tag:graceinchrist.org,2005:/blogs/romans?p=4Romans2021-11-12T20:55:41+00:00GraceinChrist Bible Teachingfalsetag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68741172011-04-06T21:05:00+01:002022-01-19T21:01:38+00:00Romans chapter 13 verses 1 to 7 - Two on the Road to Magaluf - J Stewart Gillespie<p>Some chapters of Romans are well represented in our preaching: </p>
<p>Chps 1 to 5 – Parts quoted in the gospel <br>Chp 6 – at baptisms <br>Chp 8 – ministry <br>Chp 12 – ministry </p>
<p>Certain parts are regarded as difficult: </p>
<p>Chapters 7, 10 and 11 </p>
<p>Some parts the truth is found by some to be unpalatable: </p>
<p>Chapter 9 </p>
<p>Some parts seem just plane ignored; amongst them chapter 13! </p>
<p>Is this perhaps because we feel the ministry here is too direct / simple / on the surface and not much more needs to be said about it? </p>
<p>Is chapter 13 really just about obeying the laws and paying our taxes? </p>
<p>If it is this is well covered by other scriptures! </p>
<p>Perhaps there is more to this chapter than that! </p>
<p>Chapter 13 is certainly very practical and down to earth, </p>
<p>We must be always wary of developing a theoretical, hyper-spiritual and somewhat ethereal view of Christian experience. </p>
<p>Christian faith is no private affair and no secret activity. </p>
<p>Romans chapters 13 to 15 are not so much a contrast with chapters 1 to 8 as a consequence of them! </p>
<p>Chapters 13 to 15 are an application of the truth. </p>
<p>From consecration in chp 1 to consideration in chp 14 </p>
<p>From sanctification in chp 12 to service in chp 15 </p>
<p>“ And he said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. But ye shall not be so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve.” (Luke 22:25-26) </p>
<p>The Christian ought to be the kind of person the world can't do without! </p>
<p>He ought to provide 'salt' and 'light' (Matthew chp 5) </p>
<p>Christian experience does not allow for lack of reality. </p>
<p>Romans chp 13 we have 3 spheres of responsibility: </p>
<p>The Believer as a Responsible Citizen (13:1-7) – Living in Liberty <br>The Believer as a Responsible Neighbour (13:8-10) – Living in Love <br>The Believer as a Responsible Christian (13:11-14) – Living in Light </p>
<p>The Believer Under Authority (13:1-5) <br>The Believer Under Obligation (13:6-10) <br>The Believer under cover of darkness (13:11-14) </p>
<p>Living in Liberty (13:1-7) <br>Living in Love (13:8-10) <br>Living in Light (13:11-14) </p>
<p>The Believer as a Responsible Citizen (13:1-7) – Living in Liberty </p>
<p>The Christian experience will not permit me to have a private faith </p>
<p>I live out Christ in the real world </p>
<p>Notice that in living out Christ in the real world there is a real spiritual dimension to this: “let every soul be subject” (13:1) </p>
<p>The believer had: </p>
<p>Offered their body (12:1) <br>Experienced the renewal of their mind (12:2,16) <br>Subjected their soul (13:1) </p>
<p>This section (13:1-7) only works if it is taken up by those who have a spiritual attitude of soul (13:1) that has triumphed over the flesh (13:13-14) and has overcome 'rebellion' and the human 'chip on the shoulder.' </p>
<p>The setting of this section is that of: </p>
<p> Life and Liberty </p>
<p>It is in 'liberty' ie where decisions are being made and can be made that the true nature of our character emerges! </p>
<p>If we only do things because we have to do things we will never really see the true character of man. It is only in liberty where we are in a position of decision making that our true character is revealed! </p>
<p>Do we recognise: “higher powers” (13:1) : 'power' : exousia : authority. </p>
<p>To recognise authority does require a degree of humility </p>
<p>To be subject does require meekness. </p>
<p>For a believer to be subject recognises a God imposed order: </p>
<p> “ordained by God” (13:1) </p>
<p>There is God appointed order when in the future God withdraws from this world, the world will be left to: “the man of lawlessness” </p>
<p>It would be reasonable to deduce from these verses that as we withdraw from God we will become more lawless: human subjection (13:1) is linked with Divine Sovereignty (13:1-2) </p>
<p>On the surface chp 13:1-7 is perhaps all about: </p>
<p>Obeying the laws <br>Paying your taxes </p>
<p>So it is! </p>
<p>That is no small matter. </p>
<p>The Lord Himself toopk time to emphasise the truth of it: </p>
<p>“Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesars” </p>
<p>This is quoted 3 X in the NT: Matt 22:21; Mk12:17; Lk 20:25 </p>
<p>No trivial matter! </p>
<p>There is more to the matter than this however. </p>
<p>This section touches upon: </p>
<p>The Truth of Gods Kingdom <br>The Tension between Good and Evil <br>The Testimony of Gods People </p>
<p>The Truth of Gods Kingdom </p>
<p>We belong to a Kingdom: </p>
<p>Of a different SUBSTANCE: a Kingdom “not of this world” (John 18:36) <br>A SOVEREIGN Kingdom (Daniel 5:21) <br>A SPIRITUAL Kingdom (Matt 5:1ff) <br>A CERTAIN Kingdom which will come (Matt 5:20) <br>A SUPERIOR Kingdom: “seek ye first the Kingdom of God” (Lk 9:57ff) <br>A Kingdom which we are CITIZENS of (Matt 13:8ff) </p>
<p>What ought our attitude to be to the Kingdoms of men? </p>
<p>It would be easy to develop a superiority context from all of this truth. </p>
<p>In the context of our belonging to another Kingdom Romans 13:1-7 gives us important and perhaps surprising teaching: </p>
<p>To obey the authorities <br>To pay our taxes </p>
<p>The Tension between Good and Evil </p>
<p>Government: 'A Curiously Righteous Arrangement' </p>
<p>I can only describe the institution of human government as a curiously righteous arrangement: </p>
<p>Arrangement: 2 times in these verse 1 we have the word: “tasso” : </p>
<p>v1 - “subject” : hupotasso : 5293 <br>v1 - “ordained” : tasso : 5021 </p>
<p>“tasso” : means ordained / ordered / arranged / appointed </p>
<p>So government is an arrangement of God </p>
<p>Righteous: </p>
<p>For government to do 2 things: </p>
<p>Bear the sword (v4) <br>Balance the books (v6) </p>
<p>Government is to promote 'righteousness' : </p>
<p>Judgment on those who reject the ordinance : 'damnation' (v2) <br>“terror to the evil” (v3) <br>“revenger” : ekdikos : 'ek' – out of and 'dike' – justice – executing right and justice. </p>
<p>Curious: </p>
<p>I say 'curiously' righteous arrangement because: would you wish to live under the righteous rule of God as a fallen creature with the 'flesh' still with you? </p>
<p>Apply the absolute righteousness of God to the struggle of Romans chp 7 and what do you have? </p>
<p>Do you have a dead man? </p>
<p>Psalm 130:3 “If thou Lord shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who should stand?” </p>
<p>Malachi 3:2 “But who may abide the day of His coming and who shall stand when He appeareth?” </p>
<p>That is without even beginning to think of the implications of Divine righteousness on a wholly fallen world! </p>
<p>The judgment or 'damnation' in this arrangement (v2) comes out not on those who: </p>
<p>Transgress the absolute righteousness of God </p>
<p>nor who: </p>
<p>Transgress the righteousness of the law of Sinai </p>
<p>but upon those who: </p>
<p>“antitasso” - “resisteth” - stand against the 'ordinance' </p>
<p>Implications: </p>
<p>Human government is not perfect; it is not judging for transgressing the righteousness of God. </p>
<p>It is just as well that human government is not perfect for: </p>
<p>Psalm 130:3 “If thou Lord shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who should stand?” </p>
<p>Consider for example the difficulty often raised regarding the presence of a sovereign and righteous God with the reality of evil in the world: eg the holocaust. </p>
<p>Illust: Recently viewed a clip from a documentary on WWII with the allied capture of the Nazi concentration camps in Poland. The officer in charge; a Brigadier noted a group of 3 Nazi youths shooting at prisoners in the camp. The Brigadier administered summary justice and killed 2 of the Nazi youths and one escaped. At the liberation of Bergen Belsen the American soldiers were so incensed by what they saw that they lined up the Nazi guards and shot them all. Few of us would shed a tear at that, but wait a minute, lets pause and think about the implications here: </p>
<p>If a man tortures and murders 1000s – summary justice (at the hands of the Americans)? Yes <br>If a man tortures an murders 2 or 3 – summary justice (at the hands of the Brigadier)? Yes. <br>If a man tortures many but perhaps didn't actually murder someone – summary justice? Yes <br>If a man possesses that hatred and vileness of spirit to commit such acts? “But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.” (Mat 5:22) </p>
<p>Distinctions may seem clear cut but.... there may not be such a distance between us as you think, and if God would be righteous in dealing out summary justice to them, what about us? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Psalm 130:3 “If thou Lord shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who should stand?” </p>
<p>We cannot have a square circle! </p>
<p>If Gods righteous and absolute judgment is to be applied, it must be applied across the board. </p>
<p>This leads to moral anomalies in the world: </p>
<p>The world is governed by secondary causes and not directly by God. Thus we have both a God given awareness of and desire for fairness and righteousness but we are left in a situation which always and must fall short of that experience of absolute righteousness. The world is not fare. The world cannot be fair either until all sin is subdued and the subjects are themselves capable of dealing with God on the basis of absolute righteousness. </p>
<p>How often have we heard: 'Well if there is a God in heaven how can there be?' </p>
<p>Injustice in the world? <br>A holocaust? <br>Wars in Eritrea? </p>
<p>Part of the answers to these questions are hid in these verses. </p>
<p>God rules and governs by secondary causes. </p>
<p>If He did not govern by these means then: </p>
<p>There would be no injustice <br>There would be no holocaust <br>There would be no wars <br>There would be no repression in Tunisia <br>There would be no persecution in Iran </p>
<p>The down side would be however: </p>
<p>There would be no Tunisia <br>There would be no Iran <br>There would be no humanity </p>
<p>God not only permits a fallen world to survive in Grace but He has ordained means to: </p>
<p>continue <br>control <br>conclude </p>
<p>That fallen world in Grace. </p>
<p>Illust: 2 on the road to Magaluff; not sure I believe in God, 'have you ever known anyone to die from cancer?' If there was a God why would He let that happen? </p>
<p>And what about all the paedophiles?' </p>
<p>Why? </p>
<p>Because: </p>
<p>You can't have a square circle </p>
<p>Just because you want one doesn’t mean you can have one! </p>
<p>Some things are mutually exclusive. </p>
<p>We cannot have a perfect creation and yet live with the creator at a distance. </p>
<p>If we claim, as the scriptures do, that God is: </p>
<p>Light, <br>Life and <br>Love, </p>
<p>Then if we have Him at a distance from our lifes we must live in a state of: </p>
<p>Darkness <br>Death <br>Despair </p>
<p>If despite claiming that God is the source of: </p>
<p>Light <br>Life <br>Love </p>
<p>We could live happy and contented lives without Him, full of these very features we claim comes from God, then we would have proven that either: </p>
<p>There is no God, or <br>God is not necessary for our happiness; He is an added extra, or <br>God is unoffended by our sin and disinterest in Him and that despite our neglect and rebellion He will always be there for Him, so we hardly need take Him as a threat. </p>
<p>It is not suffering and injustice that disproves the reality of God but rather perfection in His absence that would disprove the reality of God! We would have shown that we can safely dispense practically with God; in that He is superfluous to our life, light, love and joy. </p>
<p>The reason we have suffering and injustice in the world is because of sin, and yet the reason we have a world which can suffer is Grace, the Grace of God long-suffering with men, that none should perish but that all should come to a knowledge of the truth (2 Peter 3:9). </p>
<p>God has build into His Grace, a Grace which permits a fallen world to continue, God has build in a curious righteous arrangement of government, by which the: </p>
<p>Rule <br>Restraint <br>Restriction </p>
<p>of that fallen world is administered. </p>
<p>One day that restriction will be removed (2 Thess 2) – just before the destruction of this fallen world. </p>
<p>Government is founded on fear: </p>
<p>Government is founded on fear (13:3) </p>
<p>It is primarily reactive and retributive in nature </p>
<p>When government falls into the hands of well intentioned, well meaning, wet liberals and woolly folk we all suffer! </p>
<p>Government only operates effectively if there is fear </p>
<p>I know there is “praise of the same” (13:2) but this is praise for good already done rather than the empowering of good itself. </p>
<p>Government more effectively terminates evil than it does promote good </p>
<p>Government is not Final: </p>
<p>Government is a taster of a principle not fully realised but which lies in God and must one day reach its perfection in Gods Kingdom: “Thy Kingdom come”. </p>
<p>It is the first glimpse of light from a rising sun (13:11-14) </p>
<p>The role of government: </p>
<p>Bear the Sword (13:4) <br>Balance the books (13:6-7) </p>
<p>The Bible affirms both of these as the rightful roles of government: </p>
<p>Bear the Sword (13:4) </p>
<p>“And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what shall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages.” (Luk 3:14) </p>
<p>“Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.” (Joh 19:11) </p>
<p>Government has a moral responsibility to suppress evil and promote good. </p>
<p>Government has a judicial responsibility to judge and punish evil proportionately and appropriately (v4) </p>
<p>Balance the books (13:6-7) </p>
<p>“They say unto him, Caesar's. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's.” (Mat 22:21) </p>
<p>Government has a fiscal responsibility towards the people it governs </p>
<p>We have a responsibility likewise to pay our taxes </p>
<p>The Testimony of Gods People</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ</p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>40:18GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68741162011-04-05T20:00:00+01:002022-01-19T20:50:25+00:00Romans chapter 12 verses 9 to 13 - When Gift is not Enough - J Stewart Gillespie<p>Romans chapter 12 verses 9 to 13 - When Gift is not Enough - J Stewart Gillespie</p>
<p>A strange thought: 'when gift is not enough' </p>
<p>Is this: </p>
<ul> <li>Ingratitude? </li> <li>Unthankfulness? </li> <li>Ungratefulness? </li> <li>Greediness? </li> <li>Unbelief? </li>
</ul>
<p>Following on from the themes previously noted of: </p>
<ul> <li>Fragrance of Sacrifice (12:1-2) – personal consecration </li> <li>Fellowship of Saints (12:3-8) – use of spiritual gifts </li> <li>Fruitfulness in Spirit (12:9-21) </li>
</ul>
<p>In vs 3 to 8 we come to a section that deals with Christians collectively </p>
<p>We could refer to that collective group of Christians as: </p>
<ol> <li>The Church : 'ekklesia' – called out company – where we came from </li> <li>The Bride of Christ – where we are going to </li> <li>The Building – Holy Temple – what God is doing with us </li> <li>Lampstands – how God is shinning from us </li>
</ol>
<p>But in these verses none of these titles or pictures is used, rather believers collectively are viewed as the body of Christ. </p>
<p>As viewed as the body we see emphasised: </p>
<p>Not so much that we are called out 'ekklesia' but that we are called together (12:5) <br>Not so much that we are build together for Christ to dwell in us but rather that we are in Christ (12:5) <br>Not so much that like the Bride we shall one day be united together with Christ but rather emphasising the present experience of His life in us. <br>Not only pointing to our connection with Christ, as does the lampstand, but to our connection with one another (12:15). </p>
<p>So the picture of the body is particularly suitable for this presentation of the 7 spiritual gifts (12:6-8) – to be used for our good, our encouragement (exhortation) and for His Glory. </p>
<p>In this picture of the body we notice: </p>
<ol> <li>The Mind (12:3) – renewed (cf. 12:2) </li> <li>The Members (12:4-5) </li> <li>The Ministry (12:6-8) </li>
</ol>
<p>With one over arching truth in verses 3 to 8 that: </p>
<p>The gift given in grace (12:6) cannot function apart from Grace! </p>
<p>The gift given in grace cannot operate independent of the grace that gives the gift (12:3,6) </p>
<p>If you doubt this truth, consider the story of Romans; the greatest exposition of t </p>
<p>he Gospel ever given! Consider the depths plumbed and the heights reached in spiritual matters in Romans: </p>
<ul> <li>Mans Sin (chps 1-3) </li> <li>Gods Salvation (chps 3 to 5) </li> <li>Sovereign Grace (chp 5) </li> <li>Sanctification (chps 6 to 8) </li> <li>Struggle with the flesh (chp 7) </li> <li>Spirit led life (chp 8) </li> <li>Sanctuary experience (chp 8) </li> <li>Sovereign Election (chp 9) </li>
</ul>
<p>Yet after teaching and sharing all of these great truths, the saints are divided over mince and tatties (chapter 14)! </p>
<p>It is tragically possible for gifted men, operating and functioning amongst the people of God but acting apart from the Grace of God to: </p>
<p>Divide the Saints (14:1) <br>Despise the Saints (14:3,10) <br>Discourage the Saints (14:13,21) <br>Destroy the Saints (14:15,20) </p>
<p>It doesn't really concern us too much the WHAT of the divisions at Rome! </p>
<p>The WHAT will differ from place to place. </p>
<p>What really concerns us is the WHY of what went wrong! </p>
<p>The WHY is answered in this: that these men were gifted but not gracious. </p>
<p>These men were gifted but not gracious. </p>
<p>Were they gifted at all? </p>
<p>Trying to teach (14:1) <br>Trying to rule (14:3-4) </p>
<p>We may be gifted, but in the exercise of every spiritual gift we must draw afresh from the grace that gave that gift, fresh supplies from the rich resources that are ours in Christ. </p>
<p>God did not gift His servants to become independent practitioners of that gift. </p>
<p>Which ever of those 7 spiritual gifts we have they must cause us time and time again to return to the rich resources of Gods grace in order to use them! </p>
<p>Wither: </p>
<ul> <li>3 public gifts (12:6-7) – doctrinal – presenting the truth </li> <li>The central 'parakaleo' – promoting the truth </li> <li>3 private gifts (12:8) – practicing the truth </li>
</ul>
<p>Wither we are: </p>
<ul> <li>Presenting the Truth </li> <li>Promoting the Truth </li> <li>Practicing the Truth </li>
</ul>
<p>We need grace to do so. </p>
<p>It is not enough to say: </p>
<p>I think.... <br>I feel... <br>Its the tradition.... <br>Its the usual practice.... <br>Brother such and such has said... <br>That's the way we usually deal with this one... <br>This message went down well last time, so we'll repeat it... </p>
<p>We need to draw fresh grace for each fresh exercise of gift. </p>
<p>The light that would shine from Zerubabels temple would be fuelled by oil from the olive trees in heaven. <br>Samson was only the strong man when that link of devotion to His God – the Nazarite vow was intact! Cut the link with a pair of scissors and : “I shall become weak and be like any other man” (Judges 16:17) <br>Peter could walk on the water but when he took his eyes off the Lord he began to sink. </p>
<p>In the operation of those gifts, in the execution of them God has supplied His Spirit. </p>
<p>For what is His Spirit sufficient? </p>
<p>This is the subject of 12:9-21. </p>
<p>The Spirit Gifted man must be the Spirit filled man or he will fail. </p>
<p>Such a man will: </p>
<p>Divide the Saints (14:1) <br>Despise the Saints (14:3,10) <br>Discourage the Saints (14:13,21) <br>Destroy the Saints (14:15,20) </p>
<p>If this is the result of our service, no matter how gifted we are – we are not spiritual! </p>
<p>I hardly need say it – if that is the consequence of our ministry there is something seriously wrong with our spirituality! </p>
<p>How does the Grace of Gods Holy Spirit change the way in which I exercise my Spiritual gifts? </p>
<p>In verses 9 to 21 we have approx 12 Separate Injunctions in 13 verses (1 conjunction in verse 20). </p>
<p>We may not remember these 12 injunctions or instructions but perhaps we will see feel their influence: </p>
<p>Love (12:9-10) <br>Joy (12:12,15) <br>Peace (12:16-18) </p>
<p>This is exactly what was lacking at Rome: </p>
<p>Love (14:15) <br>Joy (14:17) <br>Peace (14:17) </p>
<p>The Grace of Gods Holy Spirit, saves me from: </p>
<p>v9 – Deception <br>v10 – Division <br>v11 – Distraction <br>v12 – Discouragement <br>v13 – Disheartened <br>v14 – Destructiveness <br>v15 – Disinterest in peoples problems <br>v16 – Distant from people <br>v17 – Dishonest <br>v18 – Disagreeable <br>v19 – 20 – Desperate for revenge <br>v21 – Defeated </p>
<p>v9 – Deception </p>
<p>“let love be without hypocrisy” </p>
<p>What is love with hypocrisy? </p>
<p>Does this mean that I say I love someone when I don't? </p>
<p>In verse 9 the hypocritical love is something altogether more subtle, more sinful and more Satanic than that! </p>
<p>This is someone who is using love as a pretense to do “evil”! </p>
<p>This is the hypocrisy of the white washed sepulchers (Matthew 23) </p>
<p>Cf/ Roms 14 – we love the Lord, we love the truth, open wide and I'll shuv it down your throat! </p>
<p>The pretext of love is being used to pursue some: </p>
<p>Perceived doctrinal orthodoxy <br>Legalistic view of spirituality <br>Personal advancement <br>Some desire after sin </p>
<p>Examples of this abound in scripture: </p>
<p>Samson and Delilah – true love? <br>David and Beersheba <br>Wasn't that really nice of Balaam and Balak to throw such a nice party for the Israelites in the wilderness (Num 25)? <br>Judas Iscariot </p>
<p>To this end some have: </p>
<p>Handled the Word of God deceitfully (2 Co4:2) <br>Made merchandise of the people of God (2 Peter 2:3) <br>By good words and fair speeches have deceived the hearts of the simple (Rom 16:18) and so serve their own bellies. </p>
<p>v10 – Division </p>
<p>Gift without grace – results in division! </p>
<p>Peter (Gal 2:11ff) <br>1 Corinthians chp1 – yet they came behind in no gift (1Co1:7)! <br>Romans 14:1ff </p>
<p>The antidote for all of those divisions was love! </p>
<p>V10 – 'brotherly love' – 'philadelphia' <br>v10 – 'kindly affectioned' – 'philostorgou' <br>v13 – 'hospitality' – 'philoxenian' </p>
<p>Need to give preference to one another, not to self, nor to the sinner but to to the saints! </p>
<p>It is His own who are precious to Him: John 17:6ff; 17:9-10, 11ff; Eph 5:25 </p>
<p>v11 – Distraction </p>
<p>Need to keep focused on what our service is about: “serving the Lord” </p>
<p>Illust: a young brother who gives liberally of his time, treasure and talents, ran into real spiritual problems – his own spiritual life suffering under the pressure of demands placed upon him! </p>
<p>If we are the kind of person who will </p>
<p>do anything for anyone, </p>
<p>we may just find that we end up </p>
<p>doing everything for everyone, </p>
<p>achieving nothing for no one instead of </p>
<p>doing something for the someone who really counts – </p>
<p>that is Christ! </p>
<p>“And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:” (Luk 10:41) </p>
<p>v12 – Discouragement </p>
<p>We can be tempted at times to judge by sight and according to the flesh (12:12) and so become discouraged. </p>
<p>We need the grace of Gods Spirit to look beyond the discouragement to see Him! </p>
<p>Consider Elijah in the wilderness of Horeb: “let me die” </p>
<p>Consider the patient perseverance of Job! </p>
<p>A book which begins with disasters and disappointment, ends with Dinosaurs; the Leviathan and Behemoth and God is able to handle them all! </p>
<p>Job is able to rejoice in hope, being greater at his later end than at the beginning. </p>
<p>It is not possible for me to be left wanting as a consequence of any experience that drives us to draw more deeply from the deep resources of Gods Grace in Christ. <br>It is not possible to be impoverished by any event which causes us to enjoy more fully the unsearchable riches of Christ. <br>It is not possible for us to ultimately be disappointed by any experience which causes us to place our hope more fully in Christ. <br>It is not feasible for us to be defrauded by any circumstance which results in me placing unreservedly my treasures in the bank of heaven rather than upon earth. <br>It is not possible to ultimately and finally suffer loss if in those circumstances I find Christ, for all things are His (Rom 8:32; Heb 2:10; 1Co 3:21)! <br>It is not possible for me to be ultimately disappointed by any experience which leads me to see that He is not a disappointment! <br>It is not possible to suffer ultimate defeat whilst enjoying the truth that we are “more than conquerors through Him that loved us.” </p>
<p>v13 – Disheartened </p>
<p>Consider the widow of Zarephath – gathering a few sticks to prepare a meal for her and her son to die! </p>
<p>In her despondency she was in no mood for hospitality! </p>
<p>Certainly in no mood to regard it as a priority to “distribute to the necessity of the Saints”! </p>
<p>“And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” (1Ki 17:12) </p>
<p>What kind of faith was given to this woman to take the last meal from her sons mouth and hand it to Elijah? </p>
<p>This was the faith to draw from the rich resources of Gods Grace (12:3,6) – faith to look beyond the meagre measure of a handful of meal and to lay hold of the full “measure of faith” (12:3). </p>
<p>v14 – Destructiveness <br>v15 – Disinterest in peoples problems <br>v16 – Distant from people <br>v17 – Dishonest <br>v18 – Disagreeable <br>v19 – 20 – Desperate for revenge <br>v21 – Defeated</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ</p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>43:05GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68741072011-02-15T20:00:00+00:002022-01-19T20:44:22+00:00Romans chapter 12 verses 1 and 2 & Genesis chapter 1 verse 2 - The Transforming Spirit of God - JS Gillespie <p>The Gospel works! </p>
<p>Even the sceptics have to acknowledge that! </p>
<p>Charles Darwin, the author of the 'Origin of the Species,' visited the island of Tierra del Fuego, Darwin included the inhabitants in his 'Descent of Man' regarding them as part of the 'missing link.' Darwin considered them a little above animals and a little lower than man: uncivilised, naked, perhaps with suggestions of cannibalism. </p>
<p>Darwin: “for the reflection at once rushed into my mind – such were our ancestors,” </p>
<p>A second visit following the arrival and ministry of a Christian mission on the island, changed his perspective so much that he took out a subscription to the South American Missionary Society for the rest of his life! </p>
<p>The Gospel does change lives, don't just take Christian's word for it! </p>
<p>This book changes lives, not only the life of the unbeliever – conversion </p>
<p>This book changes the life of the believer – consecration </p>
<p>This book inspires me to do great things for God: </p>
<p>This book has the power to inspire men to die for God, not far into the New Testament and the spread of the gospel when we come across our first martyr: Stephen (Acts 7) and the martyrs pile up year upon year thereafter, even till today. <br>This book has the power too, to inspire men and women to do something even greater than dying for God, something beyond the enthusiasm of the moment, the excitement of a single event, the power and passion of a passing moment of time; this book has the power to inspire men and women to live for God! <br>There have even been some in the annals of biblical history who have reached the end of their enthusiasm for service, have given up and layen down ready to die and God in His grace has been sufficient even to inspire them to live for Him once again : cf. Elijah in 1 Kings 19. </p>
<p>There is in this book, and in these verses in particular the clear, close call of God to live for Him and to keep on living for Him! </p>
<p>How does God inspire a man to live for Him? </p>
<p>Message of God (12:1) <br>Mercies of God (12:1) <br>Ministry of God (12:1) <br>Mind of God (12:2) </p>
<p>Message of God (12:1) </p>
<p>“I beseech” </p>
<p>Gods word comes “parakaleō” - a call but more than that “para” - beside – a close call, something near and something personal. </p>
<p>Here in Romans 12 it is the call of God through His apostle and by His Spirit </p>
<p>Ultimately it is Gods personal and intimate and close call to His people </p>
<p>It is the Shepherds call to the sheep, and we hear it! </p>
<p>“To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.” (Joh 10:3-4) </p>
<p>This call comes close </p>
<p>Paul draws close in the Roman epistle (Rom 1:11; Rom 16:1ff). </p>
<p>As Paul drew close, Gods message drew close, still Gods pattern today. </p>
<p>A Call, A Close Call, A Clear Call – full of Gospel content: Romans chapter 1 to 11. </p>
<p>Mercies of God (12:1) </p>
<p>A Call that is Clear – for it is full of the mercies of God, that is it is full of the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. </p>
<p>When Gods call comes it will be full of Christ: </p>
<ol> <li>Mans Sin (Roms 1-3) </li> <li>Gods Salvation (Roms 3-5): Justification, Propitiation, Redemption – the work of the Person of Christ. </li> <li>Sanctification (Roms 6-8) – the Work of the Spirit of Christ </li> <li>Selection / Election (Roms 9) – Chosen in Christ </li>
</ol>
<p>All that God has done has been in Christ </p>
<p>All that God has for me is in Christ </p>
<p>Everything that a Christian has is due completely and solely to the grace of God in Christ! </p>
<p>Astoundingly however, all of these great gospel truths, are but an introduction to Romans 12:1! </p>
<p>What do I mean by that? </p>
