Bible Version: New International Version (NIV)
Application Notes: Life Application Study Bible (NIV)
ROMANS 1
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— 2 the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3 regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, 4 and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5 Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake. 6 And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.
7 To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul’s Longing to Visit Rome
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. 9 God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you 10 in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you.
11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— 12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.
14 I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. 15 That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
God’s Wrath Against Sinful Humanity
18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
Application Notes
1:1 Paul wrote this letter to the church in Rome. Neither he nor the other church leaders, James and Peter, had yet been to Rome. Most likely, the Roman church had been established by believers who had been at Jerusalem for Pentecost (Acts 2:10) and by travellers who had heard the gospel in other places and had brought it back to Rome (Priscilla and Aquila, for example; see Acts 18:2; Romans 16:3-5). Paul wrote the letter to the Romans during his ministry in Corinth (at the end of his third missionary journey just before returning to Jerusalem; see Acts 20:2-3; Romans 15:25) to encourage the believers and to express his desire to visit them someday (within three years he would). The Roman church had no New Testament because the Gospels were not yet being circulated in their final written form. Thus, this letter may well have been the first piece of Christian literature the Roman believers had seen. Directed to both Jewish and Gentile Christians, the letter to the Romans is a systematic presentation of the Christian faith.
1:1 When Paul, a devout Jew who had at first persecuted the Christians, became a believer, God used him to spread the gospel throughout the world. Although he was a prisoner, Paul did eventually preach in Rome (Acts 28), perhaps even to Caesar himself. Paul's profile is on page 1899.
1:1 Paul humbly calls himself a servant of Christ Jesus and an apostle ("one who is sent"). For a Roman citizen-which Paul was-to choose to be a servant was unthinkable. But Paul chose to be completely dependent on and obedient to his beloved master. What is your attitude toward Christ, your master? When we serve and obey Jesus, we become useful and usable servants to do his vital work. Obedience begins as we renounce other masters, identify ourselves with Jesus, discover his will and live according to it, and consciously turn away from all conflicting interests.
1:2 Some of the prophecies predicting the Good News about Jesus Christ are found in Genesis 12:3; Psalms 16:10; 40:6-10; 118:22; Isaiah 11:1-16; Zechariah 9:9-11; 12:10; and Malachi 4:1-6.
1:3-5 Here Paul summarizes the Good News about Jesus Christ, who (1) came as a human by natural descent, (2) was part of the Jewish royal line through David, (3) died and was raised from the dead, and (4) opened the door for God's grace and kindness to be poured out on us. The book of Romans expands on these themes.
1:3-4 Paul declares that Jesus is the Son of God, the promised Messiah, and the resurrected Lord. Paul calls Jesus a descendant of King David to emphasise that Jesus truly did fulfil the Old Testament Scriptures predicting that the Messiah would come from David's line. With this statement of faith, Paul declares his agreement with the teaching of all Scripture and of the other apostles.
1:5 Christians have a great privilege along with a great responsibility. Paul and the apostles received the privilege of sharing the Good Newsthe message of forgiveness for sin and new life in Jesus. Paul considered it a gift. But this privilege also came with the responsibility of sharing this message. Paul understood that it was literally a matter of life and death. God also graciously forgives our sins when we believe in him as Lord. This begins the journey of new life with Jesus. Paul's new life also involved a divine assignment: to witness as a missionary about God's Good News to the world. God may or may not send you to a foreign country, but he does call you (with all believers) to be Christ's ambassador and to witness to the changed life that Jesus Christ has begun in you. You can be a witness to your own family or even to your next-door neighbours.
1:6-7 Paul says that those who become Christians are invited by Jesus Christ to (1) become part of God's family and (2) be his very own holy people, set apart for his service. What a wonderful expression of what it means to be a Christian! In being reborn into God's family, we have the greatest experience of love and the greatest inheritance. Because of all that God has done for us, let us strive to be his holy people.
