p. 3 | The Wonderful Book of Romans by Milton C. Wilcox

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · May 28, 1914

The Wonderful Book of Romans

By Milton C. Wilcox

MILTON C. WILCOX

The book grows upon one as he studies it. Somehow the lodes of the mine do not work out, the great veins are not exhausted. The farther one follows the “leads” and the deeper he goes in this marvelous mine, the richer it becomes.

Romans is one of the great clusters in God’s coronet jewels. How the great words of Scripture abound! Take the awful word sin, for instance. It occurs in the New Testament in various forms of noun and verb and in the adjective sinful 266 times; its awfulness is represented in Romans 58 times. Hebrews comes next with 29, 1 John with 27, and John with 26. God’s law in these last two books is set over against the sin.

Another awful word is wrath, from orge. In the New Testament it is found 31 times; 11 of these are in Romans. Wrath, final in its consequences, is the inevitable result of sin.

Judge (noun and verb) and judgment occur in the entire New Testament 175 times; 22 times in Romans. The Gospel of John exceeds, containing the word 26 times; 1 Corinthians, 25 times. Romans is third.

But all the great jewels are not on the somber side. While 1 John and the Gospel by John exceed in the number of times love (agape) is used,—46 and 45, respectively,—Romans has 14 of the 242 times it occurs in the New Testament.

Romans leads in faith, 39 times of the 247; Hebrews coming next with 32, Galatians with 22, James with 16.

Hope is found in all the New Testament 55 times; 15 of these are in Romans, Acts coming next with 8.

The word gospel, God’s good tidings, is mentioned in Romans 13 times of the 102 it is found in the New Testament. Little Galatians comes next with 12.

The New Testament uses the word goodness 9 times, 6 of these being found in Romans.

God wishes to give his children assurance of some great and vital fact, and the words much more are used by the Spirit 21 times in the New Testament, 7 of which are in Romans.

Adoption occurs 5 times; 3 of these are in Romans.

But Romans is preeminently a book of grace and mercy. It glows, scintillates, sparkles, and shines with their exceeding beauty. The latter word is found in the entire New Testament 62 times; 12 of these are in Romans. Luke comes next with 9. Grace occurs 129 times, and 22 of these are found in Romans. 2 Corinthians comes next with 13, then Ephesians with 12.

Grace, mercy, and faith are the keys of the book. Remembering this, the “hard” passages become easier, the obscure places plain. For God’s great purpose concerning his creatures is always consonant with grace. He emphasizes his awful sovereignty in chapter 9: 11-21; and as we reverently read, our human hearts tremble. But let us never forget that from the fountain of the Godhead flow the streams of grace and mercy. His purpose in the stating of his power, his will, is not to discourage us nor to begloom the way; it is that we may know, may forever know, that the salvation is not of ourselves. We cannot buy it; we cannot earn it; we do not deserve it. It is all of him, of his love, of his abounding goodness. This is the lesson that God would

teach us in the book of Romans: We are saved by grace, by God’s undeserving favor to sinners. His purpose does not include our destruction. He wills not that any should perish. He elects (over-chooses) no one to sin, no one to condemnation, no one to be a vessel of wrath. His call, his choosing for us, is always to salvation, and salvation in the only way it can be made effective—through mercy and grace. And we can make it effective in our case by choosing, simply choosing with all the heart, God’s way. Then he can use us. So he used Israel, so he longed always to use Israel. He bestowed upon them all the privileges and covenant blessings that he might reveal in them and through them his power, and publish abroad his name. For the same twofold purpose he raised up, or brought to the throne of Egypt, Pharaoh: “That I might show in thee my power, and that my name might be published abroad in all the earth.” But the proud king would not choose God’s way. This did not thwart God’s purpose in the ultimate; but it removed Pharaoh from that purpose. So he will make the wrath of man to praise him; but that is not in his purpose. The Egyptian king would not learn it; unbelieving Israel would not learn it. Shall we who are closing our studies in the wonderful book learn it? Shall we learn that we are sinners, condemned to judgment and wrath by his holy law, with no power to change our just sentence? Shall we then learn that his grace abounds over the sin, his mercy over our misery, his power over our weakness, his righteousness covers our iniquity, his life triumphs over our death in sin? “If any man willeth to do his will, he shall know of the teaching.” John 7:17.

O reader, do not leave the book behind! Take it with you; enshrine it in the heart, drink of its hidden springs of life in all the weary way—the joyful way—to the kingdom.

Mountain View, Cal.