The letter to the Romans presents the most constantly sustained depths of biblical teaching available in all of the Scriptures. To master the contents of Romans is to master the truths of the Christian faith. The essential message is that no amount of self-righteousness will qualify a person for God's favor. The theme of the letter to the Romans is declared clearly by its author, the Apostle Paul: "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, 'But the righteous man shall live by faith.'" (Romans 1:16-17). This profound truth is enough to quicken the soul lost in traditions, legalism and externals and establish it completely on the saving work of Jesus Christ. It has served as the stimulus for revivals and reformations, and continues to stir hearts lost in sin to faith and salvation.
The book of Romans is divided into four sections all of which concentrate of a differing aspect of the Gospel of God's grace. The first section in Volume 1 analyzes the indictment through the Gospel under which all men exist in sin (1-3); the second section announces the intervention of the Gospel through justification (4-8); in Volume 2 the third section affirms the intention of the Gospel through grace (9-11); and the fourth section calls for attentiveness to the impact of the Gospel (12-16).