Monday, October 29, 2012

An Adventure In Romans, Part 4 - Charles Hodge (Chapters 1-8)

Following are some quotes from Charles Hodge's Commentary on Paul's Letter to the Romans. These are quotes that stood out to me as I have been reading through this commentary. This only covers chapters 1-8. Some background to this is posted here. I think most of the quotes are self-explanatory, but please comment if you have any questions.


The hope which true believers entertain, founded upon the very nature of pious exercises, will never disappoint them. - Romans 5:5

This is Hodge's rendering of Romans 5:15 "for if it is consistent with the divine character that we should suffer for what Adam did, how much more may we expect tone made happy for what Christ has done!"

"There can be no participation in Christ's life without a participation in his death, and we cannot enjoy the benefits of his death unless we share in the power of his life." - Romans 6:4

"We strive to obey, not in order to be saved or to please God, but because God saves us without works or merit of our own, whom, because he is reconciled in the Beloved, we delight to serve." Olshausen (as quoted by Hodge on Romans 6:12)

It is as much a matter of justice that sin should be followed by death as that the laborer should receive his wages. Those, therefore, who hope for pardon without atonement hope that God will in the end be unjust. -  Romans 6:23

Romans 7:7 "Does the law produce sin, so that the fruit is to be imputed to the law itself? God forbid! Certainly not! Let it not be thought that the law is to blame. On the contrary, so far from the law being evil, it is the source, and the only source, of the knowledge of sin." as rendered by Charles Hodge

Hodge says that "by leading the apostle to expect one thing, sin deceived him by his experiencing another. He expected life and found death..." How is sin deceiving you today? - Romans 7:11

What Christian does not feel that he is unspiritual? How cheerfully he recognizes his obligation to love God with all the heart, and yet how constantly does the tendency to self and the world, the law in his members, war against the purer and better law of his mind and bring him into subjection to sin! - on the latter half of Romans 7

If we share the spiritual benefits of Christ's death, we also share in his life. If we died with him, we live with him. This is pertinent to the apostle's main purpose in this chapter, which is to show that believers can never be condemned. They are not only delivered from the law and justified by the blood of Christ, but they participate in his life. - Romans 8:6, 20


When the apostle says that believers are the heirs of God, he recognizes their claim, in and through the Redeemer, to the promised good as well as to the certainty and security of the possession. - Romans 8:17 

The purpose of God in the salvation of men was not mainly that men should be holy and happy, but that through their holiness and happiness his glory, in the person of the Son, should be displayed in the ages to come to principalities and powers. Christ, therefore, is the central point in the history of the universe. His glory, as the glory of God in the highest form of its manifestation, is the great goal of creation and redemption. -  Romans 8:29 

Friday, October 5, 2012

A Year Of Running...

After I started losing some weight last year, I started running on October 17, 2011. I use iMapMyRUN to keep track of my runs, so I can look back at the history.

That first time out running was pretty bad. :) I ran 2.21 miles in 30:08. That's a 13 minute and 35 second pace per mile. And I remember that I tried running down one of the roads in my neighborhood where there is a decent incline. "Tried" is the key word - truth be told, I walked that hill! It was at the 25 minute mark and I had already run around 1.5 miles and just couldn't run any more.

As I was running the other week, I hit that same hill at the 25 minute mark again. But this time, I had already ran over 4 miles and I kept going up that hill (though slowing down a little). That night I ran 5 miles at an 8 minute and 42 second pace.

Looking back at my charts, the first time I "ran" a 5k in my neighborhood it was 36 minutes at around an 11:11 pace and was on Christmas Day, 2011.

I slowly kept up with it (when it was warm) and on May 12, I ran my first official 5k race in 27:56 - much better at a 9:00 pace. In the 5k I ran on September 8, I finished in 25:07 (at an 8:07 pace). I'm hoping to break the 25:00 mark in my fourth 5k race tomorrow!

I've also been running longer distances (up to a personal long-run of 6.5 miles). I think this has helped tremendously with increasing my "short run" 5k speeds. (I never thought I would refer to a 5k as a "short run" workout.)

I hope this doesn't come off in a bragging manner, but instead I hope it will encourage you. Maybe you're starting off running and don't think you're running "fast enough" - keep plugging along. If I can do this, you can too!!

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

An Adventure In Romans, Part 3 - FF Bruce (Chapters 1-8)

 Following are some quotes from FF Bruce's Commentary on Paul's Letter to the Romans. These are quotes that stood out to me as I have been reading through this commentary.  This only covers chapters 1-8. Some background to this is posted here. I think most of the quotes are self-explanatory, but please comment if you have any questions.


"Flesh and spirit wage incessant warfare one against the other within the citadel of Mansoul." 

"Peace is joy resting; joy is peace dancing." FF Bruce on Romans 5 talking about peace and joy being two benefits of the Gospel. I love that!

"Paul never considered legalism as the cure for libertinism; he knew a more excellent way. When men and women yielded their lives to the risen Christ and the power of his Spirit, their inward being was radically transformed: a new creation took place." - Romans 6:1

In his death he dealt effectively and conclusively with sin, winning a victory 'that needs no second fight, and leaves no second foe." - Romans 6:10

Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Romans 7:24, 25 ESV) - "So some have experienced more soul trials after their conversion than when they were awakened to a sense of their lost condition. 'O wretched man that I am!' is their cry till they are made perfect in holiness. But He that hath begun a good work in them will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." - MacFarlane (as quoted by FF Bruce on Romans 7:25)

When the human spirit is in closest harmony with the Spirit of God, words may not only prove inadequate; they may even hinder prayer. But God, before whom the thoughts of all are like an open book, recognizes in those unspoken 'sighs' deep in his people's hearts the voice of the Spirit interceding for them in tune with his own will, and answers them accordingly. Indeed, God's overruling grace co-operates in all things for his people's good, even in those things which at the time are so distressing and perplexing and hard to bear. - Romans 8