Day #341

Sermon - Audio
Acts 20:1-3 & Romans 1-3 - Reading
Acts 20:1-3 & Romans 1-3 - Audio

Daily Insights - Please Comment

Acts 20:1-3 and Romans 1-3

Romans 1

v. 2 – Paul holds the Jewish scripture in high esteem by calling them “the Holy Scriptures”. When Paul writes in Romans concerning the scriptures it is always referring to the OT.

v. 5 – The “obedience that comes from faith” means the obedience that flows from being a believer in Jesus Christ. Throughout Romans Paul will point out what it looks like to live in disobedience as a slave to sin and what it looks like to be a slave to righteousness. For Paul, true faith issues forth a life of faithfulness.

v. 12 – Spiritual gifts are intended to be used to build up the body of Christ. Paul recognizes that even as he strengthens the church through the use of his gifts, so the members of the congregation will strengthen him by the use of their gifts.

v. 16 – God’s good news and salvation are for those who believe. In our culture many people believe that you get to Heaven by dying and God will let you in because you were a pretty good person. Paul declares that thinking is wishful thinking. The only way into God’s kingdom is through belief.

v. 19-20 – Paul tells us that through creation, a person can gain a limited knowledge of God, namely, his eternal power and divine nature. Because people can see these qualities of God through nature, they are without excuse when they choose to reject God.

v. 23 – As Paul writes to Rome, he takes a swipe at the cult of the Emperor. The people of the Empire choose to worship the image of a man rather than worshipping the living God.

v. 24 – God’s punishment is to give people what they want.

v. 25 – The words in verses 18-32 are basically written to the Gentiles. After the exile in Babylon, idolatry was largely eliminated from the Jewish culture. We know this not only from the Jewish writings of the day, but also from the Gospels. Jesus never speaks about idols or idolatry in his teaching. In the book of Acts, idolatry is not mentioned until Gentiles come into the church.

Romans 2

v. 3 – Those who pass judgment should not assume they will escape judgment, for their sin is just as much a reality as the people in Chapter 1.

v. 7 – The idea that God gives eternal life for the good one does seem out of sorts with Paul’s proclamation in Romans 1. We must always allow scripture to interpret scripture. The central theme of the NT is that we are saved by grace through faith. Knowing this, we understand Paul’s words in 2:7 to be Paul’s teaching that anyone who comes to faith is going to live like it. If there is no evidence of faith by the way one lives, then there is no faith. The transforming power of the Holy Spirit is simply too great to leave us as we are.

v. 8 – These words foreshadow the words of Rev. 21:7.

v. 12 – Each person will be judged based on the revelation they received from God. This means that those who received the Law will be judged more harshly because they had a greater revelation.

v. 22 – “rob temples” – We are not sure that it means to “rob temples” in the Jewish context. There are at least two possibilities. 1 – That the Jewish people are making money off the temples while condemning the idolatry in them. 2 – That Paul is referring to the Temple in Jerusalem and speaking of the way some of his readers steal from that temple (perhaps not properly giving their tithes and offerings to God.)

v. 25-29 – Paul continues his words by pointing out that circumcision is meaningless unless it is accompanied by obedience to God’s rule for life. This idea reflects Jesus who says in Matt. 7 that a person can prophesy, cast out demons and perform miracles, but it is not a sing that that person belongs to God – only obedience to God’s will is a sign.

Romans 3

v. 3 – The people of Israel were unfaithful to keeping their part of the covenant, but God will in no way stop being faithful in carrying out his covenant promises. It is a revelation that God will not just keep his promises to Israel, but that he is a God who at the very core of his being is a promise keeper. He will keep his promises no matter what it costs him.

v. 20 – The first use of the Law is to reveal our sin to us. The second use of the Law is in the public square where it is used as a basis for the writing of good law. The third use of the Law is as a means of gratitude to God. The Law shapes our thankful response to God.

v. 24 – Justification means to be seen by God as if we had never sinned nor been a sinner. This justification makes us acceptable to God and brings us into the kingdom of his Son. This justification comes only through Jesus Christ.