Romans: Session 3

Okay. Well, good morning. Good morning morning. Welcome. Welcome. Welcome. Okay. It's great. The great to see you that's going to be from now on for the back. That's or how we open our Sunday school class is okay. Alright. Alright, thank you so much for the privilege of being you this morning. I think you for those that have called it was a dreary day outside Lord. We thank you and we can come together and fellowship and worship you and hear from your words. Why we're here father. We want to be in your presence. Will it be taught by your Holy Spirit? I pray that that would be the case this morning as we go through this passage in the Book of Romans in Jesus name. Amen. Okay, again, I'm going to reiterate this until, you know this by heart, but you, you probably noticed that this little graphic here. I were talking about the gospel. Part about your detail today. The gospel is where the righteousness of God, that's judging righteousness and his saving righteousness. Come together. Is that bad ass? We're God, can be both just and justifier of those who come to him. And that's what we were unpacking. Now, by way of review. I just had a couple of questions in this was really an important one. So, how was Jesus declared to be the Son of God? Remember that from last week? What was it? Yes, through the resurrection. He was declared to be the Son of God and that Son of God brought together. Both the fact that he was deity. And of course he has to Manatee incredible verse. So what was the objective of Paul's apostleship?

See how much you remember. What was his purpose? What was his objective?

Yes, okay, We'll go into that. A little bit more in detail today. Very good. So, what I'm going to do is where we left off last week. I kind of I kind of really went through it quickly. So, I'm going to start here. Let's see if I can go to, let's go to this one. Pause the Deep desire to visit the Romans and we saw in in verses 9 and 10 that he wanted to visit the Roman it up to this point. He was being prevented any, any submitted himself to God's will. So he saw the fact, but he wants to be there. He wants to be in this presence in the presence of the Romans, but he's been prevented so far. So we saw that. It was all because of God's will and his purpose that he was not allowed to be there. Turn on the lights. The church had hat was established and it wasn't established by the Apostle Paul. We talked about that in the first lesson that church probably began either through Canada cost or to Aquila and Priscilla. We don't, we don't know. But Paul wants to visit this church. Now, there is a reason for this purpose and his eagerness to want to visit and we saw that. And I'm going to go over this once again cuz this is really important stuff. So we saw that Paul's reason, and his eagerness for the visit verses 11 through 15. Interesting Lee enough that when we talked about his reason, I went over this really quickly last week, but I want to really kind of touch some of the spots that I missed last week when we talked about the reason that Paul wants to visit them. This idea of ordinary means of Grace comes into play. What am I mean? By ordinary means of Grace. Has anybody ever heard that phrase before? What is that mean? Cuz if you are, if you were catholic, if you came up on the Catholic back on, you understand. This word means of Grace is phrase, means of Grace, I intend to you as a Catholic, these were ways in which you were becoming Justified and it was through what keeping the sacrament. Yeah, it works. But it is nonetheless, a very good word for Protestants also is a very logical word is a very Evangelical phrase, I should say. And we call this ordinary means of Grace. That, what do I mean by ordinary means of Grace?

This is essential. To the body of Christ, Britt the growth. People had this understanding that for some reason when I come to Christ, I don't need nobody but God. All right, sounds good. That's real. It's true. The God has provided. What we would call ordinary means of Grace for our spiritual growth. Those ordinary means of Grace cannot happen without assembling together, right? So we talked about church attendance. We talked about the fact that he tells us that we are not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together. There's a reason for that if we neglect the assembling of ourselves together, we will not grow in Grace. What happens when we assemble together?

What are we? What are we doing? We understand each other. We minister to each other. We hear the word of God, preached, right? We engage in prayer together. We are Bob in the ordinances. Sacraments. These are these are what God has given the church to grow. In the process that I have heard, it called many other time. It, for example, that and he's preaching has blessed me. Yes. That's actually what we would. Probably have heard a lot more in the Protestant, right? And if you think about this is what the Apostle Paul talking about. Here are three reasons he's giving to want to be with them first is to impart some spiritual gift. This is not not referring to the Apostle, Paul being able to give spiritual gifts. Like the Holy Spirit has had nothing to do with tongs or any of the gifts, but it actually is talking about imparting spiritual strength and part in importing to them the the word of God and spending time with them in prayer. So, there is he is imparting of a spiritual gift. Is giving to the congregation through mutually coming together. Under this idea of ordinary means of Grace giving out. The word of God spending time in prayer, Paul wants to come together with. He was the symbol with this church, this church that he didn't even begin to Paul the man of God. The one who's filled, with the spirit, who write scripture sees the Need For What assembling together? And you're actually said, that's okay imparting, some spiritual gift, Mutual encouragement. The idea of mutually coming to give a Calvin, says it, like this note to what degree of modesty At His Highest heart submitted itself so that he did not disdain to seek confirmation from inexperienced beginners. He means what he says to for there is no one so void of gift in the Church of Christ who is unable to contribute something to our benefit ill-will and pride. However, prevent are driving such fruit from one another. So we come together and we do what we mutually another. Yes. Can you have to put this in a Starbuck context to under persecution in Rome at the time?

