Unlocking The New Testament

Romans 1

David Pawson says that Paul’s letter to the Romans is the longest letter we have from the ancient world, and is very important. Paul is obviously countering arguments. Paul has never met the Roman church so why did he write to them? David believes that chapters 9 to 11, where Paul speaks so much about the Jews, are the key to the whole letter. David asks what the need in Rome was. There were serious social issues there and that is why Paul deals with such subjects as homosexuality, antisocial behaviour, disobedience to parents, uncontrollable violence and crime. Paul seeks to minister to Christians who have to live in the midst of this city of vice and crime. David explains that what had begun as a church of Hebrew believers in Rome had become one of Gentiles as Jews had been expelled by the Emperor Claudius. But then, when the next emperor invited the Jews back for financial reasons, they found that their church had changed in the hands of Gentiles. David says that everything in this letter is to get those two groups back into fellowship. Chapters 9 to 11 counter replacement theology, the thinking that the Church has replaced the Jews.

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Romans 2

In Part 1 of Romans, David Pawson showed that the reason for Paul to write to the Roman church was the tension between Jew and Gentile within the fellowship. Because of their different backgrounds, he deals specifically with the issues confronting them – whether to eat food offered to idols, keeping one day special each week. David shows that the keyword in Romans is ‘God’, occurring more than any other. Paul had to discuss the Law for the sake of the Jews and license for the sake of the Gentiles. The main theme is the righteousness of God, and David says their own good deeds are more likely to keep people out of Heaven than anything else. Salvation is a process that must continue to the end. God justifies us before he sanctifies us. David’s brief outline of the book: Chapters 1-4 Faith which looks to the past; chapter 5 Hope which looks to the future; chapters 12-16 Love which is concerned with working out the present. Chapters 9-11 dwell on the Jews. Paul communicated the Gospel by word, deed and sign. David encourages us to examine a book to break it up to find the structure to aid our understanding.

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