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The Epistle (letter) to the Romans was written by the apostle
Paul to the "ecclesia", or "church", at
Rome. The church consisted of Jews and Romans who had become
Christians. In the epistle they are called Jews and Greeks
because the name "Greek" was used for Greek-speaking
people from many lands.
Paul wrote the epistle from Corinth during his 3rd missionary
journey. He wrote to the believers at Rome, saying he hoped
to come to them when he had been to Jerusalem (Romans 15:22-29).
When Paul did visit Rome (about 3 years later) it was as a
prisoner to await trial before Caesar! (Acts 28:17-20)
Paul's letter shows that ALL of us are sinners by nature
and that we ALL die because of this fact (chapters 1-5). God
gave His Son, Jesus Christ, to be a means through which we
can be covered from our sin. Those who have faith in
God's promises and are baptised into Christ become
new people (chapter 6). God will "justify" (make
good) such people and give them eternal life. This is a gift
from God, not something we can earn! (6:23)
Chapters 1-11 of Romans show that Jews and Gentiles can only
be "justified" by faith in the gospel of
Jesus Christ.
Chapters 12-16 show how those who are true Christians ought
to continue to live.
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