A Revolutionary Perspective

The entire Christian Church recognizes the Book of Romans as foundational to Christian theology and doctrine. However, what if recently surfaced information challenges everything we thought we understood about the Apostle Paul and his true message over the last 1700 years?

We’ve been interpreting Paul’s writings through the lens of a Western Gentile Church. But what if Paul, a high-level rabbi, employed first-century Jewish idioms and expressions unfamiliar to modern readers? These expressions, often misinterpreted through denominational biases, might drastically alter our understanding of his teachings.

While Romans is undeniably the cornerstone of Christian doctrine, comparing Paul’s original Hebrew context to modern interpretations reveals a significant gap. This gap has resulted in one of the most profound misunderstandings in Christian history.

This study invites you to delve into the Book of Romans, exploring it verse by verse from its original language and cultural context. If you’re seeking a deeper walk with God and are ready to move beyond centuries of tradition and denominational interpretations, subscribe and prepare for a life-changing experience.

Understanding the Framework

Today’s study begins with an in-depth look at the Book of Romans, often referred to as Christianity’s “systematic theology book.” To truly grasp Paul’s message, we must first understand:

• Paul’s Background: A highly educated rabbi trained under Gamaliel, the president of the Sanhedrin.
• The Cultural Context: How first-century Jewish thought and traditions influenced his writings.

Paul’s rabbinic mindset shaped his arguments and theology, yet modern Christianity often interprets his words through a Gentile lens. This disconnect has led to widespread doctrinal variations, evidenced by the existence of over 44,000 denominations today.

The Role of the Oral Law in First-Century Judaism

To understand Paul, we must explore the Jewish context of his time:

• The Tanakh: Comprising the Torah (Law), Nevi’im (Prophets), and Ketuvim (Writings), this was the Hebrew Bible.
• The Oral Law: Rabbinic traditions and interpretations of the written Torah, passed down orally and later compiled into the Talmud.

The Talmud, consisting of:

1. The Mishnah: Legal rulings and interpretations of the Torah.
2. The Gemara: Rabbinic commentary on the Mishnah.

Together, these form the backbone of Rabbinic Judaism.

Why This Matters

Paul’s writings reflect his rabbinic training and deep knowledge of Jewish law and traditions. His use of idiomatic expressions and references to rabbinic debates would have been clear to his Jewish contemporaries but are often misunderstood by modern readers.

For example:

• Paul’s Identity: Despite being the Apostle to the Gentiles, Paul remained deeply rooted in his Jewish heritage and identity.
• Cultural Misinterpretations: Modern Christianity often separates religion from daily life. In contrast, first-century Judaism integrated every aspect of life with the Torah and oral traditions.

Relevance for Today

Understanding Paul’s original context is not just for Bible scholars—it has practical implications for our daily lives, marriages, parenting, and relationships. By examining his writings through the lens of first-century Judaism, we gain insights into:

• How to live a holistic faith.
• The foundational truths of Christianity.

This journey through Romans will challenge traditional interpretations and offer a richer understanding of Scripture. With insights into the Hebrew mindset and Paul’s rabbinic training, we’ll uncover truths that have been hidden by centuries of doctrinal bias.

Whether you’re a seasoned Bible student or new to exploring Scripture, this study promises to deepen your relationship with God. So, grab your notebook, buckle up, and prepare for a transformative dive into the Book of Romans.

As a matter of fact, the worst part of Bible study is not studying at all. It’s the selfish motivation of reading the Bible just to get something out of it for oneself. Some people read the Bible to find what they want to find, to support whatever they’re trying to do. They’re looking for confirmations to marry this person, to do this, or to do that. We’re not really reading to understand the text and then let the Holy Spirit work in our lives. Instead, we sometimes use our own, often false, motivations of the heart—ones we might not even be aware of.

