“Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience.” -Romans 13:5 Paul gives two reasons to obey the magistrate: to avoid God’s wrath and to avoid a guilty conscience. In this case God’s wrath is understood as magistrate’s work of carrying out God’s wrath on […]
The Servant of God for Good
“for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.” -Romans 13:4 One of the most clear declarations in Scripture that the civil magistrate […]
Seeking Approval of the Highest Authority
“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. […]
Resisting Authority Incurs Judgment
“Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.” -Romans 13:2 From the time Israel first became a tribute nation (subservient to Gentile nations) to the time of Paul’s writing, there have always been zealots who’s goal was to raise enough support to overthrow the occupying armies. […]
Subject to the Governing Authorities
“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.” -Romans 13:1 The word translated person in this place is the Greek word, psyche, or soul. Paul says, Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. This begins […]
Heaping Burning Coals
“To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” -Romans 12:20–21 Instead of what seems natural to the flesh—to take vengeance on […]
Vengeance is God’s
“Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”” -Romans 12:19 Paul appeals tenderly to the believers, calling them Beloved. Certainly, it is a sensitive charge. Human nature wants to retaliate, seek what we, in our limited view, believe […]
Live Peaceably With All
“If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” -Romans 12:18 Paul began his list of exhortations to Christians with the charge that we love genuinely, abhorring what is evil and holding fast to what is good. Each of the exhortations are in one sense independent of the others but in […]
Do What is Honorable
“Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all.” -Romans 12:17 Paul further exhorts believers that they are not vindictive for wrongs suffered but instead think about the best way to respond in such a way that unbelievers, those outside the church, and even the […]
Harmony Through Humility
“Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight.” -Romans 12:16 This next exhortation is one of humility. Previously, Paul told believers not to think of themselves more highly than they ought to think (vs. 3), which is a general exhortation to […]
Gospel-generated Love
“Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” -Romans 12:15 Adding to his list of character traits becoming of a Christian, Paul next lays down an exhortation toward true love for one’s neighbor, that of mutual affection. Genuine gospel-generated love is compelled to share in the celebrations as well as the heartache’s of […]
Bless and Do Not Curse
“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.” -Romans 12:14 As Paul continues to list these precepts for the new gospel-centered humanity, the church, it should be noted that he is not taking any great pains to lay them out in any precise order. Rather, he exhorts the church with a barrage […]
Share and Be Hospitable
“Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.” -Romans 12:13 Paul continues his exhortation with two specific admonishments. First, Christians are to contribute to the needs of the saints (recall Romans 12:6-8). Contribute comes from the Greek word, κοινωνοῦντες (share), which is closely related to κοινωνία (communion). To contribute to the […]
How to Live in Present Difficult Circumstances
“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” -Romans 12:12 Paul’s list for the family of God continues with an exhortation for living in the present circumstances. One day, the redeemed of God will be saved not only from the penalty and power of sin, but from the very presence of sin. […]
Enthusiastic Worship
“Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.” -Romans 12:11 This is an interesting statement, primarily because although the words are familiar to us, the construction of his language is fairly uncommon. The first thing one might notice is the trifecta of words that all have to do with one’s […]
Imagine Philadelphia
“Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.” -Romans 12:10 Paul clearly conceives of the gospel as creating a new humanity, one which will grow up alongside the old humanity, the wheat with the tares. And this new humanity can be conceived of as a new spiritual family all from the […]
Love without Hypocrisy
“Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.” -Romans 12:9 Paul moves from encouraging believers to use their spiritual gifts for the benefit of others to a general statement about the attitude that should motive the believers’ use of gifts, genuine love. In the next verse, he will hone […]
Gifts That Differ
“Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one […]
Many Members, One Body
“For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.” -Romans 12:4–5 Paul will expound on this idea of the church being a body more thoroughly in 1 Corinthians 12. But […]
Think with Sober Judgment
“For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.” -Romans 12:3 Even in his ministry of instructing believers in the grace of […]
Be Transformed
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” -Romans 12:2 The reasonable service or spiritual worship begins with avoiding the temptation to conform to—be molded to—this world, which […]
Do Not Be Conformed to This World
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” -Romans 12:2 The first step in our reasonable service, our spiritual worship, is to refrain from conforming ourselves to the […]
Our Spiritual Worship
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” -Romans 12:1 This is a good place to recall that Paul’s letter to the Romans follows a chiastic structure that reaches its highest and most important […]
Unsearchable!
