Romans 8:28-39 - Nothing Can Separate
Romans 8:28) We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. 29) For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. 30) And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified. 31) What then are we to say about mese things? If God is for us, who is against us? 32) He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? 33) Who will bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. 34) Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. 35) Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36) As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered 37) No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38) For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Background: The theme of today's lesson is hope to the midst of travail. Paul is writing to the church in Rome the middle of the first century. Writing from Corinth, he anticipates a visit to Rome after a trip to Jerusalem to meet with officials in the church there and take an offering he has collected from churches throughout the Mediterranean basin. Always a trained Jew, Paul sees faith in Christ is the ultimate Judaism. His particular call was to extend the Gospel, and therefore the covenant, to non-Jews. This led to constant conflict with both the Jews and the early Christian movement in Jerusalem. He always needed to mend fences but, even so, had enormous clarity about his own mission and purpose. Paul was an evangelist. In today’s passage, he is trying to persuade and reassure people of the truth of who Christ is and what that means for them. He is writing to a church that de does not know well. Both Jews and Christians in Rome had been dealing with growing persecution for some time. There was a large Jewish community in Rome during the life of Jesus, maybe numbering as many as 50,000. They were mostly slaves or freedmen and were generally well tolerated until they began to attract a sizable Gentile following, many of them were people of means. Because of the fear of power shifts and political instability that religious movements can bring, Jews were evicted, and later returned to Rome more than once in the first half of the century. The church grew up within the synagogue and eventually began to grow in house churches, indicating that public gatherings were too dangerous. When the Jews were evicted, the house churches continued with Gentile believers. When the Jews returned, there were problems and tensions as they tried to regain their old positions of power and leadership in the house churches. This led to the formation of new churches. Paul addresses these internal problems in his letter, but in today’s lesson he primarily addresses how a believer is to live in the presence of constant danger and persecution. What Paul wants us to understand is that the bond of love between God and humanity, eternally established in Christ, can under no circumstances be broken.
Word Study
Vs. 28 -work together -the clear subject here is God and not all things. It is God that does the working together of all things for good.
For good - this does not mean that all things work out in a comfortable or convenient way. Rather, that in all things, God is at working bringing healing and newness out of tragedy.
Love God -this phrase reminds us of the central faith affirmation of Israel "Hear, O Israel, YHWH our God, YHWH is one; and you shall love YHWH your God.” In his way, Paul is saying that through the work of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit, Christians are able to fulfill the true law of Israel, the law of love.
Called - from roots that mean ‘consummate'. Each individual has a special purpose to fulfill. For Paul, that purpose was always to be like Christ.
According to his purpose - Christ-like-ness and the complete liberation of the groaning creation.
Vs. 29 - foreknew - not just the knowledge that comes from having information about something or someone. This is a much richer concept that is rooted in love and grace. It is the knowledge that comes from intimacy. It is independent on what one does. God reaches out, in advance of anything one does. to reveal Godself and to call into obedience. Foreknowledge is intimate and always has an element of call involved in it.
Predestined - This word simply means to be set apart for specific service. It is the result of the intimate foreknowledge of God. God knows and loves us and therefore out of intimacy has a will or plan for our fullness and joy in Christ.
Conformed into the image -rooted in the Hebrew concept of all humanity created in the image of God. Humans have distorted that image by idolatry and sin. Christ restored the image and we are to move, more and more, into the fullness of the image of Christ in order to restore our shattered lives. In that way we become a human Temple of the living God, that is an intersection of heaven and earth, a place where others meet God.
Firstborn of a large family - we are, by adoption, the younger siblings of Jesus and therefore heirs with him of the bounty of God and of the responsibilities of God’s household.
Vs. 30-justified -Here Paul moves back to courtroom imagery. Justified means to be given righteous status before God with regard to all charges that could be brought against us. Justification is never the work of a person. It is always the work of God’s loving grace in and for us that is made effective through our faith.
Vs. 31-these things – Paul is asking, in light of what he has been discussing in the previous chapters (faithfulness of God and the beneficiaries of that faithfulness) what can be our conclusions.
If God is for us - “if” in Greek also has the meaning of 'since, since it is so that God is for us'.
Us – Who is the us that God is for? According to Paul, it is not the nation of Israel, the Jewish people or any other recognizable group. Us refers to the new humanity, those whose citizenship is the kingdom of God, those who have been redeemed by Christ from the old futile nature to the new nature of love.
Vs. 32 - He who did not withhold his own Son – Paul here reminds us of the extravagant loving nature of God. God will do anything to redeem and share life with God's beloved people. Remember that in the Trinity all, while different, are still one. The giving of the Son is not divine child abuse. It is willing self-giving as both solidarity and seal of God’s love.
Give us everything else – This refers to both eternity and all that Christ got, resurrection, and also responsibility to be co-redeemers of the whole created order.
Vs. 33-charge - The language here is legal. Paul is asking who will charge, prosecute or bring proceedings against us at the final Day of Judgment
God’s elect – This is a very complex term for Paul. If refers to those whom God has chosen for a special purpose. It is always linked to God’s special purpose for Israel in the salvation and blessing of all of humankind. It does not refer to a special few who alone enjoy fellowship with God! Rather it refers to the responsibility of God’s children for the wholeness and holiness of all of God’s children.
Vs. 34 -This verse pictures Christ as our advocate before the throne of justice on the last day. This advocate is above any other and cannot be defeated. But it is more than that as well. Christ is the advocate whose love enfolds us while we are still trapped in the trial of the here and now. That love enfolds us and moves us forward. Nothing can disrupt it.
Vs. 35 - These words provide a picture of the fearsome tribulation of the end times, but they also give us an understanding of the true nature of all tribulation.
Persecution -refers to suffering for reasons of religion.
Nakedness – refers to human deprivation.
Sword – Refers to violent death, war.
Vs. 36 -picks up a quote from Psalm 44:22. "all daylong" suggests that there is no escape, no end to sight to the suffering. “Sheep to the slaughter” was a phrase used to describe a time when death is common place.
Vs. 37 - NO - none of these hostile forces are greater than God,
More than conquerors -literally, super conquerors, those who prevail completely, those who win more than a victory, those who win overwhelmingly and beyond all imagining.
Him who loved us -the past tense is interesting. Paul is pointing our thoughts back to the cross. That was when Christ showed his greatest love for us. Remember that this letter is being written only 25 years or so after the crucifixion.
Vs. 38-I am convinced -persuaded without reservation. The phrase could be translated "I am convinced, continue to be convinced, nothing has or can shake my assurance.
Death, life, angels, rulers.... all of the things in this list are things that are considered threats, that that can cause us to feel cut off from God, from access to the resources of our faith. Remember that the word angel does not always or only refer to heavenly beings that are at God’s command. They can refer to the dark angels that lie and lead astray. The word can also refer to any messenger that brings a powerful message. Basically, what he is saying is that even the worst that can happen holds no terror for believers.
Questions for Personal Reflection
1. After working with this study, has your understanding of the elect changed? Thinking about your own life, what do you think you are specially elected to do and be?
2. What are some of the daunting powers and rulers in our day that seem like a threat? How does your assurance of your status before God help you to face challenges, especially big ones?
3. What does it mean to you to live in hope in times of trial? What specifically has happened in your life that has persuaded you that in Christ you cannot be shaken?