Romans Book Intro: Back to the Blackboard! Why Romans?
Romans is special to me - 1st book I ever read [Fell in love with. Exp the Word coming alive]
It has also been special to many other “greater” saints, way before me.
Intro to Romans in, Geneva Study Bible - Romans is Paul’s fullest, grandest, most comprehensive statement of the gospel. Its compressed declarations of vast truths are like coiled springs - once loosed, they leap through mind & heart to fill one’s horizon & shape one’s life. (Geneva Study Bible, Romans Intro, pg.1764)
Martin Luther - He loved his wife Catherine Von Bora. He said of the Book of Romans…“It is my Catherine Von Bora”.
It was where his heart 1st found religious peace!
Augustine, Luther, & Wesley - all came to assured faith through the impact of Romans.
John Chrysostom(5th cent greatest preacher) had Romans read aloud to him once a week.
Chuck Swindoll - “Romans is no light snack for the soul. It’s a full-course meal meant to be savored over time.”
Romans is important to CM at this time - Did back in 2004.
My philosophy of learning is from my understanding like Paul’s. In that it is very “open” nothing to fear(within reason of course). But some of you have been right in asking, “Brian, as you recommend certain books or readings, what about new believers who don’t have the foundations, the Essentials?”Thus, I think it is alwaysimportant to keep coming back to biblical alignment, the bible basics.
We will hit on what is: Faith, Condemnation, the Flesh, Foreknowledge, Glorification, Gospel, Grace, Justification, Law, Predestination, Propitiation, Righteousness, Salvation, Sanctification, Sin, Works, & many more.
2 Tim.3:16,17 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine (what is right), for reproof (what is not right), for correction (how to get right), for instruction in righteousness (how to stay right), that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Romans has been called a Constitution (a body of fundamental principles or established precedents); And a Manifesto (a public declaration of policy).
It’s personal yet a well-developed presentation of grace-filled, God exalting theology.
It beckons the mind to stretch, the heart to soar, & the soul to sing! (Swindoll, Intro to Romans)
Its place in the bible - After the Gospels(Jesus’ life/ministry) & Acts(birth of the Church), Romans begins a new section known as the Epistles or Letters.
These cover all the books from Romans to Jude.
Epistles set forth the implications & out-workings of the Christian life.
They deal with issues crucial to the life of the church.
Of the 21 Epistles, Paul wrote 13 (pos.14, if Hebrews is his).
The theme of Romans in 2 sentences? - “Through faith in Christ alone, a ‘righteousness from God’ is imparted to sinners. Through Christ’s atoning sacrifice, God removes His holy wrath towards us & brings us into loving relationship with Himself forever.” (Swindoll, A Study of Romans, pg.3)
Romans is no light snack for the soul. It’s a full-course meal meant to be savored over time.
Not like last week, somewhere ½ way through Belize, I pulled into a shell station & grabbed some quick snacks of a Mr. Villa Peanut Shake, Crunchy Cheetos, & my favorite Maria’s shortbread cookies for a quick snack on the road.
No way, Romans will be a Thanksgiving Feast for our souls.
Book Outline: Introduction(1:1-17);Doctrine(1:18-8:39);National(9-11);Practical (12-15.13); Conclusion (15:14-16:27).
(1)Bondservant-All slaves have masters, & Paul’s is Christ!(also communicates humility)
Ex.21:5,6 If the servant plainly says, 'I love my master, my wife, and my children; Iwill not go out free,' "then his master shall bring him to the judges. He shall also bring him to the door, or to the doorpost, and his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve him forever.
Apostle -God initiated this process.Paul didn’t choose the role for himself.
Separated - He wasset apartfor God to serve the interests of the gospel of God.
(2) Salvation in Christ has been God’s great plan...from the beginning.
This isn’t some newfangled message opposed to Judaism.
(3-6) Paul’s Manifesto - Paul’s written declaration of principles, policies, and objectives.