1:6 Jews and Christians alike stood against the idolatrous Roman religions. As a result, Roman officials often confused the two groups. This was especially easy to do since the Christian church in Rome could have been originally composed of Jewish converts who had attended Pentecost in Jerusalem (see Acts 2:1-47). By the time Paul wrote this letter to the Romans, however, many Gentiles had joined the church. The Jews and the Gentiles needed to know the relationship between Judaism and Christianity.
1:7 Rome was the capital of the Roman Empire, which had spread over most of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. In New Testament times, Rome was experiencing a golden age. The city was wealthy, literary, and artistic-the cultural centre of the empire. Roman citizens were very proud of their history and culture, but Rome was morally decadent. The Romans worshipped many pagan gods, and even some of the emperors were worshipped as gods. In stark contrast to the Romans, the followers of Christ believed in only one God and lived by his high moral standards.
Christianity was at odds not only with the Romans' pride but also with their inclination to trust in military strength. Many Romans were highly pragmatic, believing that any means used to accomplish the intended task was good. And for them, nothing worked better than physical might The Romans trusted in their strong military power to protect them against all enemies. Christians in every age need to be reminded to trust God, our Father, who provides the only truly reliable source of security and salvation. We must not look for security in political or military power.
1:8 Paul uses the wording "I thank my God through Jesus Christ" to emphasise the point that Jesus is the one and only mediator between us and God. Through Christ God sends his love and forgiveness to us, and through him we send our thanks to God (see 1 Timothy 2:5).
1:8 The Roman Christians, at the Western world's political power centre, were highly visible. Fortunately, their reputation was excellent; their strong faith was making itself known around the world. When people talk about the faith of your congregation or your denomination, what do they say? Are they inspired, encouraged, and instructed by your example? What changes might you need to make in order for your faith to be a shining example to others?
1:9-10 When you pray continually about a concern, don't be surprised at how God answers. Paul prayed to visit Rome so he could teach the Christians there. When he finally arrived in Rome, it was as a prisoner (see Acts 28:16). Paul prayed for a safe trip, and he did arrive safely--after getting arrested, slapped in the face, shipwrecked, and bitten by a poisonous snake. When you sincerely pray, God may give you what you ask for. But prior to that there may be a time of testing and preparation that will enable God to use you most effectively in the fulfilment of your prayer.
1:11-13 In the first few verses of Romans, Paul tells of his strong desire to visit Rome and of the sovereign hand of God that had prevented him from getting there for quite some time. The combination of these two factors--Paul's impassioned desire to go to Rome and God's sovereign no--resulted in his writing this letter to the Romans. This letter powerfully explains the Christian faith and has helped countless millions of believers across the centuries since Paul first penned it to the group of believers in Rome. Perhaps some of your prayers have received no or not yet as answers. God may be planning to use your situation greatly in ways you don't expect or cannot see. Like Paul, do the work directly in front of you that God has made clear. Don't let bitterness seep in, and don't fret about not getting the answers you wanted.
1:13 By the end of his third missionary journey, Paul had travelled through Syria, Galatia, Asia, Macedonia, and Achaia. The churches in these areas were made up mostly of Gentile believers.
1:14 Paul is referring to those of the Greek and Roman cultures and those not part of them. "The wise and the foolish" refers to educated and uneducated people. What was Paul's obligation? After his experience with Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9), Paul's whole life was consumed with spreading the Good News of salvation to everyone. Paul was indebted to Jesus Christ for being his Saviour. He responded by proclaiming Christ's salvation to all people--both Jews and Gentiles, across all cultural, social, racial, and economic lines. We also are obligated to Christ because he took the punishment we deserve for our sins. Although we cannot repay him for all he has done, we can demonstrate our gratitude by talking about his love to others and living it out.
