The Foundation of Salvation

Good morning Church!

Announcements:

Voting on constitution at our next business meeting. Meeting will be held on September, 11th.

The swimming party that was rescheduled because of weather will be 9/18.

Women’s night at OBC is on 10/6 at 6PM. If you are planning on attending, the deadline is next Sunday. They are ordering T-Shirts, so make sure you give your size to Keshia by then.

We will be having our Harvest Festival here at the church on 10/29 at 4:30. We will provide more details as we get closer to the date.

Right after church today, we need to have a quick meeting regarding a youth trip that we have been invited to. There will be some cost involved, so we need to talk about with everyone and explain what the trip is, how much it will be, etc. We will do this right after Sunday School.

Praise Reports:

Prayer Requests:

MRs. Vickey - two aunts with health problems

Tithes

Children’s Church

Doxology:

This is my Bible. It is God’s Holy Word. It is a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and I will hide its words within my heart that I might not sin against God! Amen!!!

Open Bibles To: Acts 2 / Romans 10:1-10

Since the beginning of the year, we have been walking through a series titled: “Building T.E.M.P.O.”

TEMPO is an acronym, for the five functions of the church. Those five functions are found right here in Acts 2.

Teaching / Evangelism / Missions / Prayer / Oneness

We started with the last letter “O”, and then moved our way to the letter “P”.

Last week, we moved on to the letter “T”, which stands for teaching.

We started this new mini-series, within our series, by talking about the authority of God’s Word. We spoke about how God’s Word has the final say concerning all things in life, regardless of morals, beliefs, traditions, or even our on feelings and emotions.

Today, we are going to see why the Word of God matters so much. We are going to look at a set of scripture that was written some 2,000 years ago, but is as relevant to our lives today as the day they were penned.

Let’s take a look at Romans 10: 1-4

Context

Paul’s Sorrow (v. 1)

Paul is writing this letter to the church at Rome. Within this section of his letter to them, he writes concerning his own people, the Israelites, and expresses his desire to see them saved.

In order to grasp the gravity of Paul’s heart in these words, we must remember who Paul used to be.

He was a free-born Jew.

He was raised within the Jewish school system.

He grew up with many of the current leaders within the current synagogues, or grew up learning from those who were still practicing Pharisees.

He excelled above most during his schooling, and found himself seated among the Sanhedrin, which was a Pharisaic leadership council of the elite scholars.

Paul had taught within many of these synagogues, and shared the same zeal for God’s Word that he speaks of here in v. 2

Before his conversion, Paul was adamant that Jesus and His followers were heretics, that he went under orders of the high priest to imprison and even kill all of those who claimed to be Christians.

Concerning every Christian, every preacher of the Gospel, every disciple of Christ, every Jewish convert, every apostle, and every person who walked away from the Jewish traditions, Paul knew more than them all what it was like to feel their unbelief, their malice, their hatred, their morals, their beliefs, their very way of life. Paul used to be one of them.

Miraculously, Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus in a very unique way that left him a changed man.

For several years, Paul studied the Word of God in a new light and then when ready, began to preach the name of Jesus throughout the entire Jewish nation.

Understanding Paul’s story helps us to feel the weight of v. 1.

Paul’s desire and hope was that all of his fellow brothers of the flesh would be converted as he was. Paul also understood what it took in order for him to be converted. Paul knew that God could do this, for God had done it for him.

Paul wanted nothing more than for all of his people to be saved. Listen to what Paul said at the beginning of Chapter 9 concerning Israel: Romans 9:1-3

Romans 9:1–3 ESV

1 I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit— 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.

Paul loved his people, even though they hated him. Paul would have given anything to see his people come to Christ.

Israel’s Sin (v. 2-3)

Paul proceeds to tell us why it was that Israel was unwilling to believe in Christ. He gives two reasons:

They were ignorant of the righteousness of God.

They were prideful of their own righteousness.

Paul alluded to this in Chapter 9 when he wrote: Romans 9:30-32

Romans 9:30–32 ESV

30 What shall we say, then? That Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained it, that is, a righteousness that is by faith; 31 but that Israel who pursued a law that would lead to righteousness did not succeed in reaching that law. 32 Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were based on works. They have stumbled over the stumbling stone,

The result of these two issues, was that they were unwilling to submit to God’s righteousness.

Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive Romans 10:1–4

The law says, “Do this and thou shalt live.” The gospel says, “Live and thou shalt do.” The law says, “Pay me what thou owest.” The gospel says, “I freely forgive all.” The law says, “And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might” (Deuteronomy 6:5). Gospel says, “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10). The law says, “Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them” (Galatians 3:10). The gospel says, “Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered” (Romans 4:7). The law says, “… the wages of sin is death”—the gospel says—“… the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive Romans 10:1–4

The law demands holiness. The gospel provides holiness. The law says, “Do.” The gospel says, “Done.” The law places the day of rest at the end of the week. The gospel places the day of rest at the beginning of the week. The law makes blessing the result of obedience. The gospel makes obedience the result of blessing. The law says, “Run,” but it doesn’t give us any legs. The gospel says, “Fly,” and it gives us wings. Oh, thank God for the gospel. What the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, Christ dying for sinful flesh brought to us light, and life, and immortality in the gospel.

Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive Romans 10:1–4

Dear friends, if you want to be saved, let me tell you this morning, you’re going to have to stop trying and start trusting.

Someone reached out to me yesterday and asked me to look over something for them. They had created a card and was getting ready to post it to their social media page. The page had to do with trust. They simply wanted me to look over it and check the spelling, the verses they had included, as well as the flow of it. They just wanted a second opinion. The card had to do with Trust. As I read the page, I noticed they had included a definition for trust at the top of the page, and this is what it said: “Trust: a reliance or resting of the mind on the integrity, veracity, justice, friendship, or other sound principle of another person.”

