I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. (Rom 1:14-15)The next verse begins with the word, "for." And the next verse. And the next verse. All the way to verse 21. Now, these "for" statements are building blocks. Starting with "I am eager to preach the gospel to you," Paul gives reasons. Why is he eager to preach the gospel? "For I am not ashamed of the gospel" (Rom 1:16a). And why is he not ashamed of the gospel? "For it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes" (Rom 1:16b). Do you see the sequence, the line of thinking? The gospel is the power of God for salvation. Therefore, he is not ashamed of it. Therefore, He is eager to preach the gospel. It's a cause-and-effect sequence. But there's more. How is the gospel the power of God for salvation? "For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, 'The righteous shall live by faith'" (Rom 1:17). The reason the gospel is the power of God for salvation is that it reveals the righteousness of God and justification by faith. And why does it reveal the righteousness of God? Because God's wrath is revealed against our sin (Rom 1:18). Why is He angry? Because what can be known about God is plain (Rom 1:19). And how is it made plain? Because nature reveals His attributes so they are without excuse (back to "Why is God angry?") (Rom 1:20). Paul has laid out a very detailed statement here about cause and effect. The central point is the gospel. The gospel is God's power for salvation because it reveals God's righteousness. God's righteousness -- His "rightness" -- is revealed because He is angry at sin. The sin He is angry with is our refusal to honor Him -- the bad news.
We tend to read Scripture in verses. Well, of course we do; it's put together that way. But we should be reading it in context. I noticed the other day that a chapter in Acts ends with "And when there was a great hush, he addressed them in the Hebrew language, saying:" (Acts 21:40). That's no way to end a chapter. And if we're reading verse by verse, we stop before the thought is finished. Romans is a theologically dense letter, and if we're not careful, we might miss key components if we don't consider the context. Many of us can quote, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek" (Rom 1:16) without even noticing the first word is "for" and requires the previous context (and the following) to make sense of it. We shouldn't settle for "Christianity Lite." We ought to devour the Word and get all we can out of it.
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And that is a lifelong pursuit.
I found this a very helpful post, for I needed to be reminded to read scripture all together rather than piecemeal, for “context is key,” for God’s Word is more than just little snippets of wisdom or encouragement (“all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness…”).
It is interesting to consider the various “But God” phrases in the Bible and also “what the ‘therefore’ is there for”; hereon in I will also notice the “for” clauses (and beyond the common ones in John 3:16-16, 20).
Correction: I meant to type (...John 3:16-17, 20).
Someone told me that the idea "to meditate" (at least in Scripture) is the same idea as the cow chewing its cud -- "to ruminate." You digest something, then bring it up again and chew it again for more nutrition. Joshua said, "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night..." (Josh 1:8). Definitely a lifelong proposition.
This is a good analogy! Yes, one definition of “ruminate” is “to think deeply about something,” i.e. “meditate” or “to chew over.” I will add this nature fact regarding God’s animal kingdom: Many more animals besides cows chew the cud. Ruminants include cattle, sheep, goats, llamas, alpacas, white-tailed deer, moose, camels, giraffes, and buffalos. Even some primates ruminate, including proboscis monkeys and langur monkeys. Happily, we humans do not!
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