◄ Romans Devotional Commentary ►

Romans 1:1

In the first verse of the epistle to the Romans, we are introduced to the man who was called by God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to be the apostle to the Gentiles: set apart for the gospel of God. This bond-servant who was set apart from birth by God's grace, is the man who personally authored the thirteen epistles that are specifically directed towards Church-age believers today.

As a slave of Christ, Paul willingly delighted to read more...

Romans 1:2

Paul was a willing bond-servant of Jesus Christ, who was called and set apart unto the gospel of God. This gospel was good news for man. It was glad tidings of great joy, and it had been promised beforehand by God to mankind.

This gospel for which Paul was set apart, were the good tidings which had been foretold through an army of Old Testament prophets; a gospel which uniquely pointed to the Lord Jesus Christ.

read more...

Romans 1:3

The gospel of God was conceived in the heart of God. It centres on the good news of God's grace towards mankind and its singular focus is the only begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ our Lord. He died for our sins and rose again the third day so that whosoever would believe on His name would not perish but receive God's free gift of everlasting life, by grace through faith in Him.

But the most significant truth that is ridiculed by read more...

Romans 1:4

Having just been reminded in the previous verse that the Lord Jesus was fully human: "Made of the seed of David, according to the flesh," which gave Him the right to the throne of Israel, we now read that Jesus Christ was also: "Declared the Son of God with power, because He was Resurrected from the dead, by God's Holy Spirit."

Isaiah tells us that Jesus was the Son of Man that was read more...

Romans 1:5

It was because of God's undeserved favour that Paul was chosen by the risen, ascended, and glorified Lord Jesus Christ, to be the apostle to the Gentiles. Although he was undeserving, he received grace and apostleship from the Lord Jesus in order to bring about the obedience of faith among all the nations.

Yes, Paul was commissioned to call men and women from every tribe and nation to faith, and to deliver to them the good news read more...

Romans 1:6

Paul was 'called' of God to be the apostle to the Gentiles. He was to proclaim the unsearchable riches of Christ which is freely given to all who trust in the Lord Jesus as Saviour (by grace, through faith in God's only begotten Son).

And in writing to the Christians in Rome, Paul was also addressing you and me, together with multitudes of believers down through the centuries who, for 2000 years, have trusted in His saving blood. read more...

Romans 1:7

There were a number of different church fellowships that met in Rome and Paul's letter to the Romans was written to, "ALL who are beloved of God - in Rome." We discover in the final chapters, that this epistle was not written to a particular church or group of churches but was uniquely written to all individual believers living in the province of Rome.

Unlike many early church fellowships to whom Paul wrote, read more...

Romans 1:8

Having established his official relationship as God's chosen apostle to these beloved Roman believers, Paul then grants us a peep into the window of his heart, as he gives grateful thanks to God for these precious followers of Christ.

He yearns to see them and to minister to them, and so he tells them of his eager plans to visit them shortly for their mutual edification, to encourage their spiritual development and to strengthen read more...

Romans 1:8

Paul did not found the church at Rome, but being a chosen servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, an apostle appointed by God, a preacher of the glorious gospel of grace, and a missionary to the Gentile nations who had been commissioned by God, he expressed his deep love and genuine concern for the spiritual well-being of the Christians there.

Some anonymous believer in Christ must have been responsible for teaching the people in Rome read more...

Romans 1:9

A deep and loving concern for the believers in Rome was reflected in Paul's opening message of thankful praise for each of them. Indeed, their faith in the Lord Jesus had been made known throughout the Roman empire. What a wonderful testimony of these dear saints of God, and what an encouragement to us to boldly proclaim the glorious gospel of Christ, which is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe.

Paul did not want read more...

Romans 1:10

Paul had a great love for the Gentile churches that had placed their trust in the Lord Jesus and the Christians in Rome were no exception. Paul knew that the believers in the pagan city of Rome, were deeply loved by the Lord and called to be saints - for His greater praise and eternal glory.

The first thing that Paul wrote, after his characteristic greeting of "grace be to you and peace," was a grateful word of read more...

Romans 1:12

It was very important that Paul built up a rapport with the Christians in Rome, because this gentile church was one of the few Christian communities that was not started by Paul himself.

No doubt, he wanted to share first-hand some of the mysteries that had been hidden for ages and generations.. but which had been revealed to him, for the benefit of the Church. He also wanted to be sure that their doctrine was sound, their faith read more...

Romans 1:16

Paul, the servant of Christ Jesus, who was called and set apart to proclaim the gospel of God to Jew and Gentile alike, was not ashamed to take the good news of the lowly carpenter Who died for the sin of the world and rose again the third day, to the sophisticated capital of the Roman empire. He did not hesitate to proclaim the gospel of Christ to a skeptical world of fallen men, despite his message being a stumbling block to the proud Jewish nation and read more...

Romans 1:17

The righteousness of God stands in stark contrast with the sinfulness of man and describes God's holy and just character, which always dispenses that which is consistent with each of His other perfect attributes.

God could never forgive sinful man his trespasses and sins in a way that would compromise His own perfect character, and the wages of sin is eternal death to all who fall short of His unsurpassed righteousness. But God in read more...

Romans 1:18

For over two whole chapters, we find God building an irrefutable and airtight case against the sinfulness of all mankind. God is offended with man because of sin, and the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all that we have said, all we have done, and all that we are.

As fallen sinners, we are all justly condemned by God and are worthy of His righteous and everlasting punishment, and for two whole chapters we discover read more...

Romans 1:19

All humanity has sinned, and every man needs the gospel of salvation for all are dead in trespasses and sins and all are without hope in the world. But in His grace, God formulated a plan that would redeem fallen man from the kingdom of darkness and transfer him into the kingdom of His dear Son; a plan that would not compromise His perfect justice: "For the wages of sin is death," but Christ shed His blood on the Cross to pay that price in full, read more...

Romans 1:20

Humanity needs a Saviour. Mankind needs salvation, because every man is a sinner and the wrath of God is poured out on all sin. But in His grace, God revealed Himself to the human race in a number of ways. He ordained His plan of salvation before the foundation of the world so that His righteous wrath against sin could be poured out upon His only begotten Son, as sin's substitute for you and me.

At first, God revealed Himself as read more...

Romans 1:21

The gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes, for it is by faith we are saved... but how many refuse to place their trust in the very God Who created them, and Who sent His only begotten Son to be the sacrifice for the sin of mankind.

Many like to call themselves atheists or agnostics, refusing to believe in their Creator, despite overwhelming evidence in every area of God's creation. Some have read more...

Romans 1:22

The Psalmist tells us that it is the fool who has said in his heart 'there is no God' despite being surrounded by the amazing beauty of God's creation, its complex functioning, and the intricate construction of everything within it.

The fool who refuses to confess an eternal Creator, is prepared to read more...

Romans 1:25

The apostle John forewarns believers against the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life, but in this chapter, Paul strongly warns against the devastating effects of engaging in the lust of the heart. This sombre warning reminds us that while we can choose to either resist or yield to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the heart is all-embracing, and God gives those who lust in their heart over to their own evil desires.

read more...

Romans 1:28

The glory of the Lord is displayed in the heavens giving irrefutable evidence of God's creative hand, and yet fallen man rejects this vast and wonderful display of His majestic, creative power. The true Light of God that brightly shone for 33 years in a fallen world is seen in the face of Jesus Christ, Who: "Gives light to everyone that comes into the world." Yet sinful man rejects this undeniable Truth.

From the read more...

Romans 2:1

Step by step, the book of Romans takes us from the depths of man's sin to the heights of man's salvation. Little by little, Paul guides us from recognising the serious nature of our depravity, our rebellion against God, and the shocking consequences of our estrangement from Him, to the glorious truth that there is now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. We read that we are justified by grace through faith in the only begotten Son of God, and that we read more...

Romans 2:2

The book of Romans presents the gospel message in clear, logical, structured steps, and the theme for the entire book is found in chapter 1, verse 17: "For in it (in the gospel), the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to more faith, as it is written, 'the righteous man shall live by faith.'"

Romans makes it clear from the start, that the very nature of man is at enmity with God and read more...

Romans 2:3

God is a God of love, but He is also a God of judgement and a God of truth. As Judge of the world, His judgment is based on the truth of Who He is; perfect in character, holy in nature, gracious in disposition, and all His ways are righteous and trustworthy.

Irrespective of what self-righteous sinners think of their own moral conduct in comparison with others, God makes it plain that there is no distinction between sinners. read more...

Romans 2:4

It was man who brought sin into the world and the wages of sin is death. But sin in all its guises and disguises must be judged, for a holy God cannot look on sin. Sin must be punished, and the ultimate consequence of sin is eternal separation from God. Sin inflicts a never-ending divorce from all that is good, and clean, and lovely, and pure, and honourable, and righteous, and holy. And in the final analysis, the verdict is that read more...

Romans 2:5

The amazing truth of the glorious gospel of grace is that repentant sinners who have fled for refuge to the Cross of Calvary for the forgiveness of sins: "Do not come into judgment, but have passed out of death and into life."

Believers in Christ will never have to face the great day of God's wrath, nor stand before the Great White Judgement Throne of God, because Christ took the punishment for our sin in our read more...

