Romans 8.35-No Category Of Suffering Can Separate The Christian From Christ's Love For Them
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Tuesday February 3, 2009
Romans: Romans 8:35-No Category Of Suffering Can Separate The Christian From Christ’s Love For Them
Lesson # 286
Please turn in your Bibles to Romans 8:31.
This evening we will complete our study Romans 8:35 and in this passage, Paul assures his Christian readers in Rome that no category of suffering in life, whether its tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, or sword could ever separate them from Christ’s love for them.
Let’s read this final paragraph and then concentrate on verse 35 for the rest of the morning.
Romans 8:31-39, “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, ‘FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED.’ But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Let’s now concentrate on verse 35.
Romans 8:35, “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”
“Who” is the nominative masculine singular form of the interrogative pronoun tis (tiv$) (tis), which means “what” since the list to follow is composed of things rather than people.
The word refers to any conceivable form of adversity that one could experience in life and asks a rhetorical question that demands or expects a negative response.
The rhetorical questions that appear in Romans 8:33-35 bring out the implications of Paul’s statement in Romans 8:31 that God is for each and every Christian, thus who can oppose the Christian and prevail.
Romans 8:35, “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”
“Will separate” is the third person singular future active indicative form of the verb chorizo (xwrivzw) (kho-rid-zo), which means “to separate” in the sense that there is no adversity in life that could “separate” the Christian from Christ’s unconditional love for them.
In this passage, it appears in a rhetorical question that emphasizes that no adversity in life could “sever” or “separate” the Christian from Christ’s unconditional love for them.
Chorizo emphasizes that there is no adversity in life that can “isolate” the Christian from Christ’s unconditional love for them.
Human history has manifested the fact the various adversities listed in verse 35 have severed human relationships or separated individuals from loved ones.
However, Paul emphasizes that none of these adversities can sever the Christian from their relationship with Christ since Christ’s love is eternal and unconditional and He is omnipotent.
The Father is faithful to His promises, thus nothing in life can separate the Christian from His relationship with Christ.
John 10:27-28, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”
Romans 8:35, “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”
“Us” is the accusative first person plural form of the personal pronoun hemeis (h(mei$), which refers to Paul and his fellow Christian readers in a corporate sense.
It immediately follows the interrogative pronoun tis in the original text emphasizing that the rhetorical question is from the perspective of the Christian and his relationship to Christ rather than emphasis upon Christ and His relationship to the Christian.
This is to assure the reader and emphasizes to the Christian that he has eternal security.
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“From the love of Christ” is composed of the preposition apo (a)pov), “from” and the articular genitive feminine singular form of the noun agape (a)gavph), “the love” and the articular genitive masculine singular form of the proper name Christos (xristov$), “Christ.”
The noun agape means “divine-love” and is used with Christ as the subject and the Christian as the object referring to a divine attribute of Christ.
In Romans 8:35, the noun agape functions as the object of the preposition apo, which functions as a marker of separation and dissociation.
This indicates that there is no adversity in life that can “totally and completely separate” the Christian “from” Christ’s unconditional and faithful love for them.
The proper name Christos is a technical word designating the humanity of our Lord as the promised Savior for all mankind who is unique as the incarnate Son of God and totally and completely guided and empowered by the Spirit as the Servant of the Father.
The word functions as a “subjective genitive” meaning that the genitive noun Christos functions semantically as the subject of the verbal idea implicit in the head noun agape.
Therefore, it emphasizes Christ’s love for the Christian rather than the Christian’s love for Christ.
There would really be no great assurance if Paul is saying in this rhetorical question that no adversity in life could ever separate the Christian from his love for Christ since the Christian still has a sin nature!
Also, as Godet points out the Christian can not be separated from his own feelings for Christ. (The Epistle to the Romans, page 333; William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Grand Rapids, Michigan/Cambridge, U.K.).
The context further indicates that Paul is emphasizing Christ’s love for the Christian rather than vice versa because throughout chapter eight he has been emphasizing what God through the agencies of the Spirit and His Son have done for the Christian.
Throughout the entire chapter he has been emphasizing the believer’s eternal security, which is based upon what God has done for them through the Son and the Spirit.
Lastly, the Christian’s love for Christ is based upon God’s love in Christ since John teaches in 1 John 4:19 that “we (the Christian) love, because He (God) first loved us.”
