Sermon 23 of the series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul addressed a dangerous question: if believers are no longer under law but under grace, does that free them to sin? His answer was an emphatic NO (6:15). He explained it in terms of slavery. Everyone presents themselves as a slave to one master or another, either to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness (6:16). Genuine believers used to be slaves of sin, but they became obedient from the heart and were set free to become slaves of righteousness, leading to sanctification (6:17-18). Paul reminded them of the fruit each master produces: slavery to sin yielded only shame and death; slavery to God yields sanctification and its end, eternal life (6:20-22). He closed with the verse most of us know by heart: “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (6:23). That settles the believer’s relationship to sin. But it opens a new question: if we are no longer under law but under grace, what exactly is our relationship to the law itself? The apostle addresses that question directly, using marriage as an illustration.

Released by Death

Paul begins with a principle both Jew and Gentile in the Roman church would recognize: law has jurisdiction over a person only while that person is alive. He anchors it in something concrete, marriage. A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives; only his death releases her from that bond, free to remarry without any charge of adultery.^[1]

Romans 7:1-3: Or do you not know, brothers^]—for I am speaking to those who know the law—that the law is binding on a person only as long as he lives? ² For a married woman is bound by law to her husband while he lives, but if her husband dies she is released from the law of marriage. ³ Accordingly, she will be called an adulteress if she lives with another man while her husband is alive. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law, and if she marries another man she is not an adulteress.

Paul is not teaching about marriage here; he is using marriage to prove a single legal point, that death changes what law can demand of a person. Readers should be careful not to press every detail of the illustration of marriage beyond the main point.

Released to Belong

Paul applies the principle. Believers died to the law, but not on their own effort. Christ’s physical body died; the believer died with Him through their union (6:3-5). The purpose of that death was so that the believer could belong to Christ.

Romans 7:4-5: Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God. ⁵ For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death.

The law’s jurisdiction ended, so the believer could belong wholly and exclusively to the risen Christ. The apostle explained that sinful passions were aroused by the law, leading to death. This is a similar point where the law increased sin (5:20).

Released to Serve

Paul repeats the word “released,” borrowing from the widow’s language. Being released was due to death to the law. The result of belonging to God is a new way of living through the Holy Spirit. He contrasts the law with the Holy Spirit.

Romans 7:6: But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.

The new way of the Spirit points to the internal, Spirit-worked obedience promised through the prophets: God’s law written on the heart (Jer. 31:33; Ezek. 36:26-27). The old code could command but never produce what it commanded. Fruitfulness for God was never a matter of trying harder under the old system; it flows from union with Christ and the indwelling Spirit.^[2]

Application

1. Believe that you have died to the law and now belong to Christ. We must believe that we are free from the Old form and now belong to a new way of living through faith in Christ Jesus our Lord.

2. The law triggered sinful passions in us, but since we are no longer under it, we are freed. We bear the fruit of sanctification because we belong to God in Christ Jesus. There is a difference between obeying for the sake of rules versus obeying as a fruit.

3. Always remember that there is a new way of serving: serving in the Holy Spirit. The new way comes from the new life in the Holy Spirit. It is not the old person trying to improve but a totally new life with a new way empowered by the Holy Spirit.

^[1] James D. G. Dunn et al., Romans 1-8, Volume 38A (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 368. Dunn explains that under Jewish law, the woman cannot divorce her husband. She is freed upon the death of her husband.

^[2] Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 2018), 343. Schreiner states “Only those who have died with Christ to the law and possess the Holy Spirit have the ability to bear fruit for God.”

RELEASED
by Ed Pilapil Jr.

It’s not about trying harder
For such will not take you farther
No righteousness under the law
Something that the apostle saw

Through death, released from the marriage
Free from the law, free from its wage
And to be joined to another
It’s faith, and not trying harder

Sinful passions, the law aroused
Triggered sin, the letter announced
But there’s a new way of living
Needs renewing of the thinking

To now belong to Christ the Lord
Severed from sin; also the law
Released to sanctification
In this, there is no confusion

Study Guide

1. Compare the marriage illustration in Romans 7:1-3 with the baptism illustration in Romans 6:3-4. What single point is Paul making with each picture, and where should we stop pressing the details of an illustration further than Paul intended?

2. The phrase “in the flesh” appears in 7:5 and “in the new way of the Spirit” in 7:6. Explain the contrast between these two phrases from the immediate context, including what each produces ( Ro 7:5-6).

3. How will you serve God “in the new way of the Spirit” this week rather than “the old way of the written code”? Draw your answer directly from Romans 7:1-6, not from a general idea of trying harder.

PDF

Released Ro 7

414KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Pinalaya Ro 7

406KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Twenty-second in the Sermon Series. “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul explained that all who have died with Christ will also live with him (6:8). His reason: Christ’s own resurrection was final, and death no longer has any claim on him (6:9). His death dealt with sin once for all; his life is now lived entirely to God (6:10). On that basis, Paul issues his first direct command in the chapter: count yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus (6:11). This isn’t wishful thinking. It is reasoning from a settled fact to the way one must live. So the believer must not let sin reign in the mortal body (6:12); do not surrender your members over to sin as weapons of unrighteousness, but offer yourselves to God as those brought from death to life (6:13). And Paul grounds the whole appeal in a promise: sin will not be your master, because you are not under law but under grace (6:14). That last line: “not under law but under grace,” is exactly what triggers the next section. If grace, not law, is now in charge, doesn’t that leave the door open to sin freely? Paul’s answer is an emphatic no, and he explains why using the very metaphor of slavery he’s already introduced.

Not a Slave to Sin

Paul repeats a similar statement (Ro 6:1-2), but this time with the element of the law. Should believers sin because they are no longer under the law but under grace? The answer is the same: NO. Then he explains that sin is the master if you obey it, but it leads to death.

Romans 6:15-16, ESV: What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! ¹⁶ Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?

Paul writes to give them the right perspective of sin and slavery. That is, if one surrenders his body to sin, such a person is a slave to sin. But that leads to death. The author refers to the old life of sin because the new life is different.

Slave to Righteousness

Paul gives thanks to God for the transformation from being slaves to sin to slaves of righteousness. The apostle gave two opposite elements: sin and righteousness, but two supporting terms: slave and obedience. He exhorts them to present themselves slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.^[1]

Romans 6:17-19: But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, ¹⁸ and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. ¹⁹ I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

Paul mentions the term: sanctification. It is one of the major doctrines of Christianity. In this context, it is about identifying as a slave to righteousness rather than to sin. The sanctified person rejects the dominion of sin, but submits himself to the sovereignty of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

Wages vs Free

Paul explains that the fruit of sin is shame and the consequence is eternal death. Conversely, the fruit of being a slave of God is sanctification, and the reward is eternal life. Paul contrasts wages and free gift in describing death and eternal life in Christ.

Romans 6:20-23: For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. ²¹ But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. ²² But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. ²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

If one thinks about it, wages describe something you deserve; they are a payment. Death is something earned by sin. ^[2] But a free gift is not about earning it, and that was how Paul described eternal life in Christ. How is it received? Genuine faith in Christ Jesus.

Application

1. Stop thinking of sin as an occasional stumble and start asking who you’re actually presenting yourself to. Determine that you are not a slave to sin. You do not have to obey its lusts.

2. Let us continuously present ourselves to the Lord Jesus as slaves of righteousness. We carefully watch our minds, emotions, and the members of our body for the Sovereign Lord of All.

3. Believe in the difference between sin and righteousness, as well as where they lead: death or eternal life. If we have sinned, let us not despair, for grace, the free gift of God, is greater than our sin.

^[1] Colin G. Kruse, Paul’s Letter to the Romans (Eerdmans, 2012), 284. Kruse explains that Paul talks about sanctification as a process but also as a result in a “state of fitness for God’s presence.”

^[2] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 6:23. Thielman states that the free gift also refers to justification in 5:15-16.

SANCTIFIED
by Ed Pilapil Jr

Through faith in Christ, we’re unified
That also means we’re justified
Thus, there is hope for the guilty
Those who confess admittedly

Believer and Christ: unified
With Him, we have been crucified
In His death, we have been baptized
Dead to sin, with Him, we have died

We’re joined to Christ, yes, unified
It also means we’re sanctified
No neutral ground, the line is clear
Do not be stubborn and not hear

To those in Christ, those unified
Let’s live the path that’s sanctified
We are then slaves to righteousness
By grace, we live in holiness

Study Guide

1. What are the similarities and differences of Ro 6:1-3 to Ro 6:15-16? Explain.

2. The word “sanctification” (or holiness) twice. Explain it within the immediate context. (Ro 6:19 & 22)

3. How will you live a sanctified life? Draw your answer from the passage (Ro 6:15-23).

PDF

Sanctification Ro 6

407KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Kabanalan Ro 6

376KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Twenty-first in the Sermon Series. “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul taught that while sin, corruption, and condemnation entered humanity through Adam, far greater grace is available through Jesus Christ. However, the apostle clarifies that abundant grace is never a valid excuse to continue living in sin (6:1-2). The reason he gives is that a person who has genuine faith in Christ has died to sin. Paul illustrates this truth through the term “baptized,” which literally means “immersed.” A true believer is fully immersed into Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. By being united with His death, the believer experiences a death to sin; by being united with His resurrection, they are raised to walk in a new life (6:3-4). Furthermore, Paul emphasizes that the old sinful self, inherited under Adam, was crucified together with Christ (6:5-7). Because of this crucifixion, sin no longer exercises dominion over believers. Therefore, those who have faith must consider themselves dead to sin and continually offer their lives to God as active instruments of righteousness.

No Dominion

Paul explains that those who died with Christ will also live with Him. He reminds them about the fact that Christ rose from the dead and He will never die again. Death has no dominion over Him because His death dealt with sin, but He now lives to God. His death was once in history and no longer repeatable.^[1]

Romans 6:8-10: Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. ⁹ We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. ¹⁰ For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.

People who genuinely have faith in Christ are united with Him in His death and resurrection. Sin has no more dominion over Christ because He had no sin. His death was because of the sins of those who would believe in Him. Christ will never die again. A genuine believer is joined to Him; thus, he will live for eternity.

Dead to Sin

Paul instructs believers to “consider” or “reckon” themselves dead to sin. Believers must believe it, count it as true that they are “dead to sin and alive to God in Christ.” Paul was leading them into a spiritual and mental state; this is not pretension, but a way of living.^[2]

Romans 6:11: So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

The apostle’s instruction is twofold. One is about being dead to sin, but the other is being alive to God in Christ Jesus. A life in Christ is not only about avoiding sin but also about being alive to God, which is the new life in Christ.