Romans 2:6

The clear teaching of many passages in Scripture is that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ's sacrificial death and glorious Resurrection, and not on the basis of works or any human merit that we may carry out in our flesh, lest any man should boast. And yet, this verse seems to contradict the clear testimony of the Bible that salvation is solely by believing faith. It seems to imply that salvation depends on the meritorious works and good read more...

Romans 2:11

Paul is stressing the serious consequences that will befall all those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, for the lives of all who are not positioned in Christ are rooted and grounded in sin, Satan, lies, and deceit.

Paul is clearly warning of the unavoidable judgement that is waiting for those who do evil and obey unrighteousness. Such men and women have rejected God's free gift of salvation by faith and have lives read more...

Romans 2:12

In the most systematic way, Paul lays out the depravity of man and the grace of God in the early chapters of Romans. All humanity is depraved. None do right and all are under God's condemnation. None are disadvantaged by race, parentage, place of birth, or colour of skin, and no-one benefits from their nationality, bank balance, talents, qualifications, or education. All have fallen short of God's glory, but all have equal access to the riches of God's kindness read more...

Romans 2:13

Many interpret this verse to insist that being 'doers of the law' equates to keeping specific commandments or obeying certain rules, without understanding the shocking context of this verse. It is the general principle of 'law' and not a reference to specific commandments that is referred to here, for the Bible, tells us: "By works of the law shall no man living be justified." And yet those that are trapped in legalism insist that this verse requires us to read more...

Romans 2:14

In the first few chapters of Romans, Paul shows that God will judge people in accordance with light they have received. The Jews, who were given the Law and the Prophets, will be judged by the light of God's Word. They will be judged by the holy scriptures which were given to them by the holy prophets, but the bottom line for every Jew is that all have sinned and all fall short of the glory of God. All are under condemnation, all are charged as guilty read more...

Romans 2:15

In the earlier verses of Romans chapter 2, Paul explained that although the Law of Moses was not given to Gentiles, nevertheless they have been endowed with an innate knowledge of what is good and evil. Because man was made in the image and likeness of God, they have a God-given conscience by which they instinctively know what is right and what is wrong, what is good and what is evil, what is moral and what is immoral. Although Gentiles do not have the Law, they read more...

Romans 2:16

In a day when a sugar-coated gospel is proclaimed by so many, the fundamental truth of the pure gospel that Paul lays out so systematically in his epistle to the Romans is rejected, ignored, ridiculed and disregarded by many in Christendom today. But Romans is the seedbed of our faith, giving the fullest presentation of the good news of Christ from the pen of Paul, God's great apostle who was chosen to deliver much of the Church-age doctrine which had been hidden read more...

Romans 2:21

As Paul teaches about the depravity of all men, he places humanity into three categories: the immoral man, the moral man, and the religious man; for all have sinned and all fall short of God's glory. All are in need of salvation, all need a Saviour, and all have the opportunity to be saved by grace through faith in Christ. But there is one category that receives Paul's particular attention: unfaithful, hypocritical, religious Jews of his day who considered read more...

Romans 2:23

Having carefully constructed his watertight argument that all Gentiles, both evil and moral, are sinners and under God's righteous condemnation, Paul turns His attention to Israel; God's chosen people; the sanctified nation who received the Law, the prophets, and the promises of God.

Paul had to show that they too were equally under God's righteous condemnation. They too had to understand that Jewish rites, rituals, merit, read more...

Romans 2:29

Israel were called by God to be His witnesses to a lost world, but instead of being a light to the Gentiles they sinned against the Lord. Together with the rest of humanity, Israel were guilty of sin and stood condemned before a holy God. Although love is an essential quality of God, He is also a God of justice Who must punish all who fall short of His own perfect standard of righteousness.

It is not simply the read more...

Romans 3:2

Paul spent the first couple of chapters in his epistle to the Romans explaining that all people, both Jew and Gentile alike, are unrighteous sinners who fall short of the glory of God, that none are good or deserve preferential treatment in the eyes of God, and that all need a Saviour. He warned that we are all under God's righteous condemnation and that we all need to be redeemed by the blood of God's only begotten Son Whose shed blood alone is the only acceptable read more...

Romans 3:3

When truth is denied, disbelieved, discarded, distrusted, or treated with distain, it does not alter the truth.

Truth is truth, and the ungodly, secular world-view that has flooded governmental corridors of power, our educational institutions, society at large, and even elements within the Christian Church, dictates that truth is relative. But nothing in heaven above, the earth beneath, or the waters under the earth, can demolish read more...

Romans 3:4

Whether Jew or Gentile, all men are guilty sinners and under God's eternal judgement UNLESS they are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. All are at enmity with their Creator and bound for the lake of fire UNTIL they are saved by faith in Him. There is nothing Jew or Gentile can do to get right with God without trusting in Christ's sacrificial offering of Himself on Calvary's Cross. No man can be saved because of his birthright, bank balance, talents, read more...

Romans 3:8

As we read through the first few chapters of Romans, we see Paul developing his watertight reasoning, where he exposes the depravity of every man and presents the truth - that the entire human race stands guilty before God. Paul not only deals with the depravity of the immoral man, the hypocrisy of the principled person, and the arrogance of religious people, but he also addresses the twisted and perverted guilt of those that mock the truth of the glorious gospel read more...

Romans 3:9

In his letter to the Romans, Paul sets out the most exhaustive essay on salvation and covers every question or query that might be raised by both unbelieving skeptics and maturing believers alike.

In chapter 3, he presents the most comprehensive arguments against Jewish objections to Christianity, and in the early verses of this chapter, he addresses the righteousness of God's judgements and our being justified, freely, by His read more...

Romans 3:10

Whether Jew or Gentile, male or female, young or old, rich or poor, most people delight to think of themselves as worthy in the sight of God and of greater merit than other people. Most consider themselves deserving of heaven and that they are a little more principled, and a little more virtuous than the rest of humanity.

But Paul outlines God's condemnation of the intent of man's heart. He details in sober terms the inner read more...

Romans 3:12

Paul's letter to the Romans is the most comprehensive treaties on the state of fallen humanity. It brings us to the shocking realisation that our unrighteousness is exposed by His righteousness and our depravity is magnified by God's perfect goodness. It teaches the stark truth that all sinners, whether Jew or Gentile, are under the wrath of God and that we need a Saviour to save us from our sin.

Paul makes it very clear that no read more...

Romans 3:18

The most structured and comprehensive revelation of God's redemptive plan for mankind, is found in the epistle of Romans. Every aspect of our great salvation is systematically and logically set out for our learning, from the very beginning of the book.

Paul is not ashamed of the gospel of God's grace. He knows that it is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe. However, before detailing the differences between read more...

Romans 3:19

Romans is the book that systematically exposes the sinfulness of fallen man, in order to reveal the perfect righteousness of our eternal God. From the middle of chapter 3, we are led through a treasure trove of God's infinite righteousness which is revealed through a single man – the Lord Jesus Christ.

The earlier chapters lay a trail of man's sinfulness, and establish many reasons for the eternal condemnation of all men – for all have sinned and all read more...

Romans 3:20

For over two chapters, Paul has been laying the logical foundation that the whole world stands guilty before a holy God: "For there is none righteous, not even one," for all have gone astray, all are under condemnation, all are deserving of death, and all are in need of salvation.

The Gentiles refused to acknowledge the Lord despite the glorious testimony of His magnificent creation and in spite of the inner witness of read more...

Romans 3:21

There are many places throughout Scripture where we are informed of the righteousness of God. God is holy, and God is perfect, God is pure and God is righteous. God desires that we too are righteous, and Scripture testifies of this fact from start to finish.

Before the full and final revelation of God's righteousness was revealed through the Gospels and made manifest in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Bible testified of read more...

Romans 3:22

The sinful nature of the entire human race stands in stark contrast with the infinite righteousness of the eternal God. Humanity's depravity is systematically laid out in the first three chapters of Romans, and Paul makes it crystal clear that there is no-one who is righteous, all are under sin, and no one is exempt from the condemnation and wrath of God.

Until Christ came into the world, righteousness was displayed through the read more...

Romans 3:23

The universal truth that ALL have sinned and ALL fall short of the glory of God applies to every member of humanity - no one is exempt. Not only are we condemned for sins of the flesh, like murder and adultery.. we are also condemned for our prideful thoughts, works of the flesh, self-righteous attitudes, and failure to love the Lord our God with all our heart, and honour Him as we ought.

This is quite a shocking concept to the read more...

Romans 3:24

The only way that man can be justified and made right with God is through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The only way that man can have his sins forgiven and be redeemed from sin, death and hell is because Christ Jesus paid the price in full.

The only way man can have his unrighteousness replaced with the righteousness of God is by being born from above and positioned in Christ.

read more...

Romans 3:25

God in His love did not immediately condemn the entire human race when Adam sinned. Instead, He presented Jesus as our sacrifice for sin. Because the eternal God became perfect man and lived a life that was pleasing to the Father, He was qualified to die a death that took the punishment for the full measure of humanities wicked ways so that people are declared 'righteous' because of His blood that was shed on their behalf.

read more...

