“Beloved of God, Called to Be Saints”
Lesson 36 - Romans
Read
Romans 3:10. In this verse, Paul was not suggesting that no one ever
does righteous acts; instead, he was pointing out that no one on earth is
perfectly righteous. Christ was the only person who ever lived a completely
sinless life. Everyone else has committed some sin (see also Romans 3:23).
When
we have sinned, we must exercise faith in Christ and repent of our sins so we
may receive the cleansing power of his Atonement to become clean again. Once we commit sin, we cannot become
completely clean again on our own. This lesson will discuss how we can become
clean through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, a process that Paul called justification.
We are justified by faith in Jesus Christ.
Paul
had been writing to Church members in several areas who had returned to
practicing the law of Moses, believing that strict observance of this law was
necessary for salvation. Although the Saints in Rome were strong in the gospel
(Romans 1:8), Paul wrote this epistle to emphasize that justification and
salvation come through faith in Christ, not through the works of the law of
Moses. In his letter, Paul tried to
help the Roman Saints understand the doctrine of justification. To be justified
means to be reconciled to God, pardoned from punishment for sin, and declared
righteous and guiltless.
Romans
3:10-12, 23; see also Alma 7:21 We need to be justified because we have all offended God
and become unclean through sin. Since no unclean thing can dwell with God, we
must be justified in order to return to him.
Romans
3:24, 28; Romans 5:1-2; see also 2 Nephi 2:6 Paul taught about how we are justified—by the grace
of Jesus Christ and our faith in him.
Grace is divine help or strength. (See Bible Dictionary, “Grace,”
697.)
Romans
5:8-11; 2 Nephi 2:7-8 This divine help is made available to us through the
Atonement of Christ.
Romans
3:20, 24, 28
Paul explained that justification comes through the grace of Jesus Christ, not
through “the
deeds of the law”.
Mosiah
2:20-21; Alma 22:14 We can’t earn justification and salvation exclusively
through our works because we are always dependent upon the Lord for our very
lives.
Many
people have interpreted Paul’s writings to mean that we can be justified
through faith alone without good works.
Romans
3:31; James 2:14-18, 24; 2 Nephi 25:23; D&C 88:38-39 These passages help
clarify the relationship between our actions (or works) and justification
through the grace of Christ. The two
are both necessary—grace does not negate the need for works and works cannot
save us alone.
The
Prophet Joseph Smith said: “To be justified before God we must love one another: we must overcome
evil; we must visit the fatherless and the widow in their affliction, and we
must keep ourselves unspotted from the world: for such virtues flow from the
great fountain of pure religion, strengthening our faith by adding every good
quality that adorns the children of the blessed Jesus. We can pray in the
season of prayer; we can love our neighbor as ourselves, and be faithful in
tribulation, knowing that the reward of such is greater in the kingdom of
heaven. What a consolation! What a joy!” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, sel.
Joseph Fielding Smith [1976], 76).
We can be reborn and become joint-heirs with Christ.
Romans
6:3-4; D&C 76:50-52 Paul compared baptism to death, burial, and resurrection.
Baptism by immersion is a symbol of our spiritual rebirth. When we go under the
water, it is a symbol that we are burying our old self in a grave. When we come
out of the water, we are symbolically washed clean. We have become a new person
who has covenanted to follow Christ.
Romans
6:4
Maintaining the cleanness and “newness of life” that we experienced at baptism may be accomplished by
renewing our baptismal covenants as we partake of the sacrament each week, by
repenting and seeking forgiveness from the Lord, and by beginning each day with
a renewed determination to serve God.
Romans
8:5-6
teaches that the “carnally minded” are consumed by the things of the world.
Romans
8:6-8, 13
The consequence of being carnally minded is spiritual death. Consider how you
can eliminate the carnal from your mind and heart. Also, try to remember how
you have been blessed when you have chosen to be spiritually minded.
Romans
8:16 Paul
testified “that
we are the children of God”. Of course, each of
us should be significantly affected by the knowledge that we are each a child
of God. That relationship also implies
a great deal about your capacities and potential.
Elder
Dallin H. Oaks said:
“Consider the power of the idea taught in our beloved song ‘I Am a Child of
God’ (Hymns, 301). … Here is the answer to one of life’s great questions, ‘Who
am I?’ I am a child of God with a spirit lineage to heavenly parents. That parentage
defines our eternal potential. That powerful idea is a potent antidepressant.
It can strengthen each of us to make righteous choices and to seek the best
that is within us. Establish in the mind of a young person the powerful idea
that he or she is a child of God, and you have given self-respect and
motivation to move against the problems of life” (Ensign,
Nov. 1995, 25).
Romans
8:17 Paul
gave a great promise to the children of God—that we will share glory with
Christ.
D&C
76:50, 54-70
To be a joint-heir with Christ is to receive all that the Father has.
D&C
76:51-53
To receive this great inheritance, we must have a testimony of Christ, make and
keep our baptismal covenants, merit and receive forgiveness through repentance,
receive the Holy Ghost, overcome the
world by faith, and be just and true.
Romans
8:18, 28, 31; see also Romans 5:3-5 Knowing that we are children of God and potential
joint-heirs with Christ can help us endure the trials of this world because it
can help us remember that the reward is far greater than the cost.
Romans
8:28
Consider how you have seen that “all things work together for good to them that
love God”.
Romans
8:35-39
Paul taught in these verses that nothing can separate us from the love of Jesus
Christ. Think seriously about how you
have felt the Savior’s love in your life and what a difference his love has
made in your life.
We should live as becomes Saints.
Romans
12:1 Paul
exhorted the Roman Saints to present themselves as “a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable unto God”.
3
Nephi 9:20; D&C 59:8 These passages help us see how we can present ourselves as
living sacrifices to God just as Elder Bruce R. McConkie explained, “To present [oneself] as a
living sacrifice is to come forth with a broken heart and a contrite spirit
through obedience” (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 3 vols.
[1966-73], 2:292).
Romans
12:2 Paul
counseled the Roman Saints to “be not conformed to this world”. That counsel still applies today, warning us about trying to
conform to the way of the world. We
overcome this tendency by being led by the Spirit and being faithful to God.
Romans
12 and Romans 13 list many attributes of true Saints. Take your scriptures and identify
these attributes. Then think about these attributes while considering these
questions: Why is this attribute important to develop? What can I do this week
to further develop this attribute?
Romans
12:19-21
Paul instructed us to treat our enemies well so that we might overcome evil
with good.
Romans
13:8-9
Paul said that the commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves includes all
other commandments.
Romans
13:10 This
commandment includes all others as Paul explains here.
Romans
15:1-7 Paul
taught us how members who are strong in the faith should respond to members who
are weak in the faith.
It
is through faith in Jesus Christ and righteous living that we can be
justified—declared righteous and reconciled to God. We are children of God and
have the potential to become joint-heirs with Christ if we have faith in him
and live as he has commanded us.