Do Not Let Sin Reign

Paul instructs the Roman believers not to let sin rule their bodies. Moreover, he tells them not to present themselves as “instruments of unrighteousness.” It means that although believers were freed from slavery, they must not revert to it. Conversely, believers must present themselves as “instruments of righteousness.”

Romans 6:12-14: Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. ¹³ Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. ¹⁴ For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

Paul does not give a neutral ground. Either a person is an instrument of sin and unrighteousness or a person is an instrument of righteousness in Christ.^[3] The reason why sin must not have dominion over the genuine believer is that they are not under the law but under grace. Remember that the law increases sin, but we are under grace. Thus, we are not to continue in sin (6:1-2).

Application

1. When you feel condemned or enslaved by a recurring sin, the first move is not to try harder; it is to remember whose you are. Let us believe with all our hearts, “I am united to a Christ over whom death and sin have no more dominion.”

2. When an old sin pattern presents itself as though it still has authority over you, consciously say (out loud if it helps), “I am dead to this; it no longer owns me, and I am alive to God in Christ.”

Let us take inventory this week of specific “members.” That includes our eyes, tongue, time, body, and relationships. Let us reflect on whether we have been presenting them to sin out of habit. Then make a deliberate, practical substitution: present that same member to God for righteousness instead.

^[1] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018). Thielman states “Christ did not die to sin in the same way that believers die to sin. Unlike them he ‘knew no sin.’”

^[2] Colin G. Kruse, Paul’s Letter to the Romans (Eerdmans, 2012), 267.

^[3] Douglas J. Moo, The Letter to the Romans, 2nd ed. (Eerdmans, 2018), 409.

Poem

UNIFIED WITH CHRIST
byb Ed Pilapil Jr

All who died in Christ, they shall live
No payment, nothing we can give
A new life He gives; thus, believe
Grace is not something to achieve

Yet consider the self as dead
Heed what the Apostle Paul said
Dead to sin, alive to God, too
That’s a command for me and you

The mortal self, sin must not rule
Don’t look back; do not be a fool
No longer in unrighteousness
But instruments of righteousness

This is a new way of thinking
It is a new way of living
The old, old self was crucified
In Christ Jesus, we’re unified

Study Guide

1. How does knowing that “death no longer has dominion over” Christ change the way you face a temptation or sin pattern that feels like it has dominion over you? (Ro 6:8-10)

2. What two things, exactly, are believers told to reckon true of themselves, and why might Paul include both rather than just the first? (Ro 6:11)

3. What should a believer do and not do? Explain the mention of law and grace. (Ro 6:12-14)

PDF

No Dominion Ro 6

447KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Di Na Paghaharian Ro 6

476KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Twentieth in the Sermon Series. “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul has been explaining the gospel in different ways. Justified by faith, we have peace with God (5:1). While we were still sinners and enemies, Christ died for us (5:8). Then Paul drew a great contrast: Adam’s one act of disobedience brought sin, death, and condemnation to the whole human race. However, Christ’s obedience brought grace, righteousness, and life (5:12-21). Paul pushed the contrast to the extreme by stating that where sin increased, grace increased all the more (5:20). But the apostle must warn the reader not to misinterpret abounding grace. Abounding grace is not a license to sin more.

Grace is Not a License to Sin

Paul begins by staging a debate. He raises a question regarding his previous statement that grace abounds even if sin increases. The objection is almost clever: if my sin gives God more occasions to show His grace, isn’t sinning in favor of God? The answer is NO. Then he gives the reason.

Romans 6:1-2: What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? ² By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?

The apostle’s reply to the question is “by no means!” He uses another question to answer the previous question. Those who truly have faith have died to sin. Notice the little word “to.” Paul says we died with respect to sin, not that sin has vanished from the world, and not that we can no longer feel its pull.^[1] It means our fundamental relationship to it has been severed.

Baptized Into His Death

How did we die to sin? Paul answers with being baptized into Christ’s death. The word baptized means to plunge or immerse; the word used for an object completely dropped under water. Although the ordinance of water baptism stands in the background, the main point is that genuine faith plunges the believer into Christ’s death.^[2]

Romans 6:3-4: Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴ We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

Paul would then push the imagery even more by stating that the believer is buried with Him. Burial is done to those who are truly dead. But the apostle does not stop at burial; he pushes the parallel even more. Paul relates the resurrection of Christ to the new life of the believer.

Old Self Crucified

Paul gives an image of unity, of being joined together in His death and resurrection. He shows a concept of the old self being crucified with Christ. The purpose? So that the believer would no longer be a slave to sin, meaning that sin is no longer the master.^[3]

Romans 6:5-7: For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. ⁶ We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. ⁷ For one who has died has been set free from sin.

Note that the old self might refer to Adam. The reader must note that Paul is not promising sinless perfection. He is explaining that sin has no more legal right or claim. Although temptation will always lurk, sin is no longer the owner or master of the body.

Application

1. God’s abounding grace is not a license to sin. Do not treat grace as a legal loophole. We can no longer live as those who pursue sin because we have died to sin. Genuine faith does not pursue sin; it dies to it.

2. We are not Christians trying to merely improve; we are sinners who were justified by faith. Such faith means that you died to sin, were buried, and were given a new life. Christ’s death is our death; His resurrection is our new life.

3. We must stop treating sin as our rightful master. As genuine believers, we can resist its desire to treat us as slaves. However, through faith, we reckon ourselves dead to it and no longer enslaved. The old self is replaced by the new life in Christ because of His resurrection.

^[1] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 6:2. Thielman notes that they have not died in every sense, but they have died with respect to sin citing Daniel B. Wallace, Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996), 154.

^[2] Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 2018), 6:3-4. Schreiner explains that those baptized into Christ “were baptized ‘into his death’.... This means that they were plunged into his death, immersed together with him in it.” He affirms that the reference is to water baptism, while insisting that “baptism itself is not the central theme of the text; the main theme is the believer’s participation with the death and resurrection of Christ.”

^[3] Richard N. Longenecker, The Epistle to the Romans (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2016), 6:5-7. Longenecker writes that believers “have been united with him” and “crucified with him” in Jesus’ death, and yet “at the present time believers in Jesus live their lives in the hope, which has been given by God, ‘that the body of sin will be done away with’ and ‘that we should no longer be slaves to sin.’”

DEAD TO SIN
by Ed Pilapil Jr

Stop the foolish thinking today
In old sinful self, do not stay
Faith also means dying to sin
We cannot make our home therein

How can we remain when we died
That’s from sin and all of sin’s pride
Buried too, there’s no doubt of death
Then, we have resurrection’s wealth

The old self, in the cross was slain
Thus, sinful self no longer reigns
Broke sin’s power, He set us free
Yes, we’re free from sin’s tyranny

We’re dead to sin, in Christ, we’re whole
New life, now lived, in heart and soul
The grace that abounds made it so
Therefore, to sin, we must say NO

Study Guide

1. In your own words, why does Paul consider “keep sinning so grace can increase” not just wrong but absurd? What does the phrase “died to sin” actually mean, and what does it not mean? (Ro 6:1-2)

2. Paul uses two vivid pictures: (1) being “plunged/immersed into Christ” and (2) being “buried with him.” What does each picture teach us about our union with Christ? Where does the power for our new life come from? (Ro 6:3-4)

3. How would you explain “brought to nothing” in your own words, and why is freedom from sin’s slavery different from sinless perfection? (Ro 6:5-7)

PDF

Dead To Sin Ro 6 1 7

468KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Patay Sa Kasalanan Ro 6 1 7

434KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Nineteenth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul assured that our hope is secure. Having been justified by faith, we have peace with God; we stand in grace and even rejoice in suffering, because suffering produces endurance, character, and hope; and this hope does not disappoint, for God’s love has been poured into our hearts by the Spirit. Paul’s clinching argument was that if Christ died for us while we were still enemies, how much more, now reconciled, will we be saved by his life. That is the settled ground of assurance. But Paul anticipates a fear. If our hope is so secure, what about the two great enemies that still stalk the human race, sin and death? Where did they come from, and can our hope really outlast them? The apostle would contrast two men, Adam and Christ. They are representatives, each one acting on behalf of a whole humanity. The question is simply: whose humanity are you in?

The First Man

Paul first traces how the two enemies got in. Through Adam’s single act, sin entered, and with sin came death, and death “spread to all.”^[1] The proof is striking. Between Adam and Moses there was no written law to break, yet people still died. Paul had already said that “where there is no law there is no transgression” (4:15), so how could they die?

Romans 5:12-14: Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— ¹³ for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. ¹⁴ Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come.

His answer is that the reign of death over that lawless period is itself the evidence that sin was already present and reigning. Death is the fingerprint that betrays sin’s universal grip. We are not merely sinners because we imitate Adam; we stand under a condition inherited from him.

The Second Man

Paul contrasts Christ to Adam, but it is not a parallel. Christ did not just pay back what Adam lost; He gave so much more. Paul insists the work of Christ is not merely equal to Adam’s damage but exceeds it. Grace does not just balance the ledger; it goes past it.^[2]

Romans 5:15-19: But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. ¹⁶ And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. ¹⁷ For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.

¹⁸ Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. ¹⁹ For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.

Adam brought condemnation, but Christ brought justification. Adam brought sin and death, but Christ brought righteousness and life. Adam brought a sinful nature and a sinful environment upon men. But God, through Christ, sends the Holy Spirit (Ro 5:5, 8:9). Note that “life for all men” refers to all who are justified through faith, both Jews and Gentiles.

Grace Reigns

Finally, Paul folds in the law, the great event at Sinai that his account so far had seemed to skip. The common Jewish assumption was that the law was given to restrain sin. Paul’s claim is startling: the law came so that sin would increase, which may also mean that it would be exposed. Yet even that does not sink our hope, because he adds that where sin multiplied, grace multiplied all the more.^[3]

Romans 5:20-21: Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, ²¹ so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The passage ends in a throne room: sin once reigned in the realm of death, but now grace reigns through Jesus Christ our Lord. The last word of the chapter is not sin’s dominion but grace, righteousness, and eternal life.

Application

1. Everyone is a sinner because everyone sinned; yet all were born into original sin through the sin of Adam. Stop trying to argue that you are the exception. Admitting that we are sinners and helpless makes us appreciate the work of Christ.

2. The question is never “Have I done enough?” but “In whom do I stand?” When sin accuses you this week, do not answer with your effort; answer with your union to Christ, in whom grace abounds all the more.

3. The law was never the ladder to God; it is the mirror that drives us to grace. Let your growing awareness of sin push you not into despair but deeper into the reign of grace, under a King whose rule is toward life, not condemnation.

^[1] Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 2018), 276-281. Schreiner cites Murray that all have sinned is unlikely because each person committed a personal sin, but rather, because all sinned in Adam. Schreiner states “Human beings enter the world condemned and spiritually dead because they sinned in Adam.

