No images? Click here VICTORIOUS DECLARATIONS PT. IRomans 8:31-39 April 16th, 2023 God’s love is from everlasting to everlasting; this is the theme of Romans 8. The purpose of this chapter is to strengthen and inform our faith. God wants us to know that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. He wants us to be overwhelmingly secure in our salvation. He tells us to put on the helmet of salvation and take up the shield of faith so that we can quench the flaming darts of Satan. (See Ephesians 6:10-18)
Verses 31-39 evoke thoughts of security of the type that an orphaned child experiences when being adopted into a loving, Christian home. The parents had chosed beforehand to love the child and always seek his/her best interests. This is the same security for the persons whom God has chosen to adopt. If we have been adopted by God, we are held securely by the Father and the Son (John 10:28-29), and we are sealed by the Holy Spirit for the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:30). Jude 24 assures us that God “is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy.”
In verses 31-39 Paul asks a series of rhetorical questions, all for the purpose of helping us be more certain our security. The answers to these seven questions actually become declarations for us. We learn from these declarations that there is absolutely nothing that can separate us from God and that His love is everlasting. The first declaration is that God loves us.
I. God loves us (v. 31a)
This is the first thing that God wants us to understand. There can never be a separation between God’s love and us. This verse assures us of two things:
“What then shall we say to these things?” The “these things” are the things that come after this verse: God gave His Son, no charges will be brought, there is no condemnation, no separation. These things push us forward to show us that there is security in Christ, and it also reaches back to Romans 5. Summarizing some of these things: justification (Romans 5:1-11), imputed righteousness (Romans 5:12-21), freedom from bondage to sin (Romans 6:1-16), slaves of righteousness (Romans 6:17-23), a new spiritual head (Romans 7:1-6), the old sinful nature, though still with us, no longer control us (Romans 7:7-25), and the ability to live the Christian life with no fear of condemnation (Romans 8). Our security is wrapped up in all these things.
The second aspect of this verse is that we can never be separated from God’s love. God’s salvific love is everlasting, irrevocable, unbreakable. If God loved us and chose us and wrapped us up in Christ, then to reject us is to reject Himself. This is how secure we are.
There are times in everyone’s life where doubts arise. If we are not informed in the truth of this text, we may stumble in our Christian walk. Conflicts sometimes come as we interact with other people, and they may cause us to lose our joy, and we may think that God has taken His love from us. We might even think that our sin will cause God to withdraw His love from us. We may even think that God loves us less than other believers who appear to be more faithful in their ministry, and more secure in their relationship with God. These are times when we need to hold firmly onto the truth of this passage and preach it to our hearts whenever we have doubts. If we have repented of our sin, and have received Christ as Lord and Savior, then it is not possible that God will take back our salvation. He will not deny Himself.
II. God is for us (v. 31b)
The first declaration in verse 31 was that God loves us; the second is that God is for us. Since God is for us, it does not matter who or what comes against us. There is both physical and spiritual opposition, but we must know that God is for us in all situations.
The text says, “If God is for us” but it really means, Since God is for us. The statement is not conditional.
Who is the “who” here? Who could cause us to think that God is not for us? Can someone rob us of our salvation? Paul wrote this epistle to a primarily Jewish audience. The Jews acknowledged that salvation is by grace, but they also believed that no Jew or Gentile could retain their salvation apart from works of the law. Social pressure, especially from persons of authority, can cause believers to stumble. Even the great Apostle, Peter, who stood against the Judaizers in Acts 15 was publicly rebuked by Paul in Galatians 2, when Peter acquiesced to the Judaizers. Paul’s epistle to the Galatians was written to prove to believers that salvation was secured by grace and grace alone.
People in power can be the “who” against us as they exert pressure on believers to compromise their faith. A time is coming when powerful people will control commerce, medical care, banking, etc. and Christians will be ostracized for not conforming to their demands. Your lifestyle will be adjusted because of your faith. You are going to be forced to give up some things because of your faith.
People who hate God can be the “who” against us. Many cults would proclaim to believe in Jesus. They would never think that they hate God but, if they proclaim any gospel other than the true gospel, they lead people astray, and demonstrate no love for God and His truth. Paul foresaw that false teachers would arise from within the church. In Acts 20:29 he said, “I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.” Paul knew that wolves cannot cause believers to lose their salvation, but they can create havoc and doubts within believers.
The “who” can even be ourselves. We can think that because of our sin, we are driving ourselves out of the kingdom. Because of our sin, we can think that God is not for us, so we need to frequently declare to ourselves that God is for us. If anyone can rob us of our salvation, that person must be greater than God.
We find great encouragement throughout the Psalms. For example, David said in Psalm 27:1, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?” Summarizing Psalm 46:1-3, Even though stable things like mountains crumble, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” When calamities come, people of the earth panic, but we in Christ need not fear. What can hurt us? John wrote, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” (1 John 4:18) We can have confidence until the day of judgment, because our security is based solely on the grace of God. We need not fear anything because God is for us!
Persecution is coming. A time will come in the United States when Christians will be pressured into denying their faith. An appeal to tolerance has turned into hate speech, which will become illegal. The wrath of God is being revealed, and evil men may be the instruments He uses. The state may demand we recant of our faith, but we must follow the lead of Martin Luther: “My conscience is captive to the word of God. To go against conscience is neither right nor safe. I therefore cannot, and I will not recant! Here I stand.”
III. God will not forget us (v. 32)
It would be absurd to think hat God would cast you out of heaven when He had sacrificed His own Son for you. He is not going to forget you when you stand before His throne. Abraham’s trust in God was tested (Genesis 22), and this was a foreshadowing of the sacrifice of Christ at Calvary. Isaiah 53 describes in vivid detail the suffering that Christ endured from God in order to secure peace between Holy God and sinful man. The amazing thing is that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us! (Romans 5:8) Galatians 3:13 explains that “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us." The wrath of God against sin was poured out on Christ at Calvary. Paul is arguing that, since God has given you His greatest gift, He will not forget you or deny you all the benefits of His love.
Ephesians 1:3 tells us God “has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing.” These blessings include righteousness, the Holy Spirit, privilege, power, position, being a co-heir with Christ, etc. John 3:35 declares that “The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand.” If we are in Christ, then all these things belong to us as well. We may feel overwhelmed by the circumstances of life and think that God has forgotten us, but we need to remind ourselves that God has given us His greatest Gift, so He will never forget us. The repentant thief who was hanged with Jesus asked Him to remember him when He came into His kingdom. In His greatest trial, when Jesus was facing the full wrath of God, He responded: "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise." (Luke 23:39-43) God will never forget us.
When we are facing our final breath on earth, we need to remind ourselves of this great passage of Scripture, Romans 8:31-39. And, in our job as ministers of reconciliation, we need to preach this great news to others also! The first three points to proclaim from this text are that God loves us, God is for us, and God will not forget us. With these points in mind, we can confidently declare that nothing can overwhelm us. “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world— our faith.” (1 John 5:4)
Selah:
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