Romans 5:1-11 People love rescue stories. In Romans 1-4 we learn the backstory of the rescuer, Jesus. Now Romans 5-8 will tell us of all the implications of the rescue.

Romans 5:12-21 Besides Jesus, the person with the most influence on our lives is not any family or friends, but Adam... we encounter the effects of his choice to sin by the minute in this life. Paul describes Jesus here as the second Adam... the one who God sent to make it possible for mankind to escape the curse of the first Adam by putting our faith in him.

Romans 6 Like maintaining our yards, sometimes faith is about the surface and sometimes about the foundation. When we don't take care of the soil, weeds start getting in. Paul explains in Romans 6 some truths we must know and some actions we must take.

Romans 7:1-6 Paul uses the illustration of marriage to describe our lives before knowing Jesus and after... before we were married to sin, but our salvation puts that person to death and now we are reborn and married to Christ for eternity with all of the positive vows and none of the negatives: better, richer, health, etc.

Romans 7:7-25

Romans 8:1-17 While Romans 7 may be the most relatable chapter in the Bible, chapter 8 may be the most encouraging. When we follow Jesus we get a whole new life and outlook. We will still have the struggles of this life, but we will also have the promise of eternity in a new family.

Romans 8:18-27 Unlike the rest of creation, we as humans are aware of our impending death. As Christians we are also aware that our life here in this sinful, fallen world, will someday give way to an eternity in a perfect paradise with Jesus. Romans 8 gives us some guidance on how to navigate this life.

Romans 8:28-30 As Paul finishes chapter eight, he hits on a topic that is sometimes hard to understand... God works all things for good. How is this possible? God is, has always been, and always will be in total control, seeing the whole picture and guiding us toward our perfect eternity, but refining us through the hard times. And when we finally get to the other side of the door, we will say, "wow, whoa, and oh! I see what you did there God!"

Romans 8:31-39