Wednesday in the Word

Romans 16 closes Paul’s letter not with abstract theology but with names, memories, and a final word of praise. In this episode, we walk through Paul’s “yearbook” of friends and co-workers, tracing how ordinary men and women—slaves and officials, Jews and Gentiles, singles and couples—become living proof of the gospel’s power. Then, in the final doxology, we hear again the heart of Romans: the God who began this work is able to strengthen us and bring about the obedience of faith. 

In this week’s episode, we explore:

• Why Romans 16 is like the signatures at the back of a high school yearbook—and what that analogy reveals about how truth and relationships belong together in the Christian life
• Phoebe as a recognized servant and “patron” of the church, and what her example teaches us about mature, trusted ministry that often goes unseen
• Priscilla and Aquila as a ministry couple: tentmakers, teachers, risk-takers, and hosts whose home kept becoming a church wherever God moved them
• The striking variety in Paul’s list—men and women, slaves and city officials, Jews and Gentiles, households and house churches—and what that says about the shape of genuine Christian community
• How Paul remembers different people: first converts, hard workers, relatives, fellow prisoners, those “tested and approved,” and a woman who became “a mother” to him in the Lord
• Why seemingly small phrases like “my beloved,” “worked hard in the Lord,” and “dear friend” matter—and how they invite us to value faithful, ordinary service
• Paul’s sober warning about those who cause division and deceive the naive, and his counsel to quietly refuse them influence while trusting that “the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet”
• The closing doxology (Romans 16:25–27) as a summary of the whole letter: God Himself establishing us by the gospel, revealing a long-hidden mystery to the nations, and bringing about the obedience of faith to His glory forever

By the end of the episode, listeners will see Romans 16 not as an afterthought, but as a beautiful snapshot of a gospel-shaped family—and a reminder that our own relationships in Christ are meant to carry that same eternal weight. You’ll be invited to notice and honor the “Phoebes,” “Marys,” and “Rufuses’ mothers” in your life, to take division seriously without becoming anxious or combative, and to rest in the God who is able to steady your wobbly heart and write His obedience into your life, all to His wise and lasting glory.

 Series: Romans: Justification by Faith

Be the first to know when it's out: What Jesus Taught by Krisan Marotta 

In my new book, I gather Jesus' teaching from all four Gospels and organize it by theme, so you can see what Jesus taught about God, himself, his followers and the kingdom, and how it all fits together. To follow the Teacher, you need to know what he taught.

Romans 15:14–33 shows us a portrait of mature Christian confidence—not self-promotion, but a settled trust that Christ is at work in and through us. In this episode, we watch Paul affirm the Roman church’s goodness, knowledge, and competence, even as he reminds them how much they still need bold gospel reminders and a priestly ministry that points everything back to God’s grace. We also follow Paul as he looks back over a completed season of ministry and looks ahead with hopeful, flexible plans, learning what it means to know who you are, where you’re going, and how to hold your future before God with open hands. 

In this week’s episode, we explore:

• Paul’s remarkable description of the Roman believers as “full of goodness,” “filled with all knowledge,” and “able to instruct one another”—and what that kind of maturity looks like in a local church
• Why even a well-taught, compassionate church still needs “bold reminders” of the gospel, and how regular renewal of our minds protects us from drift
• Paul’s picture of himself as a priest-like minister and “translator,” simply carrying God’s message to people and people’s needs to God—without needing his name on the work
• What it means to boast only in “what Christ has accomplished through me,” and how that frees us from both insecurity and self-congratulation in ministry
• Paul’s sense of having “fully preached” the gospel from Jerusalem to Illyricum, and what it looks like for us to look back on a life chapter and name, with gratitude, what God has finished
• The twin priorities that shape Paul’s future plans: expanding the gospel where Christ has not been named, and preserving the unity of the church through sacrificial generosity
• How Paul models planning that is strategic, persistent, team-oriented—and completely willing for God to reroute the journey in surprising ways
• The three specific prayer requests he shares, how each is answered in unexpected form, and what that teaches us about praying boldly while trusting God with the outcomes

By the end of the episode, listeners will have a more grounded vision of what godly confidence really is: knowing your gifts, remembering the gospel often, embracing your role as a conduit rather than the center, and planning with energy while letting God redraw the map. You’ll be invited to look honestly at your own season of life, recognize where God has already been at work, and hold your future before Him with the same mix of ambition, gratitude, and surrender that marked Paul’s ministry.

 Series: Romans: Justification by Faith

Be the first to know when it's out: What Jesus Taught by Krisan Marotta 

In my new book, I gather Jesus' teaching from all four Gospels and organize it by theme, so you can see what Jesus taught about God, himself, his followers and the kingdom, and how it all fits together. To follow the Teacher, you need to know what he taught.

Romans 14:19–15:13 invites us to trade quick, easy “wins” in our opinions for the slow, demanding work of building people. In this episode, we look at Paul’s call to pursue what makes for peace and mutual upbuilding, to lay down our freedoms when they damage another’s conscience, and to embrace the long, patient work of helping brothers and sisters grow—so that, together, we become a living temple that displays God’s mercy. 

