Introducing Romans

Paul’s Purpose in Romans

Why is this Important?

It is a complete book about Salvation and the Christian life.

Salvation

It will talk about Sin.

Our Guilt.

God’s Solution to help us.

God’s provision for each of us.

Few People will spend the time to really look at this subject.

How is a person truly saved?

What are the mechanics of salvation, being born again?

What is my responsibility in my own Salvation?

What should my life look like if I am truly saved?

How do we live a righteous life that pleases God?

Romans 7-8 are the conclusion to this question, detailing our weakness and God’s strength.

If we are not willing to study this, we will never grow in understanding and will consistantly come up short in our walk with God.

Proverbs 2:1–7 “My son, if you receive my words, And treasure my commands within you, So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding; Yes, if you cry out for discernment, And lift up your voice for understanding, If you seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasures; Then you will understand the fear of the Lord, And find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding; He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk uprightly;”

The 4 Sections of Romans

Section 1 Introduction: Romans 1:1-17

Theme: Romans 1:16–17 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.””

Section 2 God’s Righteousness revealed. (The just shall live by Faith) Romans 1-8..

Theme: Romans 4:16 “Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all”

Section 3 Defending God and His Plan of Salvation Romans 9-11.

Theme: Romans 10:9–10 “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

Section 4 Living Righteously Romans 12-16

Theme: Romans 12:1–2 “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And 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 perfect will of God.”

God’s Righteousness Revealed Section 1 & 2

Part 1: The Introduction 1:1-1:15

The Sum of Romans

Romans 1:1–6 “Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ;”

Paul stated Reason for writing.

Romans 1:11 “For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established—”

Romans 1:15 “So, as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also.”

His desire to impart something to them, is nothing less than establishing them in the Gospel.

Part 2: God’s Righteousness Revealed

Heading 1 Our Problem of Guilt before God Romans 1:18-3:20.

The Guilt of the Gentiles

Romans 1:18-32.

Theme verse: Romans 1:18 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,”

The Reason for Wrath

Romans 1:19–21 “because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, 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.”

The Guilt of the Jews

Romans 2:1-28 - Romans 3:8

Theme Verse: Romans 2:1 “Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.”

Reason for Wrath: Romans 2:13 “(for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified;”

Conclusion: Romans 2:28–29 “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.”

All are Guilty

Romans 3:9 — Romans 3:20.

Theme Verse: Romans 3:10 “As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;”

Reason: Romans 3:18 ““There is no fear of God before their eyes.””

Conclusion: Romans 3:19–20 “Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”

Heading 2 Our Justification Romans 3:21-4:25

What is Justification?

Justification is an action that God takes that effects us.

We are guilty, that is the conclussion Paul has shown us.

God is righteous, this is a known, given, unchangable fact.

How can a righteous good God forgive sin, both the times we sin against other creatures and the times with most importly sin against Him.

Every sin is against God ultimately, because the law the defines sin is made by God as it is the standard that He desires.

It is this sin against God that is a problem? What can man bring to God to atone, to make a payment for sin?

Everything is his already.

So no earthly offering can be made that will count salvificly, to balance against sin.

Justification is the way that God deals with our sin, putting it off so that it no longer counts against us.

Psalm 103:8–14 “The Lord is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. He will not always strive with us, Nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us. As a father pities his children, So the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.”

Justification is a legal term, held in the court of God’s perfect Justice where a just God can declare us innocent, without violating His justice.

Our Justification

Theme Verse: Romans 3:21–25 “But 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 faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,”

Reason: Romans 3:26 “to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

Conclusion: Romans 4:16 “Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all”

Conclusion 2: Romans 4:23–25 “Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.”

Heading 3 Our Sanctification Romans 5-8

What is Sanctification?

Sanctification is the process of being set apart from the world and it’s evil desires for God.

The World and its evil desires.

It includes both sins of commition: lying, stealing, immorality...

It also includes sins of ommission: failures to love God with all of our heart and our neighbor as ourselves. All failures to Love are sins, they are the root sins behind our sins of commission and greater for it.

Being set apart happens in two ways.

We are set apart positionally when we are saved.

We are given a new heart with new desires when God saves us.

This is an objective fact of something changing inside of us.

It is so great a change it is called:

Being born again. (John 3)

Becomeing a new creation.(2 Co. 5:17)

We are also brought into the family of God by Adoption.

Romans 8:15 “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.””

Galatians 4:5 “to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”

Ephesians 1:5 “having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,”

We have new nationality as well.

Philippians 3:20 “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,”

Colossians 1:13–14 “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.”

All this happens at the instant of Salvation.

We are also continually being transformed into God’s image here on earth.

This is an on going process. It will never stop.

2 Corinthians 3:18 “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

Romans 12:1–2 “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And 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 perfect will of God.”

This Sancitication is a difficult process.

Romans 8:13 “For 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.”

Colossians 3:5 “Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”

Sanctification comes by Grace:

Theme Verse Romans 5:20–21 “Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Paul’s Command to Us. (The second part of Sanctification)

Romans 6:12–14 “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”

Romans 7 The Problem:

Romans 7:21–24 “I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?”

Romans 8 God’s Provision

Romans 8:11 “But 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.”