What a mini-sermon of a greeting!
(7) Paul’s relationship to the church in Rome, Italy?
Paul had not planted, or yet even visited the church in Rome, though was very aware of their impact & growth (vs.8).
It’s likely the church in Rome began shortly after Acts 2, at Pentecost.
Acts 2:10,11 “…visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,…we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.”
Paul’s actually been in the East evangelizing, doing church plants, & training leaders from Judea to Macedonia for about 10 yrs now.
Paul set his sights on Spain (funny, we have a Paulsetting his sights on Spain as we speak, possible Lucianni’s next grand adventure).
Slide #12 Paul gets on-line & Googles Hotwire.com and starts making his travel plans from Corinth(where he writes this letter, prob. Winter ad 57); then to Jerusalem to drop off $; then sail to Spain, & on the way there, plans on stopping in Rome when he cruises by.
This way Paul can give them the clear, concise Essentials of the Faith. Not so they could just learn about them, but also to be a light with them, to the rest of the empire.
Back to Rome: Rome Paul, really? – The seat of paganism, idolatry, materialism, & growing hostility toward Christianity?
Yet, in the midst of this debauchery the light of Christ is burning bright enough for the whole empire to see.
We say, “but in America we have it so hard, America seems post-Christian!” Imaginea culture, never once touched by Christianity? I’ve been in a few (sp. Warfare/creepiness).
Do we compare to Rome? - Take all U.S. churches & turn them into Pagan Shrines. Take all just laws off the books. Make our President a Christian hater & destroyer...then we can start to compare!
Grace & Peace – combine Greek&Hebrew greetings.
Grace is what we receive; Peace is what we experience as a result of the activities of God, on our behalf.
PAUL’S MISSION!(8-15)
(8,9) It was their faith! - Not their church size, not their wealth, nor their busyness...but their vibrant & steadfast faith!
(10-13) His Longing – He had many friends in Rome. (ch.16 gives 27 names & intimate details of their family relationships 7 christian service)
He longed to visit, & this letter would prepare the way.
(14,15) Debtor to all – People of all ethnic groups(vs.5 ἒθνος); income & educational levels; cultural distinctives; ages; & of both genders.
Debtor – There was a binding obligation placed upon debtors in the ancient world.
As believers we are free from the debt of sin, but we are debtors to witness to a lost world. Are you paying your spiritual debts?
Listen carefully to this quote…you won’t believe who this is from! “Every Christian--as he explores the historical record of Scripture and tradition and comes to a deep, abiding faith - experiences that Christ is the risen one and that he is therefore the eternally living one. It is a deep, life-changing experience. No true Christian can keep it hidden as a personal matter. For such an encounter with the living God cries out to be shared - like the light that shines, like the yeast that leavens the whole mass of dough.” Slide #15 (Pope John Paul II, in Breakfast with the Pope. Christianity Today, Vol.39, no.13)
J.P. almost sounded like an Evangelical there!
I think we are safe to say, “Paul was gripped by the gospel!”
Have you been gripped w/the gospel & its wonderful message?
Are you sharing it & living it? (remember, Proclamation & Demonstration)
PAUL’S MESSAGE!(16,17)
Ashamed? – Of course, your an Apostle, your not ashamed.
Thats like Steve Jobs saying he’s not ashamed of Apple products!
But think of the resistance, ridicule of Paul’s day.
The Jews hated it – it undermined their system of self achieved-righteousness.
The Gentiles hated it – How dare these Christian’s teach there is only one God!
The Emperors hated it – Nero, the 1st of the Christian persecutors was on the throne.
Paul says the Gospel is nothing to be embarrassed about or hidden.
The Gospel – God has good news!
It was Promised(2); It was Purchased(4); It is Preached(15); It has Power(16).
(E. Stanley Jones) “Religions are man’s search for God; the gospel is God’s search for man. There are many religions, but one gospel.”
Beachhead - a defended position on a beach taken from the enemy by landing forces, from which an attack can be launched.
