Week Seventeen

Written By Melissa Rightmire

When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! Romans 6:20-21

Paul must have been a bold man! He wrote the letter we know as Romans to everyone who believed in Jesus in Rome before he even knew them. Well aware of the Roman culture he was able to write to them with authority and credibility. Scholars believe this letter was written while he was in Corinth on his third missionary journey. He had still planned to go to Rome on his way to Spain.

As you read this and other letters Paul wrote, you will hear a continual theme of unity among believers. He often challenged both Jews and Gentiles to consider themselves as brothers and sisters in Christ. This thread is loud and clear in the letter to the Roman believers — both Jew and Gentile. He called them to begin by understanding their own humanity, their frailties and brokenness, in order to see each other as bound together in the righteousness of God.

Specifically in this letter, Paul takes time to respond to the questions and philosophies of the day. How do people who are never told about Jesus or God know that He exists? Why do people do such evil things and how does God feel about it? What is the purpose of the Jewish law and does it apply to the Gentiles? I am free since I believe in Jesus, so I can do whatever I want now, can’t I? Will God ever judge the cruelty of humanity? It’s them and not me, right?

And there’s that word “right” which leads us to the related theme of righteousness in Paul’s letter. He used the word, dikaiosynē 36 times in this letter. He uses it to talk about the character of God and how He imparts that to believers. He talks about the role of righteousness in the believers life. He talks about righteousness as a moral standard, again looking to God’s character as that standard. But, he does not neglect speaking of the role of the righteousness of the Jewish law that many of the believers in Rome grew up in. Paul uses this letter to articulate how to recognize righteousness in God as well as in believers. By the end of this letter we know that righteousness is very much wrapped up in our relationship with God but in no way excludes our relationships with one another. The righteousness of God, imparted to us through faith, must be lived out together. And there we are again talking about the life of disciples, doing discipleship together. Making disciples that make disciples that make disciples — together.

I keep ending up here in this challenge of discipleship together. Maybe it’s where I am at in my life and I am dragging you with me. I just keep seeing this thread pulled through everything we are reading. Do you see it? Does it tug on your heart and challenge you too? How are you responding to it?

You can write a comment below, or reach me, Melissa, at mrightmire@crnaz.com . Thank you for traveling with me on this journey through the New Testament.

Below are the readings for week 17:

 

Melissa Rightmire
Previous

Week Eighteen
Next

Week Sixteen