson Publishing, Minneapolis, MN.  © 1927 - 1959.  

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Hugh C. Wood, Atlanta, Georgia