1:15 Paul was eager to preach the gospel of Jesus. Do you eagerly desire to tell others about him? Or are you too afraid of looking silly because of what you believe, too embarrassed to speak up, or too intimidated to explain your faith convincingly? When we fully appreciate what Jesus has done for us and what he offers to others, his love will motivate us to share the Good News. Ask God to rekindle afresh an eager attitude in you to follow him and to tell others this amazing news that has the power to change their lives for eternity.
1:16 Paul was not ashamed of the gospel, the Good News about Christ because he knew that it was true and that it could not be refuted by even the brightest minds of Greek or Roman culture. He had a message of how the world really worked, of the true story of humanity. It is the message of salvation, God's rescue plan for all people. When you feel embarrassed to be a Christian, remember what the gospel is all about. If you focus on the reality of God's transforming and life-changing power in the world rather than on your own inadequacy, you will find the confidence you need to boldly speak about the faith.
1:16 Why did the message of Jesus go to the Jews first? They had been God's special people for more than 2,000 years, ever since God had chosen Abraham and promised great blessings to his descendants (Genesis 12:1-3). God did not choose the Jews because they deserved to be chosen (Deuteronomy 7:7-8; 9:4-6) but because he wanted to show his love and mercy to them. He wanted the Jewish people to be an example of his love and mercy toward other nations, just as he had shown them. It was always his plan that through them the Messiah, Jesus, would come into the world. God chose them, not to play favourites, but so that they would tell the world about his plan of salvation.
For centuries, the Jews had been learning about God by obeying his laws, keeping his festivals, and living according to his moral principles. They would often forget his promises and laws, and they would often have to be disciplined. But they still had a precious heritage of belief in the one true God. Of all the people on earth, the Jews should have been the most ready to welcome the Messiah and to understand his mission and message-and some of them did (see Luke 2:25. 36-38). Among others, the disciples and the apostle Paul were faithful Jews who recognised Jesus as God's most precious gift to the human race.
1:17 The gospel shows us both how righteous and how merciful God has been in his plan to save us and how we may be made fit for eternal life. When we trust Jesus with our lives, God restores and makes right our relationship with him. "From first to last," God declares us to have right standing with him by faith and faith alone. Paul quotes from Habakkuk 2:4 to show that as we trust God, we are saved; we have life both now and forever.
1:18-3:20 Romans 1:18-3:20 develops Paul's argument that no one can claim by his or her own efforts or merit to be good in God's sight-not the masses, not the Romans, not even the Jews. All people everywhere deserve God's condemnation for their sin.
1:18-20 In these verses, Paul answers a common objection to belief in God: How could a loving God send anyone to hell, especially someone who has never heard about Jesus? Paul says that God has revealed himself plainly in creation to all people. Yet people reject even this basic knowledge of a supreme creator. Both logic and common sense reveal cause and effect at work in nature, so a natural question to ask would be What is the cause behind all that we see? In addition, people have an inner sense of what God requires; they just choose to ignore it. If people suppress God's evidence in order to live their own way, they have no excuse. They know the truth, and they will have to endure the consequences of ignoring it.
1:18-20 Some people wonder why we need missionaries if people can know about God through creation (nature). The answer: (1) Although people know that God exists, they suppress the truth by their hardness of heart and thus refuse a relationship with him. Missionaries sensitively expose their sin and point them to Jesus. (2) Although people may believe there is a God, they refuse to commit themselves to him. Missionaries help persuade them, both through loving words and caring actions. (3) Missionaries convince people who reject God of the dangerous consequences of their actions. (4) Missionaries help the church obey the great commission of our Lord (Matthew 28:19-20). (5) Most important, though nature reveals God, people need to be told about Jesus and how, through him, they can have a personal relationship with God.
Knowing that God exists is not enough. People must learn that God loves us and that he sent His Son to demonstrate that love (Romans 5:8). They must be shown how to accept God's forgiveness of their sins. (Also see 10:14-15.)
