What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:31 (NIV)
A popular idiom states, “All roads lead to Rome.” This was literally true in the days of the Roman Empire when all the empire’s roads radiated out from the capital city, Rome. When it comes to Christian theology, we could say that just about all roads lead through Romans. Paul’s letter to the Romans is such a profound book and chapter 8 is perhaps its greatest section, referred to by some as “the summit of the summit”. As we ascend to verses 31 to 39, we reach the climactic section, of which Mounce declared:
Nowhere in the annals of sacred literature do we find anything to match the power and beauty of this remarkable paean of praise.
The word “if” which Paul uses in verse 31 does not denote doubt but is a conclusion, a consequence or an affirmation signifying ‘since’. The argument is this: God is so evidently for us that nothing or no-one can successfully be against us.
You can sleep in a den of lions and you can walk through a fiery furnace. You can bring down your Goliath. You can have your meal barrel full of oil in the middle of famine.
In Psalm 59 David was on a rollercoaster of emotions. By verse 9 he had regained his footing, attained the right perspective and confidently stated:
This I know, that God is for me. Psalm 56:9 (NASB)
With this conviction thoroughly fixed in his mind, he could moderate his anxieties and calmly await God’s deliverance.
Again, in Psalm 118 he said:
The LORD is for me; I will not fear;
What can man do to me? Psalm 118:6 (NASB)
God is for us. Earlier in the book of Romans Paul told us:
But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 (ESV)
To say that God is for us means that everything in God’s sovereign plan, his redemptive acts and the situations in our lives have been and always will be in accordance with His love for us.
Embrace this truth today knowing that God is for you.