Romans 8 (résumé): Life through the Spirit

Romans 8 is one of the finest chapters in the Bible about life through the Spirit, freedom from condemnation, our identity as God’s children, suffering and hope, and the undefeatable love of God. Paul starts: "Therefore, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus... who do not live according to your sinful nature, but according to the Spirit... the mind of sinful man is death but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace... and anyone who doesn't have the Spirit of Christ, doesn't belong to Christ... but the Spirit in us gives life to our mortal bodies... so if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live... for the Spirit testifies with our spirit that we are God's children... so our present suffering can't compare with the glory that will be revealed in us... for we know that creation is groaning awaiting change... and the Spirit helps us pray and intercedes for us... and God is working through all things to make us like Jesus... because if God is for us who can be against us?... Christ is at the right hand of the Father interceding for us... and who shall separate us from the love of Christ?... for in everything we face in life we are more than conquerors through Jesus!" 

Romans 7 (résumé): Struggling with Sin

Romans 7 explains the Christian's relationship with the law and with sin, including the struggles of the heart involved in this. Thus Paul starts saying: "The law has authority over a man only as long as he lives... so my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ so that you might belong to him who was raised from the dead... by dying to what once bound us we have been released from the law so that we serve in a new way of the Spirit... apart from law sin is dead... I found that the commandment supposed to bring life in fact brought death... I do not understand what I do... for what I want to do I don't do... and what I hate I do... I have the desire to do good but I don't manage to carry it out... for it is sin in me that does it... and when I want to do good evil is right there with me... what a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!"

Fifth Book

Yesterday I concluded my summary of the Book of Acts which is the 5th book of the New Testament and the 44th book in the Bible. This means I have finished writing the synthesis of 88% of the Bible, so now it's on to the 16 chapters of Romans!

QPR drew 0 x 0 away to Charlton yesterday and are now 4th in the Championship. We had 72% possession but couldn't put the ball in the net!

Last night we visited our 54-year-old deacon Ricardo who had a heart attack a few weeks ago and is now preparing for heart surgery in the New Year to replace a faulty heart valve. Please pray for Ricardo and his wife Marah Danielle. 🙏

Romans 6 (résumé): Dear to Sin & Alive in Christ

Romans 6 shows how things work out when we're saved by grace and how Christians are called to live transformed lives by the Spirit. We certainly should not, says Paul, exploit freedom in Christ. He asks: "Shall we go on sinning so that grace may abound? By no means!" "We were baptized into Jesus' death... and buried with him... and raised with him... so that we may live a new life... for our old self was crucified with him... so that we do not remain slaves to sin... for if we died with Christ we also live with him... so count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus... don't offer your body to sin but offer yourselves to God... you used to be slaves to sin but now you whole heartedly obey God... you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness... for now that you are set free from sin and are slaves to God... this leads to holiness.. for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord!"

Romans 5 (résumé): Peace & Joy

Romans 5 explains the blessings of being justified by faith and compares Adam with Jesus. The chapter starts with the beautiful and famous verse: "Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ... and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God... we also rejoice in sufferings... and God has poured his love into our hearts... for just at the right time Christ died for the ungodly... for God demonstrates his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us... and now we are reconciled we shall be saved through his life... and we rejoice in God through Christ". "As sin entered into the world through one man... the gift is not like the trespass... the gift of God's grace overflows to the many!... by the trespass of one man death reigned... how much more will God's abundant provision of grace reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ... and just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also through the obedience of one man the many will be made righteous... and where sin increased grace increased all the more... bringing eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord!" 

Romans 4 (résumé): Abraham justified by Faith

Paul starts chapter 4 stating that Abraham was not justified by works, which would give him something to boast about, but was justified by faith. "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness". (Genesis 15:6) "He who trusts God his faith is credited as righteousness. And Paul says that Abraham's faith and justification came before he was circumcised, so Abraham is father of the faith of circumcised and uncircumcised Christians. So, says Paul, Abraham received the promise of his heir, not through the law but by faith... the promise comes by faith... by grace... He is the father of us all, Jews and Gentiles... He is the father of many nations... because he never wavered in disbelief despite being a 100 years old and he believed in the promise... so God credits righteousness to us who believe in Jesus!"

Romans 3 (résumé): God's Faithfulness

The wonderful message of Romans 3 is that "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God... but can be justified freely by his grace through the redemption of Jesus Christ". Never, says Paul, should the Jew lose sight of the honour and privilege of being the custodian of the word of God. However all men are sinners and "there is no-one righteous, not even one". The law reveals our sin and need of God. So God has revealed righteousness that comes apart from the law and exclusively through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Through Christ, says Paul, God reveals his justice and the justifier! And Paul concludes the chapter making it clear that there is now room for boasting because "a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law... the God of the Jews and of Gentiles too who justifies the circumcised and the uncircumcised by faith".