<p>Well if I were to ask: 'What is the greatest word in the letter to the Romans?' I wonder what answers I would get? </p>
<p>Martin Luther: 'faith' – that's a great word: 'the just shall live by faith' – transformed the life of a desperate Roman Catholic monk from despair to deliverance and brought me to Christ, transformed the life of millions and changed the course of history in Europe and the world!' <br>John Calvin or some of the Theologians were here maybe tell us we need to think about this book doctrinally and logically: 'justification' – Gods way of making me righteous before Him, that's the great / the key doctrine of Romans! <br>Evangelists were here: Whiteford, Wesley, Billy Graham, - 'gospel' – there's a great word, the 'power of God unto salvation' a message with life changing power! <br>John Newton: you're all wrong, for there is nothing so amazing as Grace! </p>
<p>Plenty of important and great words to chose from! </p>
<p>I'm going to suggest another: “therefore” (Roms 12:1) </p>
<p>That word connects me to Gods purpose! </p>
<p>'When you see therefore, you should always ask, what is it therefore?' </p>
<p>For this word is a joining word, a conjunction. </p>
<p>This word is taking all of the great doctrines and teachings of Romans chapters 1 to 11 and bringing them to their purpose, namely that God has chosen me (chapter 9), saved me (chapters 3 to 5), justified me (chapter 4), redeemed me (chapter 4), sanctified me (chp 6 to 8), preserved me and molded me in trial (chp 5) that I might be transformed to be like Him (Rom 12:2) and to willingly serve Him for His Glory and my good. </p>
<p>This word “therefore” - takes all that I have read in my bible, heard in the meetings, listened to from the preachers, studied in my courses, enjoyed in my small groups and throws out this challenge: 'Has it changed you?' Well that's the purpose of it! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Romans 12:1 – God has given you your life back (chps 1 to 11), now go and live it! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Possible to treat the work of God like that! </p>
<p>Now I've got it, I'll just keep it clean and polished, make no real progress along the road of life! How many spiritual miles of progress have we clocked up? </p>
<p>Ministry of God (12:1) </p>
<p>In the OT men presented sacrifices </p>
<p>The whole OT system revolved around sacrifices </p>
<p>Some basic truths to understand from that system: </p>
<p>Separation: between me and God – God was inside the temple / tabernacle and I am outside <br>Sin: that separation was caused by my sin <br>Sacrifices were brought to ask Gods forgiveness for my sin </p>
<p>In the OT people brought something to God to ask that there sin might be forgiven </p>
<p>In the NT people bring something to God because their sins have been forgiven </p>
<p>“I beseech you therefore brethren by the mercies of God...” </p>
<p>More particularly, in the OT the sacrifices were a lot easier, a lot more straight forward: they were dead! </p>
<p>That was great! </p>
<p>You could pay your money, pick your animal, kill your sacrifice, and then put your feet up, because you had 'done your bit.' </p>
<p>The sacrifice of Romans 12:1 isn't as convenient as that – this sacrifice is living! </p>
<p>I have never 'done my bit' </p>
<p>I can never put my feet up </p>
<p>This is the gift that keeps in giving! </p>
<p>Not because I am trying to get saved but because I am enjoying and keep on enjoying something of Gods wonderful salvation. </p>
<p>This gift stays on the altar! </p>
<p>This service is “reasonable” (v1) </p>
<p>Some would call it “ridiculous” of course – giving all that I am and have for God. </p>
<p>This is sacrifice is “reasonable” to those who can think Gods thoughts </p>
<p>But only to those who can think! </p>
<p>God expects His people to think! </p>
<p>In order that we can think; God renews our mind (12:2) </p>
<p>Mind of God (12:2) </p>
<p>God desires to use you, willingly and voluntarily in His service and for His Glory </p>
<p>God desires to transform you into the image of His Son. </p>
<p>To do this God begins on the inside, with the believers “mind” </p>
<p>The battle for the mind: </p>
<p>“And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”(Php 4:7) </p>
<p>“And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:” (Eph 6:17) </p>
<p>“That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.” (2Th 2:2) </p>
<p>“For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:” (Mar 7:21-22) </p>
<p>The attack on the believers mind: </p>
<p>Phil 4:7 – Emotional dimension – attacks the “peace” of the mind <br>2 Thess 2:2 – Intellectual dimension – ideas and theories <br>Mark 7:21-22 – Moral dimension <br>Eph 6:11, 17 – Spiritual Dimension </p>
<p>The mind is critically important for the believer as he desires to serve God. </p>
<p>That mind must be free and clear. </p>
<p>The problem of drugs and alcohol. </p>
<p>The mind is to be “transformed” (12:2) </p>
<p>Just in case you doubt Gods ability to transform your mind, Paul uses a naturally miraculous word: “metamorphoō” </p>
<p>The caterpillar to the butterfly: </p>
<p>The caterpillars chewing mouth to the butterflies sucking tube, different stomachs and different feeding. <br>The caterpillars few simple eyes to the butterflies two compound eyes (often with thousands of lenses capable of seeing all colours and ultraviolet light in almost all directions) <br>The caterpillar with no true legs to the caterpillars six segmented legs <br>The caterpillar who can’t reproduce to the butterfly which reproduces <br>The caterpillar which crawls to the butterfly which has wings and flies </p>
<p>The caterpillar is literally dissolved and re-arranged, all but its heart dissolves into a collection of proteins and amino acids! </p>
<p>The God who is able to do that on an 'ordinary' day is able to renew your mind!</p>
<p> </p>
<p><a contents="Romans chapter 12 verse 1 - The Altar" data-link-label="" data-link-type="track" href="/track/2862106/romans-chp-12-vs-1-the-altar-j-stewart-gillespie-13022011">Romans chapter 12 verse 1 - The Altar</a></p>
<p><a contents="Romans chapter 12 verse 1 - Therefore - JS Gillespie" data-link-label="" data-link-type="track" href="/track/2862107/romans-chp-12-vs-1-therefore-js-gillespie-01032011">Romans chapter 12 verse 1 - Therefore - JS Gillespie</a></p>
<p><a contents="Romans chapter 12 verses 1 to 2 - A Living Sacrifice - J Stewart Gillespie" data-link-label="" data-link-type="track" href="/track/2862109/romans-chp-12-vs-1-to-2-a-living-sacrifice-j-stewart-gillespie-17102010">Romans chapter 12 verses 1 to 2 - A Living Sacrifice - J Stewart Gillespie</a></p>
<p><a contents="Romans chapter 12 verses 1 and 2- The Transforming Spirit of God - Dr J Stewart Gillespie" data-link-label="" data-link-type="track" href="/track/2862108/romans-chp-12-vs-1-and-2-genesis-1-vs-2-the-transforming-spirit-of-god-241010-js-gillespie">Romans chapter 12 verses 1 and 2- The Transforming Spirit of God - Dr J Stewart Gillespie</a></p>
<p><a contents="Romans chapter 12 verse 2 - An Opportunity to Die - Dr J Stewart Gillespie" data-link-label="" data-link-type="track" href="/track/2862110/romans-chp-12-vs-2-an-opportunity-to-die-j-s-gillespie-08032011">Romans chapter 12 verse 2 - An Opportunity to Die - Dr J Stewart Gillespie</a></p>
<p> </p>44:44GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68741002011-02-13T20:00:00+00:002022-01-19T20:42:54+00:00Romans chapter 12 verse 1 - The Altar - J Stewart Gillespie<p>Romans chapter 12 gives a Biblical view of the personal call to the altar for believers . It is a view which goes beyond the Old Testament view that was apparent to the OT offeror in Leviticus; for the offeror and his sacrifice the altar was the end! If my view of the altar is the same, then this place of the altar will be a place full of foreboding and dread, a place to be avoided at all costs, and I will probably fail either to desire to come here or to actually come here at all. </p>
<p>Before we can desire this place we must perceive some benefit from it! </p>
<p>The New Testament view of the altar: </p>
<p>Romans chapter 12 verse 1: </p>
<ol> <li>Call to the altar (v1) : “beseech” </li> <li>Cause of the altar (v1): “therefore...by the mercies of God” </li> <li>Cost of the altar (v1): “present your bodies a living sacrifice...” </li>
</ol>
<p>Romans chapter 12 verses 2 to 21: </p>
<p>The consequences of the altar </p>
<p>This altar is not wholly negative at all: you go and you come back! </p>
<p>This altar has more in common with the altar of Genesis 22 rather than that of Leviticus. </p>
<p>But you don't come back the way you went! </p>
<p>This altar is the door to radical transformation (12:2ff) </p>
<ol> <li>Fragrance (12:1-3) </li> <li>Fellowship (12:4-8) </li> <li>Fruitfulness (12:9-21) </li>
</ol>
<p>Roms 12:1: </p>
<p>1 - Call to the altar (v1) : </p>
<p>“beseech” : “parakaleō” : to call near </p>
<p>This is the close, intimate call of God, as he calls us near, calls us to Himself to consecration; a call by His Word, perhaps through the preacher but ultimately from Himself and to Himself. </p>
<p>That close call of God as heard by: </p>
<p>Moses – at the burning bush, bringing him to 40 years of deep, committed, consecration. In saying that I did use one of those taboo words: 'committed'. For 40 years it didn't suite Moses to wander in the wilderness; </p>
<p>the place didn't suite him- wandering around in circles for 40 years, never seeing the promised land to which you were leading gods people, and all because of their reluctance to go in and possess the land when God told them to! That would seriously wear you down! <br>the people didn't suite him, sometimes: a 40 year car journey, with 3,000,000 weans in the back seat all complaining: 'I want,' , 'I need', 'why can we no have?', 'this is boring'. 'but I don't want to go to the promised land,' 'I wish we were back hame again!', 'Are we no there yit?' Forty years of that! Moses only struck the rock twice! I think I would have done more than strike the rock! That would seriously wear you down! Ungrateful? Unspiritual? Uninspiring? You would need some commitment to persevere with that! </p>
<p><br>the problems didn't suite him either, but for 40 patient years he continued. He continued because he was : called consecrated committed. Such commitment and consecration can only happen if we hear the close call of God! Here is a call of commitment! </p>
<p>Samuel – in the tabernacle. A call to a lifetime of commitment and consecration. A call: </p>
<p>To be Holy when the priesthood were defiled <br>To be awake whilst others slept <br>To be in touch with God whilst others were distant form God <br>To lead whilst others followed <br>To take a stand whilst others lay down </p>
<p>Here was the boy who would not “lie down” (1 Sam 3:2,5-6). </p>
<p>He would: </p>
<p>Intercede for his people (1 Sam 7:5) <br>Judge a nation (1 Sam 7:6) <br>Anoint a King <br>Lead into battle and victory <br>Bring a word from the Lord! </p>
<p>For Samuel had heard a word of deep and solemn consecration! </p>
<p>It is one thing to be sensitive to the absence of consecrated men, it is quite another to stand in the breach and be one. </p>
<p>Cause of the altar (v1): “therefore...by the mercies of God” </p>
<p>What might hold me back from coming to this altar? </p>
<p>I will not come to this altar if I doubt that this altar and its demands are: </p>
<p>Reasonable </p>
<p>Is such an altar not too much? </p>
<p>Is this not a step too far? </p>
<p>Notice the: Cause of the altar: “therefore..” </p>
<p>What is the greatest word in Romans? </p>
<p>Luther: 'faith' <br>Calvin: 'justification' <br>Evangelists: 'gospel' <br>Newton: 'nothing so amazing as grace' </p>
<p><br>Suggest: 'therefore' – This call to consecration is logical and reasonable and is on the basis of all that God has so far done for us, in His Grace: giving what we do not deserve and in His 'mercy' – withholding what we do deserve. This call is reasonable. In the preceding 11 chapters we have seen that ALL that we have, we have because of Grace: </p>
<p>Salvation (chapters 3-5) <br>Sovereign Grace (chp 5) <br>Sanctification (chps 6-8) <br>Sanctuary (chp 8) </p>
<p>What could be more reasonable than to give it all back to God? </p>
<p>Relevant </p>
<p>Is this call relevant for me? </p>
<p>Do I need it? </p>
<p>Maybe this is just automatically true of me or maybe I don't really need it because of: </p>
<p>Who I am <br>Where I am <br>What I am part of </p>
<p>This objection is answered in Romans chp 11 in the teaching given regarding the olive tree. Paul ahd to remind the Jew that God was sovereign over that tree. That He is the Lord of the Olive Tree. That He is the source of Life in that Olive Tree. He can cut off and He can graft in (Rom 11:20). </p>
<p>Responsible </p>
<p>I mean is it reasonable for me to give up so much? </p>
<p>So much of my: </p>
<p>Time <br>Treasure <br>Talent </p>
<p>Have I to surrender the concrete commitments of: </p>
<p>Family <br>Friends <br>Finance </p>
<p>For what? </p>
<p>Look at the blessings that flow: </p>
<p>Fragrance (12:1-3) <br>Fellowship (12:4-8) <br>Fruitfulness (12:9-21) </p>
<p>I do not think that there is any single spiritual pursuit to which O could commit myself with more potential for blessing than that of consecration. </p>
<p>For 1 verse of consecration there follows 20 verses worth of consequences. </p>
<p>Cost of the altar (v1): “present your bodies a living sacrifice...” </p>
<p>Why “bodies”? </p>
<p>In many places in scripture the body is viewed as 'inferior' to or at least sub-ordinate to the Spirit: </p>
<p>“And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Mat 10:28) </p>
<p>“While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (2Co 4:18) </p>
<p>“Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.” (Php 3:21) </p>
<p>Why the body? Because: </p>
<p>We are contemplating working out our service (12:1) in this material world (12:2) by sanctified living (12:1) – here is the sphere of the body. In others words we are thinking about living in the real world! <br>It is the body which is the particular target of a world caught up with materialism: fashion, clothes, possessions, image, style, gadgets and sensuality: sexual immorality, food, drugs etc. <br>The problems related to the body and its appetites were causing particular problems in the context of Romans (chp 14). <br>Actually Roms 12:1 is not 'just' about your body at all! In fact the call to consecration depends upon the presence of a motive which goes beyond the body and which is thus spiritual in origin “present”. In this verse we have won more than the believers body, we have won his heart, his soul and mind (12:2), cf. Matt 22:37. </p>
<p>Consequences of the altar (12:2-21) </p>
<p>Is it all worthwhile? </p>
<p>Fragrance (12:1-3) </p>
<p>Fellowship (12:4-8) </p>
<p>As each individual 'body' is consecrated to Christ we experience the practical reality of the fact that we are one united 'body' in Christ. </p>
<p>Each individual part is what it ought to be </p>
<p>It is this personal presentation at the altar that empowers the spiritual gifts. </p>
<p>A spiritual gift in the hands of an unconsecrated believer can become a powerful tool for ill. </p>
<p>There is a pressing need for consecration before rushing ahead with the use of any gift. </p>
<p>It is that consecration which provides: Content (12:6) and Control (12:6) of the gift., </p>
<p>Unconsecrated gift, what do you get? </p>
<p>You get a sense of the gift but it is lacking in content, constraint and thus inevitably in consequences. </p>
<p>A sense that he is very able but he could have given that off the cuff, and he probably just did! </p>
<p>Some attempt to find ways around about this: the ministry received in moments of consecration id preserved for repetition verbatim! </p>
<p>A brother develops an address on, a line on but not a consecration on... </p>
<p>Romans chapter 12: </p>
<p>Fragrance (12:1-2) <br>Fellowship (12:3-8) <br>Fruitfulness (12:9-21) </p>
<p>Or: </p>
<p>The Sacrifice upon the altar (12:1-2) <br>The Service in the body (12:3-8) <br>The Sanctification of the believer (12:9-21) </p>
<p>This section not only deals with spiritual gifts and service but also with the fellowship in the body between those variously gifted. </p>
<p>This section of fellowship in the body and the service of God comes after the section on sacrifice and the fragrance of the altar (12:1-2) </p>
<p>Only once the gift which God has given us, has been taken and put upon the altar is it consecrated and fit to be used in His service. </p>
<p>“Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?”(Mat 23:19) </p>
<p>It is the altar which sanctifies the gift. </p>
<p>This is a fundamental principle in the use of any gift from God; such a gift must be first taken to the altar, prayerfully and sacrificially used, for the Glory of God and for the good, the blessing of others. </p>
<p>My gift does not exist to promote myself nor as a means of obtaining financial remuneration from Gods people. </p>
<p>That gift cannot operate independent of the one who gave it, as I operate with that gift I must do so with: </p>
<p>“the measure of faith” (12:3) <br>“according to the proportion of grace” (12:6) </p>
<p>7 Consecrated Gifts: </p>
<p>Prophecy (v6) <br>Ministry (v7) <br>Teaching (v7) <br>Exhortation (v8) <br>Giving (v8) <br>Ruling (v8) <br>Showing mercy (v8) </p>
<p>These Gifts Operate in an atmosphere of: </p>
<p>Humility (12:3) – Anything I can contribute to the body is only mine by Grace “given to me” and through faith 'measured to me' (12:3). Humility to see my need of others in the body too (12:3,5). </p>
<p>Unity (12:5) - “one body” - there needs to be a sense of belonging, a sense of community, a sense of integrity. This unity will be spoiled by an atmosphere of: </p>
<p>Exclusivism – they are the problem, reactive excimmunication <br>Denominationalism – they are not part of our group <br>Professionalism – he is not qualified to speak / preach <br>Clerisy – division between laity and clergy <br>Schism – us and them, a party spirit, 'they're meeting' </p>
<p>Diversity – (12:4,6) – some have a gift that I will benefit from, I have a gift that others may profit from. There is thus a responsibility to use others gifts and a responsibility to be used in return. </p>
<p>Complexity / Plurality - “members one of another” (12:5) – Mutual dependance arising out of a sense of identity in and with Christ. Need to see that close connection we have in Christ even when we don't maybe just see eye to eye on everything. 'Fellowship of life rather than light.' </p>
<p>Spirituality – consecration is required to operate these gifts (12:6-8). </p>
<p>“according to the proportion of faith” : “proportion” : 356 : 'analogia' : proportion, right relation. I take this faith to be personal faith, rather than the objective faith or truth of Christian doctrine, on the basis that: </p>
<p>The obvious parallel with verse 3: 'grace given to me' followed by faith measured to me. <br>The context seems to be that of the personal use of gifts empowered by consecration rather than constrained by doctrine <br>The pattern of the gospel: Eph 2:8 – the grace is given by God and that Grace is drawn in faith. Illust: Isaacs wells, Genesis 26, the water was there – springing or living water, but he had to dig for it, faith drawing from graces rich resources. <br>Without this sense to verse 6, it would be difficult to make sense of verses 7 and 8: 'ministry in ministering, or he that teacheth in teaching; or he that exhorteth in exhortation, he that giveth in simplicity, he that ruleth in diligence...' - in other words the Grace Gift is given: 'ministry' and 'teaching' etc but faith must be mobilised to draw from that gracious gift well of God. How do I exercise that faith? I use the gift! See it operating! I need the faith to 'minister' or to 'teach' or to 'exhort'! </p>
<p>7 Consecrated Gifts: </p>
<p>Prophecy (v6) <br>Ministry (v7) <br>Teaching (v7) <br>Exhortation (v8) <br>Giving (v8) – interesting gift; the gift of giving! This gift underpins all gifts! All spiritual gifts are not really for our benefit at all, they are for the benefit and blessing of others! All gifts must be operated in an atmosphere of self sacrifice. There is a personal cost in their use for a benefit derived by the body as a whole. In the use of all gifts there is this element of self sacrifice and thus before the gift can be exercised there must be the altar (12:1) experience of consecration. There can be a temptation to circumvent that altar / consecration experience so we can have the experience of using the gift but not the expense of giving. The service can become repetitive, mechanical, routine, professional. <br>Ruling (v8) <br>Showing mercy (v8) </p>
<p>Fruitfulness (12:9-21) </p>
<p>The transforming power of the Spirit of God! </p>
<p>The need: </p>
<p>Love (14:15) <br>Righteousness (14:17) <br>Joy (14:17) <br>Peace (14:17) </p>
<p>The supply: </p>
<p>Love (12:9-11) <br>Righteousness (12:9) <br>Joy (12:12-16) <br>Peace (12:16-21)</p>
<p> </p>
<p><a contents="Romans chapter 12 verse 1 - Therefore - J Stewart Gillespie" data-link-label="" data-link-type="track" href="/track/2862107/romans-chp-12-vs-1-therefore-js-gillespie-01032011">Romans chapter 12 verse 1 - Therefore - J Stewart Gillespie</a></p>
<p><a contents="Romans chapter 12 verses 1 to 2 - A Living Sacrifice - Dr J Stewart Gillespie" data-link-label="" data-link-type="track" href="/track/2862109/romans-chp-12-vs-1-to-2-a-living-sacrifice-j-stewart-gillespie-17102010">Romans chapter 12 verses 1 to 2 - A Living Sacrifice - Dr J Stewart Gillespie</a></p>
<p><a contents="Romans chapter 12 verse 2 - An Opportunity to Die - Dr J Stewart Gillespie" data-link-label="" data-link-type="track" href="/track/2862110/romans-chp-12-vs-2-an-opportunity-to-die-j-s-gillespie-08032011">Romans chapter 12 verse 2 - An Opportunity to Die - Dr J Stewart Gillespie</a></p>
<p><a contents="Romans chapter 12 verses 1 to 2 - The Transforming Spirit of God - Dr J Stewart Gillespie" data-link-label="" data-link-type="track" href="/track/2862108/romans-chp-12-vs-1-and-2-genesis-1-vs-2-the-transforming-spirit-of-god-241010-js-gillespie">Romans chapter 12 verses 1 to 2 - The Transforming Spirit of God - Dr J Stewart Gillespie</a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>41:24GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68294102011-01-26T21:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:17:07+00:00Romans chp 11 : 11-24 : 'The Olive Tree – A Magnificent Vision for a Magnificent Service' - J Stewart Gillespie<p>There is a great danger in this present world of becoming caught up with ourselves. </p>
<p>This section points us to the fact that we are not what God is doing, neither me, nor a nation, nor a church but rather we are part of what God is doing. </p>
<p>This section invites me to take a step back and look at the bigger pitcher </p>
<p> </p>
<p>There is something very broad and expansive about this view of Gods dealings in grace. </p>
<p>One of the sad things about this section is that many have approached it with a desire to rigidly define what God is doing in terms of people, places and groups. </p>
<p>In many ways that is the very point of this section. </p>
<p>It is a timely reminder firstly to Israel and then to us all, that none of us are indispensable, that Gods purpose and Gods work goes on with or without us! </p>
<p>It is not about us at all, it is all about Him! </p>
<p>It is God who is: </p>
<p>Lord of this Olive tree <br>Life into this Olive tree <br>Longs for fruit from this Olive tree </p>
<p>In common with other biblical pictures of the relationship between Christ and His people it is we who are dependent upon Him and not the other way around: </p>
<p>The Vine and the branches (John 15:1ff) <br>The Lampstand and the oil (Zech 4) <br>The Lampstands and the Lord (Rev 1-3) </p>
<p>When it comes to the olive tree in particular in the OT we see this truth in even greater detail: </p>
<p>There are approximately 5 clusters of references to the olive tree in the OT: </p>
<p>The Olive Leaf and the Dove (Gen 8:11) <br>The Olive Oil and the Service of Tabernacle (Ex 27:20; 30:24; Lev 24:2) <br>The Olive Wood and the Sanctuary of the Temple (1 Kings 6:2; 31-32) <br>The Olive Trees and the Supply of Oil (1 Chron 27:28) <br>The Olive Tree and the Sufficiency for Testimony (Zech 4:3; 11-12) </p>
<p>The Olive Leaf and the Dove (Gen 8:11) </p>
<p>A dove with the leaf / the branch or the twig of an olive tree in its beak; the Heb would hold either of these translation. </p>
<p>Plucked from the remnants of a lost world </p>
<p>Emerging from the flood waters of Divine judgment </p>
<p>A whole world destroyed because of sin, a global catastrophe: Gen 7:10-12; 18-19; 21-24. </p>
<p>In a scene of unsurpassed destruction and devastation the gentleness of the dove is seen to identify and to pluck a leaf from a world destroyed under the judgment of God! </p>
<p>Gathered with the keen eyes of the Dove, sensitive to the first signs of new life and brought back as an evidence of the Grace of God to a world that for 1 long year had been under His wrath and condemnation </p>
<p>A leaf from the flood waters of Divine Destruction </p>
<p>Even in a secular society such is a symbol of hope </p>
<p>The believer is able to look beyond the symbol and ask why? </p>
<p>What is the reason for this hope? </p>
<p>The reason lies surely in the Grace of God towards sinful man: “so Noah knew that the water were abated from off the earth” (Gen 8:11) </p>
<p>Evidence of the wrath of God abated. </p>
<p>Evidence that Grace worked again where the waters of Gods judgment had flowed </p>
<p>Here was: “life from the dead” (Rom 11:15) </p>
<p>Note the first associations of the Olive Tree: </p>
<p>Grace towards a fallen humanity, hope and restoration after the judgment of God against sin. <br>The Dove : 'yonah' = Jonah – appearing 5 X in this chapter </p>
<p>The association between the Dove and the Olive tree is an interesting one </p>
<p>The Dove appears 31 X in the OT and 11 X in the NT </p>
<p>It emerges as: </p>
<p>A sacrificial animal (Lev 1:14; 5:7,11; 12:6,8; 14:22, 30; 15:14, 29; Num 6:10) <br>With reference to its eyes (Song of Sol 1:15; 4:1; 5:12; Isa38:14) <br>Undefiled character (Song of Sol 5:2; 6:9) </p>
<p>But if I were to try and identify of what or of whom the Dove would speak I would really have only 1 real candidate: </p>
<p>4 X – once in each of the gospel accounts of the baptism of Christ: 'the Spirit of God' descends upon Christ like a dove (Matt 3:16; Mk 1:10; Lk 3:22; John 1:32) </p>
<p>Interestingly when Christ comes to the temple in Matthew, Mark and John, He casts out not only the money changers but those who sold doves (Matt 21:12; Mk 11:15; Jo 2:14, 16)! </p>
<p>The same feature of dove-likeness was to mark the disciples (Matt 10:16). </p>
<p>The olive tree becomes a very precious picture of “life from the dead” (11:15) but this only by the grace and power of Gods Holy Spirit. </p>
<p>The Saving Grace of God </p>
<p>The Olive Oil and the Service of Tabernacle (Ex 27:20; 30:24; Lev 24:2) </p>
<p>In Exodus and Leviticus the Olive tree is now linked with oil </p>
<p>I suppose that above all things the olive is linked with oil </p>
<p>It is form the word for olive that the Greeks took their word for oil and it is from the Greek word for oil that we get our word for oil and so every time we use the word oil it is really a covert reference to the olive tree! </p>
<p>This oil would be used to: </p>
<p>Fuel the lamp in the tabernacle (Ex 27:20) </p>
<p>The olive oil is the fuel to maintain the light in the tabernacle </p>
<p>To produce the anointing oil for the tabernacle </p>
<p>That Holy Anointing Oil is used to: </p>
<p> Anoint the tabernacle (Ex 30:24) <br>Anoint the furniture (Ex 30:27) <br>Anoint the vessels (Ex 30:27-28) <br>Anoint the priest </p>
<p>This Holy anointing oil: </p>
<p>Sanctifies (Ex 30:29) <br>Consecrates (Ex 30:30) </p>
<p>In the NT that anointing finds its fulfillment in the work of the Holy Spirit of God: </p>
<p>It is the Spirit of God who anointed Christ (Lk 4:18; Acts 10:38) <br>It is the Spirit of God who anoints Christians (1 John 2:20,27) </p>
<p>The olive is linked with 'fruitfulness' (11:16) and 'fatness' (11:17) – that of the Spirit. </p>
<p>All Sufficient Sanctifing Spirit of God </p>
<p>The Olive Wood and the Sanctuary of the Temple (1 Kings 6:2; 31-32) </p>
<p>In Solomons temple it is the wood of the olive tree that is to be found used in: </p>
<p>The doors of the oracle (1 Kings 6:31) – the way into the presence of god was by means of the Olive Tree </p>
<p>Suggestive perhaps of the activity of the Spirit of God? </p>
<p>“Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” (Joh 4:21-24) </p>
<p>“Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”(Joh 3:5) </p>
<p>“Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”(Rom 8:26) </p>
<p>“For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.” (Eph 2:18) </p>
<p>The olive tree linked to being 'grafted in' (11:19,23,24), 'standing by faith' (11:20), to the idea of access and relationship with God by His Spirit. </p>
<p>The Sanctuary Experience of God </p>
<p>The Olive Trees and the Supply of Oil (1 Chron 27:28) </p>
<p>These olive trees of David were placed under the care of: </p>
<p>Baalhanan – from 1167 - 'Baal' – master, Lord, husband & 2608 – Jah has Favoured; 2608 is from 2603 – to bend, to stoop, to give, to be gracious and 3050 – Jah <br>Gederite – from 1445 / 1444 – a wall </p>
<p>These olive trees were guarded in Grace and possessed in Grace </p>
<p>The Sovereign Grace of God </p>
<p>The Olive Tree and the Sufficiency for Testimony (Zech 4:3; 11-12) </p>
<p>The lamp of testimony here in Zech 4 </p>
<p>The lamp of testimony in the tabernacle (Exodus 27) </p>
<p>The lamp of testimony in the church (Rev 1) </p>
<p>Are all maintained by oil </p>
<p>The lamp here is fed by pipes leading ultimately to 2 olive trees, from these 2 olive trees the oil flows </p>
<p>The interpretation includes: </p>
<p>“Not by might nor by power but by my Spirit saith the Lord of hosts” (Zech 4:6) </p>
<p>What is this olive tree all about? </p>
<p>It is a picture of that truth that: </p>