God knew to take this world back He’d need a beachhead – He choose the shoreof the Mediterranean…Israel.
Jesus knew to take this world He’d need a beachhead – He choose the shore ofthe Sea of Galilee…Capernaum.
Paul knew to take this world he’d need a beachhead – He choose the shore of theMediterranean also…Antioch.
C.M. was asked in 1985, by a small struggling congregation called,“Murrieta UnionChurch” to set up a Calvary Stylebeachhead in…Murrieta.
Where has God placed you to set up a beachhead in His world?
Might be a work place.
Might be a country that He’s placed on your heart. [Teri Ferro/Peru]
We as a church have a wonderful beachhead in Belize.
As a church, looks like God’s set up our next beachhead in Cambodia.
We need to plant many more beachheads in schools, work places,neighborhoods, countries.
We are in a war & God is a war strategist! Ex.15:3 The LORD is a man of war; The LORD is His name. You need to seek God’s strategy for you!
What beachhead does he have for you this week?
I had the privilege to make a beachhead in a sweet lady’s life named Kim, whom I sat next to on the plane from Houston to LA.
She was on a Yoga Retreat. I asked what one does on one. I asked her about the spiritual side to it. She let me read the introduction to a book she just purchased on what Yoga was. Fascinating. Asked, in her pursuit of spiritual matters would she do me a favor, find a bible & read just 1 book of it...John. Asking Jesus to reveal Himself to her. (She told me of her dad bicycling ½ way around Australia & read part of the bible out of every placed he stayed...And loved it!...Go Gideon’s!)
Slide #19,20 “Saving knowledge is diffused over the earth, not like sunlight but like torchlight,whichispassedfrom hand to hand.”
But instead, how often are we guilty of going home at the end of our day, & praying for the unbelievers that we safely avoided all day?
Ouch, guilty as charged. [I was guilty of not wanting to share with Kim. I don’t think I was ashamed of the gospel, but I think fearing rejection in some form]
Maybe fearing her laughing at it. Maybe fearing her questions. Embarrassment.
For it is the power! - It is powerful…Not you!
You cannot domesticate the gospel! – It is Not like a domesticated dog, but more like a mountain lion!
Sometimes we treat the gospel like a domesticated canine. We dock its tail, crop its ears, take it through our own personal obedience training, place a bow in its hair, perfume it, pamper it, &Voilà!But nowour domesticated gospel hound hasno teeth!
The idea is not to "get" the word out, but to "let" the Word out.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “Do not defend God's word, but testify to it.”
To salvation – While other institutions can provide services, only the church offers a gospel that can transform a life from the inside out.
The gospel can save us, forgive us, & bring us into the family of God!
“One can't inhale its fragrance and be content to leave everything the way it is!” :)
(17) The term Righteousness (35x’s in Romans) - is defined by Paul as inward & outward conformity to God’s Law.
Inward - comes from God Himself; Outward - it flows out of us, because of whatflowed into us.
The “Just” – This is the basic theme throughout Romans.
What it means to be “justified” & what it means to live a “righteous” life!
Justification is God’s gracious act by which He declares the believing sinnerrighteous in J.C. because of the work of Christ on the cross. (www)”
A righteous standing before God leads to a holy life before men.
By faith – as opposed to “by works”!
It’s been said, “We are not saved by works or by faith plus works; we are saved by a faith that works.”
And on this very verse Martin Luther realized that all his efforts to work his way to God had been futile. He found the very righteousness of God granted to him in Christ!
End: Read ahead. Wet your appetite. Ask the hard questions about theology. And anticipate the tastes of the meals ahead!
Ps.8:1,3 O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens…When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, What is man that You are mindful of him? (Prayer)
You & I like to think sin is only the really really bad stuff...but God sees it as anything that violates Gods Law, His standard for perfect living.
So not just our really really bad actions, but also thoughts & motives.
