The Evidence of the Gospel
Notes
Transcript
*Have you ever gotten something in the mail - and it LOOKS important - but you’re NOT SURE who it’s from...
Nothing on it to indicate who sent this thing...
Maybe it has an “OPEN IMMEDIATELY” on it...
And so you open it - and you - - what?
Start reading.
And AS YOU’RE READING it - you’re trying to figure out what this is...
and WHY it was sent to you!
But then you start seeing some KEY WORDS...
And you realize it’s a car dealership asking you if you’re willing to sell the car that you haven’t owned for like 2 years!
Well - in THOSE MOMENTS - we become detectives - TRYING to figure out what this is before us.
In context today - we’re going to see the Apostle Paul - continue with his GREETING in the book of Romans!
Remember - he hasn’t met these people...
YET - he’s writing to them about - VERY important matters!
The MOST important of matters…
And so TODAY - Paul’s going to ACT LIKE a courtroom LAWYER...
providing EVIDENCE for his case.
And in DOING SO - ...
Yes - we’ll see some Theological truths...
BUT we’ll ALSO see - some evangelistic TIPS - For us in sharing the gospel.
Let’s get to it… We’ll read thru the passage and then circle back!
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,
2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,
3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh
4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,
So Paul - speaking to a PEOPLE - he doesn’t personally know...
Writing things where eternal LIFE and eternal DEATH hang in the balance...
Paul BEGINS by making this point...
Romans 1:1–2 (ESV)
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures,
What does Paul DO HERE?
SLIDE: Submit into Evidence: The Gospel Anchored in God
Submit into Evidence
Submit into Evidence
Paul wants these people to KNOW - that the MESSAGE he is about to dissect and expound UPON - is FROM GOD - and NOT HIMSELF!
**You ever get something in the MAIL - and you didn’t even HAVE TO OPEN IT - because you SAW who it was from - and you’re like - NOPE!! (tear it up)
Happens ALL the time!
We KNOW who it’s from - and we think - I DON’T NEED THIS!
Paul wants these people - to KNOW - right off the bat - that this coming MESSAGE - is FROM GOD HIMSELF!
Basically - Paul is putting the SENDER ADDRESS - on the envelope - as - GOD
And so Paul doesn’t WANT the people think that HE HIMSELF - CAME UP with this message.
Can you imagine getting a letter in the mail - that read - FROM GOD.
And the letter was ON FIRE but it wasn’t burning!?
Paul’s trying to elevate the ATTENTIVENESS of the people - TO this message - - FROM GOD.
And so - EVEN Paul - as brilliant as he was - intellectually - He wasn’t going to give ANY IMPRESSION that he authored the message he was going to share!
And so FOR US - when we share the gospel - it’s going to be WISE for us to consider the same approach!
We want people to KNOW - right off the bat - that we’re giving them GOD’s WORD - God’s truth!
**Cable guy (he said he believed in God - I clarified)
BUT - here’s what else we need to be careful of.
We can do a GREAT JOB of telling the person that we’re about to tell them the message of the GOSPEL…
the GOOD NEWS of GOD
That it’s FROM GOD -
And then PROCEED to tell them a MAN-CENTERED message!
MANY pastors do that every Sunday!
They offer to people - what they ALREADY WANT as fallen men and women - and then they say JESUS can get them those things!!
It’s called the HEALTH - WEALTH - and PROSPERITY GOSPEL!
many pastors / people - will tell people that - GOD WANTS them to be rich / WANTS them to be healthy...
And that if they have enough faith - God will grant them those things...
That if they believe - God will grant them those things!
And so - We need to KNOW the TRUE GOSPEL - if we’re going to tell people that our message is FROM God!
Back to our text - We see something else from Paul’s approach.
Romans 1:1–2 (ESV)
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures,
Not only is this message FROM God, as Paul says - BUT - there’s some more evidence to submit...
SLIDE: Submit into Evidence: The Gospel Promised by God
Submit into Evidence
Submit into Evidence
So not only is this GOSPEL - FROM God - and not from Paul..
But this Gospel was - PROMISED by God...
MEANING - This GOOD NEWS - isn’t just TODAY’S HEADLINES and gone tomorrow!
This was PROMISED BY GOD - when and how?
2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,
Promised THROUGH God’s prophets - and IN the Holy Scriptures!
Through God’s prophets!
1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets,
So if God spoke to the father’s of the faith - BY THE PROPHETS of old...
Then THAT MEANS - the gospel message PRECEDED the prophets of old.
God had REVEALED the Gospel to the prophets of old - in the ways in which God revealed that knowledge...
And so the MESSAGE itself - PRECEDED the prophets of old!
NOW - why is that a big deal?
Why would Paul emphasize this?
