Insights on Romans

Charles R. Swindoll

• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
• Year: 2016
• Print ISBN: 9781414393858
• eBook ISBN: 9781496400697

The 15-volume Swindoll's Living Insights New Testament Commentary series continues with Insights on Romans. This newly revised and expanded edition draws on Gold Medallion Award–winner Chuck Swindoll's 50 years of experience with studying and preaching God's Word. His deep insight, signature easygoing style, and humor bring a warmth and practical accessibility not often found in commentaries.

Each volume combines verse-by-verse commentary, charts, maps, photos, key terms, and background articles with practical application. The newly updated volumes now include parallel presentations of the NLT and NASB before each section. This series is a must-have for pastors, teachers, and anyone else who is seeking a deeply practical resource for exploring God's Word.

SALUTATION (ROMANS 1:1-17)

Imagine how you would feel if you discovered a one hundred percent natural, one hundred percent effective, completely free cure for all types of cancer. How much of your own time, energy, and money would you expend to make this wonder cure available to as many people as possible in your lifetime?

Paul was a man on a mission. His assignment? To distribute the most precious commodity the world has ever received: the gospel, a cure formulated by God to be one hundred percent effective against the terminal disease of sin. The gospel —the euangelion (“good news”) in his language —became the driving force of his life. And, as he was about to take this magnificent obsession to a completely different level, the apostle enlisted the help of his brothers and sisters in Rome. Unfortunately, they had never met.

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KEY TERMS IN ROMANS 1:1-17

apostolos (ἀπόστολος) [652] “apostle,” “sent one,” “official envoy”

The New Testament authors use this term to refer to those serving the mission of Christ (Acts 14:14). In the early church, the task of an apostle is described by the verb apostellō [649], which generally connotes sending. Paul refers to himself as “an apostle” (Rom. 1:1; 11:13), pointing out his Christ-ordained role as an official envoy for the gospel. To be called an “apostle” in this technical sense, one must have personally encountered Jesus Christ after His resurrection and received His express commission to bear the good news to others.

dikaiosynē (δικαιοσύνη) [1343] “righteousness,” “justice,” “fairness”

The word group derived from the dik- stem plays an important and distinctive role in Romans: the verb dikaioō (“to declare righteous” [1344]), the noun dikaiosynē (“righteousness”), and the adjective dikaios (“righteous, just” [1342]). For Paul and the early Christians, the importance and primary referent of this word is borne from its usage in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) where it translates the Hebrew word group associated with covenant righteousness. Through the intertestamental period “righteousness” takes on both an ethical and judicial flavor. In Romans, both of these nuances are evident, and righteousness is both an attribute of God that He renders to those who have faith in His Son, Jesus, and a characteristic of the behavior of those who maintain a right relationship with God.

euangelion (εὐαγγέλιον) [2098] “gospel,” “joyous news,” “good report”

This Greek term described the favorable report of a messenger from the battlefield or the official proclamation that an heir to the king had been born. In the New Testament this word refers to proclaiming that Jesus’ death and resurrection forgives sins and gives eternal life. The English term “gospel” comes from the Old English compound “good-spell,” where “spell” means “tale.” The gospel is the “good story” about Christ’s person and work.

pistis (πίστις) [4102] “faith,” “confidence,” “reliance,” “trust”

Paul’s usage of this word follows that of the Septuagint. For the Jew —and therefore the Christian —pistis is the means by which we relate to God. In Romans, the action of the verb pisteuō (“to believe or have faith” [4100]) is predominantly directed toward God and His will by means of Jesus’ saving action on the cross and in His resurrection (1:16). Pistis, then, is the sole means by which we receive salvation (1:5, 8, 12, 17).

sōtēria (σωτηρία) [4991] “salvation,” “deliverance,” “protection,” “preservation”

This word is used throughout the Septuagint and New Testament to describe a range of circumstances for rescue. Paul uses the word “salvation” in Romans five times (1:16; 10:1, 10; 11:11; 13:11), conveying not only the idea of spiritual salvation (“going to heaven when we die”), but also an eschatological perspective.[3] In other words, Paul is looking forward to the ultimate salvation found in Christ’s second coming, including resurrection and glorification.

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Mission: The Gospel

ROMANS 1:1-17

NASB

1 Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, [a]called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son, who was born of a [a]descendant of David according to the flesh, 4 who wa...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Preface
• Appendix
• Insights on Romans
• Introduction
• Salutation (Romans 1:1-17)
• The Wrath of God (Romans 1:18–3:20)
• The Grace of God (Romans 3:21–5:21)
• The Faithfulness of God (Romans 6:1–8:39)
• The Majesty of God (Romans 9:1–11:36)
• The Righteousness of God (Romans 12:1–15:13)
• The Community of God (Romans 15:14–16:27)