Letter to the Romans: A Bible Study Commentary

By Frank L. Trujillo

"The chief part of the New Testament and the perfect gospel." -Martin Luther

New believers may find it difficult to understand scripture, and at times, this would discourage them from reading and studying the Word of God. Even seasoned Christians tend to use different terminology that is unfamiliar to new believers. This can make

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trilogy Christian Publishing
• Release date: Aug 23, 2022
• ISBN: 9781685564230

Frank L. Trujillo

As a former drug dealer and gang member, I was rarely thinking of God. Having purpose in life never crossed my mind until losing everything and surviving suicide. After entering rehab that had a Christian program and meeting a pastor that had a special love for broken people, I came to know Christ. Today I am a minister and a biblical and theological student at South Florida Bible College, and I too have a special love for broken people. I want nothing more than to make the name of Christ known.

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Dedication

I could have never completed this book without the aid of God and the Holy Spirit. I will forever be grateful to God for all He has done for me and for giving me a second chance at life. Along with God, I could have never learned what I have without some very special people. I want to thank Pastor John Panico Jr. from New Life Calvary and his father, John Panico Sr. I would like to thank Tony Lockhart and Pastor Anthony Massaro. These men have been great mentors and taught me to study the Word. I would like to also thank my church family at Higher Vision Ministries and our head Pastor and Mentor, Dr. Anthony Sanders, for everything. They have been great to my wife and me and allowed me to serve in the church as a minister. God led me to a great school such as South Florida Bible College. I learned a great deal from them, so a special thanks to Jodyann Reid, Frank Trotta, John Stevenson, and Christopher De Giovanni. These professors made me want to further my education and not stop with a bachelor’s degree; these professors made me feel that I could accomplish anything. I thank God immensely for them and everyone else God has put in my life. Last but not least, I thank God for my amazing wife, Brianna Trujillo, for being a part of my journey and giving me a family.

Introduction

I had never intended to write a Bible study commentary on the Book of Romans; it somehow just happened. My wife and I were having some struggles in our marriage, and I struggled with some sin by trying to take my own life back into my hands; I kept praying, and it seemed that God was not hearing me. God kept telling me what the issues were, but I kept ignoring Him. Finally, I could no longer fight against God’s will; I decided to surrender and hand my will over to God. So, I opened up the Book of Romans and started studying; at first, I would take some notes here and there, then I noticed I was growing closer to God once again because He was speaking to me, and His voice was loud. The Scriptures were coming alive to me again and like never before. My notes went from a few sentences to whole pages on one verse alone. I feel that it is my duty as a servant of Christ to share these notes with you.

I am a recovering alcoholic, and during my time in rehab and spending time in Alcoholics Anonymous, I did pick up on some catchphrases that helped me out along the way, and one of them is, To keep it, you must give it away. So, I feel the same way about God’s Word and the knowledge He gives us. So, when God reveals Himself, we must share this information with His people. It is a vital part of the Christian’s life to understand what they believe and why they believe it; it is also essential to the Christian’s life to make disciples; that is part of the Great Commission, Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this; I am with you always, even to the end of the age (Matthew 28:19).

God has called us to make disciples by sharing the Gospel; the Gospel is the Good News of Jesus Christ, and that salvation comes by nothing other than believing Christ died for our sins. If we are going to be effective in our disciple-making, then we must learn biblical truth. As we study the Book of Romans, we find that the Apostle Paul provides some essential information regarding salvation, righteousness, grace, faith, and Christian living. Learning this biblical truth will not only bring us closer to God, but it will assist in explaining and sharing our faith with others. I pray that this Bible study commentary is helpful in your studies and your teachings. May God bless you, Amen.

Chapter One

(1:1): When it comes to sharing the Word of God, we are all called to do so, but when it comes to being called an apostle, it is a bit different. Some church leaders call themselves apostles, but there are no more apostles. There is nothing wrong with holding that title. Still, the apostleship that Paul is speaking of has a different meaning than just a title. The definition of apostleship originally means one that has seen the living Christ face to face, one that has had an encounter with Christ and commissioned by Christ to share the Gospel. Paul was not a part of the first twelve disciples, but Paul did have a face-to-face interaction with Christ that changed his life. (Read Acts 9:1–9 and 1 Corinthians 9:1.)

(1:2–4): The Gospel that Paul proclaimed is the Good News of Jesus Christ. The good news is that Jesus Christ died for humanity to have salvation. The law cannot save humanity; only the Gospel truth and the Messiah prophesied many years ago can save us. You will see this as you study the Old Testament. (Read Matthew 1:1–17 and Luke 2:1–7.) When you read through both of these passages, you see the family line of Jesus, and it leads to King David, the same king that was once a shepherd boy and that killed Goliath. King David is from the Jewish tribe of Judah; it was prophesied that the Messiah would come from this same tribe. (Read Genesis 49:10.) Including miracles and prophecy, Jesus has shown us that He is the Son of God. (Read John 21:35.) The resurrection is the greatest of all