Romans 5-8

Many people have read Romans 5-8 and thought the information was interesting, but they also realized that when they were done, they were about as confused as when they started. In 2 Pet 3:16, even Peter mentions that some of the things Paul says are difficult to understand. It has taken me 35 years to sort these chapters out.Romans is difficult understand on the intellectual level because Paul uses a circular logic which is typical of Middle Eastern culture. What makes Romans almost...
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Many people have read Romans 5-8 and thought the information was interesting, but they also realized that when they were done, they were about as confused as when they started. In 2 Pet 3:16, even Peter mentions that some of the things Paul says are difficult to understand. It has taken me 35 years to sort these chapters out.Romans is difficult understand on the intellectual level because Paul uses a circular logic which is typical of Middle Eastern culture. What makes Romans almost impossible to understand comes from the flesh. The flesh refuses to believe that it can do no good thing. We give intellectual assent to trusting in God, but when it comes to actually giving up on our ability to do any good thing, we refuse to let go of ourselves and trust God. This is called dying to self.We are like the unsaved who has to stop struggling and trust. Until he sees God's sufficiency and lets go of himself, there is no salvation. This is true in the realm of forgiveness and it is true in the area of our Christian walk. A Christian typically needs to go through the same conversion process as the non believer. The process is the same but the object of out faith shifts from forgiveness to the way we live our lives by the power of God.It is my understanding that there have been revivals that have come about as groups of believers have come to understand the book of Romans. If you don't know why, my hope for you is that you may have a personal revival as you read and understand Paul's message in Romans.