Loading...
Loading...
725 illustrations
Romans 8
1There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who don`t walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
2For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and of death.
3For what the law couldn`t do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God, sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh;
4that the ordinance of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
5For those who are after the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
6For the mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace;
7because the mind of the flesh is hostile towards God; for it is not subject to God`s law, neither indeed can it be.
8Those who are in the flesh can`t please God.
9But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if it is so that the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if any man doesn`t have the Spirit of Christ, he is not his.
10If Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the spirit is alive because of righteousness.
11But if the Spirit of him who raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised up Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
12So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
13For if you live after the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
14For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are children of God.
15For you didn`t receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, "Abba! Father!"
16The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God;
17and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified with him.
18For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which will be revealed toward us.
19For the creation waits with eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.
20For the creation was subjected to vanity, not of its own will, but by reason of him who subjected it, in hope
21that the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of decay into the liberty of the glory of the children of God.
22For we know that the whole creation groans and travails in pain together until now.
23Not only so, but ourselves also, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for adoption, the redemption of our body.
24For we were saved in hope, but hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for that which he sees?
25But if we hope for that which we don`t see, we wait for it with patience.
26In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we don`t know how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can`t be uttered.
27He who searches the hearts knows what is on the Spirit`s mind, because he makes intercession for the saints according to God.
28We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose.
29For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
30Whom he foreordained, them he also called. Whom he called, them he also justified. Whom he justified, them he also glorified.
31What then will we say about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
32He who didn`t spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how would he not also with him freely give us all things?
33Who could bring a charge against God`s elect? It is God who justifies.
34Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, yes rather, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.
35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Could oppression, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
36Even as it is written, "For your sake we are killed all day long. We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter."
37No, in all these things, we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
38For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
39nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
SermonWise.ai generates complete sermon outlines for any passage across 17 theological traditions. Try it with Romans.
Generate a sermon →"God works all things for good—but we must not use this as excuse for passivity. God works through our struggle for justice, through our solidarity with the poor. Romans 8:28 is not opiate but fuel: God is with us in...
"The cross is the model of how God works good out of evil. The worst thing that ever happened—the murder of God's Son—became the best thing that ever happened. Romans 8:28 follows the logic of the cross: God's way is...
"God IS love—and nothing can separate us from this divine love revealed in Christ. The love from which nothing separates is not sentiment but the very being of God. United to Christ through baptism, sealed in confirmation, fed in Eucharist—we...
"This is the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints—not that we hold onto God but that God holds onto us. Nothing can separate because nothing can overpower God's grip. He who began a good work will complete it.
"The missionary faces danger, hardship, persecution—but nothing can separate us from Christ's love. This is missionary security: not safety from harm but certainty of love. We go anywhere because no 'where' can separate us. We risk everything because the one...
"The Anabaptist martyrs faced drowning, burning, imprisonment—and testified that nothing could separate them from Christ's love. Not persecution, not execution, not empire's wrath. This love sustained them to the death because it was stronger than death. We stand in that testimony." — John Howard Yoder.
"The love from which nothing separates is 'the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.' Not abstract divine love but love incarnate, crucified, risen. Christ IS this love; union with Him IS security. In Him, and only in Him, nothing can separate.
"Romans 8 climaxes creation's story: nothing in all creation can separate us because love has already defeated creation's enemies. Death, the last enemy, is conquered. The love holding us is resurrection love—the power of new creation. We are held by...
"Faith sees the invisible, believes the unbelievable, and receives the impossible. Romans 8:28 requires faith-eyes: circumstances may look hopeless, but the Spirit within witnesses that God is working. What you cannot see, faith knows." — A.W. Pentecostal spirituality emphasizes Spirit-witnessed trust in God's working.
"God is always good, and He's always working. Romans 8:28 doesn't mean God causes evil; it means He redeems everything the enemy meant for harm. Our job is to believe His goodness even when we can't see it. Faith declares:...
"Nothing external can separate us—no power, no circumstance, no enemy. God's love pursues, holds, keeps. We may grieve the Spirit; we may resist grace; but from outside, nothing can tear us away. This is assurance: God's love is stronger than...
"Neither death nor life can separate us—I write this from prison, facing execution. Death cannot separate! This is the gospel's triumph: love that passes through death and out the other side. Christ died and rose; His love is resurrection love,...
"Paul stretches language to express the inexpressible: nothing in height or depth, present or future, life or death. Because God's love is infinite—and the infinite cannot be limited or separated. We are held by divine love that has no boundaries,...
"God is too good to be unkind and too wise to be mistaken. When you cannot trace His hand, you can always trust His heart. Romans 8:28 is God's personal promise to YOU: in YOUR situation, for YOUR good, He is working." — Charles Stanley.
"MY light, MY salvation, MY stronghold—this is covenant language. The sovereign God binds Himself to His people. Our security rests not in circumstances but in His character. If God is for us, who can be against us? Sovereign protection drives out fear." — R.C.
"God doesn't promise to exempt us from trouble; He promises to work within the trouble. And note: it says those who LOVE God. Our loving cooperation with God is part of how things work together. We are not passive; we...
"Romans 8:28 is not a promise that everything will be comfortable, but that everything serves a purpose. And that purpose is defined by the calling: to be conformed to Christ. God wastes nothing in the lives of those who love Him." — John Stott.
"I believe that God can and will bring good out of evil, even out of the greatest evil. For that purpose He needs human beings who make the best use of everything.
"Romans 8:28 does not promise that everything that happens is good. It promises that God is at work in everything, bringing good even from terrible circumstances. This is not passive acceptance but active hope that participates in God's redemptive work." — Barbara Brown Taylor.
"What does 'good' mean in Romans 8:28? The next verse answers: to be conformed to the image of Christ. God's good purpose is not our comfort but our Christlikeness. Everything that happens serves this goal: making us like Jesus." — Dietrich Bonhoeffer.