^[2] Douglas J. Moo, The Letter to the Romans, 2nd ed. (Eerdmans, 2018), 362-68.

^[3] Richard N. Longenecker, The Epistle to the Romans (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2016), 599.

Poem

THE GREATER ADAM
by Ed Pilapil Jr.

In Adam’s fall the whole world died
A shadow spread on every side
Through Adam, the reign of death came
Thus, each man sinned, each man to blame

When the corruption ran so deep
A second Man arose to reap
Paid the price and gave so much more
That’s righteousness, and more in store 

The law came in, and sin increased
The debt in sin, it never ceased
But grace showed, greater than our shame
We have so much more in His name

No longer condemned, we’re not bound
We hear the call, we hear the sound
The sound we hear is Christ alone
The sound we hear is faith alone

Study Guide

1. People died before the law of Moses ever existed. What does that fact prove about sin? (Ro 5:12-14)

2. Why does Paul keep saying “how much more” instead of simply saying Christ undid Adam’s damage? (Ro 5:15-19)

3. If the law made sin increase, how is that good news? (Ro 5:20-21)

PDF

The Greater Adam Ro

434KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Mas Dakilang Adan Ro

421KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Eighteenth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul announced the settled privileges of everyone justified by faith: we have peace with God, we stand in grace, and we can even rejoice in suffering because God has poured his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. He assured the believers, calling God’s love the anchor that keeps our hope from ever putting us to shame (Ro 5:1-5). The apostle will explain that the love that was poured out was expressed through Christ’s death while the believers were still sinners. God’s love was not mere talk; it was proven on the cross. The writer gave a clear contrast. God is righteous, but He poured out His love? To whom? To the weak, the impious, sinners, and enemies.

Proven Love

Paul uses “For while” indicating the timing of the cross. Related to timing, the writer also uses the phrase “still sinners.”^[1] The apostle wants the reader to understand how profound God’s love is. Why would He die for the unrighteous? Such is unthinkable, but this love is real.

Romans 5:6-8: For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— ⁸ but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Notice he says God demonstrates His love through the death of Christ. The Father and Son acting together, so that the cross measures the very heart of God toward those who have faith. The love of God is not proven by the believers’ circumstance; it was proven through the death of Christ.

Enemies Reconciled

Paul explains that being justified by the death of Christ, the believer is also saved from God’s wrath (Ro 1:18). Then the apostle shows the real picture: that the believer was an enemy of God, reconciled through the resurrection, but with so much more grace.^[2] So Christ’s blood (death) and His life (resurrection) save the believer.

Romans 5:9-10: Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. ¹⁰ For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.

Paul introduces a rich word here: reconciled. Peace back in verse 1 was the headline; reconciliation is the detailed story behind it. It means two warring parties brought back together. In the ancient world, people always assumed humans had to work to appease an angry God. Paul flips it. God took the initiative, at His own expense, while the sinners wanted nothing to do with him.

Rejoice

Paul could have stopped at “you’re safe from judgment.” But he says, in effect, “and not only that.”^[3] Future security is not the finish line; the present joy is. The reconciled believer doesn’t just wait nervously for heaven; they boast in God right now.

Romans 5:11: More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

And notice that word “now.” It states, “we have now received reconciliation.” This is a present possession, something the believer already holds in his/her hands today, through “our Lord Jesus Christ.” Peace with God turns out to be a costly reconciliation, achieved by God’s own initiative, guaranteed by a living Lord.

Application

1. Many of us secretly believe God’s love for us rises and falls with our behavior, that He loves us more on our obedient days and less on our failing ones. But Paul locates the proof of God’s love entirely outside us, at the cross, at the moment we were at our worst.

2. Let us be grateful to the Lord for dying for us while we were yet His enemies. May we always remember that Christ is the way to reconcile the believer to the Father. Through His death and resurrection, we are saved from God’s wrath and judgment.

3. Reconciliation isn’t meant to make you merely relieved; it’s meant to make you glad. This week, build in deliberate moments to rejoice in His name out loud, in prayer or with a friend or in song. Joy is not a personality trait for the naturally cheerful; it is the natural overflow of a heart that grasps it has “now received reconciliation.”

^[1] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 5:6.

^[2] Stanley E. Porter and David I. Yoon, Romans: A Handbook of the Greek Text (Waco, Texas: Baylor University Press, 2023), 5:9. An emphasized contrast is indicated.

^[3] Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 2018), 272. The phrase “not only that” may refer to the preceding verse or all the way to verse 3.

Poem

RECONCILIATION
by Ed Pilapil Jr.

While we were weak and far from good
God’s enemies, that’s where we stood
He made a way to save and call
All who believe the Lord of all

Know this: reconciliation
Effect of justification
Through Christ, there is now belonging
And it’s not of our doing

Not one human is deserving
Yet He decided on saving
Reconciling the enemies
Salvation, the Lord guarantees

Not to all, but those having faith
It’s a faith that does not betray
True to His word and the gospel
Fully convinced, that’s His people

Study Guide

1. Explain why Paul uses “still” and “at just the right time.” What do weak, ungodly, sinners describe? (Ro 5:6-8)

2. What has God already done for us? Why can we be sure he’ll finish it? Explain what it means to be “reconciled” to God. (Ro 5:9-10)

3. Is your faith more joyful or more anxious? Explain why reconciliation gives us reason to rejoice today. (Ro 5:11)

PDF

Reconciled With God Ro 5

436KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Pinagkasundo Sa Diyos Ro 5

430KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Seventeenth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul establishes a hard truth: everyone, Jew and non-Jew alike, has rebelled against God and stands guilty before Him, and that rebellion has justly earned His wrath. There is no hope apart from faith in Christ Jesus. To show that this justification is for Jew and non-Jew alike, Paul points to Abraham, whose faith was a full confidence in the promises of God, and such is the faith we too must place in Christ Jesus. From here the apostle unfolds the good news: God, in His grace, makes guilty people right with Himself through faith in Jesus. Having repeated the phrase “justified by faith” and emphasized “grace,” he now introduces a series of rich new themes, “hope,” “peace with God,” and “God’s love.”

Justified, then Peace

Paul, once again, used the phrase, “justified by faith.” The phrase is a courtroom term. God declares those who believe as not guilty. The apostle then introduces a lofty idea: “peace with God.” Peace with God is the result of justification by faith. It means no more war with God.

Romans 5:1, ESV: Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

This peace is not first of all a feeling; it means the war is over, for we were once God’s enemies.^[1] Notice that it comes “through our Lord Jesus Christ”; it is peace Christ purchased, not peace we negotiated. The rebellion is over.

Faith Into Grace

Paul writes that through Jesus we “have obtained access” into grace, and in that grace “we now stand.” Picture being escorted into a king’s throne room; Jesus brings us all the way in, and there we stand, secure and permanent.^[2] Then Paul adds that “we boast in the hope of the glory of God.”

Romans 5:2: Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Because of sin, there was no hope of sharing God’s glory, but now, through Christ, there is a way through faith. This boasting is not proud, self-centered boasting; it is rejoicing in what God has done and promised. Christian hope is not wishful thinking but confident expectation, as certain as God is trustworthy.

God’s Love Amid Suffering

Paul explained God’s wrath in the earlier part of the letter. Now, for the first time, he explains God’s love. Through suffering and hardship, He builds our character, producing hope.^[3] This hope does not put the believers to shame. The reason is God’s love in our hearts through the Holy Spirit.

Romans 5:3-5: Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, ⁴ and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, ⁵ and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

The word hope reminds the reader of Abraham who hoped against hope. The word poured pictures a lavish flood, not a trickle.^[4] Even in the middle of suffering, the Spirit assures us that God truly loves us, so our hope will never end in disappointment.

Application

1. After understanding the wrath and justice of God, we must now understand that the justification through faith leads to peace with God. This is not necessarily about inner peace, although it is part of it. It is about no longer becoming enemies of God.

2. When suffering abounds, remember where we stand, firmly in the grace of God. That security should lead us to rejoicing as we hope for His glory. We live by faith, meaning we are convinced of the promise despite the various trials.

3. Let us rejoice that God’s love is poured in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Note that Paul did not begin with God’s love; he began with God’s wrath against sin. In every season of life, let us meditate on God’s love in the context of His justice, and the justification by faith in Christ.

^[1] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2018), on 5:1. Thielman notes that “peace” here is foremost a cessation of hostility between God and believers, though it also carries the subjective sense of a serene conscience. Cf. Douglas J. Moo, The Letter to the Romans, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2018), on 5:1.

^[2] Thielman, Romans, on 5:2, observes that the perfect-tense verbs “we have obtained” and “we stand” emphasize the continuation of this new, gracious situation for believers. On the term “access” as entry into a king’s presence, see also Colin G. Kruse, Paul’s Letter to the Romans, Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012), on 5:2.

^[3] On the rhetorical “chain” (climax/anadiplosis) that builds step by step toward hope, see Thielman, Romans, on 5:3–4; cf. Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans, 2nd ed., Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2018), on 5:3–4.

^[4] Thielman, Romans, on 5:5, notes that the verb “poured out” emphasizes the lavish, abundant nature of God’s love; the genitive “the love of God” is best read as God’s love for believers, confirmed by 5:8. Cf. James D. G. Dunn, Romans 1–8, Word Biblical Commentary 38A (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2018), on 5:5.

Poem

PEACE WITH GOD
by Ed Pilapil Jr

We’re justified by faith alone
By grace, believing, that we know
War is over, the debt is paid
Through Christ alone, this peace is made

We have access, an open door
Let us rejoice forevermore
Our hope is sure, He made us whole
Eternally sure in our soul

We dare hope despite the trials
No doubt and there’s no denial
Every promise, we dare believe
Assured of the love we received

This hope will never bring us shame
For God poured His love like a flame
Through the Spirit, He floods the heart
A love from which we’ll never part

Study Guide

1. Paul begins with “Therefore.” Explain the connection to chapters 3-4. Then explain the peace of God. (Hint: it is not inner peace) (Ro 5:1)

2. What do the verbs “obtained access” and “stand” reveal about the believer’s position, and how does “the hope of the glory of God” relate to Romans 3:23? (Ro 5:2)

3. Why does Paul arrange the chain in verses 3–4 (suffering → endurance → character → hope) to end on hope, and what reason does verse 5 give that this hope “does not put us to shame”? Ro 5:3-5)

PDF

Peace With God Ro 5

413KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Kapayapaan Ro 5

395KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Sixteenth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul focused his attention on Abraham. Abraham wasn’t declared righteous by his works. If he were, he could boast, but Scripture says his faith was credited to him as righteousness (4:3). David says the same: the truly blessed person is the one whose sins God does not count against him, apart from works (4:6-8). And crucially, this verdict came before Abraham was circumcised (4:9-12), so he is the father of all who believe, circumcised or not. Now Paul presses one step further: why did God arrange salvation this way? Because a promise received by faith rests on grace, and only grace can guarantee it for everyone. So he unfolds the promise, the people, and the power behind it.