Romans 3:25

God is deeply offended by sin, and sinful man must be punished. Indeed, the wrath of God must be poured out on all sin, which is why mankind seeks to appease God's wrath by offering gifts and sacrifices, by trying to do good works and kind deeds. Many spend their whole life working by the sweat of their own brow in a futile attempt to get right with God. But man is totally incapable of satisfying the justice that a righteous God demands and so by his own means, read more...

Romans 3:26

God cannot and will not go against the laws and principles that He set by His mighty will and eternal wisdom. God will never violate His own nature. God is loving and merciful, He is abounding in tender-kindness, and desires to forgive sinners, but God is also holy and righteous. He is just and unchanging, and God must uphold His holy laws and His just decrees which He Himself established in the beginning. A holy and righteous God MUST punish sin.

read more...

Romans 3:27

God is the Source and Giver of wisdom. Paul, as led by the Holy Spirit, argues logically and unquestionably that man is unrighteous, unprofitable, deceitful, destructive, and ungodly by nature.

Paul continues to explain that the justice of God demands that full payment be made for the sin of every man, and the wages of sin is death. He testifies that there is only one road to redemption. He warns that there is only one way by read more...

Romans 3:28

For three chapters, Paul has been expounding the logical argument that man is a sinner in need of a Saviour. Whether Jew or Gentile, bond or free, rich or poor, male or female, everyone is lost in their sins, wallowing in prideful rebellion against their Creator, born dead in trespasses and sins, eternally estranged from God, and in desperate need of a Redeemer.

Having come to the point of confessing that we all have sinned and read more...

Romans 3:29

It is by God's grace that we have been saved, and it is because God is both merciful and righteous that Christ had to die to pay the price for our sin. We were lost in sin and separated from God, but Jesus took the full punishment for our sin. No man who has been saved by grace has any occasion to boast. Our salvation is totally provided and paid for by God Himself. Man can add nothing to Christ's finished work and not one of us can do anything to merit God's read more...

Romans 3:30

There is one Lord Who is God of all creation, and the offer of salvation, which He provides by faith in the sacrificial death and glorious resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, is equally available to all people, Jew and Gentile, black and white, free or in bondage, male and female, young and old... for all have sinned and all fall far short of the glory of God and the godly perfection He requires.

When man fell, God set in read more...

Romans 3:31

The focal point of the gospel of God is Jesus Christ, and how to be saved is the single, most important truth a sinner needs to know. Justification by faith in Christ is the one and only way to God... for the gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe.

Paul laid emphasis for the best part of three chapters in his epistle to the Romans, on man's terrible guilt and need for salvation. All men need the read more...

Romans 4:2

Abraham is often called 'the father of faith' because he believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. We first read about this accreditation in Genesis chapter 15 and the apostle Paul confirms this in both Romans and Galatians. We find a third reference relating to the faith of Abraham in James chapter 2 for we read, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness."

Abraham did read more...

Romans 4:3

When God called Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees, He gave him a promise. And Abraham trusted God. Abraham believed what God said, which resulted in his being proclaimed righteous.

The Hebrew for the word 'believed' is 'aman'. This word carries with the thought of being propped up and supported; carried by God. Abraham rested on the character of God and trusted His Word. He abided in the truth of Scripture: "Abraham believed read more...

Romans 4:4

The important message that Paul is sharing here is that we are justified by faith and not by works. We are saved by believing the Word of God and not by the keeping of the works of the Law. Paul wants to make a clear distinction between salvation as a gift of God's grace and salvation as a work of man's flesh.

Salvation by grace has nothing to do with what we have done but has everything to do with what Jesus has done for us, read more...

Romans 4:5

The man or woman who is justified by grace through faith in Christ has been declared righteous by God. The only criteria to be justified in the eyes of God, is to believe on the name of the only begotten Son of God Who became the perfect Son of Man, and Who died on the Cross to pay the price for the sin of the world. And He rose again so that: "Whosoever believes on Him would not perish, but have everlasting life."

All read more...

Romans 4:6

The focus of Romans chapter 4, is salvation by grace through faith. In this section, Paul is writing about the justification aspect of salvation (being justified in the eyes of God). Although we are also to live by faith, to walk by faith, and to pray in faith throughout our earthly life (the ongoing process of our sanctification) the emphasis of this particular passage is initial salvation (justification). 

Paul first read more...

Romans 4:7

Paul opens his letter to the Romans with a carefully constructed argument that all people are sinners, both Jew and Gentile alike, and all need a Saviour. He continues by presenting the doctrine of justification by faith in his third chapter, and then expands his reasoning in chapter 4, with examples of biblical characters who believed God's Word and whose faith was credited as righteousness.

His main concern in chapter 4, were read more...

Romans 4:8

Before salvation, we are all ungodly sinners under condemnation, unregenerate people who are dead in sin. We are children of darkness, enslaved to sin, and living in the realm of Satan. We are not sinners because we sin. The reason we sin is that we are born sinners; we are born in sin and were conceived by sinners. We have a fallen nature imputed to us and there is nothing we can do to justify ourselves or make ourselves right in the sight of God.

read more...

Romans 4:9

The book of Romans gives a step by step logical sequence to show that salvation is by grace through faith in Christ. It tells us that there is no condemnation to those that are in Christ Jesus (to those that are born again), because they are positioned in Christ, imputed with His righteousness, baptised into the Body of Christ (which is the Church) and accepted in the Beloved. And it is all by grace through faith in Him.

Paul uses read more...

Romans 4:17

Abraham is often referred to as the father of faith, because the Lord used His trust in God's promises as the foundational example of a man who is credited with the righteousness of Christ, by grace through faith. Among other things, God appointed Abraham as the father of many nations: the spiritual father of both believing Jews and believing Gentiles.

But Abraham is one of many men and women of faith who believed God's promises read more...

Romans 4:20

It was Abraham who did not waver in his trust of God and because of his faith, he was declared righteous. Abraham was not justified by good works... his righteousness was gained through faith in God's Word. He believed that the promised Saviour would be born through his seed.

Abraham believed implicitly that the Kinsman-Redeemer would be born through his seed – through Isaac, his own coming son of promise. Through the life read more...

Romans 4:22

God knew before the world was created that man would sin, and the wages of sin is death - spiritual death, physical death and eternal separation from their Creator. God ordained that the one and only way that a race of sinful creatures who were made in the image and likeness of God could be forgiven of their sin, would be through the shed blood of a perfect Kinsman-Redeemer - but none were good enough - not even one.

However, in read more...

Romans 4:25

Having been brought to a realisation of our sinfulness and unworthiness in the eyes of a holy God in the early chapters of Romans, we discover ourselves face to face with our own gross sinfulness and desperate need for salvation.

We are encouraged as we hear that Abraham was imputed with righteousness because He believed in God and trusted His Word. He believed that God raised the dead, and that God was true to His promises. read more...

Romans 5:1

Being saved by grace through faith in Christ, unlocks the door to a myriad of blessings for each believer. Sometimes we are unaware of the abundant blessings that have become ours at the point of our salvation and sometimes it takes time to become aware of all the gifts of grace that have been bountifully bestowed upon us, in Christ Jesus. One of the many important free gifts of God's grace to all believers is that we are justified, we are made right with God, we read more...

Romans 5:2

How we rejoice in Jesus, Who is our risen, ascended, and glorified Lord! Three of His disciples glimpsed the brilliance of His glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth, when He was transfigured before their startled gaze. And the eyes of the apostle Paul were blinded by the dazzling glory of the Lord on the dusty road to Damascus.

As the redeemed of God and fellow-heirs with Christ, we are, by grace read more...

Romans 5:3

As members of the Body of Christ, we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing. Indeed, a thorough study of New Testament Scripture shows that there are hundreds of verses that remind us of who we are in Christ and what God has done for the born-again believer.

We are set apart unto God and we have become kings and priests. We are called to holiness, and we are accepted in the Beloved. We are not of this world but have read more...

Romans 5:4

Because we are already justified, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. And because we have peace with the Father we have gained access, by that faith, into the grace into which we have been established. What a privileged people we are! This enables us to grow in grace, mature in our Christian life, and rejoice in the established hope we have in Jesus.

Not only do the glories read more...

Romans 5:5

A worldly hope is founded on irrational thinking, empty vanity, a humanistic philosophy, and man's deceitfully-inspired prospects, resulting in disappointments, frustration, confusion, and shame. But Christian hope is founded on an altogether different principle, which is rooted in God's trustworthy goodness and the gracious promises of our Heavenly Father. Christian hope is centred on the never-failing Word of God and His many precious promises, which read more...

Romans 5:6

Paul's passion is to share the good news of justification by grace in simple steps, which gently leads to a conclusion. He explains that having been eternally saved by grace, we should glory in the trials and tribulations of life which God uses to develop in us perseverance, a godly character, and an unshakable and eternal hope in the loving promises of God.

The precious promises of God are poured into our hearts by the Spirit, read more...

Romans 5:7

There is no greater demonstration of perfect love than that which was shown in the death of our Lord Jesus Christ, for it was while we were still ungodly and unrighteous sinners who were dead in trespasses and hostile towards God, that Christ died for us. And the efficacious nature of that sacrificial love-gift is as potent today as it was when Christ shouted out in triumph: "It is finished."

The substantial read more...