BECAUSE - Paul’s ELEVATING the very NATURE of this Gospel MESSAGE!
it didn’t come from PAUL...
And it didn’t come from MAN...
QUESTION: what is the GOSPEL?
Let’s let the Bible tell us...
1 Corinthians 15:1–4 (ESV)
1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand,
2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
The Gospel is - what we see here...
That Christ died for our sins, was buried, and was RAISED again on the 3rd day...
So the GOSPEL centers around - JESUS, His work on the cross, and His conquering of death.
OK - NOW -
The Bible also discusses a BOOK of LIFE -
It’s the book that is described to contain all the names of those who have believed and will believe.
Let’s see how the Bible describes that book...
8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain.
the book of life of the lamb who was slain.
So - before the foundation of the world - there was this book...
Before Jesus walked this earth...
Before man SINNED in the garden
Before the earth was created
There was a book - CALLED - the book of life - of the lamb who was slain.
The name of this book - Encapsulates the GOSPEL!
The DEATH of Jesus - as our sacrifice!
And it’s the BOOK of - LIFE - His resurrection!
SLIDE:
The message of the gospel of Christ was not some divine plan ‘B’.
This message - this GOOD NEWS came from the mind of God...
And NOT ONLY that - but question for you...
*When a friend of yours tells you very important information - maybe - dealing with our country, or taxes, or anything to THAT degree...
how do we normally respond?
Do we normally say - - WHO told you that?
OR - WHERE did you hear that?
But WHY do we respond that way?
Reason - we’re looking for AUTHORITY.
We want to know - WHAT AUTHORITY is behind what is being said.
And so NOTICE what Paul says back in v2...
2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,
This message is a MESSAGE that GOD Himself promised - through His prophets - YES...
BUT ALSO - IN the HOLY SCRIPTURES!
SLIDE: Submit into Evidence: The Gospel Grounded in Scripture
Submit into Evidence
Submit into Evidence
Paul wanted the people to know that the MESSAGE he would proclaim -
…was not only promised by God by way of - SPEAKING through prophets...
BUT ALSO - REVEALED in the text of the Holy Scriptures.
That God didn’t just LEAVE His truth FLOATING in the air - over time...
BUT that He PRESERVED His truth - IN WORD...
in human language - preserved in writing!
And PAUL - POINTS to that reality in his evangelism.
*Not sure about you - but almost EVERY time - i can’t remember a time when I didn’t do this...
But every time I share the gospel with someone - I’m ALWAYS using the phrase...
“The Bible says....”
Or - “The God of the Bible”...
*Cable Guy -
*Rich Mohler (guy the church helped)
“The Bible tells us...”
I want to make it VERY CLEAR that what I’m saying - is NOT COMING FROM ME...
But from a HIGHER authority!
And we just looked at it - How did Paul describe the Gospel?
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures,
4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
“In accordance with the Scriptures!”
Paul here again - TAKING it back to the AUTHORITY that UPHOLDS IT!
17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.
160 The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation.
21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
13 And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.
Wow - hammer blow after hammer blow - about the Authority of God’s word! - AND WHO IT CAME FROM.
And I think this REALLY does just take the pressure OFF - when sharing your faith.
Like - listen - “GOD HAS SAID - all men are sinners”
We all KNOW THAT RIGHT?
Yeah - see God KNOWS us - because He created us.
We’re EVIL at heart.
That’s how GOD describes us.
Always taking it back to - THIS IS WHAT GOD HAS SAID!
And ALL the more reason - for us to PREPARE - and KNOW - WHAT God says in His word.
But that’s not ALL we see from Paul here...
Back to v2-3
Romans 1:2–3 (ESV)
2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh
We’ve seen Paul submit evidence of...
The Gospel...
Anchored in God
Promised BY God
Grounded in Scripture
And now here - Paul says - in v3
3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh
Concerning His son - who was descended from David, according to the flesh.
AND so WITH THIS....we see...
SLIDE: Submit into Evidence: The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Man
Submit into Evidence
Submit into Evidence
The Good News that we sing about - and PREACH about - and RISK our LIVES FOR - DOESN’T FLOW from YOU or I...
It doesn’t FIND It’s ROOTS - in MAN…!
It FLOWS FROM - the MAN - Jesus Christ!
Emphasis - on the- MAN
WHY?
Because THAT PIECE of this evidence - is NECESSARY - to SPEAK INTO the fact that this is GOOD NEWS!
We’ve talked about it before - -
WHY did Jesus come as a man?
Well - in order for us to know that answer - we need to know what Man’s PROBLEM is - under God.
Man’s PROBLEM is found in Isaiah…among other places...
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
So what?
Romans 6:23 (ESV)
23 For the wages of sin is death...
2 but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.
