Romans
8:12-25
(Romans 8:12-17)
(Romans 8:14-27)
With thanks to page sponsor:
Stephen Wirzylo
- Reading the Text:
- NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
- Greek Interlinear Bible, ScrTR, ScrTR t, Strong, Parsing, CGTS, CGES id, AV.
- The Bible Gateway: NRSV, RSV, NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
- The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Greek text with concordance, commentaries.
- The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition and sermons.
- Historical References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
- Comparative World Scriptures from United Communities of Spirit:
- Chapter IV, The Epistle of Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans, Ignatius of Antioch (c. 110).
- Similitude IV, Shepherd of Hermas. (c.145)
- IV.IX.2, V.VIII.1, V.X.2, V.XXXII.1, V.XXXVI.3, Adversus Haereses, Irenaeus of Lyons. (c. 180)
- Chapter XI, Exhortation to the Greeks, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
- IV.7, Stromata, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
- Chapter XI, Against Hermogenes, Tertullian (c. 205)
- Chapter X, Chapter XL, Chapter XLVI, On the Resurrection of the Flesh, Tertullian (c. 211)
- V.14, Against Marcion, Tertullian (c. 212)
- Chapter XIII, Scorpiace, Tertullian (c. 213)
- Chapter XVII, On Modesty, Tertullian (c. 217)
- I.VII.5, II.IX.7, III.V.1, 4, First Principles (De Principiis), Origen. (c.225)
- VI.XXX, VII.XIII, VII.XV, The Refutation of all Heresies (Philosophumena), Hippolytus of Rome. (c. 225)
- I.17, I.24, I.31, Commentary on the Gospel of John, Origen. (c.228)
- I.LVII, IV.XCV, V.XIII, V.XLIX, VI.LXX, VII.XXXVIII, VII.L, VII.LII, VII.LXV, VIII.V, Against Celsus, Origen. (c.246)
- XI.6, XIII.26, Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, Origen. (c.247)
- Epistle LV -- Cyprian of Carthage (c. 252)
- Epistle LXXVI -- Cyprian of Carthage (c. 255)
- On the Advantage of Patience -- Cyprian of Carthage (c. 256)
- Epistle LXXX -- Cyprian of Carthage (c. 257)
- V.1, Ecclesiastical History, Eusebius of Caesarea, (c. 320).
- Chapter XXV, Proslogium, Anselm of Canterbury, 1077-1078.
- From Martin Luther's Bible Commentary (1545).
- From the
Geneva Notes.
- "...if the rest of the world looks for a restoring, groaning as it were for it and that not in vain, let us also sigh, indeed, let us be more certainly persuaded of our redemption to come, for we already have the first fruits of the Spirit."
- From
Matthew Henry's Commentary.
- "The miseries of the human race, through their own and each other's wickedness, declare that the world is not always to continue as it is."
- From
Wesley's Notes.
- "This, therefore, and the Spirit of adoption, are one and the same Spirit, only manifesting itself in various operations, according to the various circumstances of the persons."
-
The Spirit of Bondage and Adoption (Rom 8:15). Sermon by John Wesley.
- "...the natural man neither conquers nor fights; the man under the law fights with sin, but cannot conquer; the man under grace fights and conquers, yea, is 'more than conqueror, through him that loveth him'."
- "The
Christian--A Debtor," Romans 8:12, Charles H. Spurgeon, 1856.
- "The gospel softened the breast of Paul, and made him forget all national animosities, otherwise, one of the down-trodden race would not have called his oppressor, 'brother.'"
- "The
Sons of God," Romans 8:16-17, Charles H. Spurgeon, 1860.
- "They are sternly holy; they are, like him, ready to forgive, but they can by no means tolerate iniquity, nor hear that sin should live in their presence."
- "Creation's Groans and the Saint's Sighs," Romans 8:22,23, Charles H.
Spurgeon, 1868.
- "The whole creation is fair and beautiful even in its present condition. I have no sort of sympathy with those who cannot enjoy the beauties of nature."
- From the
Commentary on the Whole Bible (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
- "'Abba' is the Syro-Chaldaic word for 'Father'; and the Greek word for that is added, not surely to tell the reader that both mean the same thing, but for the same reason which drew both words from the lips of Christ Himself during his agony in the garden."
- From
The People's New Testament, B.W. Johnson, 1891.
- "Paul was writing to the Romans, among whom the adoption of children, not their own by nature, was common. They would understand this to mean that those converted, or born again, are adopted as children of God."
- Contemporary Commentary, Studies and Exegesis:
- Commentary,
Romans 8:14-17, Mark Tranvik, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2013.
- "As a wise, older pastor once told me, the 'Spirit brings us to where the pain is.'"
