The apostle developed the fact that God will not lose one whom He has foreknown in this climactic section, and he gloried in this great truth.
"Nowhere in the annals of sacred literature do we find anything to match the power and beauty of this remarkable paean of praise."279
"This whole passage . . . strikes all thoughtful interpreters and readers, as transcending almost every thing in language . . ."280
". . . God's, or Christ's, love is the motif of this paragraph, mentioned three times (vv. 35, 37, 39; cf. Rom. 5:5-8)."281
8:31 The key to the believer's security is that, "God is for us."What He has done for us through His Son in the past and what He is doing for us through the Spirit in the present should give us confidence. He will certainly complete His work of salvation by glorifying us in the future (cf. Phil. 1:3). Nobody or nothing can stand in His way.
8:32 God's plan for us cost Him dearly. He did not spare His own Son (cf. Gen. 22). Having made the greatest possible sacrifice for us already we can know that He will also do whatever else may be necessary to conform us to the image of His Son (cf. 2 Pet. 1:3).
"If you buy a costly watch at the jeweller's, he sends it to you in a lovely case which he gives you freely--with your purchase. . . . For all things' of this created universe,--yea, even all gifts or blessings God may give us, here or hereafter, are but nothing, compared with Christ!"282
"Romans 5:8-10 and 8:32 appear to me to be unanswerable texts for those who deny the scriptural teaching of Christ's substitutionary atonement. These passages state plainly that, if Jesus gave Himself for us in atonement, everything else must follow because, having done the most that He could do in dying as our substitute, the lesser things--such as conviction of sin, repentance, effectual grace, faith--must inevitably follow. God's great eternal purpose, expressed so beautifully in 8:28-30, must reach its fruition in glorification for all those for whom He died."283
8:33 The question that opens this verse, along with the two others that follow in verses 34 and 35, brings out the implications of "If God is for us, who is against us?"(v. 31).
Satan is the accuser of the brethren (Rev. 12:10; cf. Job 1-2). He charges the elect with sin. However, he gets nowhere with God because all sin is against God ultimately (Ps. 51:4). Therefore God is the only one in the position to charge the believer with guilt. He will not do so because He is for us. He has provided His Son to pay the penalty for our sins, and He has already declared us righteous.
8:34 Jesus Christ is God's appointed judge who will condemn the unrighteous (Acts 17:31), but He will not condemn the elect. Paul cited four reasons. First, He died for us and thereby removed our guilt. Second, He arose from the dead and is therefore able to give life to those who trust Him (cf. John 1:25; 14:19). Third, He has ascended to the position of supreme authority in heaven where He represents us (v. 29).284Fourth, He presently intercedes to the Father for our welfare (Heb. 4:4-16; 7:25; cf. Rom. 8:26).
8:35 Present trials and sufferings are no indication that God has withdrawn His love from us. Even though the Father allowed His Son to suffer He did not stop loving Him. The Father deals with His adopted sons as He dealt with His unique Son (cf. John 16:33).
8:36 Suffering has always been the portion of the righteous (Ps. 44:22). The sufferings in view are the consequence of our identification with Christ (cf. Acts 5:41; 1 Pet. 2:21-25; 4:14-19).
8:37 Verses 37-39 express very eloquently the impregnability of our position as believers. The Greek word hypernikomensuggests "hyper-conquerors."Our victory is sure! The Cross is the great proof of God's love for us, and it is the basis for our victory. It proves that God is for us (v. 31).
8:38 God will continue to love us when we die, and He will continue to love us whatever may befall us now. He loves us on both sides of the grave. Helpful or hostile angelic beings cannot change God's commitment to us. Nothing that the present or future may hold can do so either. No force of any kind can remove us from His loving care.
8:39 Space cannot separate us from His loving care either. Finally nothing in all creation can drive a wedge between the loving God and His redeemed people. That must include the behavior and belief of His own children as well. Not even the redeemed can remove themselves from God's love in Christ Jesus!285
Someone might contend that even though God will never stop loving us He may withdraw salvation from us if we do not keep loving and obeying Him (cf. Jude 21). However such a statement reflects failure to appreciate the full significance of God's love for the believer. His love involves a commitment to finish the good work that He has begun in us. God has revealed all of Romans 6-8 to help us appreciate this fact. Furthermore the nature of our salvation argues against this view. Salvation is a gracious work of God for us. The fact that we have responsibilities in our progressive sanctification does not mean we have to keep ourselves saved. Our sanctification is only a small part of our total salvation. Sinful behavior cannot separate a believer from his salvation any more than sinful conduct can separate a beloved child from his relationship to his loving Father.
Paul's peon of praise concludes this section of the epistle that expounds God's present work of salvation in and for those He has redeemed (chs. 6-8).
"Nowhere has the feeling of St. Paul been displayed in such overflowing measure, and yet the thread of logical deduction is not broken for an instant. This passage sums up, as we have seen, all that Paul has hitherto expounded in this Epistle."286
"The results of justification are thus fully presented (chapters 5 to 8). No one has ever set them forth so compactly and so profoundly, in a way that is so stimulating, effective, and uplifting."287