Yes.

Yes. Yep, okay.

Downwardly that they were. Christians were at the Roman start, a sect of the of the Jews.

Yes, is not easy. And yet, they saw the absolute essential element of coming together assembling together as a necessary to grow to be mutually encouraged. You're sometimes, it could be the smallest little things that keeps us from coming to church. These people were dying to assemble.

Yes.

Oh, yeah, that's good. You know, I it in the early church. They they met much more often than Sunday to Sunday. You know, they were in house churches, the encourager Church life was their wife. Everything. The church was the Hub of activity in the early church, right? There was such a great power. We read earlier last week that there. Their witness was broadcast. It was me know, drove around 5th. Great power, great influence. There was strength and numbers somehow, we think that this little Amber of us can sit by itself in and kind of burn and Andy on fire for God. Now we can't we need to be together was fascinating that the Apostle Paul the great Apostle, Paul was seen the necessity of coming together and assembling And that he might have a harvest. So he looks at this, is this harvest, the spiritual growth, which is inclusive of himself with his people with the church. So this ordinary means of Grace is extremely important and portents in the life of the church. We cannot grow without stumbling together. That's why you hear a timer on that all the time. I mean, it's not to be mean but it's only because we love you. We love the church. We love what you can do for one another, what we together with the power of God can do in the lies and one another in the community, okay? So that leads into what we would call.

Here's his purpose, case of his reason, and his purpose for coming together, wanting to be with them. He uses this phrase that he's under obligation. Last week. I, I mentioned this word is, is a noun and it was called a predicate nominative. And if you don't understand, I want to hear that. You just put me out for a second, but this is really extremely important. You know, when you do it sentence structure, you have what a subject and a predicate, right? So the subject is the main focus of the sentence that does the action action part is in the second part of the sentence. Well, in this, this, this word obligation to send that second part of the sentence, but it's feeding back. To the subject. And why is that important? It's because the Apostle Paul sees himself as the obligated one. It's not just something casual obligated to do this, but he is one who is obligate. It's kind of like saying I be obligated one and it feeds it becomes the bridge into his earnestness. Let me see his reason for wanting to come. But what is his earnestness and coming? He sees himself in obligations, but the obligation is the bridge between the reason to come and the earnestness and the eagerness to, what is his eagerness. What does he want to do? Simply wants to do up the gospel to the Romans.

When you're, when you're talking about preaching the gospel to the Romans, he wrote, you're talking about a group of people that are already Believers, right? She say, well, he must be meaning the, the unbelievers under obligation, both to the Greeks and to The Barbarians. Are the two non-greeks. Go to the wise and do the boys. So I'm eager to preach the gospel to you.

For the same reason and he preaches the gospel to us every Sunday. Yes. It is also involved in what we call this ordinary means of grit, right? It is important for us to understand the gospel. This is, this gospel has transformed your life right in and it continues to transform your life. When you understand that every day. You are a child of God, because God has choose you before. The foundations of the earth, He sent Jesus Christ, the son of God, to take on flash, to go to the cross, and there on the cross. He died for your sins, past present, and future. He rose again. The third day, he ascended into heaven. He's seated at the right hand of God. Making intercession for you. Someday, he's coming in the Clouds Of Glory to take us home. When you think about the totality of the Gospel. It is our life that we constantly remember what Christ has done and what he is doing this idea of, if we were saved, we are being saved. And we will ultimately be saved, is the gospel. So we preach the gospel to one another. Let us not forget what Christ has done. It's extremely important. It helps us to keep going everyday. We're going to see that this whole book of Romans impacts the gospel. So he's preaching the gospel to the Romans. Now, it leads us into the theme and this is where we're supposed to be today. By the way, even though I took 15 minutes to give review, but the theme is a righteous. The gospel of the righteousness of God, delicious, read verses, 16 and 7, Andrew, John. Preached on this 2 months ago. Something like that. Great, great message. Let's read this, but 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 or in it, the rights of God has revealed. From faith. For Faith as it is written, the righteous shall live by faith. So begins it begins the section with this great word for. I love this word. Every time I see this word for I'm saying I'm preparing for something. We call this the explanatory conjunction. It's explaining something. What is it? Explaining? It points. Back to the previous verse? You staying this explains? Why? Why the gospel breeds? This obligation because I am going to preach this gospel. Why am I going to preach this gospel? And he goes into this, this kind of disorientation of the Gospel pieces of the Gospel. We're going to see why this is so important. First of all, he talks about the gospels, respectability. And here it is. He says, I am not ashamed of the Gospel. Nothing is to be ashamed of through postal. Paul says, I am going to preach the gospel to you. I am not ashamed of the Gospel. It's word not ashamed. That means not embarrassed. So what causes embarrassment?

