THE GOSPEL THAT GIVES HOPE PART 4

Introduction

-If you remember that game we played as kids called telephone, one person with a message would whisper it to their friend next to them who would then whisper it to their friend next to them and so on, up until you get to the last person in line or in the circle. And as you know, the message at the end usually isn’t anywhere near what it started out to be.

~So, the message may have started out THE BROWN DOG WAS SLEEPING, but it ends up AUNT BERTHA’S ELEPHANT FLEW TO HAWAII…or some such crazy thing

-Unfortunately, the gospel message, after 2000 years, has suffered some of those same consequences. What Jesus and the apostles taught and wrote has been twisted through the ages into a lot of different shapes. And some of the messages that are out there nowhere near reflect how it was when it started.

-A lot of these false messages are still prevalent today, and the twisted messages can cause problems for people:

~People can’t find salvation in a wrong gospel

~People can’t fellowship with God in a wrong gospel

~People are unable to find hope and peace in a time of crisis in a wrong gospel

-And so, we need to go back to the source to find the right gospel so we don’t end up with the TELEPHONE VERSION of the gospel message

-That is what I have been studying for several weeks now, and want to conclude today—what is the gospel message that can give us hope in a time of uncertainty?

-Paul clears this up for us in the beginning of Romans. He has never met this church but wants to visit this church. And before he does, he wants to make it clear to them what his ministry is and what the message is that he proclaims.

-He makes it apparent that only the true, biblical gospel gives hope for a sinner’s salvation and a believer’s security—and if we want that hope in our times of trouble, we need a deeper understanding and appreciation of that one and only gospel message of hope

Romans 1:1–7 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, 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.

-To see the previous parts of this study you can go to our YouTube channel, but what we have looked at so far is that there is only one particular true gospel message that was founded in eternity and revealed through the prophets. This message has God as its author, good news as its substance, and Jesus Christ as its subject. The gospel provides grace for our salvation, sanctification, and strength and calls us to our own particular service of ministry

~Want to conclude:

8) The fruit of the gospel (v. 5)

-V. 5 tells us that the gospel of Jesus Christ is to bring about the obedience of faith.

~There is an obedience that flows from us when the gospel has its effect. The gospel bears the fruit of obedience in the lives that it changes.

-Now, some people might complain that when you begin to talk about obedience, you begin to preach a message of salvation by works. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. What it is is that obedience flows from saving faith. Obedience is connected to ongoing faith. When the gospel leads you to Christ, it will lead you to obedience.

-Jesus Himself taught this. For example, He shares a parable with the religious leaders in Matthew 21, telling the story of two sons. The father told one son to work in the vineyard. That son initially said no, but then repented and went to work. The father told the second son to work in the vineyard; this son said he would but never did. Which one did the will of the father? Which one demonstrated true faith? The one who was obedient.

-Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount said that there would be a lot of people condemned on the day of judgment who would call Him Lord, Lord, but never did the will of the Father, and so Jesus says He never knew them.

~James, in his epistle, pounds it into our heads that faith without works is dead—it’s not true faith. A faith that merely says that it is faith is not the same as a faith that demonstrates that it is faith by the actions, the fruit, the obedience to the Word of God.

-There is something that we do in the modern church that I think (and I can’t think of a better term for it…but we) prostitute the gospel message. We sell it as some sort of elixir, snake oil, or whatever to cure what ails you.

~We so desire numbers that we label people as saved because they can answer a few questions when the gospel really hasn’t been accepted or hasn’t changed the person.

~We tell people to walk an aisle. We ask them if they know what sin is and if they believe that Jesus died. If they answer in the affirmative, we then dub them as saved (even though we don’t have that authority) and get them dunked in water as quickly as possible so we can say we had a conversion and make ourselves feel good.

-But what happens? These people weren’t really saved because they didn’t hear or accept a real gospel message, and they eventually walk away from the faith. But for many it doesn’t matter, they are part of our numbers now.

~This is why churches have the concept of inactive members which is a complete misnomer. And this is why we see those horrendous numbers of 75-80% of youth falling away. Why are they falling away or why are they inactive? Because they never really believed to begin with. But we were so quick to label them Christian, we never waited to see if they had the fruit of the gospel—obedience.

