Please read as much as you can of Paul's letter to the Romans. Focusing on Chapters 1-3 and 12-15 will work well.
From the chapters you read, pick out a verse or two that you think is a particularly important part of Paul's recipe for helping Jewish and gentile believers get along with one another. Cite also a verse you find particularly puzzling and explain why you find this verse hard to understand.
Alternatively, you might take a stab at explaining the verse another student found difficult/confusing or at answering one of the study questions.
I think verses 3:29-31 are especially important for both Jews and Gentiles as it establishes that both the Jews and Gentiles are saved by God, and that the law is established not overridden. There are other passages that I think are especially helpful, but if I'm just picking out a few verses, these are pretty good for that. I included 31 in my selection because it would be a big issue for Jews if Christians were throwing away the law and replacing it with something new. Jews would rightfully be suspicious of people claiming that God came to them in the flesh and contradicted everything they had from God already. But Paul makes a special point to say that the Law is not gotten rid of, it is established, and elsewhere he also explains the value of being a Gentile who God saves, and also of being Jewish. He doesn't dismiss anyone involved or call them less than.
ReplyDeleteRomans 10:6-7 is confusing to me. Especially the part "Do not say in
your heart, 'Who will ascend into Heaven?'" I don't know if this is saying not to try and figure out who will be saved. That would seem like an odd statement, considering how important the issue is. But I can see how it might align with the verse, "Man looks on the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart" 1 Samuel 16:7.
Chapter 2, verses 9-10 are very obvious when it comes to Paul giving his message to both Greeks and Jews. Paul tells the Christians that for both Jews and Greeks there will be tribulation and distress for those who do evil, and for both Jews and Greeks there will be glory and honor for those who do good. Paul finishes the thought with verse 11, telling the Christians that God shows no partiality. There should be no division between Jew and Greek because God doesn't play favorites.
ReplyDeleteI've never really understood 8:17, when Paul tells us that we are to be heirs with Christ. If Christ is supposed to be seated at the right hand of God, then wouldn't us being heirs with Christ put us on the same level as Him?
Romans 12:14-16a
ReplyDelete14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another.
Considering this letter was written to both Jew and Gentile; this verse is quite clear on how they should treat each other. The key idea to it is similar to the Sermon on the Mount, it doesn't matter how you are treated but that you should turn the other cheek and bless those people. It is also points out that when one person in the community is feeling someway then the whole church should rally around that. Harmony is the opposite of hostile and is demanded from Paul to the christians.
Romans 2:14-16
14 For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. 15 They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them 16 on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.
These verses are difficult to grasp and you get different answers from different christians. How can someone be saved without hearing the gospel? If it's based on their conscience and moral living then wouldn't that be a works based salvation? But at the same time it would seem fair for God to judge those differently who had never heard?
Romans 14:7-12 gives a good example of Paul's wanting to bring the Jews and Gentiles together. Verses 7 and 8 specifically say, "For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself... whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's."
ReplyDeleteRegardless of who a person is, Jew or Gentile, they are not their own, and they live and die in the Lord's hands. These passages conclude a portion where Paul talks about not judging one another for trivial matters, and in this conclusion, he really brings home the idea that the trivial doesn't change how much or how little a person's life, whether Jew or gentile, is in God's hands.
A verse I've found challenging is 1:24 and 28, where Paul says God gives man up into their lusts and a debased mind. The context is understandable, as I can see that if someone commits sin with no repentance and a glad choice to keep sinning, they ought to be given up to it. But, much like God hardening Pharaoh's heart, I find it difficult to think God would do that. I know he is a righteous and holy God, but God's grace is also in full measure, so that would make me think even they would get their second chance, but they don't.
I think that verses 12:4-8 is helpful for Paul's message of unity. It talks about people being different but it serves as a benefit for the church. I also like the imagery that he uses saying that people are "different parts of the same body".