yeah, I've been embarrassed because every time I stand up here, what creates embarrassment

dear. Yeah, that's probably the biggest one. We're so concerned about people. We fear people and their opinion of us. So we get in barest. When we think their opinion of us is not good. Or if I do this, they're going to think lowly of me a creative writing.

Where you coming from?

Yeah.

Yep, it kind of sometimes it takes the wind out of your sails right to do that with another for he explains. Okay, so he explains why Paul's not embarrass. You explained why he's not embarrassed. So if we get embarrassed because we concerned about what people think about us. Pause saying for you not to be embarrassed for me, not to be embarrassed for me not to be ashamed of this gospel. I must understand its nature. What is the nature of the Gospel? It is what the power of God? The power of God, I love it. It is God's inherent power. We talked about this word him a while back. Back in first one. It is something. This word is a word that denotes something at the inherent or characteristic of a thing or something. We say Dynamite is powerful and itself. My cell phone is not powerful in itself and needs charging. So he's saying that if the customer it is, I am not embarrassed because the very nature of the Gospel is the power of God. It is the power of God. So why do we proclaim the gospel? Why are we Bears to proclaim the gospel?

What is the very power of God? Can we believe that?

We stay, we do.

And somebody comes up and says you don't want to say anything like that cuz you're going to lose all your friends and that I have heard and that would make people who were not looking for Christian. Yep. Yep. It is remember when I was in 11th grade and somebody pays that because we're just not going to be your friend anymore.

That's great. Let's be up through.

Find that you have less and less in common with certain people.

To happen overnight. It happens. As you know, you find yourself being drawn, more to the fellowship of people who understand what you're, what you believe and with people who don't. And so those friendships generally tend to get a Wither away to where new Converse were so excited to tell people about the guys both great, but then when they got confronted by questions and everything else, they wouldn't back off cuz they didn't need it and it would prevent them later on from being a witness.

I see Paul the Apostle Paul seeing the power room. The power of persecution. But what makes him not embarrass. He saw the power of God, greater than that. Do you know if you were if you were going into war? And all you had was a pocket knife. I can see being scared or if you go into war with a tank or a machine gun, you go and more confidently, right? Sometimes I think they told many times and most the time, the problem we have why we get embarrassed because we do not see God's power greater than the powers that are out there. David saw Goliath this giant that's being a pig squeak in relationship to the power of God right here on two words.

I think we will always struggle with giving out the gospel. When we think, the world's power is greater than gods.

Gehazi or whatever his name was.

The Lord of hosts, the armies of the lure of power so we can proclaim the gospel. What does it, what does it do? What does this power do? What did, what's the gospels? And what does it do? As he says, in verse 16 part C, it brings salvation. It is the reality that God's in Karen power brings salvation and that it takes God's power to bring Salvation, right? Good morning. Going to be talking about in The Book of Romans were going to unpack all this and will be able to see by the end of the time. We're here together in the Book of Romans. All of this could not happen through us and buy us. She could only happen by the power of God. As we see piece by piece, as it's on packed. In the Book of Romans. It taste, the power of God to bring Salvation that we're at talking about reformation change. People are trying to reform other people were trying to educate them so that they make right decisions. We're talkin about transformation. We're talking about what 2nd Corinthians 5:17 says, if any man be in Christ, he is a what new creation?

Who can do that. Only God gospel is the power of God to bring Salvation. Amazing transformation. Yep.

And his past life. It's such a turnaround. Absolutely.

Yep, so eager and absolutely. That's why you still sees the obligated one, right? Yep.

