Corinth, AD 57: Romans 1-16

IN a thoughtful letter addressed to Christians in Rome who he has never met, the apostle Paul has set down his basic teaching about how people can get right with God.

Unlike most of his writings, the letter has not been prompted by a local dispute. Instead, Paul is reflecting on the false emphases and misunderstandings he has encountered elsewhere and is in effect sending his visiting card and brochure prior to his planned visit to Rome.

The letter to the Romans, dictated to Tertius the scribe, begins by describing the folly of idolatry and selfish living. People who should know better have been corrupted by the idols they made (chapter 1).

Paul’s phrasing will find echoes of approval in both his Jewish and Gentile readers. “The invention of [idols] was the corruption of life,” the Jewish author of the Wisdom of Solomon bemoaned a couple of centuries ago.

Even Seneca, current adviser to Nero, says those who live for the body have predeceased their death.

Both Jew and Gentile have sinned against God, Paul claims. Observance of neither the moral nor the ceremonial law is adequate to overcome the consequent alienation from God. So, in a detailed exposition of the prophet Habakkuk’s statement that “the righteous shall live by faith”, Paul suggests that even Abraham was counted righteous by God not because of what he did but because of who he believed (chapters 2-5).

Christ’s death has saved the believer from the ineffectiveness of the law and also from the tyranny of sin itself, he says. He has met people who say that if God’s undeserved love is poured out on sinners, then they ought to have a sin-filled time in order to get more of God’s love. Nonsense, he responds; sin is to be banished from the believer’s life. As Christ died for sin, Christians have died to it (chapter 6).

Unfortunately, life’s not that easy, he confesses. It’s a battleground as the old nature rears its head. But there’s a free pardon for all who believe, which results in God’s Spirit being released into their lives. God is in charge of their circumstances, however difficult they are (chapters 7, 8).

Then Paul turns to the Jews, who some Gentile Christians reckon have been written out of God’s script for good. Not so, he asserts. There is, as there has always been, a remnant of Jewish believers (he is one himself), and one day there will be many more, he predicts (chapters 9-11).

Having nailed his theological colours to the mast, Paul anticipates the impatience of the church member’s question, “So what?” He suggests numerous practical applications for his beliefs. Total commitment to the God who gave all is one. Active love for others is another, and good citizenship is a third; Paul encourages obedience to the state which has protected his liberty on several occasions. Finally, he encourages meat-eaters and vegetarians not to pass judgement on each other.

He also greets by name some 30 people who now live in Rome and who he has met on his travels. They, of course, will vouch for him prior to his arrival. After sending the letter, Paul prepared to leave for Jerusalem, where he is to deliver financial aid to the church.