31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded 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 sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
-Romans 8:31–39 (ESV)
I consider Romans 8 to be the greatest chapter in all of Scripture, and these verses above are a great reason as to why I do so. Apart from these 8 verses, Romans 8 provides the reader with utmost confidence in two things. The first is that he who walks with Christ through faith, will walk a painful path, BUT he is in good hands. The second is that he who walks with the Devil is walking a path that will pleasingly lure his flesh into certain death.
Anytime I preach somewhere that the Lord brings a lost soul to repentance, I always recommend to the newly found sheep to read Romans 8 because it is within that chapter that all aspects of the life lived in the Spirit are revealed. Both the blessings and the warnings are guaranteed, and there is absolutely no fine print to contradict for it is all clearly written! Now, many people would look at the swords, the famines, the distress, and the danger and say “it’s not worth it! I’ll take my chances of living how I want to! I refuse to be a sheep to be slaughtered.” But, my brothers and sisters, if one states something to that affect, he has missed the whole message of what Paul is saying here. Paul is purposely listing all these gruesome potentialities in order to show that even when we suffer through those onslaughts that the enemy throws at us, Christ is worth it! Not only is He worth it, Paul even gives the reasons why He’s worth it.
Notice in verses 31-34 there is a series of questions. The first question that Paul asks in verse 31: “If God is for us, who can be against us?” is what the rest of the passage is truly answering, and in answering, points to the worthiness of Christ!
The series of questions that follow in v. 32-34 assure the new found sheep of their steadfast shepherd:
(32) “ He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”.
(33) “Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies”
(34) “Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.”
Do you see the common theme, friends? Do you see the picture that Paul is painting through his beautiful words? If the only being through all of existence who is worthy to CRUSH you because of your personal wrongdoing to Him, has chosen to make the greatest sacrifice for YOUR PARDON… There is no power of evil, no accusation of Satan, no trap of sin, no curse of man, nor pain from sword that can bring your soul into ruin. Will they try to crush you nonetheless? Of course, they will! The wolves of Hell have nothing else to do until their final slaughter but attempt to slaughter the sheep of God! The darkness that the enemy uses in his attempt to suffocate the joy of life in Christ—albeit utterly futile!— the light of Christ will shine on through our souls. No power of darkness can overcome that light! In all circumstances the light conquers the darkness!
I have come to know both within myself and through observation of other believers that we go through cycles. We feel a great surge of motivation from the Spirit… We work with fervor… We take the Spirit’s glory for our own… We retire into a deceiving sense of self satisfaction which morphs into complacency and gives birth to laziness and inactivity… Great unrest and unsettledness then takes the place of what once was great motivation… We sink back into our shell of self pity. I believe we take that mistaken course because subconsciously, we think that the great sacrifice that God made for us was a one-time event. We think that Christ was on our side when He died and rose again, but after a while we tested His grace too much and caused Him to switch sides from defending to accusing. Brothers and sisters, that is nonsense! Even Paul calls this out in verse 34. When speaking of Christ, Paul says, “who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is INTERCEDING for us.” That is present participle and it will stay that way until we are reunited with Him! Christ is standing at our side, taking our sin, defending our places by Him today, just as He was on the Cross. Tomorrow, He will be doing the same.
Therefore, when pain comes our way whether it be through tribulation of life or accusation from the enemy, sing the victory cry that we have been give through Christ our Lord. Remind yourself of the unwavering truths in this text about the unwavering grace of the unwavering Christ. Fight victoriously, beloved. To fight victoriously with Christ is to fight truthfully!