Paul prays that he might visit the church in Rome (Rom 1:8-10)
He prays with thanksgiving
He prays unceasingly
He prays in submission to God's will
Paul longs to visit (Rom 1:11-15)
He longs to impart grace
He longs for mutual encouragement
He longs to obtain fruit among them
He feels an obligation to them
Paul's Essay on Faith
Opening declaration
Why Paul is not ashamed of the gospel (Rom 1:16-18)
It is God's power for salvation to all believers
It reveals God's righteousness and wrath
It is the source of true faith
Darkness of the faithless
The wicked know about God (Rom 1:18-20)
It is they themselves who suppress the truth
The Creator has made himself evident to them
They are without excuse
The wicked nevertheless dishonour God (Rom 1:21-32)
They don't give thanks to God
Prefer their own wisdom
Worship the creature rather than the Creator
Practise sexual immorality
Approve of what they know God condemns
Think they are righteous when they are not (Rom 2:1-5)
They condemn themselves by judging others hypocritically
They show contempt for God's kindness by boasting of their own worthiness
They are storing up wrath for themselves because of their impenitence
Faith in relation to law and judgment
How God judges man (Rom 2:6-16)
Those who do good receive eternal life
Those who do evil receive wrath
All mankind, Jew or Gentile, are judged by the law God has given them
God's attitude to the Jews (Rom 2:17 to 3:18)
God is dishonoured by those who boast of the law yet break it
A circumcised Jew who breaks the law is regarded as uncircumcised
An uncircumcised Gentile obeying God's law is regarded as circumcised
It is being a Jew inwardly that counts
When Jews break the law they prove God's attitude to be right
God regards both Jew and Gentile to be all equally under sin
How God applies the law (Rom 3:19-31)
God's law condemns even if broken in only one point, therefore it does not make one righteous
God's law usefully produces a guilty conscience
God's law itself testifies to a righteousness by faith
God's law makes it impossible to boast before God because all fall short of its righteous requirements
Therefore, whilst works of obedience to God's law are good and necessary, something else apart from them is essential — namely faith in Christ
We uphold God's law not by our attempts to keep it (because we fall short) but by our faith in the atoning blood of Jesus Christ
The Great Example of Abraham's Faith
Abraham's faith was accounted as righteousness (Rom 4:1-9)
Paul quotes Genesis 15:6
When righteous is accounted it is a gift, not a due
The accounting of righteousness (justification) cancels out the sin that would otherwise be held against us
Paul quotes Psalm 32:1-2
Abraham's faith transcends Jewish law (Rom 4:10-22)
Abraham was uncircumcised when righteous was accounted to him
This means that circumcision and Mosaic law are not required for justification
Abraham's strong trust and hope in God were required for the accounting of righteousness to him
The same blessing was promised to all Abraham's seed or offspring
The seed or offspring of Abraham are not his biological descendants but rather those who imitate his faith. The true children of Abraham are his spiritual children of faith (cf Rom 9:6-8)
In accounting Abraham's faith as righteousness, God was looking ahead to the death of Jesus Christ (Rom 4:23-25)
The example of Abraham holds a promise for us
Those who believe (have faith) in Jesus will have righteousness credited to them
The accounting of righteousness to us passes audit because our sins can be written off on account of Christ's death and resurrection (cf Rom 5:9)