The Letter to the Romans: Summarized #Romfor21stC

Romans can be summarized into four sections:

1. Romans 1-4: Life Before Jesus the Messiah

2. Romans 5-8: Life In Jesus the Messiah

3. Romans 9-11: Life Unified in Jesus the Messiah

4. Romans 12-16: Life Together in Jesus the Messiah

 

I feel these four parts build the entire message Paul wishes to give: the true children of God are not defined by their membership of a tribe, group or church. They are known by their actions.

 

1. Life Before Jesus the Messiah

Because the Gentiles suppressed the knowledge of God and became unrighteous, God chose Abraham’s descendants (the Jews) and gave them the Law of Moses to train them to become his ambassadors. They boasted in their election and disregarded the Law instead. So Jesus came to fulfill the Law and bring all the peoples of the world together in one election. Having not understood their first calling, the Jews misunderstood their second calling – requiring the Jewish rite of election and the Law of Moses for the Gentiles. Paul must remind them that the Law is no longer valid – though still upheld – and their election is no longer exclusive – though still relevant.

 

2. Life In Jesus the Messiah

The Law of Moses, though given by God, had a weakness. No one could obey it perfectly. Because the father of all, Adam, sinned all suffer the consequences – death – which comes as a result of sin. The Law of Moses, once intended to be the Jews’ guide for righteousness, became chains to the cycle of sin and sacrifice. Jesus took away this weakness by both perfectly following the Law’s requirements and becoming the sacrifice which took away our chains. He became a new Adam and all can enjoy the consequences – freedom – not to sin but to live as adopted children with grace covering our sins. This freedom cannot be taken away from us no matter what!

 

3. Life Unified in Jesus the Messiah

God (and Paul) still longs for the time that Israel returns to its first love. God invested so much in them that he does not wish for them to stay estranged. God’s election extends to Gentiles; however, if they fall into the same mindset as the Jews He would remove them and reinstate the Jews. God called the Gentiles with an ulterior motive – to cause jealousy within in the Jews so they would return. Then God would have his true Israel – a nation of Jews and Gentiles reconciling the world to God. What a God!

4. Life Together in Jesus the Messiah

Both the Gentiles and the Jews have a role in God’s kingdom – so bring out the best in each other. Love your neighbor as yourself. Be responsible citizens. Be tolerant of other believers and correct their misconceptions in love. Stay away from those who want to become one-trick ponies. Remember that God’s kingdom is not physical only. Let God’s service be your purpose in life. Then all will rejoice in God once and for all – no more as outsiders and insiders but as God’s children! May we all work together to accomplish that goal!

Defining 'Gentile' in the 21st Century #Romfor21stC

One of the most frequent questions I get from people when discussing Romans for the 21^st Century is the question, “Who are the Gentiles of today?” This question is very difficult to answer, if it is answerable at all. The reason is multi-faceted as you will see.

The Jew-Gentile construct was of Jewish origin.

Used countless times in the Bible, the term ‘Gentile’ simply means, “a person who is not Jewish.” In essence, it means “not one of us.” If someone were to ask a Roman if they were a Gentile they would probably look quizzical and wonder what was wrong with you. ‘Gentile’ was “insider-language,” a word that only had meaning within Jewish culture. Paul would write to people very familiar with Jewish culture and therefore would make sense. But to talk about Gentiles today would be the same as asking, “Who are the people who are not one of us?”

The idea of the ‘other’ is not accepted today.

One of the most important aspects of learning to live and work cross-culturally is the understanding that no one is the ‘other,’ especially those around you. It is this barrier which prevents contact, sharing and relationships and foments ill-will, hatred and even violence. Churches unwittingly do this when discussing ‘Christians’ vs. ‘the world.’ Within Christian context that makes sense, the ‘world’ representing everything that does not help us love God and love our neighbor as ourselves. However, to everyone that is not part of your church it sounds like you are equating them with Satan. No one who tries to be a good person thinks they are Satan and they would resent anyone who would put them in the same category. So attempting to find who are the Gentiles today would insult those who might be labeled 'Gentile.'

The categories of ‘Jew’ and ‘Gentile’ are irrelevant to salvation and righteousness.

Paul’s major idea is the true children of God are not defined by their membership of a tribe, group or church. They are known by their actions. So to attempt to revive the debate is to misunderstand the reason Paul wrote to the Romans in the first place. Paul wants both sides to stop arguing over who are God’s children and help each other obey God through faith in Jesus.

Best possible answer:

Because this concept is essential to understanding the book of Romans in the 21st Century, I will use the terms, ‘Churched’ and ‘Unchurched.’ These are words which are more closely associated with what I am attempting to show through these posts and do not have an air of “holy” vs. “profane” which plagues ‘Christians’ vs. ‘the World.’ ‘Churched’ will mean those who consider themselves as part of a church – whether a denominational or non-denominational church. If you meet on Sundays (or are part of a church that meets on Sunday) you are churched. ‘Unchurched’ will stand for those who do not consider themselves as part of a church – which they call ‘organized religion.’ Any further attempt to define this group is an minefield and becomes a tedious exercise in hairsplitting.

