Love Works 10

Text:  Romans 5:1-6

CIT:

Intro:  At the root of it all, the Galatians were leaving Jesus to pursue the false and empty teachings of man, in this case legalism.

Simple truths that we can know about hope.

Hope is determine by you

Hope demands patience

Hope focuses the mind and heart

Our theme text I Thessalonians 1:10 gives this working definition of this particular contextual meaning that is “wait for his Son.”

This means that Paul lays out for us who our hope is.

Jesus Christ, more specifically the return of Jesus Christ.

If you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing: When we embrace the law as our rule of walking with God, we must let go of Jesus. He is no longer our righteousness; we attempt to earn it ourselves. For the Galatians in this context, to receive circumcision—the ritual that testified that a Gentile was coming under the law—meant that he no longer trusted in Jesus as His righteousness, but trusted in himself instead. So Paul could say “Christ will profit you nothing.”

“Circumcision is the seal of the law. He who willingly and deliberately undergoes circumcision, enters upon a compact to fulfill the law. To fulfill it therefore he is bound, and he cannot plead the grace of Christ; for he has entered on another mode of justification.” (Lightfoot)

Every man who becomes circumcised … is a debtor to keep the whole law: When we embrace the law as our rule of walking with God, we must embrace the whole law. We become debtors to keep the whole law, and that is a heavy debt.

Again, the legalists among the Galatians wanted them to think they could observe some aspects of the law without coming under the entire law. But when we choose to walk by law, we must walk by the whole law.

If we come to God on the basis of our own law keeping we must keep the whole law and our law-keeping must be perfect. No amount of obedience makes up for one act of disobedience; if you are pulled over for speeding, it will do no good to protest that you are a faithful husband, a good taxpayer, and have obeyed the speed limit many times. All of that is irrelevant. You have still broken the speeding law and are guilty under it.

This does not mean that the mere act of being circumcised means that someone is under a legal relationship with God, and must keep the whole law for salvation. Paul spoke to the Gentile Christians among the Galatians, who were being drawn to circumcision as adults, as evidence that they had come under the Law of Moses as the “first step” to salvation. We will later see that Paul didn’t care one way or another about circumcision (Galatians 5:6). What he detested was the theology of circumcision as presented by the legalists.

c. You have fallen from grace: When we embrace the law as our rule of walking with God, we depart from Jesus and His grace. We are then estranged from Christ, separated from Him and His saving grace.

In these first six verses Paul describes the assets that he gives to the new believer.  He then shows us how hope is used in the process of our growth from new born to serving saint.

1. We now have PEACE with God. (1)

Why do we need peace with God?

Because verses 8 & 10 are going to tell us that we were sinners and enemies with him before we trusted in Jesus as our Christ.   Jesus on the cross took away the sin.

If we are willing … to place our full faith and trust in him, God sees us as though we have never sinned.  When we trust Jesus as our Christ … we find peace with God.

He pursued us in our sin … to save us from ourselves, and from eternal separation from him.  When we surrender our will – quit running … quit resisting – and accept Jesus as our Christ … we have peace with God.

This simply means that we no longer are at odds with God – the battle is over.  There is another level of peace available to us: The peace of God.  Peace with God puts us on his side. - That’s salvation.  The peace of God equips us with an indestructible joy … regardless of the circumstances of life. - That’s Spiritual maturity.  It’s a depth and strength of faith that allows us to rest in God … knowing that he is in charge.

Such a peace…opens another door:

2. ACCESS to God. (2)

Just imagine …

. We are never out of his reach.

. We’re just a prayer away.

And since he takes up residence within us … it’s always a local call.

By faith … trusting in the person of … and completed work of … Jesus as our Christ gives us direct access to God the Father.

. No reason to feel left out … or

. No reason to be lonely!

The whole family of God surrounds us.

And, we have him to talk to all the time.

3. GRACE of God. (2)

Grace is that unmerited favor of God.  We don’t deserve to be in the family of God.  We don’t deserve to be in the Body of Christ, But, God used his grace to transfer our sins to Jesus on the cross.  That same grace transferred his righteousness to us. This is the grace that God looks through to see us as acceptable to him –

. Worthy to be numbered among his family…

. Worthy to be in the Body of Christ.

It is God’s Grace that keeps us alive.

It is Grace that allows us to recover…

. When we stray.

. When we fail.

GRACE is the greatest motivator that we believers have.

Notice the verse, GRACE is something that we stand in.

And it is an introduction to God’s greater grace that we can grow into.

