Romans explains salvation. From the opening verses you know you’re reading the explanation of how God justifies sinners and converts them into saints!

As as a result, some of the most well loved passages in the New Testament are found in Romans. For instance, in chapter one Paul writes,  “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith’” (1:16-17).

Later, he tells us the love of God was the reason for the cross. “…but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (5:8). Perhaps the most well known passage in Romans gives every believer assurances about the purpose of our lives. “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (8:28).

The book was written by the Apostle Paul to a group of Christians in Rome about 25 years after the resurrection of Jesus and provides the most comprehensive view of justification by faith found in the New Testament. The doctrine  of election is also developed in Romans more clearly than in any other New Testament work and has provided endless discussion and debate for theologians and average believers as well for the last 2000 years.

The book of Romans has also played a unique role in the spiritual biographies of some of our most significant Christian leaders through the centuries. For instance, in the 5th century, while in Milan, Augustine was converted by reading a passage from Romans and later became the most influential theologian since the Apostles.

-JKB