<p>God Saves us <br>God Sanctifies us <br>God Sets us apart for Himself <br>God Supplies us in Grace <br>God Sufficient for His Work in and through us </p>
<p>The Olive tree is really a broad picture of the work which God is doing and has done down through the years and generations. </p>
<p>Unless I am very much mistaken we have just produced an outline of the book of Romans (almost): </p>
<p>God Saves us – Romans chps 3-5 <br>God Sanctifies us – Romans chps 6-8 <br>God Sets us apart for Himself – Romans chp 8 <br>God Supplies us in Grace – Romans chp 5 <br>God Sufficient for His Work in and through us – Romans chp 11 </p>
<p>This olive tree then we are going to suggest is broader than many might consider it to be. </p>
<p>In particular it is not </p>
<p>The Church: </p>
<p>Dis-guarded branches : (11:17,20) – unbelievers were never part of the church. </p>
<p>Declaration of Christ : “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Mat 16:18)- “I will build” - future tense </p>
<p>Distinctive character of the church: “Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;” (Eph 2:15) – not simply a continuation of Israel! </p>
<p>Clearly Defined Foundation: “And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;” (Eph 2:20) </p>
<p>Dispensational nature: Revelation chps 1 to 3. </p>
<p>Not Exclusively Israel: </p>
<p>More or less the whole of the nation in rebellion against God and in rejection of Christ (11:1; 10:1-4; 9:1-5) constitutes only “some of the branches” (11:17). This is out of proportion to national Israel, this is not restricted to Israel. <br>Independent of the removal en masse of Israel from this tree “the root and fatness” remain (11:17). This goes beyond the resources of Israel. <br>To be grafted into this tree is not simply to be grafted into Israel, although many from that nation have preceeded us but rather to be grafted into this tree is to be grafted into “the goodness” of God (11:22). <br>Continued membership of this tree is defined not on terms of national identity but on “belief” (11:20,23) <br>National identity as Israel is maintained even after removal from this tree (11:25-27). </p>
<p>So not simply Israel, although unquestionably includes the true Israel of God. </p>
<p>This tree is not definably purely in terms of people – that is the point. </p>
<p>It is what God is doing! </p>
<p>It is Gods relationship with His people: </p>
<p>The Life of God in it (11:17) <br>The Lordship of God over it (11:21-23) <br>Longings of God for fruitfulness from it (11:6) </p>
<p>Our understanding of the picture of the Olive tree must not cease with looking at: </p>
<p>The members <br>The ministers </p>
<p>but rather: </p>
<p>The master </p>
<p>The truth being presented is that of our dependence upon Him and the results that flow from that relationship: </p>
<p>Fruitfulness (11:16) <br>Fatness (11:17) <br>Fellowship (11:18) <br>Faithfulness (11:20) </p>
<p>This olive tree extends beyond Israel out to others: </p>
<p>Abel <br>Noah <br>Abraham <br>Melchizedek <br>Naman the Syrian <br>Widow of Zarephath <br>The Widow of Zarephaths son <br>Rahab of Jericho <br>Ruth the Moabitess <br>Children (Roms 5; Matt 18:10ff; Lk 8:47ff) <br>Widow of Nains Son </p>
<p>He is in charge – not us. </p>
<p>Do we have a tendency to become introspective, inward looking and narrow minded? </p>
<p>One of the hurdles that Paul had to overcome in his transformation from Saul the Pharisee to Paul the apostle was that of a narrow view of the Grace of God </p>
<p>He must develop an expansive view of the Greatness of the Grace of God, a Grace that extended not only to the Jew but out to the Gentiles also. </p>
<p>Gods Grace proved to be fa wider than the Pharisee had ever expected </p>
<p>Perhaps we get a hint of this in 11:13: “I magnify mine office” </p>
<p>His service as the apostle to the Gentile was an expansive, explosive and exciting commission, going beyond the barriers and middle wall of partition that had existed for 100s of years. </p>
<p>In this picture of the olive tree we catch a glimpse of the expansive nature of the Grace of God. </p>
<p>A Grace not limited to us, to the assemblies, even to this present Church age, but which flows behind and before as a mighty outpouring of the riches of Gods Grace in Christ. </p>
<p>It is a Grace undefeated, unquenched and undiminished by the unfaithfulness of men </p>
<p>As men reject, rebel and refuse, Gods Grace presses on, to higher ground, uncharted waters and regions beyond: </p>
<p>'His love, floweth on, full and free as a river, </p>
<p>His mercy endureth forever and ever' </p>
<p>To grasp the breadth of the picture of Gods purposes in Grace we will need to trace the olive tree from its first shoots and leaves in Gen 8 to its final harvest in Rev 11. </p>
<p>From a leaf that emerges from the flood waters of Divine judgment to the cutting off of the 2 olive trees at the midpoint of the day of tribulation and thus the subsequent out pouring of Divine judgment! </p>
<p>What happens when the olive tree is finally removed? </p>
<p>Let the Lord Jesus Himself give His verdict: </p>
<p>“For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning </p>
<p>of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” (Mat 24:21)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Part of our bible study teaching series of messages preached through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ</p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>44:16GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68293892011-01-19T20:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:17:34+00:00Romans Chapter 11 vs 1 to 15 : '7 Features of an Irrepressible Christian' - JS Gillespie<p>We have an insight into the heart of an irrepressible Christian. </p>
<p>Everything is thrown at the apostle Paul: </p>
<p>Tortured by men (2 Co11:23ff) <br>Troubled by deep emotions (Rom 9:1ff) <br>Taunted by skeptics (Rom 11:1ff) <br>Tested by the Devil (Eph 6:10ff; 1 Thess 2:18) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Physical battles (2 Co11:23ff) <br>Emotional battles (Rom 9:1ff) <br>Psychological battles (Rom 11:1ff) – you're all alone <br>Spiritual battles (Eph 6:10ff; 1 Thess 2:18) </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Yet true salvation is secure salvation </strong></p>
<p> </p>
<p>The genuine believer is finally triumphant in Christ </p>
<p>This is Irrepressible Christianity </p>
<p>Christ triumphant, ever reigning <br>Saviour, Master, King <br>Lord of heaven, our lives sustaining <br>Hear us as we sing </p>
<p>Yours the glory and the crown <br>The high renown, the eternal name </p>
<p>Out of these trials Paul triumphs because Christ triumphs </p>
<p>This is the Gospel of the Christ of the Cross! </p>
<p>Qualifications for perseverance in the service of God: </p>
<p>Can I rejoice in disappointment? (11:1ff) <br>Can I see a future when other can only see an end (11:1,3)? <br>Am I alert when others slumber (11:8)? <br>Can I stand when others stumble (11:9)? <br>Can I make big what others make small (11:12)? <br>Can I give when others take (11:14)? <br>Do I maintain a vision for God even when it lies beyond the visible horizon (11:13-14)? </p>
<p>Can I rejoice in disappointment? </p>
<p>Able to rejoice in disappointment? </p>
<p>That ultimately and finally God and His purposes in Christ will be fulfilled, for this is the only reason God perceivers with us in grace! </p>
<p>So out of the disappointments, disasters and discouragement something new and great emerges from God. </p>
<p>Paul is a master of that kind of teaching (Roms 5:1-5; Rom 8:18ff; 2Co 1:4) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>God is able even to make the wrath of man praise Him! </p>
<p>Delilahs treachery ultimately brought Samson back to the Lord! <br>Elijahs disappointment ultimately brought him to Mt Horeb, the cave and the still small voice <br>The turning of God to the gentile and Israels rejection would ultimately work to the provocation of Israel (Rom 11:11) </p>
<p>This section is founded upon the example and experience of Elijah in 1 Kings 18 + 19. </p>
<p>The principle that where God maintains 1 preacher, 1 prophet or 1 apostle, it may only be one but He has maintained a purpose and a people! </p>
<p>Elijah was unable to see this in 1 Kings 18 + 19, but unknown to Elijah, God had used the dark canvas of disappointment, discouragement and disaster to paint His picture of revival, in the bold colours of commitment and consecration. </p>
<p>The whole nation could see the bankruptcy of Baal worship in 1 Kings 18, and out of that failure, arise 7000 men who refuse to continue with a mere show, a mere form, who refuse to pursue a god on holiday, who never replies and who is unable to respond to the sacrifices of his worshipers. </p>
<p>Here was a religion that even the Devil couldn't get to work! </p>
<p>Out of the decline, disaster and disappointment come 7000, who hunger and thirst after the Living God, who need the Living bread of heaven, the Living water, who expect reality and will be satisfied with nothing less than an experience of the Living God of heaven! </p>
<p>From this Paul draws his encouragement, there may only be Paul (11:1) but where God has maintained a prophet, an apostle, or a preacher, He has maintained a purpose and people. </p>
<p>The rejection by the nation of Israel, of Christ was a major disappointment for Paul, who expresses his deep burden for his own people in 9:1-5; 10:1-4; 11:1ff. </p>
<p>Out of that rejection by Israel, Paul is given a vision of overflowing blessing to others (Rom 11:11ff) </p>
<p>Paul is able to take encouragement from where it comes (11:13), rather than from where he would desire it to come? </p>
<p>Can I see a future when others can only see an end? (11:1,3) </p>
<p>To be unable to discern with distinction the difference between what merely 'remains' and what is 'reserved'. </p>
<p>This failing is nothing new: </p>
<p>Widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:11-12) – all that is left, it is the end <br>Even Elijah doesn't learn the lesson he taught the widow! 1 Kings 19:10 “I only am left...” - you mean Elijah – just like the handful of meal and the little oil in the cruse? You need to take on board your own ministry Elijah! <br>Luke 24 – the 2 on the road to Emmaus – is it the end? It is the beginning! <br>'It is for us the end, but for me the beginning' Dietrich Bonhoeffer </p>
<p>Be careful about seeing what remains as the end – that kind of thinking is often simply repackaged unbelief. </p>
<p>Are you able to stand alone against the world and say: </p>
<p>“I also” (11:1) </p>
<p>or do I say: </p>
<p>“I alone” (11:3)? </p>
<p>Am I able to look further than is visible with the naked eye, to the things that are unseen (11:5,8) </p>
<p>Do I look around and am I only able to see what remains of better days gone by? </p>
<p>All that is left: 'a remnant' (11:5) and that spells the end? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This remnant is not what God has been left with from better days gone by! </p>
<p>This group has been reserved “according to the election of grace” (11:5) – chosen by God and therefore with a future and a purpose! </p>
<p>Gods purposes for Israel didn't end in 1 Kings 19 with a remnant! </p>
<p>Gods purposes continued with the remnant! </p>
<p>Am I alert when others slumber? (11:8) </p>
<p>Many causes of spiritual slumber: </p>
<p>Sin - Samson – Sin that ultimately led him to slumber </p>
<p>4 times in Judges 16 Samson slept! </p>
<p>He got away with it on 3 occasions! </p>
<p>It was all just a joke (16:10,13) – a game. </p>
<p>Samson was just winding Delilah up and she was just trying to wind him up! </p>
<p>Wasn't she? </p>
<p>With all this talk of: 'the Philistines are upon you Samson' – as if he would have fallen for that one! </p>
<p>Whilst Samson slept on those first 3 occasions he was oblivious to at least 3 facts: </p>
<p>The enemy had valued his soul: 1100 pieces of silver – Samson didn't know about that! Well he wouldn't – he was asleep. </p>
<p>The woman he loved was a traitor: she was waiting to take the silver – Samson didn't know about that! Well he wouldn't – he was asleep! </p>
<p>Every time that Delilah had said: “the Philistines be upon thee Samson” (16:9, 12, 14) there were hiding in the chamber a gang of cut throats waiting to take take his eyes out. He didn't know that! Well he wouldn't would he? He was asleep! By the time he could see it, it was too late, they were taking his eyes out! </p>
<p>Slothfulness - (Matt 25:5) – the 10 virgins – 5 seem to have got fed up waiting </p>
<p>Apathy makes us slumber, Bible remains closed, Prayer we rarely do, We lose interest, Maybe nothing actively sinful </p>
<p>Self – Disciples (Peter, James and John) in the garden of Gethsemane </p>
<p>Matthew 26 </p>
<p>Sovereign judgment of God </p>
<p>Romans 11:8 – Judicial slumber <br>God shuts them off to themselves <br>cf. Roms 1 – 'God gave them up' </p>
<p>Can I stand when others stumble (11:9)? </p>
<p>They fell where they fed: </p>
<p>“snare” : Planning : 'pagis' – to set up, to fix, cf. 1 Tim 3:7; 2 Tim 2:26 – deliberately set up to catch us out </p>
<p>That snare is peculiar to each individual: Samson - it was Delilah, Lots wife – family, Judas – money, Demas – this present world, 2 Tim 4:3 – preachers in the last days – popularity. </p>
<p>“trap” : Person: 'ther' – wild beast, thinking about creature in the trap, thinking of you as the target <br>“stumbling block” : Purpose: 'skandalon' : the trigger of the trap, what does the trap need me to do to trigger it? What action / activity is it I am meant to be enticed to do in order to ruin me? <br>“recompense” : Product: the reward from the trap, what are the consequences? </p>
<p>cf. Numbers 25 : enticing Gods people into sexual immorality, idolatry and this bringing upon themselves the judgment of God. All part of a definite plan (Rev 2:14; Num 31:16) </p>
<p>Can I make big what others make small? (11:13) </p>
<p>Cf. 2 Sam 23:11-12 – defending the field of lentils </p>
<p>Am I able to see the work which God has given me to do as great work? </p>
<p>Pauls great burden was for his own people (9:1-5; 10:1-4; 11:1ff). </p>
<p>When given the commission to take the gospel to the gentiles he doesn't take the huff, feel that he has drawn the short straw, or grumble that his exercise was for someone else, somewhere else and somehow else! </p>
<p>He is given the grace to hear the call of God even if it is not to where he would chose to be! </p>
<p>Can God only call me to: </p>
<p>Where I want to be? <br>What I want to be? <br>When I wish to do it? </p>
<p>Paul is able to see Gods appointments in his deep and bitter disappointments – here is grace indeed! </p>
<p>Paul “magnifies” : 'doxazo' : glorifies his 'office' : diakonia : service </p>
<p>Paul has grace to glory in the service God has given him today </p>
<p>For the service of God to be effective, each servant needs to 'make big' or 'make much' or 'magnify' that service which God has given them to do. </p>
<p>The visitation work, praying with the bereaved opens doors that never shut, work with the children, teen club, Sunday school and preaching. I say preaching because it is possible to loose momentum, to fail in that spiritual diligence and exercise so much needed in preaching and to become routine, repetitive and to lack earnestness, passion, zeal, burden and freshness, and instead just to repeat one I prepared earlier. </p>
<p>Are we in danger today of moving from one error to another error? </p>
<p>From the error of: </p>
<p>Church centered Christianity </p>
<p>Meeting orientated </p>
<p>If it isn't done collectively, it isn't done at all </p>
<p>Somewhat superficial </p>
<p>to: </p>
<p>Self centered Christianity </p>
<p>Do our own thing </p>
<p>Please ourselves </p>
<p>Cherry picking, what suites me, taking out what I want and with no real commitment to put back in. </p>
<p>A Sunday morning here, a praise night there, a favourite preacher somewhere else </p>
<p>Commitments dropped when it suites me </p>
<p>'well it's THEIR meeting isn't it?' </p>
<p>There may soon be few cherries left to pick </p>
<p>Instead of: </p>
<p>Christ centered Christianity </p>
<p>One of the many problems of self-centered Christianity is that the 'magnify' is dropped from 'service' – big groups, occasional attendance, where are the workers? </p>
<p>Can I give when others take (11:14) </p>
<p>Do I desire others to have as much zeal as me? </p>
<p>What would the collective company be like if everyone had the same zeal as me? </p>
<p>Do I see myself as an encourager? </p>
<p>“provoke to emulation” : 'parazeloo' – to stimulate alongside – to excite! </p>
<p>Do I maintain a vision for God even when it lies beyond the horizon (11:13-14)?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Part of our bible study teaching series of messages preached through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>49:44GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68294112011-01-18T20:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:17:48+00:00Romans chapter 11 vs 4 to 10 : 'Whilst Samson Slept' - Dr J Stewart Gillespie<p>2 groups of people: </p>
<p>The Remnant (11:4-7) <br>The Rest (11:7-10) </p>
<p>Whilst we have 2 groups I want to think about 3 conditions: </p>
<p>Sleeping (11:7-8) <br>Stumbling (11:9) <br>Sold out for God (11:4-7) </p>
<p>Conditions (1) and (2) really apply to the one group of people – the rest </p>
<p>But perhaps we can see that there is decline in their condition </p>
<p>From bad to worse? </p>
<p>Sold out for God: </p>
<p>The Remnant of Grace: </p>
<p>Communicating with Power (11:4) <br>Consecrated to a Person (11:4) <br>Committed to a Purpose (11:5-6) </p>
<p>Communicating with Power (11:4) </p>
<p>Gods power was seen in these discouraging and disappointing circumstances of 1 Kings 18 & 19: God is Sovereign, not just when things go well but when things seem to go badly too! </p>
<p>Against the canvas of disaster, disappointment and discouragement God is able to paint the picture of revival with the bold colours of commitment and consecration. </p>
<p>One good thing out of tribulations? </p>
<p>'chrematismos' (11:4) – dealings with God </p>
<p>Obadaiah had dealings with God (1 Kings 18) </p>
<p>Elijah had dealings with God (1 Kings 18) </p>
<p>7000 refused to have dealings with anyone other than God (1 Kings 19) </p>
<p>7000 with a spiritual appetite, who hungered and thirsted after the living God, who hungered for the living Bread, whose hearts panted after the water brooks (Ps 42) </p>
<p>A nation on the whole happy to continue with something that not even Satan could make work, 7,000 set apart to God! </p>
<p>Gods people ought to be a people with whom God speaks: </p>
<p>Abraham <br>Joseph <br>Elijah 'still small voice' <br>Samuel – heard the call of God in days of no open vision <br>David – 'sweet psalmist of Israel' <br>Paul <br>“If any man speak let him speak as the oracles of God” (1 Peter 4:11) <br>“But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all: And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth.” (1Co 14:24-25) </p>
<p>Consecrated to a Person (11:4) </p>
<p>“reserved to myself” - the idea of a remnant does not lie so much in God possessing the left overs from better days, but rather reserving with purpose a people for Himself. </p>
<p>Not only what remains but what is reserved for Him </p>
<p> </p>
<p>These 7000 have been chosen: </p>
<p>7000 – a definite number <br>7 – a perfect number <br>7 – Divine perfection <br>7 – often linked with the working of the Spirit of God (Zech 4:2,6,10) </p>
<p>Here were a group who: </p>
<p>Heard the WORD of God <br>Have WORSHIPPED the Living God <br>Followed the WAYS of God </p>
<p>Committed to a Purpose (11:5-6) </p>
<p>Notice the idea of purpose linked with the remnant: “according to the election of Grace” (11:5) </p>
<p>Not simply the end but the beginning </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Sleeping (v8): </p>
<p>Not all were sold out for God. </p>
<p>You just become a sitting duck for Satan. </p>
<p>4 times in Judges 16 Samson slept! </p>
<p>He got away with it on 3 occasions! </p>
<p>It was all just a joke (16:10,13) – a game. </p>
<p>Samson was just winding Delilah up and she was just trying to wind him up! </p>
<p>Wasn't she? </p>
<p>With all this talk of: 'the Philistines are upon you Samson' – as if he would have fallen for that one! </p>
<p>Whilst Samson slept on those first 3 occasions he was oblivious to at least 3 facts: </p>
<p>The enemy had valued his soul: 1100 pieces of silver – Samson didn't know about that! Well he wouldn't – he was asleep. <br>The woman he loved was a traitor: she was waiting to take the silver – Samson didn't know about that! Well he wouldn't – he was asleep! <br>Every time that Delilah had said: “the Philistines be upon thee Samson” (16:9, 12, 14) there were hiding in the chamber a gang of cut throats waiting to take take his eyes out. He didn't know that! Well he wouldn't would he? He was asleep! By the time he could see it, it was too late, they were taking his eyes out! </p>
<p>Let us appreciate this dear believer: </p>
<p>The Christian life is lived out amidst spiritual enemies and realities we cannot see. We know very little of what is actually going on (cf. Job). What is going on here? Well you may ask! “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” (Eph 6:12) – ever seen them? </p>
<p>Therefore we must live that life in faith, living in the awareness of the unseen which is eternal. “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (2Co 4:18) </p>
<p>By the time we can see what is unseen – it will be too late to change anything, either for the better or the worse. So grasp it by faith now! (1 Co3:13ff) </p>
<p>The Devil is not lingering in the corners of your room to make you a hot chocolate as you fall asleep, he is waiting with a gully knife to take your eyes out, to make you a laughing stock and bring an end to any influence for good and for God that you have in this world! “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” (1Pe 5:8) </p>
<p>“be not deceived, God is not mocked, for whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap” (Gal6:7) - God does not take lightly to being ditched for the love of a treacherous, Philistine harlot. </p>
<p>“What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.” (Jonah 1:6) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>In case you think Gods judgment too harsh in verse 8 – god shuts them up to themselves: </p>
<p>eyes unresponsive to light <br>ears unresponsive to sound </p>
<p>When he finally became aware of these realities: too late! </p>
<p>The 4th was his final slumber: </p>
<p>Disclosure (16:18) – to the most dangerous person to whom Samson could ever disclose his heart to. He had no idea of the danger that he was in. </p>
<p>Denial (16:17-18) – Samson commits the sacred things of God, the sanctity of his Nazarite vows into the hands of an ungodly Philistine. He casts his richest pearls before the swine. </p>
<p>Destruction (16:19ff) </p>
<p>Stumbling (v9-10) </p>
<p>They fell where they fed: </p>
<p>“snare” : Planning : 'pagis' – to set up, to fix, cf. 1 Tim 3:7; 2 Tim 2:26 – deliberately set up to catch us out <br>“trap” : Person: 'ther' – wild beast, thinking about creature in the trap, thinking of you as the target <br>“stumbling block” : Purpose: 'skandalon' : the trigger of the trap, what does the trap need me to do to trigger it? What action / activity is it I am meant to be enticed to do in order to ruin me? <br>“recompense” : Product: the reward from the trap, what are the consequences? </p>
<p>cf. Numbers 25 : enticing Gods people into sexual immorality, idolatry and this bringing upon themselves the judgment of God. All part of a definite plan (Rev 2:14; Num 31:16)</p>
<p>Part of our bible study teaching series of messages preached through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>44:13GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68294092011-01-10T20:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:18:33+00:00Romans Chapter 11 vs 1 to 12 : 'Failure that Fans the Flames of Faith' - J Stewart Gillespie <p>Romans chp 11 – part of the difficult part of Romans? </p>
<p>Is there an easy part? </p>
<p>Romans chps 9 to 11 – a parenthesis – it is, but not that much of a parenthesis </p>
<p>Is it out of place? </p>
<p>Chps 1 -3 – Sin </p>
<p>Chps 3 – 5 – Salvation </p>
<p>Chps 6 – 8 – Sanctification </p>
<p>Chp 7 – Struggle with the flesh </p>
<p>Chp 8 – Victory in the Spirit </p>
<p>chps 9 to 11 – Israel </p>
<p>Is it there out of habit? </p>
<p>Is it there out of place? </p>
<p>Is it there out of order? </p>
<p>I think rather out of necessity! </p>
<p>Perhaps chps 9 to 11 are not really primarily about Israel at all but rather the questions that arise from considering the gospel in connection with Israel </p>
<p>The subject remains the same: The Gospel of Jesus Christ but we consider the many problems that arise when we begin to think deeply about this message. </p>
<p>Not primarily about Israel, it is about the gospel problems linked with Israel </p>
<p>The theme of Romans is that of the Gospel, the big questions of the gospel that Israel throws up: </p>
<p>How can I be saved? (9:6ff) <br>How can I be secure? (9:6ff) <br>How can I be sanctified? (12:1ff) <br>How can God be Sovereign? (9:1ff) </p>
<p>In chapter 10: How can we reconcile: </p>
<p>A finished work (10:1-4) <br>A free work (10:6-1) <br>A faith work (10:6-13) <br>A for all work (10:10ff) </p>
<p>with the OT scriptures? </p>
<p>Chp 11 – Is Gods will frustrated when people fail? </p>
<p>Failure in the hands of a sovereign God is able to fan the flames of faith </p>
<p>In Romans chapter 5, out of tribulation God is able to bring the fruit of the Spirit </p>
<p>In Romans chapter 11, out of tribulation God is able to bring a people out of tribulation. </p>
<p>The Problem of Israel (11:1) <br>The Promise of the preacher, the people and the purposes of God (11:1-6) <br>The Power of God (11:4-6) </p>
<p>The Problem of Israel (11:1) </p>
<p>“Hath God cast away His people...” </p>
<p>The problem of eternal security which launched this parenthetical section of Romans chp 9 to 11 </p>
<p>Now dealt with from a practical perspective </p>
<p>Look around you: Israel is lost, isn't it? </p>
<p>The Promise of the preacher, the people and the purposes of God (11:1-6) </p>
<p>Where God has preserved a prophet (Elijah), or an apostle (Paul) or a preacher there is hope! </p>
<p>For where God has preserved a prophet, a preacher, or an apostle, He has preserved a purpose and a people! </p>
<p>Gods purposes in Grace have not ended </p>
<p>Maybe there was only 1 lonely figure on the top of Mount Carmel in 1 Kings 18 but he was the tip of the iceberg! </p>
<p>God had 7000 who had not bowed the knee to Baal! </p>
<p>If God did it then, surely he will do it now with 1 apostle (11:1)? </p>
<p>Paul takes the case of Elijah as a precedent for His dealings with the people </p>
<p>Just as Elijah and his presence was a token of a remnant in Elijahs day so too Paul in his day is indicative of the fact that God has not given up His people now. </p>
<p>If God had cast away Israel why use a converted Pharisee to reach the Gentiles? </p>
<p>There had always been a preserved remnant: </p>
<p>Days of the Patriarchs (9:7-13) <br>Days of Isaiah (9:27) <br>Days of Elijah (11:2ff) </p>
<p>So long as God continues to raise men up to speak, he continues to have a purpose, a plan and a people. </p>
<p>It is when God ceases to speak that we see the herald of dark and dismal days: </p>
<p>The silence of God in the days of Eli the priest, “no open vision”: the loss of his sons, the ark and the battle <br>The silence of God in the days of King Saul: brought death and defeat <br>The silence of God in with Israel: the dispersion </p>
<p>Gods silence amongst will wipe us out! </p>
<p>It will destroy us. </p>
<p>If He ceases to speak amongst us – we have nothing but mere empty form, religion, tradition, no matter how doctrinally correct it maybe, no matter how proud our pedigree and no matter how pure our principles! </p>
<p>If He ceases to speak – we are dead! </p>
<p>When we start to speak about a remnant, don't start to get all despondent and start on about the day of small things! </p>
<p>The remnant does not indicate that things are naturally winding down and this is all that is left over from better days! Not a bit of it! Notice how the term is used: </p>
<p>“remnant according to the election of grace” (11:6) </p>
<p>This a select group chosen for Gods sovereign purpose! </p>
<p>It is not simply the left overs from better days! </p>
<p>It has built into it the thought of hope and purpose and meaning. </p>
<p>It is not simply the end of an past work </p>
<p>It is the beginning of a new and future work. </p>
<p>If I feel I am part of a faithful remnant, then let me search out that special purpose which God has for me! </p>
<p>The Power of God (11:4-6) </p>
<p>Gods power was evident in difficult days </p>
<p>When we think about the power of God working in difficult days, we are saying that God is not only able to bring a people out of, through difficulties but rather He is able to use those very circumstances to mold and shape His people and to fulfill His purpose. </p>
<p>God is not only partly sovereign over circumstances, but wholly sovereign so that “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.” (Rom 8:28), therefore we are able with confidence to “rejoice in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience” (Rom 5:3), not wondering, is this a circumstance over which God is sovereign or isn't sovereign or is maybe part sovereign? </p>
<p>God is able not only to bring us out of difficult circumstances but to prosper us personally (Rom 5:1-5) and to prosper His people collectively (Rom 11) in those difficult circumstances. </p>
<p>Matt 14:22ff: Peter was sinking in the water – what was that all about? </p>
<p>Was the only purpose to react and respond to Peters need, to save him from the sinking experience? </p>
<p>Was Christ only Sovereign over the saving? </p>
<p>Is Christ not also sovereign over the sea, the storm and the sinking? </p>
<p>Quite clearly the scriptures teach that He is: </p>