The Promise Through Faith

God’s promise to Abraham was never attached to keeping the law. The law came 430 years later and could not add conditions to what grace had already given. In fact, law “brings wrath.” It names our failures and fixes their penalty. If the promise depended on obeying it, the promise would collapse, because none of us keeps it. Grace and law belong to different worlds.^[1]

Romans 4:13-15, ESV: For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. ¹⁴ For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. ¹⁵ For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression.

Once again, Paul highlights righteousness and faith. The law gives clarity of judgment to all who failed to keep all that is in it (Dt 27:26). There is no righteousness in the law. There is only righteousness through Christ by faith.

The Promise Rests on His Grace

The reason why it is by faith is that righteousness depends on His grace. Because it rests on grace, the promise is secured. Abraham is “the father of a multitude of nations,” not merely of his natural children, but of all who follow the pattern of his faith, Jew and Gentile alike.^[2]

Romans 4:16-17: That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, ¹⁷ as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.

Grace makes the family door wide, and grace makes the inheritance certain. If righteousness rests on human performance in keeping the law, then it is uncertain. But because it is through His grace, it becomes certain.

Faith, Fully Convinced

Consider the confidence of Abraham’s faith. He was old, Sarah was barren, and every circumstance said: “impossible.” He didn’t ignore the facts; he weighed them against God’s promise and found God heavier. Abraham was fully convinced that God would keep His promise despite the impossibilities.^[3]

Romans 4:18-25: In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.” ¹⁹ He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. ²⁰ No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, ²¹ fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. ²² That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.” ²³ But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, ²⁴ but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, ²⁵ who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.

He trusted the God “who brings the dead to life.” And Paul says this was written for us, who believe in the God who raised Jesus, delivered up for our sins and raised for our justification.

Application

1. Stop trying to earn what God gives freely. When you make your standing with God depend on your performance, you don’t strengthen the promise; you disrespect it. Rest instead on grace, which is the only ground that can actually hold you.

2. Your place in God’s family doesn’t depend on background, heritage, or track record. If you share Abraham’s faith, you share Abraham’s blessing. And since it rests on God’s grace, not your grip, your inheritance is as certain as God himself.

3. Faith isn’t pretending the obstacles aren’t real; it’s setting them beside God’s word and trusting his power to be greater. The same God who gave life to Abraham’s dead hopes raised Jesus — and that is the God who justifies you today.

^[1] F. F. Bruce, Romans (IVP, 2015), 4:13-15.

^[2] Douglas J. Moo, The Letter to the Romans, 2nd ed. (Eerdmans, 2018), 4:16-17.

^[3] Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 2018), 4:18-21. Schreiner stresses that Abraham’s faith was “God-centered” and must “not be confused with breezy optimism, nor does it involve a denial of external reality”; Abraham “carefully ‘considered’ the obstacles.” What sustained him “was a vision of the God who could do the impossible.”

Poem

THE PROMISE
Ed Pilapil Jr

The promise rests on the LORD’s grace
Oh, how marvelous are His ways
If by the law, and not by grace
Then Jew and Gentile have no place

We’re Abraham’s children through faith
A grandfather who is great, great
Not by blood, but in Christ, through faith
God used him to show us the way

Fully convinced of the promise
Despite impossibilities
Abraham believed the promise
Not in his own capacities

His faith was recorded for us
The word, is for us to discuss
Faith that’s all in, that should be us
Locked in, our faith in Christ Jesus

Study Guide

1. The promise to Abraham: why not through the law and why through faith? (Ro 4:13-15)

2. Why should the promise of righteousness depend on faith? (Ro 4:16-17)

3. Explain the quality of Abraham’s faith as Paul explained. (Ro 4:18-25)

PDF

Ang Pangako Ro 4

401KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Promise Ro 4

413KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Fifteenth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul made a bold claim: God makes people right with himself by faith, apart from good works, and this leaves no room for anyone to boast. But a Jewish reader would immediately object: “What about Abraham? He’s our founding father, the greatest man in our history. Surely he earned his standing with God.” So Paul does something brilliant. He doesn’t argue from his own opinion; he goes to the Scriptures they already trusted and puts Abraham himself on the witness stand. And what he finds there overturns the whole idea that we can earn God’s approval.

Credited Righteousness

Paul reaches for the key text: Genesis 15:6: “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” Notice the moment. God had just promised the childless, elderly Abraham more descendants than the stars. Abraham couldn’t produce that; he could only trust the God who promised it. And God “counted” that trust as righteousness. Paul then uses a simple accounting picture everyone understands.

Romans 4:1-5, ESV: What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? ² For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. ³ For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” ⁴ Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. ⁵ And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness

When you work a job, your paycheck isn’t a gift; it’s a debt your employer owes you. But righteousness doesn’t work like wages. God gives it as a gift to the person who stops trying to earn it and simply trusts “him who justifies the ungodly.”^[1]

Forgiveness is a Blessing

To seal the argument, Paul calls a second witness: King David. In Psalm 32, David describes the deeply happy (blessed) person, and it’s not the flawless achiever. It’s the one “whose lawless deeds are forgiven, whose sins are covered,” the one against whom “the Lord will not count sin.” Paul’s point is precise. If God is not counting sin against you, then he is crediting you with a righteousness you didn’t produce.^[2]

Romans 4:6-8: just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works:

⁷ “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
and whose sins are covered;
⁸ blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.”

Both Abraham and David describe the same thing from two angles: God putting something on your account you didn’t earn (righteousness), and God removing something you did earn (guilt). This isn’t a New Testament novelty; it was the heartbeat of the Old Testament all along.

Blessings for Jew and Gentile

Now, Paul springs the trap on the objection. When did God count Abraham righteous, before or after he was circumcised? The timeline is decisive: Genesis 15 comes at least 14 years before Abraham was circumcised in Genesis 17. So God declared him righteous while he was still, in effect, an outsider, an “uncircumcised” man, no different in status from a Gentile.^[3]

Romans 4:9-12: Is this blessing then only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness. ¹⁰ How then was it counted to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. ¹¹ He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, ¹² and to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.

Circumcision came afterward, as a “seal,” a sign confirming a righteousness he already had by faith. Why did God arrange it this way? So Abraham could be the father of two families at once: the father of all who believe without the Jewish badge, and of Jews who don’t merely bear the badge but also walk in his footsteps of faith.

Application

1. Stop treating God like an employer you’re clocking hours for. You cannot put him in your debt, and you don’t need to. Your standing with God isn’t a paycheck you earn by being good enough; it’s a gift you receive by trusting Christ. Rest in that.

2. Real happiness isn’t found in a perfect record or a spotless past. It’s found in being forgiven. If guilt haunts you, hear this: for those in Christ, God has chosen not to count your sin against you. Let that settle your soul — you are covered.

3. No one is too far outside to be welcomed by God, and no religious credential can substitute for real faith. Don’t lean on your background, your church membership, or your rituals. What made Abraham right with God, simple trust, is exactly what’s open to you today.

^[1] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 4:4-5.

^[2] Colin G. Kruse, Paul’s Letter to the Romans (Eerdmans, 2012), 4:6-8.

^[3] F. F. Bruce, Romans (IVP, 2015), 4:9-12.

Poem

FATHER ABRAHAM
by Ed Pilapil Jr

Abraham believed God’s promise
Righteousness and faith, the premise
From the Lord God, he earned no wage
It was a gift in his old age

David speaks of a happiness
It’s blessedness in forgiveness
The guilt is covered, judgment done
Due to the Lord, the only One

Faith was before circumcision
That is to our satisfaction
Before the sign, before the seal
God counted faith alone as real

Abraham’s children, we all are
Jews and Gentiles, both near and far
Sands on the shore, stars in the night
God fulfilled His promise all right

Study Guide

1. Why does Paul use the picture of “wages” versus a “gift,” and what does it mean that God “justifies the ungodly”? (Ro 4:1-5)

2. According to David, who is the truly happy person, and how does forgiveness relate to being counted righteous? (Ro 4:6-8)

3. Why does the timing of Abraham’s faith (before circumcision) matter, and what does it mean that he is “father of all who believe”? (Ro 4:9-12)

PDF

Counted Righteous Ro 4

417KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Itinuring Matuwid Ro 4

424KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Fourteenth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul has been building a case like a prosecutor. First, he indicts the pagan world that suppressed the truth about God. Then he turns to the religious and moral Jew and says: you’re no better; you judge others while doing the same things. He dismantles the misplaced self-confidence of the Jew. Finally, he sweeps everyone in, Jew and Gentile alike, and closes the case: “None is righteous, no, not one.” The whole world stands silent and guilty before God, with no defense left. That’s the courtroom Paul has us standing in with a clear verdict: guilty. But everything is about to change.

Turning Point

Into that silent, guilty courtroom, Paul drops two words: “But now.” Something new has broken into history. God himself has provided a way to be made right with Him, not by keeping the law, though the law and prophets pointed to it all along.

Romans 3:21-23: But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— ²² the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Notice the perfect tense: this righteousness “has been revealed” and stands revealed still. It’s a settled, finished reality, not a distant hope. And it’s for everyone who believes, no exceptions, the one door out of the courtroom, opened by God.

Justified and Redeemed

Paul mentions several key phrases. First, “justified by His grace as a gift.” Second, “through redemption in Christ Jesus. Third, “propitiation by His blood to be received by faith.” Fourth, “God’s righteousness.” Fifth, “divine forbearance.”

Romans 3:24-26: and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, ²⁵ whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.

How can a just God simply forgive guilty people? At the cross, God dealt with sin openly rather than sweeping it aside. So God stays completely just and still declares sinners righteous. He didn’t relax the standard. He satisfied it Himself through Christ.

No Boasting

If being made right is a gift received by faith, then boasting is finished. No one can boast. No one can take credit for a rescue that one didn’t perform. Paul pushes further: Is God only for one kind of people? No.

Romans 3:27-31: Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. ²⁸ For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law. ²⁹ Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, ³⁰ since God is one—who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. ³¹ Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.

The same God makes both Jew and Gentile right through the same faith. This flattens every pecking order of race, class, and background. And far from throwing out God’s law, this faith actually honors what the law was always aiming at.

Application

1. Do not climb out of guilt by trying harder or comparing yourself to others. Do not trust in your own merit. There is one exit, and God built it. Your only move is to walk through it by faith; the same door is open to all.

2. Our forgiveness isn’t God looking the other way. It cost Him the death of the Son on the cross. His grace was not soft on sin; it came with a price. Our forgiveness comes from believing this truth.