Romans 1-3 – starting Monday! Summary of Romans Wednesday.

Reading Romans Requires More than One Verse #Romfor21stC

One of the challenges in reading Romans is the complex nature of Paul’s writing. Since he discusses complex issues of identify he is very thorough and takes a lot of space to delineate his points. This letter is not the only time he discusses the matter of Jew vs. Gentile. Galatians mentions the Jews and the Law of Moses specifically. 1 Corinthians and Colossians mentions judging others – possible allusions to the Jews as well. As “an apostle to the Gentiles“ (11:13) he is on the front lines in the Jew vs. Gentile battle of the time.

This complexity challenges the verse-by-verse nature of Christianity today. Think about it. When was the last time someone asked you, “What is your favorite paragraph in the Bible?” When ministers read long sections of scripture, they must first apologize or excuse themselves. In fact, when was the last time you listened to an entire sermon where only one, large section scripture was discussed? Verses are short, easy to memorize and fit easily on motivational posters.

Romans: doesn't fit on a motivational poster.

A few years ago I decided not to read anything smaller than a paragraph in a lesson. I also decided, with a few exceptions, to speak from only one section of scripture. By focusing on one section I now go deeper into the Word of God. Romans exemplifies the benefits of focused reading, reading more prevents being bogged down in the details. In other words: the meaning of Romans is in the letter – if you read enough of it.

Paul states, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (3:23). This verse may be the most quoted verses without any context ever given. Paul writes this as one part of a much larger discussion acclimating the Jews and Gentiles to the understanding that the true children of God are not defined by their membership of a tribe, group or church. They are known by their actions. Both groups had unrighteous and righteous members. Because of Abraham (and the disobedience of the Gentiles) God chose the Jews to be His ambassadors to the world. They failed due to their own disobedience and inability to keep God’s law. God then called the Gentiles to join his ambassadors to the world. However, the Jews still had a special place in God’s heart and He longed for them to all choose to follow Him again. This is why God tells Israel,

Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations, and repays to their face those who hate him, by destroying them. He will not be slack with one who hates him. He will repay him to his face. Deuteronomy 7:9-10

When Christians, especially theologians, read Romans in short, choppy sections and dissect the minute details in each verse they miss the message Paul gives.

Friday I will look into one place where this is a glaring problem: who are the Gentiles today?

The Crux of Romans: the Identity Crisis of Jews vs. Gentile (#Romfor21stC)

The discussion of Romans often begins in the wrong place – at least not in the most important area to help understand the text. In this, the first foray into Romans, I wish to rectify that by diving into the question, “Why did Paul write this letter anyway?”

Understanding Judaism is essential for understanding Romans. In the USA we distinguish between religion and race. Jewish culture, expecially in the first century, does not differenciate race and religion. They would not understand the idea of “Roman Jews” or an “Asian-Jew.” They considered themselves Jews only regardless of where they lived or their mixed racial composition. Abraham as their father identified them as the Children of God and the Torah (the Law of Moses) provided a common tradition. Everyone obeyed God in the same physical way - circumcision, the holy days and sacrifical ritiuals. Gentiles were considered uncultured heathens who were in no way similar to Jews. When Jesus proclaimed that the righteous live at a higher level than doing only the physical actions commanded in the Torah and that he was greater than Abraham the Pharisees forced the Romans to crucify Jesus. He threatened what held their entire culture together.

Possibly because of their prejudice, the apostles taught the Gospel exclusively within their Jewish “race” for up to 10 years. Cornelius’ conversion in Acts 10-11 caused a great stir by challenging the apostles’ concept of “the children of God.” Jews were forced to concede that their ancestry alone no longer gave them exclusive claim to being God’s chosen people. Many Jews thought circumcision, the identifying marker of a Jewish man, was identified a disciple of Jesus. Paul and others fought against this at the Jerusalem counsel in Acts 15 because it would also require the Gentiles to obey the entire Torah and would diminish Jesus’ message (Gal. 5:1-15). If you accepted one part of the Torah, you must accept the entire Torah.

The Church in Rome

The church in Rome consisted of both Jews and Gentiles. Around ad 49 the Jews were expelled from Rome (Acts 18:2). Approximately five years later they were allowed to reenter the city and found a church no longer centered around the Torah – causing a great rift. Paul writes the letter we call Romans hoping to redefine their identity as disciples of Jesus the Messiah.

Why this is important to understanding Romans

Stating that the overarching theme of Romans is “faith vs. works” glosses over this essential component of the letter. Paul is not giving a theological or theoretical treaties on the role of faith and works in salvation. He is helping a church caught in a crisis of identifying who are true children of God. Paul writes to the Jews to show them God’s kingdom now includes Gentiles who do not follow the Torah. He writes to the Gentiles to show them God still has a heart for the Jews and a place for the Torah. It is a great message of unity through mutual respect - a theme which has an important application to today's world.