VICTORY OVER FEAR SESSION 5. The Point. The Bible Meets Life. The Passage. The Setting GET INTO THE STUDY. 5 minutes

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1 GET INTO THE STUDY 5 minutes SAY: Today we look specifically at how Christ gives us victory over fear. SESSION 5 VICTORY OVER FEAR DISCUSS: Draw attention to the picture (PSG, p. 56) as you introduce Question #1: What are some fears you have outgrown? GUIDE: Direct attention to The Bible Meets Life (PSG, p. 57). Highlight the illustrations the author gives regarding the fear of abandonment being left alone. Read The Point (PSG, p. 57): Believers have no reason to fear separation from God and His love. PRAY: Begin the Bible study with prayer. Ask for God s wisdom in understanding His Word in this study. Thank Him for His promise to never leave us or forsake us. The Point Believers have no reason to fear separation from God and His love. The Bible Meets Life We all have things we re afraid of. Snakes, public speaking, and small confined spaces will likely appear in a poll of your Bible study group. As children, we may have feared separation from our parents, and as adults many of us fear separation from God. We hope that, in the end, we ll be OK, but can we be sure? Romans 8 makes it clear that separation from God and His love is something we need never fear. The Passage Romans 8:31-39 The Setting Paul ended the first half of his letter to the Romans on a climactic note designed to cause his readers to affirm all he had written to that point. Through seven rhetorical questions and his responses to them, Paul not only encouraged his readers but led them to affirm their triumph in Christ and His love for them. Paul identified with his readers by writing in the first person throughout this passage. 62 Session 5

2 Romans 8: What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? 32 He did not even spare his own Son but offered him up for us all. How will he not also with him grant us everything? 33 Who can bring an accusation against God s elect? God is the one who justifies. 34 Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is the one who died, but even more, has been raised; he also is at the right hand of God and intercedes for us. STUDY THE BIBLE Romans 8: minutes SUMMARIZE: Before reading the passage, set the context by summarizing the information in The Setting on page 62. READ: Read or ask a volunteer to read Romans 8: KEY WORDS: Justifies (v. 33) A legal term referring to being set right by God s irrevocable verdict, which renders impotent any charge against God s elect at the final judgment. God is greater than anything that tries to come against us. 1 Verse 31. The whole section of verses is filled with questions and responses. Paul s first rhetorical question What then are we to say about these things? starts the discussion. Opinions of Bible students vary concerning whether with these things Paul was referring to specific parts or the entirety of what he had previously written in Romans 1 8. Whatever Paul meant, the function of this question was to move his audience to accept what he had written to this point. In fact, Paul s use of the word then, or therefore, makes what follows a logical and natural inference from the preceding. Paul s second rhetorical question begins with if. Based on what Paul had just stated concerning God s action on sinners behalf (vv ), this could be rendered since. That is, the conditional sentence does not express contingency but certainty. If God is for us, who is against us? The question implies no doubt but reminds us of an important truth God is for us! This important truth is emphasized three times (vv. 31,32,34). The rest of this question, who is against us? expects the answer No one! This does not mean Christians do not have opponents, foes, and outright enemies. Rather, Paul s point was that if God is for us it does not matter who is against us. If Paul merely Commentary 1 on pages to highlight Paul s five rhetorical questions found in this passage. Give background to the first three questions. Explain their significance. 1. What then are we to say about these things? 2. If God is for us, who is against us? 3. How will he not also with him grant us everything? SUGGESTED USE WEEK OF APRIL 2 63