ReplyDeleteVerse 2:11 sounds a bit contradictory to verses 2:9-10. Verses 9-10 say that there will be punishment and reward for first the Jew then the Greek. Even if there is no partiality in the judgement process, it makes it sound like there is still differences in reward/penalty. So wouldn't that still be partiality? Unless he means it literally that Jews will be judged first before Gentiles are judged?
Romans 13:1-7 can be a hard passage to grapple with! What do you mean by submit to secular authority?! I think this passage is particularly hard because people (especially nowadays) don't like the idea of someone holding power over us. But Paul lays out a good command. Let the government and God be separate. Of course, God still comes first.
ReplyDeleteRomans 14:1 "Welcome anyone weak in faith, but not for disputes over opinions." This is one way Paul soothes tensions with different groups of people [specifically Jews and Gentiles]. He is articulating the idea of unity in diversity. The commonality of faith should be so strong that individual culture should not divide!
Romans 3 5-8 But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a human way.) 6 By no means! For then how could God judge the world? 7 But if through my lie God's truth abounds to his glory, why am I still being condemned as a sinner? 8 And why not do evil that good may come?—as some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just.
ReplyDeleteI think it shows that go will condemn anyone who does not follow his law. I think this applies to both Jew and gentile. I say this because he does not care who you are; his rules are his rules.
Romans 2:3 says, "Though you are only a human being, you judge others. But you yourself do the same things. So how do you think you will escape when God judges you?"
ReplyDeleteI would tend to believe this would speak to both the Jews and non-Jews because he is speaking directly to human beings here. Since everyone present is a human being, it helps break the barrier between social ranks/classes. No one is better than anyone else because at the end of the day, God judges everyone fairly.
What may have been a bit confusing for me reading or understanding was Romans 2:14-15 which said, "Those who aren't Jews do not have the law. Sometimes they just naturally do what the law requires. They are a law for themselves. This is true even though they don't have the law. They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts. The way their minds judge them gives witness to that fact. Sometimes their thoughts find them guilty. At other times their thoughts find them not guilty." I just feel like understanding this deeper would be nice.
The analogy of all the members of Jesus-followers being a body of Christ is, in my opinion, the best reminder for readers of their unity despite their outward differences. Paul says this in Romans 12:4-5, emphasizing the unification of a body and their subsequent dependence on one another just as the body cannot properly function if its parts are disconnected. Paul does not discredit their differences either. In fact, he acknowledges them and says how each of them have different spiritual gifts, giving rise to the now-popular list of spiritual gifts.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most confusing sections for me is the end of chapter 3, where Paul is talking about the law and righteousness through faith. Any part of the NT where it discusses the law usually takes some careful reading. 3:28 by itself might seem like its abolishing the law, but not only would that not make sense, but Paul is quick to explicitly say they are upholding the law rather than making it void (verse 31). I think adhering to the law as a guide for righteous living rather than a means for justification is important to think about. If we are saved by grace through faith, then that doesn't mean we can go around and not follow the moral obligation to love others and follow God's commands, now with new motivation and ability through the Holy Spirit. At least that's how I can make sense of sections like this one.
I lost Wi-Fi and hit publish multiple times, which is why I have two posts on this.
ReplyDeleteIn Romans 2:15-16 Paul writes: "They (Gentiles) show the demands of the law are written in their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even defend them on the day when according to my gospel, God will judge people's hidden works through Christ Jesus." Paul wants the Jews to understand that even though the Gentiles do not know Jewish law they can still accept Jesus into their hearts. They cannot expect the Gentiles to understand or know all of the Old Testament teachings because they were not raised with it.
ReplyDeleteOne verse that I found in Romans that is important for helping Jewish and Gentile believers get along is in chapter 10, verse 12: “For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him.” Here Paul is being short and straightforward. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile. This would help them get along because instead of seeing others as different, it helps them see each other as the same.
ReplyDeleteOne verse in Romans that I found hard to understand is in chapter 11, verse 26: “And in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written: ‘The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.’” I just don’t know what Paul means by this. - Joseph