- "Bearing Witness," Rick Fry, 2013.
- "First
Thoughts on Year C Epistle Passages in the Lectionary," Pentecost, William Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in
Australia.
- "The inheritance is not a place or a gift or a reward, but God and God's glory. And God's glory is not golden shiny streets, but God's own being. The glow and glory of God is what we celebrate in God. Paul is saying: our hope is nothing other than to share in that life."
- Commentary,
Romans 8:12-17, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2012.
- "The Apostle Paul does not explain the Trinity -- how God is three-in-one and one-in-three -- and no systematic explanation is to be found in the other biblical writers, either."
- Commentary, Romans 8:12-17 (Trinity B), Elisabeth Johnson, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2009.
- "Whatever evil or suffering we face, we have the blessed assurance that God will see to the completion of our adoption, and nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39)."
- "First Thoughts on Passages on Year B Epistle Passages in the
Lectionary," Trinity, William Loader, Murdoch
University, Uniting Church in Australia.
- "Paul has written our passage after making a major argument about what is a liberating spirituality and what is not."
- Radical Gratitude, lectionary-based stewardship, Northwest United Methodist Foundation. (.pdf)
- Commentary,
Romans 8:12-25 (Pentecost 5A), Mary Hinkle Shore, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2011.
- "In Greek, even more than in English, the word for "flesh" (sax) points to something different from that to which the word for "body" (soma) points."
- "Paul, Evolution and the Labor Pains of Creation," Carl Gregg, Patheos, 2011.
- "The same God whose Creation causes flowers to bloom, that helped craft the evolution of pre-atomic particles into molecules and into ever-increasing stages of complexity, is also the same God whose 'Spirit helps us in our weakness.'"
- Commentary,
Romans 8:12-25 (Pentecost 10A), Marion L. Soards, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2008.
- "Paul sees the fate of humanity and the fate of creation as being inseparably bound to each other, for he understands that both are creations created by the one creator God. But, God's good news has been already given in Jesus Christ, so that the outcome is set in such a way that in the present we may live by hope."
- "First
Thoughts on Year A Epistle Passages in the Lectionary," Pentecost 5, William Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in
Australia.
- "Even self assurance is not based on fetching the certificate of membership or recalling an even of the the past, but a sense of oneness or otherwise with the being of God the Spirit moving within our lives (8:16)."
- Commentary,
Romans 8:14-17 (Pentecost C), Beverly Gaventa, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2010.
- "Anyone who reads this commentary has heard it hundreds of times: 'I'm spiritual but not religious.'"
- The Groaning of Creation, Light in August: Romans 8:18-39, Sheldon Tostengard, Word & World Texts in Context, Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary, 1987.
-
Commentary,
Romans 8:18-23, Herbert R. Marbury, The African American Lectionary,
2009.
- "Wherever we see God transforming the decay around us into new life, we see the signs of God?s redemption."
-
"Waiting for the Children of Godot,"
Daniel Deffenbaugh, Seeds of Shalom, 2008.
- "The apostle Paul laid the foundation for a new way of understanding Christian repentance and redemption, but it is apparent ? given our current ecological embarrassments ? that we have not taken him entirely at his word."
- "Life through the Spirit," "The Future, Glory," Rev. Bryan Findlayson, Lectionary Bible Studies and Sermons, Pumpkin Cottage Ministry Resources. Includes detailed textual notes.
- "The Whole Creation Has Been Groaning," study guide, Robert B. Kruschwitz, (other resources at) "Apocalyptic Vision" Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2010. (Romans 8:19-23)
- "The Virtue of Hope," study guide, Robert B. Kruschwitz, (other resources at) "Heaven and Hell," Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2002.
- "Siding With the Spirit (Romans 8:1-17)," by Robert Deffinbaugh at the
Biblical Studies Foundation.
- "The great danger faced by the church today is not that of 'secular humanism' but that of 'religious humanism'?seeking to serve God and to please Him in the power of our own flesh, rather than 'according to His Spirit'."
- "From Groaning to Glory (Romans 8:18-27)," by Robert Deffinbaugh at
the Biblical Studies Foundation.
- "The so-called 'mid-life crisis' is that time when men come to grips with the reality of the futility and corruption of fallen creation."
-
"Advent Preaching: Burden and Hope," Robert H. Herhold,
The
Christian Century, 1984. At Religion Online.
- "The tension between our moment and the eschatological moment must be retained. For instance, when speaking eschatologically about the nuclear arms race, a preacher would refer to such things as the blasphemy of destroying God?s handiwork and the idolatry of the bomb, not simply to a nuclear freeze. And those eschatological statements are, in fact, more realistic about the nature of the present darkness than is any political solution."
- Commentary,
Romans 8:14-17, Mark Tranvik, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2013.