3 THE POINT Believers have no reason to fear separation from God and His love. LEADER PACK: Point to Item 5: Benefits as you discuss the following portion from page 58 in the PSG. GUIDE: Refer group members to PSG page 58 to the list of benefits we receive because of Christ s saving work for us We have received His Holy Spirit (v. 9). We are made fully alive in Christ (v. 11). We are adopted into His family (v. 15). We are co-heirs with Christ (v. 17). We have a glorious future ahead of us (vv ). We have the Holy Spirit interceding for us before the Father (v. 26). had asked Who is against us? the answer would be many are. Among them would be Satan, demons, principalities, powers, rulers, non-christians, Roman authorities, jealous individuals, heretics, death, our indwelling sinful nature, and many others that could be named many of them formidable opponents. But Paul s initial words If [since] God is for us rendered all who could be against us irrelevant. God is greater than anything that tries to come against us. Of course, we must bear in mind who the us refers to in God is for us. The words do not apply universally to all people. In fact, God has pronounced His declaration I am against you to the nations (Jer. 50:31; 51:25; Ezek. 26:3; 28:22; 29:3,10; 30:22; 35:1 3; Nahum 2:13,3:5). Israel, God s chosen people, also heard these words spoken against them (Lev. 26:17; Ezek. 5:8; 14:8; 15:7; 21:3). Israel s false prophets and false shepherds likewise heard God declare He was against them (Ezek. 13:8 9,20; 14:9; 34:10). Paul s words in Romans 8:31 apply only to believers who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ: those God foreknew, predestined, called, justified, and will glorify (Rom. 8:28 30). Verse 32. Paul s third rhetorical question focused on God s gift of His Son. The words He did not even spare call to mind Abraham s willingness to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac (Gen. 22:10,16). In Genesis, when the Lord spoke to Abraham through the angel, He told Abraham, Because you have not withheld your only son He would bless Abraham and make his descendants great (vv ). In the Greek translation of the Old Testament, called the Septuagint, the same Greek verb translated withheld or spared in Genesis 22:16 is the one Paul used here in Romans 8:32. His own Son points to the unique relationship of Jesus the Son to God the Father. Offered him up is a circuitous way of referring to the crucification and death of Jesus (see Rom. 4:25). The language of offered him up or gave him up is found in several places in the passion narratives. Most often it does not indicate sacrifice but betrayal or being handed over. Mark used the same language when he described Judas s betrayal of Jesus (Mark 14:10) and again of the Sanhedrin s turning Jesus over to Pilate (15:1). Three of the Gospel writers used it of Pilate s decision to give Jesus over to death (Matt. 27:26; Mark 15:15; John 19:16). Jesus used it in His predictions of His coming death (Mark 9:31; 10:33; Luke 9:44). And Paul used it in discussing the Lord s Supper in 1 Corinthians 11:23. But what is amazing here in 64 Session 5

4 Romans 8:32 is that God handed Jesus over to death (see also Rom. 4:25). God offered Him up. God is the One in control. Jesus death was not accidental, merely the result of the actions of sinful humans, or out of God s control. No, God did not spare even His own Son but offered Him up for us all! For us emphasizes the substitutionary nature of the atonement. Christ died for us (5:8); He did not die because of His own sins (Jesus lived a perfect life free from sin). All, while stressing the universal nature of the atonement, does not imply universalism or a universal salvation of all people. The us all refers to the us Paul had been writing about Jews and Gentiles who believe in and love Jesus. Paul s question moves from the greater to the lesser. Nothing is or could be greater than God giving us His Son. If God did that, then How will he not also with him grant us everything? Does this mean that God will give us everything we want or could want? No, with him qualifies everything, or all things. That is, what we receive spiritually, and even materially, is because of our union with Christ. As Paul previously wrote, we are coheirs with Christ (8:17). The question also reminds us that God s blessings do not stop with our initial salvation experience but continue on in our lives as His children. 2 Verse 33. Paul s fourth rhetorical question Who can bring an accusation against God s elect? focused on accusations against God s people. God s elect refers to believers. Similar language was used in the Old Testament of Israel (1 Chron. 16:13), language which is now applied to believers in Christ (Matt. 24:22,24,31; Mark 13:27; 2 Tim. 2:10). The Greek term for an accusation is used in Acts to refer to legal charges (Acts 19:38,40; 23:28 29; 26:2,7). Thus, this is the language of the courtroom. God is the Judge. Again, if the question stood on its own, one could respond with many. Satan, the Devil, is the slanderer the meaning of his title diabolos (Matt. 4:1,5,8,11) and the accuser of our brothers and sisters (Rev. 12:10; compare Zech. 3:1). Human foes, critics, detractors, and enemies all accuse us and speak all manner of evil against us (Matt. 5:11). Our own consciences even accuse us (1 John 3:20 21). Whether the accuser in Paul s mind was Satan (Job 1:6 2:8; Zech. 3:1 2; Rev. 12:10) or any other being, it does not matter, for the anticipated answer is, No matter who brings an accusation, it will not stand. Paul s reason was God is the one who justifies. The word justifies is a legal term referring to being set right by God s irrevocable verdict, which renders impotent any charge against God s elect at the final judgment. Paul s words recall Isaiah 50:8 9a: The one who vindicates me is DISCUSS: Question #2 (PSG, p. 59): What helps you know that God is for you? Commentary 2 on this page and page 66 to give background to Paul s fourth and fifth rhetorical questions. Explain their significance. 4. Who can bring accusation against God s elect? 5. Who is the one who condemns? OPTION: You may have one or more logical thinkers in your group. IN ADVANCE, invite one or two of these members if they would be willing to create a list that arranges Paul s argument from verses as a step-by-step formula. 65