Right. Had to knock him off his horse.

Yes. Absolutely. Absolutely. That's why it is. Salvation is of God. Yes, ma'am. 1st Corinthians or 2nd Corinthians 5:17. Yes, yes.

Like we have now.

Going there and telling them and also his letter right here, right now. From beginning to end.

Get there for any length of time. They had it completely to exactly. And it really went with Paul's using this imagery of a great power of God. He is doing. So in the context of the Roman Empire, that's really important. They were the PowerHouse of the world. Gospel is the power of God. To whom. Does he. Bring this salvation? We see that the gospel scope is for everyone who believes Right. Only for believers. And there is a He says, he kind of qualifies that and he says, Jews and Gentiles the divinely planned historical order. Right. The Jews were God's instruments to bring Salvation to the world. And we see that as a part of the abrahamic Covenant, member back in Genesis 12:3. We see this, I will bless those who bless you and him who dishonors you? I will curse and in you all the families of the Earth shall be blessed. Who was a part of the abrahamic Covenant, that God would use the Jews? As the instruments to bring the gospel to both Jew and Gentile new. So what is flex verse 16? A 17 talks about the gospels content. We see here. The gospels content is the revelation of God's righteousness, through Faith Hill. This was a biggie for Martin Luther. Martin Luther was seeking a man, become right with God. How can we get the righteousness of God? I'm trying to obtain. I'm trying to all kinds of of cumin mean to pain the righteousness of God. So the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel or here, we go again in it in what the gospel. God's righteousness, is Apocalypto ever. Heard the word apocalypse? The reveal the unveiling, the word revelation is the word apocalypse. Do God, right? This is revealed on veiled. In the gospel. So we have this phrase from faith and for Faith. Again. I'm going to mention to you how important grammar is and brothers and sisters. If you don't like grammar, I'm sorry. I don't like, I never did like, grammar. I like math, but not English. But coming to study the scriptures and realize how important it is for us to understand it. There are so many biblical helps out there for you to be able to help you with this from and 42 prepositions. Right? So we see that God's righteousness is revealed from faith. And for Faith knows what it says in verse 17. Free. It says this for in it. The gospel to rights with God is revealed from faith and for Faith. So the word from is the preposition of source right now. It's righteousness is from faith.

Pompeii, the source. In regard to us how we hit. How is it that we come upon or how we receive the righteousness of God? How is it is God. This is us, is it. Our merits as is, our is our attempts as is Luther thought? No, it comes from fit. And it is for think the preposition of purpose. The purpose is for Faith to increase face as well. Martin Luther says it like this, for God does not want to see us by our own. God doesn't want to save us by our own, but by an extra rainiest righteousness, there's another word that the Illusions use ever hear. This word. A lien, not aliens from space, alien, simply means something outside of yourself. So there is a righteousness that is outside of ourselves. What we call a lien or as Luther, says extraneous righteousness, one that does not originate in our self, but come to us from Beyond ourselves with does not arise on Earth, but come from Heaven to the righteousness of God. Does that come from within us? It comes from God. It is of god and it is imputed to us. We're going to talk about this. Again. This is just an overview of this practice in detail. He says. For it is written. The just shall live by faith, okay.

I think I missed something. I say when I was going. Alright, I know, I have that coming up. Okay, first written, the just shall live by faith. This is a quotation.

From habakkuk chapter 4, verse, to see, if any of you who know the book of habakkuk. I think Pat, you on the book of habakkuk, The Book of habakkuk was it, that was a fascinating book because the prophet ask all these questions. What prophet has God? Look at your people that very evil, you know. We going to do about it. That's no problem. I got it. So I'm going to send the Chaldeans to judge them. They're worse than us. Why would you send them? End of chapter 2. We see the prophet waiting for God's response. And in the midst of it, there's this phrase the just shall live by faith. Because what God does in Chapter 2. Is it on vale's to habakkuk what's coming in the future yet? The Chaldeans, the Babylonians are going to going to come in and they are going to deport the Israelites to Babylon. Yes, sir. You said her back at 4 to, it's actually 24, 24. Sorry about that. Thanks for picking it up. Cuz there's not just only three chapters in the back of it. So, you all stood, there was a test and only one person pasta.

Looked it up on my phone like this and I'm saying all I'm in trouble.

Yeah, yes. No, actually, so here's the idea habakkuk is revealed by a back and by God and chapter 2 that he is going to bring judgment on the Chaldeans and he's going to bring Salvation to Israel. But that's after God's judgment. So in light of that. This verse the just shall live by faith habakkuk. Are you going to trust me? I know things look really bad right now. But are you going to trust me in this? This phrase is used three times in the New Testament. Hear Romans, 1:17.