-Back in the old days, you didn’t just walk an aisle and get dunked in water. Before you became a candidate for baptism and church membership, the church waited to see if you had fruit in your life. You went through a deep theological study, your life was scrutinized, and if you bore fruit of obedience, then you were baptized and brought into the fellowship.

-It might do the church some good to return to those days. Because back in those days they recognized that the fruit of the gospel was the obedience of the faith.

9) The motivation of the gospel (v. 5)

-This comes as a complete shock to us because we think that the gospel is all about us. God so loved US. God gave to US. Christ died for US. It seems to be a very me-centered thing. And yet, Paul turns that on its head and says that ultimately what motivated the gospel is that the reputation & honor of the Son would be glorified.

-Not to take away from God’s love—because God does love us enough to give His Son, but that is not the primary drive behind the gospel message. If God is the author of the gospel and Jesus is the subject of the gospel, you can pretty well guess what the motivation of the gospel is going to be. God jealously guards His own honor and glory.

-In all of God’s work in this world, He does everything for His own sake because He is the greatest good that there is. That is why He declares in Isaiah:

Isaiah 48:11 (ESV)

11 For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.

-There is no higher purpose. We think getting out of hell is a high purpose. We think that getting into heaven is a high purpose. We think that eternal bliss is a high purpose. But the Bible makes it known that there is no higher purpose for the gospel other than the honor and the glory of the Son of God.

-That means we recognize that God saved us to glorify Jesus, and we are obedient to glorify Jesus, and we tell others the gospel to glorify Jesus, and when we die and go to heaven it is in order to glorify Jesus.

-Pastor Steve Lawson puts it this way:

This saving message is, ultimately, for the fame of the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is that there would be a vast multitude of voices in the Hallelujah Choir, singing the praises of His name. The gospel is for the lofty purpose that throughout all the ages to come, there would be myriads upon myriads of fervent worshipers who will magnify the excellencies of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the purpose of the gospel. Getting people out of hell and into heaven is somewhat peripheral. What is primary is the magnification of Jesus Christ.

At the heart of the gospel is that the Son of God would have a chosen bride who would be conformed into His image and who would sing His praises throughout all the ages to come. The gospel is the means by which this glorification of Jesus Christ would come to pass. The sake of the gospel is that Christ would be known, that Christ would be embraced, that Christ would be worshiped, that Christ would be honored, that Christ would be obeyed, and that Christ would be followed. The gospel is what elevates and exonerates Christ.

-The motivation of the gospel isn’t to make you or me front and center, but Jesus front and center—everything is done for His name’s sake.

10) The scope of the gospel (vv. 5-6)

-vv. 5-6 tell us the scope of the gospel—how far the gospel is to reach. First, at the end of v. 5 it says that the gospel is to be given among all the nations.

~You notice that it doesn’t just say that the gospel is for some people and not for others. It is for all nations. Some versions might say all Gentiles. But it encompasses all people at all times in all places.

-There is a universal scope of the gospel because there is a universal need for the gospel. All people are sinners, so all people need saving. All people are condemned, so all people need deliverance. All people are under wrath, so all people need mercy.

-The gospel isn’t just for one nation or one group of people or one socio-economic status or one political affiliation or one race or one creed or one culture. The gospel is for Europeans and Africans. The gospel is for Western cultures and Eastern cultures. The gospel is for North and South and East and West. The gospel is for poor and rich alike.

-And this goes back to when I spoke of the particularity of the gospel—there is only one gospel message for everybody.

~There isn’t one gospel message for people in Japan and another gospel message for people in Venezuela. There isn’t one gospel message for you and another one for your neighbor.

-There is one gospel message, Jesus died and rose again, and that message is for every single person on this earth. And that is why we are called to the Great Commission. We are to go make disciples of all nations. Go and share with the world that Jesus died and rose for them. From the mountains of Peru to the jungles of Vietnam—all need this gospel message.