“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! “For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?” “Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” For from him and through […]
All Consigned to Disobedience
“For just as you were at one time disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their disobedience, so they too have now been disobedient in order that by the mercy shown to you they also may now receive mercy. For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on […]
The Effectual Call
“For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” -Romans 11:29 Paul affirms the validity of the covenant promise to (remnant or believing) Israel by use of a merism, a kind of trope called a synecdoche. A merism is a rhetorical device (or figure of speech) in which a combination of two (usually contrasting) […]
As Regard the Gospel and Election
“As regards the gospel, they are enemies for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers.” -Romans 11:28 For clarity’s sake, Paul’s categories are as follows: Gentiles, which represent the believers, the church; broader Israel which includes both the elect remnant and the unbelieving ethnic Jews; the elect […]
All Israel Will Be Saved
“And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”; “and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins.”” -Romans 11:26–27 God will save all Israel in the way he just described (and is about […]
Take Heed Lest You Fall
“Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.” -Romans 11:25 This statement is a summary, an expansion, and a warning. It is a summary explanation of what […]
One Olive Tree
“And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the […]
Continue in His Kindness
“For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.” -Romans 11:21–22 As Paul has already noted in […]
The Connection Between Faith and Fear
“Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear.” -Romans 11:19–20 Paul now issues a more direct warning to the Gentiles against any kind of […]
The Humility of Grace
“do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you.” -Romans 11:18 The root is the heritage the natural branches have in Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Gentiles were grafted in and they derive their support from the roots; it’s […]
Grafted in by Faith
“But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree,” -Romans 11:17 Picking up from his second illustration, Paul begins a longer discourse directed primarily at the Gentiles, warning them not to […]
Firstfruits and Tree Roots
“For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches.” -Romans 11:15–16 The logic of this passage has been lost on some […]
Toward the Reconciliation of the World
“Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the […]
The Riches of Israel’s Full Inclusion
“Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean!” -Romans 11:12 Using an argument from the lesser, Paul clarifies that he doe not mean that the salvation of the Gentiles depended on the ruin of the Jews. Far […]
Using Evil for Good
“So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather, through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous.” -Romans 11:11 Out of his argument that God has saved his elect and hardened Israel, Paul offers a hopeful revelation: God is not through […]
What Then?
“What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.” And David says, “Let their table become a snare […]
Grace Not Works!
“But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.” -Romans 11:6 Paul here emphasizes the fact that grace has no part of works. It leaves nothing for it. It is all of God. Since God’s choice is determined by his divine wisdom […]
Chosen By Grace
“God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel? “Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life.” But what is God’s reply to him? “I […]
God Has Not Rejected His People
“I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.” -Romans 11:1 Since God has called the Gentiles to himself after such prolonged patience with Israel’s disobedience (All day long I have held out my hands) is […]
Those Who Did not Ask For God
“But I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says, “I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation; with a foolish nation I will make you angry.” Then Isaiah is so bold as to say, “I have been found by those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to […]
Ignorance is Not the Problem
“But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed they have, for “Their voice has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world.”” -Romans 10:18 From verses 18-21, Paul again addresses a rhetorical interlocutor to answer what he anticipates will be the salient questions as to why Israel does […]
The Efficacy of Preaching
“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” -Romans 10:17 Here Paul returns to the line of logic and concludes with “So…” The word so is translated from the Greek proposition εἰς which has a wide spectrum of meaning and usually indicates “a marker of intent, often with the implication of […]
They Have Not All Obeyed the Gospel
“But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?”” -Romans 10:16 Here Paul briefly interrupts his line of reasoning (which will resume in verse 17) in order to address what he anticipates will be an argument about the faith always following the word. […]
A Beautiful Work
“And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”” -Romans 10:15 Here Paul ends his rhetorical ascent with appears to be a plug for his own commission as a minister of the gospel, backed by the testimony of […]
Preaching Precedes Praying
“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?” -Romans 10:14 At this point, let us remember that at the root Paul’s entire line of argument beginning from […]
Same Lord of All
“For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”” -Romans 10:12–13 Paul assures his audience that wherever faith is found, regardless of race, ethnicity, or […]
Everyone Who Believes
“For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.”” -Romans 10:11 Like the sound theologian and rhetorician that he is, Paul now appeals to Scripture to support his claim that if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him […]