Romans - Part 4: SPIRITSample

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

Romans 8: 35 starts with a question, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?”

If we are honest with ourselves, this is probably a question we have asked, not because we want to test God, but because we think God thinks like us. We experience separation from others as a result of bad things in our lives. So, similarly, we believe there must also be an eventual breaking point for God. There has to be something that can separate us from Him. But, the truth is, God's ways are higher and greater than ours. His forgiveness is constant. His love is deeper and wider than we can understand.

Paul, in the next verse, lists some of the things Christians can expect to experience: trouble, hardship, persecution, famine, nakedness, danger, and sword; all these events force believers to face death. He lists them so we will not be surprised when we experience such things; he wants to make sure we know he is not saying, “ There are some horrible things that could separate you from the love of Christ.”

No. Nothing can separate us from Christ’s love. This is fantastic news because God’s love for the believer is indissoluble. Nothing can separate us!

I love the way John Piper puts it.

“Christ’s love is not a memory. It is a moment-by-moment action of the living Son of God.” A wife might say of her deceased husband, “ Nothing will separate me from his love;” she means that the memory of his love will be sweet and powerful all her life. But that is not what Paul means here. In verse 34, it says plainly, “Christ Jesus is the one who died — more than that, who was raised — who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.”

The reason Paul can say that nothing will separate us from the love of Christ is because Christ is alive and is still loving us now. He is at the right hand of God and is, therefore. ruling for us. And he is interceding for us; which means he is seeing to it that His finished work of redemption does, in fact, save us hour by hour and brings us safe to eternal joy. His love is not a memory. It is a moment-by-moment action of the omnipotent, living Son of God to bring us to everlasting joy.

Take time today to remind yourself of Christ's love for you and be reminded He will always love you!

-Justin Lopes