 We're going to start a systematic and intensive study into the Book Of Romans, as far as God wills. As we approach the study we, need to remember the contextual rules which we have discussed in the past. As we study the scripture, we should always let scripture interpret scripture. We must accept the plain Scripture at face value. After we read the interpretation of the text as established by it's context, we will then seek to apply that teaching to our hearts. It is good to have a encyclopedic knowledge of Scripture, but it is better to apply that which we have learned to our lives. Isaac Asimov, one of the greatest writers of science fiction in our era, has written several commentaries on the Bible. These commentaries are very interesting, but somehow missing the mark in spirituality. This is because Asimov is (to my knowledge) an unbeliever, and approached the Bible as no more than an interesting classical work to be dissected. Such knowledge is interesting, but as lacking in substance as whipped cream without the sweetener. As we go through Romans some emphasis will be placed on the original languages (Koine Greek, Aramaic) that our Bible was translated from. God introduced mixed languages at the Tower of Babel. Whenever a work is translated from it's original tongue into our own, some variance of meaning is always lost during translation. This is true of any language to language work, whether it be Greek to English or Spanish to English. The Lockman Foundation tried to translate the Greek New Testament literally into English back in 1954. They called the resultant text the "Amplified Bible." "With all due respect to the work of these great scholars, the Amplified Bible was so amplified that it was next to impossible to understand. Every nuance and shade of the original Greek text was carried into the English translation, so much so that you really had to be a Greek scholar to read the English translation." Though we will go into the Greek text for further clarification and enlightenment, we will do so with discretion, so as not to go into confusion. We will use extensive cross references to determine the Topical, Historical, and Immediate contexts of the passages under scrutiny. Why choose to study the Book of Romans? The reason is two-fold:
Introductory Notes Romans is a book containing, in my opinion, "more Biblical doctrine per verse than any other single epistle". The population of the Roman Church was for the most part Gentiles. The Christians at Rome were under some of the most horrible tortures and persecutions known in the perverted mind of man. Some of the Persecutions that the Roman Christians went through were:
I won't go into intimate detail as the full story would sicken most of you (If interested, I suggest you read the "Foxes Book of Martyrs"). Despite all this torture the Christians at Rome grew stronger and more bold in the faith. There is no historical account of any Roman Christian denying the faith so as to save his life or the life of his Wife and children. Would we be that faithful? I don't know. Bearing all this in mind we can easily see why Romans contains such a rich diet of spiritual food. God in His wisdom was aware of what the Roman Christians were going through and because of this sent them manna from Heaven through the pen of Paul. The Book of Romans is a Systematic Theology (study of God) in itself, setting forth the doctrines of:
Keep the historical context of the book of Romans in mind as we begin our study. Click Here! Click Here! 
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