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Paul’s Gospel in Romans: Interview with Jarvis J. Williams

Paul’s Gospel in Romans: Interview with Jarvis J. Williams

Last updated on: August 25, 2026 at 10:51 pm by B. J. Oropeza

Paul’s Gospel in Romans: Interview with Jarvis J. Williams 2026-08-25T22:51:04-07:00 B. J. Oropeza

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This week I had the privilege of interviewing Jarvis J. Williams. Dr. Williams serves as a professor of New Testament Interpretation at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. His recent book with Baker Academic is Paul’s Gospel in Romans: Vertical, Horizontal, and Cosmic Dimensions. I have taken a special interest in Romans as I am currently writing a major commentary on it. I am also interested in Paul’s Gospel, having recently completed The Gospel of Paul (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans).

Here is the interview:

Gospel in Romans

The Gospel in Romans by Jarvis J. Williams (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2026).

The Interview on Paul’s Gospel in Romans

Oropeza:

What motivated you to write this book?

Williams:

I wanted to write a short and accessible book for students, bible teachers, and pastors that attempted to answer the question “what is Paul’s gospel in Romans?”

Oropeza:

Could you elaborate a little on your thesis to this book?

Williams:

My thesis is that Paul’s gospel in Romans is vertical, horizontal, and cosmic. Paul grounds each of these dimensions in Jesus’s death for our sins, his resurrection, and his exaltation as the crucified, risen, and exalted Lord and king.

By vertical, I mean Paul’s gospel in Romans is the announcement of good news that God justifies sinners by faith alone in Christ alone so that our sins are forgiven; we are reconciled to God, and we will be saved from the wrath of God (Romans 1:16-4:25; 5:8-10). The vertical announcement is foundational and primary for Paul’s gospel in Romans. It is necessary for the individual conversion experience of the sinner by faith.

By horizontal, I mean the announcement of good news that God through Christ transforms sinners by the power of the Spirit and sets us free from the power of sin and death. This is so that we would live in a godly way in an ungodly society (Rom 6-7).

By cosmic, I mean the announcement of good news that God through Christ sets the entire creation free from its enslavement to sin’s power and from its longing to be redeemed from the “futility” to which God submitted it when Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden (Rom 8:18-25).

I think each of these dimensions is present in Romans and that Paul sees these dimensions in Isaiah the prophet, especially in chapters 40-66, from which he draws in his exposition of his gospel in Romans (cf. Rom 1:2 with Rom 10:9-16).

Oropeza:

I notice that you engage with three recent gospel scholars, Graham Twelftree, Matthew Bates, and Michael Gorman. What did you learn about the gospel from these scholars?

Williams:

In the book, I interact with some recent scholarship on the concept of the gospel. I learned much from this scholarship.

I’m a traditional reader of Paul, and I have a Baptistic and Calvinistic reading of Paul and his letters. Reading different scholars on the concept of the gospel or on Paul’s gospel helped me to see that in my own exposition, I need to be clear that there is a difference between what I as an evangelical mean when I talk about “sharing the gospel” and what I mean when I’m asking and answering the question what is Paul’s gospel in Romans.

By “sharing the gospel,” I mean the process of explaining to someone the basic message of salvation so that a person would understand that humans are sinners separated from God because of sin. Jesus came to die on the cross for our sins, and God raised him from the dead for our justification so that if we repent of our sins and commit ourselves to Jesus by faith, we can have a genuine conversion experience and be saved from the wrath of God.

As John 3:16 says, “God loved the world in this manner: that he gave his only son so that anyone who believes in him would not perish but would have eternal life” (my translation).

Oropeza:

How is your gospel of Paul in Romans distinct from or in agreement with other scholars?

Williams:

The question “what is Paul’s gospel in Romans” requires the reader to analyze Paul’s gospel language and concepts in the context of his argument and in light of the prophets from which he draws to see what he means by “the gospel of God” in Romans (Rom 1:1-2).

Paul prioritizes and emphasizes the vertical dimension of his gospel in Romans as the foundational and most important aspect of his gospel in this letter, without which there is no need for horizontal and cosmic good news.

Oropeza:

In Romans, how do you understand the important term the righteousness of God?

Williams:

As you know, the phrase “righteousness of God” is important, and it has a long history of interpretation. I spend some pages discussing this phrase in my book. So, I’ll simply say here that I think the phrase refers to a right standing before God. With this phrase, Paul speaks of justification by faith (cf. Rom 3:21-4:25).

Oropeza:

In Romans 1:16-17, the gospel appears to be the “power of God for salvation.” How do you understand salvation here?

Williams:

In Romans 1:17, Paul connects “the righteousness of God” to “salvation” in v. 16. “Salvation” in Romans refers to deliverance from the future wrath of God (2:5-10; 5:8-10). Within this deliverance, Paul links reconciliation with God (Rom 5:8-10). Deliverance from God’s wrath and reconciliation come to the sinner by faith in Christ alone because God set forth Jesus to die for our sins. This is so that God shows himself to be a “just justifier” of all (Jews and Gentiles) who follow Jesus (Rom 3:25-29).

