Mulling It Over: Romans 8:31-32 - What Shall We Say?
We are looking once again at Romans 8. I have been going through different chapters of the book of Romans in the New Testament on my own in recent months. I have started the practice of writing out several verses at a time, word for word as they are written in my English Standard Version of the Bible. After I write the verses out, I ask the question what do these verses tell me about God. It has been a wonderful practice to not only hand write, and yes I am doing it in cursive, but also to dwell on who God is and what He has done for us that has given us the ability to come into His presence as one of His children.
Image by Amanda Truscott from Pixabay
I have not written out Romans 8 as of yet, but it has been eye opening to go through this chapter over the last year and a half with all of you who read this little blog. Today we take a closer look at a few very familiar verses that I am sure many of you can quote.
“31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? ”
Let’s do our usual and look at these verses a phrase at a time.
What then shall we say to these things? This question is a referring back to the previous verses. Verses 1 - 25 remind us of our deliverance from bondage, and the awaiting transformation to glory. Verses 26 - 30 remind us of our position in Him. What can we possibly say to all of that? Can we condemn God, saying He is a malevolent being who does not care for us; that he has not provided a way for us to have peace with Him; that He cares not for our well being? How could we say such untruths when it is clear that He provided the way, and He gives us all we need, and even in our weakest moments His own Spirit is praying for us; interceding according to the Father’s will.
If God is for us, who is against us? I can hear the voices accusing, “If God is really for us then why are there all these problems? Why is our world is such a state of chaos? Why is there so much hate? Why is there so much pain?”
I do not want to throw out pat answers or give a couple of other verses to support this idea and send you on your way. This is tough. Once again, however, I must remind all of us of our Savior’s very own words.
“33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Once again, we have to refer back to Genesis 3 when the serpent, Satan, tempted Eve. He didn’t just tempt her flesh, he tempted her ability to trust in her Creator. Isn’t that true of the world ever since? Why did Adam and Eve sin? Because they did not believe that God really loved them and wanted the best for them. They believed, with the help of Satan’s manipulation of God’s words, that they would be better off making their own choices and decisions.
Image by Briam Cute from Pixabay
We still live in that shadow of mistrust. We begin to doubt God’s Word, we stop going to church, we start reading and listening to philosophies and voices that tear apart Christian thoughts and beliefs, and we start focusing on what is going to make us happy. We become rights based. No matter how much faith we put in our founding fathers, the reality is they were fallen men, and only God and His truth can be fully trusted. The only true rights we have are those given to us by the Creator of life. Without Him we are nothing.
Why do we have trouble, problems, struggles and trials; because sin entered a perfect world, but the beautiful thing is God provided a way. It doesn’t require my work, my money, my time, my identity it only requires my faith. It isn’t just faith in a verse here or there, but in the whole inspired Word of God. When we start throwing scripture out the window we tear down the foundation He laid for our redemption, justification and glorification. We open the door to racism, fascism, humanism and communism. We make up justifications for our behaviors saying like Madonna sang, “I was born this way.” We descend into mind numbing chaos revolving around a continuous search for peace, identity and value.
But God….
It is God who is for us. It is God who created this little blue and green gem we live on. It is God who gave us the law as a foreshadow of a more perfect way, and then gave us His son Jesus Christ who died on a cross for our sin so that we might be made right with the Father.
“15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” ”
It is God who imprinted His very own image on us and no matter how hard we try to run from that imprint we are distinctly God’s because of that image. God is not against us. He is the only one who is truly, purely for us, because He loves us and recognizes each one of us as His handiwork.
He who did not spare His own son, but delivered Him over for us all… This needs little explanation. God sent Jesus as a baby to Mary. He was born, and lived a human life for approximately 33 years. The last three of those years he ministered and taught His disciples doing miracles and teaching about His Father and the Kingdom of God. Most of the Jews in His time did not believe what he said, even accusing him of having a demon (see John 8:48). Eventually, it was His own people, the Jews, who condemned Him to death via Pilate. He died an agonizing death on a cross, but it was what He did after that made all the difference. If Jesus hadn’t risen from the dead, we would still be slaves to sin. It was God’s power displayed in this act of resurrection that gives us the ability to leave the world of shadow and emerge into His light.
…how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? So what does this mean? We know the triune God isn’t Santa Clause. We don’t just ask Him for anything we want like He is our very own Genie in a Bottle. When you grow in your relationship with Christ you come to realize He provides everything you need: peace, love, joy, strength, rest, hope, thanksgiving…these are not physical things, but He is also providing our physical needs as well. Things like jobs to buy food and pay our bills; family and friends to provide a space of security and joy; a home to live in, blankets on our beds…the list is pretty much endless. He will always come through and give you exactly what you need when you need it. I have found, the more I rely on Him for every single thing, the more He provides when I haven’t even asked.
Image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay
““For every beast of the forest is Mine, The cattle on a thousand hills.”
I hope these verses were a pertinent reminder of how very secure you are in Christ, and I hope that helps you to walk with peace, joy and confidence in Him.
Have a great weekend!