- Articles & Background:
-
"Romans 5-8 as Pastoral Theology," Stanley N. Olson,
Word & World,
1986.
- "The unity and functions of the exhortation and assurance in Romans 5-8 are clarified when the section is understood as pastoral theology."
-
"Waiting," Paul Tillich, from
The Shaking of the Foundations,
1955. At Religion Online.
- "Let us not forget, however, that waiting is a tremendous tension. It precludes all complacency about having nothing, indifference or cynical contempt towards those who have something, and indulgence in doubt and despair. Let us not make our pride in possessing nothing a new possession."
-
"The Witness of the Spirit to the Spirit," Paul Tillich, from
The
Shaking of the Foundations, 1955. At
Religion Online.
- "In the moment when we feel separated from God, meaningless in our lives, and condemned to despair, we are not left alone. The Spirit, sighing and longing in us and with us, represents us."
-
"The Transitoriness of Life," Paul Tillich, from
The Shaking of
the Foundations, 1955. At
Religion Online.
- "Therefore, commune with nature! Become reconciled with nature after your estrangement from it. Listen to nature in quietness, and you will find its heart. It will sound forth the glory of its divine ground. It will sigh with us in the bondage of tragedy. It will speak of the indestructible hope of salvation!"
-
"Cosmic Groanings," by Ronald Goetz. At
Religion Online.
- "The ancient dualist might have had some difficulty with what Paul says about the creation being 'set free.' If matter is evil, how could it be liberated? Paul?s words at this point would seem idiosyncratic to the dualist, although he might also feel that a person who could speak of the 'futility' of the created order must somehow be on the right track. In fact, however, this seeming idiosyncrasy is not a quirk in an otherwise consistent dualism. Rather, it reveals that Paul was, at least in the usual first-century sense, no dualist at all."
-
"The Right to Hope," Paul Tillich, at
Religion OnLine.
- "The hope for participation in eternity is hope for a continuation of the present life after death. It is not hope for endless time after the time given to us. Endless time is not eternity; no finite being can seriously hope for it. But every finite being can hope for return to the eternal from which it comes. And this hope has the more assurance, the deeper and more real the present participation in eternal life is."
-
"Romans 5-8 as Pastoral Theology," Stanley N. Olson,
Word & World,
1986.
- Recommended articles
from ATLAS, an online collection of religion and theology journals, are
linked below.
ATLAS Access options are available for academic institutions, alumni of
selected theological schools, and clergy/church offices. Annotated list of "starting place" articles at ATLAS for this week's texts (includes direct links).
- Aasgaard, Reidar, "Paul as a Child:
Children and Childhood in the Letters of the Apostle," Journal of
Biblical Literature, 2007.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Bolt, John, "The Relation between
Creation and Redemption in Romans 8:18-27,"Calvin Theological
Journal, 1995.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Braaten, Laurie J., "The Groaning Creation: The
Biblical Background for Romans 8:22," Biblical Research, 2005.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Carlson, Richard P.,
"Between Text and Sermon: Romans 8:12-17," Interpretation, 2004. (See also,
Romans, issue focus for
Interpretation, 2004.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Dillon, Richard J.,
"The Spirit as Taskmaster and Troublemaker in Romans 8," The Catholic
Biblical Quarterly, 1998.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Eastman, Susan,
"Whose Apocalypse? The Identity of the Sons of God in Romans 8:19,"
Journal of Biblical Literature, 2002.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Epperly, Bruce G., "Who Prays? A Process-Relational
Reflection on Petitionary Prayer," Encounter, 2008.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Foskett, Mary F., "Biblical Images of Adoption and Asian Adoptees in America,"
Semeia,
2002.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Gianoulis, George C., "Is Sonship in Romans 8:14-17 a
Link with Romans 9?" Bibliotheca Sacra, 2009.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Goetz, Ronald,
"Cosmic Groanings," The Christian Century, 1987.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Hauerwas, Stanley and John Berkman,
"The Chief End of All Flesh," Theology Today, 1992.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Hill, Edmund, "Construction of Three
Passages from St Paul," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly,
1961.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Johnson, Elisabeth Ann,
"Waiting for Adoption: Reflections on Romans 8:12-25," Word & World, 2002.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Keesmaat,
Sylvia C.,
"Exodus and the Intertextual Transformation of Tradition in Romans 8:14-30,"
Journal for the Study of the New Testament,
1994.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Lawson, J. Mark, "Romans 8:18-25: The
Hope of Creation," Review
& Expositor, 1995.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Leithart, Peter J., "Justification as Verdict and Deliverance: A
Biblical Perspective," Pro Ecclesia,
2007.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Longacre, Robert E. and Wilber B.
