ALPHA MAAMA (A.M.)

Monite Novema 15, 2021

from faith to faith

kamata mei he tui, pea iku ki he tui

Loma 1 (Romans 1)

(v. 16-17) He tala‘ehai ‘oku ou maa‘i ‘a e Kōsipeli: he ko e ivi ia ‘o e ‘Otua ‘oku ngāue ki he fakamo‘ui ‘iate ia fuli pē ‘oku tui; ‘o mu‘a ki he Siu, ka ki he Kalisi foki. He ‘oku fakae‘a ‘i ai ha mā‘oni‘oni mei he ‘Otua, ‘oku kamata mei he tui, pea iku ki he tui; ‘o hangē ko e Folofola, Ko e mā‘oni‘oni te ne mo‘ui mei he tui.

(v. 16-17) For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Bible

** The scope or design of the apostle in writing to the Romans appears to have been, to answer the unbelieving, and to teach the believing Jew; to confirm the Christian and to convert the idolatrous Gentile; and to show the Gentile convert as equal with the Jewish, in respect of his religious condition, and his rank in the Divine favour. These several designs are brought into on view, by opposing or arguing with the infidel or unbelieving Jew, in favour of the Christian or believing Gentile. The way of a sinner's acceptance with God, or justification in his sight, merely by grace, through faith in the righteousness of Christ, without distinction of nations, is plainly stated. This doctrine is cleared from the objections raised by Judaizing Christians, who were for making terms of acceptance with God by a mixture of the law and the gospel, and for shutting out the Gentiles from any share in the blessings of salvation brought in by the Messiah. In the conclusion, holiness is further enforced by practical exhortations. * The apostle's commission. (1-7) Prays for the saints at Rome, and expresses his desire to see them. (8-15) The gospel way of justification by faith, for Jews and Gentiles. (16,17) The sins of the Gentiles set forth. (18-32)

 

*Commentary: David Guzik Study Guide on Romans*

The importance and impact of Paul’s Letter to the Romans.

1. In the summer of 386, a young man wept in the backyard of a friend. He knew his life of sin and rebellion against God left him empty and feeling dead; but he just couldn’t find the strength to make a final, real decision for Jesus Christ. As he sat, he heard children playing a game and they called out to each other these words: “Take up and read! Take up and read!” Thinking God had a message to him in the words of the children, he picked up a scroll laying nearby and began to read: not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires (Romans 13:13b-14). He didn’t read any further; he didn’t have to. Through the power of God’s Word, Augustine gained the faith to give his whole life to Jesus Christ at that moment.

2. In August of 1513, a monk lectured on the Book of Psalms to seminary students, but his inner life was nothing but turmoil. In his studies he came across Psalm 31:1: In Thy righteousness deliver me. The passage confused Luther; how could God’s righteousness do anything but condemn him to hell as a righteous punishment for his sins? Luther kept thinking about Romans 1:17, which says, the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, “He who through faith is righteous shall live.” The monk went on to say: “Night and day I pondered until... I grasped the truth that the righteousness of God is that righteousness whereby, through grace and sheer mercy, he justifies us by faith. Therefore I felt myself to be reborn and to have gone through open doors into paradise... This passage of Paul became to me a gateway into heaven.” Martin Luther was born again, and the Reformation began in his heart.

3. In May of 1738, a failed minister and missionary reluctantly went to a small Bible study where someone read aloud from Martin Luther’s Commentary on Romans. As the failed missionary said later: “While he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone, for my salvation, and an assurance was given me that he had taken my sins away, even mine.” John Wesley was saved that night in London.

4. Consider the testimony of these men regarding Romans:

a. Martin Luther praised Romans: “It is the chief part of the New Testament and the perfect gospel... the absolute epitome of the gospel.”

b. Luther’s successor Philip Melancthon called Romans, “The compendium of Christian doctrine.”

c. John Calvin said of the Book of Romans, “When anyone understands this Epistle, he has a passage opened to him to the understanding of the whole Scripture.”

d. Samuel Coleridge, English poet and literary critic said Paul’s letter to the Romans is “The most profound work in existence.”

e. Frederick Godet, 19th Century Swiss theologian called the Book of Romans “The cathedral of the Christian faith.”

f. G. Campbell Morgan said Romans was “the most pessimistic page of literature upon which your eyes ever rested” and at the same time, “the most optimistic poem to which your ears ever listened.”

g. Richard Lenski wrote that the Book of Romans is “beyond question the most dynamic of all New Testament letters even as it was written at the climax of Paul’s apostolic career.”

5. We should also remember the Apostle Peter’s words about Paul’s letters: Also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles... in which are some things hard to understand (2 Peter 3:15-16).

a. The Book of Romans has life changing truth but it must be approached with effort and determination to understand what the Holy Spirit said through the Apostle Paul.