-And how important it is. There was a marketing survey done once about recognition of Coca-Cola around the world and recognition of the gospel. It was found:

o 91% of the world's population has heard of Coca Cola.

o 74% have seen Coca Cola

o 51% have tasted Coca Cola

o 10% of the world’s population has heard the Gospel.

-As Paul said elsewhere in Romans:

Romans 10:14 (ESV)

14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?

-So, the scope of the gospel is all the nations…but then in v. 6 it says that it includes you. Now the “you” in context is the Roman Christians. But right now, I am talking to you. Yes, you there on the other side of the screen. Because the gospel is meant for you personally.

-If you are not a Christian, you need the gospel. You are a sinner who’s headed to eternal death. Jesus died and rose again and when you repent and believe you can be saved.

-But even if you are a Christian, you need the gospel. You need to know that you are accepted by God through Jesus Christ. He could never love you any more or any less. You don’t have to continue striving to meet some imaginary goal in order to gain God’s approval. Because you are in Christ you are as accepted as you will ever be. You are as loved as you will ever be. God could not approve of you more.

~Your identity and hope and peace are all bound up in who you are in Christ because of the gospel message that you believed and now obey.

-The scope is as wide as the world and is as personal as just you.

11) The benefits of the gospel (v. 7)

-In v. 7 Paul gives his greeting to the church, and what he says is true of the church in Rome is true of everybody that has accepted the gospel message.

-First, Paul says that you are loved. When you accept the gospel, when you receive Jesus Christ, you become an adopted child of God that is eternally cherished. There is an exclusive love that God has for His children through Jesus Christ.

-Yes, the Bible says that God so loved the WORLD—but that general love is the motivation behind God sending Jesus. However, if you die without accepting that loving gift, you will eternally be separated from that love. But the love God has for His children is personal, intimate, and eternal.

-For example, I love people in general and wish everybody well. But I love my family in a way that I don’t love everybody else. My love for my family makes me act in a certain way that I don’t act toward other people.

~As Christians, we have this exclusive love of God.

-But then Paul also says in v. 7 that we are called. You heard an external call to the gospel when someone shared the gospel message with you. Then the Holy Spirit takes that message and gives an internal call for you to make a decision. If you have trusted in Christ through the gospel message, you are the CALLED ONES because now you have a call to serve your Savior.

-If you have accepted the call, you are eternally called into a relationship with Jesus Christ—a relationship that you will enjoy forever.

-Then Paul tells us something that I talked about last week. But he says that we have grace—we have favor with God. It’s not because of who we are, but it is because of what Christ did, and He gifts us all we need based on Christ’s merit.

-But then Paul mentions PEACE. Jesus Christ gave us peace with God, so that we can have peace of mind and heart because our eternal souls are in the hands of God who will never let us go.

-We do not need to worry and fret about our life on earth and our life in eternity because everything has been settled by Christ. He has also broken down the wall of adversity so that we can have peace with others.

-So, the peace that we have with God leads to a peace from God that can bring us an inner calmness and tranquility, as Paul explained:

Philippians 4:6–7 (ESV)

6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

-Love, a calling, grace, and peace—all wonderful benefits given through the gospel message

Conclusion

-Let me close with this story:

There was a Christian minister who visited a poor woman in order to bring her a sum of money which she badly needed. He knocked at her door for quite a long time but got no response, and he had to go away disappointed with the money still in his pocket. Meeting her a few days later, he told her of his fruitless visit. She replied, with tears in her eyes, that she had heard him knocking, but thought he was the rent collector, and she didn’t dare open the door, because she didn’t have the money to pay the rent.

The Prince of Preachers, Charles Spurgeon, used this story as an illustration of the Gospel. Spurgeon said:

The One Who stands at the door and knocks has come with a gift; the knock is the Savior's knock, not that of a taskmaster. The Gospel is good news; news of a debt paid, not of rent required. It is not a demand but a free gift, which no one has deserved or could win by merit, but which is offered to all.

-And it is offered to you right now. I extend the external call to believe the gospel. Listen to the inward call of the Holy Spirit and receive Jesus…

-Christian, let the gospel give security…