Called as Saints
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Today I will be teaching more than preaching… but don’t worry at the end we will get down to practical implications on how this works out in our lives. We will learn that if you are a believer, you are a saint. This raises the question one small boy is said to have asked.
He attended a church that had beautiful stained-glass windows. He was told that the windows contained pictures of various saints… Saint Matthew, Saint Mark, Saint Luke, Saint John, Saint Paul, and other saints.
One day he was asked, “What is a saint?” He replied, “A saint is a person whom the light shines through.” 1157
Now, today, the word “saint” has come to mean something far from its original New Testament meaning. When we think of a “saint,” we think of some stylized human figure depicted in stained glass, or of a person long dead who has been officially declared as some ecclesiastical relic. almost superhuman in nature.
However, one of the clearest definitions is “A saint is a dead sinner, revised and edited.” 1158
With that in mind, let us turn to our text for today.
4 Slides (ending vs 8)
5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles, for His name’s sake,
6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ;
7 to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, because your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world.
We left off two weeks ago with our being blessed by God. We have received God’s grace and apostleship. These are a reference to our being saved by grace and then given a divine appointment.. we were called to serve Him as His ambassadors.
WOW that is amazing.
The purpose of that calling is to bring about the obedience of faith where ever we go.
In Paul’s case it was among the gentiles, but for us it is to bring the gospel message… the message of “the obedience by faith” to all people… both Jews and gentiles.
We talked about how if there is no obedience, it is a strong indicator that there is no faith… and that the disobedient person is not a Christian.
The reason why Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit was because they trusted in their own wisdom and believed Satan’s lie rather than God. (They did not believe what God said was true.)
and whenever we make an excuse for not doing what we are directed to do in the Bible it is because we do not really trust God. It is a sign of our unbelief and not our belief and we are making a poor choice. We are not wiser than God. God is always right. I know that is a tough message to hear… but it is the truth.
I was just reading in Hebrews this past week about the Israelites who were delivered from their slavery in the land of Egypt. God was leading them to the promised land.. but did they ever make it?
2 Slides
18 And to whom did He swear that they should not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient?
19 And so we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.
In this passage, God equates disobedience with unbelief. He is telling us that we need to be obedient… and not like those Israelites if we want to enter into His rest..… aka - heaven. He wrote this as a warning to you and to me.
We talked about that two weeks ago… but today I want to pick up on that final clause in verse 5 -
“for His Name’s sake.”
The reason God saved us. .. the reason God saved you and me was “for His name’s sake.” It was for His glory.
God is in the business of glorying Himself. If you think about it..
who were we before we were “born-again.”
We were a bunch of selfish creatures. We were consumed with selfishness. But then God reached down. He took our hate-filled, selfish heart and gave us a heart filled with love. He transformed us from the inside out and changed the attitudes of our heart so that we genuinely care about others.
That is the truth of Rm 12.1-2.
2 Slides
1 I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
When we submit to God… we demonstrate that the will of God is good and acceptable and perfect and as a result God is glorified.
He gives us the ability to rule over His creation.
He made us.
He gives us a sound mind.
The primary purpose of the gospel is not for man’s sake but God’s,
for His name’s sake.
Man’s salvation is simply a by-product of God’s grace; its main focus is to display God’s glory.
All of redemptive history focuses on the glory of God, and throughout eternity the accomplishments of His redemption will continue to be a memorial to His majesty, grace, and love.
If you think about it.. we are the ones who messed up our lives.
We were dead in our trespasses and sins. There was nothing we could do to get out of the mess that we had made for ourselves.
It is God who made us. It is God who gave us life in the first place.
He created us. He breathed life into us… and
after we messed things up royally and showed how horribly we can manage things on our own…
He came along and saved us, put His Spirit within us, and transformed us. He is the one who is worthy of all glory and honor and praise.
as we read in Philippians 2.10-11
2 Slides
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth,
11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Note that every tongue will give glory to God....
of those who are in heaven, and on earth and under the earth. In the end every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.… and what will be the result?
...”to the glory of God the Father.” The end result is that God will be glorified.
