Paul’s Epistle to the Romans
August 8, 2021
Opening Prayer
Psalm 5
Give ear to my words, O Lord;
consider my groaning.
2 Give
attention to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you do I pray.
3 O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for
you and watch.
4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil may not dwell with you.
5 The boastful
shall not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers.
6 You
destroy those who speak lies;
the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and
deceitful man.
7 But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
will enter your house.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
in the fear of you.
8 Lead
me, O Lord, in
your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight before me.
9 For there is no truth in their mouth;
their inmost self is destruction;
their throat is an open grave;
they flatter with their tongue.
10 Make
them bear their guilt, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;
because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them
out,
for they have rebelled against you.
11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name
may exult in you.
12 For
you bless the righteous, O Lord;
you cover him with favor as
with a shield.
Prolegomena
Psalm 5 & 6 go together. I have heard that some Jews
pray Ps. 5 every morning, and Ps. 6 every evening. It might be interesting to
try that for a month.
Going slowly means to really listen to the Word.
Romans 6:1-2
What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that
grace may abound? 2 By no means! How can we
who died to sin still live in it?
v.1
A warped logic is presented here.
-
Should we continue/tarry/remain in sin so that
grace might increase/abound?
-
This is pointing us toward sanctification – a
changed life.
o
Micah 6:8 – YHWH has made known to you, O Man
(Adam), what is good. And what does YHWH seek from you? Indeed, whether [you
are] to do justice, or to love loving-kindness (grace!), or to be humble to
walk with your God.
o
Ezekiel 18:21 - “But if a
wicked person turns away from all his sins that he has committed and keeps all
my statutes and does what is just and right, he shall surely live; he
shall not die.”
-
This affirms the life of repentance has an
ethical component.
-
Repentance, however, is rooted in grace not an abuse
of grace.
v.2
The proper logic.
-
By no means! – No way!
-
Premise – We have died to sin.
-
Question – How then will we live in sin?
Romans 6:3-4
Do you not know that all of us who have been
baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We
were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just
as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too
might walk in newness of life.
v. 3
Do you not know …
- Are you ignorant/uncomprehending?
Whoever of us has been baptized into Christ …
- Baptized is a passive past tense verb.
Holy Baptism
-
Baptism is done to us.
-
Matthew 28:19 – Go therefore
and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to
observe all that I have commanded you.
o
Make disciples (imperative verb)
o
baptizing and teaching (supporting participles
explaining how to fulfill the imperative)
o
Go (also a participle, and not a command)
-
Mark 16:16 - Whoever believes and
is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe
will be condemned.
o
If one believes, one will be baptized.
-
Acts 2:38 - Peter said to them, “Repent
and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for
the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
o
Repent – active imperative
o
Be baptized – passive imperative
-
Acts 10:47-48 - “Can anyone withhold
water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just
as we have?” 48 And he commanded them to
be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
o
Peter commanded baptism for Cornelius and his household.
-
1 Peter 3:21 - Baptism, which corresponds
to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as
an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus
Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at
the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been
subjected to him.
Denominations are divided on their understanding of Holy Baptism, and this is one of the key distinctives to look for when checking out a congregation’s or church body’s teaching.
v. 3
Do you not know, whoever of us has been baptized into Christ
Jesus, into his death we were baptized?
-
What do you receive when you are baptized?
o
Jesus death!
o
Explores this more in ch. 7. – marriage and the
widow
Further Reading on Baptism
-
Luther’s Small Catechism and the Explanation Section.
-
Luther’s Large Catechism
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