Romans 1-8 Analysis
Romans chapters 1-8 is a foundation for a correct biblical worldview, but it dives further into the deeper questions of life. Such as God’s existence or what right and wrong is. Paul instead is addressing certain challenges the Gentiles and Jews encountering. To address these challenges, he creates a foundation for a biblical worldview they could use. He teaches how a Christian should view the natural world, our human identity and our human relationships: as well as culture.
In the first chapter of Romans, Paul begins building a biblical worldview for the church in Rome by identifying God as creator. This gives a reason for, “God’s wrath in his ‘annihilating reaction’ against sin” (Barclay 25) and God’s regretful abandonment of men to their sin (Barclay 29) (Rom 1:24-25). Paul reveals that the state of the natural world was corrupted, but in love, God gave man the ability of general revelation through creation. Nevertheless because of this act of love no man can be …show more content…
excused from the wrath of God (Rom 1:20). The truth from Romans has not really affected my own biblical worldview. The only effect Romans would have on my worldview concerning the natural world, is in of support my worldview. I do agree with Paul and Barclay, not only in faith but in experience. Sin is rampant in the natural world causing man to reject his creator but even in the rejection, God does not manipulate us into faith.
Paul is very clear in his letters that he is a slave to Christ (Rom 7:25).
While the concept of slavery to God is a bit strange in the Western culture, Paul gives a compelling statement concerning who we obey. “…when [we] offer [ourselves] to someone to obey as his slave, [we] are slaves to the one whom [we] obey…” (Rom 6:16). Paul is teaching the contrast of obedience to our flesh and to God. He wants the church to understand how beautiful it is to be under God’s law. Romans 5:6-10 exemplifies human weakness as well as God’s might. In God’s might, he has justified, reconciled, and sanctified us from our sin. From Jesus’s sacrificial love we as humans are given a new identity in Christ. Paul’s description of human identity seems to back up my own worldview of human identity. I believe the human identity is in Christ, but we can only find this identity by choosing God as king over our lives. The term king is used in the most serious of terms. We are his slaves, but He is a gracious and loving
king.
A part of any worldview includes an understanding of human relationships. This section of Romans was particularly important, as the polytheistic religion of Rome condoned many sexual relations, which were consider perverse to the Bible. Paul calls out the perversion of God’s intended relationship between a man and a woman; and rebukes the Gentiles (Rom 1:26-31). Ironically, while Paul is rebuking the Gentiles, the Jews begin to feel a bit self-righteous. But Paul took them to task, teaching them that their status as Jews is not their salvation. The Jews are no better than the sexually impure Gentiles if they do not also follow the heart of the law (Rom 2:28-29). Paul’s lesson to the Jews hits home for me as I tend to be quick to judge. I don’t believe I have fully allowed grace to enter my thoughts or actions. In selfishness, I want God’s grace but I do not wish to share that grace in my relationships. As such, I don’t think I have let this lesson to affect my worldview yet.
“We have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nation.” (Romans 1:5). In this passage, the Gentile nations are invited to the Gospel of Christ. In the Gentiles acceptance of the Gospel, Paul suggests at a culture created around believers of Christ. A few verses down the Pauline text states, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone.” (Rom 1:14). This is the God culture, created to unify both Gentiles and Jews under the banner of Christ. A reason Paul taught about the unification of nations under Christ, was probably due to the tendency of Jews feeling self-righteous about their ethnicity (Rom 2:25-29). The unification of nations reminds me of the mission field, where culture, ethnicity, and language didn’t have a great effect on believers. The missions culture mimicked the God culture found in Romans but, I hadn’t been aware of this similarity until later as I had been a small child during that time. Nonetheless, a part of my worldview is that no matter culture, ethnicity, or language we are all under Christ’s banner and apart of the God culture.