<p>Able to calm the storm (Mk 4:37) <br>Able to cause the storm : “These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof.” (Psa 107:24-25) <br>Therefore He is in total control of the sea, the storm and the sinking </p>
<p>So surely there was no need for Peter to sink in the first place? </p>
<p>Unless Christ had purpose as much in the storm, the sea, the sinking as in the saving, and He did! </p>
<p>“Then they that were in the ship came and worshiped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.” (Mat 14:33) </p>
<p>This all fulfills Gods ultimate purpose of glorifying Christ as Lord of the Storm, the Sea, the Sinking and the Salvation! </p>
<p>So you and I need not doubt – is He able to save me from this storm? </p>
<p>It is His storm! </p>
<p>He is in charge! Not nature, not man, not Satan, but Christ! </p>
<p>Gods power is seen, in that He is not only able to preserve a people in those circumstances but that He is able to prosper a people and to promote His purpose in those circumstances, thus is His true power seen. </p>
<p>Abraham: God was able to bring him out of Ur of the Chaldees; a place of idol worship, of immorality, perhaps even of child sacrifice (Gen 22 didn't seem to be outwith the realms of expectation for Abraham). God was not only able to bring Abraham out of those circumstances but was able to define who Abraham was by bringing him through those circumstances! Ur was left behind but the lessons were not wasted on Abraham! Look at the kind of man Abraham is: </p>
<p>The Altars he Raised: 7 patriarchal altars – 4 of them belong to Abraham! Having lived in a system for so long, where Gods voice was never heard he would not let that connection with God go! That altar was precious. </p>
<p>The idols he left: </p>
<p>Abraham left idolatry <br>Isaac never knew idolatry <br>Jacob tolerated idolatry <br>Israel fell by idolatry </p>
<p>The world he rejected: not so much as a shoe latchet from Sodom and Gomorrah. He had left family, home and society for God, wouldn't get entangled with Sodom and Gomorrah. <br>The commitment he showed: Isaac and Ishmael </p>
<p>Benjamin: Son of his mothers sorrow (Gen 35:18), the son of His fathers right hand! What a tragic beginning and yet out of those tears of tragedy comes one who was as a consequence of it all, even closer to his father (Gen 42:36, 38; 44:20-22, 31) – brought close to his father through tragic and trying circumstances! </p>
<p>But what does all that have to do with Romans 11? </p>
<p>Its where Paul came from (11:1)! </p>
<p>That's his pedigree! If there is one thing that a pedigree like that will give you, it is surely hope! </p>
<p>If we fail to see that God is sovereign not only over the saving but over the storm, the sea and the sinking, we will end up embittered and embattled, disheartened and discouraged, just like Elijah in 1 kings 19. </p>
<p>We may end up like Elijah – prosecutor (11:2) rather than prophet, making “intercession to God against Israel” (11:2). </p>
<p>God is sovereign not only over the revival but over the rejection too. </p>
<p>If I fail to see Him as in control then my troubles will be wasted. </p>
<p>“Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.” (Heb 12:11) </p>
<p>I may simply become bitter in those circumstances; bitter against God for letting things get out of control and bitter against men, for they are just hindering me, merely hampering me. </p>
<p>I will never be able to get to where Joseph got: </p>
<p>“But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.” (Gen 50:20) </p>
<p>Conditions were bad (11:3) </p>
<p>Want to backslide in 2011? </p>
<p>There are only two ways I will spend 2011: </p>
<p>Revival <br>Decline </p>
<p>If I desire to go into a state of spiritual decline: here is how to do it: </p>
<p>Silence the Word of God: “they have killed thy prophets” <br>Stop the Worship of God: “digged down thine altars” </p>
<p>Yet there are ways of doing this: </p>
<p>Silence the Word of God: “they have killed thy prophets” - don't read the scriptures, read it in a routine, ritualistic way not really expecting and not really experiencing God to speak. Illust: Lanarkshire assembly with sleepy saints and preacher who read his scripture, closed in prayer and went home! Merely a pretense? We can absent ourselves from the preaching of the Word of God, preaching and choosing preachers who preach truths or falsies that we desire to hear rather than the whole counsel of God which He has for us (2 Tim 4:2ff), replace the preaching of Gods word with pre-written courses, entertainment, DVDs! </p>
<p>Stop the Worship of God: “digged down thine altars” - replace it with something habitual and routine, replace it with one man ministry, sunstitute worship for entertainment. </p>
<p>Why does God allow all this to happen? </p>
<p>In these circumstances God: </p>
<p>Reveals the fullness of His power and Glory <br>Reflects the true nature of reality <br>Reserves for Himself a people </p>
<p>Reveals the fullness of His power and Glory </p>
<p>As we have already seen </p>
<p>Reflects the true nature of reality </p>
<p>God tells the truth! </p>
<p>God is not interested in perpetuating a lie! </p>
<p>God in grace allows and orders our external circumstances to reflect the true inner reality! </p>
<p>“In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him.” (Ecc 7:14) </p>
<p>One way by which God can communicate the spiritual realities we find difficult to comprehend is by reflecting these spiritual realities on the circumstances of our life. </p>
<p>Sodom and Gomorrah – the kings defeated when they become stuck in the slime pits of Gen 14:10. Their inward spiritual condition became reflected in the outward circumstances of their life. <br>The days of Eli, Hophni and Phineas – days of darkness and defeat <br>The closing days of Saul – broke bread at the Witches table! Contrast this with David who brought bread and wine before the valley of Elah (1 Sam 16) who had bread in the valley (1 Sam 17:17) who brought bread from the sanctuary (1 Sam 21) and provided bread in the Kingdom (2 Sam 6)! <br>The closing days of Judah (2 Kings 25:7) – Zedekiah blind and bereft of his children. <br>We see the outer reflection of an inner reality <br>Why should God preserve a lie? That all is well in the nation when it most certainly is not!We may be content with preserving a form but God most certainly is not! <br>We become troubled when we see the outer reflection but can remain woefully unperturbed by the inner reality! <br>It is God in Grace who allows us to see our condition for what it really is. <br>We complain over the circumstances, God grieves over the inner conditions <br>Illust: Lawn, looks fine when cut but let it grow find its ¼ weeds! <br>Some time the Lord lets the weeds grow to stop us thinking all is well with the lawn! </p>
<p>Reserves for Himself a people </p>
<p>Yet in those difficult circumstances, men with a spiritual appetite felt hungry. </p>
<p>There is nothing like missing a meal to make you feel hungry! </p>
<p>God separates in those very circumstances a people for Himself. </p>
<p>Crises and catastrophe become the canvas upon which God paints the picture of revival in bold colours of commitment and consecration! </p>
<p>7000 who take Him seriously and who desire Him above all else! </p>
<p>There were thousands on Mount Carmel in 1 Kings 18, a whole nation was able to see that Baal worship did not work! </p>
<p>You speak to god, he doesn't answer! </p>
<p>You get your priests to speak to your god and he still doesn't answer! </p>
<p>Even Satan (1 Co10:20) couldn't get Baal worship to work! </p>
<p>Everyone in the nation could see it! </p>
<p>In that setting 7000 cared! </p>
<p>7000 sought reality! </p>
<p>7000 were determined to hear from God! </p>
<p>7000 could say: </p>
<p>“As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?”(Psa 42:1-2) <br>Had that thirst for the living water of John 4 <br>Had that hunger for the bread of life of John 6 <br>On the whole the nation didn't really seem to care that the religion, was stale, barren, empty and dead and that God was no longer speaking! They would keep coming anyway! </p>
<p>We can never reduce Christianity to: </p>
<p>Principles no matter how proud <br>Practices no matter how profitable <br>Pedigree no matter how pure <br>Doctrines no matter how correct </p>
<p>Christianity remains distinctive from all religious systems, in that Christianity is a person, Christianity is Christ, and when I speak to Him, He must speak back! </p>
<p>The priests of Baal got no higher than Carmel </p>
<p>Elijah got to Horeb and to the still small voice!</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Part of our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>41:58GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68105252010-12-14T20:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:19:08+00:00Romans chp 10 vs 9 'The Lordship of Christ' - JS Gillespie<p> </p>
<p>The Lordship of Christ, probably one of the least popular truths amongst professing Christians today. </p>
<p>Preach to us about heaven and Christ, but don't tell us what to do! </p>
<p>Everything we have studied together over the past couple of years in Romans is being denied today in professing Christendom: </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Total Depravity </strong>(Chps 1 -3) </p>
<p>We have men today invited to do a course, to get to heaven! </p>
<p>The apostles didn't invite anyone to do a course! </p>
<p>They preached that God now commands all men everywhere to repent and believe </p>
<p>They preached Christ and Him crucified! </p>
<p>But that won't appeal to the intelligence, that might offend, that won't win anyone over to your side! </p>
<p>I agree with you. </p>
<p>Paul agrees with you: “But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;”(1Co 1:23) </p>
<p>But none the less, he preached it! </p>
<p>In fact he determined to make nothing else known but Jesus Christ and Him crucified (1 Co2:2) </p>
<p>Dead men don't do courses! </p>
<p>Dead men need the regenerating power of the Spirit of God. </p>
<p>No amount of our smartness will substitute for it! </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Justification by faith </strong>(chp 4) </p>
<p>Being slowly eroded and substituted for another gospel of membership, course completed and baptised, deciding for Jesus, coming forward at the altar call, charismatic phenomenon. </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Sovereign grace</strong> (chp 5) </p>
<p>Substituted for part my desire and part Gods </p>
<p>Part my credit and part His </p>
<p>Sanctification of the Spirit of God (chps 6 to 8) </p>
<p>Giving over of my life to His, to be filled by and surrendered to His Spirit </p>
<p>Not at all popular </p>
<p>Look at the popular concept of Spirit filled life: little more than Christianised entertainment. </p>
<p>Not saying all of our hymns have to come from the Victorian era </p>
<p>Not saying we ought to sing like its a funeral </p>
<p>If the Christians can't be happy then who can be? </p>
<p>But you can bang as many drums as you like, wave your hands about in the air as much as you like, talk Swahili all the way to Swaziland but it you bring you into conflict with the flesh, it won't crush the flesh, starve the flesh, deny the flesh, mortify the flesh, till there is nothing left to usurp the filling of Gods Holy Spirit. </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Sovereign Election </strong>(chp 9) </p>
<p>Sound doctrine in general, pushed to the side, dismissed and in its place: the DVD, sound bite, the praise band, milk, semi-skimmed milk at that. </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Lordship of Christ</strong> (10:9) </p>
<p>Few things as unpopular as the Lordship of Christ! </p>
<p>It involves such ideas as: </p>
<p>Obedience <br>Sacrifice <br>Doing as I am told by Him <br>Selflessness </p>
<p>It explodes out of the water, like a submarine torpedo the idea that I can be a heaven bound Christian whilst living an earth bound life. </p>
<p>This truth of the Lordship of Christ has the power like none other to expose the fake, the false and the fraudulent. </p>
<p>This truths says: 'If He is not my Lord, then He is not my Saviour' </p>
<p>The idea that I'll get saved today and then work on my repenting of my sin over the ensuing years is just nonsense. </p>
<p>The idea that I am saved and yet when some sin comes along, that I know fine well is wrong, and is not the will of God, but its what I want to do, where I want to go, what I want to be, and so that's just what I will do, is a denial of the Lordship of Christ and Romans 10:9 says this that if He is not my Lord, He is not my Saviour. </p>
<p>The idea has come to permeate Christian thinking that God saved me and freed me from the bondage to the law that I might be free to do as I please, to be in bondage to the flesh. </p>
<p>The biblical principle is clear enough: </p>
<p>What I live by is what is Lord over me (10:5) <br>What saves me, what sustains me, is what is sovereign over me (10:5) </p>
<p>We are not freed from the law to do as we please. </p>
<p>We are liberated from the Lordship of the Law to the Lordship of Christ (Rom 6:22; 7:4). </p>
<p>If there is one earth shattering truth, one life changing truth that is fundamental to the Lordship of Christ, it is this, that Salvation by Grace is not all about me, what I want, what I choose, it is all about Him! Where He wants me to be, what He commands me to do, how He calls me to serve. </p>
<p>Christ is not there for my amusement or entertainment but for my worship and devotion. </p>
<p>He does not fit around me but I around Him! </p>
<p>He does not accommodate Himself to my priorities, passions, preferences and perspective, but I to His. </p>
<p>It is all about Him (Eph 1,2,3) </p>
<p>When He is given that supreme place of Lordship then my life is being lived as it ought. </p>
<p>Such a life is: </p>
<p>No folly or disappointment (10:11) <br>Does not impoverish but rather enriches (10:12) “He is rich” - a verb, not an adjective, do you want real, enduring wealth? “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:” (Mat 6:19-20). 'He is no fool, who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.' Have you sacrificed for heaven? Do you have anything there? Is it all being lived selfishly, for earth? Jim Elliot, mission praise 735. <br>No loss; it is life eternal (10:13) </p>
<p>As a boy at Sunday school: </p>
<p>Romans 10 and 9 is a favourite verse of mine </p>
<p>Confessing Christ as Lord </p>
<p>I am saved by Grace Divine </p>
<p>Now there's a Word of Promise </p>
<p>In golden letters shine </p>
<p>Romans 10 and 9 </p>
<p>If salvation is a work of God, how do we get it? </p>
<p>How do you do what God does? </p>
<p>How do you get what God alone can give? </p>
<p>We trust Him to do what He alone can do. </p>
<p>We put God in a position where we trust Him completely, so that if our salvation were to fail, it would be His failure, therefore it cannot fail. </p>
<p>So that if we were disappointed, it is He who would disappoint! </p>
<p>We depend upon His faithfulness, so that if there was no fulfilment it is He who would be unfaithful, and this cannot be! </p>
<p>We trust Him to do what He does and to be who He is. </p>
<p>Romans 10:9 – 2 truths emphasised: </p>
<p>Confession of mouth <br>Conviction of heart </p>
<p>v8 – mouth and heart </p>
<p>v9 – mouth heart </p>
<p>v10 – heart and mouth </p>
<p>“if thou shalt confess” (10:9) - “confess” - “homologeō” - often a public confession (Matt 10:32; Luke 12:8): </p>
<p>Confession with Cost: “These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue.” (Joh 9:22), “Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue:” (Joh 12:42) </p>
<p>Cf. the cost paid by Antipas (Rev 2:13) : “Antipas” : 'against all' <br>Cf. pinch of incense to Caesar, religious pleuralism <br>Cf. Philadelphia (Rev 3:8) </p>
<p>Confession with Consequences, and those consequences are eternal: Matt 10:28-32; Luke 12:5-8 <br>Confession out of Commitment: “Whereupon he promised (committed) with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask.” (Mat 14:7) <br>Confession Consistent with life: “They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.” (Tit 1:16) </p>
<p>“the Lord Jesus” </p>
<p>Confession of Christ as Lord <br>Much said over the years about Lordship salvation <br>My understanding is very simple: 'if he is my Saviour, He is my Lord.' <br>'Lord and Saviour' : 1 Tim1:1; Titus 1:4; 2 Peter 1:11; 2 Peter 2:20; 2 Peter 3:2; 2 Peter 3:18 <br>This is not new, this is something, we often say, many times, but in different language, that God saves us for a two fold purpose: </p>
<p>Relationship <br>Resemblance </p>
<p>God saves me to change me! <br>Has He ever saved me? Then He must have changed me! <br>That is what it means to be saved! <br>He saved me to change me to be like Christ (Rom 8:28) <br><br>I cannot be Lord of my own life and end up like Christ! Just take a look around you at the world! How many Christ like figures do you see? <br>Do men and women naturally or progressively become unselfish, kind hearted, self sacrificial, pursuing holiness and righteousness even when it costs? <br>To have Christ likeness requires Christs Lordship. <br>What does Lordship mean? </p>
<p>Lord of my occupation (Eph 6) <br>Lord of my home life (Eph 6) <br>Lord over my gifts, talents and abilities (Matt 25:15) – responsible to the Lord for how we use them. <br>Lord over our service in the gospel (Matt 9:38) <br>Lord over all service (Matt 24:48) <br>Lord over the Day : 'Lords Day' <br>Lord over the assembly <br>Lord over relationship (1 Co 7:39) – no unequal yolk, and no unbalanced yolk! </p>
<p>“In thine heart” : there must be a motive / a drive / a power behind this confession. </p>
<p>“raised from the dead” - why is this the confession? It is His resurrection which fits Him not simply as a means or method of salvation but as an able Saviour (cf. Rom 1:4), He is alive and able to save (Heb 7:25). Salvation is by relationship with a person rather than by a specific understanding of the work of Christ. It is trusting Christ to do what He does and to be who He is. </p>
<p>V9 + 10 – note the chiasm: </p>
<p> v9 – mouth </p>
<p> v9 – heart </p>
<p> v10 – heart </p>
<p> v10 – mouth </p>
<p> Chiasm as an aide memoir. </p>
<p> Chiasm also points to what is at the 'heart of the message.' </p>
<p> The pattern leads up and away from the central point. </p>
<p> What is at the heart of the Christian experience? </p>
<p> The heart!</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Part of our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>46:53GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68105232010-11-14T20:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:20:24+00:00Romans Chapter 10 vs 1 to 4 – The Prayer Paul Prayed - J Stewart Gillespie<p>There are perhaps 5 great problems which as Christians we must grapple with at some point in our Christian life, if our faith is to be anything deeper than a vague superstition in spit of the facts and problems of ordinary life: </p>
<ul> <li>The Problem of Evil </li> <li>The Problem of Suffering </li> <li>The Problem of the life cut short – the child </li> <li>The Problem of the unevangelised </li> <li>The Problem of eternal judgment </li>
</ul>
<p> </p>
<p>The epistle to the Romans touches on / gives great help on many of these problem areas of Christian faith: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Problem of Evil </p>
<p>Shared some thoughts on this problem in Romans chapter 5 and chapter 8. </p>
<p>Briefly in chp 5 we considered the fact that God does not simply rescue us out of the mess of sin and of evil, but He moves us further than we have ever been before. Through the existence of evil and the Divine permission in allowing Satan to do his tempting work in Eden, Gods people in eternity will never ever be able again to believe the Satanic lie that God cannot be trusted, that God is holding something back, for His people will know eternally that their God is a god who holds nothing back! “For god commendeth His love towards us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8) – nothing back. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>As His people having been exposed to sin, Satan and Gods great Salvation, we have had at great expense to God, added into us something that was never present before in our character, at least not in the same way in which it was present in Adam: “hope” (Rom 5:4,5) in a God who not only tells us not to go into the fire of affliction, as He did at Eden, but who is with us in those fires of affliction as He was for Shadrach, Meshach and Abednigo. That “hope” we have in God, through our experiences of God in a fallen world leads to a “patience” not of putting up with but of bearing up under, a patient endurance and expectation of greater things form a great God. He has, in Christ, given us reason to trust Him beyond any natural reason we might have to trust Him as our Creator. God has through the problem of evil shown us His “love” (Rom 5:5,8) in a way He could only do, not simply as our Creator but now as our redeemer and that through Christ crucified. We are, as His people now free to exercise “faith” (Rom 5:1) in a way unimaginable to Adam. God gave His inspired and expired Word to Adam. God gave His incarnate Word for us. God spoke to Adam in the cool of the evening, under the trees of the Garden. God suffered for us in the heat of the noon day sun on the tree, having agonized and sweat as it were great drops of blood in the garden of Gethsemane. God gave to Adam the breath of life and mad him in His own image. God in Christ, entered into Adams death, bore Adams curse and conquered Adams grave. Does God hold anything back? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Gen 3:5 “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” </p>
<p>What would we say to it now? </p>
<p>Nonsense! Nonsense! Nonsense! </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>The Problem of Suffering </strong></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Shared thoughts already from Psalm 44, Psalm 107, Psalm 138, Psalm 140-143; 1 Peter & Job. </p>
<p>We saw that Paul touched a little on this in Romans chapter 5 and chapter 8. </p>
<p>Spoke on the theme of “From Good to Glorious” in Romans chapter 8, which we understand that some found helpful. </p>
<p>In Romans 8:20 we learned that suffering was not accidental nor meaningless. For the believer “all things work together for good..” (Rom 8:28), all has purpose. This is most clearly seen in the deliberate frustration of the fall (Rom 8:20), the organised futility that brought with it the realisation that our ultimate satisfaction and joy will not and cannot be found here (Gen 3:16ff) but with it the covering for Adams sin (Gen 3:21), the promise of a coming Saviour (Gen 3:15) and a curse upon Adams enemy, the serpent (Gen 3:14). All 4 aspects of the curse go hand in hand. There can be no laying hold in hope of Christs saving power in my life whilst holding on in satisfaction to the pleasures of a fallen world! Satisfaction in Christ is complementary to dissatisfaction with all that has failed and all that is fallen. God does not simply palliate or compensate our suffering with some reactive Glory, but orders our suffering to take us deliberately and intentionally to incomparable Glory (Rom 8:18). </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>The Problem of the life cut short – the child </strong></p>
<p>Considered this in chapter 5 of Romans. </p>
<p>Only a salvation which is completely of Divine Grace would be capable of saving those who are unable to do anything for themselves and who are incapable of contributing anything to Gods salvation. In Christ this is precisely what we have! We have a grace all sufficient and sovereign, a grace which: </p>
<p>Allows us to rejoice in lifes darkest experiences (5:3) <br>A Grace that reaches where works could never reach (5:6,8,10), when we were at our lowest, “without strength” (5:6), whilst we were “yet sinners” (8:8) and whilst we were “enemies” (5:10). Only Gods sovereign Grace could reach us here! <br>A Grace that reigns unrestricted (5:21) with no, no go areas, which has access to every part of a fallen creation (5:20). </p>
<p>The Problem of the unevangelised </p>
<p>This problem we have already touched upon in our thoughts form Romans chapters 1 to 3 but here in chapters 9 and 10 we have a fuller and deeper answer. </p>
<p>The Problem of eternal judgment </p>
<p>3 Divisions in Romans chapter 10: </p>
<p>10:1-4 Prayer of Paul for Israel <br>10:5-12 Plan of the Salvation <br>10:14-21 Problem with the Gospel </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>The Prayer of Paul for Israel </strong>(10:1-4): </p>
<p>It is perhaps not so remarkable that in Romans 10:1-4 that Paul should pray, he was after all a trained clergyman, a Pharisee of the Pharisees, a student of Gamaliel, it is not the fact that he prayed that is so fascinating but rather the content of the prayer here that literally shook the world! </p>
<p>Many today will reject the message of the gospel and come up with various reasons for so doing, but after they have convinced their own minds as to the improbability of the gospel message based on the proven facts of science concerning events millions of years before man was around, the absurdity of miracles which every thinking man knows is utterly impossible for God to do, and they obvious truth that all religious people are completely irrational and prejudiced and quite clearly believe what they believe for no reason at all! </p>
<p>Once we have convinced ourselves as to the unbelievability of the gospel we are left with this problem: that this man did believe it (10:1), and that to believe it required a total transformation in his thinking process! </p>
<p>We say that it is not the fact that a Pharisee prayed that is the remarkable thing in Romans 10:1-4 but the content of that prayer! </p>
<p>You will never read a prayer like this from a Pharisee: </p>
<p> Rom 10:1 Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. </p>
<p>That “they might be saved”! For the first part of his life Saul of Tarsus believed they were saved. He believed they were the only ones saved! He believed that they were the only ones God was interested in saving. This was the nation to whom God had given: </p>
<p>Rom 9:4-5 “Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.” </p>
<p>He wasn't brought up to say things like that! </p>
<p>His parents would have been horrified! </p>
<p>He didn't go to college to learn to talk like that! </p>
<p>Gamaliel would turn in his grave! </p>
<p>But, he just said it! </p>
<p>“That they might be saved” </p>
<p>So you don't believe the gospel? </p>
<p>I bet you believe in all sorts of strange things? </p>
<p>Evolution, spontaneous generation of life, UFO's, panspermia, ghosts? </p>
<p>Any way, you might not believe it but Paul did! </p>
<p>Something got to this Pharisee! </p>
<p>“Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.” (Php 3:5-7) </p>
<p>“they have a zeal for God but not according to knowledge” (10:2) </p>
<p>Paul was that man! Now here is a change! Why? </p>
<p>Why does he have such a conviction? </p>
<p>Is it all just born out of arrogance? </p>
<p>No something happened to convince Paul that it was wrong! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Was this arrogance? </p>
<p>Were these people not sincere, committed and zealous in showing there repentance for their sins? </p>
<p>They may have been very zealous, committed and sincere but Luther realised that those stairs could not take him to heaven, only to the top of the church! </p>
<p>It is not arrogance to see and acknowledge the truth for what it is! </p>
<p>Conversion <br>Conviction <br>Completion </p>
<p>Conversion </p>
<p>Acts 9 – Damascus road experience – here Saul discovered that the God he had taught and preached all of his life was a God he did not actually know! </p>
<p>“Who art thou Lord?” </p>
<p>Conviction </p>
<p>It is hard to maintain present momentum in the energy of past experience! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>We would rarely show as much laxity in temporal things as we do in spiritual matters! </p>
<p>If Christianity is only a past experience with no present reality it can claim no future hope. </p>
<p>We often see Christianity beginning with an explosion and then the energy dissipating into chronic inertia. </p>
<p>In Christ he had found an ongoing experience of God sufficient for his need. </p>
<p>In Christ Paul had found justification and a new relationship with God through Christ (10:3-4). </p>
<p>Only this could maintain the momentum of Pauls mission as far as it went (2 Tim 4; Phil 1:20ff) </p>
<p>Completion </p>
<p>A key word that links both sections “end” (10:4) </p>
<p>This word “telos” has a double meaning: </p>
<p>Finish <br>Fulfilment </p>
<p>When it came to Pauls journey, his search after God, his longing for salvation, he had found his need met in Christ, his journey had come to an end. </p>
<p>The work of Christ at Calvary had brought a finish to any ideas that the law was a valid means by which a man might obtain righteousness and a relationship with God! </p>
<p>If the law had been sufficient for this purpose then the sacrifice of Gods Son was unnecessary and surplus to requirements! </p>
<p>More than this, not only was Christ the “finish” to the law as a means of obtaining righteousness but he was the 'fulfilment' of the law to this end. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The law was not simply a bad mistake which had to come to an end. </p>
<p>The law had a purpose: “our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ.” </p>
<p>We need to appreciate this point as we move into the next 2 sections of Romans 10, for Paul is going to draw from 10 OT passages, to show us that what God has done in Christ is indeed the culmination of His plans and purposes down through the ages! </p>
<p>Paul will draw from all of Gods dealings in creation, conscience and covenant to present to us: </p>
<p>the plan of salvation </p>
<p>and to answer for us: </p>
<p>the problem of the gospel </p>