3. Remove any source of spiritual pride like morality, religion, heritage, or race. Lay them down. Then treat the person unlike you as a full equal, because God is saving them the very same way he saved you.

Poem

TURNING POINT
by Ed Pilapil Jr

The court is called, the charge is read
No mouth can speak, no plea is said
Both near and far, both proud and base
Stand guilty, silent, face to face

But now a word breaks through the night
God brings His righteousness to light
No law we kept, no debt we paid
Yet all is finished, all is made

The sacrifice, the sprinkled blood
Where wrath was met in crimson flood
The judge is just, the standard true
The guilty sinner is made new

So boasting dies, its mouth is stopped
Its crown of pride is bowed and dropped
One faith, one Lord, one open door
Only the Christ, our sins He bore

Study Guide

1. What does Paul mean by “but now,” and how is this righteousness different from the way people usually try to be right with God? (Ro 3:21-24)

2. How does the cross allow God to be both “just” and the one who justifies sinners at the same time? (Ro 3:24-26)

3. Why does Paul say boasting is “shut out,” and what does this mean for how we view people different from us? (Ro 3:27-31)

PDF

Turning Point Ro 3

369KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Panahon Ng Pagbabago Ro 3

446KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Thirteenth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul has been building a careful case, like a prosecuting attorney presenting evidence before a court. First, the apostle turned his attention to the Gentiles, showing how humanity suppressed the truth, exchanged God’s glory for idols, and was given to its desires. Then the apostle turned his attention to the Jews, the people who received the Mosaic Law. They bore the name of the LORD, yet they have failed to obey the command through Moses completely. Paul dismantled their arguments; he addressed self-righteousness, false confidence, and the major accusations. The advantage of the Jew is knowing the commandments. But God will judge all: Jew and non-Jew.

Universal Guilt

Paul concludes his argument that both Jews and Greeks are “all under sin.” Having already condemned Gentile idolatry (1:18-32) and Jewish presumption (2:1-29), he now levels the playing field: no one has an inherent advantage before God when it comes to judgment. The reason? All are guilty.

Romans 3:9-12: What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, ¹⁰ as it is written:

“None is righteous, no, not one;
¹¹ no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
¹² All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.”

Paul anchors his point in a chain of Old Testament citations (drawing especially from the Psalms), beginning with the sweeping declaration that none is righteous, none seeks God, and all have turned away. The point is the universality and totality of human sinfulness. No one seeks God; no one does good.

Severe Sinfulness of Man

Paul illustrates how deeply sin pervades the whole person through a vivid “anatomy of sin.” He moves through the body, throat, tongue, lips, mouth, feet, eyes, showing corruption in speech (deceit, poison, cursing), in conduct (swift to shed blood, leaving ruin and misery in their paths), and in disposition.

Romans 3:13-18: “Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
¹⁴ “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
¹⁵ “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
¹⁶ in their paths are ruin and misery,
¹⁷ and the way of peace they have not known.”
¹⁸ “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

The catalog climaxes in the root cause: “there is no fear of God before their eyes.” Sin is not merely external acts but a comprehensive condition affecting how humans speak, act, and relate to God. Man has fallen in the deepest mire of sin; he does not and cannot save himself.

The Verdict

Paul draws the legal conclusion. Whatever the Law says, it addresses those under it, so that every mouth is stopped. Everyone who makes excuses or accuses God will not prevail. The whole world is guilty before God.

Romans 3:19-20: Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. ²⁰ For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.

Crucially, the Law’s function here is diagnostic, not redemptive: “by works of the law no one will be justified,” because “through the law comes knowledge of sin.” The Law exposes and convicts but cannot save, setting up the pivot to righteousness by faith.

Application

1. Every human being is guilty of sin. Scripture says that there is no one righteous. Thus, we say that we are not righteous; we are guilty. Let us admit that we are sinners; we cannot save ourselves.

2. We have lied and cheated; no one can say that they have not sinned, or perhaps even worse. Let us not make excuses nor sugarcoat our sin. Let us call it what it is: disobedience, defiance, and rebellion against God’s commands.

3. The law reveals the sin, but it cannot save. The verdict is clear: Jew and Gentile are all guilty. Only Christ can save. Thus, we look to Him alone for our justification.

Poem

GUILTY VERDICT
by Ed Pilapil Jr

Jews and Gentiles, in the same state
The judgment is not for debate
Verdict is clear: all are guilty
Is there still room for God’s mercy?

In Christ is the mercy of God
For the Jew, that will be so odd
I believe for the Gentile, too
Both, then, should change their point of view

What then should be the point of view?
The Jews, they are so guilty, too
For the Jew, that will be so odd
All men have turned away from God

Through faith in Christ, there is mercy
First, you must know you are guilty
Shut your mouth and stop your debate
Faith in Christ will transform your state

Study Guide

1. Explain Paul’s conclusion about the verdict for Jews and Gentiles: that no one is righteous. (Ro 3:9-12)

2. Explain the severity of the depravity of man. (Ro 3:13-18)

3. Explain why no one will be justified based on works of the law. What does the law do? (Ro 3:19-20)

PDF

No One Is Righteous Ro 3 9 20

404KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Walang Matuwid Kahit Isa Ro 3

444KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Twelfth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul has just said something scandalous to his Jewish readers: that God judges Jew and Gentile alike, and that an obedient outsider may fare better on judgment than a disobedient insider. Naturally, the objections come flying. Then what’s the point of being God’s people at all? Is God being unfaithful? Is He even being fair to punish us? Paul then stages a courtroom drama. Sinful humanity puts God in the dock, hurls accusations at Him, and demands that He answer for Himself. And by the end, the verdict is reversed. As one of David’s psalms put it, God is “justified” in His words and prevails when He is judged. Let’s watch the case unfold in three movements.

God’s Faithfulness

Paul anticipates his interlocutor’s accusation: If God judges His people impartially, has He gone back on His promises? Note that the Jew believes that he has a special standing before God. The Jew has the advantage, but not in the manner they think. So, Paul’s answer is emphatic. There is still a great advantage in belonging to the covenant people, and chief among the blessings is that His people were “entrusted with the oracles of God.”[1]

Romans 3:1-4: Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? ² Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God. ³ What if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? ⁴ By no means! Let God be true though every one were a liar, as it is written,

“That you may be justified in your words,
and prevail when you are judged.”

Notice the asymmetry here. Human unfaithfulness is real, but it does not cancel His faithfulness. God’s reliability does not rise and fall with human performance. He is not faithful because His people are faithful; He is faithful because He is God, and He cannot deny Himself. This is the bedrock of the whole gospel: His promises are anchored in His character, not in people.

God is Not Unrighteous

The second anticipated accusation is more cunning: If my unrighteousness actually shows off how righteous God is, then surely God is unfair to punish me; after all, I’ve made Him look good! Paul even pauses, almost embarrassed, to say, “I am speaking in a human way.” The logic is twisted, and Paul knows it. His answer is a NO. God judges righteously.[2]

Romans 3:5-6: But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a human way.) ⁶ By no means! For then how could God judge the world?

The argument collapses under its own weight. If God could not condemn sin simply because His condemnation displays His justice, then He could never judge at all. A God who cannot distinguish good from evil is no righteous Judge worth the name. God’s justice is not God’s cruelty; it is the guarantee that wickedness will not have the last word.

No Excuse to Sin

The third anticipated accusation is the most dangerous, because it dresses itself up in piety: If my lie magnifies God’s truth and brings Him glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner? Pushed one step further, it becomes the slogan Paul says his enemies slandered him with: “Let us do evil that good may come.”

Romans 3:7-8: But if through my lie God’s truth abounds to his glory, why am I still being condemned as a sinner? ⁸ And why not do evil that good may come?—as some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just.

Paul had repeatedly heard this slander because his grace-centered, Torah-free gospel was accused of promoting disobedience, and he answers it by pronouncing a sober sentence: “Their condemnation is just.”[3] The reasoning behind the slogan makes God out to be fickle, treating the most beautiful truth, that God brings good even out of evil, as a license to keep sinning. But grace that leaves you comfortable in your sin is not the grace of God; it is a counterfeit.

Application

1. Let us build our assurance in Christ, not our own works. If ever we sin, let us confess our sins to him and receive His forgiveness and cleansing. Our life in Him is about Him, not about how good we are. Let us persist in trusting Him.

2. Stop putting God on trial. Much of our quiet bitterness toward God is a low-grade version of the courtroom in this passage. We have no right to cross-examine Him over a loss, a delay, an unanswered prayer, convinced He owes us an explanation.

3. Let us not abuse His grace. Real grace humbles and transforms; it never licenses. Let the kindness of God lead you not to presumption but to repentance (Romans 2:4), and let gratitude, not loophole-hunting, be our guide.

[1] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 3:1-4.

[2] Michael J. Gorman, Romans (Eerdmans, 2022), 3:1-8.

[3] Michael F. Bird and Scot McKnight, Romans (Zondervan Academic, 2016), 96-97.

HIS WORD IS JUST
by Ed Pilapil Jr

Now, is there value in the Old
Were the Jews in the Lord’s sheepfold?
Do they have any advantage?
Yes, but with a certain vantage

They have the oracles of God
But they chose a holy facade
Twisting truth to justify sin
Unfaithful to the Lord within

God is righteous, and we are not
Know this: do not say, “I forgot”
But there is no excuse to sin
Trust the work of His grace within

Why accuse God? His word is just
Use some intelligence and trust
Study His word diligently
Believe the gospel completely

Study Guide

1. Explain the first set of anticipated questions. What is Paul’s response? (Ro 3:1-4)

2. Explain the second set of anticipated questions. What is Paul’s response? (Ro 3:5-6)

3. Explain the third set of anticipated questions. What is Paul’s response? (Ro 3:8-9)

PDF

God Remains Just Ro 3

447KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Ang Diyos Ay Matuwid Ro 3

426KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Eleventh in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul argued that God is impartial to both Jews and Gentiles. The Gentiles who do not have the Mosaic Law will be judged without it. Their conscience will be the basis. The Jew will be judged by the Mosaic Law, whether they obeyed it or not. Paul continues to expose the hypocrisy of the Jews who rely on knowing the law instead of obeying the law. Paul is building up to a truth that would be difficult for the Jew: that no one, absolutely no Jew, fulfilled the law, except Christ. He returns to his interlocutor, whom he identifies as a Jew. By using an interlocutor, Paul is not necessarily stating that all Jews think the same. However, those who do are the ones that he is addressing.[1]

False Confidence

Paul challenges the Jews who rely on the law and boast in God.[2] The verb “relies on” (Greek ἐπαναπαύῃ, epanapauē) pictures leaning on something for support. Israel had leaders who leaned on the Lord yet acted unjustly (Micah 3:11). Paul also refers to Israel’s role in the world as a light, but he does not complete the quotation from Isaiah 42:6-7.

