Romans 8 “No Condemnation in Christ “

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus." (v.1)

The great truth of chapter 8 is summed up here in verse one. If we are in Christ, meaning if we have accepted Him as Savior and LORD, we do not need to live in doubt or fear of our salvation. We can never be more free from the condemnation of God’s righteous judgment (the great white Throne), than we are today.

Oh your heart may condemn you; your memory may haunt you; the great accuser of souls may come against you; your faith may become weak and lose its power and grip; your sense of unworthiness may become increasingly heavy on your soul but, none of these things can touch your acceptance with God – if you meet His one all inclusive condition, “accept His Son.” Then there is no condemnation, for you are in Christ Jesus.

Furthermore, "Nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus” (v.39). For God is the one who justifies (v.33), Christ is the one who died, was raised, sits at the right hand of the Father, who also intercedes for us (v.34). So, who is the one who condemns? Ah, yes, Satan. And will God listen to him when it comes to us, His children, His adopted sons/daughters, the very ones He gave His Son up for in order to save? I think not. So the question becomes, why do you?

Now is the time to commit yourself to His care and keeping, that His grace may be afforded to you on that “great day” of His coming, that you may be justified through His Son. (see prayer to the right on this page "connect with God.")

The Truth: “This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us. The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in them.” (1 John 3:23-24) 

Romans 7 "The Inner Conflict"

“For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Who shall deliver me...? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord." (v.17)

The seventh chapter of Romans reflects the inward conflict of the Christian soul who has not yet learned to use the full power of the Holy Spirit. It is the endeavour of a man to keep pure and holy in his own strength, in his own power and of his own will. But man’s nature, being bent towards rebellion, is unable to fight against the dark side on his own. As the scripture says, “Satan cannot cast out Satan.” Therefore, the will of man is unable to cast out its own evil and falls prey to the dark side.

Who has not, again and again, experienced failure after the most earnest desire to do right? The bitterness of our nature overcomes the better choice, of which we are conscious and later sorrowful. Thankfully, there is a better way.  In chapter eight, we will see how the full power of the Holy Spirit helps us to overcome evil. It is only when we learn to hand over our inner self to the Spirit of God that we can become "more than conquerors through Him that loved us" (Romans 8:37).

It is a great comfort to know that the Spirit of God is prepared to renew our inward man day by day, and to make us free from the law of sin and death. All we must do is use it!

The Truth:  “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.” (2 Corinthians 4:16) 

Romans 6 "To Whom Do You Yield?"

“Know you not, that to whom you yield yourselves servants, they are to whom you obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?” (v.16)

The truth is very man is ruled. No man is supreme; no man is master of his fate or captain of his soul. We are all governed by an outside power, either the power of God or by the power of Satan, and it is our choice. But whomever we yield yourselves servants to obey (God or Satan), his servants we become.

This struggle of whom we yield ourselves to goes back to the Garden of Eden where God said to man, "Thou shall not eat of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, and in the day you do, you are going to die." Satan then came along and said, "You won’t die, you will become just like God,” and thus the great struggle began. The eventual decision by Eve to eat of the tree (her choice) was one of obedience to Satan and disobedience to God. In yielding herself in obedience to Satan she became his servant.

Today, the same is true for us. We can choose to yield to God, to His Word, to His will, or we can choose to yield ourselves as a servant of disobedience, and become a servant of Satan. The outcome of this great struggle between good and evil, righteousness and unrighteousness, life and death, are found in verse 23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our LORD.” 

Every man is in one of two categories: either a servant of sin, or a servant of God. To whom do you yield?

The Truth: “As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:15) 

Romans 5 "The Wonder Of It All"

“But God demonstrated His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (v.8)

The love of God goes beyond all human understanding. With our finite minds it is impossible to fathom how a holy God should so love sinners - that He would actually give His very own Son to die that they might be saved. Who of us would ever give one of our precious children to die, that the world's worst criminal might be spared from paying his just debt to society? I think we all know the answer to that question.

You and I, are sinners; but despite our faults, God loved us so much that He was willing to send His Son to die in agony and shame to save us. The wonderd of all that is, God loves us unconditionally out of His own nature. In 1956 George Beverly Shea wrote both the lyrics and the music to the old gospel hymn, "The Wonder Of It All." The simple message behind that wonderful hymn is just that, the wonder that God loved us. Anyone who ever went to or heard a Billy Graham Crusade would no doubt have heard this closing hymn.

Yes, God hates sin, but He loves the sinner. Truly there is no greater love than this. Take the time to thank Him for that love, especially during this time of year. And, if you would like to experience His love in your life today, simply pray the prayer to the right of this page (see connect with God).

The Truth: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

Romans 4 "Justification - By Wroks Or Faith?"

"What then shall we say, that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” (vv.1-3)

The thought of justification by works (vs faith) begun in Romans 3:31 where Paul asks the question, “Does the idea of justification through faith, apart from the works of the law, make what God did in the Old Testament irrelevant?” 

In answering that question, Paul looks at Abraham, who was the most esteemed man among the Jewish people of his day – even greater than the “George Washington” of the American people. If anyone could be justified by works, they (or in this case he) would have something to boast about. Nevertheless such boasting is nothing before God. In other words, even if works could justify a man, he would in some way still fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).