<p>These 10 Old Testament quotations only fit in to Romans chapter 10 if they are connected to the subject of this chapter in some way – namely that Christ is the fulfilment as well as the finish to that OT system!</p>
<p>Part of our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>47:26GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68094912010-11-09T23:25:00+00:002022-01-08T21:20:48+00:00Romans Chapter 9 verses 28 to 33 – 4 Attributes of a Sovereign God - JS Gillespie<p>Consider the apostles presentation of the truth of Divine election in 9:15-24. </p>
<p>We saw that in a biblical understanding of the election and sovereignty of God 4 Divine attributes are preserved. </p>
<p>As you come to consider this great matter for yourself always check does my view of election preserve these 4 key Divine attributes, preserved by the apostle in Romans chapter 9, if it doesn't you do not have a biblical view of election and in fact you may not have a biblical view of God! </p>
<p>In election and sovereignty God preserves His right to: </p>
<p>To Decide (9:15-18) <br>To Determine Purpose <br>To Design <br>To Display / Demonstrate His Glory </p>
<p>To Decide (9:15-18) </p>
<p>I think that it must be very difficult for a Christian to disagree with this, that God has decision making capacity and that He uses it and yet in some views of election it is woefully absent: corporate non-election and Arminianism. </p>
<p>Do we have a vision / a picture of God only as the father in the parable of the prodigal son, awaiting the sons return or have we combined this view with the preceding 2: the Shepherd going out and finding the lost sheep and the woman searching the home till she finds the lost coin? </p>
<p>Even in the parable of the prodigal son with the picture of a patiently waiting and longing father we are aware that this father was waiting for one particular boy out of many thousands of boys, his boy! What had made him his boy? </p>
<p>“But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.”(Isa 43:1) </p>
<p>“mine, mine, mine, I know thou art mine....” </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.”(Joh 17:6) </p>
<p>“Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.” (Joh 17:24) </p>
<p>“According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:” (Eph 1:4) </p>
<p>It is Divine election (Rom 8:28) - “called” : 'kletos' that gives rise to the believers destiny (Rom 8:29) </p>
<p>So God has the right to decide and exercises that capacity to decide. </p>
<p>A God who lacks that ability to make decisions is a God who is either: </p>
<p>Unable to save – He cannot extend His grace to me, and I have no desire to come to Him for salvation (Rom 3) <br>Unable to govern – Everyone, anyone, unconditionally must receive His grace and mercy, irrespective of repentance and faith in Christ. </p>
<p>I must preserve in my understanding of God – is capacity to make decisions. </p>
<p>To Determine Purpose (9:17) </p>
<p>Even in a Pharaoh, God had a purpose for him! </p>
<p>What Moses declared, Pharaoh displayed </p>
<p>“Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?” (Exodus 5:2) </p>
<p>For this reason Pharaoh arises between the 2 sections on sanctification in Romans : </p>
<p>The doctrine of sanctification (Roms chps 6, 7, 8) <br>The practice of sanctification (Roms chps 12, 13, 14) </p>
<p>Even here in the Epistle to the Romans, Pharaoh is still sub-serving the purpose for which he was raised up all of those years ago: </p>
<p>To declare Gods name throughout the whole earth resulting in <br>The separation of His people from the world and from sin </p>
<p>For if this carnal spirit of Pharaoh, a man in his pride, “Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?” (Exodus 5:2), marks my heart and my life, there will be no work of consecration and sanctification in me. </p>
<p>Maybe we are a little more subtle than Pharaoh. </p>
<p>Maybe we wouldn't say: “Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?” </p>
<p>Perhaps we will blame others: 'who does he think he is?' or 'imagine saying that to me?' or 'I'm not going to have the brethren say that to me.' or 'I'm old enough and mature enough to lead my own life without 'them' telling me what to do.' </p>
<p>God had a purpose for Pharaoh: “to declare my name throughout all the earth” (9:17). </p>
<p>God decided on that purpose! </p>
<p>To Design </p>
<p>God reserves the right to deliberately and intentionally design what He creates </p>
<p>The clay is not simply thrown at the wheel as the Potter waits with bated breath to see what will be thrown off on this occasion? </p>
<p>Who chooses the personality? </p>
<p>Who assigns the traits? </p>
<p>Who gives the peculiar mixture of strengthens and abilities? </p>
<p>Who determines which character traits will be missing? </p>
<p>Who decided that this Pharaoh would be marked by a sense of determination? </p>
<p>It must be notes that at critical times there has been supplied particular men and women who seem strangely fitted for the task in hand! Is this mere coincidence? </p>
<p>Pharaoh and his determination <br>Joseph and his patient humility, lacking malice and vengeance <br>Samson and his strength during days of Philistine oppression <br>Gideon and his faithfulness and dependence on God in days of compromise <br>Mary and her purity <br>Hannah and her devotion, faithfulness and commitment <br>Miriam and her careful devotion to a little brother abandoned on the Nile </p>
<p>To Display / Demonstrate His Glory </p>
<p>To display His Glory in all things </p>
<p>Even in those who reject Him! </p>
<p>So if I have a man sided view of God, an unbalanced view of God, a God who is only gracious and only compassionate then what about those who are lost? </p>
<p>Are they just a mistake? </p>
<p>People God would have loved to save but just couldn't quite manage it? </p>
<p>Are they just casualties of coincidence? </p>
<p>Born in the wrong place at the wrong time? </p>
<p>So the view we have of election in Romans chp 9: </p>
<p>God chooses to extend His mercy and compassion on specific individuals for His own inscrutable reasons (9:15-18) <br>We do not know why certain individuals are the recipients of this grace for that reason lies in Gods will (9:15) <br>Was it not for that Sovereign choice of God to extend His mercy and compassion, no one would be and no one could be saved (Rom 3:11; 9:16; Eph 2:1; John 6:44; John 6:65) <br>When God chooses He moves towards us by His: </p>
<p>Word (9:6) <br>Will (9:15) <br>Work (9:25ff) </p>
<p>Such a movement of Grace must reach its appointed and designed conclusion and is thus irresistible (9:6; Isa 55:11) – if God decrees it, it will happen. <br>Salvation is therefore not of: </p>
<p>“blood” - link to Abraham (9:7) <br>“nor of the will of the flesh” (9:8) <br>“nor of the will of man” (9:11) <br>“but of God” (John 1:13) </p>
<p>Gods effectual calling and saving Grace motivated by His will to save always achieves what is decreed in the eternal purposes of God (9:6). Gods Grace also extends out in a general way; as a Grace that is common to all men. Just as the believer brings a taste of heaven to an insipid world, which men spit out and a light into a dark place that is not appreciated at all, so too Gods Grace extends out in a general or common way; not with the intent of saving but to long-suffer (9:22). </p>
<p>In so long-suffering with sinners who have fitted themselves by their sins to destruction and in passing over those sinners with respect to His saving Grace God confirms their destiny as the inevitable conclusion to the path which they have chosen. It is mans to sin. It is Gods to seal. </p>
<p>Furthermore for that purpose God has deliberately made them (9:21). </p>
<p>Because God possesses and practices these 4 Divine attributes then God is able to accomplish 3 great works: </p>
<p>To Call a People (His Church) (9:24-27) <br>To Complete or Finish a Work (9:28-29) <br>To Confound mans Ways and Mans Wisdom (9:30-33) </p>
<p>To Call a People (His Church) (9:24-27) </p>
<p>He is able to call a people – His church; this is the group of: Jews and Gentiles in 1 body (9:24) </p>
<p>“even us” - says the converted Pharisee to a group of Gentiles. </p>
<p>What is this “us”? </p>
<p>The church: Jew and Gentile, bond and free together (cf. Roms 16) </p>
<p>How could He build His church as prophesied unless He is in control? </p>
<p>Does 9:25 indicate election however? </p>
<p>Maybe all v25 means is that in the future people will get saved, they will respond to the gospel, they will turn from their sin and because of that, they thus make themselves loveable? </p>
<p>Maybe you're overstating that position of election! </p>
<p>Perhaps you're exaggerating election? </p>
<p>So is it possible that God is: </p>
<p>not making people loveable but rather <br>finding people who are loveable – maybe because of their response to the gospel? </p>
<p>Notice: </p>
<p>Change in the position of this people: from not beloved to beloved. What causes that change? Could man himself bring about such a change? Consider Eph 2:1ff; Rom 3:10ff; Jer 13:23 : “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.” Even if we were to say that us becoming His beloved were due to a change in us, even if our change of position were due to a change of Gods attitude brought about by a change in our character we are still left with the problem that such a change in us must itself have a cause! The reality is that such a change can only come about if He works in us: “you hath He quickened....” (Eph 2:1ff). </p>
<p>That change in position is linked to a change in relationship (9:26): “the children of the Living God.”. Here is a change of relationship brought about by a change of nature. Can a man make himself a child of God? Can a man make himself the child of another man? Only by birth, new birth, or by paternal adoption can this happen. The initiative comes from God. </p>
<p>Notice the illustration and context of Hosea 2:23. God illustrates through the actions of Hosea, exactly what He is about to do and where the initiative lies. Hosea is to go beyond what is due or what is owed to his undeserving and unfaithful wife (Hosea 3:1ff). Such an action will be “according to the love of the Lord toward the children of Israel” (Hosea 3:1). Hosea will buy back his wife. This is undeserved and initiated by God. </p>
<p>God cannot take such an initiative in salvation, unless He is a God who: </p>
<p>Decides <br>Determines purpose </p>
<p>To Complete or Finish a Work (9:28-29) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Greeks had a word for a journey that stops, but which stops because it has reached its destination, its intended end point: 'teleo' – to not only stop but to finish and complete. </p>
<p>“for He will finish the work” (9:28) – it is that word 'teleo' infact it is 'teleo' with a prefix 'sun' which means to 'completely finish' the work. </p>
<p>The point is very simple: if there is no intended destination, how can that destination ever be reached? </p>
<p>Only if God has a definite and determined purpose in mind can that goal ever be realised. </p>
<p>Not only does God perform a complete work but with confidence He declares that His work will be completed (9:28b) and curtailed in righteousness (9:28). </p>
<p>If the work of salvation was initiated by man how could God “cut it short in righteousness”? He could only surely cut it short in unrighteousness. </p>
<p>To Confound mans Ways and Mans Wisdom (9:30-33) </p>
<p>What have we learned so far about salvation? </p>
<p>We are justified by faith (Rom 4) <br>Salvation is a work initiated by Divine Grace (Rom 5) <br>Salvation is founded upon the finished work of Christ (Rom 3 + 4) </p>
<p>and that we had to earn a right to it all? </p>
<p>No that last bit – we didn't learn! </p>
<p>Salvation is received (5:11) as a gift freely given (5:15-16) </p>
<p>So then there is nothing I do to merit or cause God to give that gift, rather I trust Him that He has made provision for me in Christ at Calvary and that He will perform what He has promised. </p>
<p>Justification by faith is thus faith in a person. </p>
<p>What do you do to get a freely given gift? </p>
<p>If you have to do anything to get a freely given gift, it isn't a freely given gift! </p>
<p>If it is by grace then it is simply received. </p>
<p>Only because salvation is by Divine choice and election can it be that those who have done the most to receive it fail (9:31) and those who have done the least succeed (9:30). </p>
<p>But Israel (9:31) surely went about it all the wrong way didn't they? </p>
<p>“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.” (Mat 23:23) </p>
<p>And so they did! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>How can you “attain” : 'katalambano' – to take, to seize, to lay hold of - to what you never attempted to apprehend? Only if another comes and gives it. </p>
<p>Rom 9:30 is really an echo of: “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luk 19:10) </p>
<p>God sets the gospel as a stumbling stone! </p>
<p>How can anyone be saved with such a gospel! </p>
<p>If you were going to come up with a religion, would you really do it this way? </p>
<p>A crucified Saviour? A spat upon and abused Saviour?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Part of our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>48:15GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68104782010-11-02T20:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:22:07+00:00Romans Chapter 9 verses 15 to 24 – Standing Proud Against God - JS Gillespie<p>The Bible speaks about: </p>
<p> </p>
<ul> <li>Foolish mistakes: “the fool has said in his heart there is no God” </li> <li>Fatal mistakes: “the wages of sin is death” </li> <li>Final mistakes: “this night thy souls shall be required of thee...” </li> <li>Fundamental mistakes: “hath God said?” </li>
</ul>
<p> </p>
<p>Mans fundamental sin is that of pride (Gen 3) </p>
<p>That we think that there maybe circumstances in life when we can get one over on God, when we know best. </p>
<p>We do not really doubt / are ignorant of the reality of God </p>
<p>We know that He has spoken </p>
<p>We know the truth, but we will not do it, because we know best! </p>
<p>Romans chp 9 deals with such a man: 'a man who knew better than God' </p>
<p>“And Pharoah said, 'who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?'” (Ex 5:2) </p>
<p>Maybe we wouldn't say: “Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?” </p>
<p>Perhaps we will blame others: </p>
<p>'who does he think he is?' or <br>'imagine saying that to me?' or <br>'I'm not going to have the brethren say that to me.' or <br>'I'm old enough and mature enough to lead my own life without <br>'them' telling me what to do.' </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Pharaoh rebels against God! </p>
<p>Pharaoh attempts to cut God out of his life. </p>
<p>In such a circumstance does God have a purpose for such a man? </p>
<p>Romans chapter 9 says that I may cut myself off from Gods salvation but I can never cut myself off from Gods Sovereign purpose! </p>
<p>In the bible there are a number of such men: </p>
<p>Pharaoh in the days of Moses <br>Goliath in the days of David <br>Nebuchadnezzar in the days of Daniel <br>The beast in Rev 13 </p>
<p>Proud blaspheming men all raised up in the eternal counsels of God that God might pull them down and show His righteousness and His wrath! </p>
<p>Pharaoh why here and why now? </p>
<p>I notice that Pharaoh arises in the middle of these 2 sections dealing with: </p>
<p>The doctrine of sanctification (Roms chps 6, 7, 8) <br>The practice of sanctification (Roms chps 12, 13, 14) </p>
<p>Between these 2 plateaus there arises a peak, a horn, to use the image of Daniel 7:20,25 </p>
<p>In the midst of the sacred ground of sanctification there arises proud and arrogant, the boastings of a man: </p>
<p>“And Pharaoh said, 'who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?'” (Ex 5:2) </p>
<p>This should never be the attitude of the believer! </p>
<p>This is the fleshly attitude that will prevent the work of sanctification in my life. </p>
<p>Even here in the Epistle to the Romans, Pharaoh is still sub-serving the purpose for which he was raised up all of those years ago: </p>
<p>To declare Gods name throughout the whole earth resulting in <br>The separation of His people from the world and from sin </p>
<p>In a biblical understanding of the election and sovereignty of God 4 Divine attributes are preserved. </p>
<p>As you come to consider this great matter for yourself always check does my view of election preserve these 4 key Divine attributes, preserved by the apostle in Romans chapter 9, if it doesn't you do not have a biblical view of election and in fact you may not have a biblical view of God! </p>
<p>In election and sovereignty God preserves His right to: </p>
<p>To Decide (9:15-18) <br>To Determine Purpose (9:17) <br>To Design (9:20-21) <br>To Display / Demonstrate His Glory (9:23) </p>
<p>To Decide (9:15-18) </p>
<p>I think that it must be very difficult for a Christian to disagree with this, that God has decision making capacity and that He uses it and yet in some views of election it is woefully absent: corporate non-election and Arminianism. </p>
<p>Do we have a vision / a picture of God only as the father in the parable of the prodigal son, awaiting the sons return or have we combined this view with the preceding 2: the Shepherd going out and finding the lost sheep and the woman searching the home till she finds the lost coin? </p>
<p>Even in the parable of the prodigal son with the picture of a patiently waiting and longing father we are aware that this father was waiting for one particular boy out of many thousands of boys, his boy! What had made him his boy? </p>
<p>“But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.”(Isa 43:1) </p>
<p>“mine, mine, mine, I know thou art mine....” </p>
<p>Before I was born, men went to the moon on a rocket </p>
<p>Since I have been born men have gone into space in a shuttle </p>
<p>You and I are going further </p>
<p>Beyond the moon and the stars </p>
<p>On this basis: that I am His! </p>
<p>“I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.”(Joh 17:6) </p>
<p>“Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.”(Joh 17:24) </p>
<p>“According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:” (Eph 1:4) </p>
<p>It is Divine election (Rom 8:28) - “called” : 'kletos' that gives rise to the believers destiny (Rom 8:29) </p>
<p>So God has the right to decide and exercises that capacity to decide. </p>
<p>A God who lacks that ability to make decisions is a God who is either: </p>
<p>Unable to save – He cannot extend His grace to me, and I have no desire to come to Him for salvation (Rom 3) <br>Unable to govern – Everyone, anyone, unconditionally must receive His grace and mercy, irrespective of repentance and faith in Christ. </p>
<p>I must preserve in my understanding of God – is capacity to make decisions. </p>
<p>To Determine Purpose (9:17) – Eph 1:11; Ecll 3:1ff; Eph 3:17; Prov 16:4; Rom 8:28 </p>
<p>Christ is not: </p>
<p>Baal – God of the Canaanites <br>Dagon – God of the Philistines <br>Molech – God of the Ammonites <br>Chemosh – God of the Moabites </p>
<p>He is no local diety! </p>
<p>Christ is “over all” (Rom 9:15) </p>
<p>Therefore even over Pharaoh, God had a purpose! </p>
<p>What Moses declared, Pharaoh displayed </p>
<p>“Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?” (Exodus 5:2) </p>
<p>For this reason Pharaoh arises between the 2 sections on sanctification in Romans : </p>
<p>The doctrine of sanctification (Roms chps 6, 7, 8) <br>The practice of sanctification (Roms chps 12, 13, 14) </p>
<p>Even here in the Epistle to the Romans, Pharaoh is still sub-serving the purpose for which he was raised up all of those years ago: </p>
<p>To declare Gods name throughout the whole earth resulting in <br>The separation of His people from the world and from sin </p>
<p>For if this carnal spirit of Pharaoh, a man in his pride, “Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?” (Exodus 5:2), marks my heart and my life, there will be no work of consecration and sanctification in me. </p>
<p>Maybe we are a little more subtle than Pharaoh. </p>
<p>Maybe we wouldn't say: “Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?” </p>
<p>Perhaps we will blame others: 'who does he think he is?' or 'imagine saying that to me?' or 'I'm not going to have the brethren say that to me.' or 'I'm old enough and mature enough to lead my own life without 'them' telling me what to do.' </p>
<p>God had a purpose for Pharaoh: “to declare my name throughout all the earth” (9:17). </p>
<p>God decided on that purpose! </p>
<p>To Design </p>
<p>God reserves the right to deliberately and intentionally design what He creates </p>
<p>The clay is not simply thrown at the wheel as the Potter waits with bated breath to see what will be thrown off on this occasion? </p>
<p>Who chooses the personality? </p>
<p>Who assigns the traits? </p>
<p>Who gives the peculiar mixture of strengthens and abilities? </p>
<p>Who determines which character traits will be missing? </p>
<p>Who decided that this Pharaoh would be marked by a sense of determination? </p>
<p>It must be notes that at critical times there has been supplied particular men and women who seem strangely fitted for the task in hand! Is this mere coincidence? </p>
<p>Pharaoh and his determination <br>Joseph and his patient humility, lacking malice and vengeance <br>Samson and his strength during days of Philistine oppression <br>Gideon and his faithfulness and dependence on God in days of compromise <br>Mary and her purity <br>Hannah and her devotion, faithfulness and commitment <br>Miriam and her careful devotion to a little brother abandoned on the Nile </p>
<p>To Display / Demonstrate His Glory </p>
<p>To display His Glory in all things </p>
<p>Even in those who reject Him! </p>
<p>So if I have a man sided view of God, an unbalanced view of God, a God who is only gracious and only compassionate then what about those who are lost? </p>
<p>Are they just a mistake? </p>
<p>People God would have loved to save but just couldn't quite manage it? </p>
<p>Are they just casualties of coincidence? </p>
<p>Born in the wrong place at the wrong time? </p>
<p>So the view we have of election in Romans chp 9: </p>
<p>God chooses to extend His mercy and compassion on specific individuals for His own inscrutable reasons (9:15-18) <br>We do not know why certain individuals are the recipients of this grace for that reason lies in Gods will (9:15) <br>Was it not for that Sovereign choice of God to extend His mercy and compassion, no one would be and no one could be saved (Rom 3:11; 9:16; Eph 2:1; John 6:44; John 6:65) <br>When God chooses He moves towards us by His: </p>
<p>Word (9:6) <br>Will (9:15) <br>Work (9:25ff) </p>
<p>Such a movement of Grace must reach its appointed and designed conclusion and is thus irresistible (9:6; Isa 55:11) – if God decrees it, it will happen. <br>Salvation is therefore not of: </p>
<p>“blood” - link to Abraham (9:7) <br>“nor of the will of the flesh” (9:8) <br>“nor of the will of man” (9:11) <br>“but of God” (John 1:13) </p>
<p>Gods effectual calling and saving Grace motivated by His will to save always achieves what is decreed in the eternal purposes of God (9:6). Gods Grace also extends out in a general way; as a Grace that is common to all men. Just as the believer brings a taste of heaven to an insipid world, which men spit out and a light into a dark place that is not appreciated at all, so too Gods Grace extends out in a general or common way; not with the intent of saving but to long-suffer (9:22). <br>In so long-suffering with sinners who have fitted themselves by their sins to destruction and in passing over those sinners with respect to His saving Grace God confirms their destiny as the inevitable conclusion to the path which they have chosen. It is mans to sin. It is Gods to seal. <br>Furthermore for that purpose God has deliberately made them (9:21).</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Part of our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>47:00GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68073692010-07-26T21:00:00+01:002023-10-16T16:02:08+01:00Romans Chapter 8 verses 31 to 39 'Saved, Satisfied, Secure' - Dr J Stewart Gillespie<p>The closing verses of a great chapter </p>
<p>Chapter 8 is also the closing chapter of a great section of Romans: </p>
<p>Sin - chps 1 to 3 <br>Salvation - chps 3 to 4 <br>Sovereignty - chp 5 <br>Struggle - chps 6 +7 <br>Sanctification - chp 8 </p>
<p>Romans chp 8 verses 31 to 38: </p>
<ol> <li>Saved </li> <li>Satisfied </li> <li>Secure </li>
</ol>
<p>Saved </p>
<p>Full “all things” (8:32) </p>
<p>A God who gives up His Son or me will hardly withhold any good thing from me! </p>
<p>The nature of God towards His own is that He cannot withhold any good thing! Even if that good thing is something I might want or desire! </p>
<p>The only reason we have such a full salvation is that I have a full Christ! </p>
<p>‘Everything’ comes in a package with Christ </p>
<p>Don’t think that this is Christ plus a lot of other things </p>
<p>I have a difficulty with this idea: Col 1:16; 1:19; 2:9; 3:11 </p>
<p>What God offers at Calvary is all of what God has for me </p>
<p>God offers a full Christ </p>
<p>Everything I can receive from God is only in Christ </p>
<p>All God has for me is in Christ and with Christ </p>
<p>If I don’t like Christ God has nothing else for me! </p>
<p>Free “freely give us” (8:32) </p>
<p>Why does salvation have to be by grace through faith? </p>
<p>We sometimes say to the unsaved that it must be this way because what could we offer to God in exchange for our soul or in repayment for our sin? </p>
<p>Here is a deeper reason. </p>
<p>If the sacrifice for my sin requires the giving of Gods son what could I ever do to compel or force the God of heaven to give up His only Son for me? </p>
<p>What could a man, mere dust and ashes do to justify God giving His Son for me? </p>
<p>It is unthinkable! </p>
<p>Such a sacrifice must be given in Grace alone </p>
<p>Such a salvation must be received by Grace alone </p>
<p>This Grace casts its shadow over all of the Christian life: </p>
<p>we are saved by Grace (Acts 15:11; Eph 2:8; Rom 3:24) - the first mention in the Bible of Grace is Gen 6:8 “Noah found Grace in the eyes of the Lord” and the last mention in the OT is in Zech 12:10 - Grace to come to Christ <br>we are sustained by Grace (2 Co12:9; 2 Tim 2:1; Acts 14:26) <br>we are satisfied by Grace (Jo 1:16; Rom 5:17) <br>we are strengthened by Grace (2 Tim 2:1) <br>we are shaped by grace (1 Co 15:10) </p>
<p>‘Grace and peace’ becomes the characteristic greeting for Christianity in the NT </p>
<p>Finished “delivered” (8:32) </p>
<p>Where did you get ‘finished’ from? </p>
<p>Consider Heb 10:12,14 </p>
<p>In English we have past tense, present tense and future tense </p>
<p>In Greek we have extra tenses including one we find in Rom 8:32 - the aorist or point tense </p>
<p>“but delivered” is an aorist tense </p>
<p>A complete and completed work - once and for all </p>
<p>Satisfied </p>
<p>Here lies the secret of Christian contentment - to be satisfied with Christ </p>
<p>Secret of contentment satisfied with what God has given me in Christ </p>
<p>Isaac - the son given on the altar and in resurrection <br>Joseph - the son at the right hand of the throne <br>Samuel - the son given to ministry in the temple </p>
<p>Secure </p>
<p>All of this security flows out of the sovereignty of God in election </p>
<p>If there is no Divine Sovereign individual election then there is no eternal security </p>
<p>cf. John 10:25ff </p>
<p>If anyone ever tries to rob you of Divine Sovereign unconditional election remember they are also robbing you of eternal security </p>
<p>Don’t let them steal it! </p>
<p>The foundation of our security: “if God be for us” (8:31) </p>
<p>Of great importance as we go into Roms 9 - behind election to salvation lies this motive: “the love of Christ” (8:35) and “the love of God” (8:39) </p>
<p>“more than conquerors through Him” (8:37): </p>
<p>If I am a conqueror - I fight and I win <br>If I am a conqueror through Him - I fight and He wins : eg David and Goliath, Joshua and Jericho and Gideon and the Midianites <br>If I am more than a conqueror through Him - He fights and He wins. </p>
<p>This has the effect of transforming even my greatest disappointments and tragedies! </p>
<p>Consider: </p>
<p>Stephen (Acts 7:55ff) - received by Christ <br>Paul (2Tim4:6-8) - looked for a crown of righteousness <br>Smyrna (Rev2:10) - Gained a crown of life </p>
<p>The crown is there and waiting What do I do? He has fought and won!</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>42:29GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68073712010-07-20T21:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:23:26+00:00Romans Chapter 8 Vs 32 - Something Big Happened at Calvary - J Stewart Gillespie<p>26th to 27th August 1883 </p>
<p>Largest volcano in living history erupted </p>
<p>2/3 of the island of Krakatoa disintegrated </p>
<p>Krakatoa erupted with the power of 13,000 atom bombs the size of the bomb used to destroy Hiroshima </p>
<p>Bodies were still being washed up on the coast of Africa 1 year later </p>
<p>Global temperatures were affected for 5 years </p>
<p>The final explosion was recorded as it reverberated around the globe 7 X! </p>
<p>When something big happens you feel the after shocks </p>
<p>We know enough of the person of Christ to know this that He is infinitely far greater than any volcano, any rock or explosion. </p>
<p>For an event of the magnitude of Romans 8:32 we would expect to record the after shocks around the whole globe. </p>
<p>2000 years later we are still seeing the effects of this great event. </p>
<p>The shock waves from Calvary do not go out like the waves on the shore but rather like a pebble dropped in the pond - those waves echo out 360 degrees - they go out in all directions. </p>
<p>The shock waves from Calvary can be seen and felt going back into the past, in the present and into the future. </p>
<p>As they echo back into the past we call that typology, into the future we call that prophesy and in the present we call that experience. </p>