Romans 2:17-20, ESV: But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God ¹⁸ and know his will and approve what is excellent, because you are instructed from the law; ¹⁹ and if you are sure that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, ²⁰ an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth—

When Paul highlighted the sins of the Gentiles, it was about rejecting the knowledge of God. To explain to the Jew that they are also guilty, he highlights their knowledge of God, yet they still disobey His commands. They have a semblance of righteousness but act unrighteously.

Hypocrisy

After stating the role of Jews in God’s plan, which was to be a light to the darkness, a nation to show other nations the way, he now uses probing questions. The apostle ends with a powerful statement to the self-righteous Jew. He references the exile where the name of God was blasphemed (Isa 52:5).

Romans 2:21-24: you then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? ²² You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? ²³ You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. ²⁴ For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

Paul referenced what happened on a national scale to apply it to the inner person. The apostle wants the interlocutor, who represents strong Jewish beliefs, to reflect on whether they have lived in hypocrisy.

Inner Person

Paul shifts to circumcision, a defining badge of covenant identity. Yet he argues that circumcision without obedience “becomes uncircumcision,” while an obedient gentile’s uncircumcision is “counted as circumcision.” What does this imply? It implies belonging to the covenant identity.[3] The apostle also emphasizes obedience, the heart, and the Spirit.

Romans 2:25-29: For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. ²⁶ So, if a man who is uncircumcised keeps the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? ²⁷ Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law. ²⁸ For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. ²⁹ But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.

Paul exposes the danger of leaning on the law for security while failing to obey it. Such a posture is false confidence that mistakes religious privilege for righteousness. God would sooner approve an obedient outsider, who has the law on his heart, than a Jew who possesses and teaches the law yet does not live it. Paul’s focus was not to prove that there were righteous Gentiles, but that the Jew must abandon his self-righteousness (his confidence in heritage and ritual).

Application

1. It is possible to know what God expects yet remain disqualified in His eyes. Let us know His word, especially the gospel, and then let us believe in the gospel, repent of our sins, and live a life of faith in obedience.

2. Our hypocrisy is never a private matter. When our lives contradict our message, we don’t merely harm ourselves; we drag God’s reputation through the mud before a watching world. Let us continuously and humbly reflect on our own lives in the light of His Word.

3. The question is not whether we bear the right external signs, like going to church or reading the Bible, but whether the Spirit has done His transforming work within us. And the verdict that finally matters comes not from people, but from God. Never neglect the inner life, the meditations and intents of the heart.

[1] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 2:21-23.

[2] Boasting in God is not wrong. Paul is addressing a misguided confidence. See Douglas J. Moo, The Letter to the Romans, 2nd ed. (Eerdmans, 2018), 170.

[3] Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 2018), 136.

Poem

MISGUIDED FAITH
by Ed Pilapil Jr

They believed in the law, but then
Who obeys the law, among men?
O self-righteous Jew, just let go
Your inner state, reveal it so

The posture of high and holy
Replace with the gospel, fully
False confidence is misguidance
It is a form of defiance

Now let go of all defiance
Know the word, reject misguidance
We’re sinners, we confess fully
Saved by the One who is holy

Now my goodness, I know it so
Of self-righteousness, I let go
Christ, our profession among men
We’ll proclaim Him as they did then

Study Guide

1. Who was Paul addressing? Explain the role of the Jewish people as stated in the OT. (Ro 2:17-20)

2. What was the purpose of Paul’s questions? How would you write questions to yourself? (Ro 2:21-24)

3. Explain the statement from its context that circumcision is a matter of the heart. (Ro 2:25-29)

PDF

False Confidence Ro 2 17 29

442KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Maling Pagtitiwala Ro 2 17 29

441KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Tenth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul has argued that the Jew who judges others has no excuse if he practices the same sins. He cannot escape God’s judgment by knowing the law, condemning sin, or teaching others. God’s kindness and patience should lead him to repentance, not to a hard heart. God will render to each one according to his works, giving glory and peace to those who do good, but wrath and distress to those who do evil. This judgment comes to the Jew first and also to the Greek, for God shows no partiality. Paul is making a case that all are guilty. Therefore, everyone needs the gospel of Christ.

Doers of the Law

How will God judge the Gentiles when they do not have the law? Paul anticipates this question. He explained that all who sinned without the law, the Gentiles, will perish without the law. The Jews who have the law will be judged by the law. Only the doers of the law will be justified.

Romans 2:12-13: For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. ¹³ For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified.

The apostle will explain in his letter that no one can be justified by the law because no one has obeyed it completely. The verdict for both Jew and Gentile is: guilty. God only justifies the doers of the law, not merely the hearers.[1]

Law and Conscience

Paul asserts that the Gentiles, even though they were not given the Mosaic law, do what the law expects from them. The argument might be similar to God making Himself “known” to the Gentiles (1:19-20). God has put a law in the conscience of the Gentiles even without the law.[2]

Romans 2:14-15: For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. ¹⁵ They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them

The apostle seeks to show that God is at work in the consciences of the Gentiles. There is a sense of morality, even though it is distorted. There is a knowledge of what is right in their conscience.[3] Despite this, Paul would unveil the truth that all are guilty.

Judging the Secrets

According to Paul’s gospel, there is a day when God will judge the secrets of men by Christ Jesus. God will judge the Jew based on the Mosaic Law. God will judge the Gentiles based on their conscience. The secrets of men refer to the violation of the conscience in man, but it includes all deeds, even the hidden.

Romans 2:16: on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.

Paul’s intent in this section is to explain to the readers that both Jew and Gentile will be judged according to God’s righteousness. The Jew is not free from judgment just because he knows the Mosaic Law. The Gentiles, without the Mosaic Law, will be judged according to their conscience.[4] The judge is Christ.

Application

1. Let us not be hearers only. It is not enough to know the word of God, read the word of God, or listen to the word of God. We must obey His word. Those who know His will but reject it will be judged by it. Therefore, let us repent, believe in Christ, and live as doers of the word.

2. Let us listen to the witness of our conscience. It bears witness, and our thoughts accuse or excuse us before God. Therefore, let us repent and come to Christ, who alone can cleanse the guilty conscience.

3. Let us remember that God will judge even the secrets of men. Nothing is hidden from Him, and Christ Jesus will be the Judge on that day. Therefore, let us repent, believe the gospel, and walk before God with a sincere heart.

[1] Douglas J. Moo, Encountering the Book of Romans (Encountering Biblical Studies), ed. Walter A. Elwell (Baker Academic, 2014), Part 2.

[2] Douglas J. Moo, The Letter to the Romans, 2nd ed. (Eerdmans, 2018), 160.

[3] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), Romans 2:15.

[4] Thielman, Romans, Romans 2:16.

Poem

ONLY CHRIST HAS PASSED
by Ed Pilapil Jr

Gentiles without the law; do sin
Jews with the law are judged within
Hearing it cannot justify
The doers live before God’s eye

The Gentiles have the law inside
It’s the conscience, they must abide
Not a covenant; a compass
But God’s standard, who can pass?

No man can hide what he has done
Before the Father and the Son
The secrets of your heart are known
And God will judge through Christ alone

God’s standard, only Christ has passed
His covenant is our compass
By faith we live; that we have known
Salvation is in Christ alone

Study Guide

1. What will happen to those who sin without the law and to those who sin under the law? (Ro 2:12-13)

2. What is written on the hearts of the Gentiles who do not have the law? (Ro 2:14-15)

3. What will God judge by Christ Jesus on that day? (Ro 2:16)

PDF

Kautusan At Budhi Ro 2

421KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Law And Conscience Ro 2

427KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Ninth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul addresses the self-righteous Jew who feels safe from the wrath of God. Their false confidence is that they know the law of Moses. Paul removes the false sense of security of the interlocutor, an imaginary person with whom Paul is arguing. The use of the diatribe technique is to address the Jewish mind, which Paul is familiar with, being a Jew and a Pharisee. He rebuked the hypocrisy of those who would condemn the sins of the Gentiles but are guilty of the same thing. The apostle also addressed those who presume the kindness of God. He clarified that His kindness should lead us to repentance. But to those who will not repent because their hearts are stubborn, they can expect God’s judgment.

Eternal Life

Knowing the law does not acquit anyone of guilt. God will judge according to what men have done. For those who follow His commands, the ones who seek glory and honor, God will give them eternal life. However, Paul will explain later in his letter that no one is qualified (3:11-12).

Romans 2:6-7: He will render to each one according to his works: ⁷ to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life;

The self-righteous Jew, even with all the knowledge of the law, will be judged according to what they have done.[1] But whoever fully obeys the law has 100% eternal life. Only the Lord Jesus, the eternal Word, was able to fulfill the law.

God’s Wrath

Paul identifies the self-seeking, ἐριθείας, which could also be translated as “selfish ambition.”[2] It implies that selfish ambition can cause strife and disputes.[3] The self-seeking and those who do not obey the truth will suffer the judgment of wrath and fury.

Romans 2:8-9: but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. ⁹ There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek,

God will not grant rewards to the Jew just because of their heritage.[4] If they do not obey the truth, they can expect His wrath and fury. Note that Paul mentions to every human being who does evil, the Jew first and then the Greek (Gentile, non-Jew). Paul is pointing out the individual, so this is a personal thing.

God is Not Partial

Paul explains that God will grant glory, honor, and peace to all who do good. One will observe that the Jew goes first, then the Gentile. It refers both to blessings and judgment. Both the Jew and the Gentile will be judged because God is not partial.

Romans 2:10-11: but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. ¹¹ For God shows no partiality.

Paul’s emphasis in the section from verse one of chapter two is that God is not partial. God will judge both the Jew and the Gentile. Paul is not advocating for salvation by works. He will explain that no one does good. What Paul was driving at is that God is not partial.

Application

1. Believe and understand that God will judge every individual, whether Jew or non-Jew. Each one will be judged according to what they have done. Not because they are Gentile or Jew, but because He will judge every human.

2. Believe and understand that all who practice or have practiced ungodliness and unrighteousness deserve wrath, fury, tribulation, and distress. A person’s only way out is to truly believe the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, which is God’s power to salvation.

[1] Michael J. Gorman, Romans (Eerdmans, 2022), Romans 2:6-16.

[2] “Strong’s Greek: 2052. Ἐριθεία (Eritheia) -- Selfish Ambition, Strife, Rivalry,” accessed May 31, 2026, https://biblehub.com/greek/2052.htm.

[3] F. F. Bruce, Romans (IVP, 2015), Romans 2:8.

[4] Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 2018), 113.

Poem

IMPARTIAL GOD
by Ed Pilapil Jr

Now God will render what is due
To every sin that men pursue 
To the righteous, eternal life
But then, who would be qualified?