5 THE POINT Believers have no reason to fear separation from God and His love. Commentary 3 to direct group members to Paul s reference to Jesus interceding for us in Romans 8:26-27 and other verses (Hebrews 7:25; 1 John 2:1) that reinforce this truth. Remind the group of Jesus words of reassurance to Peter that he had prayed for him prior to predicting that Peter would deny Jesus (Luke 22:31-34). GUIDE: Refer group members to PSG pages to the author s comments that Jesus does not condemn us but rather prays for us. DISCUSS: Question #3 (PSG, p. 60): When have you felt criticized or condemned as a follower of Christ? (Alternate: How does it help us in our daily lives to know Jesus intercedes for us?) TRANSITION: In the next verses, Paul explained that God is greater than anything that tries to separate us from His love. near; who will contend with me? Let us confront each other. Who has a case against me? Let him come near me! In truth, the Lord God will help me; who will condemn me? God s verdict cannot be overthrown! Verse 34. Paul s fifth rhetorical question Who is the one who condemns? again expects the answer No one. God is greater than anyone or anything that tries to condemn us. Paul named three reasons that really are one as to why this is the case: Christ died for us; He was raised from the dead; and He presently intercedes for us in heaven. Christ Jesus died is a summary statement encompassing all the death of Christ stood for and involved. Christ died for our sins (1 Cor. 15:3) the sins for which we otherwise would be condemned. As Paul just stated in Romans 8:3 4a, God condemned sin in the flesh by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh as a sin offering, in order that the law s requirement would be fulfilled. The words has been raised also imply more than they state. These words mean more than just He arose, as wonderful and important as that is. They refer to God the Father s action of raising Jesus from the dead (Acts 2:24), which is proof of God s acceptance of His Son s atoning sacrifice. As Paul wrote in Romans 4:25, Jesus was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification. 3 Christ also intercedes for us. Just previously, in Romans 8:26 27, Paul stated that the Holy Spirit intercedes for us and that He intercedes for the saints. Verse 34 is the only place in Romans Paul stated that the risen and glorified Christ intercedes for His followers, but it is mentioned in Hebrews 7:25 and 1 John 2:1. Because of this, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:1). The right hand represents a place of strength, honor, and privilege. At the right hand of God recalls the opening words of the messianic Psalm 110: This is the declaration of the Lord to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool. These words are applied to Christ in Matthew 22:44; Acts 2:34 35; 1 Corinthians 15:25; Ephesians 1:20; Colossians 3:1; and Hebrews 1:3,13. The words point to Christ s exaltation; they indicate the place of highest honor, stress His authority, remind us His work of redemption is finished, recall that Christ is advocating with God the Father on our behalf as our Mediator (see Isa. 53:12; Heb. 7:25; 1 John 2:1), and call to mind that He will come again. 66 Session 5

6 Romans 8: Who can separate us from the love of Christ? Can affliction or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: Because of you we are being put to death all day long; we are counted as sheep to be slaughtered. 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. KEY WORDS: More than conquerors (v. 37) Refers to believers surpassing victory in Christ, not in their own power and strength but through him who loved us. God is greater than anything that tries to separate us from His love. 4 Verse 35. Who can separate us from the love of Christ? Once again the expected response to Paul s sixth rhetorical question is No one. To separate a word Paul used again in Romans only in verse 39 means to make a space between or to put a distance between. The love of Christ could mean our love for Christ or Christ s love for us. Paul surely meant Christ s love for us. Only this provides believers with great assurance and confidence. To prove his point, Paul raised seven possibilities in verse 35. The word for affliction refers to strong pressure. It was used of the pressure that burst grapes. While Paul s first term, affliction, refers to pressure from outside, his second term, distress, refers to pressure from inside, internal stress. Persecution was a very real possibility in the early church. Famine refers to a lack of food, to hunger. Nakedness does not refer to indecency but to destitution, STUDY THE BIBLE Romans 8:35-39 READ: Ask a volunteer to read Romans 8: minutes Commentary 4 on this page and page 68 to explain the meaning of the term separate ( to make a space between or to put distance between ). Give further explanation to the various examples Paul gives in verses of things that cannot separate us from the love of Christ. DO: Invite volunteers to share their responses to the activity on PSG page 64: Nothing Can Separate. 67