<p>I want to look at shock waves from that great event of Calvary: </p>
<p>Abraham and Isaac (Gen 22) <br>Jacob and Joseph (Gen 41) <br>Hannah and Samuel (1 Sam 1) </p>
<p>Abraham and Isaac (Gen 22) </p>
<p>Consider the: </p>
<p>Person </p>
<p>The person is Isaac - one of two sons but according to Gen 22: “thine only Isaac” - the Hebrew uses ‘yachid’ </p>
<p>Not Ishmael, the son of the bondwoman but Isaac </p>
<p>He is to be taken and “offered” for a “burnt offering” : “olah” - the Hebrew word from which the comes the word Holocaust. Literally, take your only boy Isaac and ‘incinerate him’! </p>
<p>How could God command such a thing! </p>
<p>Such a thing is too great, too big, too heavy, too gruesome and is it not even expressly prohibited later on in scripture? </p>
<p>How could God command such a thing? </p>
<p>For the first time, that is the first of 12 times in the Hebrew Bible the Spirit will use the Hebrew word ‘Yachid’ - only son, only begotten, solitary. </p>
<p>These 12 uses of that word will be carefully intertwined and worked into the Word of God, through Genesis 12 (3 X) and Psalm 22 until finally the 12th and last mention of that word is given to Zechariah to place into the canon of inspired scriptures: “...and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced and they shall morn for me as one mourneth for his only Son.” </p>
<p>Was it not for the completed canon of scripture we would never have perceived this: that God does not ask me to do more for Him than He has done for me! </p>
<p>God did not ask Abraham to do for God what God was not prepared to do for Abraham! </p>
<p>The commandments of God come with a moral authority that could come from no man! </p>
<p>If God commands us to do it He fully expects us to obey! </p>
<p>Place </p>
<p>Mount Moriah (Gen22:2) </p>
<p>Moriah became a very important place for the Jewish people </p>
<p>A special place in the history of the Jewish people: 2 Chron 3:1; 1 Chron 21:21 </p>
<p>Here is the place that David would offer up a sacrifice for the plague to be stayed from his people </p>
<p>At Moriah Solomon would build his temple </p>
<p>For 100s of years the whole Jewish religion would revolve around this spot! </p>
<p>All of the priestly orders and all of the sacrifices and all of the Levitical system would focus on this spot. </p>
<p>Here is a fascinating question: what about the Jew with an inquisitive mind? </p>
<p>What about the Jew determined to dig for answers? </p>
<p>Why is their temple where it is? </p>
<p>What is so important about Moriah? </p>
<p>If they were to dig and to dig deep, to dig as deep as you can dig, spiritually rather than physically, they would discover this that you could go no deeper into the past of this place of Moriah than Genesis 22! </p>
<p>That is right at the foundation of that glorious temple, the Jewish system and the sacrifices lay 3 things: </p>
<p>A Son <br>A Sacrifice <br>A Substitute </p>
<p>Isn’t God glorious?? </p>
<p>Provision </p>
<p>Genesis 22:8 “God shall provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering” </p>
<p>At this place of Moriah, Abraham found a special place: ‘Jehovah Jireh’ </p>
<p>At this place the Lord would do the first of 7 things </p>
<p>Abraham would hear the double call of God for the first time in scriptures: “Abraham, Abraham” </p>
<p>A call that comes in the depth of mans need, when all that a man needs will only be found in God alone. </p>
<p>This is a personal call to God as all sufficient for man in his need. </p>
<p>Consider: </p>
<p>Abraham Abraham (Gen22) <br>Jacob Jacob (Gen 46:2) <br>Moses Moses (Exodus 3:4) <br>Samuel Samuel (1 Samuel 3:10) <br>Martha Martha (Luke 10:41) <br>Simon Simon (Luke 22:31) <br>Saul Saul (Acts 9:4) </p>
<p>Jacob and Joseph (Gen 41:40ff) </p>
<p>Joseph - a type of Christ </p>
<p>Beloved of his father <br>Hated without a cause <br>Before whom every knee would bow in heaven and on earth <br>Leaving Hebron the place of fellowship <br>Heading to Shechem the place of danger where Dinah was raped and Simeon and Levi killed the sons of Hamor <br>Sold by Judah for 20 pieces of silver <br>Sold as a slave to the gentiles <br>Tested in all points like we are yet without sin by Potiphars wife <br>Falsely accused and ‘taken from prison and from judgement’ <br>Exalted over all Egypt and given a name above every name, before whom every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the Glory of God the Father! <br>The source of bread for the world <br>The one whom his brothers would look upon whom they had once despised and rejected </p>
<p>As far as Jacob was concerned Joseph was dead (Gen 37:33) </p>
<p>But now exalted and at the right hand of Pharaoh </p>
<p>Hannah and Samuel (1 Sam 1) </p>
<p>A child promised to the Lord </p>
<p>Taken to the temple at 3 years of age with a 3 year bullock and offered up as a sacrifice </p>
<p>Samuel visited the temple every year with a sacrifice (1 Samuel 1:21) </p>
<p>For Hannah every year was a sacrifice </p>
<p>Ah but just a minute! </p>
<p>You’ve got it all wrong! </p>
<p>These 3 boys were pictures of a greater sacrifice? </p>
<p>Are we saying that these 3 boys were really a shock wave coming out of Calvary? </p>
<p>Are we saying that these 3 boys were really echoes going out from the sacrifice of God the Father in giving the Son? </p>
<p>Here’s a problem: these 3 boys are all alive! None of them died! </p>
<p>So much for your pictures! </p>
<p>So where did we leave them then? </p>
<p>Isaac: A son on the altar an a son in resurrection (Heb 11:17-19) <br>Joseph: A son at the right hand of the throne <br>Samuel: A son in the temple in priestly ministry </p>
<p>Where did the sacrifice of God leave His Son? </p>
<p>A Son on the Altar - “it is Christ that died...” <br>A Son in Resurrection - “yea rather that is risen again....” <br>A Son at the right hand of the throne - “who is even at the right hand of God...” <br>A Son in priestly ministry - “who also maketh intercession for us...”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>42:34GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68073682010-07-13T21:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:24:35+00:00Romans Chapter 8 Vs 28 to 30 : 'Gods Purpose in Suffering' - JS Gillespie<p> </p>
<p>Because of Christ there is: </p>
<p>1. Purpose in Suffering (8:28-30) - Christ Glorified - to share in His Glory (8:29-30) </p>
<p>2. Proof of Gods interest in my suffering (8:31-34) - Christ Crucified </p>
<p>3. Power in Suffering (8:34-39) - Power available to transform suffering - Christ Resurrected </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>1. Purpose in Suffering (8:28-30) - Christ Glorified - to share in His Glory (8:29-30) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>To make me like a glorified Saviour </p>
<p>The worlds problem with suffering: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>1. Moral issue - Suffering is Unethical - suffering is intrinsically evil, God must stop it. </p>
<p>2. Logical issue - Suffering is Unproductive - it is futile, there is no point to it, suffering always means ‘it’ has gone wrong. </p>
<p>3. Practical issue - Suffering is Unpleasant </p>
<p>When the scriptures seal with suffering: </p>
<p>1. Moral issue: Unethical: “all things work together for good” (8:28) - don’t judge the ethical value by the experience, you must look at the outcome. Illust: Put a knife in someone’s back, they were very grateful, cut out a tumour! </p>
<p>2. Logical issue: Unproductive: “called according to His purpose” (8:28). Suffering is not pointless or unproductive. God has purpose even in suffering. </p>
<p>3. Practical problem: Unpleasant. “He that spared not His own Son” (8:32) </p>
<p>In particular suffering is unproductive: </p>
<p>God has purpose in suffering </p>
<p>Conformity to the image of His Son </p>
<p>Out of all the many truths of suffering here is surely the most glorious; out of my suffering comes something productive and positive. </p>
<p>There is hope and purpose in suffering. </p>
<p>Illust: Hudson Taylor: </p>
<p>'Of the trials of this early period it is scarcely possible to convey any adequate idea. To one of a sensitive nature, the horrors, atrocities, and misery connected with war were a terrible ordeal. The embarrassment also of the times was considerable. With an income of only eighty pounds a year, I was compelled, upon moving into the Settlement, to give one hundred and twenty for rent, and sublet half the house; and though the Committee of the Chinese Evangelisation Society increased my income when, after the arrival of Dr. Parker, they learned more of our circumstances, many painful experiences had necessarily been passed through. </p>
<p>Few can realise how distressing to so young and untried a worker these difficulties seemed, or the intense loneliness of the position of a pioneer who could not even hint at many of his circumstances, as to do so would have been a tacit appeal for help. The great enemy is always ready with his oft-repeated suggestion, "All these things are against me." But oh, how false the word! The cold, and even the hunger, the watchings and sleeplessness of nights of danger, and the feeling at times of utter isolation and helplessness, were well and wisely chosen, and tenderly and lovingly meted out. What circumstances could have rendered the Word of God more sweet, the presence of God more real, the help of God more precious? They were times, indeed, of emptying and humbling, but were experiences that made not ashamed, and that strengthened purpose to go forward as God might direct, with His proved promise, "I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." One can see, even now, that </p>
<p>"as for God, His way is perfect," ' </p>
<p>Suffering is hard but not without purpose for those whom He did foreknow </p>
<p>Every circumstance of life carefully fashioned and directed to this purpose. </p>
<p>“For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate...” (8:29) </p>
<p>Not just the occasional major event God uses but every circumstance of life God uses. </p>
<p>God can only use every circumstance of life because He is in control of every circumstance. </p>
<p>“foreknowledge” (v29) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>1. Not simply that God foreknew my circumstances / decisions / attitudes / abilities but rather Go foreknew me. This is foreknowledge of a ‘person’: “for whom He did foreknow.” He knew me before He made me. A frequent theme in the OT scriptures. </p>
<p>2. Knowledge implies relationship: Gen 4:1; John 17:3; 2 Peter 1:8 </p>
<p>3. The Divine Foreknowledge of persons is a frequent theme in the OT: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>● Jeremiah 1:5 </p>
<p>● Psalm 71:6 </p>
<p>● Isaiah 46:3-4 </p>
<p>● Isa 49:1,5 </p>
<p>● Psalm 68:6 : Spurrell “God seateth the beloved at home” ie God chooses the families we will be brought into and brought up in. </p>
<p>Notice that the foreknowledge of a person is intimately connected to Gods foreknowledge for a purpose </p>
<p>Divine foreknowledge is determinative not simply predictive or anticipatory. </p>
<p>When God foreknows a person He does not say: </p>
<p>‘I know that is going to happen here’ </p>
<p>He says </p>
<p>‘This is what is going to happen here’ </p>
<p>God foreknows a person for a purpose </p>
<p>Divine foreknowledge has to do with a pre-conception relationship to the purposes and plans of God </p>
<p>Nowhere clearer than 1 Peter 1:20: “foreordained” = “foreknown” </p>
<p>What is so precious is that that word is used of me in Rom 8:29 </p>
<p>What am I saying? </p>
<p>I am saying that even before my birth every part of my life has been carefully constructed by God, overseen and overruled to bring me as His own to a single unified purpose: </p>
<p>“conformed to the image of His Son” (8:29) </p>
<p>A person foreknown is linked to a purpose foreordained. </p>
<p>This is very practical and important. </p>
<p>Very practical when I come to judge my suffering. </p>
<p>How often do I fault God in my suffering? </p>
<p>How often do i complain that God has failed me in my suffering? </p>
<p>You can only fault God in your suffering if you know what He is aiming at. </p>
<p>You can only say that He has thrown the dart and missed the target if you know what that target is. </p>
<p>The target is: “conformed to the image of His Son” (8:29) </p>
<p>That is God purposes in my suffering to conform me to the man of: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>1. No reputation (Phil2:7) </p>
<p>2. No Position (Phil 2:7-8) cf. John 15 and washing the disciples feet </p>
<p>3. No Reservation (Phil2:8) - nothing held back, everything for God </p>
<p>4. Unflinching determination (Luke 9:51) </p>
<p>5. No Hesitation (Ps 40:6ff) </p>
<p>6. Perfect Trust (Luke 22:42; 23:46) </p>
<p>7. Total Sanctification (Jo8:29; 6:38; 5:30) </p>
<p>In our suffering let is be careful to consider the target God is aiming at before I claim that God has failed em in my suffering. </p>
<p>‘I am here by Gods appointment, in His keeping, under His training, for His time’ - Andrew Murray </p>
<p>2. Proof of Gods interest in my suffering (8:31-34) - Christ Crucified </p>
<p>3. Power in Suffering (8:34-39) - Power available to transform suffering - Christ Resurrected</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>46:45GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68073932010-07-06T21:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:25:02+00:00Romans chp 8 vs 23 to 30 : 'Why Hope? Because I Can!' - J Stewart Gillespie<p>We have though about: </p>
<p>The Relationship between suffering and glory: glory is the result of suffering or suffering has as its consequences Glory. The relationship is not compensatory.</p>
<p>God uses suffering to bring us to glory, it is part of His sovereign plan. </p>
<ul> <li>The suffering of the creature (8:18) </li> <li>The suffering of the creation (8:20) </li> <li>The suffering of the creator (8:32) </li>
</ul>
<p>The Reason for Suffering </p>
<ul> <li>We Desire His Glory </li> <li>He Displays His Glory </li> <li>We Discover His Glory </li>
</ul>
<p>The Results of Suffering </p>
<p>Present - Hope (8:20,24,25) <br>Future - Glory (8:18,21,23) </p>
<p>It must be said that suffering does not inevitably result in hope. </p>
<p>Sometimes suffering leads people to drink, drugs and suicide. </p>
<p>What makes the difference? </p>
<p>The presence of the Spirit of God: “And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.” (8:23) </p>
<p>The Prospect of the Spirit (v23) - Hope <br>The Prayer of the Holy Spirit - Help <br>The Purpose of the Holy Spirit - Wholeness </p>
<p>The Prospect of the Spirit (v23) - Hope </p>
<p>His Holy Spirit is the first fruits of salvations transformation <br>His Spirit is the promise of more to come <br>Therefore the attack on the outer man by the barrage of suffering has a whole different perspective for the believer than it does for the unbeliever (2 Co4:26-18; 5:1ff) <br>That suffering and attack actually hits the very “bondage of corruption” (v21) <br>The fact that I possess someone who is the promise of more to come, transforms the meaning of suffering. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Suffering can destroy the body but not the soul <br>Suffering can bring a shadow of fear but cannot destroy love <br>Suffering can bring pain but cannot remove the eternal prospect of Gods salvation <br>Suffering may bring death cannot end eternal life </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Prayer of the Holy Spirit (v26) - Help </p>
<p>Here is the key to suffering transformed <br>Not just a different outlook / mindset on suffering (v23) but suffering radically transformed by the Spirits ministry! <br>I once took a knife and plunged it into the back of a woman, did they lock you up? No she couldn’t have been more grateful, the knife was a scalpel, the wound was around a black mark on the skin that turned out to be a cancer. Suffering when guided by grace can bring glorious results. Suffering cannot be judged in isolation from its outcome. <br>It is the Spirit who makes the difference <br>Suffering brings a sense of our ‘weakness’ (v20) : “infirmities” : powerlessness <br>This powerlessness the Spirit ‘helps’ (v26) <br>The help the Spirit gives is prayer help <br>So to utilise and experience that help I need to pray <br>Suffering has an effect upon me: “I groan” (v23) <br>But I groan with the Holy Spirit present <br>As I groan His Spirit knows my heart (v27) <br>His Spirit responds to that groaning appropriately (v26) - He groans too. <br>He knows and He is sensitive to my needs <br>Those groanings of the Spirit are intercessory and bring to God our need <br>The help is timely and appropriate to our need even when we haven’t asked for it. <br>The result is to bring our need and the help into conformity to “the will of God” (v27) <br>These groanings thus achieve Gods purpose for my life: ‘conformed to the image of His Son’ (8:29) </p>
<p>The Purpose of the Holy Spirit - Wholeness (8:29) </p>
<p>To transform and conform to Christ (8:29) <br>Relationship and resemblance <br>To glorify (8:30)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>50:11GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68073952010-05-26T21:20:00+01:002022-01-08T21:25:32+00:00Romans chapter 8 verses 14 to 17 - The Relationship that Transforms Suffering - J Stewart Gillespie<p>In some ways the story of the bible is the story of how God moves from what is good, even very good (Gen1) to what is utterly glorious. </p>
<p>How can you improve on a good work of God? </p>
<p>Not so much that God improves on a good work of God or that there are faults in Gods work which need to be improved upon but rather the good work of God is not the final work of God. </p>
<p>Gods good work is the platform upon which He will work His glorious work. </p>
<p>None of that would cause us to blink a theological eyelid I am sure was it not for one small detail; namely the content of the chapters between Gen 1 and Rev 21 - ie. the whole of the bible! </p>
<p>In the rest of the Bible we have detailed for us the means by which God transforms His good work into His glorious work! </p>
<p>How does He do that? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• Sin </p>
<p>• Serpent and Satan </p>
<p>• Suffering and Sorrow </p>
<p>• Sacrifice of Calvary of Gods own Son </p>
<p>• Sanctification of the Spirit of God </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>With these tools, and they are but tools in the hands of a sovereign God, God takes His good work and turns it on the potters wheel of providence and moulds it by the hands of Divine decree until Gods good work becomes Gods Glorious work. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>" 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" (Rom 8:28) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will" (Eph1:11) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>How does God use suffering to move from His good work to His glorious work? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>3 keys in Romans 8: </p>
<p>1. Relationship with Christ that transforms suffering (8:14-17) </p>
<p>2. Result of suffering (8:17-19) </p>
<p>3. Reason for suffering (8:20-24) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Relationship that transforms suffering: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Take away our relationship with Christ and suffering becomes the strongest argument, maybe the only argument the atheist has. </p>
<p>It is also the hardest argument to answer: for to answer it you need to understand how a relationship with Christ transforms suffering & that is the very relationship which they deny! </p>
<p>The background to suffering in Roms 8:18-23 which appears 'out of the blue' in some respects in Romans 8 is that of relationship </p>
<p>Roms 8:14-18 has been focusing on our relationship with God, as sons of God, assured by the presence of the Spirit of God in our lives </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• Evidence of Relationship: 8:14 - The fact that I am led by the Spirit of God gives me the assurance of relationship with God </p>
<p>• Experience of Relationship: 8:15 - This relationship by His Spirit leads me out of bondage to sin and brings me into a new and intimate relationship with God in prayer. </p>
<p>• Exercise to this Relationship: 8:16 - I have the confidence of entering into His presence and of enjoying that relationship with God by the assurance of His Spirit testifying in me </p>
<p>• Expectation of the Relationship: 8:17 - Because I have this relationship with God I am a fellow heir with Christ, a fellow sufferer and will be together glorified with Christ. </p>
<p>If in my suffering I see only the demise of my glory and fail to see the display of His Glory I will never triumph over suffering. </p>
<p>The background to the transforming effect of suffering in Romans 8 is that of my relationship with Christ </p>
<p>This is hardly surprising in the context of Romans, for in this epistle the key to all blessing lies in my relationship with Christ: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• The key to salvation (Rom5:11ff) - Relationship with Christ </p>
<p>• The key to sanctification (Rom6:3-4) - Relationship with Christ </p>
<p>• The key to spirituality and spiritual progress (Rom8:9-11) - Relationship with Christ </p>
<p>• The key to suffering (Rom8:17ff) - Relationship with Christ </p>
<p> </p>
<p>It is the presence of this relationship, as the background to my suffering that makes sense of all of my suffering </p>
<p>It is this relationship that transforms my suffering </p>
<p>This is emphasised in the structure of 8:17 which revolves around 3 words: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>1. Sugkleronomas </p>
<p>2. Sumpascho </p>
<p>3. Sundoxazo </p>
<p>1. Sugkleronomas - Together heir </p>
<p>2. Sumpascho - Together sufferer </p>
<p>3. Sundoxazo - Together glorified </p>
<p>1. I am an heir because I fellowship with Christ who is the Heir </p>
<p>2. I am glorified because I fellowship with the one who has the Glory </p>
<p>3. I suffer because I fellowship with the one who suffers </p>
<p>So then this suffering in v17 is a fellowship with Christ in His sufferings </p>
<p>It is this fellowship which transforms my sufferings </p>
<p>How does this relationship transform my suffering? </p>
<p>By virtue of my relationship with Christ, in this suffering the Grace of God brings me: </p>
<p>Realisation of my Relationship through suffering <br>Resources in my suffering <br>Results from my suffering <br>Rejoicing in to my suffering </p>
<p> Result of Suffering (v17-19) </p>
<p>Glory was the consequence of suffering </p>
<p>Glory was not simply the compensation for suffering </p>
<p>Suffering was embarked upon for the deliberate reason that I might obtain Glory: "we suffer with Him that we may be also glorified..." (v17) - cause and effect. <br> v 18 - the Glory is incomparable - not so much suffering and so much glory, this is not karma, not compensation, this is grace. There is a Scottish idea of karma: 'never mind you'll get your reward in heaven son.' Resist the temptation to limit glory by estimating it according to the degree of your suffering! Glory is not the reward for suffering, it is the reason behind suffering. <br>v17 "earnest expectation" : 'apokaradokia' : 'sticking your neck out' Glory is predictable / expected from suffering. There's suffering, God is working, there must be Glory coming. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Reason for Suffering (8:18-25): </p>
<p>1 word "hope" (8:20,24,25) </p>
<p> The hope ultimately of His Glory and the hope that one day I will be glorified in Him (8:19,30) </p>
<p>How do we see hope in suffering? </p>
<p>Display of Gods Glory: It is only in suffering that we see certain aspects of Gods Glory, aspects we would otherwise not see; I may accept that they exist in theory but I would never have any concrete experience of them. </p>
<p>"The Glory of His Grace" (Eph1:6) </p>
<p>Jo1:14: "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth" </p>
<p> </p>
<p>2 Co 4:15: "For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God." (ESV) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Heb 2:9: "But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man" </p>
<p> </p>
<p>1 Peter 5:10 "But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you." </p>
<p> </p>
<p> Eph1:6: "The Glory of His Grace" </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Some say that even in Eden and with Adam in an unfallen state Grace was evident: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Grace of life <br>Grace to sustain life <br>Grace of Gods self revelation to Adam </p>
<p> I am sure that is true but were it not for sin, suffering, Satan and Salvation in the Son we would never perceive the Glory of that Grace to us as we know see it! </p>
<p> The Glory of the Gospel: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>2 Co4:4 "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them." </p>
<p> </p>
<p>1 Tim 1:11 "According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust" </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Glory which flows from His Mercy: </p>
<p> </p>
<p> Rom 9:23 "And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory," </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Glory of God revealed in us by transformation: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>2 Co 3:18 " But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." </p>
<p>Could this have been possible but by Calvary and redemption?? </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Glory of Gods Love: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Eph 3:16-21 </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Relationship that Transforms Suffering: </p>
<p>How does that relationship with Christ transform my suffering: </p>
<p>Relationship that is realised in suffering <br>Relationship provides resources for suffering <br>Relationship that sees results from suffering <br>Relationship that rejoices in suffering </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Relationship that is Realised in Suffering: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>In saving me - for my life - God has a 2 fold purpose: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Relationship with Him (8:14-17) </p>
<p>Resemblance to Him (8:29) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>cf. 1 John 3:1-2 </p>
<p>There is probably no setting in life so conducive to the fostering of that relationship and to the molding of resemblance to Christ that suffering! If for no other reason, and there are other reasons that suffering will consistently lead the believer to Rom 8:15 as a personal experience: prayer: dependant, open, honest, sincere prayer </p>
<p>Prayer that flows out of need and finds its satisfaction in the all sufficiency of Christ </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Samson - "pray" used only once in his life; in that final trial of suffering, and what did he pray for? He prayed: "Lord strengthen me only this one" - he prayed for strength, big, bold Samson, prayed for strength! Only in suffering and weakness would he have prayed such a prayer and look at the effects; his greatest weakness! God brings me to suffering not to destroy me but to bring me to depend on Him and on His Glory alone that I might enjoy that which is most supremely glorious! </p>
<p> </p>
<p> Elijah - Prayer and communion with God at its richest and deepest in Hhis suffering: Mt Horeb (1 Kings 19) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Saul - "behold he prayeth" (Acts9:11) - but only after blindness and total desimation of all his preconceptions about God!! A man who realises that he had studied God all of his life and yet didn't actually know God! "Who art thou Lord?"..."I am Jesus...whom thou persecutest" (Acts9:5). Tell me that's not possible today?? This suffering brings him to prayer. </p>
<p>Jonah - Flees in his freedom (1:3), sleeps in the storm (1:6) but "then Jonah prayed" (2:1) in the belly of the fish. </p>
<p>David - Psalms - David in the psalms moves to prayer and draws close to God in suffering, Psalms which include: Psalm 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 12, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 27, 28, 30, 31... ie most of the Psalms!! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>It is not that suffering creates the relationship but in suffering that relationship is realised, for in suffering I see my need of Him and of His great Glory, I draw on that relationship. </p>
<p>Perhaps the best example of relationship realised in suffering: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Shadrach, Meshach and Abednigo - they encounter the Son of God in their suffering! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Shadrach, Meshach and Abednigo </p>
<p>They enter into suffering </p>
<p>cast into the fiery furnace! </p>
<p>Do you believe in the one true and living God? </p>
<p>Of course we do! That's why we are going into he fiery furnace! </p>
<p>We believe that God spoke by Moses and commanded that "thou shalt not make any graven image....thou shalt not bow down and worship it nor serve it." </p>
<p>So they enter into that fiery furnace. </p>
<p>You would have a second opportunity to interview Shadrach, Meshach and Abednigo! </p>
<p>An unexpected second opportunity! </p>
<p>Shadrach, Meshach and Abednigo do you believe in the one true and Living God of the Universe? </p>
<p>Yes we do! Why? For all the reasons that lead them to go into the fiery furnace AND we met Him in the flames! </p>
<p>By their relationship with that one "like unto the Son of God" that fiery trial was transformed into an experience that confirmed and strengthened and settled their faith forever! </p>
<p>Only a relationship with Christ could transform that trial. </p>
<p>A deepening experience of Christ through the trial. </p>
<p>In Christ I Have the Resources in my suffering (8:15-16): </p>
<p>Prayer : </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This is within the context of Romans 8:15-16 - Prayer </p>
<p>It is suffering that so often drives me to prayer and to His presence </p>