Back in verse 1 we read that Paul was “called as an apostle.” We also talk of pastors as being called.… but Paul and pastors are not the only ones who are called. Note verse 7:
Slide
7 to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: ....
God’s calling is for all the believers who are in Rome and we could add by extension Bryson City.
First, if you are a believer you are a beloved child of God.
He loves you.. He cares for you !
Slide
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
He loves us so much that He died for you and for me. He gave His life to pay the price for our sins so that we could be adopted into His family. Now that is a lot of love!
When Jeremiah was speaking of the redemption of Israel, He told them that God’s wrath would not last forever, but He would again pour out his blessing upon His people. Why??
Slide
3 The Lord appeared to him from afar, saying, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness.
God loves us with an everlasting love. His love never ends.
or
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1 See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
and not only does he love us… He calls us.
If you think about it, Jesus Himself called us in:
3 Slides
28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.
29 “Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls.
30 “For My yoke is easy, and My load is light.”
He called us in
Slide
37 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.
He is calling us in Revelation 22.
Slide
17 And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come.”
And let the one who hears say, “Come.”
And let the one who is thirsty come;
let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.
But here in Romans, there is a new depth to that calling.…
called as saints. The word for Saints is Hagioi or holy ones.
The word “holy” means to be set apart.… set apart for a special purpose.
God has called us to be set apart for a special purpose and so yes let that sink in.… If you are a Christian you are a saint.
So look at your neighbor and say Hello Saint Paul, or Hi Saint Alice… or Hi Saint Robert… you get the idea.
We may recoil a little at the thought and say wait a minute.. I’m not worthy. Now let’s think about that.. This book is the inspired word of God… Who are we to question God? If God says you have been set apart for a special purpose… if God says we are saints… then we are saints. The only question is how are we doing?
and our desire should be to be the best saint we can be. Our desire should be to glorify God in all that we do.
and He has set us apart for a special purpose… He has set us aside to be ambassadors for Christ.
Slide
20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
He has called us to be holy even as He is holy..
2 Slides
15 but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior;
16 because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
and as His ambassadors He has called us to bring the good news of the gospel and this message of salvation by grace to all those who are around us. a message that includes the “obedience of faith”.
and that word “peace” Grace and Peace to you.… in verse 7
It refers to wholeness, it refers to good health and well-being. It refers to peace or calmness in our minds.
We can be free from our guilt and our shame and our anxieties. We can be set free from our fears because God has our backs. He loves us. He will provide for our needs. He has taken care of our sins and adopted us into His family.
Grace refers to God giving us things that we don’t deserve… our salvation and freedom and being adopted into his family are at the top of the list of those things we don’t deserve and can not earn.
This is a great message! This is great New and it is available for all who will believe in Him…
for all who will repent or turn from their sins and accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
This is a message that includes grace and peace to you from God our Father and our Lord (or boss) Jesus Christ.. the promised Messiah… the anointed one from God.
Christ is the Greek term for the promised Messiah. and Messiah refers to the “one who has been anointed by God as our deliverer.”
Every time you read the word Christ in your New Testament.. you can replace it with “the promised Messiah”… “the promised savior.”
He is the one who saves us from our sins… and that is what Jesus or Yeshua means… Savior or Deliverer.
That is the first sentence in the book of Romans and it has a lot in it.
7 Slides (ending vs 7)
1 Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as 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 born of a descendant of David according to the flesh,
4 who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,
5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles, for His name’s sake,
6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ;
7 to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
It has taken us almost 4 weeks just to cover the first sentence. We could paraphrase that first sentence with the following.
The book of Romans… this book was written by Paul.
In it Paul begins by describing himself as a slave of Jesus
He was called as an apostle… and ambassador from God to us
His main assignment is to proclaim the gospel.. the good news from God.
He then tells us that this gospel, this message has been promised for a long time.
You can read about it in the scriptures of old.…
which we call the old testament.
which were written by His prophets from of old.
More specifically.. they wrote about the promised Messiah who would be born of a descendant of David in the flesh.
but He would also be God in bodily form.
His deity would be demonstrated by His resurrection from the dead!
Now that is some proof… That is proof with power!
