Romans 8:31-39: God's Love I. Base Text: Romans 8:31-39 II. Understanding the Text A. What are "these things" (Romans 8:31)? 1. Romans 8:1-11: no condemnation for those in Jesus; walking by Spirit, not flesh; Spirit "in" us 2. Romans 8:12-23: sons of God by adoption; suffering not comparable to waiting glory; desire for creation, Christians to be set free from decay, corruption 3. Romans 8:24-30: hope; intercession of the Spirit; all things work out for good; foreknowledge, predestination, conformity to Son, salvation 4. The question indicates that Paul is about to sum it all up in conclusion B. If God is for us, who can be against us (Romans 8:31)? 1. The purpose of the passage perhaps summed up here! 2. Rhetorical question for effect-- the answer is that no one can! 3. Encouragement to the believer: God is not antagonistic, but our aid and help! 4. God is for us-- He has delivered us from sin in Jesus, adopted us as sons, provided the Spirit to assist in our weakness, provided the means of our salvation C. Not Sparing Son, Giving Us All Things (Romans 8:32) 1. Paul continues with the point: if God was willing to give of His Son, what will He not give? 2. A reminder to the brethren in Rome-- if God is faithful in the big gift, He is faithful in the comparatively little ones also! D. Charges and Condemnation (Romans 8:33-34) 1. Another rhetorical question: who can bring a charge against God's chosen people? 2. The adversary, the devil, will try, but it is God who justifies! 3. Who can condemn, since Jesus who died for us now intercedes for us at the right hand of God? 4. All meant for reassurance! E. The Love of God (Romans 8:35-39) 1. As Paul concludes this part of the message, he makes the context clear 2. Romans going through difficulties-- called upon to suffer for the faith 3. Romans 8:36 a citation of Psalm 44:22 4. Notice that despite all these promises, Christianity not a cakewalk 5. There will be suffering-- we might even die! 6. But no external force can separate us from the love of God! 7. We are "more than conquerors" through Christ's blood! F. Abuse of Romans 8:35-39 1. Passage is unfortunately abused to declare something it does not: eternal security 2. Many infer from it that since nothing can separate us from God's love, we are saved no matter what 3. God's love has always been there for us, however (John 3:16) 4. We can still separate ourselves from Christ's love through our sin, just as at the beginning (cf. Isaiah 59:1-2)! 5. Yet let us not lose sight of Paul's message of encouragement here! III. Application A. Our relationship with God 1. How do we view our relationship with God? 2. Paul makes it clear in Romans 8 that we are to view God as our adoptive Father, one who loves us deeply 3. God will give us all things since He has given us of His Son; He is for us, not against us! 4. This is critically important to recognize in our walk with God: He is not hostile toward us 5. Yes, He does not like sin, and we might have consequences for our sin 6. We may also go through periods of testing and discipline (James 1:2-5, Hebrews 12) 7. But this is not because God is our enemy-- God is always for us, seeking to have us be saved, loving us and wishing to bless us beyond our imaginations! B. Intercession 1. Previously we saw that the Spirit intercedes on our behalf (Romans 8:26) 2. Now we see also that Jesus makes intercession at the right hand of God (Romans 8:34)! 3. How encouraging it is to consider that two members of the Godhead intercede on our behalf! C. Our Salvation 1. We have mentioned how Romans 8 has been abused to support the doctrine of "once saved, always saved" 2. But Paul is not advocating an "if saved, barely saved" position either! 3. Paul intends for the believer to derive encouragement from their present salvation in Jesus Christ (Romans 8:1, 31-34) 4. It is indeed dependent on walking according to the Spirit (Romans 8:5-13) and suffering for the faith (Romans 8:17), but Paul can speak presently of how God is for us and that no one can condemn us! 5. We must maintain the balance-- not so complacent as to fall into sin, but not paralyzed by constant fear of having lost salvation, either! D. God's Love 1. The great message of Romans 8 is that God's love is there through it all 2. God's love was in the beginning, providing the way of salvation 3. God's love is manifest in the sacrifice of Jesus 4. God's love is with us now, and no external force can separate us from it 5. Very encouraging when we are constantly in the midst of difficulty and trial! E. More Than Conquerors 1. No matter what our circumstances, if we stand firm with Jesus, we are greater than conquerors 2. Physical and spiritual forces of darkness cannot stand before His great glory 3. We are saved in hope, and look forward to the great day when we have full redemption 4. There is no condemnation, but a spirit of hope and love that guides us ever closer to the goal IV. Conclusion A. Thus ends Romans 8, a very encouraging chapter indeed! B. Do we stand to be more than conquerors? C. Is there condemnation for us? Or will God justify us? D. Do we walk according to the Spirit? Have we received the adoption as sons? E. Are we living in that patient hope, trusting in God's love and grace? F. Let us press onward to the goal! G. Invitation/songbook