<p>In His presence I find the resources I need for that suffering </p>
<p>Heb 10:19ff </p>
<p>In and through suffering God has drawn many of His people to Himself in prayer: </p>
<p>• Samson </p>
<p>• Jonah </p>
<p>• Saul of Tarsus </p>
<p>• David in the Psalms </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Presence OF CHRIST: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Romans 8:9-10, 14, 17 "suffer with Him" </p>
<p>Consider Paul: 2 Tim 4:16-17: "At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge. Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion." </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Power of Christ </p>
<p> </p>
<p>He alone is sufficient to transform all suffering for His Glory (8:18ff) </p>
<p>How did Christ sustain / strengthen in suffering? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• His Presence : "The Lord stood with me" </p>
<p>• His Power: "strengthend me" </p>
<p>• His Provision: "by me the preaching might be fully known" </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"fully known" (4:17) - "plērophoreō" - from 'pleres' - full and 'phoreo' - to fill : 'fully filled' or 'fulfilled' </p>
<p>'To fulfill, thoroughly accomplish or being brought to an end and completed, reaching its goal..." (Zodhiates) </p>
<p>So what is Paul saying? </p>
<p>God has given Paul a gift: the gospel. </p>
<p>That gift is no heir loom. </p>
<p>In Christ I have Results from my suffering (Rom 8:18): </p>
<p> </p>
<p>There is Hope in suffering - but only in Christ </p>
<p>There is hope of “Glory” </p>
<p>There are results from this suffering in eternity guaranteed (8:18) </p>
<p>There are also results from suffering in time, here and now. </p>
<p>We have the "firstfruits of the Spirit" (Rom8:23) right now - His Spirit with us - and surely we can expect to see an effect with His Spirit already working in and through us. </p>
<p>Consider how the ripples of the Grace of God spread out on the surface of time: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• for the sufferer: I am changed by it </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.” (Heb 12:11) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.” (Rom 5:3-5) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>John 15: Fruit, more fruit and much fruit all from purging and pruning. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>1Peter 1:7: "trial of your faith being much more precious that of gold...might be found unto praise and honour and glory." - The preparation for that future glory is here and now. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Consider how a relationship with Christ transformed sufferings and brought real results from that suffering: </p>
<p>The result of a relationship with God that grows: </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>To Know Christs Presence in the trial </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Consider David as a young lad facing a bear and a lion out in the open field </p>
<p>Terrifying! </p>
<p>In that experience, by virtue of His relationship with God he fouond help in that trial! </p>
<p>God delivered him out of the paw of the lion and out of the paw of the bear! </p>
<p>But just a minute, if God is so great, here is the fatal flaw in your reasoning, if God is so great why could He not protect David from attack in the first place from the lion and the bear? </p>
<p>There would be real results from this experience, for by it Davids faith and confidence would grow in His God </p>
<p> </p>
<p>To knew and Prove Gods Power for the trial </p>
<p> </p>
<p>From that experience of deliverance in the past from the paw of the lion and of the bear David would draw in 1 Samuel 17 as he faced the greatest threat of all: Gloiath of Gath and David alone would have confidence to go out before Goliath! </p>
<p>How? Let David speak for himself: </p>
<p>"David said moreover, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD be with thee" (1 Sam 17:37) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Joseph and his brethren: </p>
<p>Joseph could look back over those trying years </p>
<p>His suffering made sense but only in the context of his relationship with and faith in God </p>
<p>Through those years of slavery, suffering and imprisonment and then exaltation in Egypt Joseph could trace in that suffering </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Gods Provision out of the trial </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive" (Gen 50:20) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Samson through blind eyes was able to see </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Gods Purpose for the Trial </p>
<p> </p>
<p>His eyes taken out, in fetters of brass, led by a child, hair cut, tortures and humiliated </p>
<p>Yet there he is in the temple of Dagon, at a Philistine party </p>
<p>What kind of party can command the release of Samson from the prison cells? </p>
<p>What kind of party can draw Samson centre stage for its entertainment </p>
<p>This was a party of high ranking officials, in a temple - with priests "Lords of the Philistines" (Judges 16:23) </p>
<p>Samson would never have met these people on the battle field! </p>
<p>They would be busy at home catching up on some urgent paper work! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Siegfried Sasson: The General: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>‘Good-morning; good-morning!’ the General said <br>When we met him last week on our way to the line. <br>Now the soldiers he smiled at are most of ’em dead, <br>And we’re cursing his staff for incompetent swine. <br>‘He’s a cheery old card,’ grunted Harry to Jack <br>As they slogged up to Arras with rifle and pack. </p>
<p>. . . . <br>But he did for them both by his plan of attack. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>But here they all are, under one roof! </p>
<p>There is Samson positioned between 2 pillars </p>
<p>here is Samsons greatest victory and that through suffering! </p>
<p>I know that men were sinning </p>
<p>I know that Samson was suffering </p>
<p>I know that God is Sovereign </p>
<p>I can see it can't you? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• for other believers: others are helped by it </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” (2Co 1:4) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” (Php 1:14) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Problem of believers sitting on the fence! </p>
<p>How do you stop believers sitting on the fence? </p>
<p>Pour a gallon of diesel on it and flick a cigarette lighter next to it! </p>
<p>God sets the fence on fire! </p>
<p>They can no longer sit on the fence! </p>
<p>No room for mediocrity! </p>
<p>Either they through their lot in with Christ and the apostle and face the same fate as Paul or they pack it in as a bad job! </p>
<p>Paul could see a real response, positive response to his suffering </p>
<p>Not an automatic one! </p>
<p>A response transformed by his relationship to Christ and by the relationship now strengthened in others to Christ! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• for the unbeliever: some are challenged by it </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel;” (Php 1:12) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.”(2Ti 4:17) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“And Saul was consenting unto his death. And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles... Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.”(Act 8:1-4) </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>In Christ I am able to Rejoice in Suffering: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The relationship with Christ allows me to rejoice in suffering! </p>
<p>How? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>I rejoice to see Christ supply and meet my need </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Suffering brings me to a state of need and a sense of need before God </p>
<p>To depend upon Him and see Him meet my need is a source of rejoicing </p>
<p> </p>
<p>I rejoice to see Christ sustain me in my need </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." (Phil 4:11-13) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Not only do I depend upon Him to meet my need but </p>
<p>I depend upon Him in my need (Phil 4:12) </p>
<p>He feeds me in my hunger </p>
<p>he gives grace to cope with my hunger </p>
<p>At times I still feel my need </p>
<p>At times I exist in a state of real need </p>
<p>At times the pain does not go away </p>
<p>At times the hunger is keenly felt </p>
<p>Yet those experiences are precious when I know His sustaining power and peace in the midst of the most difficult of trials </p>
<p>I rejoice that He has sustained me in need </p>
<p>A God who meets my need </p>
<p>A God who meets with me in my need </p>
<p>He supplies, He sustains: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>2 Tim 4:16-17: "At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge. Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion."</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>37:19GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68074362010-05-26T21:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:25:55+00:00Romans Chp 8 Vs 14 to 17: 'The Spirit Filled Relationship that Transforms Suffering' - J Stewart Gillespie<p>The Spirit filled relationship is marked by: </p>
<p>Prayer (v15) <br>Proof (v16) </p>
<p>Whatever we get out of v16 and however we expound it must bring us to this – proof and assurance of faith, any exposition of this verse that takes us to less than that is inadequate. </p>
<p>“bear witness with” : “συμμαρτυρέω” : from “μαρτυρέω” is a word used: </p>
<p>in the setting of church order to prove, convict or convince another of sin or error (Matt 18:16), it involves the presentation of convincing evidence. <br>in a court of law (Matt 26:65; Mk 14:63) of factually dependable testimony, this level of 'witness' evidence is sufficient to convict a man of a crime in a court of law, before a judge, it is not simply a hunch. <br>of the apostles laying the foundation for gospel mission with reliable, eyewitness accounts of the person, work, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus, such that others will be convinced by the overwhelming evidence and proof of their testimony. (Lk 24:48, Acts1:8,22 ). <br>of the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ to the truth of God and the message of the Gospel (Jo 18:37; 3:11) </p>
<p>It must contain the idea of authoritative and substantive testimony. </p>
<p>A feeling, notion, hunch or emotion just won't do as a meaning here! </p>
<p>It wouldn't do in court and it wasn't sufficient for the beginning of the evangelism of the world and it isn't enough for my assurance either! </p>
<p>How does the Spirit “bear witness with our spirit”? </p>
<p>This is a seemingly difficult question because it appears not to be answered in this section. </p>
<p>I think the answer does lie in this section but we need to know what we are looking for before we can find it! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>John chps 14 to 16 is the seminal section on the Spirit of God in the NT. </p>
<p>In many ways John 14:16 parallels Romans 8:16: </p>
<p>“And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;” (Joh 14:16) </p>
<p>The word “another” here is: “ἄλλος” and not 'heteros,' ie the Father would give to the disciples a comforter just like Christ! </p>
<p>Illust: If I have an apple I could ask for a 'heteros' piece of fruit and you could give me an orange, but if I asked for an 'allos' piece of fruit you would give me an apple. </p>
<p>When the Lord Jesus says that the Father will “give you another Comforter” He uses this word “allos” - another of the same kind. </p>
<p>Of the same kind as what? </p>
<p>Of the same kind as Christ. </p>
<p>So then if I knew how it was that Christ functioned as a Comforter then I would have a good insight as to how the Spirit of God would function as a Comforter. </p>
<p>We might reasonably conclude from this that the way in which the Spirit of God behaves with believers today is comparable to the way in which the Lord Jesus behaved with His disciples whilst he was here. </p>
<p>If I wish to know how the Spirit of God bears witness to my spirit that I am a son of God then if I knew how the Lord Jesus gave this assurance to His disciples I could well have the answer. </p>
<p>How did the Lord Jesus give His disciples that assurance that they belonged to Him? </p>
<p>He satisfied their thirst (John 4) <br>He satisfied their hunger (John 6) <br>He brought peace in the midst of the storms of life (John 6; 21; Matt 8, 14) <br>He gave them light in the darkness (John 9) <br>He thrilled their heart as He expounded to them the scripture (Luke 24) <br>He spoke to them personally concerning matters known only to them and Him: John 3 – Nicodemus; John 2 – Philip; John 21 – Peter; Acts 9 – the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. </p>
<p>The role of the Spirit of God in John chps 14 to 16 is to: Encounter the Person of Christ (Jo 14:16,18, 26; 15:26; 16:14) in a way similar to that of His disciples whilst He was still present on earth. Today in the evening of His physical absence I cannot turn to the side and speak to Him physically present with me, with my problem and receive an immediate oral response to that question and yet by the ministry of the Holy Spirit I have something which is comparable to just that. </p>
<p>By the ministry of the Spirit of God I can encounter the person of Christ by the following means: </p>
<p>Experience the Presence of Christ <br>Expound the Truth of Christ <br>Enjoy the Peace of Christ <br>Express the Character of Christ <br>Exposed to the Righteousness of Christ </p>
<p>Experience the Presence of Christ </p>
<p>John 14:16: “comforter” : “παράκλητος” : from 3870: 'para kaleo': 'para' : by the side and 'kaleo' : to call : 'a helper alongside' : He draws alongside to help, the timely personal help of Christ. </p>
<p>Interestingly scripture is referred to as “paraklesis” : Rom15:4; Heb12:5; Heb 13:22 </p>
<p>Christ is our source of 'paraklesis' : Phil 2:1 </p>
<p>John 14:16: “He may abide with you” </p>
<p>John 14:17: “He dwelleth with you and shall be in you” </p>
<p>John 14:18: “I will come to you” </p>
<p>John 14:20: “I in you” </p>
<p>John 14:21: “will manifest myself to him” </p>
<p>I come to the garden alone <br>While the dew is still on the roses <br>And the voice I hear falling on my ear <br>The Son of God discloses. </p>
<p>And He walks with me, and He talks with me, <br>And He tells me I am His own; <br>And the joy we share as we tarry there, <br>None other has ever known. </p>
<p>Expound the Truth of Christ </p>
<p>John 14:17; 16:13: “the Spirit of truth” - this is not only the objective truth, ie the facts about Christ but the personal and subjective experience and appreciation of those truths: “and shall be in you” (14:17) </p>
<p>Compare this with the two on the road to Emmaus, a timely encounter with reassuring truths of the person of Christ: “And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?” (Luk 24:32) </p>
<p>John 14:26: “He shall teach you all things” </p>
<p>John 16:13: “He will guide you into all truth” </p>
<p>Here is the motive and ability behind all sound preaching, bible teaching, gospel exercise, evangelism, personal testimony to Christ, not a method, not an address, not message that went down well 12 times before, somewhere else, not a multi media presentation – but the Spirit of God. </p>
<p>Enjoy the Peace of Christ </p>
<p>John 14:27: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you” </p>
<p>This is not a purely rational or reasoned peace that comes when we have worked it all out. </p>
<p>This is not a pharmacological sedation that settles anxiety! </p>
<p>This is the personal peace of Christ ministered by the presence of Christ! </p>
<p>This is a peace that surpasses understanding. </p>
<p>Express the Character of Christ </p>
<p>John chp 15 </p>
<p>John 15:5: “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” </p>
<p>Exposed to the Righteousness of Christ </p>
<p>John 16:8 “And when He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness and of judgement”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>37:19GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68073582010-05-19T20:35:00+01:002022-01-08T21:26:55+00:00Romans Chapter 8 Vs 18 to 23: 'From Good to Glorious' - Gen 1:4,10,12,18,21,25,31 ; Rev 21:22-23; Rom 8:18-23 - JS Gillespie<p>In this biblical study of Romans chapter 8 we look at one of the great theological problems of the Christian world view; the problem of suffering. We look for answers in text of the bible as to why do people suffer? Why do I suffer? Can there be a God if there is so much suffering and pain in this world?</p>
<p>The biblical teaching on this subject is surprising!</p>
<p>The problem of suffering and of pain in a broken and fallen world was not ignored by the writers of the Bible.</p>
<p>We are not the first ones to ask; why do good people suffer? Why is there so much trouble and turmoil in the world? Does this prove that there is no God? </p>
<p>In some ways the story of the bible is the story of how God moves from what is good, even very good (Gen1) to what is utterly glorious. </p>
<p>How can you improve on a good work of God? </p>
<p>Not so much that God improves on a good work of God or that there are faults in Gods work which need to be improved upon but rather the good work of God is not the final work of God. </p>
<p>Gods good work is the platform upon which He will work His glorious work. </p>
<p>None of that would cause us to blink a theological eyelid I am sure was it not for one small detail; namely the content of the chapters between Gen 1 and Rev 21 - ie. the whole of the bible! </p>
<p>In the rest of the Bible we have detailed for us the means by which God transforms His good work into His glorious work! </p>
<p>How does He do that? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• Sin </p>
<p>• Serpent and Satan </p>
<p>• Suffering and Sorrow </p>
<p>• Sacrifice of Calvary of Gods own Son </p>
<p>• Sanctification of the Spirit of God </p>
<p> </p>
<p>With these tools, and they are but tools in the hands of a sovereign God, God takes His good work and turns it on the potters wheel of providence and moulds it by the hands of Divine decree until Gods good work becomes Gods Glorious work. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>" 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" (Rom 8:28) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will" (Eph1:11) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>In speaking of God moving from a Good work in creation to a glorious work in redemption I am not suggesting that there was anything wrong with, nor anything faulty in Gods original work. </p>
<p>Illust: George and the beech tree. Nothing wrong with the beech tree, the beech tree was as good a beech tree as you could imagine genetically pre-programmed and encoded to photosynthesis carbon dioxide and water into oxygen and sugars, roots, capillaries, bark, antimicrobial agents, containing plant life. George could not 'improve' on the tree being a tree! But George could take the tree, slash it with his chain saw, cut it into pieces, saw it, chisel it, turn it and cut in his lathe and produce a bowl! </p>
<p>I could never have used that tree to store things in or as an ornament before it went through that 'painful' process under the knife, axe, saw, chain saw and lathe! </p>
<p>I am not saying that anything that sin or Satan did 'improved' on Gods good work </p>
<p>I am saying that God is so omnipotent and sovereign that He is able to use even sin, Satan and suffering to produce something very different from His good work that it becomes Gods Glorious work! </p>
<p>Creation would bring Glory to God: </p>
<p>By virtue of what it is in creation (Psalm 19) <br>Even more so by virtue of what God would make it in redemption (Eph 1:11-12) </p>
<p>How does God use suffering to move from His good work to His glorious work? </p>
<p>By a path of suffering in: </p>
<p>The Creature (8:18) <br>The Creation (8:20) <br>The Creator (8:32) - astoundingly, casts its shadow over all of my understanding of what is acceptable and what is unacceptable for the creature and the creation to endure. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>3 keys in Romans 8: </p>
<p> </p>
<ol> <li>Relationship that transforms suffering </li> <li>Result of suffering </li> <li>Reason for suffering </li>
</ol>
<p> </p>
<p>Relationship that transforms suffering </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The background to suffering in Roms 8:18-23 which appears 'out of the blue' in some respects in Romans 8 is that of relationship </p>
<p>Roms 8:14-18 has been focusing on our relationship with God, as sons of God, assured by the presence of the Spirit of God in our lives </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• 8:14 - The fact that I am led by the Spirit of God gives me the assurance of relationship with God </p>
<p>• 8:15 - This relationship by His Spirit leads me out of bondage to sin and brings me into a new and intimate relationship with God </p>
<p>• 8:16 - I have the confidence of entering into His presence and of enjoying that relationship with God by the assurance of His Spirit testifying in me </p>
<p>• 8:17 - Because I have this relationship with God I am a fellow heir with Christ, a fellow sufferer and together glorified with Christ </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The background to the transforming effect of suffering in Romans 8 is that of my relationship with Christ </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This is hardly surprising in the context of Romans, for in this epistle the key to all blessing lies in my relationship with Christ: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• The key to salvation (Rom5:11ff) - Relationship with Christ </p>
<p>• The key to sanctification (Rom6:3-4) - Relationship with Christ </p>
<p>• The key to spirituality and spiritual progress (Rom8:9-11) - Relationship with Christ </p>
<p>• The key to suffering (Rom8:17ff) - Relationship with Christ </p>
<p> </p>
<p> It is the presence of this relationship, as the background to my suffering that makes sense of all of my suffering </p>
<p>It is this relationship that transforms my suffering </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This is emphasised in the structure of 8:17 which revolves around 3 words: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Sugkleronomas <br>Sumpascho <br>Sundoxazo </p>
<p>Sugkleronomas - Together heir <br>Sumpascho - Together sufferer <br>Sundoxazo - Together glorified </p>
<p>I am an heir because I fellowship with Christ who is the Heir <br>I am glorified because I fellowship with the one who has the Glory <br>I suffer because I fellowship with the one who suffers </p>
<p> </p>
<p>So then this suffering in v17 is a fellowship with Christ in His sufferings </p>
<p>It is this fellowship which transforms my sufferings </p>
<p>How does this relationship transform my suffering? </p>
<p>By virtue of my relationship with Christ, in this suffering the Grace of God brings me: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Result of suffering </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The result of suffering is Glory </p>
<p>Suffering is related to Glory in a very particular way: </p>
<p>Not simply that Glory is compensation for suffering: </p>
<p>God one day will may up for the suffering with Glory </p>
<p>A portion of suffering balances out with a portion of Glory to make it all neutral (this is specifically not the case 8:18) </p>
<p>Never mind you'll get your reward one day thinking! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>But rather that Glory is the direct consequence of suffering: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The relationship is cause and effect, it is deliberate and intentional and necessary </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together" (8:17) </p>
<p>"For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God." (8:19) - "apokaradokia" - straining out the neck in anticipation, there is suffering, look there is suffering says the creation, so there MUST be Glory, it must follow, its the law of the universe, cause and effect, inevitable, irrevocable, suffering and then Glory. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope" (8:20) - a deliberate and intentional subjection to vanity (Gen 3) with all of its organised frustration and suffering with the intended outcome of being a path to hope - Hope in the Glory of God. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Illust: </p>
<p>Man in RTA - breaks his legs, taken to hospital, sees the orthopaedic surgeon, your in a bad way but we can put in screws and plates and fix that break for you, if you put your back into the physiotherapy we can get you back and walking, we can compensate for your suffering! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Child in the orthopaedic wards - dwarfism, legs had been deliberately broken, pins in the bones and rods in the legs, you wouldn't say to that child - don't worry, we can get those rods out and fix those legs back to what you once had! That wouldn't do at all! Those broken legs and pins were their treatment to stretch those legs and to allow the bone to grow longer than it would have by the disease. This child is looking for something more, something more glorious than what they had before! Glory does not compensate Glory has been caused by their suffering! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The picture painted of the relationship between suffering and glory is that of the child in 2. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Reason for suffering </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Why does Glory have to be by suffering? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• In suffering there is a: Desire for the Glory of God that there would be by no other means </p>
<p>• In suffering there is a: Display of the Glory of God that there would be by no other means </p>
<p>• In suffering there is a: Discovery of the Glory of God that there would be by no other means </p>
<p>• In suffering there is a: Despair / Disappointment at the absence of the Glory of God there would be by no other means </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• In suffering there is a: Desire for the Glory of God that there would be by no other means </p>
<p>Psalm 77:2 </p>
<p>Rom 8:19 "For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God." </p>
<p>"earnest expectation" : "apokaradokia" : head and neck straining with anticipation - why? </p>
<p>The creation is looking for something. What? Where are they? Where are they? Where are they? </p>
<p>Why the desire for Glory (v19)? Because of the background of the curse (v20) - a creation disatisfied with being given over to organised frustration seeks for more. </p>
<p>Samson was moved to pray and the word pray was used for the first time in his life (Judges 16:28) </p>
<p>Jonah was moved to pray from the depths of hell, in the belly of the fish </p>
<p>Saul of Tarsus in his blindness was moved to pray </p>
<p>David in the Psalms in his despair was move to pray - Psalm 34; 28; 17 </p>
<p>• In suffering there is a: Display of the Glory of God that there would be by no other means </p>
<p>Person of Christ: Jo1:14: "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth" <br>Purpose of Grace: "the Glory of His Grace" (Eph 1:6); "For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God." (ESV 2 Co 4:15) <br>Power of Gospel: 2Co4:4 "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them." 1 Tim 1:11 "According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust" <br>Presence of Christ: 2 Co 3:18 " But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." <br>Passion of Gods Love: Eph 3:16-21 </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• In suffering there is a: Discovery of the Glory of God that there would be by no other means (8:20) </p>
<p>Gods purpose is discovered in suffering "hope" </p>
<p>Genesis chp 3 </p>
<p>Some things get preached amongst us, stated boldly and frequently not because they are biblically certain, not because they are manifestly true not because the preacher has gleaned and gained the truth for himself but because they are so frequently stated that it is assumed that whilst they seem evidently hollow they must be true! </p>
<p>Say a thing often enough it gets believed! </p>
<p>So certain truisms get passed from generation to generation like a bad gene! </p>
<p>Among these truths is the oft repeated idea, beloved of gospel preachers that: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>'of course all of the problems you see in the world are caused by sin.' </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Well they're not! </p>
<p>Up and down the land there must have been over the years many a puzzled face and confused unbelieving mind which has left a gospel meeting totally convinced that we are quite cracked in our logic and muddled in our thinking, for how does it come to be that a man eating a forbidden fruit results in Tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanoes, global warming, pestilence, floods and the like? </p>
<p>I just don't see the connection. </p>
<p>The point is there is not a direct connection! </p>
<p>The present condition of the world is not all directly attributable to sin. </p>
<p>If we pretend that it is we will have missed the point of many of the worlds problems </p>
<p>Allow me to quote directly from Roms 8:20: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected [the same] in hope," </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The condition of the creation, subject to vanity, frustration, organised disruption and purposeful futility, frustrated satisfaction was NOT the direct result of sin but is the result of direct Divine intervention in this world! </p>