1:18 Why is God angry at sinful people? Because, starting with Adam and Eve, God gave all people a choice to follow him or to go their own way. But they have arrogantly substituted the truth about him with a lie (1:25). People have stifled the truth God naturally reveals to everyone in order to support their own self-centred way of living. This is sin, and God cannot tolerate sin because of his holy, perfect nature. He has designed the best way for people to live in harmony with him and with each other. He cannot ignore or condone willful rebellion. God wants to remove sin and restore sinners, which he will do if sinners do not continue to stubbornly distort or reject the truth but instead turn to him for salvation. God's justified anger turns on those who persist in going their own way. Are you pursuing the lie that sin is not serious and you don't need God? Don't deceive yourself about him merely to protect your current way of life. Devote yourself to searching for the truth, and you will find him.
1:19 Does anyone have an excuse for not believing in God? The Bible answers an emphatic no. God has revealed what he is like in and through his creation. Every person, therefore, either accepts or rejects God. Don't argue with God. When the day comes for God to judge your response to him, no excuses will be accepted. If you haven't already, begin today to give your devotion and worship to him.
1:20 What kind of God does nature reveal? Nature shows us a God of might, intelligence. and intricate detail; a God of order and beauty; a God who controls powerful forces. That is general revelation. Through special revelation (the Bible and the coming of Jesus). We learn about God's love and forgiveness and the promise of eternal life. God has graciously given us many sources to help us fully believe in him.
1:20 God reveals his divine nature and personal qualities through creation, even though creation's testimony has been distorted by the Fall. Adam's sin resulted in a divine curse upon the whole natural order (Genesis 3:17-19); thorns and thistles were an immediate result, and natural disasters have been common from Adam's day to ours. In Romans 8:19-21, Paul says that nature itself is eagerly awaiting its own redemption from the effects of sin (see Revelation 22:3).
1:21-32 Paul clearly portrays the inevitable downward spiral into sin. First, people reject the true God; next, they make up their own ideas of what a god should be and do; then they fall into every kind of sinful behavior: greed, hate, envy, murder, quarrelling, deception, malice, gossip. Finally, they grow to hate God and also encourage others to do so. God does not cause this steady progression toward evil. Rather, when people reject him, he allows them freedom to live as they choose. God gives them over, or permits them, to experience the natural consequences of their sinful choices. Once caught in the downward spiral, no one can pull themselves out. Sinners must trust Christ alone to deliver them from destruction and put them on the path of salvation.
1:21-23 How could intelligent people turn to idolatry? Idolatry begins when people reject what they know about God. Instead of thanking him and following him as the creator and sustainer of life, they see themselves as the centre of the universe. They soon invent "gods" that are convenient projections of their own selfish ideas. These gods may come in the form of wooden figures and associated pagan rituals, or they may be goals or other pursuits such as money, power, possessions.
1:21-23 How could intelligent people turn to idolatry? Idolatry begins when people reject what they know about God. Instead of thanking him and following him as the creator and sustainer of life, they see themselves as the centre of the universe. They soon invent ·gods· that are convenient projections of their own selfish ideas. These gods may come in the form of wooden figures and associated pagan rituals, or they may be goals or other pursuits such as money, power, possessions, or sex. They may even be misrepresentations of God himself-making God in the image each person prefers. The common denominator is this: Idolaters ultimately worship what God has made rather than God himself. Can you think of anything that you feel you can't live without? Are any of your priorities greater than following God wholeheartedly? Do you have a dream you would sacrifice everything to realise? To avoid idolatry, your heart needs to get to the point where God's will and God's way are the measures by which you evaluate everything else you do. It doesn't mean other things are not important. It just means that all of life is viewed through God's perspective.
1:23 When Paul says that people worshipped idols that were made to look like people or animals instead of worshipping God, he seems to be deliberately describing people's wickedness in the terms used in the Genesis narrative of Adam's fall (see Genesis 3:1-24). When we worship creatures instead of the Creator, we lose sight of our own identity as those who are higher than the animals and made in the image of God.