7 THE POINT Believers have no reason to fear separation from God and His love. GUIDE: Point out the things listed on PSG page 61 that cannot separate believers from Christ. Ask a volunteer to read this list: Would persecution do it? What if you were beaten and thrown in jail? Could the political powers put you in a place where even Jesus couldn t get to you? No. What about illness? Could pain or suffering blind you to the reality of Christ in your life? No. What about supernatural powers like angels and demons? Nope. Nothing or no one can pull you away from Jesus. What about death? No, not even death long seen as the great thief of meaning and hope in life can pull you away from Jesus. These are all things that may happen to you, but what if it s something you do yourself? What about your own stupidity? Can you do something so stupid, so utterly wrong that your failures simply become too gross for Jesus to hold on to you? The truth remains the same: nothing can separate you from Christ s love. to being in need of clothes. The word for danger, or peril, is a word only Paul used in the New Testament (9 times 8 of them in 2 Cor. 11:26!). Sword could refer to a violent attack by a robber, to an invasion by an enemy army, or to execution. Martyrdom became a reality for the believers of the early church. It was the final, ultimate test for Christians. All of these possibilities Paul experienced in the course of his Christian life (1 Cor. 4:11 12; 2 Cor. 11:23 29). Paul was not speaking theoretically or rhetorically. He was speaking from experience! And Paul s audience the Roman Christians in just a matter of a few years would experience these trials some of the believers would be burned to death as living torches for the amusement of the Roman emperor Nero. Hebrews 11:35 39 reminds us that many of God s people have undergone such torture and horrible experiences. God does not promise us that we will never experience temptation, opposition, or suffering. He promises us that these things can never separate us from His love because God is greater than anything that tries to separate us from His love. Verse 36. Paul quoted Psalm 44:22 from the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, to affirm that all such opposition was anticipated in Scripture, that it has been the lot of God s people over time. Christ s love does not keep believers from trouble indeed, it may increase their troubles. It may lead to death. The suffering referred to was not the result of God s people having forgotten God or turned from Him; it was because of their faithfulness to Him! 5 Verse 37. Rather than such opposition ending in the defeat of believers, Paul asserted, in all these things we are more than conquerors. The word translated conquerors, found only here in the New Testament, emphasizes the totality of the victory. It is a compound term made up of the Greek words hyper ( over, above, beyond ) and nikomen ( victory ). We are hyper victorious or super conquerors. But such triumph is not due to the believer s own ability, strength, or power. Rather, it is through him who loved us. The Greek verb (in the past tense) points to the cross. Christ showed His love for us by His suffering; thus, our suffering cannot separate us from His love or be seen as evidence that He does not love us. Rather, we need to have Paul s attitude: I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is going to be revealed to us (Rom. 8:18). Not 68 Session 5

