Romans 8

Romans 8 is the climax of the account of salvation that Paul develops in the preceding chapters. Following the lament at the end of Romans 7 (Romans 7:24-25), it opens with "There is therefore now" and describes the life that those who are in Christ enjoy in the Holy Spirit.

Outline

• Verses 1-4 There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. What the law could not do, God accomplished by sending His Son.
• Verses 5-13 Life according to the flesh is contrasted with life according to the Spirit. Paul states that the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus will also give life to mortal bodies.
• Verses 14-17 Those who are led by the Spirit are children of God. They have received the Spirit of adoption, by which they cry "Abba, Father," and they are heirs, joint-heirs with Christ.
• Verses 18-25 The sufferings of the present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed. Creation and believers groan together as they wait for the redemption of the body.
• Verses 26-30 The Spirit intercedes for believers. All things work together for good, and those whom God predestinated He also called, justified, and glorified.
• Verses 31-39 No one can condemn God's elect, and no created thing can separate them from the love of God. Verse 36 quotes Psalm 44:22.

Key verses

• Romans 8:1 "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus." This verse summarizes the result of justification in a single sentence.
• Romans 8:28 "All things work together for good to them that love God." This verse is frequently cited in discussions of God's providence in the midst of suffering.
• Romans 8:39 "Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God." This confession of assurance concludes the entire chapter.

People and places

• God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit are the principal actors. The author, Paul, speaks in the first person in "For I am persuaded" (verse 38). No specific places are mentioned.

Points for reflection

• Verses 29-30 are often read as setting out the order of salvation.
• The Calvinist tradition regards this passage as a basis for God's sovereign predestination and for the perseverance of the saints (the doctrine that true believers remain in salvation to the end).
• The Arminian and Wesleyan traditions understand "foreknow" as God's foreknowledge of faith. Nor do they read these verses as settling an individual's final salvation.
• This debate is covered in the article Predestination and Free Will.
• Some within Pentecostalism connect the "groanings which cannot be uttered" in verse 26 with prayer in tongues. Other interpreters understand the phrase as referring to the Spirit's intercession itself.
• The groaning of creation in verses 19-23 is read, together with 2 Peter 3:10-13, as a passage about the restoration of the created order.

In the Korean church

• Verses 28 and 35-39 are frequently used in preaching and Scripture memorization. They are also commonly cited in Bible studies on assurance of salvation.