Welcome back, friends, to A Well-Tended Heart
I’m so excited because today we’re picking back up where we left off. In the last two episodes, we unpacked the 5 W’s and H and defined some important keywords you need to understand as you study the book of Romans.
Now we’re ready to begin our ascent as we start to fly over Romans and get a bird’s-eye view of the entire book.
If you’re new here, I want you to know how thankful I am that you’ve stopped by to check out this podcast. I really hope you enjoy listening, but even better, I think you’ll learn so much more by listening to this episode after you’ve done some digging of your own.
The link is in the show notes—or right here if you’re reading this!
Chapter 1: Suppressing the Truth
In Chapter 1, Paul makes the case that there will be wrath from God against all godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth because of their wickedness.
For what may be known about God is plain to everyone because God has made it plain to them. Yet humanity suppresses this truth.
What Is the Truth About God?
We know that God exists by general revelation.
This can range from the sunset and sunrise to the moon, the stars, and everything visible on the earth. Creation itself points us toward the Creator.
Human beings suppress this truth and choose not to believe, even though the evidence is right in front of them every day.
We also see evidence of general revelation in Romans 2:15:
“So they show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts either accusing or defending them on the day when God will judge men’s secrets through Christ Jesus, as proclaimed by my gospel.”
This is the beginning of what we might call a “slippery slope”—a progression that occurs when human beings suppress the truth about God.
The wise become fools and exchange the glory of God for images that they create to be their own god—images of created things such as humans, animals, and reptiles.
This would include any form of idol worship.
A wise person might be described as a genius, scholar, mastermind, philosopher, scientist, or someone who shapes the beliefs and culture of the time.
It’s ironic because normally we would think that a wise person is someone who is not a fool. Yet here, the wise become fools in God’s eyes.
Suppressing the truth about who God is leads to increasingly depraved behavior.
There are three progressions that occur in verses 18–24 that we could term the “slippery slope”:
God gives them over to the desires of their hearts, to impurity.
God gives them over to dishonorable passions—men and women exchanging natural relations for unnatural ones.
God gives them up to a depraved mind.
Finally, Paul gives an open-ended list of different kinds of sins and says at the very end:
“Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only continue to do these very things but give approval to those who practice them.”
Chapter 2: Everyone Is a Sinner
Just as importantly, Chapter 2 continues to make the argument about the judgment that will come and begins to distinguish the truth that everyone is a sinner.
Paul examines the religious people who think they are above others because of their status, traditions, ancestry, or works.
Their self-righteous thinking gives them a sense of false security. They believe that the things they do will keep them safe from God’s wrath.
They think that by keeping traditions, performing religious works, or living a certain way, they can make themselves right with God.
However, Paul points out that they, too, practice the same kinds of sins that were laid out in Chapter 1.
Paul makes it very clear that they will not escape God’s judgment simply because they do good works or live in a way that seems to be “more righteous” than someone else.
He highlights two ways to live in the first part of Chapter 2: one who does good works apart from God and the other who seeks to do good works for God.
Let me be clear here:
Good works will not give you eternal life, but good works are a product or action of the one who puts their faith in Jesus Christ.
Taking this one step further, Paul says that all people sin and will be judged by God and that:
“God does not show favoritism.”
He also asks some great questions that are thought-provoking and are great for us to ask ourselves:
Do you practice what you preach?
Do you judge others even though you, too, do the same things?
Continuing with this momentum, Paul turns his focus to Jewish culture.
Remember that we already learned about Paul’s upbringing, so we know that he is more than qualified to turn his attention to them.
The Jews valued being circumcised, having the Mosaic Law, and being a Jew. These things could give them a false sense of security, too.
However, at the end of Chapter 2, Paul defines what true circumcision is:
It is a circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code.
It is not physical or outward. It is an inward change of the heart that only the Holy Spirit can accomplish.
Chapter 3: All Have Sinned
So, if circumcision and being a Jew do not protect them from the wrath of God, a natural question arises:
“What then is the advantage of being a Jew, and what is the value of circumcision?”
Paul anticipates this question and answers it, but finally concludes with what has already been stated in the previous chapters:
Jews and Gentiles are both alike; they are all sinners.
You’ve probably heard these verses before, but they really highlight this truth:
“There is no one righteous,
not even one.
There is no one who understands,
no one who seeks God.
All have turned away,
they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
not even one.”
As I was reading the images of how Paul describes the sinner in such vivid detail, I pondered how often the Bible uses vivid imagery to help us understand things better.
For instance, he says:
“The venom of vipers is on their lips.”
That reminds me of bad-mouthing, talking behind someone’s back, gossip, and other destructive words.
Those who do not believe in God have:
“No fear of God before their eyes.”
They don’t fear God, but they really should fear the judgment of God.
Chapters 3:20–5: Made Right Through Faith
In Chapters 3:20–5, Paul presses on, but this time he moves from the truth that all are sinners, both Jews and Gentiles, to explaining how a person can be made right with God.
He uses Abraham and David’s faith as examples.
Remember the definition of righteousness from the last podcast?
Righteousness from God comes by having faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.
