Romans Part 3

We are continuing our series going through Romans

This is Paul’s argument for the Gospel and his theology,

it is one of his longest letters sent to the Roman Church,

We started with Paul describing our need for salvation,

Looking at it like a court room with all the world on trial, before God, all the world is guilty of sin, all have fallen short and God’s wrath is coming for the unrighteous.

But Jesus died to save us.

Then we looked at how Jesus’s death saves us from the debt of Sin, and paul took the role of an auditor, using finacial language to describe how Christ’s perfect life and sacrifice for us enables him to give his excess righteousness to those who put thier faith in him.

And that by putting our faith in christ we have ceased to be slaves to sin - which leads only to death, but now we are servants of Righetousness that lead to eternal life

This week we are going to dig into the next several chapters, where paul descibes our internal and external struggles with sin, but assures us that we have victory.

Paul begins by refelcting on the purpose of the law, if the law cannot save us, why did God give us the law?

Romans 7:7–13 ESV

What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” But sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness. For apart from the law, sin lies dead. I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died. The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me. For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me. So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, producing death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure.

The law helps us understand what sin is, the old testament helps show us that we need help and a savior, because when we honestly look at the commandments in the law we realize that we have fallen short.

To use the example paul gives, how do we understand the command “do not covet?”

Would any of us worry about coveting if there wasn’t a command about it?

to covet - or to desire - or to lust for.

Jesus talked about these thing in the sermon on the mount, Where he said that it was written do not commit adultery, but he says that if you even look at a woman with lustful intent then it is sin

He is talking about covetousness.

Covetting makes sin not just a matter of what you do or dont do, but a matter of the heart.

So the law reveals that even sinful desires without the actual sinful action show that humanity is fallen.

This does not mean that the law was bad, biut rather it helps reveal the sins you already have in your life,

and sin, being a nefarious thing, uses the law to help push people to further sin.

If you tell a kid not to do something, they will probably try it.

Romans 7:14–25 ESV

For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

So just like how our sinful desires can condemn us, so when we want to follow Jesus and we put our faith in him, even though our fallen flesh is still sinful, and we still sin, it is no longer us, it is our sinful nature, which christ has deafeated.

so when Christ returns and we are raised in new life our sinful nature will remain dead.

Church your intentions matter.

if you seek to follow Christ and do good, then you are good!

our sin no longer condemns us.

Romans 8:1–11 ESV

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

The death of Jesus put to death sin, and Just as Jesus was raised to life, so when we are raised to life, we will be raised perfect and rieghteous, no longer bound to our sinful natures at all.

Sin has been defeated! Death will lead to resurrection, so Death has been defeated.

Romans 8:31–39 ESV

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

IF God is for us who can be against us!

God is on our side,

The Father who, even though we fail to meet his standard found a way to forgive our sins

Jesus who died to forgive us of our sin and now interecedes for us,

And the Holy Spirit who guides us into new life.

Church if God is on our side, then there is no power in heaven on earth or in hell that can bring us down.

That is the Gospel

That is the good news!

Now the next few chapters Paul goes into how the Jews failed to uphold the law, though they were God’s chosen people, and then he talks about how God is perseving his people through the jews that are saved, and that gentiles (non jews) are grafted into the family of God.

this was very important is Pauls day and to Paul’s heart, but i am not going to go too deeply into it here.

Suffice it to say that Salvation is for both the jews and and the gentiles,

But right in the middle of Paul’s argument here is a key passage to show again our victory over sin and death in Christ.

Romans 10:5–13 ESV

For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. But the righteousness based on faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

This again shows that the law is unable to save, if you live by the law, by trying to do what is right, if you think “If i can just be good enough to get to heaven” you will be judged by that same law,

But when you live by faith in Jesus, its not about you trying to get yourself into heaven, or trying to stay out of hell, but letting your faith in Jesus guide you.

Those are things only God can do.

you cant do it by your own power.

Your faith in Jesus and your proclomation of that faith is what saves you.

So we should all boldly procliam that Jesus is Lord!

And Paul then shares what happens when we publically proclaim our faith to others.

Romans 10:14–17 (ESV)

How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

There are so many people that we can reach for jesus, but we first have to become comfortable with proclaiming that he is our Lord and Savior.

we should not be ashamed of that fact.

Now believe me some of this is not easy,

i am not great with talking to strangers,

but what about friends or co-workers?

What about family members?

it should be easy to talk to them.

And Heres the thing church,

When we preach the Bible says the word of God does not return void.

so just as Christ enabled us to have victory over sin and death in our own lives, so too can we help lead others to victory over sin in their lives,

if we boldly share our faith with them.

and lead them to Jesus,

and Jesus will do the rest.

Not everyone will accept it,

and that’s on them.

if you shared the gospel with them you have done your part.

but do not give up on them either

they have to hear before they can believe.