To conclude Romans chapters 1-8 is a good indication of how an individual should view the natural world, human identity, human relationships, and culture. Of course, a Christian should not completely base all their biblical worldview off of these passages because the material does not address all of the essential truths. But when Romans 1-8 is taught or read correctly it can help a Christian be more objective in their challenges as well as a more critical thinker.
In the first chapter of Romans, Paul begins building a biblical worldview for the church in Rome by identifying God as creator. This gives a reason for, “God’s wrath in his ‘annihilating reaction’ against sin” (Barclay 25) and God’s regretful abandonment of men to their sin (Barclay 29) (Rom 1:24-25). Paul reveals that the state of the natural world was corrupted, but in love, God gave man the ability of general revelation through creation. Nevertheless because of this act of love no man can be …show more content…
excused from the wrath of God (Rom 1:20). The truth from Romans has not really affected my own biblical worldview. The only effect Romans would have on my worldview concerning the natural world, is in of support my worldview. I do agree with Paul and Barclay, not only in faith but in experience. Sin is rampant in the natural world causing man to reject his creator but even in the rejection, God does not manipulate us into faith.
Paul is very clear in his letters that he is a slave to Christ (Rom 7:25).
While the concept of slavery to God is a bit strange in the Western culture, Paul gives a compelling statement concerning who we obey. “…when [we] offer [ourselves] to someone to obey as his slave, [we] are slaves to the one whom [we] obey…” (Rom 6:16). Paul is teaching the contrast of obedience to our flesh and to God. He wants the church to understand how beautiful it is to be under God’s law. Romans 5:6-10 exemplifies human weakness as well as God’s might. In God’s might, he has justified, reconciled, and sanctified us from our sin. From Jesus’s sacrificial love we as humans are given a new identity in Christ. Paul’s description of human identity seems to back up my own worldview of human identity. I believe the human identity is in Christ, but we can only find this identity by choosing God as king over our lives. The term king is used in the most serious of terms. We are his slaves, but He is a gracious and loving
king.
A part of any worldview includes an understanding of human relationships. This section of Romans was particularly important, as the polytheistic religion of Rome condoned many sexual relations, which were consider perverse to the Bible. Paul calls out the perversion of God’s intended relationship between a man and a woman; and rebukes the Gentiles (Rom 1:26-31). Ironically, while Paul is rebuking the Gentiles, the Jews begin to feel a bit self-righteous. But Paul took them to task, teaching them that their status as Jews is not their salvation. The Jews are no better than the sexually impure Gentiles if they do not also follow the heart of the law (Rom 2:28-29). Paul’s lesson to the Jews hits home for me as I tend to be quick to judge. I don’t believe I have fully allowed grace to enter my thoughts or actions. In selfishness, I want God’s grace but I do not wish to share that grace in my relationships. As such, I don’t think I have let this lesson to affect my worldview yet.
“We have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nation.” (Romans 1:5). In this passage, the Gentile nations are invited to the Gospel of Christ. In the Gentiles acceptance of the Gospel, Paul suggests at a culture created around believers of Christ. A few verses down the Pauline text states, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone.” (Rom 1:14). This is the God culture, created to unify both Gentiles and Jews under the banner of Christ. A reason Paul taught about the unification of nations under Christ, was probably due to the tendency of Jews feeling self-righteous about their ethnicity (Rom 2:25-29). The unification of nations reminds me of the mission field, where culture, ethnicity, and language didn’t have a great effect on believers. The missions culture mimicked the God culture found in Romans but, I hadn’t been aware of this similarity until later as I had been a small child during that time. Nonetheless, a part of my worldview is that no matter culture, ethnicity, or language we are all under Christ’s banner and apart of the God culture.
To conclude Romans chapters 1-8 is a good indication of how an individual should view the natural world, human identity, human relationships, and culture. Of course, a Christian should not completely base all their biblical worldview off of these passages because the material does not address all of the essential truths. But when Romans 1-8 is taught or read correctly it can help a Christian be more objective in their challenges as well as a more critical thinker.