Self-seekers who promote such strife
Must repent of that kind of life
Else, tribulation and distress
It is judgment like a winepress

Unrepentant and stubborn heart
From God’s righteousness you depart
Knowing the law will not save you
Self-righteousness is a trap, too

God is impartial in judgment
Wrath against sin, that’s the treatment
The gospel is what we all need
There, salvation is guaranteed

Study Guide

1. To whom will God give eternal life? Is Paul promoting salvation by works? (Ro 2:6-7, 3:11-12)

2. What will happen to those who do not obey? (Ro 2:8-9)

3. What does Paul mean when he said that God shows no partiality? Explain. (Ro 2:10-11)

PDF

God's Impartial Judgment Ro 2 6 11

430KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Tapat Na Paghatol Ng Diyos Ro 2 6 11

387KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Eighth in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul explains the wrath of God against all ungodliness and unrighteousness. The apostle also asserts that God gave them up to a depraved mind. The result of God’s judgment includes getting worse in the areas of, but not limited to: idolatry, failing to honor Him, thank Him, homosexuality, lesbianism, gossip, slander, envy, murder, malice, and hating God. The different manners of unrighteousness seem to be more predominant with the Gentiles. However, it is not so, because Israel’s dark past reveals that they also committed such sins despite having the law. Paul shifts his attention to the Jew who feels safe from the wrath of God because they know the law. Paul uses a “diatribe,” a style of writing that employs the singular second person, “you.” It was often used by philosophers in Paul’s time, such as the Stoics. It is dialogue in style. Paul chooses a Jew as his interlocutor, the imaginary person he will be arguing with.[1]

Hypocrites Condemned

Paul explains that condemning sin does not excuse the Jew (or anyone) if they commit the same things. It seems cultural for Jews to condemn the sins common among the Gentiles, but their history shows that they committed such things as well. Yet Paul speaks to their present, focusing on those who do the same evil things.

Romans 2:1: Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things.

The apostle anticipates the Jewish mind and reasoning. They would agree with him in condemning adultery, homosexuality, lesbianism, and other forms of unrighteousness. However, condemning sin does not make one free of accountability.

No Escape from Judgment

Paul asserts that God’s judgment falls on those who do such things. So, Paul corners those who think that they are safe from God’s wrath just because they are Jews.[2] Paul states that if one does the same things, there is no escape from God’s judgment.

Romans 2:2-3: We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. ³ Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God?

It is not enough to know the law. It is not enough to condemn those who violate the law. It is not enough to teach the law. What matters is obeying the law. The Jew must reflect on his ways and understand that the wrath of God, the judgment of God, is also against those who practice such things.

Repentance of Judgment

Paul assumes that his interlocutor agrees with him on God’s kindness and patience. Such is reflected in Scripture: God gives people time to repent.[3] He delays His judgment for the sake of His people. However, despite His patience, if they do not repent, God will bring upon them His righteous judgment.

Romans 2:4-5: Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? ⁵ But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.

If the Jewish interlocutor insists that he is free of the judgment of God even though they practice the same unrighteousness, God is “storing up wrath” for the day of judgment. Paul anticipates the stubborn thinking of the Jews, debased still, but debased with the law.

Application

1. Let us engage in self-reflection as often as we can. Condemning sin in others without self-reflection is hypocritical. By His grace, let us continually analyze our lives, which should lead us to confess our sins.

2. There is no escaping God’s judgment without Christ. Let us believe in Christ and let us obey His word. Let us avoid practicing unrighteousness because it leads to judgment.

3. Let us give thanks to the Lord in His forbearance and kindness. His patience and delay of judgment should lead us to repentance. Let us heed the warning and repent of our sins today.

[1] Douglas J. Moo and Andreas J. Kostenberger, A Theology of Paul and His Letters (Zondervan Academic, 2021), 204.

[2] Frank S. Thielman, Theology of the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2011), 352.

[3] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 2:4.

Poem

NO EXCUSE
by Ed Pilapil Jr.

Listen, listen well, my brothers
Condemning the sins of others
Does not free you from His judgment
Judgment still remains imminent 

Righteous judgment is only His
There is no excuse who practice
Similar sins of the Gentiles
Now you can check the Jewish files

Also fell to idolatry
It is the same depravity
The Jew and Gentile have fallen
Such things should not be forgotten

Honor then God’s Son who was sent
His patience should make us repent
We must as He delays judgment
Otherwise, expect punishment

Study Guide

1. Why does Paul say the person who judges others is “without excuse”? (Ro 2:1)

2. Who will God judge? Why is it that they cannot escape God’s judgment? (Ro 2:2-3)

3. What are God’s kindness, patience, and forbearance meant to produce in us? (Ro 2:4-5)

PDF

No Excuse Ro 2 1 5

418KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Walang Maidahilan Ro 2 1 5

411KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Seventh in the sermon series, “Romans: Gospel Blueprint.”

The apostle’s knowledge of God’s wrath against unrighteousness is a compelling reason why he is not ashamed of the gospel. The gospel is the power of God to salvation (1:16). Without the gospel, there is judgment. That is why Paul is eager to preach the gospel. The apostle said, “God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity” (1:24). He repeats it, “…God gave them up to dishonorable passions” (1:26). Note that God giving up the unrighteous is not passive; it is a “judicial decision that manifests God’s wrath against humans.”[1] The spiritual and moral decay in itself is a form of God’s judgment. Paul cites the decay into idolatry and sexual perversion, which includes lesbianism and homosexuality. The decay is a departure from God’s design, with consequences.[2] Such is God’s recompense to all who reject the Creator.[3] Is this recompense personal or juridical? The safe answer is both. God is just, but He personally hates sin (Prov. 6:16-19, Ps. 5:5).[4]

Debased Mind

Paul once again states that “God gave them up.” The reason is that they did not acknowledge God. The result of God giving them up is a debased mind, which means that they will get worse spiritually and morally. A debased mind is connected to all manners of unrighteousness, which is a defiance of God’s sovereignty.[5]

Romans 1:28, ESV: And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.

The consequence of not acknowledging God as Creator, which also refers to the earlier statement of failing to honor and thank Him, is God’s judgment of bringing them to a debased mind. They might think they are wise, but in heaven’s eyes, they are debased.

Manners of Unrighteousness

Paul states the details of a debased mind. In general, it points to unrighteousness and evil. The word “unrighteousness” is ἀδικία in Greek and is translated as “unrighteous,” “wickedness,” “unjust,” or “iniquity.”[6] It connotes a violation of God’s righteous requirements. The apostle lists specific acts of unrighteousness. Some of which can be present in daily life. Now, it is obvious that the whole human race, not just the homosexuals, has a debased mind.

Romans 1:29-31: They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, ³⁰ slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, ³¹ foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.

Some sins destroy others’ reputations, like gossip and slander. There is lying and manipulation. There is greed, envy, and murder. As well as malice and maliciousness. Foolish pride and arrogance. Sins pertaining to relationships, like faithlessness and disobedience to parents. Then there is the heartless and ruthless, without mercy. Hating God is also included under unrighteousness. The listed sins and the like are incompatible with a person who lives by faith. The righteous who live by faith live differently.

God’s Righteous Decree

Paul explains that fallen men, despite the darkening of their hearts and minds, know that God disapproves of what they do. Despite knowing this, they do the opposite and approve of those who practice evil. The phrase “righteous decree” is δικαίωμα in Greek, meaning “commandment” or “requirement.”[7] Despite knowing that the judgment is death, humanity even approved and promoted such.

Romans 1:32: Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.

Deep inside, every person has a sense of what is evil. But people try to put aside the truth in their conscience so they can do what is pleasurably evil. The consequence is eternal death, which is God’s wrath for eternity. What is Paul’s point? Mankind is guilty and deserving of God’s wrath. That is why Paul is not ashamed of the Gospel and is eager to preach it.

Application

1. Let us worship God, our Creator; honor Him and thank Him. Let us not be one of those who do not acknowledge God in our lives. Instead, we will acknowledge Him in everything.

2. Let us be mindful of the sins we commit; let us confess them to the Lord and seek His forgiveness. Living by faith is the opposite of living in sin. May we continuously pray for the Lord’s strength to overcome sin.

3. Let us not make excuses; remember that the world has none before God. No matter how they deny it, God has placed in them a sense of God’s existence and righteousness. They might call their sin a lifestyle, God will bring judgment to it.

[1] Douglas J. Moo and Andreas J. Kostenberger, A Theology of Paul and His Letters (Zondervan Academic, 2021), 203.

[2] Michael F. Bird and Scot McKnight, Romans (Zondervan Academic, 2016), 60.

[3] Colin G. Kruse, Paul’s Letter to the Romans (Eerdmans, 2012), 79.

[4] Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 2018), 101-102.

[5] Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), 97.

[6] “Greek Concordance: Ἀδικίας (Adikias) -- 13 Occurrences,” accessed May 23, 2026, https://biblehub.com/greek/adikias_93.htm.

[7] Richard A. Muller, Dictionary of Latin and Greek Theological Terms (Baker Academic, 2017).

Poem

DEBASED MIND
by Ed Pilapil Jr

A futile mind; a debased mind
The knowledge of God, they declined
Natural functions they declined
Humanity has lost its mind 

There’s malice and maliciousness
Envy, deceit, covetousness
Gossip, slander, and the heartless
Plus the boastful and the faithless

God gave them up; that’s God’s judgment
Full of sinful entanglements
Detrimental entanglements
Expect the worst of God’s judgment

That’s why we must preach the gospel
A gospel for all the people
The wrath of God is revealed to all
Let’s preach the gospel of the Lord

Study Guide

1. Why did God give them up to a debased mind? (Ro 1:28)

2. If you were to classify the sins, what classifications would you put? (Ro 1:29-31) (Note: classification of sin was not the intention of Paul; this exercise is to help us remember)

3. Find a connection between verse 32 and the previous verses, starting from verse 18? (Ro 1:32)

PDF

Debased Mind Ro 1

442KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Pinababang Pag Iisip Ro 1

406KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

This is the 6th sermon of the series, “Romans: The Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul explains that the gospel is God’s saving power for everyone who believes. In the gospel, God reveals his righteousness, received by faith. Paul cites Habakkuk 2:4: “The righteous shall live by faith.” Paul then explains why this saving revelation is needed: God’s wrath is revealed against human ungodliness and unrighteousness because people suppress the truth. Creation reveals God’s eternal power and divine nature, leaving humanity without excuse. The result of rejecting this revelation is moral and spiritual decay: a futile mind, a darkened heart, and the exchange of God’s glory for created things, even images resembling humans, birds, animals, and creeping creatures. The apostle will further explain God’s judgment: it is giving them up to spiritual and moral decay.

