Opinion column

The gospel of Jesus - summarised in Romans

James Knight has been studying the book of Romans, and explains why he believes it summarises the story of salvation.

After two decades of writing (hopefully) interesting, distinctive and thought-provoking articles - and occasionally being unconventional in what I hope is a positively challenging and encouraging way - sometimes it’s good just to return to a ‘back to basics’ article; and hopefully one that has splashes of all those aforementioned qualities.
 
In my submission, St. Paul’s letter to the Romans is his most comprehensive theological treatise. To take just one subset, when we read Romans chapters 2-4, we get to piece together three of the most profound truths in all of creation: the connection between the true purpose of the law, God's justice, and righteousness by faith.
 
We read that the law is the means by which we become conscious of sin, that the cross is God’s justice, and that our faith is our righteousness. In those three chapters, and in Romans as a whole, we are offered a compelling explanation of humanity’s moral situation, God’s redemptive plan, and the transformative power of grace.
 
These are astounding truths that can transform any life that is courageous and humble enough to heed the wisdom.
 
Paul shows that we cannot have salvation through the law - it is "Through the law we become conscious of our sin." The law acts like a mirror, reflecting our true state in relation to sin and God’s holy standard. The law’s ultimate purpose is to lead us to Christ - to seek the grace offered in the gospel, because that is the only route to salvation.
 
It’s one of the most liberating things we can learn - that there is no amount of human morality or goodness that can bring salvation; it is a gift that must be freely given by the God whose standards we can never attain by ourselves. This is why Paul concludes in Romans 10:4: “Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.”
 
Paul introduces the concept of God's justice in Romans 3:21-26, where he presents the cross as the ultimate demonstration of divine righteousness. This passage is one of Paul’s key theological cornerstones, emphasising that the cross satisfies God in terms of both justice and mercy.
 
That the cross is God’s justice is one of the most important things any human can apprehend; the cross is God’s way of solving an otherwise insuperable problem; that through God’s justice, sin is addressed; that a holy and just God cannot overlook sin; and that He is so prodigiously good, loving, merciful and gracious that He is the only one with the power and holiness to provide a way for humanity to be reconciled to Him. The cross is God’s justice; it is divine justice made manifest.
 
Because God’s justice is satisfied when Christ bears the penalty of sin, righteousness is credited through faith in Christ as our Saviour. The law exposes our inability to meet God’s standards, leaving us utterly dependent on God’s grace. Paul then uses Abraham as the paradigm of righteousness by faith, where he quotes Genesis 15:6: "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness."
 
The cross invites us to believe in Christ when He showed us that He loves each one of us enough to die for us, and why He says in John’s gospel: 'This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.' Through the triune commitment of repentance (Luke 13:3), obedience (John 14:15), and following Him (Matthew 16:24), we get to live a full life (John 10:10).
 
Romans comprehensively weaves all this into a cohesive narrative of salvation: we see the awesomeness of God’s plan - the free gift of salvation that is just, gracious, and available to all who believe.

James Knight is a regular columnist for Christian community websites Network Norfolk and Network Ipswich. He also blogs regularly as The Philosophical Muser, including his Philosophical Muser You Tube channel, and contributes articles to UK think tanks The Adam Smith Institute and The Institute of Economic Affairs, as well as the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity (LICC). He also has a new writing platform: Substack: Dear Treasured You to which he invites new subscribers.

The views carried here are those of the author, not necessarily those of Network Norfolk, and are intended to stimulate constructive debate between website users. 

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