So, what does the Scripture say? The Old Testament does not say Abraham was declared righteous because of his works. Instead, Genesis 15:6 says, that Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Paul makes it clear, it was a righteousness obtained through faith. Our justification is not God making us perfectly righteous, but counting us as perfectly righteous. After we are counted righteous, then God begins making us truly righteous, culminating at our resurrection. 

What makes Abraham's faith so exemplary? God called Abram to leave his homeland, friends, and family and move to a foreign land. He promised to bless Abram's posterity and honor him among nations (Genesis 12:1-3). At age 75 we can only imagine receiving this call upon our lives! But without hesitation, “Abram left, as the Lord had told him” (Gen.12:4).

Today's chapter also draws attention to the quality and motivation of his faith. It paints a picture of persistent, and ever-growing unbendable trust in God's power to fulfill His promises (vv.18-21). The character of God, on which Abraham waged his whole life, was specifically His creative, life-giving power. Abraham was, “fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform” (v. 21). Therefore, “it was credited to him as righteousness” (v.22).

Just as Abraham, so our faith is accounted for righteousness. It is not some special arrangement meant only for Abraham. We too can enter into this relationship with God...through faith. 

The Truth: “Therefore from one man (Abraham), and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude – innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore” - Hebrews 11:12. (because Abraham believed) 

Romans 3 “Jesus Paid It All”

“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.” (vv. 22-24)

In Romans 3:21, Paul told us how this righteousness does not come. It does not come through the deeds of the law, it is apart from the law. Now Paul tells us how this saving righteousness does come. It is through faith in Jesus Christ to all and on all who believe. The righteousness of God is not ours by faith; it is ours through faith. We do not earn righteousness by our faith. We receive righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ. There is no other way to obtain this righteousness. This righteousness is not earned through obedience to the law; it is a received righteousness, gained through faith in Jesus Christ.

Few things of value are inexpensive, and fewer still are free. But salvation—the most important gift of all—is free. Unlike anything of material value, salvation is of infinite value, and yet, it is free. As the hymn Elvina Hall wrote while sitting in a choir loft in a Methodist Church in 1865 reminds us, “Jesus paid it all, all to Him we owe.”

Scripture tells us no one can earn salvation (Eph. 2:8-9). And we know from our text we need only to believe in Jesus to receive His free gift of eternal life that God offers through His Son. The paradox here is, while salvation is free to us, its cost to God was great – the sacrificial death of His Son. Oswald Chambers wrote, “Forgiveness, which is so easy for us to accept, cost the agony at Calvary.”

It is the cross of Christ that bridges the gap we could never cross on our own, and justifies us by His grace to stand before a Holy God, sanctified. It is the cross that unites us as one body of believers in which there is no difference; Jew or Greek, rich or poor, male or female, blue collar or white collar. And as believers, we are of one family, adopted sons and daughters of God through the purchase of Jesus Christ at Calvary, justified by faith in Him.

The Truth: “For you were bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are His.” (1 Corinthians 6:20)

Romans 2 “Judge Not”

 Therefore you have no excuse, everyone of you who passes judgment, for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.” (v.1)

The kind of judgement Paul is talking about here is a type of righteous condemnation. One that speaks of judging another for similar actions taken by the one who judges. That kind of judgment is wrong because we all sin. Therefore, sense all sin, none should judge, not even the chief of priests. For none is free from the condemnation of the law.

The apostle Paul, once a very strict Pharisee, came to realized he too was not above anyone, eventually seeing himself to be, "the chief” of all sinners (1 Timothy 1:15). He knew the Lord had been patient and merciful to him, so he wanted to extend that same patience and mercy to others.

Today, if we take the time to see ourselves in others, we’ll see that Christ’s forgiveness does not reflect our superiority but God’s mercy. By overlooking the faults of others, we can take a big step towards overcoming our own. The apostle Paul said, "God will judge, and His judgement is according to truth" (v.2). 

As Dr. MeGee would so often say, "I'll just leave it right there."

The Truth: “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” (Matthew 7:1-2) 

Romans 1 “Salvation For All”

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.” (v.16)

After a short greeting (v.1-7) and an explanation of his desire to have visited them sooner (v.13), Paul sets the tone of his letter to the Romans here in verse 16 concerning “the gospel” (good news) of Christ. The “good news” he presents to them without shame is, “the gospel of Christ contains the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.” 

The key words being “everyone who believes.” Paul’s message of grace is so simple, that this is where many are vulnerable to error. We begin to think there is something else we should do, some works we should perform.   

Paul goes on to tell us in verse 17 that, “the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith” and that “the just should live by faith.” Therefore, faith is not only the starting point of salvation, but also the staying power as well. Meaning, once we as Christians have received Christ by faith, we walk through this life with Him in faith as well. 

The Christian life is not without “trials and tribulations.” But as Paul reminded the Galatians, “Having begun (your walk) in the Spirit, are you now perfected in your own flesh (knowledge)?” No! “For those who are in the flesh can not please God” (Romans 8:8) 

Therefore, Paul would say to us, “Walk ye in Him” (Colossians 2:6)