Romans 1 The World vs Christianity
Romans 1 • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 9 viewsNotes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Introduction
Introduction
The last few days I have been thinking about all that is happening in our world, about the stress that the world pushes upon the members of society.
Think about all ways information, opinions, views are being reflected by some groups to others.
Television and Radio… what we watch and listen to effects our views. The other day I saw a article where some group in a school district wanted to take a book off their shelves, they wanted to remove “to kill a mocking bird.” why? it had the “N” word in the book. And some wondered… what about all the rap music that uses the term in many different ways.
What about the influence Hollywood extends to the public, to our youth.
What about technological advances and those who push it out there.
What about those things in publication or print… how does it effect society and youth?
What about college professors and the influence it pushes....
And the list could go on....
But we have a responsibility as well to push back, to show Jesus to the world my friends. So this evening I want us to go to the book of Romans in the New Testament and lets look at chapter 1.
I am going to start at verse 14 since, to shorten the chapter a bit and to manage to get through a few thoughts today...
But lets look at where we start today.... verse 14-16
John Piper, one of the more famous preachers of our day right now says we need to be guilt ed into knowing and hopefully responding to our obligation today. Our obligation is this... we are to preach the gospel, live the gospel and share the gospel, be a witness to the world around us.
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, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, 6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,
7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be 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 all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. 9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you 10 always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God’s will I may now at last succeed in coming to you. 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— 12 that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. 14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 15 So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.
Romans 1
14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 15 So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
Paul says that he is under and obligation.... to the Greeks and barbarians… who are those people? The Greeks are the cultured people, the Gentiles as are the barbarians, who are not Greek in nature, not cultured in any way. They are people who represent the world.
As Paul says he is called to the nations, to them…
What about you?
Are you called?
What do you do about it?
We are all under the great commission?
How do we fulfill it in our own life?
Paul said he is called to the nations, these represent the people of the world, most especially for Paul would it be anyone who was not a Jewish person. God has called them to be a witness to the world around them.
What do you think about Paul’s misison and how does it speak to you?
Verse 15, Paul says he was eager to preach the message to those who are in Rome.... He had a desire and passion to minister to those who were in such need.
Do you have a desire today to minister to the world today?
Do you have a desire today to minister to the world today?
How are you called to do so?
How are you called to do so?
Now look at verse 16
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
Some condemned the message of Jesus. Alexa… the amazon divise who says Jesus is a made up story.
The gospel was hated by the Jews, it was a stumbling block to them, and then to the Greeks it was considered to be foolish says
23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles,
But this message Paul says He loves, He holds fast too because of its truth, its grace and the life the message gives. Paul learned patience from the prophets who were attacked, and beaten, and driven away… He knew the importance of the message...
But this message Paul says He loves, He holds fast too because of its truth, its grace and the life the message gives.
7 “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,
the people in whose heart is my law;
fear not the reproach of man,
nor be dismayed at their revilings.
__________
The gospel and not the words of human wisdom had the power change lives, to restore man in front of God… not man’s thinking and so forth.
And the message was given first and foremost to the Jews, but now in their state, it was been also passed over the Jews and was given to the Gentile world.
17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
For in the “gospel” the righteousness of God is revealed .... For God so loved the world… he sent his one and only Son , that whosoever would believe in him would not perish but have every lasting life.
God in His love has justified us, our lives! And His righteousness was revealed.
Now lets move on… verses 18-23
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
When I look at verse 18 and I see that God hates sin. why can I say that for certain?
Well Paul says… the wrath of God is revealed or made known.... and it says it is against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men
Ungodliness says it is to live without regard to God or God’s ways, plan and purposes for man.
Unrighteousness reveals the more specific problem… it speaks to the wickedness, the evil the wrongdoing of man
And, yes their actions hid, suppress, hides the truth.
Q. Do you think God is displeased when we leave his ways, when we try to cover his truth , when we say it is really ok.... Yes!
19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.
There is no excuse that God has revealed His presence, his revelation to man.
19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
How is this possible? General and Special revelation...
There is no excuse that God has revealed His presence, his revelation to man.
21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
So what do you think of this passage?
Futile in their thinking means to care nothing of God’s way or the consequences. The basic problem is not ignorance of the truth, it is rebellion of the truth.
Verse 23 sought images instead of the glory of the true God....
What do you think about all of this?
14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 15 So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.