Greater grace – or spiritual maturity – prepares us for God’s surpassing grace … that carries us through the transition of life … from the temporary … to the eternal.

4. And that’s why we can Rejoice in Hope.

Life can become rough … painful … threatening … even terminal.  But, in Christ we can see these as temporary aggravations on the launching pad—interruptions in the countdown to eternity.

The life God designed us to live …

The life He prepared us to live … in Jesus as our Christ … transcends the time we spend on earth.

This is but the beginning … the shaping… the equipping.  It’s a time of testing … of strengthening.  We can joy in the hope that we have in Christ Jesus.  It’s a guarantee that we will live throughout eternity …

. To forever celebrate God for all of his greatness … and

. To fellowship with Jesus for all of his love and sacrifice.

Verse 3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;

5. Glory (Rejoice) in Adversity

Believe me, it takes a well-grounded and well-tested faith:

To rejoice:

. When the body hurts …

. When worry paralyzes…

. When medicine quits working…

. When strength fades…

. When death becomes a welcome option.

But we can glory – that is rejoice – in such suffering because we have a risen savior:

. Who tells us that we will not be tested beyond what we can withstand

. Who promised to work everything out for our own good if we love the Lord and are called to his purpose.

. Who said, lo I’ll be with you all way … even to the end of the world.

This takes a faith with the strength of titanium steel … and the depth of infinity, itself … But, in Christ Jesus, we have both!

Such strength … and depth … both are necessary for the next asset:

6. Patience

The regimen of life that God puts us through … toughens us.

When we know… through the strongest of FAITH … that God has our best interest at heart … we can persevere—keeping an eye firmly on a joyful … painless … and purposeful future—when we transit into the eternal dimension of life.

There’s an old hymn: It will be worth it all when we see Jesus

Verse 4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

7. If perseverance does nothing else … it leaves us with a PROVEN CHARACTER.

"Knowing": Is a perfect participle.

It means that what we knew in the past… we can continue to know in the future…even in the midst of problem.

PRINCIPLE: We are not to let problems take us away from doctrinal thinking.  The strength … the power … is always in the Word of God!  We’re banking of the character of God and the validity of his Word.  Regardless of our condition: God never changes.  His love and provisions are just as big.  We anticipate with full confidence that we are in His plan.  Therefore, we can celebrate his greatness whether we are weak or strong … sick or well.

8. HOPE (5)

Literally, this says: And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

In Romans 10:11 "For the scripture saith (and Paul quotes Isaiah 28:16), Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed."

The idea of shame—as used here—is one of disappointment.

If his salvation failed, God would be shamed.

If his hope and assurance failed, God would be shamed.

If his word were not true, God would be shamed.

We would be disappointed … lost … no hope at all.

Worst of all: God would not be God.

Romans 8:28-29

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.”

God’s plan is to do a work within us that will bring us to a removal of shame.

9. The Love of God

The love of God has been poured out within our hearts … within our souls … within the very center of our lives.

HOW? "Through the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

In Ephesians 1 we have the assurance that the Holy Spirit resides in us, if we trust Jesus as our Christ.  His purpose is to be a seal—both a sign of protection and approval.  The indwelling Holy Spirit serves as a down payment … on all the great things that God gives to those who trust him.

For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith: Those walking in the Spirit wait for righteousness by faith; they are not trying to earn it by performing good works. No one is a legalist through the Spirit.

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love: Those walking in the Spirit know that being circumcised or uncircumcised means nothing. What matters is faith working through love, both of which were conspicuously absent in the legalists.

Each aspect of this verse is precious. It sets us in a place: in Christ Jesus. Morris on in Christ: “Paul never defines what the expression means, but it clearly points to the closest of unities.”

In that place, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything—neither one matters at all. You aren’t better if you are circumcised or uncircumcised. You aren’t worse if you circumcised or uncircumcised. The only harm is trusting in something that is completely irrelevant.

This verse also tells us what does matter in this place: faith working through love. You have faith? Wonderful; but it must be faith working through love. If your faith doesn’t work, it isn’t real faith. If it doesn’t work through love, it isn’t real faith. But your love alone isn’t enough; your love must also have faith: an abiding trust in Jesus and what He did for us.

Faith must work through love. Herod had faith that John the Baptist was a true prophet, but there was no faith working through love, and he had John the Baptist murdered. Real faith, saving faith, will work through love.

10. The Holy Spirit within.

God planted himself—the Holy Spirit—within our very souls.  He created within everyone who believes …a New Spirit.  There is where he dwells …right along with the Father and the Son.  We have the full power of the Godhead within us at all times.