Romans 5:8

God gave His Son to die for us as the payment for our sins and to break the power of the old sin nature within our hearts. Even before we were born, before we ever trusted Christ as Saviour, Christ died for sinners.

He did not wait until sinners believed in Him to die for them. Christ died for us while we were still sinners. He died for us before we were saved, while we were still dead in trespasses and sins, while we were still read more...

Romans 5:9

Having led us step by step to the realisation that we are all unrighteous sinners in need of a Saviour, and having made it crystal clear that we are saved as a gift of God's grace through faith in the unchangeable Word of truth, Paul guides us through the meaning of justification (which means being declared righteous by God through faith in Christ), and he outlines reasons why we can only be proclaimed righteous by faith in Christ alone, and not because of our own read more...

Romans 5:10

Having laid the indestructible foundation that sinful man is irrefutably lost and at enmity with God through rebellion and sin, and having proved that all humanity have fallen far short of the glorious perfection that God expects from His creation, Paul jubilantly proclaims the triumphant victory of Christ's finished work on the Cross, over Adam's sin and our inherent sin nature.

Although sin caused us to be weak and powerless to read more...

Romans 5:11

Had it not been for the Cross of Christ, the curse of the Law and God's condemnation would have remained on the entire sinful race of humanity. Had it not been that the world was reconciled back to God through Christ, we would have remained estranged forever from the One Who created us in His own image. But it is God in His grace Who reconciled the world back to Himself, through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

The absolute read more...

Romans 5:12

The condemnation we have in Adam is starkly contrasted with the justification we receive from Christ. The disobedience of Adam's rebellion, which resulted in man's misery, has death as its final outcome. However, forgiveness of sins and eternal life is the result of Christ's obedience on the Cross; and this is the glorious conclusion for all who will trust on His name.

As the federal head of the old creation in Adam, the entire read more...

Romans 5:13

In Romans 5, Paul moves from God's case against unbelieving sinners and their need to be justified by faith (born-again), to the overwhelming benefits of the justified man who is positioned in Christ. He lists many of the privileges that are ours in Him which include peace with God, access to the Father, His abundant grace, and the exultant hope we have in Christ.

The Lord Jesus not only saved us by His blood, but has delivered us read more...

Romans 5:14

Adam was the federal head of the whole human race, and death prevailed because of his one sin. Due to Adam's single transgression, all mankind was placed under condemnation and death, which became the just reward for all. Adam's sin caused the fall of humanity, and sin and death was imputed to mankind.

God did not give His perfect Law to Israel until many centuries later, and from its establishment it was a school-master to point read more...

Romans 5:15

Men do not become sinners by sinning... but as members of the human race, we are sinners by birth. We were born in sin and the wages of sin is death. We are born with a sin nature because we are of the ancestry of Adam. It was because of his one transgression that death entered the world, causing death to be passed on to all humanity.

Adam sinned, and where there is sin there is death. It was this read more...

Romans 5:16

The wages of sin is death, and Adam's one transgression brought condemnation upon the entire human race. Adam was the federal head created in the image of God, but because of his one act of disobedience, the whole of humanity was placed under God's righteous judgment; and the wages of sin is death.

The shocking truth about Adam's sin is that every person in the human race is born spiritually dead in trespasses and sin; read more...

Romans 5:17

Adam was the federal head of the human race, but his single sinful act brought condemnation upon the entire human race. Because of his one offense, all his offspring are born in sin, and that single transgression separated every one of Adam's descendants from fellowship with God and sentenced each one of us to death. Adam's one offense placed every member of the human race under the fierce condemnation and justified judgement of God: "For... by the read more...

Romans 5:18

Paul draws a contrast between the actions of Adam and Christ. He also outlines the outcome of the actions of these two men. He compares the man that disobeyed God's command with the One that obeyed His Word, contrasting the one that sinned against God with the One that did only those things that He heard from His Father in heaven.

It was the result of one act of disobedience carried out by Adam that condemned the entire human read more...

Romans 5:19

There is much confusion about the consequences of Adam's sin as it relates to the Law of Moses - until one accepts that the root of all sin is traced back to Adam's one, original sin which brought death into the world. People generally believe that man is basically good, while the doctrine of original sin teaches that man is inherently bad - because of our identity with sinful Adam.

To believe that humanity is read more...

Romans 5:20

When Adam sinned, death came into the world. But until the Law was given through Moses... over 2000 years later, death continued to reign in the lives of all men - even though man had been given no specific laws to keep or any specific criteria for righteousness. Every man however, had a conscience and knew in their heart those things that were good and that which was evil.

The perfect Law of God came in later and was given to read more...

Romans 6:1

What could be more glorious than to know that we are forgiven of our sin, redeemed from slavery to sin, and saved from eternal condemnation by God's amazing grace through faith in the redemptive work of Christ. And yet, some would argue that this superabundant grace not only permits the believer to keep on sinning, but encourages a life of sin: "God forbid," is Paul's emphatic response, "how shall we, that are dead to sin, still live in read more...

Romans 6:2

Just as the work of the Cross provides salvation when we believe it to be true, the work of the Cross also provides victory over the old sin nature when it is believed. We need to understand that the sin nature remains with us until our life on earth is ended - but the blood of Christ has given us victory over the functioning power of the sin nature within our life.

Before rebirth, we are connected to our sin nature much in the read more...

Romans 6:3

How important to know what our salvation means, and Paul tells us that the moment we trust in Christ we are baptised by one Spirit into His Body. At the moment we trust, the Holy Spirit places us into Christ Jesus and we become members of His Body, which is the Church.

But not only are we baptised into the Body of Christ at the moment of our salvation, but we have also been baptised into His DEATH. Water baptism may be a lovely read more...

Romans 6:4

The moment that we were born again, the Holy Spirit takes us from the kingdom of darkness, places us into the kingdom of God's dear Son, and we are baptised into the body of Christ and become one with Him. Sins are forgiven, we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, fellowship with the Father is reinstated, we become children of God, citizens of heaven, and placed in unity with Christ Jesus our Lord.

Water baptism (though not essential read more...

Romans 6:4

There are many mysteries of our new life in Christ that are hard to understand, which remain a reality in the life of all who believe, and Paul's illustration of a believer's 'death to sin' through their 'baptism into Christ' is a difficult concept to grasp, while remaining a glorious truth in which to rejoice. "WE have been buried with HIM through baptism into death... so that just as CHRIST was raised from the dead, through the glory of the read more...

Romans 6:4

Christ died to pay the price for sins committed in our lives so that we might be forgiven, and Christ rose again the third day to break the power of sin in our lives so that we may live the rest of our Christian life free from the powerful strangle-hold of sin within our hearts. In this glorious chapter, Paul transports us to the pinnacle of who we are in Christ and what His death and Resurrection really means to all who believe on His name. Paul paints in read more...

Romans 6:5

Paul longed to know Christ and the power of His Resurrection, but his heart was also to share in Christ's suffering, for he desired intimate association with the Lord Who bought him, in the everyday circumstances of his life.

Paul knew the importance of relational closeness with the Lord Jesus, for by faith in His sacrificial death on our account, we were positioned in Him, and eternally united with Him. When Christ died, we died read more...

Romans 6:6

One could contemplate the wealth of truth packed into this single verse of Scripture for a lifetime and only scratch the surface of God's amazing grace towards those who, by faith in Christ, are united with Him. Jesus is our Substitute, our Representative, and heavenly Advocate. Jesus is the Author of a new creation, Whose resurrected life has become our new, born-again life. In Christ we have been made an entirely new race of people, which has removed us from the read more...

Romans 6:7

Christ not only died for sin - for our justification, but He died unto sin - for our sanctification. He not only died for sin, by paying the penalty of sin, but He died unto sin, breaking the power of sin in our life. When He died for sin, we were born from above to free us from the bondage of our old inherited sin-nature, and He gave us new spiritual life. At salvation, we were actually imputed with Christ's resurrected life so that we could function without read more...

Romans 6:8

Identification with Christ's death is the most thrilling doctrine for the believer. Christ died FOR our sins, to pay the price for our sins, but He also died TO sin; His death broke our relationship to sin which enables us to walk in newness of life. The moment Christ died unto sin on our behalf, we also died to sin once and for all, and now we are to live for Christ day by day.

Once we are placed in union with Christ by faith, read more...

Romans 6:9

We who by God's grace have been placed in Christ by faith, are identified with Him and He with us. When we start to truly understand the significance and importance of our mutual identity, we begin to understand the depth of the riches of both the wisdom of God and His gracious love towards us.

Christ identified with our sin and took the punishment that we deserve so that we might identify with His righteousness by faith, and read more...

Romans 6:10

When our Saviour died on the Cross, He did so much more than dying FOR our sins (so that we could be forgiven of the many sins we commit throughout our lives); He died TO sin. Jesus died UNTO sin and this means that He died to break the power of sin in our lives. He died to sever us from the old sin nature that we inherited from our parents because of Adam's sin. He died to deliver us from the very influences of sin in our lives: "Jesus died UNTO sin read more...

Romans 6:11

Christ not only died for our sins; to pay the price for our sin, but He died to sin; so that the power of sin might be broken in the lives of all who believe in Christ. Just as Adam was the federal head of all his physical seed (all humanity), so Christ is the federal head of all His spiritual seed (all Church-age believers).

