5 Rhetorical Questions
Bob Yandian
Romans 8 verses 31 through 35 are rhetorical questions. The answers to rhetorical questions are so simple and logical you already know them.
“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31 What are the things talked about in this verse? The problems of life. The problems and adversities of the Christian life come from Satan and the curse he brought into the earth. Plus, the world’s system and our own flesh nature. What is the world, the flesh, or the devil next to God? Our problems, to us, seem big. Our problems, to God, are small like grasshoppers compared to giants.
God has everything planned for you because He knew you. He knew when you would get saved. He has a plan for your life. He gave you eternal life. If He did this, don’t you think He knows all the problems of life you are going to face? God knew problems would come our way and He already has a plan.
What happens when a Christian knows the Word of God? We operate in faith. The Word says, “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19. “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all” (Psalm 34:19).
Satan introduced three temptations for Jesus to throw away His earthly ministry to bow and follow Satan. Each time Jesus answered Satan, “It is written, it is written, it is written.” What do we do to the problems of life? We should take the word of God and not only have it in our heart but speak it out and aim it toward the problems of life. The word of God controls us. When we speak the word, we refuse to allow problems to control us.
“He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” Romans 8:32
The hardest, the greatest, and the most powerful thing God ever did was save us. If God did the hardest thing when He saved us, then why can’t He provide for our problems in life which are far simpler? In other words, if He delivered Jesus Christ up for us all, then how shall He not with Him freely give us these little things?
The important teaching of the word of God is not the life of Jesus, but His death and resurrection. Through them we have eternal life and have it more abundantly. Salvation is free and so is everything for this life on earth. Now that we are joined to Him, grace still gives with no strings attached. We grow spiritually and God blesses us. The blessings don’t come because of our works, it comes because of God’s trust in us. It comes by grace.
Nothing, after salvation, could compare to salvation. If God did the hardest thing for you and saved you and brought you into His kingdom and made you a child of God, then can't He take care of these other little things around you? If God saved you and redeemed you, He will certainly take care of these other things in life.
“Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.” Romans 8:33
Who is our enemy? Who is the one who comes against us? It is Satan who condemns and brings charges against us in heaven. Revelation 12:10 calls him the “accuser of the brethren, who accused them before our God day and night…” He stands before God and tries to accuse us, but it is God who justified us, not Satan. It is God who justifies us and Jesus who defends us.
1 John 2:1 says, “He is our advocate in heaven.” God is not our condemner. Satan is our condemner. In other words, if there is sin in my life and I don't confess it, yes, Satan has a right to go before God and accuse me in heaven. But, if I repent of that sin, confess it, the case is thrown out of court altogether. And here's the beauty of it. The judge is God the Father. My defense attorney is Jesus Christ. And Satan is not even a member of the family of God.
God says, “I'm taking care of you. I got you covered on every side.”
“Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also make intercession for us.” Romans 8:34
Our one true enemy, in this earth, is Satan. He is the one that God delivered us from. This verse is simply asking who has the right to judge me? To judge, you must be able to do so. Judges sit in high places. Only One being has the highest seat, and that highest seat belongs to the spiritual judge, God Himself. Jesus, who sits beside Him, is our intercessor. He paid the price for that right through His death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and seating at the right hand of the Father.
“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?” Romans 8:35
1. Tribulation – Extreme pressure
2. Distress – Anguish or worry
3. Persecution – Pressure from people
4. Famine – Lack of food
5. Nakedness – Lack of clothing
6. Peril – Life-threatening situations
7. Sword – War
Every extreme situation of life that can come against us is covered in this list. They are extreme to us because we look at the problem. God looks at the answer. There is not one believer the Father does not love and none of these things can separate us from His love. God's love for us is bigger than anything we can imagine. We can think we are forgotten in times. We need deliverance in peril, food in famine, or clothing in times of nakedness. But God never forgets it. God asks us to think of His faithfulness and His Word in every situation we face. The answer to our problems will be delivered to us in due time. We just need to walk in patience
