3 great enemies of the believer (James 3:15): 

1. The World 
2. The Flesh 
3. The Devil 

Romans 6 the apostle speaks on the subject of consecration, of a life given over wholly to the service of God, particularly 6:12-20. 

As the apostle turns to look at impediments to that consecration in chap 7 it is to the flesh that he devouts this section to! 

The Devil may well be a smarter enemy 

The world may well be a bigger enemy but 

The flesh is the weakest enemy and paradoxically therefore perhaps the most…

There is no doubt that 'death' brings an end, a closure to matters! 

It is possible to miss the simple message of Romans 6, to get away from the simplicity and clarity of it! 

The Christian life begins with a conversion – an end to the old and a beginning of the new! 

There would hardly be a more clear cut, a more dramatic way of putting it: black and white, right and wrong, life and death! 

This is an absolute! 

We may go on a course, an Alpha Course and answer the questions but if there is no conversion…

Righteousness is Credited (4:1-5) 

Sin is Cleansed (4:6-8) 

2 Errors of Mark 10:17-31: 

Salvation is Deserved: “what shall I do that I may inherit...” (10:17); “all these have I observed” (10:20) 

Salvation makes no Demands: salvation ultimately makes the demand of discipleship (Mk8:34), implicit in saving faith is that I see the need for salvation and implicit in this is repentance from the way I was going.

Faith in Christ means turning away from sin, Satan and self. 

Often emphasises the 2 sides to a…

 Surely the very first discovery that we make on our spiritual journey is that there is a God! 
We make come to this discovery by means of considering: 

Creation – the subject of Romans chp 1 
Conscience – the moral order Romans chp 2 
Covenant – God speaking by His Word – Romans chp 2 
Cross – Romans Chp3 – there were those of course who first came face to face with the reality of Christ at the Cross: the centurion: “Truly this man was the son of God” (Mk 15:39); the thief on the cross: “And he said unto…

The whole of humanity is examined in this section, under the scrutiny of a righteous and Holy God: 

Rotten Sinner (1:18-32) 
Self-Righteous Sinner (2:1-16) 
Religious Sinner (2:17-3:20) 

Each group has their light, not the gospel as we know it, but light none the less for which God holds them accountable and responsible: 

Rotten Sinner (1:18-32) - has the light of creation 
Self-Righteous Sinner (2:1-16) - has the light of conscience 
Religious Sinner (2:17-3:20) - has the light of law or covenant 

Then the…

3 Categories of Sinners: 

Rotten Sinners of chp 1 
Self-Righteous Sinners of 2:1-6 
Religious Sinners for chp 2 

Rotten Sinners of chapter 1 

The pagan idolaters 

Self-Righteous Sinners (2:1-6) 

They are able to discern sin but not to dispense with sin! 
Judge sin in others but not in self 
No repentance from their own sin 
Notice that the condemnation of these self-righteous sinners is NOT that they fail to live a perfect life - which cannot be expected of any man but rather they fail to repent from the sin…