Romans 1-8 English Standard Version (ESV) / Herziene Statenvertaling

Introduction The Revelation of Righteousness Justification, or the Imputation of Righteousness Life in Christ, or Union With and Ultimate Conformation to the Righteous One Vindication, or God’s Righteousness in His Relationship with Israel Application, or God’s Righteousness at Work Conclusion, or Purpose, Plans, and Praise in Connection with the Dissemination of Righteousness These are the main topics in this letter. As we will find out there are various subtopics within each main topic. Each main topic also relates to a specific portion of the letter. I did not mention the specific portions here, but we can do that each time when we start with a new main topic. But we need to keep in mind, that all these topics are part of one and the same letter, so we must not try and separate any of them from the letter as a whole. For today we will look at the first main topic, which we find in the first 17 verses of the first chapter of the letter. Let’s go there.

Paul an apostle of Christ sent to the Gentiles defines the gospel as the power of God for salvation and also the revealer of God’s righteousness declaring all men as sinful - both Jew and Greek. We are justified by faith, set free from the bondage of sin and death (through the precious sacrifice of our Lord Jesus on the cross of Calvary) by which we are declared righteous and sanctified through our identification with Christ.

The Revelation of Righteousness—the Gospel (Romans 1:1-17) A. The Salutation / Greeting: Paul identifies himself as an Apostle, states the purpose of his calling is the salvation of the Gentiles, and addresses his letter to the (Romans 1:1-7) The Calling: First of all Paul introduces himself as a servant of Christ. And then he declares that he did not become an apostle by his own choice and decision, but that he was called to be an apostle by God. He also declares that he had been given a specific responsibility, namely to proclaim the Gospel of God concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 1:1-4) The Purpose: Through Jesus Christ and for His name’s sake, Paul received grace and apostleship in order that the salvation of the Gentiles might be accomplished (Romans 1:5) The Recipients: Paul is writing to the beloved saints in Rome who are the Called of Jesus Christ among the Gentiles, for whom Paul desires grace and peace from both God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ 1:6-7

B. The Prayer: Paul prays for the Roman believers, seeking God’s will in visiting them 1:8-12 Paul expresses His thankfulness to God for the reputation of the Romans’ faith 1:8-10 Paul longed to see the Romans, even though his previous efforts has been thwarted, in order to impart spiritual gift and mutually encourage each other 1:11-12 C. The Obligation: Paul states his obligation to preach the gospel to all people and his eagerness to preach the gospel in Rome 1:14-15 D. The Theme: Righteousness by faith is revealed in the gospel 1:16-17 Because it is God’s power for the salvation of Jews and Greeks, Paul is unashamed of the gospel 1:16 The gospel reveals the righteousness of God from the beginning of faith to its conclusion because those who are righteous live by faith 1:17

II. Justification, or the Imputation of Righteousness (Romans 1:18—5:11) A. The Rejection of Righteousness—Unbelief 1. The wrath of God is been revealed – Romans 1:18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.

Suppressing the truth – Romans 1:19-23 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.

3. God abandonment / God gave them over to their Sinful desire Romans 1: 24-32, 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, Godhaters, 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.

B. The guilt of mankind: the Universal Need of Righteousness No one, neither Jew nor Greek, is righteous before God 3:9-20 No one understands or seeks God. None is righteous. All are useless 3:9-12 All are deceitful and evil, choosing destruction and misery rather than peace and the fear of God 3:13-18 By the law all become accountable to God. The law reveals sin but justifies no one 3:19-20

All of mankind is held accountable to God, no matter whether they realize and /or accept it or not. And none of them can be justified before Him by pointing toward his works. It’s not by circumcision, it’s not by baptism, it’s not by following a set of commandments, it's not by being a member of a certain denomination or by being a member of a church. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

C. Righteousness is through faith in Jesus Christ The apostle Paul does make two very important statements: • Abraham received the righteousness of God because he believed God. It was actually an undeserved gift of God, thus by grace. • If Abraham, or any other person, would have been justified by works and thus would have earned righteousness then it would no longer have been by grace. Ephesians 2:8 we are saved by grace through faith.