God’s Wrath

The word “therefore” may refer to the wrath of God and the reasons behind it (1:22-23 or 1:18-23). Mankind’s rejection of the knowledge of God led them to decay. Furthermore, God gave them up to their own lusts. One sign of God’s wrath is people becoming more impure. It implies a loss of restrictions and limits.[1]

Romans 1:24: Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves,

The failure to acknowledge the Creator, the failure to honor and thank Him, leads to a futile mind and a darkened heart. Paul shows that it also leads to the dishonoring of the body through sexual immorality.

Exchanged the Truth for a Lie

Paul repeats the fall of man by writing that fallen man exchanged the Creator for the created. The apostle explained that men exchanged the truth for a lie; they worshiped and served the created rather than the Creator.

Romans 1:25: because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

The thought of idolatry repulsed Paul so much that he needed to praise the Creator, “who is blessed forever! Amen.”[2] But the apostle has more to say about this decay to decadence.

Dishonorable Passions

Paul repeats, “God gave them up.” This time, he offers greater clarity: the apostle explains that God gave them up to perversion.[3] As exchanging God for lesser beings is unnatural, so men and women succumb to the unnatural. Idolatry is perversion; the shameless sexual acts described are perversion.

Romans 1:26-27: For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; ²⁷ and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

Fallen men gave up the obvious: worshiping God. God gave them up so that they abandoned what is obvious: heterosexual sex. Falling into such perversion is a clear sign of God’s wrath.

Application

1. Our only hope is the gospel of Christ, which is the power of God to salvation. Thus, we believe in the gospel because the “just shall live by faith.” On our own, we are sinners who give more importance to the created rather than the Creator.

2. We must understand that God executes His judgment by giving people up to their idolatry and perversions. Such men and women will only store up more wrath. Thus, we preach what is natural: to worship God and to husband-to-wife sexual relationships, that is, male and female.

3. We are not ashamed of the gospel. We must proclaim it because mankind is under the judgment of God. Furthermore, humanity’s decay will continue without God. Let us not be surprised by perversions; yet, like Paul, we do not want to be passive. We must proclaim the gospel.

[1] Michael F. Bird and Scot McKnight, Romans (Zondervan Academic, 2016), 58.

[2] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 1:25.

[3] Thielman, Romans, 1:26.

Poem

PERVERSION AND IDOLATRY
by Ed Pilapil Jr

God gave them up, that is judgment
Seen in the perversions of men
It began by suppressing truth
In lies, they think their minds will soothe

The truth of God is what will soothe
He’s the Creator, that’s the truth
There’s no rest for the souls of men
Rebellion only brings judgment

Man’s decay to idolatry
It’s not beautiful poetry
To honor and serve things that creep
It means decay that is so deep

Sexual perversion that is so deep
Like honoring things that creep
Men-to-men is no poetry
Disgusting like idolatry

Study Guide

1. What did God do to those who decayed because they failed to honor and thank Him? (Ro 1:24)

2. What was Paul’s explanation of why God gave them up? (Ro 1:25)

3. Explain the connection between God’s judgment, idolatry, and sexual perversion, such as homosexuality and lesbianism? (Ro 1:26-27)

PDF

Ibinigay Sila Ng Diyos Ro 1 24 27

409KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

God Gave Them Up Ro 1 24 27

407KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

This is the 5th sermon of the series, “Romans: The Gospel Blueprint.”

The main idea that Paul focuses on is that the failure to glorify God is the root of sin, especially idolatry. Idolatry is giving worship to that which is lesser; it honors the created rather than the Creator.[1] Men did not automatically fall into idolatry; it began with the failure to honor and thank God. The apostle makes it clear that God has made Himself known through creation. Therefore, there is no excuse (1:20). Those who continue in such practices will have no escape against the wrath of God.

Rejection of God

Humanity’s deepest problem is not ignorance, but rebellion.[2] God has revealed himself clearly through creation, yet fallen man refuses to glorify him as God. There is no excuse: the proper response to the Creator is honor and thanksgiving.

Romans 1:21a, ESV: For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him…

Despite the knowledge of God made evident in creation, men knew God. But they did not honor Him and gave thanks. Therefore, there is no excuse (1:20). God’s wrath is justified to be upon them. Humankind deserves God’s wrath.

Darkness in the Heart

The consequences of rejecting God, not honoring Him, and thanking Him are clear. It is darkness. The apostle states that they became “futile in their thinking,” meaning foolish and perverted, and their hearts darkened. What is darkness? It is an absence of God’s light.

Romans 1:21b: but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

Not believing in God is futile and foolish because it does not help their souls. It only brings God’s wrath upon them. Paul is explaining that it is “pointless, useless, and worthless.”[3] Why is it pointless or worthless? Because darkness leads to more darkness.

Exchanging God for Less

Paul continues to explain the consequences of failing to honor and thank God as Creator. When humans assert their wisdom against God, they become fools. The failure to worship God leads to unsound reasoning. They exchanged the glory of God for lesser beings, such as mortal men and creatures.

Romans 1:22-23: Claiming to be wise, they became fools, ²³ and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

Note the decay from not honoring and thanking God to futility in thinking, to darkened hearts, to becoming fools, and ultimately to idolatry. Idolatry is the worship and honor of lesser beings instead of God. The obvious is the worship of images resembling the creation.

Application

1. Honor God and offer thanksgiving for His creation. God’s creation speaks of His glory, and His glory is also revealed in His word. There is no excuse for not honoring and thanking Him.

2. Let us proclaim the truth of God’s creation and warn people about the wrath of God against ungodliness and unrighteousness. Let us make people aware that the decay to futility and foolishness begins by failing to honor and thank God.

3. May we always put God first. Our desires and ambitions should not even be in the same ballpark. Let us focus on glorifying Him and avoid worshiping the created world by giving it more importance.

[1] Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 2018), 96.

[2] Beverly Roberts Gaventa, Romans (Westminster John Knox Press, 2024), 55.

[3] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 1:21.

Study Guide

1. Paul said that they have no excuse (1:20). What was he referring to? (Ro 1:21a)

2. Explain the consequences of failing to thank and honor God. (Ro 1:21b)

3. What happened to those who claimed to be wise against God? (Ro 1:22-23)

Poem

NO EXCUSE
by Ed Pilapil Jr

The Creator made Himself known
To every man, His glory shown
So there is no excuse for man
Without God, oh man, you are damned

You did not honor or thank Him
And that is why your way is grim
Pointless in thought, darkness in heart
From the Lord, why did you depart?

The rebels thought, we are so wise
They are fools believing in lies
They exchanged God for the lesser
Their souls will decay and pester

Rejected God for mortal man
God’s wrath upon them, that’s the plan
Birds, animals, and things that creep
Against such, God’s wrath is revealed

PDF

Worst Exchange Ro 1

410KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Pinaka Masamang Kapalit Ro 1

381KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

This is the 4th sermon of the series, “Romans: The Gospel Blueprint.”

Paul expressed his sense of indebtedness to his responsibility to preach the gospel: “I am under obligation.” He also expressed his desire, “I am eager to preach.” Then he expressed his confidence, “I am not ashamed of the gospel.” The reason for not being ashamed is that the gospel is the power of God to salvation. The reason behind this is that the righteousness of God is by faith from then until now, as he supports this by quoting Habakkuk 2:4: “The righteous shall live by faith.”[1] The apostle writes a chain of reasons to explain. Each reason explains the previous statement. Grammatically, they are called subordinate clauses.[2] He proceeds by giving the reason for the previous statements, which includes the wrath of God against all ungodliness.

God’s Wrath vs. Ungodliness

Paul makes it clear that God’s wrath is against all ungodliness and unrighteousness. Ungodliness and unrighteousness are obviously sin and wickedness, but what is God’s wrath? The apostle portrays God’s wrath as God’s judgment; it is the consequence of sin.[3]

Romans 1:18, ESV: For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.

The apostle stated that unrighteousness suppresses the truth. Humanity suppressed the truth about God with the lie about the Creator.[4] Such will be made clear in Paul’s subsequent explanations. It seems that the rhetoric is against the Gentiles who worship idols, but the word “men” or anthropoõs suggest it is for all. Many suppress the truth about God, and they use many ways to do so. God’s wrath is against them.

God Reveals

Paul asserts that God has shown Himself to mankind. God has shown enough for men and women to worship Him.[5] But the fallen man finds ways to suppress this truth. They would worship lesser forms, and in today’s world, some deny His very existence.

Romans 1:19: For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.

The apostle is not saying that all the deep mysteries of God are revealed to humankind, but that God has put within them a sense of God’s existence.[6] However, men and women have suppressed the truth.

No Excuse

Paul explains that God’s eternal power and divine nature are revealed in creation. This should be clearly understood by mankind. Therefore, God is just to hold them accountable for failing to worship the Creator. Instead, they suppressed this truth.

Romans 1:20: For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.

Note the play of words of the apostle: the invisible is perceived. Or, through the visible creation, people should understand the invisible power and nature of God. People who do not worship Him are without excuse.

Application

1. We should not be ashamed of the gospel because it is God’s power to save through faith. Furthermore, the wrath of God is revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness.

2. Let us explain to others that God’s wrath, His fierce judgment, has already passed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness. The full weight and consequence may be delayed, but it is already set to all who do not worship Him.

3. Let us not suppress the truth that God is real and He is the Creator of the universe. The visible creation speaks of the reality of the sovereign God. Let us explain to believers and unbelievers alike that there is no excuse not to worship God.

[1] Gerald L. Bray and Thomas C. Oden, Romans, 2nd ed. (IVP Academic, 2014), 30.

[2] Paul J. Achtemeier, Romans (Westminster John Knox Press, 2010), 35.

[3] Beverly Roberts Gaventa, Romans (Westminster John Knox Press, 2024), 58.

[4] Gaventa, Romans, 59.

[5] Frank S. Thielman, Romans, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Zondervan Academic, 2018), Chapter 3.

[6] Thielman, Romans, Chapter 3.

Poem

WRATH AND JUDGMENT
by Ed Pilapil Jr.

The wrath of God, what does it mean?
A judgment against all who sin
Those who practice ungodliness
It also means unrighteousness

The judgment of God is revealed
Those who suppress what they perceive
Why then suppress the truth they see
Creation with such clarity

Creation has a Creator
Humankind knows this to the core
We see the LORD’s divine nature
In creation, that is for sure

If you suppress the truth, beware
For eternity, you will stare
The wrath of God with clarity
Expect it for eternity

Study Guide

1. What is the wrath of God revealed against? (Ro 1:18)

2. What did God show mankind? (Ro 1:19-20)

3. Who is without excuse and why? (Ro 1:18,20)

PDF

Wrath Of God Ro 1

416KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Poot Ng Diyos Ro 1

390KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download