Oropeza:

Is salvation distinct from righteousness/justification, and if so, how?

Williams:

The phrase “righteousness of God” fits within this soteriological framework in that it’s the status that God counts on the day of judgment in favor of the sinner who has faith in Jesus, so that the sinner hears the verdict of “not guilty” on the day of judgment. This is because he’s been given a status of exoneration by means of his union with Christ by faith.

God grants this verdict to the sinner because Jesus was counted guilty for him as he took upon himself a death “for our sins” and because God counts the sinner as righteous in Christ because he imputes to the sinner Christ’s righteousness as a gift (Rom 4:1-25; 5:6-10).

This exoneration results in “no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus” because God put forth Jesus to be the offering for sin (Rom 8:1-3).

“God’s righteousness,” then, comes to the sinner by faith, and it’s the status given to the sinner when God declares him “not guilty” on the day of judgement because of his union with Christ by faith (1:18-4:25).

However, this future verdict has broken within the present evil age right now as those who are in Christ are currently justified, and they have been sealed with the Spirit as proof of both the present and the future verdict of not guilty (Rom 2:13-3:29; 8:1-11).

Oropeza:

Any particular way that you would recommend interpreting “from faith to faith“ in Romans 1:17?

Williams:

The phrase is a hard one to interpret. I see Paul emphasizing the importance of and the necessity of one’s personal faith in order to receive the status of righteousness/justification before God.

Perhaps a short discussion of Rom 3:21-22 is helpful here. Here, Paul refers to the “righteousness of God” twice, both in v. 21 and in v. 22. In 3:22, he says God reveals his righteousness “by faith.” I take faith to refer to one’s personal faith “in Jesus Christ to those who believe” (my translation).

In Rom 1:17, Paul uses the noun “faith” more than once to talk about it, and he uses the verb “to believe” in Romans 1:16. In 3:22, he uses the noun “faith,” and then he uses the verb “to believe” to talk about how one receives “God’s righteousness” and about who receives it: “God’s righteousness is revealed by faith in Jesus Christ to those who believe” (my translation).

I understand “from faith to faith” in Rom 1:17 to mean that one receives “God’s righteousness” as a status and a gift by trusting in Jesus. They receive this gift of righteousness as a status of not guilty when they trust in and follow Jesus. This is what Rom 3:22 seems to say with its reference to “faith” and “believe.”

I realize that my reading depends on “faith” in 3:22 referring to one’s personal faith as an objective genitive reading of “faith in Jesus Christ.” As you know, however, interpreters continue to disagree on this reading of the genitive.

Oropeza:

Yes, I know well this controversy and have written about it in an article entitled “Justification by faith in Christ or Faithfulness of Christ?” from Journal of Theological Studies. I am sympathetic with your objective reading of “faith in Jesus Christ.”

Any new insights that you personally received when doing the research and writing for this book?

Williams:

One thing I was reminded of when writing the book is that Paul’s “gospel of God” revealed in Jesus Christ drove his mission. It was the most important thing in his life and gave him a healthy perspective of death, so that he lived faithfully for Jesus Christ through very difficult circumstances with confidence in the future resurrection.

I know this is a simple observation, but it’s an important one for me. As a Christian, this simple truth reminds me that the gospel of Jesus Christ is my most precious and most important treasure in life and in death. This is because the good news of the gospel of God promises resurrection for all of those who repent and follow Jesus.

Oropeza:

Jarvis, thanks so much for spending the time to discuss these important issues!

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About B. J. Oropeza

B. J. Oropeza, Ph.D., Durham University (England), is Professor Emeritus of Biblical and Religious Studies at Azusa Pacific University and Seminary. Among his many publications include The Gospel of Paul (Eerdmans, forthcoming), Perspectives on Paul: Five Views (Baker Academic), Practicing Intertextuality (Cascade), The Gospel of Paul (Eerdmans, forthcoming), and editor and contributor to the Scripture, Texts, and Tracings series (Fortress Academic): 1 Corinthians (vol. 1), Romans (vol. 2), 2 Corinthians & Philippians (vol. 3); and Galatians & 1 Thessalonians (vol. 4). He participated on Bible translation teams for the NRSV (updated edition), Common English Bible (CEB), and Lexham English Septuagint (LES). He also has commentaries on 1 Corinthians (New Covenant commentary series: Cascade) and 2 Corinthians (longer work—Rhetoric of Religious Antiquity: SBL Press; shorter work—Wesley One-Volume Commentary). His current specialties include Romans, intertextuality, and Perspectives on Paul. He can be followed on X-Twitter (@bjoropeza1) and Instagram (@bjoropeza1). You can read more about the author here.

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