Romans 5:1-2 Justified Through Faith Peace with God Access to God's Favor Our Hope of the Glory of God "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." (Romans 4:3) Hebrews 11:1 - Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Romans 5:3-4 Perseverance Character Hope For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations whose designer and builder is God. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.(Hebrews 11:10, 16)

Romans 5:9-10 Justified – declared righteous by the blood of Jesus Reconciled – made God’s children Rescued - saved There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1)

D. The New Freedom In Life Identification with Christ frees us from the Law and slavery to sin so we can be led by the Spirit of God.

Romans 6:15-16 What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? Wat dan? Zullen wij zondigen omdat wij niet onder de wet maar onder de genade zijn? Volstrekt niet! Weet u niet dat aan wie u uzelf als slaaf ter beschikking stelt tot gehoorzaamheid, u slaaf bent van wie u gehoorzaamt: óf van de zonde, tot de dood, óf van de gehoorzaamheid, tot gerechtigheid? Some people might say that, because we are not under the law but under grace, we do not have to care about how we live, as the grace of God would be our guarantee for the future. But that would be a serious mistake. Not only would we be abusing the grace of God, but through our behavior we would actually show that we did not die to sin. If we truly died to sin then that should show up in the way we continued our life after we were saved by God. As Paul presents it in these verses that has to do with obedience. But then we have to ask ourselves: obedience to whom and to what? The whom is easy, that is of course God. But regarding the what we have no other choice but to think of the law. And then comes the question: but was the law not the actual cause of the problem. Let’s look at some specific verses.

Romans 8:3-4 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. Want wat voor de wet onmogelijk was, krachteloos als zij was door het vlees, dat heeft God gedaan: Hij heeft Zijn eigen Zoon gezonden in een gedaante gelijk aan het zondige vlees en dat omwille van de zonde, en de zonde veroordeeld in het vlees, opdat de rechtvaardige eis van de wet vervuld zou worden in ons, die niet naar het vlees wandelen, maar naar de Geest. I have to jump a bit ahead in the book of Romans. The real problem is actually not in the law, it is in our flesh, in our sinful nature that we received because of the sin of Adam. Our sinful nature does not accept Gods laws and can and will never fulfill its requirements. Therefore we can only be very grateful that we’re not saved by works, by fulfilling the requirements of the law, but by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Let’s go back to Romans chapter 6.

Ezekiel 36:26-27 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. Dan zal Ik u een nieuw hart geven en een nieuwe geest in uw binnenste geven. Ik zal het hart van steen uit uw lichaam wegnemen en u een hart van vlees geven. Ik zal Mijn Geest in uw binnenste geven. Ik zal maken dat u in Mijn verordeningen wandelt en dat u Mijn bepalingen in acht neemt en ze houdt. The verses in 2 Corinthians 5:17-19 tell us that those, who are in Christ Jesus, are a new creation. And verse 19 clearly points out that this is something that is done by God. As such it confirms these verses from Ezekiel. Our old heart and our old spirit were so totally perverted by sin that God doesn’t even bother to repair them. He actually gives us a new heart and a new spirit. By doing so He indeed makes us a new creation in Christ Jesus. Let’s look at a number of verses from Colossians 3 where Paul teaches us a number of practical applications of these things.

Joel 2:28-29 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: and also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my Spirit. Daarna zal het geschieden dat Ik Mijn Geest zal uitstorten op alle vlees: uw zonen en uw dochters zullen profeteren, uw ouderen zullen dromen dromen, uw jongemannen zullen visioenen zien. Ja, zelfs op de dienaren en op de dienaressen zal Ik in die dagen Mijn Geest uitstorten. In his sermon on the first Pentecost the apostle Peter refers to these verses to make it clear to the people that he and the other apostles were not drunk. Also the Lord Jesus Christ promised to send the Holy Spirit to be with us always. We see that for instance in the following verses from the Gospel of John.

John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall bear witness of me. Maar wanneer de Trooster is gekomen, Die Ik u zenden zal van de Vader, de Geest van de waarheid, Die van de Vader uitgaat, zal Die over Mij getuigen. Here we see the words of Christ in which He tells the apostles that He will send the Holy Spirit. But He also tells us that the Holy Spirit indeed is coming from the Father. We see that also in His words from Acts chapter 1 on the next sheet.