Next, we will note the first of seven categories of undeserved suffering that the Christian might experience in life but can never separate them from Christ’s unconditional love for them.
Romans 8:35, “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”
“Tribulation” is the noun thlipsis (qliyi$) (thlip-sis), which is derived from the root thleo (qlevw), which means “to squeeze, to crush.”
The word conveys the idea of being squeezed or placed under pressure or crushed beneath a weight.
Figuratively thlipsis pictures one being “crushed” by intense pressure, difficult circumstances, suffering or trouble pressing upon them from without.
Thus persecution, affliction, distress, opposition or tribulation, all press hard on one’s soul.
In Scripture the noun is most often used of outward difficulties, but it is also used of emotional stress and sorrows which “weighs down” a man’s spirit like the sorrows and burden his heart.
It then includes the disappointments which can “crush the life” out of the one who is afflicted.
The word is used in the Greek New Testament in relation to the undeserved suffering of the believer (Romans 5:3; 8:35; 2 Corinthians 4:17-18; 1 Thessalonians 1:6-7).
John 16:33, “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”
In Romans 5:3, the noun thlipsis refers to the believer experiencing underserved suffering and is used of pressure outside the soul that is brought about by circumstances or people.
Romans 5:3, “In fact, not only this but we also make it a habit to rejoice on account of our adversities because we know for certain that adversity, as an eternal spiritual truth, produces perseverance.”
In Romans 8:35, the noun thlipsis means, “adversity” and is used in a general and figurative sense in relation to the intense outward pressure or extreme adversity caused by people or circumstances that the Christian will at times experience in life.
Romans 8:35, “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”
“Distress” is the noun stenochoria (stenoxwriva) (sten-okh-o-ree-ah), which literally means, “a narrow place, a confined space” and figuratively denotes “intense anguish, or distress.”
The word pictures finding oneself in a “tight corner,” hemmed in with no way out, in a narrow strait without the possibility of escape.
The noun stenochoria is used metaphorically referring to great anxiety and distress of mind, such as arises when a man does not know where to turn himself or what to do for relief.
The noun thlipsis emphasizes the intense outward suffering that the believer will experience at times in life while stenochoria emphasizes the intense mental suffering or anguish that the Christian will at times experience.
Therefore, in Romans 8:35, the noun stenochoria means, “anguish” and is used in a general and figurative sense in relation to the intense mental pressure or extreme anguish caused by people or circumstances that the Christian will at times experience in life.
“Persecution” is the noun diogmos (diwgmov$) (dee-ogue-mos), which is the suffering or pressure, mental, moral, or physical, which authorities, individuals, or crowds inflict on others, especially for opinions or beliefs, with a view to their subjection by recantation, silencing, or, as a last resort, execution.
In the Greek New Testament, diogmos is used always of Christians suffering “persecution” in relation to their identification with the Word of God in the form of the gospel (Matthew 13:21; Mark 4:7; 10:30; Acts 8:1; 13:50; Romans 8:35; 2 Corinthians 12:10; 2 Thessalonians 1:4; 2 Timothy 3:11 twice).
“Famine” is the noun limos (livmov$) (lee-mos), which refers to the widespread lack of food over a considerable period of time and resulting in hunger for many people.
“Nakedness” is the noun gumnotes (gumnovth$) (goom-not-ace), which is used in a literal sense and means to be destitute of convenient or decent clothing because of having no means to purchase or make any.
“Peril” is the noun kindunos (kivnduno$) (kin-doo-nos), which refers to a state of dangerous and threatening circumstances.
In 2 Corinthians 11:25, Paul uses the word eight times in relation to various categories of undeserved suffering that he experienced in his ministry, which include both elements and human beings and were a cause of danger for him.
2 Corinthians 11:26-27, “I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.”
In Romans 8:35, the noun kindunos means, “danger” refers to the dangerous and life threatening circumstances that a Christian might experience during the course of his life as a Christian.
Romans 8:35, “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”
“Sword” is the noun machaira (mavxaira) (makh-a-rah), which means, “sword” and is used in a figurative sense for capital punishment.
Each of these seven categories of undeserved suffering are used by God the Father and the Holy Spirit to conform the Christian into the image of Jesus Christ in an experiential sense.