Church Words- Week 5

Week 5 Text: Romans 6:1–14 Topics: Sanctification, Holiness, Set Apart Big Idea of the Message: When we are saved, God gives us the knowledge and power to begin to walk in sanctification. Application Point: What is a place in your life that God has transformed over time?

Sermon Ideas and Talking Points:

Afunwaytostartthismessagemaybetodoaninformalquizofthe congregation on the church words covered in this series—and maybe even some other difficult words thrown in. It would be a good introduction to review them again as the final sermon moves on to the last church word, “sanctification.” Sanctification is the process whereby we grow in our faith and holiness to become more and more like Jesus and less and less like our former selves before we knew Christ.

Whenpeoplehearabouttheideaofsalvationbyfaithaloneandtheemphasison faith over works, they often start questioning the ethos of Christianity. If we are saved by what we believe, then why does what we do even matter? Why do you have to change at all? What is the point of even trying to be good? When writing his letter to the Romans, Paul seemed to anticipate this line of questioning, and so, in chapter 6, he addresses some fictitious questions by showing how we grow in our faith and why what we do matters.

InRomans6:1Paulasks,“Whatshallwesaythen?Arewetocontinueinsinthat grace may abound?” The next thirteen verses are his answer to that question: a resounding no! The answer is given in two parts. In 6:2–10, Paul states that the gospel gives us a knowledge of the truth about sin and holiness. This can be seen in the repetition of “know” over the next few verses. We have died to sin, we have been baptized into a new life, our old self has been put away, and we know that Jesus rose from the dead for us (vv. 2–10). The next part of his answer is focused less on our knowledge of the gospel and instead on the power we have been given. We have the power to obey God and not listen to our sinful desires after we’ve died to sin (vv. 11–14). Both knowledge and God’s power equip us in our victory over sin as we grow more and more like Christ.

Ofcourse,it’sonethingtoreadthistruthandanothertoexperienceit.Whatdo we do with temptations and setbacks? It’s important to remember that sanctification is an ongoing process. If you plant a garden, and every single day you go out with a yardstick to see if anything has grown, odds are that the majority of the time the growth will be imperceptible. However, if you give it time and only check in periodically, you’ll start noticing that you have a sizable tomato plant. It’s like that with our sanctification. If every day, minute by minute, you’re looking for change, it will probably be imperceptible. However, if after some time passes, you find yourself facing adversity or temptation, you will probably discover just how much you have grown in that moment.

Anotherwaytoillustratesanctificationisthroughreal-lifeexamples.Never underestimate the power of testimony. I Am Second is an organization that has a lot of powerful stories from people who have been transformed by Christ. People who knew these individuals before Christ would not recognize them now because of how changed they are, inside and out, as a result of their faith. Their website is https://www.iamsecond.com/. Brian Welch’s testimony is an especially powerful example: https://www.iamsecond.com/film/brian-welch/. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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