Sin is a congenital condition of the soulthatpermeates our whole life. (Charles Swindoll, Coming to Terms with Sin, pg.16)
We also try to limit sin’s definition to those things that hurt other people.
No actually, sin is any offense to our holy God, even if no one knows about it or no one else is hurt by it.
So, Brian why do we have to talk about sin, wrath, perversion, etc?
Well, I think Paul’s mindset here is...before you can thoroughly examine the Good News of Jesus, you really need to know your need for him.
Paul takes the time to paint a clear picture of the universal depravity of humanity.
Universal? Yep…
He condemns the Gentiles (1:18-32); the Jews (2:1-3:8); all people(3:9-20).
The Gentiles (idolatry & sexual perversion); The Jews (holier than though attitude; Law); All people (We all stand equally condemned before God).
Last week we left off w/Paul’s main theme, theRighteousnessof God is revealed from (17) & now presents it against the dark background of theWrathof God is reveal from (18)!
Bertrand Russell(The Free thinker) wrote in His 1927 essay Why I am not a Christian “There is one very serious defect to my mind in Christ’s moral character, & that is that He believes in hell. I do not myself feel that any person who is really profoundly humane can believe in everlasting punishment. Christ certainly as depicted in the gospels did believe in everlasting punishment, & one does find repeatedly a vindictive fury against those people who would not listen to His preaching…You do not, for instance, find that attitude in Socrates. You will find him quite bland & urbane toward the people who would not listen to him, & it is, to my mind, far more worthy of a sage to take that line than to take the line of indignation.” (Kent Hughes, Romans, pg.32)
The idea of God’s wrath is offensive to modern man’s sensibilities!
Outline: Truth Suppressed; Truth Substituted; Truth Soiled.
TRUTH SUPPRESSED!(18-20) [suppressed = to hold down]
(18) This isn’t talking about the day when God will pour out His full strength of his wrath on sinful humanity!
Here both His Righteousness & His Wrath are being revealed at ALL times. They are parallel & continuous!
His Righteousness – is revealed every time the gospel is shared.
His Wrath – is revealed when God abandons man to the consequences of his sinful choices.
Wrath – Anger isn’t something God chooses to feel. It is not excessively emotional nor surging out of control.
His disapproval of sin is not arbitrary; for His very nature is one of holiness; it automatically rejects sin!
He is…allergic to sin, as it were!
It is like what your nostrils(& whole head) does when it experiences a foul odor. (Green Beans)
It is like being in a small room w/a skunk…there’s no getting used to it.
Ungodliness – Impiety towards God. - Unrighteousness – Injustice towards men.
1:19-3:20 now gives commentary on vs.18!
(19,20) GOD’S REVELATION THROUGH NATURE!
What about the Pigmy’s in Papua New Guinea?
The pagan world had/has an opportunity to know God through His Revelation innature.[The Gospel isn’t spelled out in it;butwe can see His power, wisdom, & order]
We call this General Revelation (via Nature & Invisible attribute) Then there’s Specific Revelation (via Jesus & His Word)
Special revelation shows God as Redeemer; General revelation shows God as Creator! Special revelation is the norm for the church; General revelation is the norm for society! Special revelation is the means for salvation; General revelation is the means of condemnation!
General Revelation helps us to know about God; Specific Revelation, to know God!
This General Revelation then placed man under the responsibility of acknowledging Him & rendering thanks to Him.
So, what do we have here? [1] God reveals Himself to mankind [2] Nature is the medium of His revelation [3] This does not guarantee a positive response [4] This revealing of Himself established the minimal ground of every person’s responsibility before him. [5] Thus, all people are w/o excuse for their rebellion against Him.
Jan David Hettinga said, “It is not that we don’t know about God. The evidence of His existence is everywhere in this wonderful biosphere we call home. The billboards of creation splash the advertisements of intelligent design all around us.”
Mark Ritter said, Scientist are stuck with a Creation Event!