Just as all who are physical descendants of Adam are imputed with Adam's read more...

Romans 6:12

Throughout the preceding verses, Paul demonstrated, by logical progression, that all humanity has sinned. He proves that we all fall short of God’s glory and that the consequence of our sin is death. Paul makes it very clear that the wages of sin for every sinner, Jew and Gentile alike, is death - everlasting death - eternal separation from God. He shows that everyone is a sinner, and every sinner is alive to sin but is dead to God. Everyone is born a sinner, read more...

Romans 6:13

Romans is the seed-bed for Christian doctrine and Paul lays out the foundational truth of the glorious gospel of grace in this book, in a clear, concise, and systematic way. In the previous chapters, Paul took pains to show us that all men are sinners - both Jew and Gentile alike. All are in need of a Saviour and the only way to escape condemnation, to be eternally justified, to be declared righteous in God's eyes, and to be positionally set apart unto Him, is by read more...

Romans 6:14

In other passages in the Bible we know that Christ died FOR our sins, but in this passage in Romans we know that Christ also died UNTO sin. In the first instance, Christ died to pay the price of our sin, and the price that Jesus paid for our sin was His death. In the second case, Christ died to break the power of sin in our life, which means that for the rest of the time that we live in this sinful world, sin does not have to have power over us.

read more...

Romans 6:16

God spoke the world into existence by the power of His might. By the Word of His mouth, He declared His unchanging and unchangeable laws into being and so often in Scripture, we see God's immutable principles laid out so simply, and yet too often we are unable or unwilling to apply His instruction in our own lives.

One principle we must understand and accept is detailed in verse 16 of Roman chapter 6: "Do you not know that read more...

Romans 6:17

No doubt through the eternity of eternities, we will thank God that although we were once slaves of sin, estranged from God, and without hope in the world, His Holy Spirit convicted us of our own gross sinfulness, our need of a Saviour, of Christ's perfect righteousness, and of God's righteous judgement on all that is evil. No doubt in the ages to come we will show forth praise and thanksgiving to our heavenly Father that we heard and responded to the gospel of read more...

Romans 6:18

Paul is setting out the only two options for life that are given to believers. He explains the differences between the two choices we have, the benefits we derive, and the consequences of our decisions, which depend entirely upon which of the two paths we choose to take in our Christian life.

Paul explains that there is a principle of life for every one of us. We are servants under the authority of a master and as a servant we read more...

Romans 6:19

Either we are in the kingdom of darkness, or the kingdom of light. Either we are children of our father the devil, or we are children of our Father, the Lord God Almighty. Either we are in the old creation in Adam, or we have been born again into the new creation in Christ. Either we are slaves of sin, impurity, and lawlessness, or we are slaves of righteousness, life, and truth, which is the path that leads us into sanctification (the lifelong process of being read more...

Romans 6:20

In His final message to the disciples, the Lord Jesus explained that knowledge of the truth was man's greatest freedom, in a world that is enslaved by sin, oppressed by Satan, condemned to death, and bound for hell. And here in this verse we find that Paul is expressing the same truth, in a way that appears to be somewhat incongruous on the surface, for we read, "when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness."

read more...

Romans 6:22

Christ died FOR our sin, to pay the penalty for sin which positioned us in Christ and baptised us into His Body. He also died UNTO sin, so that the power of sin could be broken in the lives of all who believe in Him for salvation. Not only did the PRICE of sin have to be paid-for, in order to secure our salvation but also the POWER of sin in the lives of believers had to be severed in order to deliver us from the tyranny of sin read more...

Romans 6:23

There is no more important issue in the life of every man than knowing the way of salvation, because there are eternal consequences that lead to an eternal life with God or eternal separation from Him; heaven or the lake of fire. But some ignore it or delay it, others misunderstand it, and still more do not consider that they need to be saved from their sin.

Many today do not consider that they are sinners but see themselves as read more...

Romans 7:2

In Romans chapters 3 to 8, Paul makes many contrasts between living under the Law and living under grace. While the Law most certainly is the tool God has used to identify sin in our lives, the Law is powerless to save us from our sin. Sinning and breaking God's Law are two sides of the same coin. 

Living under any law means that we are bound by certain rules and regulations, confined to certain legal codes of practice, and must read more...

Romans 7:4

In the previous chapter Paul had contrasted the relationship of the Christians' 'new-life-in-Christ', with the 'old life-in-Adam'. He explained that before salvation we were dead IN sin but after salvation we are dead TO sin. Before we were saved we were separated from Christ by sin.. but after having been saved by grace through faith we were forgiven of our sin, joined to Christ and positioned in Him

read more...

Romans 7:6

When a woman's husband dies, she is no longer bound by her marriage vows, but while he is alive, she is obligated by their wedding contract. It is death that released this woman from the marriage pledge, for once her husband dies, the legal ties that fasten them inseparably together are immediately broken, and she is freed from her binding contract.

The marriage agreement between this woman and her husband is likened by Paul to read more...

Romans 7:7

Knowledge of sin comes through the Law. It is the consummate tool that identifies and exposes sin. Once we have a knowledge of the Law, we have no alternative but to admit we are wretched sinners in need of forgiveness, which only comes by faith in Christ. It is as we come face to face with the perfect Law of God, that the horror of sin is exposed and our desperate need of God's gift of salvation becomes clear.

Earlier in Romans, read more...

Romans 7:18

Romans chapter 7, gives a most thorough treatise on the Law and its place in the life of a believer. Though delivering a simple lesson, it has profound and far-reaching implications for all believers, both Jew and Gentile, who foolishly try to place themselves back under the Law. 

It starts by comparing a Christian's connection to the Law with a married woman's relationship to her husband - who dies. Before his death, read more...

Romans 7:22

Believers that are living in the flesh, are submitting to the old sin-nature which cannot please God. The old sin nature (the old man in Adam) and the works that emanate from the flesh, cannot delight in the law of the Lord nor can they rejoice in the truth of His Word, for the flesh lusts against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh. The old sin-nature is at enmity with the new, born-again spirit of God, and the new life in Christ is at enmity with the old read more...

Romans 7:23

As Christians, we are sojourners and pilgrims passing through this world on our way to our eternal home. We have a great inheritance, which is reserved for us in heaven, and this glorious, future perspective is to encourage us and to lead us to a godly life and holy living, which will result in our internal victory.

Our vocation is to serve the Lord Jesus Christ, but too often our fleshly tendency is to follow a different path. We read more...

Romans 7:24

Paul was stopped in his tracks on the road to Damascus by the risen, ascended, glorified Lord Jesus. Having been saved by grace through faith on that epic journey... his entire outlook on life and his understanding of the Law was radically changed.

Before his conversion, Paul could boast of his unsurpassed confidence in his own good works and his strict, stringent law-keeping. As an orthodox Jew, he was circumcised on the eighth read more...

Romans 7:25

While the first 5 chapters of Romans deals with how to be saved - justification, the next chapters deal with how to live the Christian life - sanctification. Chapters 6 and 8 explain how to live the Christian life.. how to grow in grace.. how to progress in holiness and mature in the faith. It shows how a believer can have victory over slavery to sin - how they can grow in mature in the faith and progress in their Christian read more...

Romans 8:1

There is not even the slightest, tiny crumb of condemnation at all those who are in Christ Jesus - those in UNION with Christ - those that have been placed IN Christ at rebirth - those who have been born-again - those that have been sealed by the Spirit - those that have trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour.

The judgement that we rightly deserve has already been paid in FULL with the blood of the Lord Jesus. Our read more...

Romans 8:2

The failure of Romans 7, which came by carrying out works of the flesh in his own strength, ended in defeat for Paul who cried out: "Oh wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from this body of death?" (i.e. the old sin nature). But his defeat blossomed into the liberation of chapter 8 with a shout of victory and thankful praise: "No condemnation! For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set us free from the law of read more...

Romans 8:3

The perfection of God and His perfect Law cannot be carried out by imperfect man in the power of his fallen flesh, for the old sin nature dictates that we are sinners and sinners cannot achieve perfection. The bitter truth is that the soul that sins shall die – and all have sinned and so all have fallen short of God's perfection and are deserving of death, for the wages of sin is death.

But God in His grace has done for read more...

Romans 8:6

The habits that we set up in our thinking, develop a fixed mental attitude which pre-determines the way that we respond to life-situations - a mind-set that influences our reactions to the circumstances that touch our lives, a disposition that constructs a set of self-imposed values and perceptions about God (and other people) that may be twisted or false, unless they are founded upon the truth.

The mind-set of the unsaved can read more...

Romans 8:9

As members of the fallen race of humanity, we were born with a fallen nature and a carnal mind that can never, ever please God, for the thoughts and the intention of man's fallen nature are only evil continuously. There is nothing in fallen man that can ever please God, and even good deeds that impress other people are not pleasing to the Lord. The unbeliever has a fallen, carnal nature, and the natural, unsaved man is dead in his sins and at enmity with God.

Romans 8:10

One of the mysteries that was hidden for ages and generations but which was revealed to Paul for Church age believers is the indwelling Holy Spirit of Christ for all who are saved by grace through faith in Him. How astonishing that our body has become a temple of the Spirit of God by faith, and that we have the resurrected Spirit of Christ dwelling in our heart, living in our body, empowering us to live godly in Christ Jesus, and enabling us to live as God designed read more...