In Romans, 1:17. The focus has been on. What would have been talked about the righteousness. The just shall live by faith. The righteous one shall live by faith. So the focus is on the righteousness of God and then accused again in Galatians 3, 11, interesting Lee enough. The galatian, Christians have gotten confused and they went back in to Judaism. And so they were living out or trying to live out a means to become right with God. And so the focus is on how a person is to live in light of being righteous. And then the third one is in Hebrews, 10:38. If you know anything about chapter 10 study for chapter, eleven, chapter 11 is what we do. As an introduction to the 5th chapter received this phrase, the just shall live by faith. In each case in New Testament. There's a different emphasis on the same phrase. What is a phenomenal? Phenomenal phrase? And again, it's quoted and I already miss. So Haley, this alien righteousness week, we talked about when he says from Faith porfi. He's really talking about a righteousness that starts and ends with me. So I'm trying to figure out how to graphically to pick this. And so, I came up with this idea of a tree, right? So that's us, God's covenant, people when I say God's coming to people you'll know what I mean, right? We're talking about Believers or under God's covenant in at the root of this tree, is God's righteousness with a tree originated from its root. And that the fruit of the tree is the works of righteousness that we perform. So what the trunk of the tree?

Okay, how do you get from God's righteousness to the fruits of God's righteousness? Absolutely. The trunk is faith. It is the fact that God has imputed his righteousness to us and that we believe that that is true. We believe God, we believe his words. And so what do we do? We act upon that true, that reality that we are righteous before God, and that we are able and capable of doing Deeds of righteousness. Not because of anything that we have burned, but because of what God is doing in hospice, fear to God is in US. He speaks with us. You can fix us if any give us the desire for Holiness. And so we act upon the reality that we have the righteousness of God in that and that produces fruit. And what is the acting upon that reality? It is faith.

Faith. What is fate? Stop leaving something. Text me leaving. It is it is believing that God exists. He is a rewarder of those who Diligently seek Him is is believing and having evidence within ourselves that these things are true. Even if we don't see them.

I know I have to tell you everyday I wake up. I don't feel righteous know, maybe you all do. Maybe you really have reached the point where you are feeling and knowing and understanding the Russians got in the feelings again or else. Right? We can wake up feeling good, one day bed is bad. The next day. It's the state says. God is imputed to me his righteousness. And he expect me to go and live without that righteousness clippings to talk about this work out your salvation in. What? Fear? And trembling praise God. That works in you to do a his good pleasure. Where does faith come from? Is that conjured up within us somehow we recently focused and meet kind of like I have faith to believe. What is that come from? Ephesians 2:8, not right. For by Grace, you have been saved through faith and that relative pronoun. And that with the referring back to salvation Salvation. What is included in Salvation? Think that's whole body. Of Salvation including Faith, including the righteousness is what not of ourselves. It is a gift of God. Not of Works, lest any man should boast. So the reality of that, we have faith, this trunk, that connects God's righteousness to our fruit is all a part of the Salvation that God has given us. Hallelujah, we have nothing. To be sad about to be angry about to be anxious about that. We are, we do, but the reality and it's so our Christian Life and what is sanctification putting to death, the Deeds of The Flash. This is all a life of Faith, right? Sola fidei. The outcome of the, the Reformation, the five Solas and one of those is Sola fidei.

It's what connects God's righteousness to our fruit, really good. All right. Any questions on that?

I'm going to, I'm going to leave you there next week. We're going to, we're going to talk about since everybody's favorite subject because really, what Paul doesn't this introduction. He gives us an overview of where we're going, and we're going to start at the beginning and that is the total depravity of man, you know, for the next two chapters. We're going to talk about how evil human beings are, and that, the reality of this salvation is just phenomenal. Okay, let's pray. Father. I thank you so much for the beauty. The amazing gospel that you have given us. I thank you that the righteousness. Your righteousness is revealed from start to finish. In the gospel, and it is given to us and we act upon it through faith. Or works or result of this great salvation, the faith that you have given us is what causes what Spurs us on to good works. I pray that we would live out the reality of the Gospel in our lives everyday father's. We go into the worship service. Prepare our hearts to Worship You focus on, you remove the distractions. May we be open to hearing your implanted word in our hearts? We pray in Jesus name. Amen.