Romans
Individual lessons & Bible Study Guide
Romans 1:1-17 Paul was speaking at a very evil time in history it was not easy for Christians and yet he revealed in Romans 1 that he was “not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” God’s offer of salvation that comes by faith in Christ’s sacrifice has the power to truly transform our lives!
Romans 1:18-32. Creation reveals there is an order to the universe, a set of “rules” by which things operate that we ignore at our own loss or peril. For example, disregard the law of gravity and see how quickly you fall. There is a moral order built into the universe as well, which God made known through His dealings with Israel and through His messengers, the prophets. Living according to God’s moral order results in peace and blessing; but ignoring it will ultimately lead to shame, degradation and spiritual ruin.
Romans 2:1-3:8. Paul’s hope was that coming face to face with their great need and their sinfulness, would push the Jews toward Christ and repentance as their only hope for salvation. It was his greatest desire for them…and also mine for you today!
Romans 3:9-4:25 Paul proves that the way to God is not through being part of a particular nation, it is not through having a particular physical mark on your body, it is not through the works of the Law of Moses! Rather it is by faith – a faith that takes God at His Word and trusts in Him for salvation by grace alone! When we believe God and trust Him as Abraham obedience to His commands becomes a way of life!
Romans 5:1-6:7. Adam’s choice led to mankind's death and separation from God, but Christ’s decision to obey opened up the way for our reconciliation with the Father and eternal life in His presence!
Romans 6:8-8:3a. No matter how a person might desire to serve God and even make all sorts of plans to do so, unless they have taken refuge in Christ as Savior they are bound to a Law they cannot keep – and as consequence they are destined to endure a cycle of sin and death they cannot escape. But the outcome for those who are in Christ is far different. Jesus did not come to condemn us but to set us free from the old covenant and the cycle of sin and death.
Romans 1:18-32. Creation reveals there is an order to the universe, a set of “rules” by which things operate that we ignore at our own loss or peril. For example, disregard the law of gravity and see how quickly you fall. There is a moral order built into the universe as well, which God made known through His dealings with Israel and through His messengers, the prophets. Living according to God’s moral order results in peace and blessing; but ignoring it will ultimately lead to shame, degradation and spiritual ruin.
Romans 9:25-11:15. Those who would belong to God must be willing to confess that Jesus Christ is their Lord. The Greek word for Lord is “KURIOS” and it was filled with great significance! It was the title given to all Roman Emperors and the Greeks also used this word before each of their gods’ names. Thus, to give the title to Christ meant He was not only above all other gods that mankind had chosen to worship, He was also above Caesar himself! A powerful statement seeing as Paul was writing to those in Rome! But that’s not all – it was also the title used for God Himself in the Greek translation of the Old Testament.
Romans 11:13-12:8. Paul is asking for here is an intentional change in the way that we live! God does not want us to “conform any longer to the pattern of this world”. In other words, we are no longer to match our lives to the fashion of the world around us – we cannot live as we once did. We cannot live as chameleons either — going back and forth between the two worlds, trying to blend in in each one. Rather, Paul calls us to a different life which is the natural outworking of a renewed mind.
Romans 12:9-13:7. Paul began to address the practical side of faith and how believers are to live, not only within the church, but within their community as well. The Christian’s main desire should be to keep a clear conscience before God – and so they are to obey the law of the land in order to please God and to be a good ambassador for Christ. Paul urged them to be law abiding citizens despite the fact that the Roman government they lived under was pagan, immoral and oppressive. The question arises: are there any circumstances when a Christian is not to obey the authorities over them?
Romans 13:8-14:23. Unity within the body of Christ is not the same as uniformity. We can hold to the key tenants of our faith while still holding different opinions about the way in which we are to worship God and live for him. This does not mean that we should ever compromise on the key principles of Christianity, or that we are to disregard matters of sin, but we should not allow differing opinions about lesser things to divide us.
Romans 15:1-33. There really are no hopeless situations in life, only perhaps men and women who have grown hopeless about them! No matter what happens in the world the Christian is not to despair! Though we may not know what will happen one moment to the next – we can rest assured that our hope in God is never misplaced and as we place our trust in Him we can experience a joy and peace that cannot easily be explained.
Romans 16:1-27. As we summarize all that Paul has taught in the pages of this wonderful book, we conclude with the final chapter of Romans. Though it may seem like a long list of names and greetings; there is much that we can learn from Paul’s last words to these people.