Romans 8:11

Romans carefully and systematically spells out every aspect of our great salvation; the universal sinfulness of man, our individual need of a Saviour, the terms and conditions of redemption, and what it means to be justified, sanctified, resurrected, and glorified. It details the beautiful harmony of New Testament revelation with the Old, and identifies the Person of Christ; His work, His sacrifice, and His victory.

It tells of read more...

Romans 8:14

The eighth chapter of Romans begins in no condemnation and concludes in glory, and in this beautiful passage we are gently led into a fuller understanding of the wonderful ministry of the Holy Spirit that takes place in the life of a believer.

First, we rejoice that He liberates us from the Old Testament Law and the inner flesh.

Next, we discover that the work of the Spirit in our lives is in read more...

Romans 8:15

When we were released from the slavery of Satan's dark kingdom of sin, death, and fear, we were transferred into God's kingdom of life and light, hope and freedom. The spirit of slavery that entrapped us in doubt, darkness, and deep depression is replaced at rebirth by the permanently indwelling Spirit of God, but too often we do not appropriate what is ours by grace through faith and we retain a spirit of fear because we fail to believe the truth of God's read more...

Romans 8:16

Man is made up of body, soul, and spirit, and the human spirit of man is that inner part of our being that communes with the Father. Only believers have a living regenerated spirit that can have fellowship with the Father and abide in Christ, for unsaved man remains spiritually dead in trespasses and sins, without God and without hope in the world.

The indwelling Holy Spirit of God was given to each regenerated child of God at read more...

Romans 8:17

The gift of God to all that are born from above into the family of God is that we become God's very own children. We are elevated into the irrevocable position of children of God by His grace, simply because we chose to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. And because of our positional status in Him, we are given a further, unmerited glorious gift of grace – we are elevated into the position of co-heir with the Messiah, fellow-heir with Christ, joint-heir with read more...

Romans 8:18

The world in which we live is a fallen world; a place of sufferings and trials, and a time of heartaches and problems; a life of difficulties and sickness, and a season of disappointments and death.

Afflictions and anguish stalk our path like a hungry pack of jackals and they are no respecter of persons or position, clime or creed, wise or foolish, young or old, believer or unbeliever. And if this were all that life offered to read more...

Romans 8:19

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, and all that He made was good. Finally, He made man in His own image and likeness to rule over God's earthly kingdom – to till it, to care for it, to make it fruitful, and to use it as nourishment: "God saw all that He had made and it was very good."

But man sinned, which resulted in the earth being cursed so as to bring forth thorns and thistles, for man must read more...

Romans 8:20

There is no more beautiful name than the lovely name of the Lord Jesus. In Hebrew His name is Joshua, which means 'the Lord is salvation', and His life and death was poured out to pay the price for humanity's sin: sins past, sins present, and sins yet to be committed. But here we read that His name shall be called Jesus, because He was the One to save His people from their sins. His people are in fact the Jewish nation, the people of Israel.

read more...

Romans 8:22

What a dismal, desolate, distressing, and despairing world we live in. This sad state of affairs was implemented because Adam, who was the federal head of the very race that was made in God's lovely image, disobeyed his Creator's instructions and wilfully sinned.

But man's sin not only brought a curse upon humanity as a whole, but on the animals, birds, fish, flowers, and fauna alike. The very earth was cursed as God's entire read more...

Romans 8:23

Creation has been groaning since it was first cursed, when sin entered the world because of man's disobedience and defiance of God. But the day is fast approaching when the earth will be filled with the glory of God and His healing touch will stream out to beautify a broken earth and renew its original glory. And God has set an appointed time when the curse will be lifted, which is linked to His plans and purposes for humanity in general and the Christian Church read more...

Romans 8:26

As children of God, we have been born from above and have a new human spirit, our new life in Christ. Before we were born again, we had a spirit that was dead in trespasses and sins, but when we accepted Christ as our Saviour we were given a new life in Christ, a new, free, human spirit which is able to commune with His Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit will guide us into all truth. This is why as children of God we should live our life in spirit and in truth so read more...

Romans 8:28

God ordained His redemptive plan and purpose in the eternal council chambers of heaven before the foundation of the world. That plan is a good plan, a perfect plan, a plan which will come to fruition when Christ is all in all. A plan where God is working all things together for His own glory and for the eternal good of all who trust Him as Saviour (those that are called according to His purpose, for we are all part of His perfect plan).

read more...

Romans 8:29

In this glorious passage, our eternal security is reiterated, we are assured that there is no condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus, and we are told that all things work together for good to those that love God and are the called according to His good purpose. We then arrive at the pinnacle of God's promises to us: "Those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed into the image of His Son so that the Lord Jesus would be the firstborn read more...

Romans 8:30

God knows the end from the beginning. He understands the secrets of the heart and the prayers we will utter before they are formed in our minds. God knows the decisions we will make in our lives before we were even conceived in our mothers' womb. God foreknows all those who are His children, because God knows the freewill choices that we will make, long before we do. God's knowledge is based on His omniscience wisdom: "Those He foreknew, He also read more...

Romans 8:31

In the preceding verses of his epistle to the Romans, Paul expounds the most extraordinary position, unsurpassed privileges, and catalogue of blessings that belong to every believer in Christ. We, who deserve punishment, are justified, sanctified, and glorified, by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, simply because we have trusted Him as our Saviour.

We have been bought with a price and transferred from the kingdom of darkness read more...

Romans 8:32

In the light of the staggering truth of this magnificent verse of Scripture, we should never doubt God's depth of love towards us and the enormous gift of grace He has bestowed on all who trust in the Son of His Love: "He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things?" Amazing love! Amazing grace! Amazing truth! Amazing God!

The glory that is read more...

Romans 8:33

Too many Christians have not come to the glorious freedom offered in the Word of God by the God of grace, because they have a wrong perception of God Himself. Christians are God's chosen people, His children. They are a new creation in Christ, and they have been called and chosen to be His sons and daughters simply because they believe on the only begotten Son of God and the finished work of salvation that was carried out by Him, on Calvary's Cross.

read more...

Romans 8:34

There are so many passages in the wonderful book of Romans where we are reminded of our deliverance from bondage, our victory in Christ, and that there is absolutely no condemnation whatsoever to those that are in Christ Jesus, for every one that trusts in God's only beloved Son as Saviour, will never be condemned but receive life eternal. If only we would believe this truth to the uttermost. If only we would trust all that the Word of God says!

read more...

Romans 8:37

Our outstanding joy, eternal hope, and unassailable victory is in Christ Jesus our Lord. With this in mind, after cataloging a fearsome list of the most traumatic circumstances that may impact our lives or afflict us in the physical, emotional, and spiritual realms, and having proclaimed that nothing can separate us from Christ's love (including tribulation and distress, famine and nakedness, peril, persecution, and death), Paul emphatically declares that we are read more...

Romans 8:38

The inexpressible depth of God's love towards condemned mankind was demonstrated when He sent the Lord Jesus to be our Saviour, Who took the punishment for our sin on Calvary's cross. This was a plan that was conceived in the heart of God in eternity past, and a plan that will have its consummation in the eternal ages to come - when Christ is all in all.

The eternal Son of God was the only possible sacrifice for the sin of read more...

Romans 8:39

For eight long and intense chapters, Paul takes us step by step from the utter depravity of all mankind and the eternal consequences of sin, which is alienation from God, to the good news of the amazing gospel of grace and the final glorious outcome for all who trust in Christ for the remission of sins.

As Paul sets out the truth of the gospel of God, he anticipates every single objection that may be formed in the minds of wicked read more...

Romans 9:2

'Salvation' is an all-inclusive word that covers every aspect of God's deliverance, which comes to us by faith alone. Salvation is often an umbrella term and covers justification, forgiveness, sanctification, glorification, redemption, reconciliation, and propitiation. Salvation has an impact on issues like adoption, service, imputation, mediation, and the ransom-price paid to save the world. And Paul's epistle to the Romans presents us with the most systematic read more...

Romans 9:5

For thousands of years, Israel were God's chosen people and the only nation who had a covenant relationship with the Lord. They proudly celebrated this truth for centuries, but rejected God's offer of the kingdom of heaven on earth at Christ's first advent, causing the Lord to postpone His kingdom programme with His chosen people until the whole nation was ready and willing to acknowledge that 'Jesus Is Lord'.

In the meantime, God in His grace is taking read more...

Romans 9:11

Paul interrupted his in-depth dissertation on the universal need of the gospel and the way to be saved by grace through faith in Christ, by devoting three chapters to Israel, the nation God elected to fulfil His plans and purposes. He details their past history (chapter 9), their present status (chapter 10), their future salvation (chapter 11), and the long-suffering mercy of God towards His chosen nation.

He begins this read more...

Romans 9:15

Paul took pains to point out that all men are under sin and all need a Saviour. He stressed that no one is excused the consequences of sin through personal merit or a privileged position, and that Jew and Gentile alike are equally under sin and God's righteous condemnation. But he also took pain to explain in detail the glorious gospel of God which is available to all by faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ.