We read into Scripture something that’s not there, then alter our lives based on it—or worse, we take a snippet of what Paul says and extrapolate it into something we want. But here’s the bottom line: there is only one interpretation. To find it, we need to get into the mind of the one who wrote it. We must know everything we can about Paul—how he processed his thoughts and ideas for living. All of this stems from his very Jewish upbringing.

The famous British theologian James Dunn made this eye-opening statement: “When the Hebrew context and Jewish reality of who Paul is are removed, what remains is confusion and contradiction.” He believed that each denomination today has cherry-picked statements from Paul to support their already existing creeds, while ignoring other statements from Paul that seem to contradict their established denominational beliefs.

For instance, one denomination might build a doctrine around Romans 10:4, which says, “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes,” believing that Paul is talking about getting rid of the law of God. Yet, they ignore verses in the same book, like Romans 3:31: “Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.”

How can the same apostle, in one verse, say that Christ brought an end to the law, but in the same letter, say that faith establishes it? He also delights in the law in Romans 7:22 and says in Romans 8:7 that being subject to God’s law is spiritual, while rejecting it is carnal. This cannot be a contradiction. Paul is not schizophrenic. We must be missing something.

Have you ever been in an argument with your spouse or a friend where things keep escalating, and then, at the end, someone blurts out a piece of new information that changes the entire argument? That’s exactly where we are today with Paul’s writings. Paul isn’t saying that Christ brought about the end of the law itself. He says Christ brought about the end of the law for righteousness.

In Rabbinic Judaism, the Jewish leadership had redefined salvation to mean the keeping of all their laws. Righteousness, to a first-century Jew, meant keeping all of God’s laws and the traditions of the elders—not just God’s word. In their minds, righteousness came through adhering to these laws, leading to salvation. Paul points out that Christ ended this approach and brought it back to simple faith. Christ brought an end to how the law was being used—not to the law itself. That’s why Paul doesn’t say, “Christ is the end of the law,” but rather, “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness.” He explains this further in the chapter.

We have cherry-picked Scripture to support our current belief systems, often missing the beautiful context of what Paul is really saying. This misunderstanding can lead us to misapply Scripture and live outside of authentic early Christianity. To truly understand Romans, we need the entire Bible to provide depth and context to Paul’s writings.

This study is not about dissecting Scripture like ivory-tower theologians. It’s about understanding the basics of our faith. Theology, at its core, is the study of God—Theos and ology. When we study God, we draw closer to Him, which helps us draw away from the world. As we increase our spiritual understanding, our spiritual gifts grow, enabling us to live out our full potential and find our true purpose in Christ.

Paul’s teachings must be interpreted through the lens of Jesus’s teachings—Yeshua, as I’ll refer to Him throughout this series. Additionally, Paul’s ideas must align with the wisdom of the Hebrew Scriptures—the Old Testament and the prophets. By holding Paul’s letters alongside these foundations, we can grasp the full meaning of his writings.

Paul is not against Yeshua, nor are they equals. Unfortunately, in traditional Christian theology, Paul has often been elevated over Christ. Many seminaries teach interpretations of Paul that conflict with the teachings of Jesus in the Gospels. However, Paul cannot contradict Christ. He is an apostle of Christ, a disciple of Christ. Paul was a Pharisee with a deeply ingrained theological framework, which God rewired to align with the Torah and the Hebrew Scriptures after his encounter on the road to Damascus. Paul’s mission was to integrate Christ into the theological foundation God established at Mount Sinai.

This introduction sets the stage for our study of Romans. Next week, we’ll dive into chapters 1 and 2 to explore how this context influences the text and how understanding it can transform the way we live.

Thank you for joining this broadcast, and watch the full teaching below. Consider partnering with us financially to support this ministry at passionfortruth.com/donations. Your support helps us continue sharing this message with the nations. Most importantly, please pray for us as we dive deeper into the book of Romans and uncover everything God has for us.

Decoding Romans – Intro Full Teaching

Full Transcript here: