The book of Romans answers some of the most important questions that we have about life,

particularly our own lives.

Like, what was my spiritual condition before my conversion?

What did God do in Jesus Christ, his Son, to save me from that condition?

And how was that work that he did different from what God has done inside of me?

How did God overcome my stubborn resistance and give me the gift of faith?

And now, how should I live in light of the precious salvation God has given to me and is working inside of me now? How does it affect my relationships, my work, my life at home,

in the church, and in the world? And what confident hope can I have for the future?

Paul's letter to the Romans is such a precious gift from God, answering all of these questions for us.

Pastor John, as we approach March and prepare to dive into Romans in our Bible reading

and to read it throughout this month, help us out here.

You've been reading and studying and cherishing this book, this letter, for over 60 years now.

What advice would you give us to help us draw out the most glories from

this precious letter? Let me see if I can raise the expectations of us all as we move into

Romans again this year. I will claim, without any fear of contradiction, that Paul's letter to the Romans

is the greatest letter that has ever been written in the history of the world by anybody,

Christian or non-Christian. And here's what I mean by greatest. Three things. Number one,

it is the fullest, divinely inspired

summary of the greatest realities in the universe. Second, among those inspired writings,

it is not only the fullest summary of the greatest realities, it penetrates more deeply into those realities

than any other book does, like the condition of humanity outside Christ, the meaning

of justification by faith, the miracle of the Christian life lived after the law in the spirit.

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