But as his read more...

Romans 10:1

Paul dedicated three whole chapters to set-out, in sequential order, God's programme for Israel. Chapter 9 reminds us of Israel's past history, their tremendous privileges, and precious promises, while chapter 11 rejoices in their election by grace, their future hope, and eventual salvation.

Here in chapter 10, Paul outlines the state of the nation during the present Church dispensation. It summarises Israel's stumbling and the read more...

Romans 10:4

The Jews had a zeal for the Lord and a passion for the Law, for they desired to be righteous in their own eyes. However, their view of righteousness differed entirely from the perfect, godly righteousness that the Lord desires of His children.

The purpose of the Law was to reveal unrighteousness and to bring a sinner to repentance before a holy God, but the Word of God identifies two types of righteousness: one that stems from a read more...

Romans 10:9

For three whole chapters, Paul gives a lengthy but beautiful discourse on the gospel and its relationship to Israel.

In chapter 9 Paul recounts Israel's past history, and focuses on the sovereignty of God and His unchangeable promises to Israel, their divine election, and God's changeless plan, particularly in connection with Israel. In chapter 11 he describes Israel's future hope, and reaffirms the plans that God will one day read more...

Romans 10:10

Paul points out that it is with the heart that a person believes unto righteousness. Salvation is not merely based on a whim, an intellectual exercise, or the acquisition of some factual head-knowledge. Salvation must rest on a genuine, bona fide heart-faith in God and His Son, Jesus Christ Who was sent by the Father be the sacrifice for the sin of the whole world. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved," Paul told the Philippian read more...

Romans 10:13

This beautiful truth nestles in the midst of the section in Romans where Paul expresses his deep desire that all his fellow Israelites, who had not accepted Jesus of Nazareth as their Messiah, would come to saving faith in Him as the Messiah of Israel and the Saviour of the world.

Paul recognised Israel's zeal for the Lord and yet also pointed out that they based their righteousness on 'doing' the works of the Law rather that read more...

Romans 10:14

Perhaps one of the most beautiful, yet simple, universal declarations of the good news of the gospel of grace, is found in the book of Joel: "Whoever will call on the name of the Lord, will be delivered."

Originally, this was a proclamation to the nation of Israel in the Old Testament which was reiterated to the men of Israel in the book of Acts... following Christ's Resurrection from the dead. And then this good read more...

Romans 10:16

The most meticulous and thorough presentation of the glorious gospel of Christ is found in the book of Romans. It also details man's depravity, humanities estrangement from God, and man's reconciliation back to God. The book of Romans could be called the seedbed for all Christian doctrine, giving systematic, step-by-step teaching of the fundamentals of our faith.

Paul pounds home the truth that God's gracious offer of read more...

Romans 10:17

The good tidings of great joy that ignite faith in the man or woman who is dead in their sins and at enmity with their Creator, is peace with God and reconciliation with our Heavenly Father. Our reconciliation comes through the blood of Jesus Christ which cleanses us from all sin, but faith comes by hearing, and hearing through the message of Christ, the incarnate Word of God.

Throughout the centuries, this call to peace with God read more...

Romans 10:19

The book of Romans guides us, step by step, through the innate depravity of sinful man and our great need of a Saviour. He talks of God's gracious offer of salvation and walks us through the treasures of justification and sanctification, election and adoption, and he opens up the wonderful identification truths where Christ's resurrected life is imparted to us and we are positioned in Him. Paul then goes on to explain that in Christ we are dead to sin and read more...

Romans 11:2

Down through the generations, there has always been a faithful remnant of people who believe God, who trust in His promises, and who know that their Redeemer lives. But many reject the Lord, and when Paul wrote this verse, he knew that the cries of "crucify Him," as the nation of Israel rejected their Saviour, were still fresh in people's minds.

And so Paul asks the question: "Did God reject His people?" Did read more...

Romans 11:6

The Bible tells us that we are saved by grace and that we access this salvation through faith: "For you are saved by grace through faith." Then the Bible tells us that salvation has nothing to do with us. Salvation has nothing to do with our good works, our kind deeds, our generous nature, our offerings in the collection plate, our being baptised in water, our attending a confessional, our going to church on Sunday or Saturday or any other day read more...

Romans 11:11

Sadly, there is an increasing move towards anti-Semitism in the world, which has been imported into the Christian Church, teaching that the Church has replaced Israel! God forbid, as Paul proclaims! Indeed, Paul spends three chapters refuting this unbiblical belief. God has not finished with Israel, which is a truth that has its roots in Genesis where despite Adam's sin, God set in motion His glorious plan of redemption for mankind; and Israel plays an important read more...

Romans 11:12

The Church has not replaced Israel and God has not finished with His chosen people. Should anyone doubt this truth, they should familiarise themselves with three chapters in Romans where Paul details their past history (chapter 9), their present position (chapter 10), and God's future plans for His people (chapter 11).

Due to pride and disobedience, Israel were set aside for a season. Because they rejected their Messiah and read more...

Romans 11:33

The whole of Paul's Roman epistle, is glorifying the wonderful works of God while exposing the depravity of man. It details the glorious plan of salvation and the enormous sacrifice of Christ on the Cross, whereby fallen man is not only released from slavery to sin, delivered from eternal condemnation, and reconciled back to God, but also saved by grace through faith in Him, made a new creation in Christ, made a citizen of heaven and a joint-heir with the Son of read more...

Romans 11:36

What an amazing way to sum up the entirety of Who God is, for from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. All things are from God, all things are of God, and all things are for God and have their genesis in God. Everything has its source and beginning in Him. He is the well-spring of all that exists, for God is the great Creator of everything. And God spoke all things into existence: "And the Word of read more...

Romans 12:1

Having thoroughly and systematically presented every aspect of the glorious gospel of salvation, and the eternal foundation of God's amazing grace upon which these everlasting truths rest, Paul earnestly urges believers in Christ to practically apply all that he has taught in this weighty epistle to the Romans, by presenting our bodies to the Lord as a living sacrifice.

As fallen sinners, the grace and mercy we have received from read more...

Romans 12:2

As believers we have been called to personal consecration, where our lives are a reflection of Christ and our bodies a living sacrifice to the Lord. It is our spiritual worship and our reasonable service to yield our-lives, our-selves, and our-bodies to the Lord - to consecrate ourselves to Him each day.

The fallen world and sinful man is all too ready to squeeze us into its own mould and to cultivate in us a worldly mindset, read more...

Romans 12:3

Our Christian life and spiritual service should follow the will of the Lord and be done to the glory of God. Personal dedication and basic consecration, where we present our lives as a living sacrifice unto the Lord, is naturally the foundational principle upon which any life that is walking in spirit and truth, must be based.

We have been saved by grace through faith and are called to live our lives by grace as well. We are to read more...

Romans 12:9

Step by step, we have been led through the fundamentals of Church-age doctrine in Paul's letter to the Romans Church: a comprehensive, instructional manual that has been instrumental in influencing the various reformations and spiritual revivals that have taken place throughout the history of the Christian Church. Nowhere else in the Bible do we receive such a full and systematic teaching on the foundational truth of the gospel of God and the incarnate Christ.

Romans 12:10

Paul's weighty epistle to his beloved brothers and sisters in Rome is designed to focus our attention on our great salvation; our position as already justified, our conduct in the process of being sanctified, and our assured future of one day being glorified and made like unto Christ's glorious body. As Paul draws his amazing treatise on salvation to a conclusion, he ends with a section on how to live the Christian life in a way that is pleasing to God.

read more...

Romans 12:12

Paul composed a lengthy and weighty letter to the Roman church that addressed every issue that is so vital to living the normal Christian life in this post-Cross era. His extensive epistle is written in such a way as to provide a wonderful understanding of all Church-age doctrines and how to apply them in our lives today so that we are enabled to live a victorious Christian life – the life that God intended for all His children.

read more...

Romans 12:20

Christ's Sermon on the Mount is considered by many as a series of moral teachings by which we should all try to abide. The clarion call of the world today, is to stand up for your rights, even at the expense of others. And the world often portrays the Lord Jesus as a bit of a push-over with His teachings on being meek and mild-mannered, loving your enemies, blessing those who curse you, and praying for those that despitefully use you. 

read more...

Romans 13:1

We sometimes feel that we are surrounded by evil leaders who seem to have an anti-God agenda and we find it difficult to understand why. Sometimes we can be tempted to wonder if God has lost the plot, as we see evil men triumphing, while the children of God are in the midst of distress, and we wonder if Satan is winning. NEVER! Whether it was the cities of Babylon, Rome, Greece, or the nation into which we ourselves have been born, God is in control: read more...

Romans 13:8

The more the book of Romans unfolds, the greater our understanding of the amazing grace that God has demonstrated towards us: "In that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." For He Who knew no sin, was made to be sin on our behalf so that in Him, we might become the righteousness of God, sons of God, and joint heirs with Christ.

read more...

Romans 13:10

Christian conduct touches on every area of life. It should affect all we say and do at home, at work, in the community, or when we are completely alone. In Roman 13, Paul gives some important instruction on Christian conduct in two areas - the way we behave towards the government and how we should conduct ourselves towards our neighbour.

Paul makes it crystal clear that, "love does no wrong to a neighbour; therefore read more...

