Paul pulls back the curtain on the war within. Although he belongs to Christ and the Holy Spirit dwells in him giving him certainty of his salvation (see Ephesians 1:13 and 1 Corinthians 6:19–20), his flesh still resists and wars against God abiding within him (see Galatians 5:16-20). So, he confesses, “I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out… nothing good dwells...  Read More

In Romans 7:7–13, Paul clarifies the purpose of the Law—that it was never given to save us but to expose us. It was never intended to be a ladder to climb to earn God’s favor, but a mirror to reveal our sinfulness and inability to do anything to earn God’s gracious favor.The Law was offered as God’s standard of perfection and holiness—yet, when its light shines on our corrupt and fallen hearts, si...  Read More

Paul, using the illustration of a marriage dissolved by death to release the living spouse from their vow, explains that through the death of Jesus, we too have a new status with God and the Law. The result is that the Law, while still helpful, no longer has jurisdiction over us and we are released to belong to Him who was raised, so that we might bear fruit for God through the Holy Spirit. The La...  Read More

In Romans 6:15–23 Paul answers the grace-abuser’s question: “Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace?” By no means. Whomever we present ourselves to obey becomes our master—either sin leading todeath, or obedience leading to righteousness. In Christ, we have been set free from sin and made slaves of God; the fruit of this new allegiance is holiness, and the end is eternal life. T...  Read More

Since we are united with Christ, we must reckon ourselves as truly dead to sin and alive to God. Grace doesn’t make sin safe; it makes freedom possible. Our new state (saved by grace) fuels our daily standing (dependent obedience)—yet if we refuse sin’s rule and instead offer every part of ourselves to God as tools for His righteousness—God can move in and through us for His glory. Under grace—we ...  Read More

Paul announces the miracle that occurs within the transaction of salvation that when we by faith are united with Jesus in His death and resurrection that God spiritually transforms our lives from death to life. Our old self—the sin-ruled nature inherited from the fall—was crucified with Christ so that sin’s dominion is broken; we are no longer its slaves but have been set free (see Galatians 5:1-1...  Read More

Romans 6:1–4 slams the door on the lie that grace excuses sin. Paul says— “By no means!” Thus, because of our union with Christ, we have been spiritually baptized (completely transformed) into His death, buried with Him, and raised to newness of life. As a result, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead now empowers us to enable us to have victory over sin, death, and the demonic—when we li...  Read More

In Romans 5:12–21, Paul traces humanity’s story through two Adams. Through the first Adam’s, sin entered into the world through his defiance of God’s command causing death to spread to all—contaminating and infection the entire creation. The result is that condemnation became our universal reality. As a result, we all are born into a fallen order—powerless to repair the rupture, unable to cover ou...  Read More

Paul’s “how much more” argument moves from what God has already done to what He will certainly do. If, while we were God’s enemies, we were justified by Christ’s blood and reconciled through His death, how much more will we now be saved from wrath and kept by His risen life. Our standing with God rests not in our goodness but in His finished work and living mediation—meaning the same grace that sa...  Read More

At just the right time, after centuries of divine foreshadowing—the tabernacle sacrifices, Isaac’s near-sacrifice with a substitute, the Passover lamb, and the promises to David—God unveiled His decisive rescue in Jesus. As a result, when we were powerless—dead and bankrupt in our trespasses and sin, Jesus stepped out of heaven and into humanity so the single purpose of dying for the lost and ungo...  Read More

Since we are all sinners and incapable of saving ourselves, God did for us—what we could not do for ourselves... He provided a single, sufficient sacrifice in Jesus to make it possible for our sins to be forgiven and His grace made available to rescue us from the penalty and punishment for sin. Even more, this grace once received has the ability to transform our earthly life as well as our eternal...  Read More

Paul shows us that God’s saving promise rests in faith alone in the grace initiative of God—and therefore guaranteed to all who share Abraham’s faith (v.16). Abraham believed the God who “gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist” (vv.17–18). Though his body was “as good as dead” and Sarah’s womb barren, he grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, “fully convin...  Read More