What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³²He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? —Romans 8:31-32
We see in these amazingly comforting verses that nothing can conquer us if God is for us. Paul begins in v. 31 asking, “What, then, are we to say about these things?” (CSB) What are the things he has in mind here? Paul probably refers to his entire argument from 1:16-8:39, to God’s great plan of salvation unfolded in chapters 1–8. We deserve God’s wrath and final judgment because we have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God, but the grace of God has rescued us from our sin.
If you wanted to summarize chapters 1-8 in one phrase, what phrase would you use? The best phrase to use is the one Paul gave us: God is for us. Isn’t that encouraging? If you are a Christian, you can hang on to this truth. God is for you. And if He is for us, who can be against us? Lots of things seem to be against us. Maybe you are facing many stresses and tensions in your life. Perhaps you wonder if they are more than you can bear. Maybe finances are incredibly tight and are causing you to worry. Perhaps you have a relationship that means a lot to you that is falling apart. Or maybe you are worried about your health or the health of a loved one. Here is the promise of God’s Word to you for all situations: God is for you.
If you doubt whether God is for you, Paul gives us the reason we can be confident of God’s love in verse 32. God gave his own Son for us, and thus we know that He will give us everything we need. How do we respond when we doubt that God is for us? We look at the cross. We meditate on the cross and we reason this way: “Since God sent his Son to die to rescue me from my sins, he loves me very much. There can be no greater love than dying for someone else, and since He gave his life for me, He will not withhold any good thing from me.”
Those of us who are parents long to bless our children, and we are sinners. We would give our lives for the sake of our children. We long for nothing more than for our children to be happy and holy. But God loves us far more than parents love their children. And He does not withhold any good thing from us as his children. Praise God! He is for us!
For Reflection
What circumstances in your life are tempting you to doubt that God is for you?
What does Jesus' death on the cross in your place say about God's disposition toward you?
Ask the Father, who did not spare His own Son, to give you faith to trust that He is for you even in your hardest circumstances.
Thomas R. Schreiner is is the James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation and associate dean of the School of Theology at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. A Pauline scholar, Schreiner is the author or editor of several books including Romans, in the Baker Exegetical Commentary Series on the New Testament.