A Common Belief
I think the book of Romans is the greatest letter ever written, and I’m not alone here. Martin Luther said that Romans is the chief part of the New Testament, and he said that we can never read it or ponder it too much. John Calvin said that understanding Romans opens a pathway to understanding the whole Bible. And John Piper called Romans the most important theological Christian work ever written.
John Piper, my school’s chancellor, encouraged me to slide over from teaching primarily New Testament courses to teaching primarily systematic theology courses. And I knew that to teach systematic theology well, I needed to become even more preoccupied with Romans.
The words God breathed out in the book of Romans are words that I want in my blood and my bones.
I think J . I. Packer is right when he says that all roads in the Bible lead to Romans, and all views afforded by the Bible are seen most clearly from Romans. The words God breathed out in the book of Romans are words that I want in my blood and my bones.
Studying Romans carefully is worth every minute you invest that way. It’s a relatively short letter, it takes about sixty minutes to read aloud, and it’s profound. It explains and exults in and applies the greatest news we could hear.
Andrew David Naselli is the author of Romans: A Concise Guide to the Greatest Letter Ever Written.
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