In this week’s episode, we explore:

• Why it is so much easier to tear down a life, a community, or a hard-won dream than to build one—and how that reality frames Paul’s charge to “pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding” 
• The difference between “building up” and “destroying” the work of God, and how seemingly small choices about food, drink, practices, or preferences can either strengthen or damage a fellow believer’s faith
• What it means to form your convictions “before God”—inviting Him into your decisions about gray areas instead of simply copying your friends or asserting your rights
• Why acting against your conscience, even in things that are morally neutral, is still sin—because it reveals a heart more eager for human approval than God’s
• Paul’s call to the “strong” to bear with the weaknesses of the “weak,” rather than pleasing themselves—and how that applies to those whose stories include addiction, occult backgrounds, or deeply painful histories
• The role of endurance and the encouragement of Scripture in the long, slow work of helping others grow, rather than demanding quick fixes or tidy spiritual progress
• The command to “welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you,” and how that redefines church not as a club for the like-minded but as a diverse choir learning to glorify God “with one voice”
• How Paul’s Old Testament quotations (from Psalms, Deuteronomy, and Isaiah) show Jew and Gentile learning to praise God together, with the spotlight ultimately on Christ, the Root of Jesse, in whom all nations hope 

By the end of the episode, listeners will see that Christian freedom is never an excuse to bulldoze someone else’s soul, but a gift to be used in love. You’ll be invited to take your own motives seriously, to choose building over breaking even when it costs you, and to join God’s long-term project of forming a community where the strong gladly bear with the weak, everyone is welcomed as Christ has welcomed them, and hope in the God of endurance and encouragement overflows. 

 Series: Romans: Justification by Faith

Be the first to know when it's out: What Jesus Taught by Krisan Marotta 

In my new book, I gather Jesus' teaching from all four Gospels and organize it by theme, so you can see what Jesus taught about God, himself, his followers and the kingdom, and how it all fits together. To follow the Teacher, you need to know what he taught.

Romans 14:1–18 takes us straight into one of the most familiar tensions in church life: how do we handle “gray areas” where sincere Christians disagree? In this episode, we look at comic books, card games, movies, food laws, holy days, and generation gaps—not to settle every debate, but to learn how Paul calls us to welcome one another, refuse judgment and contempt, and let Christ—not our opinions—be Lord of each other’s consciences. 

In this week’s episode, we explore:

• Why “Christian taboos” and lifestyle debates arise in every culture and era, and how Romans 14 helps us navigate them without tearing the church apart 
• Paul’s categories of the “weak” and the “strong” in faith, and why greater maturity usually means more inner freedom, not more external rules
• How food laws and sacred days in the first century map onto today’s contested issues—entertainment, schooling, politics, money, alcohol, clothing, and more
• The danger on both sides: the strong despising the cautious as legalistic, and the weak judging the free as barely Christian
• Why other believers are not “our servants” to fix, but the Lord’s—He is able to make them stand and responsible to change them in His time 
• How to give brothers and sisters the benefit of the doubt: assuming they are seeking to honor the Lord, even when their convictions differ from ours
• What it means to avoid putting a “stumbling block” in someone’s path, and when love calls the strong to limit their freedom for the sake of another’s conscience
• The bridge and Candy Land illustrations: moving at another’s pace, protecting the vulnerable, yet still encouraging real growth and thoughtful conviction
• Paul’s reminder that the kingdom of God is not about eating and drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit—and why that relativizes our cherished preferences 

By the end of the episode, listeners will have a clearer, more hopeful way to approach disagreements over non-essential matters. You’ll be invited to stop trying to remake other believers into your image, to examine how your freedoms affect those around you, and to prioritize what truly lasts: belonging to the Lord, building up His people, and pursuing the kind of righteousness, peace, and joy that makes the family resemblance to Christ unmistakable. 

 Series: Romans: Justification by Faith

Be the first to know when it's out: What Jesus Taught by Krisan Marotta 

In my new book, I gather Jesus' teaching from all four Gospels and organize it by theme, so you can see what Jesus taught about God, himself, his followers and the kingdom, and how it all fits together. To follow the Teacher, you need to know what he taught.

Romans 13:8–14 paints a picture of real freedom: not the freedom to do whatever we want, but the freedom to love generously and walk in the light without fear, guilt, or secret compromise. In this episode, we explore how being released from crippling debts and hidden darkness frees us to respond to God’s mercy with open-handed love, clear conscience, and alert, hopeful obedience. 

In this week’s episode, we explore:

• What Paul means by “Owe no one anything, except to love each other,” and how financial and moral debt quietly restrict our ability to follow God’s call
• The difference between “good debt” and “bad debt,” and why living within our means can be an act of spiritual freedom rather than just fiscal prudence
• How love “fulfills the law” by moving us beyond bare rule-keeping into a life that genuinely seeks our neighbor’s good
• Why the ongoing “debt of love” is the one obligation that never crushes us, but instead flows from the love God has already poured into our hearts
• Paul’s call to wake from spiritual sleep—leaving behind passivity and drift because “the night is far gone; the day is at hand”
• The “works of darkness” (escapism, out-of-control sexuality, strife, and jealousy) and how they numb our hearts and erode our capacity to love
• What it means to “put on the armor of light” and “put on the Lord Jesus Christ” as our true identity, instead of leaving secret room for the flesh
• How small, seemingly reasonable compromises function like a slow leak in a tire, leading over time to spiritual collapse
• Practical steps for cutting off provision for sin—relationships, habits, and inner rehearsals that keep temptation close at hand

By the end of the episode, listeners will see that Romans 13:8–14 is not about joyless rule-keeping, but about stepping into a wide, bright space where we are free to love without fear and walk honestly before God and others. You’ll be invited to examine the debts and darkness that quietly shape your choices, to wake up to the nearness of the day, and to clothe yourself afresh with Christ—living as someone whose soul belongs to Him and is free to serve. 

 Series: Romans: Justification by Faith

Be the first to know when it's out: What Jesus Taught by Krisan Marotta 

In my new book, I gather Jesus' teaching from all four Gospels and organize it by theme, so you can see what Jesus taught about God, himself, his followers and the kingdom, and how it all fits together. To follow the Teacher, you need to know what he taught.