Romans 13:11

'Wake up! Arise, Christian, it is time to awaken from sleep!' What a lovely picture of the weary soul, rising up to meet the morning's freshness, as the first-flush of the sunlight's golden beauty pierces the morning curtain... drawing us back into consciousness, that the day has arrived, and we must wake-up from our slumber and make ready for the duties of the day. "Wake up! This is already the hour for us to wake from sleep!"

read more...

Romans 13:12

We are living in difficult and evil times, but that should not prevent us from doing what is right. We are called to live our lives and share the good news of the gospel in spirit and truth. We are not to allow the world to squeeze us into its mould, but are to serve one another in love, through our spiritual giftings, and by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

As children of God, we have an obligation to live as children of read more...

Romans 13:13

In each of his church epistles, Paul pays much attention to instructing believers in our personal consecration, our reasonable service, our spiritual giftings, and our relationship with our brothers and sisters in Christ. He also pays close attention to our personal conduct, our service to unbelievers, our responsibilities towards the government and those in authority, and the manner in which we should act towards the world, in general.

read more...

Romans 13:14

In the Christian life, we are commanded to be honest, to be respectful to others, to conduct ourselves with integrity, and to love our neighbour as we love ourselves, for love is the fulfilment of God's perfect Law. And although we are in the world and need to abide by the regulations of the established authorities and appointed governments (which we are reminded, were instituted by God Himself), we are also to remember that our citizenship is in heaven, and it is read more...

Romans 14:1

Paul's closing remarks in his epistle, start to challenge the more spiritually mature believer who may rejoice in the gracious liberty he has in Christ Jesus while harbouring his own ungodly attitudes towards the personal practice of those that are weaker in the faith, exposing an unchristian bias against those that are spiritually immature or weaker in certain doctrinal issues.

Although we should not compromise the glorious read more...

Romans 14:5

In Romans 14, Paul touches on an important biblical principle of living in the liberty we have in the Christ Jesus while addressing our attitude towards fellow believers whose viewpoints may differ from our own. They may come from a different culture, participate in alternative customs, or find their conscience forbids them to behave in a certain way, or they may enjoy the complete liberty that is ours in Christ.

Paul explains: read more...

Romans 14:7

Legalism and license can become a 'ping-pong' type argument that often rages in Christian quarters, between: 1) The dangers of legalism which replaces the freedom we have in Christ with a string of man-made rules, and the reintroduction of Jewish practices which were set aside at the Cross. 2) The perils of license which abuses the freedoms we have in Christ as an excuse to sin. Neither legalism nor licence are biblical, and Paul read more...

Romans 14:8

Jesus is our Saviour - He is our Lord - He is our God. Jesus saved us by grace. Salvation (which translates into eternal life and all its attendant benefits), is His gift of grace to all who believe in Him, through faith. The price He paid for us was His own life and as believers we should be living unto the Lord, living to please our Saviour for the honour of His name and to the glory of God. We belong to Him and we stand or fall before Him alone.

read more...

Romans 14:9

As believers, we are called to do everything as unto the Lord. In word and deed, action and attitude, mind and motive, we are to live our lives as unto the Lord. All that we say and all that we do is open before Him and subject to His eye of scrutiny. All that we are in thought, word, and deed, is susceptible to His divine approval or His righteous displeasure.

Whether we live or whether we die, we are to do everything as unto the read more...

Romans 14:12

Paul is reminding us that we alone are responsible for our words, our deeds, and the way that we conduct our life, but so also are our brothers and sisters in Christ. They too are individually responsible for what they say and what they do, what they eat or what they drink, what they wear or where they go.

However, too often we become critical of Christian brethren who do not conform to our own set standards of preferred read more...

Romans 14:16

Christians live under grace and not under law. We are not bound by food laws as were the children of Israel, nor by a dress code as were the priests of Jehovah. But neither should we criticise those who choose to follow their consciences in certain matters. We are not required to worship on a specific day nor are we commanded to keep certain feast days, special festivals, or the many ordinances imposed by man; for as believers in the age of grace we are free from read more...

Romans 14:17

In totality, the kingdom of God reaches to every place in the entire universe, stretching through time and beyond eternity, but in His revelation to man which is detailed in the Scriptures, the kingdom of God almost always restricts its horizons to God's current work and future rule, through a group of His obedient servants.

The kingdom of God is that heavenly sphere of life where His children are willingly governed by the Holy read more...

Romans 14:17

Paul's full and thorough presentation of the gospel in Romans, places the Christian pilgrim on a firm foundation. It brings us, step by step, into spiritual maturity and holy living. It develops in us a steadfast faith with a Christlike attitude towards others. Slowly it helps to conform us into the image and likeness of the lovely Lord Jesus, as we develop in godly discernment and wisdom from above.

This epistle lays a solid read more...

Romans 14:19

Glance through many Christian social media sites and you often discover a critical spirit surfacing and a judgmental attitude being fostered, and yet Paul spends much of his time urging brothers and sisters in Christ to live together in godly harmony.

Paul is absolutely clear in all his teachings that the essentials of the gospel of grace and the good news of salvation in Christ must never be compromised: "Where read more...

Romans 15:3

Paul points to Christ as the eternal God and perfect Man in the book of Romans. He leads us through the doctrines of predestination, election, justification, sanctification, the old sin nature and the new creation in Christ, the flesh and the spirit, law and grace. Paul was most thorough in his outstanding epistle to systematically set out every aspect of Church-age doctrine so that we have no doubt that we are saved by grace through faith in Christ.

read more...

Romans 15:4

God is omniscient, and we are not. God is an eternal Being Who is holy and good, and we are fallen, finite people who are born into this world, dead in our sins. But God in His goodness and grace, gave us ways and means to discover much about Who He is: His character; His Tri-unity; His Person; His ultimate plans; and His wonderful purposes for the redemption of mankind. His plans and purposes give us hope: an assured hope; a glorious hope; a blessed hope in Christ read more...

Romans 15:8

How could it be that the great God of the universe Who made heaven and earth and all that is in them, humbled Himself and became a servant to Israel? How is it that the omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent Lord of all, became a minister to the Jewish nation?

How could it be that God's Anointed, Who is above all, over-all, and sustains all, could place Himself in a position of such inferiority towards His own people? How could it be read more...

Romans 15:13

The God of Hope - Oh what a glorious title and beautiful theme for the triune God Who, in singleness of purpose, is pledged to fill us with all joy, peace, love, and hope, when we simply trust in the pure gospel of the Son of His love. God is no respecter of persons and the joy and peace in believing in Christ for the forgiveness of sin and life everlasting is for Jew and Gentile alike. The glorious hope we have in Him is for bond and free, male read more...

Romans 15:16

Paul, who was a minister of the gospel of Christ Jesus, longed to know more and more of his Saviour and Lord. Paul's passion was to carry out the responsibility to which God had called him; emphasising His deity through the title 'Christ' and His humanity through the name He was given, 'Jesus'. But Paul also had a dear desire to be a blessing to his brothers in Christ, no matter where he went. Paul was a man who was full of the Holy Spirit, but he was also a man read more...

Romans 15:30

Paul longed to visit the Christians at Rome but never managed to take the journey until he was brought there in chains and imprisoned, awaiting a Roman trial. However, the letter he wrote to this little community presents the most thorough and comprehensive treaties of the gospel.

Paul may not have understood why his plans to visit Rome were always prevented by the Holy Spirit, but we recognise his Roman epistle to be one of the read more...

Romans 15:33

Peace is one of many beautiful characteristics that are manifested as fruit of the Spirit in the life of a believer who is growing in grace and being conformed into the image and likeness of Jesus. Each godly attribute is part of a believer's garment of righteousness, when walking in spirit and truth.

Peace is one of the most precious qualities of the soul, for a peaceful spirit is very precious in read more...

Romans 16:17

Paul became increasingly aware that after his departure, the enemy would not only seek to divide the Church through false teachers and demonic doctrines, but would also use internal dissentions and disunity to cause havoc and distress among Christians and divide the Body of Christ.

As he brings his long and instructive Roman read more...

Romans 16:19

Paul had never been to Rome, but he longed to visit the Christians who lived there, because news of their exemplary faith and reports about their stoical obedience to the gospel of Christ was being spoken of throughout the world. The spiritual growth and maturity of these believers, who were living in the hub of the Roman empire, was a tremendous testimony to their spiritual growth, which caused Paul's heart to rejoice over them with great joy.

read more...

Romans 16:20

As Paul drew his letter to the Romans to a close, he gave them a very serious warning about the dangers of division in the Church, particularly doctrinal division. He urged the brethren to take note of those in their congregation who were divisive and caused offense, and to avoid them. So often, those that are standing firm in the faith are attacked in this way by the enemy of our soul, who seductively twists the truth through a false teacher or someone who is not read more...

Romans 16:26

God gave an unfolding revelation of Himself to man through His prophetic Scriptures. Much of that revelation, though concealed in the Old Testament, was penned to the Church in the New Testament by Paul. And Romans is a book that systematically and logically takes us into a fuller understanding of God's plans and purposes for salvation, redemption, sanctification, glorification, and all that accompanies the riches of God's grace towards us who were once dead in read more...