Acts 1:4-5 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, "which," saith He, "ye have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days hence.“ En toen Hij met hen samen was, beval Hij hun dat zij niet uit Jeruzalem weg zouden gaan, maar de belofte van de Vader zouden verwachten, die u, zei Hij, van Mij gehoord hebt; want Johannes doopte wel met water, maar u zult met de Heilige Geest gedoopt worden, niet lang na deze dagen. In this passage the Lord Jesus tells His apostles that after his ascension they have to wait in Jerusalem until they have received the promise of God, which is indeed the outpouring of the Holy Spirit as they experienced it on the first Pentecost, or, according to the set times of God, on the Feast of Weeks, 50 days after the Passover celebration. In his sermon on that day the apostle Peter also refers to this promise and the fulfillment of what the Lord Jesus had told them. So, in the passage we will look at today we have to keep in mind that the word Spirit can refer to both meanings, even though it almost all of the times is written with a capital S, which normally indicates it would refer to the Holy Spirit.

Romans 8:1-2 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. Dus is er nu geen verdoemenis voor hen die in Christus Jezus zijn, die niet naar het vlees wandelen, maar naar de Geest. Want de wet van de Geest van het leven in Christus Jezus heeft mij vrijgemaakt van de wet van de zonde en van de dood. Due to the fact that the Scriptures have been translated from their original languages into languages we speak and understand we may sometimes get some misunderstandings. For instance: when we see in the Bible the word law we have a tendency to think that it always relates to the commandments of God as given through Moses. But that is not always true. And that is actually the case over here. Here the word law is more used in the meaning of a principle, like we also refer to the law of gravity and things like that. At the same time, here we see already our new hope for life expressed: life in Christ Jesus and what that has done for us. In the next verse we will see why this was necessary.

Colossians 1:19-20 English Standard Version (ESV) 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. 1:19 Want het heeft de Vader behaagd dat in Hem heel de volheid wonen zou, 1:20 en dat Hij door Hem alle dingen met Zichzelf verzoenen zou, door vrede te maken door het bloed van Zijn kruis, ja door Hem, zowel de dingen die op de aarde zijn als de dingen die in de hemelen zijn.

1 Corinthians 15:50-55 English Standard Version (ESV) 50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 15:50 Maar dit zeg ik, broeders, dat vlees en bloed het Koninkrijk van God niet kunnen beërven, en de vergankelijkheid beërft de onvergankelijkheid niet. 15:51 Zie, ik vertel u een geheimenis: Wij zullen wel niet allen ontslapen, maar wij zullen allen veranderd worden, 15:52 in een ondeelbaar ogenblik, in een oogwenk, bij de laatste bazuin. Immers, de bazuin zal klinken en de doden zullen als onvergankelijke mensen opgewekt worden, en ook wij zullen veranderd worden.

53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O death, where is your victory?     O death, where is your sting?” 15:53 Want dit vergankelijke moet zich met onvergankelijkheid bekleden en dit sterfelijke moet zich met onsterfelijkheid bekleden. 15:54 En wanneer dit vergankelijke zich met onvergankelijkheid bekleed zal hebben, en dit sterfelijke zich met onsterfelijkheid bekleed zal hebben, dan zal het woord geschieden dat geschreven staat: De dood is verslonden tot overwinning. 15:55 Dood, waar is uw prikkel? Graf, waar is uw overwinning?

Philippians 1:6 English Standard Version (ESV) 6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. 1:6 Ik vertrouw erop dat Hij Die in u een goed werk begonnen is, dat voltooien zal tot op de dag van Jezus Christus.

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 8:37 Maar in dit alles zijn wij meer dan overwinnaars door Hem Die ons heeft liefgehad. 8:38 Want ik ben ervan overtuigd dat noch dood, noch leven, noch engelen, noch overheden, noch krachten, noch tegenwoordige, noch toekomstige dingen, 8:39 noch hoogte, noch diepte, noch enig ander schepsel ons zal kunnen scheiden van de liefde van God in Christus Jezus, onze Heere.