Wallis, "Soteriology and Eschatology in Romans,"
Journal of the Evangelical
Theological Society, 1998.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Moo, Douglas J., "Nature in the New Creation: New
Testament Eschatology and the Environment," Journal of the
Evangelical Theological Society, 2006. Section on this text
begins on p. 459.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Okamato, Joel P., "Homiletical Helps on LW Series B -
Epistles," Concordia Journal, 2006. (Section on this text
begins on p. 223.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Olson, Stanley N., "Romans 5-8 as Pastoral Theology,"
Word & World,
1986.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Powery, Emerson B., "The Groans of 'Brother Saul': An
Exploratory Reading of Romans 8 for 'Survival'," Word & World,
2004.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Schumacher, William K., "Homiletical Helps on
LSB Series A - Epistles," (Romans 8:12-17, 18-27 begins on page 117),
Concordia Journal, 2008.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Talbert, Charles H.,
"Tracing Paul's Train of Thought in Romans 6-8," Review & Expositor,
2003.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Tostengard,
Sheldon, "Light in August," Word & World,
1987. (Section on this text begins on p 317)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Wasserman, Emma, "Paul
among the Philosophers: the Case of Sin in Romans 6-8," Journal
for the Study of the New Testament,
2008.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Webster, Brian L. and David R. Beach, "The Place of
Lament in the Christian Life," Bibliotheca Sacra, 2007.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
- Aasgaard, Reidar, "Paul as a Child:
Children and Childhood in the Letters of the Apostle," Journal of
Biblical Literature, 2007.
- Sermons:
- "It's Coming," the Rev. Joseph Evans, Day 1, 2011.
- "Slanted Truth," the Rev. Shannon Johnson Kershner, Day 1, 2006.
- Proper 9, AKM Adam, Flesh and Bones, 2001. (Download is one long PDF file for book of sermons.)
- "Christ's Spirit and Convincing Us We Are God's Children," "Christ's Spirit and the Earth," from a series of sermons on the book of Romans by Pastor Edward F. Markquart, Grace Lutheran Church in Des Moines, Washington.
- "The Practice of the Christian Life: Patiently Hopeful," John Jewell, 2002.
- Review:
- Bertone, John A. The Law of the Spirit: Experience of the Spirit and Displacement of the Law in Romans 8:1-16. Lang, 2005. Reviews by James Miller and Volker Rabens, Review of Biblical Literature, 2006 & 2007.
- With Children:
- Worshiping with Children, Pentecost C, Including children in the congregation's worship, using the Revised Common Lectionary, Carolyn C. Brown, 2013.
- "Children's Literature: A Resource for Ministry," May 19, 2013, Union Presbyterian Seminary. Connections: Romans 8:14-17 and We Belong Together: A Book about Adoption and Families by Todd Parr.
- Worshiping with Children, Trinity Sunday, Including children in the congregation's worship, using the Revised Common Lectionary, Carolyn C. Brown, 2012.
- "Children's Literature: A Resource for Ministry," June 3, 2012, Union Presbyterian Seminary. Connections: Romans 8:12-17 and I Love You Like Crazy Cakes by Rose Lewis.
- "Children's Literature: A Resource for Ministry," July 17, 2011, Union Presbyterian Seminary. Connections: Romans 8:18-25 and The Dancing Cat by Justine Rendal.
- Worshiping with Children, Proper 11, Including children in the congregation's worship, using the Revised Common Lectionary, Carolyn C. Brown, 2011.
- "How Does Your Garden Grow?" Charles Kirkpatrick, Sermons4kids.com.
- "God's Spirit Makes Us Sure That We Are His Children," Sunday School Lessons: Family Bible Study, art projects, music, stories, etc.
- Drama:
- Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
- Romans 8:18, Heartlight - Free Christian PowerPoint Backgrounds.
- Hymns and Music:
- “Creator God, You Made the Earth,” an original hymn by Carolyn Winfrey Gillette, 2001. This hymn celebrates God’s creation, Sabbath, healing/salvation by Jesus for creation (Romans 8:12-25) and the Church. Tune: ST. COLUMBA 8.7.8.7 (The King of Love My Shepherd Is)
- Hymnary.org, hymns, scores, media, information.
- Contemporary/Praise Song suggestions, Together to Celebrate, David MacGregor.
- Hymns with Scripture Allusions: Romans 8:12, 15, 16, 17, 22. The Cyber Hymnal.
- Hymnal Scripture References, The Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Worship.
- "Resurrection Power," "Fight the Good Fight," "Siblings of the Risen Prince," Brenton Prigge, NewHymn, new, relevant hymn set to traditional tunes.
- At Digital Hymnal (midi files, guitar chords, karaoke files, projection text):
- Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
- Study Links and Resources for the Book of Romans