1:24-32 These people chose to reject God, and God allowed them to follow their sinful desires. God does not usually stop us from making wrong choices that are against his will. He lets us choose independence from him, even though he knows that in time we will become slaves to our own rebellious choices if we persist in sin. Does life without God look like freedom to you? Look more closely. Defiant freedom from God will confine you forever. There is no worse slavery than slavery to sin.
1:25 People tend to believe lies that reinforce their own selfish, personal beliefs. Today, more than ever, we need to be careful about the input we allow to form our beliefs. With the internet, music, movies, and shows often glorifying sinful lifestyles. and unwholesome values, we find ourselves constantly bombarded by attitudes and beliefs that are totally opposed to the Bible. Be careful about what you look at and what influences you allow to form your opinions. God gave us the Bible as the standard of truth. Evaluate all other opinions in light of it.
1:26-27 God's plan for sexual relationships is his ideal for his creation. Because he created us, he has the prior claim on all our capabilities and even our desires. When we accept him as the Lord of our lives, his Holy Spirit begins to convince us of how we should live and love. Unfortunately, sin distorts the natural use of God's gifts. Sin often means denying not only God but also the purpose he has for us and the way in which we are made. When people say that any sex act is acceptable as long as nobody gets hurt, they are fooling themselves. In the long run (and often in the short run), sexual sin hurts people-individuals, families, and whole societies. Because sex is such a powerful and essential part of what it means to be human, it must be treated with great respect. Sexual desires are of such importance that the Bible give them special attention and counsels more careful restraint and self-control regarding the desire for sex than any other desire. One of the clearest indicators of a society or person in rebellion·against God is the rejection of God's guidelines for sex.
1:26-27 Homosexual activity (to have sexual relations with someone of the same gender) was as widespread in Paul's day as it is in ours. Roman law allowed for it, and some pagan religious practices used same-sex prostitutes. Many who owned slaves forced their younger slaves to perform same-sex sexual acts. Homosexual activity is strictly forbidden in Scripture (Leviticus 18:22) because it goes against God's design for marriage, which he established at Creation-a union between a man and a woman. According to the Bible, sexual relations are reserved for the context of marriage. By many in our world today--even by many churches-homosexual activity is considered a matter of personal choice. But society does not set the standard for God's law. Many people who are same-sex attracted believe that their desires are good and that they have a right to express them. But God does not encourage us to fulfil all our desires. Desires that violate his plan must be controlled.
If you have these desires, you can resist acting upon them. Consciously avoid places or activities you know will kindle temptations of this kind. Don't underestimate the power of Satan to tempt you or the potential for serious harm if you continue to yield to these temptations. Remember, God can and will forgive sexual sins just as he forgives other sins. God willingly receives anyone who comes to him in faith, and Christians should love and accept others no matter what their background. Surrender yourself to the grace and mercy of God, asking him to show you the way out of sin and into the light of his freedom and his love. Prayer, Bible study, and loving support in a Bible-believing church can help you gain strength to resist powerful temptations. If you are already involved in homosexual sexual behaviour, seek help from a trustworthy professional Christian counsellor.
1:32 How were these people aware that God's justice would require death? All human beings are created in God's image; thus, we have an underlying moral nature and a conscience. This truth is understood beyond religious circles. Psychologists, for example, say that the rare person who has no conscience has a serious personality disorder that is extremely difficult to treat. Most people instinctively know when they do wrong--but they may not care. Some people will even risk an early death for the freedom to indulge their desires now. I know it's wrong, but I really want it, they say; or I know it's dangerous, but it's worth the risk. For such people, part of the "fun and excitement" is going against God's law, their community's moral standards, common sense, or their own sense of right and wrong. But deep down inside they know that God's justice says they deserve the punishment of death (6:23).
Taken from Life Application Study Bible - Third Edition - (NIV)