OK - SO FAR - we’ve seen that we are ALL SINNERS…yes?
ALL of mankind - SINNERS!
Now - listen
12 For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law.
SEE?
All of mankind - is SINFUL!
Which MEANS - we will ALL PERISH!
UNLESS - God’s LAW - is - - accomplished!
Well - NO MAN can accomplish God’s law - HOW DO WE KNOW?
For ALL HAVE SINNED - and fall short!
But that POINTS to WHY Jesus came as a MAN...
And NOT just a MAN - but a JEW!
He was born - how?
4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,
Ok, so Jesus was born a JEW - in order to be BORN UNDER THE LAW...
But why?
Next verse
5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.
Jesus was born under the law - so that He could be JUDGED BY the LAW~!
And in being judged BY the law - PROVE to be the One to FULFILL the Law and therefore - RESCUE MANKIND!
Part of our APPROACH in evangelism should be to HIGHLIGHT that Jesus WAS A MAN.
That he CAME in the flesh and dwelt among us…
WHY?
Because He didn’t JUST dwelt among us!
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.
NOW - more than likely - we’ve HEARD this verse before...
And what happens in US - when we hear it?
This verse brings us - - comfort! yes?
Why?
Because He KNOWS - what this LIFE IS LIKE!
He KNOWS - what it means to LOVE
What it means to - LOSE SOMEONE
What it means to - HURT
What it means to - BE TEMPTED!
What it means to - DENY yourself
And we find COMFORT in this - Not because it gives us HOPE to ONE DAY BE ABLE TO be PERFECT life JESUS...
BUT we find comfort - KNOWING that - WHILE WE are constantly FAILING...
constantly falling to temptation
Our comfort is rooted in the fact that JESUS NEVER DID!
He CONQUERED the LAW! - - FOR US.
And so - PAUL - in his evangelistic GREETING to the Roman Church - highlights the reality that this GOSPEL - this Good News is about - Jesus - who was a descendant of David...
3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh
but that’s not all… One last piece of evidence...
4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,
in v3 - Paul had just highlighted who Jesus was - ACCORDING to the FLESH...
And now in v4?
SLIDE: Submit into Evidence: The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the God-Man
Submit into Evidence
Submit into Evidence
So clearly Christ wasn’t JUST a MAN...
Though FULLY-MAN...
He was also - FULLY God.
And HOW was this DISPLAYED to mankind?
4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,
By Christ’s RESURRECTION from the dead -
…He was DECLARED to be the SON of God...
According to the flesh?
NO - According to the Spirit of holiness!
We live in a world of - - Artificial - Intelligence.
We can’t tell anymore - what’s - REAL or NOT REAL.
It would be VERY easy for someone to send you a video of YOU - speaking and saying things you never said...
DOING things you never did.
And so FOR US - today - it’s HARD to VERIFY evidence
Hard to verify if something is real or fake...
JESUS - was descended from David- According to the flesh
And He was - Resurrected from the dead - According to the Spirit of holiness.
Fully MAN
& Fully God
And PAUL makes these things clear in his WRITING to the Roman church.
Now - Why do you think it’s important for us to speak to these things - when WE’RE sharing our faith?
It’s important for us to speak to these things - because by PROCLAIMING that the Gospel -
is FROM GOD
was PROMISED BY GOD
is ABOUT Jesus Christ the Man
AND Jesus Christ the God-MAN
We’re elevating lots of things...
SUMMARY:
Submit into Evidence
The Gospel Anchored in God
The Gospel Promised by God
The Gospel Grounded in Scripture
The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Man
The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the God-Man
In looking at this list - what are we elevating?
We’re elevating the God-Centeredness of this PLAN...
That it CAME from the mind of GOD - not man
We’re elevating the Faithfulness of God in that He PROMISED this GOOD NEWS for us - in the very beginning (as early as Genesis 3:15)
We’re Elevating God’s WORD as TRUTH - that this GOOD NEWS is traced to God’s WORD - the Bible - God’s revelation to US!
And we’re elevating the AUTHORITY of God’s WORD.
We’re ALSO evelating Jesus Christ as our SAVIOR!
That He CAME to EARTH - fulfilled the requirement FOR US in accomplishing the Law of God.
And we’re ELEVATING the Deity of Christ - being God.
And - maybe OVERALL - in proclaiming these truths in our evangelization of the lost...
We’re ELEVATING - the TRUTH - the REALITY of the Gospel!
This is all TRUE!
We need NOT SOFTEN the message of the GOSPEL!
why?
Because the GOSPEL is the POWER of GOD UNTO SALVATION!
May we NOT - underestimate the POWER of God’s TRUTH...
OR - be ashamed of it!
Let’s Pray!