The idea that the universe had a beginning was introduced by Edwin Hubble and Albert Einstein when they both (Hubble by observation, Einstein by theory) came to the conclusion that the universe is expanding. Thus, if you run the clock back, it had a beginning. Thus, there was a Beginner. This idea was absolutely repulsive to most mainstream nontheistic scientists, and they searched desperately for any other past to the universe which could exclude God. None has arisen. We are stuck with a Creation Event and scientists are stuck with the logical conclusion that we have a Creator.
Look at God’s creation from Macro to Micro! – “Powers of Ten” [Video moves fast]
We are going to View the Milky Way at 10 million light years from the Earth. Then, into the microscopic world of a leaf. Plunging all the way into the subatomic universe of electrons and protons. Slide#7
So pick our solar system; or our biosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, or our Lithosphere; down to our little ecosystems…When God made this place, he didn’t where gloves!!!...His fingerprints are all over this place!!!
Ps.19:1,2 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.
Kepler, founder of modern astronomy said, “The undevout astronomer is mad”.
Without excuse - So basically God says, They know. I know they know, & they know they know. (Pastor Jan David Hettinga, Follow Me, pg.81)
Bertrand Russell who dismisses “The argument from Design” in 3 paragraphs…is without excuse!!! (Kent Hughes, pg.33)
TRUTH SUBSTITUTED!(21-27)
(21) Men know God from creation & conscience but refuse to honor Him as God.
2 ways for individuals to respond:
No. Rejection. That’s rebellion. Result the Wrath of God.
Yes. Accepting. That’s faith. It is the response of trust & commitment. Result, Rt. of God
Serious problems surface when secular education removes the hand of God. It attempts to understand the whole world w/o acknowledging its source.
The consequences…Columbine type situations. Or,
How is it we find dismembered remains of a man’s hands & feet, & his head stuck in a plastic bag near the Hollywood sign? Or, the a 23 yr old women last Sunday that shot her 2 toddlers & a cousin & her husband, then turned gun on herself up in Fresno(Meth). Tuesday a mother in Bakersfield stabbed her newborn in a rage. In Oklahoma a women drowned her baby in a washing machine in November. Or, last month when a new Mexico woman claiming to be God stabbed her son w/a screwdriver.
Brian isn’t that a leap? – Well, if there is no God. W/o Him there is no accountability. No absolutes. No morals. No ethics. No ultimate purpose in life. And, No limits!Result – Do what feels good to you!
Thus, the question isn’t “why did Columbine happen” but “why isn’t it happening everyday?”
Note: Changed(24); exchanged(25)
Thus, their sin is not a mistake or an accident. They didn’t drift into this ignorantly. It is a result of intentional choices. (Kent Hughes, pg.82)
(23) Notice the downward spiral/the slippery slope:
An idol doesn’t have to be a figure on your mantle that you pray & burn incense to. It can be a mental distortion of God, an unbiblical concept of God.
Whatever your heart clings to & relies on is your god. (Martin Luther)
Is there anything luring your devotion & worship away from the true God?
(24) Ok so the wrath is hell, fire, & damnation right? (No, not yet) – The wrath of God amounts to God giving them up by letting them go their own way! :(
People are free to receive or reject God’s revelation. However, they are not free to do so w/o consequences.
So God gave them up! & let them suffer the consequences. (vs.26 & 28)
The greatest judgment God can inflict on us is to let us have our own way! (www)
It’s Emancipation from God!
Remember, “The biggest fool is he who fools himself!”
(26,27) What happens then? - Well, you start losing control, of being in control!
How many parents have heard a son or daughter say, “Mom, Dad, I’m gay!But its OK. I believe this is how God made me. I’ve accepted it.I’ve embraced my homosexuality. And, so should you!”
So many families thrown into turmoil when a family member comes out of the proverbial closet!
Let’s be Clear, Homosexuality is a biblical sin; Let’s be Kind, Jesus died for homosexuals.