Again, Paul points out that there is NO distinction.
Why?
Romans 3:23–24 says:
“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”
Let me give you an easy example to understand grace, justice, and mercy.
Imagine a person who did not study for a test and received an F.
Justice is giving that person the failing grade they deserve.
Mercy is allowing them to retake the test so they don’t fail the class.
Grace would be the teacher erasing the F, replacing it with an A, and celebrating with the student by giving them a reward.
And, of course, as if you couldn’t see this coming, Paul asks another question:
“Where then is boasting?”
You can’t earn this righteousness.
It is not the result of any work that you do. It comes through faith and belief in Christ Jesus.
“For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the law.”
Abraham and David
In Chapter 4, Paul makes an even stronger case against works-related righteousness. He brings up Abraham and David to show when they were declared righteous.
Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness before the Law was given.
David lived under the Law—after the Law was given—and was made righteous by faith.
Romans 4:10–12 asks a really good question concerning circumcision:
“Is this blessing only on the circumcised, or also on the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness. In what context was it credited? Was it after his circumcision, or before? It was not after, but before.
And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but are not circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them.
And he is also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised, but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.”
So then, Abraham is the father of both the Gentiles and the Jews.
This example helps us see that Abraham’s righteousness was because he believed God.
It was not given because he kept the Law or because he was circumcised. In fact, Abraham was circumcised before the Law was even given.
Works will never save a person because, even as much as you try to do the right things—even moral and good things—sinners are still separated from God.
I love the example of Abraham in Chapter 4, where it says that he did not waver in the promises of God but was strengthened in his faith, being fully persuaded that God was able to do all that He had promised.
This is why it was credited to him as righteousness.
He believed and trusted God.
Chapter 5: Justified Through Faith
In Chapter 5, we see that we have been justified through faith.
And with that, we can have peace with God.
Because we are justified through His blood, we are saved from the wrath of God.
We are reconciled to God because of the death of His Son.
We learn that sin came into the world through one man. The disobedience of the one man brought death, and that death was passed on to all men.
But one act of righteousness, the gift of grace through Jesus Christ, brought justification and eternal life for all who believe.
Paul contrasts Adam and Christ:
1 trespass = condemnation for all men
1 act of righteousness = justification and life for all men
Disobedience of 1 man = all men made sinners
Obedience of 1 man, Jesus Christ = many will be made righteous
Chapters 6–8: Sanctification and New Life
We are almost done!
The remaining chapters I have yet to memorize, and so my ability to expand on them becomes a bit harder.
For some reason, when I internalize Scripture, I feel like I understand what I’m reading and studying far better.
Chapters 6–8 focus on how a person is sanctified once they have placed their faith in Jesus and repented.
Sanctification is the work of the Holy Spirit, changing our whole being to be more like Christ.
In the previous chapters, Paul spent a lot of time proving that we cannot be saved by works or justified by the Law, but rather that it is by God’s abundant grace.
I’m inclined to say that the theme verses for Chapter 6 are verses 6–7:
“We know that our old self was crucified with Him so that the body of sin might be rendered powerless, that we should no longer be slaves to sin. For anyone who has died has been freed from sin.”
So we died to sin.
We are no longer slaves to sin but slaves to righteousness.
Chapter 7: The Struggle With Sin
And now, finally, Chapter 7.
I think this is going to be a very hard chapter to memorize because there are a lot of the same words!
Listen to this struggle:
“I do not understand what I do, for what I want to do, I do not do, but what I hate, I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I admit that the law is good. In that case it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.”
You can see why this is going to be difficult!
Paul explains in this chapter why we have the Law, which is also noted in Chapter 3, where it says that “the Law merely brings awareness of sin.”
Chapter 7 highlights the struggle with sin, which you just heard in that difficult passage I quoted.
I think the main theme verse for this chapter is verse 4:
“We died to the law through the body of Christ that you might belong to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God.”
We are no longer slaves to sin but slaves to God.
He is our Master, and Satan is no longer our master.
We are free because we are “in Christ.”
Thanks be to God, because He gave us His Son to die for us, and by His blood we are free—free indeed—from the mastery of sin and the rule of Satan.
And because of this new freedom, we are transferred to the kingdom of God and are able to live in the newness of life by the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit empowers us to be changed so that we can be more like Christ.
Knowledge, Law, and works can’t do this.
Chapters 9–16: God’s Sovereignty and Christian Living
Chapters 9–16 focus on God’s sovereignty and how we are to live as Christians.
And that was a bird’s-eye view of Romans!
It’s really hard to describe all that is contained in the first seven chapters. When you have internalized everything, it can be so difficult to reduce it to a simple one-liner.
At least, it is for me!
There is so much more you could discover for yourself, so I hope you’ll take the time to study Romans—or even join us as we study Romans 8!
Next time, we’re going to be working on Week 1 of the study.
Continue listening to all of the chapters, and don’t forget to get your notecards ready to start memorizing!
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Until next time, stay tuned and stay rooted!
"I use AI editing tools as a virtual proofreader to help polish my grammar and sentence structure, but all thoughts, studies, and words shared here are my own."
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