Into the Heart of Romans: A Bible Study Reflection

A reflection on Tom Wright’s teaching & Romans 8:31 at St Peter’s Anglican Church, Southport.

Today I joined a Bible study led by Fr Don Parker after the Eucharist at St Peter’s Anglican Church in Southport. I hadn’t attended in a while—having spent time at St James Biggera Waters—but now, living and working in the heart of Southport, it simply made sense to return.

The study focused on Romans 8:31 and, to be honest, I was not prepared at all. But with only four weeks left in the series, I decided to jump in. As a newcomer stepping into an already established group, I found myself curious—especially when we reached the well-known line:

“If God is for us, who can be against us?”

You could write an entire sermon on that verse alone. It struck me deeply, especially because of a question I’d heard just last week: “What do you think God thinks about you?” So, as usual, my curiosity took over, and I asked whether this verse connects to the way we imagine God’s view of us. The question wasn’t fully formed—I’ll admit that—but silence in a class kills discussion, and someone had to get things moving!

Fr Don gently steered us back to the passage, adding that he personally doesn’t worry about what God thinks of him because he knows God loves him. Someone else agreed. I found myself… puzzled.

What About Those Who Struggle to Believe That?

Living on Nerang St and meeting people who carry heavy burdens, I couldn’t help wondering: Am I the only one who struggles with the idea that God loves me? Surely not everyone finds that easy, especially in times of hardship.

As a gay Christian, reconciling faith, identity, and the “God-complex” of wondering whether I’m truly lovable has sometimes been difficult. Faith isn’t always a smooth path; there are seasons when believing “God is for me” feels like an uphill climb.

Who Was Paul Writing To?

Paul was not writing Romans to people who felt confident, sorted, or spiritually secure. He was writing to:

• persecuted Christians
• divided communities
• people carrying shame
• people unsure whether God really loves them
• people struggling with suffering, confusion, and identity-level tension

In other words: people like us. People who wonder. People who wrestle. People who ask questions. No question is stupid in our class, and honestly, I think my question might sit right at the heartbeat of the passage, I am happy to be wrong, as a life long student I am always open to learning more perhaps you can leave a comment below?

The Unshakeable Declaration

As we continued reading, we heard Paul’s astonishing claim that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

Nothing — including:

• social rejection
• personal doubt
• internal conflict
• suffering
• sexuality and shame imposed by others
• times of distance
• feeling unworthy
• trauma
• the whole “am I even lovable?” crisis

So when someone like me—or like you—asks whether our idea of what God thinks of us affects how this passage lands… maybe that question isn’t off-track at all. Maybe it’s exactly the kind of question Romans was written for.

Paul is not writing to people who say, “Who cares what God thinks? I already know He loves me.” He is writing to those who struggle to believe it.

And that means my question—your question—might be far more in tune with the original audience than we tend to realise.

May the grace of God be with you all. Amen.

P.S. I’m a fan of N. T. Wright—he even wrote the foreword to my friend Dr. David Bennett’s book, A War of Loves which we posted about in 2024 and you can read here. Feel free to visit St Peters website for more information about their services and bible study times.