Homosexuality:
3-fold Application:
Orientation (when they have sexualdesiresfor the same sex)
Behavior (when they decide to act on homosexual activity)
Identity (when they their identify themselves as gay, lesbian, homosexual).
It is not: an alternative lifestyle, somehow excepted by God.
It is not: hereditary (passed genetically).
It is: an abandonment to vile passions or “shameful lusts”. (26)
It is: “unnatural” (26)
It involves: indecent acts (i.e. “shameful”) (27)
What’s best is that...it is SIN! – Why is that “best”? – Because if it were a sickness there might be no cure…but there is a cure for sin!
Pro Gay Theology interprets this verse this way:“This is someone born aheterosexual who becomes a homosexual, thus it is a sin because it is “unnatural”! It doesn’t relate to one born homosexual”.
So, on the one hand they say they are born this way & can’t change…on the other, they say you can change?
But church….why do we place this as a more serious crime against God, then adultery or any other heterosexual crime?
What happened to hating the sin yes, but loving the sinner?
TRUTH SOILED!(28-32)
(28) Gave them over to a debased mind – or depraved mind.
Debased also means “not approved” (often applied to metals).
It doesn’t stand the test. A depraved mind is one that God cannot approve, & it must be rejected by Him.
So when promiscuity, bisexuality, or homosexuality are normalized, then what can we look forward to in society? (vs.29-32)
Believe it or not sexual perversion is not the bottom of the barrel.
It is a depraved mind! – A mind that has everything turned upside-down.
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; (Is.5:20)
Aaron Burr, the third Vice President of the United States, was reared in a godly home and admonished to accept Christ by his grandfather Jonathan Edwards. But he refused to listen. Instead, he declared that he wanted nothing to do with God and said he wished the Lord would leave him alone. He did achieve a measure of political success in spite of repeated disappointments. But he was also involved in continuous strife, and when he was 48 years old, he killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel. He lived for 32 more years, but through all this time he was unhappy and unproductive. It was during this sad chapter in his life that he declared to a group of friends; “Sixty years ago I told God that if He would let me alone, I would let Him alone, and God has not bothered about me since.” Aaron Burr got what he wanted. Daily Bread
(29-32) 21 negative qualities are listed of those abandoned to their own sinful natures.
A somber parade of human depravity! (Swindoll)
(32) Approving – Who was more guilty in the days of the Roman Coliseum…those committing the mayhem, or those watching & applauding?
When Ted Bundy was being executed in the electric chair(called “Old Sparky”) Jan.24, 1989 Whom was God more grieved w/that early morning? Ted, w/ over 30 mutilation & torture-style murders; or the people outside the prison, w/10 acres of cars, RV’s, & broadcast vehicles, who waved sparklers & sang, “On top of old Sparky” (to the tune of Old Smokey) “He bludgeoned the pooooor girls, all overthe heeaad. Now we’re ecstatic, Ted Bundy is dead.”
They wandered through the field, many with coffee and doughnuts, and more than a few with beer in their coffee cups. They carried signs and banners: ''Fry, Ted, Fry!'' and ''Tuesday is Fry Day.'' [Orlando Sentinel, Jan 25, 1989|By Roger Roy & Craig Dezern of The Sentinel]
One radio station in Jacksonville also urged listeners to turn off all appliances between 6:45-7:05am, to ensure there would be enough ``juice`` for the execution.
And what about the millions sitting in their living room each night watching on TV debauchery, violence, deceit & many other vices…& applauding what they see?
He says this is a sign that life is reaching its lowest dimension!
Man was made a little lower than the angels (Ps.8:5)
This places man somewhere between angels above & beasts below.
Angels are spirits w/o bodies;&animalsare bodies w/o spirits.Manis in-between,because he is body & spirit.
It has always been man’s prerogative to move upward toward the spiritual, or downward toward the animal.
This is why man can’t sin a little bit! No one is able to say, this far & no further!
Introduction
Verses 1-17
Verses 18-32