Israel had totally missed the most fundamental truth of righteousness: Romans 10:4

Romans 10:4 ESV

4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

Content

The Righteousness of Man (v. 5)

Paul begins to use the Word of God to explain their misunderstanding and support the idea of righteousness by faith. If there was one thing that the Israelites stood on above all else, it was the Word of God. So he uses it to show them Christ. He uses the very thing that dictated all things in their lives, to show them their misunderstandings of righteousness.

Romans 10:5 ESV

5 For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them.

Leviticus 18:5 ESV

5 You shall therefore keep my statutes and my rules; if a person does them, he shall live by them: I am the Lord.

He begins by explaining the flaw of their understanding of the law. God said in multiple places that in order to live, that means to gain eternal life, one must keep all of the law. In order to obtain the righteous standard they were trying to achieve, they would have to keep every single law without exception.

Matthew 19:16–17 ESV

16 And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” 17 And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.”

Luke 10:25–28 ESV

25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”

The Righteousness of God (vv. 6-8)

Romans 10:6–7 ESV

6 But the righteousness based on faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).

Deuteronomy 30:12–14 ESV

12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 14 But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it.

The part of the verse in quotations is the quote from the OT, and the part in parenthesis is Paul’s interpretation of that verse.

When Moses wrote these words, he was referring to the law.

Israel remained on a constant roller coaster ride of faithfulness and unfaithfulness. They would lean in close to God for a short season, just to fall away from God in the next. They complained and grumbled about the leadership of Moses and the fact that they had wondered in the desert for many years.

Moses was explaining to them that they did not have to go somewhere or do something in order to obtain the righteousness of God. The Word of God had already been given to them. They had heard it on multiple occasions. They knew what it said. Moses was challenging the condition of their heart.

Just as Moses had challenged the spiritual condition of Israel so many years ago, Paul done exactly the same. The difference was that Paul now understood the fulfillment of the law in Christ (v. 4). So, Paul interprets these verses from that perspective. When the verses spoke of searching for the law, Paul used Christ instead.

The very thing that men spend their entire lives to achieve, can only be found in Christ. Israel was striving to accomplish righteousness in their own abilities, strengths, and knowledge, but it was, and still is, an impossible task to achieve. No man can do this.

You don’t have to scale the heights of heaven or delve into the depths of hell to find righteousness. You simply have to trust in Jesus.

Commitment (vv. 9-11)

Maybe you are here today, and you are like the two young men who approached Jesus in Matthew & Mark. Maybe, you have the same question that they did: “Jesus. What must I do to inherit eternal life?” If that is you today, I want you to know that I am so excited for you. I am so excited that:

God has convicted your heart of sin and the need for a savior.

You are brave enough to take the step and ask the question.

God has answered that very question right here in the text.

There are 2 things that are necessary in order to be saved. There are 2 things that one must do in order to be saved. Are you ready?

Confession

“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord”

The first step in obtaining eternal life is to confess Jesus as Lord.

It is more than just an outward confession. It must be an outward confession that stems from an inward belief. Notice that the two are coupled together.

Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive Romans 10:1–4

Do you know what confession is? Confession is faith turned inside out.

We must outwardly and openly confess Christ, but it must be more than a simple acknowledgement.

James 2:19 ESV

19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!

Acknowledging that Jesus is real is not enough. Acknowledging that Jesus was a good man is not enough. Acknowledging that Jesus performed amazing miracles is not enough. We must Acknowledge Jesus as Lord. It must be personal.

Exodus 12:1–5 ESV

1 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2 “This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. 3 Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household. 4 And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. 5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats,

The confession spoken of in this verse, is a confession that is rooted in commitment. It is a confession of “Jesus as Lord”.

The term Lord means master. We are to acknowledge Jesus as the master of our lives.

John MacArthur - “The Gospel is not about self-fulfillment, it is about self-denial.”

To confess Jesus as Lord, is to confess:

The wretchedness of my sin.

My inability to live up to God’s standard of righteousness.

My need for a savior.

To confess Jesus as Lord, means:

I have reached the end of myself.

I am admitting defeat.

I am waving the white flag of surrender.

I acknowledge that Jesus did what I could not and therefore, is worthy of my obeisance.

I am willingly, and voluntarily, submitting my whole self underneath the leadership of Christ.

Confidence

If you “believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead,”

Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive Romans 10:1–4

Why do I confess Him? Because He’s Lord. How do I know that He is Lord? Because God has raised Him from the dead.

And, the Bible says He is “declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Romans 1:4). By this one miracle. Why doesn’t the Bible say, “That if thou shalt believe in thine heart that he was born of a virgin?” Or that He died upon the cross? Why doesn’t He speak of the incarnation or something like that? Why the resurrection? Because, my friend, listen, the resurrection is the capstone of all of the other miracles. If you believe in the resurrection you believe all the other miracles. You see, there can’t be a resurrection without an incarnation. There cannot be a resurrection without a crucifixion. He would not have been raised from the dead had He not been the sinless Son of God. You see, when you believe in the resurrection from the dead that means that you believe the rest of it, that is the cornerstone miracle, that is the capstone miracle and that is the confidence.

Listen friend, if I believe that Jesus Christ walked out of that grave, what a confidence that is.

Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive Romans 10:1–4

“If Jesus Christ is still in that grave, nothing really matters, but if Jesus Christ came out of that grave, nothing but that really matters.”

To believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead is to believe in the entire Gospel. It is to believe in the birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension, and current ministry of Jesus right now.