Eternity Daily Bible Study: No. 544 Romans 1-8 - A Righteousness That Is By Faith Verses: Romans 8:35-39 Topic: More Than Conquerors! Date: 21st November 2005 { We finish our series on Romans 1-8 on a glorious high note! } Romans 8:35-39 MKJV Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (36) As it is written, "For Your sake we are killed all the day long. We are counted as sheep of slaughter." (37) But in all these things we more than conquer through Him who loved us. (38) For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, (39) nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. In the Old Testament God's love was often shown by His creating ideal circumstances for those He loved. The cattle increased, the battles were won, the sun shined longer, the exiles returned shouting for joy. But between those times and the time of Christ had been four hundred harrowing years and persecution and occupation. In these days God's love seemed remote from the Jews. Then a new idea dawned - that God could love people right in the midst of the fiery furnace. The story in Daniel represents a subtle change in the paradigm: Daniel 3:16-26 MKJV (16) Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to return a word to you on this matter. (17) If it is so that our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, then He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. (18) But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods nor worship the golden image which you have set up. (19) Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with wrath, and the form of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He spoke and commanded that they should heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated. (20) And he commanded mighty men in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to throw them into the burning fiery furnace. (21) Then these men were tied up in their slippers, their tunics, and their mantles, and their other clothes, and were thrown into the middle of the burning fiery furnace. (22) Then because the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. (23) And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. (24) Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was amazed. And he rose up in haste and spoke and said to his advisers, Did we not throw three men bound into the middle of the fire? They answered and said to the king, True, O king. (25) He answered and said, Behold! I see four men loose, walking in the middle of the fire, and there is no harm among them. And the form of the fourth is like a son of the gods. (26) Then Nebuchadnezzar came near the door of the burning fiery furnace. He answered and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come forth and come here. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth from the middle of the fire. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were not assured of deliverance: "If it is so that our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, then He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. (18) But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods nor worship the golden image which you have set up." Yet Christ appears with them right in the midst of their affliction, and delivers them. Christianity teaches that the saint personally transcends suffering by becoming better. No suffering can destroy the saint because God dwells within the saint and imparts the power to endure the suffering and grow in grace. All the suffering does is to mature the saint in Christ and thus to add to the "weight of glory" that he or she will carry into eternity. "As it is written, "For Your sake we are killed all the day long. We are counted as sheep of slaughter." But in all these things we more than conquer through Him who loved us." We conquer the suffering by becoming more patient and loving and forgiving and gracious as a result. Our outward circumstances may be as terrible as the Roman persecution or the concentration camps that Corrie Ten Boom went through but inwardly we can be full of glory and grace in the midst of our sorrows and afflictions. The first category of sufferings mentioned by Paul are external circumstances: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?" No matter how embarrassing and humiliating our circumstances, God still loves us! In all our troubles God is with us and we will become stronger and greater and better people as a result of these troubles. The second category consists of various cosmic agents of separation: For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, (39) nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. No part of the spiritual or temporal hierarchy can organize itself so as to deny us access to the love of God and to personal growth in Christ. This refutes various pagan and gnostic views that taught that the Christian as separated from God by various layers of angels and cosmic powers. Christ ascended through all these powers and took captivity captive so that we are now seated far above them in the heavenly realms with Christ and have direct personal access to God (see Ephesians chapters 2,3 and 4). Nothing in the created order or in the spiritual and existential realms can separate us from the love of God. The obvious question then is" What about sin? Surely sin separates us from God? No! No! No! The cross has taken care of that, we are justified, no one can condemn us any more, the blood of Christ cleanses us and we have fellowship with God. Our sin is taken care of and we stand in the love of God and in the righteousness that comes through faith! No sin and no circumstance can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus and this love will work within us to make us righteous and holy and transform us into the image of the Lord Jesus Christ! Ephesians 3:14-21 MKJV For this cause I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, (15) of whom the whole family in Heaven and earth is named, (16) that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man; (17) that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, (18) may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height, (19) and to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge, that you might be filled with all the fullness of God. (20) Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, (21) to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, forever. Amen. 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