8 only are believers conquerors over these hardships, but these conflicts actually help believers in ways they could not achieve without these experiences (see Jas. 1:2 4). Because of these hardships believers become more than conquerors. Paul would not have become what he was as a follower of Christ or as an apostle without them and neither can we. 6 Verses After cataloging in verse 35 some trials and tribulations that seek to separate us from Christ s love, in verses Paul listed ten powers that also are not able to separate us from Christ s love. Paul listed these powers in four pairs and included two items by themselves only to emphatically deny them. Death, which Paul had just mentioned in verse 36, is not the end. It is an enemy (1 Cor. 15:26), but elsewhere Paul taught that for the believer to die is gain (Phil. 1:21). Rulers authorities or principalities could be either earthly or spiritual. However, since they here are contrasted with angels they probably refer to demonic beings. The present (things present) or future (things to come) remind us that nothing time brings, whether problems or forebodings, can come between Christ s love and us. Paul mentioned these together again in 1 Corinthians 3:22. Powers are spiritual forces (Eph. 1:21; 1 Pet. 3:22). Nor height nor depth may refer to the immensity of the physical universe (see similar usage of spatial language for God s love in Eph. 3:18). Neither time nor space can separate us from Christ s love. With his words any other created thing, Paul stopped listing specifics and ended on a crescendo a comprehensive generalization that included anything else that anyone could suggest or imagine. Of all of this Paul said he was persuaded that none of them will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus. Paul s statement was not a matter of his opinion. It was an assured fact, a certainty. He was totally and completely convinced of this. There was no doubt in his mind. This was a settled and unalterable conviction. And to further stress this, Paul used the Greek perfect tense to indicate a permanent state of mind. The words could be translated, I have become and I will remain persuaded. Paul s final words in verse 39 answer his question of verse 35 and remind readers that the only way we can experience the love of God, that is, God s love for us, is in Christ Jesus. Our love for God often falters; His love for us is steadfast and sure. Thus, our assurance and confidence is not in ourselves, it is in God and His love for us. It is not the hold we have on Him that matters, it is His grasp on us that both saves and keeps us (John 10:27 30). Separation from God and His love is something we need never fear! Commentary 5 on page 68 and this page, and Key Words on page 67 (PSG p. 63) to explain the phrase more than conquerors. DISCUSS: Question #4 (PSG, p. 62): What has the greatest potential to threaten your sense of security? Commentary 6 to explain the list of other things Paul said cannot separate believers from the love of Christ. DISCUSS: Question #5 (PSG, p. 64): How do Paul s assurances in verses help us find victory over fear? (Alternate: What do you like best about these verses?) 69

9 THE POINT Believers have no reason to fear separation from God and His love. LIVE IT OUT 5 minutes GUIDE: Emphasize The Point: Believers have no reason to fear separation from God and His love. REVIEW: Review Live It Out (PSG, p. 35; see text to the right). Encourage each group member to follow through this week with at least one of the applications. LIVE IT OUT How will the truth of your victory over fear help you this week? > > Make a list. Make a list of things that you feel are working against you right now. Consider how God can work in you and strengthen you through His love during this time. > > Face your fear. Allow someone to walk alongside you when you feel fear. Let the presence of Christ in them encourage you to know that the love of Christ is greater than anything you might fear. > > Be bold. Don t be afraid to stand for Christ. He loves you and is with you regardless of what you face. WRAP IT UP GUIDE: Emphasize that nothing is more powerful than Christ and His love. Once we have trusted in Him, we have nothing to fear. PRAY: Father, thank you for the victory over fear that we have in Christ. Remind us of that as we face the unknown this week. 70 Session 5

10 ILLUSTRATOR PHOTO/ KEN TOUCHTON Interior of Mamertine Prison, where Paul likely was held for a while. Paul wrote that he had suffered beating, imprisonment, shipwreck, flood, robbery, even hunger, and had found Christ sufficient for it all (2 Cor. 1:8-10; 11:23-33). He had not yet tasted the cold steel of the sword, but he knew that even this terror could not separate the faithful from God. Any number of events could have come to Paul s mind with the word sword. Perhaps his sons, each of whom had refused to defile his faith by eating the flesh of a pig. Antiochus became furious when his torture with whips and thongs did not cause the sons to deny their faith. He ordered that pans and caldrons be heated. Then he commanded that the tongue of one of the sons be cut out, that he be scalped, and that his extremities be cut off. As mother and brothers looked on, the sword did its bloody work, after which the mutilated young man was cast alive into the boiling caldron. Each brother in turn suffered the same atrocious fate, until finally the mother also met her death at the hands of the pagan butcher. This lesson of faithfulness stirred Paul to say to the Roman Christians that even the sword was not powerful enough to separate a faithful believer from the love of God. SHARING THE GOOD NEWS The victory Jesus gives is total and complete. When we place our faith in Him, we need never fear separation from Him. Each week, make yourself available either before or after the session to speak privately with anyone in your group who wants to know more about becoming a Christian. See the article, Leading Someone to the Greatest Decision of All, on page 2 for guidance in leading a person to Christ. Remind group members that page 2 in the PSG offers guidance in how to become a Christian. Encourage believers to consider using this article as they have opportunities to lead others to Christ. mind went back to a tragic day in the courtyard of the cruel king Antiochus Epiphanes. Before him The excerpt above is from the article Nothing Can Separate (Fall 1976), which relates to this session. More Biblical Illustrator articles are available that relate to this session. See page 7 about Biblical Illustrator. stood a woman and her seven Grow with other group leaders at the Groups Ministry blog. LifeWay.com/GroupMinistry 71