Romans 1-8 Outline

Romans 1-8: Righteousness Through Faith

Unless otherwise indicated, all quotations come from the 1984 NIV translation of the Bible.

• Introduction (Romans 1.1-17)
• Greeting (1.1-7)
• Personal Items (1.8-15) and Statement of Theme (1.16-17)
• "[I]n the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last...." (v. 17a)
• No One Is Righteous (Romans 1.18-3.20)
• The Condemnation of the Gentiles (1.18ff)
• "The wrath of God is being revealed from Heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness...." (v. 18)
• The Condemnation of the Hypocrites (2.1-16)
• "You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things" (v. 1).
• Transition: The Gentiles knew God's righteous decrees (1.32), but refused to obey them, and thus were punished. In the same way, hypocrites who know God's righteous decrees and judge others for disobeying them but disobey them themselves will also be punished.
• The Condemnation of the Jews (2.17ff)
• "The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the Law will condemn you who, even though you have the written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker" (v. 25).
• The Advantages of Being a Jew (3.1-8)
• "What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew...? Much in every way!" (vv. 1-2a)
• Note: This section is tangential.
• No One Is Righteous (3.9-20)
• "There is no one righteous, not even one...." (v. 10b)
• Note: While "it is those who obey the Law who will be declared righteous" (2.13b), ultimately "no one will be declared righteous ... by observing the Law; rather, through the Law we become conscious of sin" (3.20).
• Righteousness Revealed (3.21-8)
• Righteousness Through Faith (3.21ff)
• "But now a righteousness from God, apart from Law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe" (vv. 21-22a).
• Abraham Justified by Faith (4)
• "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness" (v. 3b).
• Peace and Joy Through Christ (5.1-11)
• "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ...." (v. 1)
• The Gift and the Trespass (5.12ff)
• "[T]he gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God's grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!" (v. 15)
• Transition: We have received reconciliation through Christ (v. 11); this reconciliation is a gift that mirrors Adam's trespass but surpasses it in scope.
• New Life in Christ (6.1-14)
• "We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that ... we too may live a new life" (v. 4).
• Slavery to Righteousness (6.15ff)
• "You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness" (v. 18).
• Dying to the Law (7.1-6)
• "So, my brothers, you also died to the Law through the body of Christ...." (v. 4a)
• The Goodness of the Law (7.7-16)
• "Is the Law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the Law" (v. 7a).
• Slavery to the Law of Sin (7.17ff)
• "I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the flesh a slave to the law of sin" (v. 25b)
• Life Through the Spirit (8.1-15)
• "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death" (vv. 1-2).
• The Testimony of the Spirit (8.16-25)
• "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children" (v. 16).
• The Intercession of the Spirit (8.26-30)
• "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness" (v. 26a).
• Note: This organization of Romans 8 has been chosen to connect v. 26 to v. 16: The Spirit helps us in the same way that it testifies with us.
• God's Love in Christ (8.31ff)
• "If God is for us, who can be against us?" (v. 31b)