Furthermore Paul received his appointment from Jesus Himself. His appointment to be an ambassador.
and he clarified that his appointment is to bring the good news.. and that good news includes a message of repentance… or turning from doing things our way .…
to doing things God’s way… a message he calls “the Obedience of Faith.”
Furthermore he was called to focus his personal ministry on the gentiles which explains his personal interest in Rome.
As a result of the Romans “obedient faith” to God… (and I could add our obedient faith to God), God is glorified.
Furthermore… not only has Paul been called.. but
you also, and
those who are in Rome- have been called to this obedience of faith and
our mission is to take this message though out all the world.
It is a message of peace... a message of good will from God… who is calling us … and sending us out.
This news is not a cause of fear.. but a cause of joy because God is extending to us an olive branch.. an olive branch of grace and mercy along with peace.
It is coming from the highest of source. God our Father and Jesus Christ our Messiah and deliverer.
That is a mouthful… but it is ALL..… the best of good news.
It is a message of hope and salvation and good will.
Friends.… We should be praising God and singing Halleluiah! at this point.
Now, moving back to our text for today.
Paul had been wanting to come to Rome for a long time. He refers to this both now at the beginning and again at the end (in chapter 15) of his letter to Romans and he is thanking God because their faith is evident to all. in fact, right off the bat, he proclaims his thanksgiving for them.
3 Slides
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, because your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world.
9 For God, whom I serve in my spirit in the preaching of the gospel of His Son, is my witness as to how unceasingly I make mention of you,
10 always in my prayers making request, if perhaps now at last by the will of God I may succeed in coming to you.
The faith of the Christians at Rome had become known though-out the known world and so he thanks God through Jesus Christ for all of them. He is thanking God because he knows this is a result of the transforming work that Jesus has done in them.
If you think about it…
that is what happened at Asbury a few years ago when God poured out his spirit on Asbury College and the revival that was taking place on their campus spread throughout the whole Christian and non-christian world. People were dropping everything and going to Asbury just to be a part of it. Peoples lives were being changed. It was exciting.
Paul is excited for them and was constantly giving thanks to God for how God was working in Rome and more specifically in their lives.
and so Paul is constantly asking God in his prayers if perhaps now at last in the will of God it may be granted to him to go there.
Now note three things in these verses.
1) First, Paul is constantly asking God in his prayers.
This implies that Paul has a regular habit of setting aside time to pray to God. It is a part of his day.
We also should have a time set aside for prayer. David speaks of praying in the morning.
Slide
3 In the morning, O Lord, Thou wilt hear my voice; In the morning I will order my prayer to Thee and eagerly watch.
He also speaks of praying through out the day.
Slide
17 Evening and morning and at noon, I will complain and murmur, And He will hear my voice.
It might be helpful to note that for the Jew the day starts in the evening. If you remember when God created the heavens and the earth… first there was darkness and then God created light. “let there be light” and so there was evening and morning one day.
and so when David says at evening and morning and at noon, he speaks of praying continually as the day progresses.
in fact we also are told to
3 Slides
16 Rejoice always;
17 pray without ceasing;
18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
We are to pray without ceasing.
We are also to rejoice always… in everything give thanks
and so
2) that is what Paul is doing here. He is giving thanks to God always because of their faith!
We are seeing the heart of Paul.
He has a thankful heart.
He has a genuine love and care for the saints in Rome.
He is rejoicing over what God is doing there.
and He himself also longs to be there.
We are beginning to see the heart of Paul and I believe this is the heart that all of us want to have as well.
A heart that reflects the Love of Christ.
and finally,
3) Let us also note that Paul has a heart submissive to God. He wants to go to Rome… but He only wants to go there if it is in God’s will.
I am going to have to stop here…
but what are some points we can take away from what we have learned and should apply to our lives:
that God will fill our hearts with a thankful spirit;
that we also would be a people of prayer;
that God will use us in the same way that He used Paul and the Romans.. that He will use us to reach our world for Christ;
That He will give us a heart that longs to share the gospel;
a heart that is submissive to the will of God; and
a heart filled with boldness and love of others so that we will share the gospel with them.
Is that your prayer? It’s mine.
Let’s pray