<p>More than that, and most remarkably of all, that this deliberate frustration of satisfaction, purposeful futility, organised disruption has been imposed upon creation not by an act of wrath but in grace and "in hope" </p>
<p>that is utterly astounding </p>
<p> </p>
<p>If we try and write off all of the worlds problems directly to sin we will miss the point completely! </p>
<p>Genesis 3 - Adam Sins and then God responds </p>
<p>Romans 8:20 attributes a definite set of creations problems not to Adams sin but to Gods response! </p>
<p>Consider: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Gen 3:15 - Curse on reproduction : infant mortality, maternal mortality, neonatal death - attributable not directly to Adams sin but rather to Gods response to Adams sin. <br>Gen 3:15 - Curse on relationship : attributable not directly to Adams sin but rather to Gods response to Adams sin. <br>Gen 3:17 - Curse on Agriculture :attributable not directly to Adams sin but rather to Gods response to Adams sin. <br>Gen 3:17 - Curse on the ground : attributable not directly to Adams sin but rather to Gods response to Adams sin. <br>Gen 3:18 - Curse on horticulture : attributable not directly to Adams sin but rather to Gods response to Adams sin. <br>Gen 3:18 - Curse on nutrition and food production : attributable not directly to Adams sin but rather to Gods response to Adams sin. Up until this point man has eaten freely of the "fruit" (Gen 1:29; 3:2) but now it is Adams portion to eat of the "herb." Is there a significance here? Has creation changed from being the servant of man and gladly bringing forth its fruit o delight and satisfy the appetite of man to being a hostile environment in which man must labour for his food and he now serves in creation? <br>Gen 3:19 - Curse on degeneration / corruption / ageing processes </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This list of consequences are not directly attributable to sin but come as a consequence of Gods curse </p>
<p>Why? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected [the same] in hope," (Rom 8:20) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The curse was to give us hope! </p>
<p>Eh? The curse was to give us hope? </p>
<p>That's what Rom 8:20 says! </p>
<p>Why hope? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• The Fact of the Curse. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>You don't impose conditions upon, you do not modify what you have no purpose for! </p>
<p>You do not operate where there is no hope! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>There is a woman - diagnosed with a tumour; he attends the surgeon, he is offered surgery, perhaps painful and traumatic, extensive surgery but he is offered surgery to remove the tumour. He heads home with extensive treatment ahead but he heads home with hope. </p>
<p>There is another woman - diagnosed too with a cancerous tumour, he attends the surgeon, no surgery is offered. Does he have an easier path? A better prospect? He goes home with no extensive, painful surgery to look forward to but he goes home and his heart is empty of hope! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The very fact God bothered to give the curse indicates that God had a purpose </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• The Futility of that Curse </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Gen 3:17-21 </p>
<p>The curse produces an environment which is hostile to man </p>
<p>The curse produces an environment of distress, disappointment, disease, disaster and death </p>
<p>When man sinned God in Grace did not give him a comfortable living room as the environment for a sinner </p>
<p>God cursed this fallen world that man may never be in doubt that this is not Eden </p>
<p>There was always a danger that a fallen man may feel perfectly at ease and at home in a fallen world! </p>
<p>Adam before the fall would never have felt at home in a fallen world but Adam after the fall might! </p>
<p>This earth was deliberately made by God a place of: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>· Deliberate disappointment </p>
<p>· Constructed destruction </p>
<p>· Organised frustration </p>
<p> </p>
<p>I cannot intelligently live in this world and exit it with the thoughtful impression that this world satisfies my needs - it doesn't </p>
<p>Illust: Campbell - atheist - he didn't believe in God, he didn't believe in heaven but he believed that 'this is hell' </p>
<p>"In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him." (Eccl 7:14) </p>
<p>Consider the Syriac translation 'that man should have nothing against Him.' </p>
<p> </p>
<p>God leaves us with no misunderstandings - this world is not our home, ultimate satisfaction and joy is not to be found here! </p>
<p>The material will not satisfy! </p>
<p>• The Freedom from the Curse </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Note the terms of this curse: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Commences with a curse on Satan and the Serpent (Gen3:14-15) </p>
<p>Concludes with a covering for Adam (Gen3:21) </p>
<p>Continues with a covenant of salvation (Gen3:15) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Never a curse like this in scripture! </p>
<p>Couched in grace! </p>
<p>The suffering and problems introduced by this curse are done with the prospect of freedom and faith </p>
<p>One day you'll be free! </p>
<p>This curse secures your freedom! </p>
<p>Hope and freedom by suffering </p>
<p>Consider the terms of the curse: </p>
<p>Commences with a curse on the serpent <br>Concludes with a covering for Adams sin <br>Contains the promise of a coming Christ </p>
<p> </p>
<p>All of this in a curse? </p>
<p>This curse is to draw me to Christ as my only refuge. </p>
<p>His Glory is discovered in our suffering </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>• In suffering there is a: Despair / Disappointment at the absence of the Glory of God there would be by no other means </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>
<p> </p>42:23GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68011682010-05-11T20:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:27:28+00:00Romans chapter 8 verses 14 to 17 - The Spirit Leads Right into the Presence of God - JS Gillespie<p>We have looked at the leading of the Spirit in Romans chp 8 so far in terms of: </p>
<p>What is the leading of the Spirit doctrinally? </p>
<p>Considered the link with 8:13 and that the leading of the Spirit will lead us to mortify the deeds of the body. <br>We considered however that this was not a narrow thing but a broad matter, encompassing the story of Romans so far: dealing with Gods work in us leading us from sin (chp 1) and from self (chp 2) to salvation (chp 3) and sanctification (chp 6-8). <br>Considered that this is not only negative work for the Spirit of God leaving us dead, like the man left for dead at the side of the Jericho road, but Gods Spirit is the Spirit of Life (8:2,6,10,11). </p>
<p>How does the Spirit lead practically? </p>
<p>Suggested that perhaps for the most part this leading is the result of the replacement in our lives of the flesh as the motivating force with the Spirit of God and His Gracious work in us being the motivating force behind our decisions. <br>We noted the connection between v12 and v13 “for” <br>The believer now lives after the Spirit in a fashion similar to the way he once lived according to the flesh. <br>The flesh once led by Passions and Pride (1 John 2:15), for profit and prosperity (1Tim 6:10), for pleasure (2 Tim 3:4); for popularity (2 Tim4:3) and pre-eminence (3 John1:9), the Spirit now leads in a completely different direction and by a completely new set of values; motivated by the love of God and the love of those who love God (1 John 4+5); by the “joy of the Lord” for the praise of God and not men, for the “well done good and faithful servant” - there indeed is praise worth hearing and that “in all things He might have the pre-eminence.” <br>We thought of some practical examples of the particular leading of the Spirit in Deut 8: by the Truth (Deut 8:1), in the Way (Deut 8:2) and into Life (Deut 8:3). </p>
<p>So Gods Spirit leads me, but one further question: </p>
<p>Where does His Spirit lead me to? </p>
<p>Important question! We would hardly set off on a car not knowing where we were going to! <br>Sadly whilst few of us would set off on a car journey without knowing where we are going many seem to set off on the Christian life without pausing to consider where we are going. <br>Practical question for it happens to be the answer to a number of other questions: </p>
<p>What is God doing in my life? <br>Why did I just go through that period of suffering? <br>What is the goal of the Christian life? Orthodoxy? Good works? Meeting going? Grave stone in Whitley Bay: 'She served this church well.' <br>Should I be going to the meetings? <br>What meeting or church should I be going to? Why? </p>
<p>His Spirit is leading me to: </p>
<p>My Christian ambition ought to lead me to: </p>
<p>The preaching from the platform ought to lead me to: </p>
<p>Suffering by the hand of Gods Grace will lead me to: </p>
<p>Righteousness: “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear” <br>Relationship “but ye have received the Spirit of adoption” <br>Reality: “whereby we cry, Abba, Father” <br>Reassurance (v16) </p>
<p>To paraphrase vs 15: </p>
<p>'Because you do not have the Spirit who keeps you trapped in a sinful way of life, afraid to face God as a sinner when you die, but the Spirit you have received brings you into a radically new relationship with the very God you once ran away from in fear. So great is the transformation that you now feel free to speak to that same God in the closest of trusting terms saying: 'daddy' ' </p>
<p>Righteousness </p>
<p>Some items have absolute value in life: gold wedding ring <br>Some items have relative value: mothers wedding photos <br>Some items have both absolute and relative values: an engagement ring</p>
<p><br>Righteousness in Roms 8 has both absolute value – it is the character of God as well as relative value; it is necessary for me to enjoy His presence. The way in which the Spirit of God has led us through Romans chp 8; in the paths of righteousness and putting to death the deeds of the body (8:13) – has a purpose that I might know and enjoy the presence of God practically in my life (8:15). <br>The character of Gods Spirit is: “not...of bondage” (8:15) - bondage to what? Where does the idea of bondage arise from in this verse? Note the “for” in this verse connects us back. He releases me from what? The answer lies in vs 12 to 14, from bondage to: </p>
<p>The deeds of the body (v13) <br>The flesh (v13, 12) <br>Sin (v10) <br>Law of Sin (v2) </p>
<p>That leading out of sin and into righteousness isn't a restrictive thing, it is a liberating event: Ps 16:10-11; Gal 5:1; Jo 8:30ff. <br>True freedom is the freedom to be what God desires us to be. <br>The character of Gods Spirit is that of a Spirit who leads us to freedom from “fear” (8:15). “Fear” of what? </p>
<p>Death (v2) <br>Death (v6) <br>Death and subsequently facing God as our enemy (v7) </p>
<p>Here is real freedom, beyond any freedom man can give: this is freedom to die! Cf: </p>
<p>Paul (Phil 1; 2 Tim4) <br>Samson: “let me die” (Judges 16:30) <br>Elijah: “take away my life” (1 Kings 19:4) <br>Christ: “into thy hands I commend my Spirit” </p>
<p>Relationship </p>
<p>Gods Spirit is the Spirit of adoption <br>Salvation is not just about what we get from God but a relationship with God <br>Gods purpose in saving us: relationship and resemblance </p>
<p>Reality </p>
<p>Is it really such a bad thing if: </p>
<p>The problems of life <br>The failing of health <br>The disappointments with friends <br>The struggles of the Christian life <br>The challenges of evangelism <br>The conflicts at work <br>The demands of the assembly <br>The failure of flesh <br>The weakness of the body <br>The despair of discouragement </p>
<p>Lead me to this: to cry “Abba Father”? </p>
<p>Is that really such a bad thing? </p>
<p>The message of Romans is that it is not only not such a bad thing, rather it makes it all worth it! </p>
<p>It is the very purpose of these trials and tragedies to bring me to open honesty with God! </p>
<p>Reassurance </p>
<p>“The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:” (Rom 8:16) </p>
<p>Where does that reassurance come from? </p>
<p>Some things we take for granted as though they just happen! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>What causes me to pray when I hit problems? </p>
<p>Why don't I seek: </p>
<p>a second opinion <br>financial advice <br>help from friends and family <br>'Mrs Yackity' <br>revenge <br>a good lawyer </p>
<p>The believer prays! Why? </p>
<p>The reassurance of the Spirit – this is the right thing to do, there is a God who hears and understands and who responds, He is your Father! </p>
<p>Of course if that didn't satisfy we probably wouldn't do it again </p>
<p>We have the added assurance of a response to our prayer: </p>
<p>Experience the Presence of Christ <br>Expound the Truth of Christ <br>Enjoy the Peace of Christ <br>Express the Character of Christ <br>Exposed to the Righteousness of Christ </p>
<p>I come to the garden alone <br>While the dew is still on the roses <br>And the voice I hear falling on my ear <br>The Son of God discloses. </p>
<p>And He walks with me, and He talks with me, <br>And He tells me I am His own; <br>And the joy we share as we tarry there, <br>None other has ever known. </p>
<p>Consider Psalm 17: </p>
<p>Righteousness </p>
<p>Psalm 17:1: “Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips” </p>
<p>Relationship </p>
<p>Psalm 17:1: “Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips” </p>
<p>Reality </p>
<p>Psalm 17:1: “Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips” </p>
<p>This proceeds out of Gods dealings in the soul in: </p>
<p>Sanctification (17:3-5) <br>Suffering (17:9-14) <br>Sovereignty (17:13-14) </p>
<p>Leading ultimately to: </p>
<p>Transformation (17:15)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>46:31GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68011582010-05-04T20:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:27:54+00:00Romans chapter 8 verse 14 - Living the Spirit Led Life - JS Gillespie<p>There is a kind of Christianity today that: </p>
<p>keeps Christ in the past <br>Keeps God at arms length </p>
<p>There is a kind of preaching too that: </p>
<p>keeps Christ in the past <br>Keeps God at arms length </p>
<p>There can be even a kind of worship that: </p>
<p>keeps Christ in the past <br>Keeps God at arms length </p>
<p>A kind of Christianity that distinguishes between: </p>
<p>what we know <br>what we practice </p>
<p>That because we know so much maybe we don't need to practice it! </p>
<p>Intelligent prayers and high sounding prayers, orthodox doctrine but a religion that fails to “visit the fatherless and the widows in their affliction” </p>
<p>Great claims at love for God but little evidence of love for one another </p>
<p>There is a kind of preaching too that: </p>
<p>keeps Christ in the past <br>Keeps God at arms length and keeps Christ in the past </p>
<p>A preaching that focuses on past event </p>
<p>A preaching that plays to our strengths and ignores our weaknesses </p>
<p>A preaching that patronises us; we are the people and the rest have the problem. </p>
<p>A reaching that leaves us untouched and unchanged </p>
<p>A preaching that sounds that it has simply been repeated / recycled from a generation long past. </p>
<p>There can be even a kind of worship that: </p>
<p>keeps Christ in the past <br>Keeps God at arms length </p>
<p>A worship that becomes stale, barren, repetitive </p>
<p>There is a gap that is to be bridged </p>
<p>Until that gap is bridged between what I know and what I am I will make no progress for God. </p>
<p>It is not simply that I fail to live out the Christian life in that state but Romans 8 tells me that I am not a Christian! </p>
<p>If I belong to Christ I possess the Spirit of Christ (8:9) <br>If I possess the Spirit of Christ (8:9) the I am marked by the character of Christ (8:10) </p>
<p>No matter what experience I may claim </p>
<p>No matter what meetings I may have waited behind after </p>
<p>No matter what verse I may have put my name into </p>
<p>If Christ has not left His mark on my character: </p>
<p>If He has not cleaned that filthy tongue <br>If He has not sweetened that bitter Spirit <br>If He has not calmed that violent temper <br>If He has not softened that hard heart <br>If he has not liberated that imprisoned body </p>
<p>The teaching of Romans 8 is not that I am not living the Christian life as I ought – it is that I am not a Christian at all! </p>
<p>There is an ongoing struggle of course (Rom 7:14-25) </p>
<p>The flesh is still with me </p>
<p>Failure is still experienced, but the Spirit of God must have left His mark on my life. </p>
<p>The Christian life must be marked by the Character of Christ! </p>
<p>We ought to be able to see His character in our life and in the lifes of others. </p>
<p>We ought to see the impact of His Spirit in our life as it is marked by: </p>
<p>Righteousness (8:4) </p>
<p><br>Peace (8:6) </p>
<p><br>Life (8:10-12) </p>
<p><br>Love (12:9,10,12,16; 14:15) – the Romans might not have been able to get their teeth into meat but they were quite happy to get their teeth into one another! The Spirit must give us a love for one another. This is not an optional extra in Christianity! This is Christianity: (John 13:34,35; 15:12,17; 1Co13:13; 1Jo4:7-8,12,20). This is not a bolt on, an extra or an upgrade option. Cf. Rom 8:4 “That the righteousness of the law...” - what is the “righteousness of the law”? Don't ask me, ask the Lord: 'Lord what does it mean to have the righteousness of the law fulfilled in us? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Mat 22:36-40) </p>
<p>Hope (8:24; 12:12) </p>
<p>In Romans 8 Paul presents a revolutionary truth to the new converts </p>
<p>Now they are saved – now what? </p>
<p>What do we do now? </p>
<p>What we need is a set of rules and regulations? </p>
<p>What better that the rules and regulations of the OT law? </p>
<p>The apostle is not presenting a religion of his own invention however! </p>
<p>Paul can have confidence that the God who truly saves is the God who truly sanctifies! </p>
<p>His Spirit is sufficient for both! </p>
<p>Paul is not converting, and then controlling by his own power or flesh </p>
<p>Paul is preaching Christ and Him crucified and committing the converts to the all sufficient Grace of God thereafter. </p>
<p>Those saved by the sacrifice of Christ will be sanctified by the Spirit of Christianity </p>
<p>“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” </p>
<p>(Rom 8:14) </p>
<p>We could turn that into all sorts of things that it isn't! </p>
<p>I was delighted when someone pointed out the context of Rom 8:14 was that of Rom 8:13: </p>
<p>“For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.” (Rom 8:13) </p>
<p>So being led by the Spirit is simply to mortify sin! </p>
<p>So that kind of puts a charismatic proof cap on the bottle! </p>
<p>But: </p>
<p>That would be a purely negative work of the Spirit! A leading that only mortifies the 'deeds of the body' leaves me 'deid'! This Spirit is the Spirit of Life (8:2) <br>Consider the true scope of mortifying the deeds of the body; this is actually the scope of Romans so far! All has been a battle against sin: </p>
<p>Sin (chps 1-3) <br>Salvation (chps 3-5) <br>Sanctification (chps 6-8) </p>
<p>The Power of the Holy Spirit has: </p>
<p>Freed from the Power of Sin (chp 1) – from those natural powerful desires for food, drink and sex. His Spirit has smashed the gripping grief of sordid sin and has made one and the same time Christ altogether lovely and attractive. <br>Free from the Place of Self (chp 2) <br>Free from the Promise of Salvation (chp 2-3) – in Christ alone by Grace alone and through faith alone. </p>
<p>He has led me on through this and on to sanctification: </p>
<p>Spirit filled walk <br>Spirit filled mind <br>Spirit filled body <br>Spirit filled relationship </p>
<p>How? </p>
<p>All by 'mortifying the deeds of the body' (8:13)</p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>50:47GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68011632010-01-31T20:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:28:16+00:00Romans Chp 8 Vs 1 to 17 : 'Suffering, Sovereignty and The Spirit and the of God' - JS Gillespie<p>The problem of suffering is amongst the most difficult and perplexing of all problems in life. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>There are those who on the basis of suffering would confidently affirm that there is no God. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>If there is a God He ought to be able, because He is all powerful and willing, because He is good to prevent suffering, since there is suffering, either God is not able to prevent it and so is not all powerful, is not willing to prevent it and so is not good or simply He does not exist. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Where is the problem in that argument? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The problem / the flaw lies in the assumptions stated and unstated: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>That suffering can always, be categorised as bad, evil, futile and unproductive and as such is invariably undesirable. Is that true? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>God has a moral obligation to order the universe, natural laws, circumstances of life, in such a way as to preserve man in a state of maximum peace and pleasure irrespective of mans behaviour or other factors in that universe. In other words there is a central assumption that the plans and purposes of God and the path of time and history and the processes of the universe revolve around man. They don't, they revolve around Christ (Eph1:10; 3:11). I am not saying that my suffering doesn't matter to God – it does, but I am saying that there is a bigger picture, of which my suffering is a part and that me and my suffering is not the conclusion of the matter. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>That in the absence of all suffering, which we are suggesting God has a moral obligation to provide for His creatures, and in an atmosphere of optimal peace and pleasure man would attain to the greatest good and would achieve his highest goals. Is this true? Consider Roms chp1; consider the fall of the Roman Empire; consider Belshazzers feast; a man who has it all, all the world can give, a throne, a palace, security, wealth, an empire made for him by his father Nebuchadnezzar, plenty to eat and drink, no one giving him any snash: </p>
<p>“Dan 5:1 Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand.” - Gluttony and drunkenness </p>
<p>“Dan 5:2 Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein.” - Descration of holy vessels and sexual immorality, basically prostitution. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Dan 5:3 Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them.” </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Dan 5:4 They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone.” - Idolatry and materialism </p>
<p>You say, well that was just a one of? </p>
<p>Consider the kingdom of Israel under David and then under Solomon? </p>
<p>The Kingdom under David: he had his trials: </p>
<p>2 sons murdered <br>A son dead in child hood <br>Persecuted by Saul <br>Running as an outlaw <br>Warring with the Philistines and Amalek </p>
<p>Yet Davids kingdom was Israel at its hay day. </p>
<p>The Kingdom under Solomon; a kingdom of peace and tranquillity, yet degenerating into idolatry and polygamy and immorality. </p>
<p>So if in the absence of problems and suffering man does not achieve his greatest good and highest goals, would it not be the case that if God did provide man with a an environment of perfect peace and pleasure, God in fact would be promoting, aiding and abetting, He would be a willing accomplice to mans sin? </p>
<p>A perfect environment of peace and pleasure can only be provided for a perfect man otherwise we have a sinner in Eden and that is a disaster which God has guarded against from the very beginning. </p>
<p>The argument then that God is morally obliged to maintain His universe in a state which is maximally conducive with mans greatest comfort and ease is inherently faulty therefore. </p>
<p>What has suffering to do with Romans 8? </p>
<p>Notice the setting / the context of Roms 8; the inner struggle with sin (chp6) and the flesh (chp7) and the pressure of outer suffering (chp 8). </p>
<p>Roms 8 is set in the environment of pressure without and pressure within. </p>
<p>'Pressure': 'thlipsis' : tribulation (8:35; 5:3) </p>
<p>Roms 8 is in the vice grip of inner turmoil and outer tribulation! </p>
<p>What does that kind of environment produce? </p>
<p>Likeness to Christ (8:29)! </p>
<p>Relationship and Resemblance! </p>
<p>Anecdotally I haven't met a spiritual Christian who has had an easy life! </p>
<p>There is no book in the Bible so full of inner turmoil and outer tribulation as the book of Job! </p>
<p>At the heart of that book, describing Jobs subjective experience of his suffering lie chps 16 + 19 – a total of 51 verses. </p>
<p>About ½ of those 51 verses are also found in Ps22, 69, Is 50,53 and Lam3! </p>
<p>What is God doing in that crucible of affliction in the life of Job? </p>
<p>He is making Job just like Christ! </p>
<p>Job is entering into the mind of Christ (1Peter 4:1,2) </p>
<p>The bottom line in Roms 8:1-17 is that God imparts His Spirit to man for a purpose, in order to bring man into: </p>
<p>Relationship with God <br>Resemblance to Christ </p>
<p>And these ends are achieved in an environment of suffering! </p>
<p>For the Spirit to blossom, the flesh must die! </p>
<p>The work of the Spirit of God affects man in his: </p>
<p>Walk (8:1-4) <br>Mind (8:5-8) <br>Body (8:9-13) <br>Spirit (8:14-17) </p>
<p>As Gods Spirit is active in man we will discern: </p>
<p>Law of the Spirit (8:2) <br>Longing of the Spirit (8:5-8) <br>Life of the Spirit (8:11,13) <br>Leading of the Spirit (8:14) <br>Language of the Spirit (8:15) </p>
<p>Walk (8:1-4) </p>
<p>What is the effect of the Spirit upon my walk? </p>
<p>I say that this is a Spirit conquered walk, marked by: </p>
<p>righteousness (v4) </p>
<p>Righteousness fulfilled by: </p>
<p>Compulsion from within (8:2): “the law of the Spirit of life” (7:21,23) </p>
<p>and not by: </p>
<p>Conformity without (8:3) </p>
<p>The Spirit conquered and controlled walk is not a walk brought into conformity to a set of rules, regulations, traditions, formalities or patterns of behaviour, it is rather the working out of the all consuming passion for Divine life brought about by the possession of my person by God Himself. </p>
<p>It is not so much that I try to live a righteous life, although the will is clearly involved, but rather I have to, I am compelled to live a righteous life, or I have a thoroughly miserable existence! </p>
<p>Conformity to a set of rules can paradoxically result in less rather than more spirituality! </p>
<p>Rules can: </p>
<p>Replace the Spirit – well I've got my rules, follow them and I will be ok! <br>Resist the Spirit – human nature likes rules, you can work around the rules! Illust: Margos flat mate, didn't read Sunday papers but kept them till the Monday! <br>Restrict the Spirit – rules are always inadequate and will never allow us to break new ground for God! New people, new places, new problems – the old rules sometimes can't cope! Gods Spirit can! Columbus didn't discover America by following the map! There wasn't one! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Christopher Columbus made the European discovery of South America over 500 years ago which was to become predominately Catholic. He recorded how he accomplished this extraordinary voyage to the New World in his "Book of Prophecies": </p>
<p>"...It was the Lord who put into my mind — I could feel His hand upon me — the fact that it would be possible to sail from here to the Indies-All who heard of my project rejected it with laughter, ridiculing me... There is no question that the inspiration was from the Holy Spirit, because he comforted me with rays of marvellous illumination from the Holy Scriptures... For the execution of the journey to the Indies I did not make use of intelligence, mathematics, or maps. It is simply the fulfilment of what Isaiah had prophesied... No one should fear to undertake any task in the name of our Saviour, if it is just and if the intention is purely for His Holy service... the fact that the Gospel must still be preached to so many lands in such a short time — this is what convinces me". </p>
<p>“the law of the Spirit of life” </p>
<p>What was it that: </p>
<p>Compelled creation to completion? Gen1:2 – The Spirit of God; Gen 2:7 – the breath of God blowing into the nostrils of Adam. <br>How did Enoch's walk with God end? It didn't A walk with God is a life giving, a life preserving, a life perpetuating experience. Walk with God and you live (Gen 5:24). “By faith Enoch was translated that he should not se death...” (Heb11:5) <br>How was it that God dealt with Noah and his family in the days when He had decided that His Spirit would not always “strive with man” (Gen6:3)? God covenanted “to keep them alive with thee” (Gen6:19). <br>What about Gods dealings with Abraham and Isaac in Gen 22? “Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.”(Heb 11:19). <br>How did God move in the days of Joseph and his brothers? “To save much people alive” (Gen50:20) <br>How did God work with His people in the days of Moses in Egypt? <br>How did God work in the days of Jonah? (Jonah 4:11) <br>What about Daniel in the lions den? “O King live forever” (Dan6:21) <br>The crowning Glory to Gods Spirit of Life: the resurrection of Christ! </p>
<p>To be linked with God and His Spirit is a life giving event, a life preserving experience! </p>
<p>Gods Spirit is the Spirit of Life! </p>
<p>In many of these occasions when the “law of the Spirit of life” moves we can also discern His operation against the background failure of the “law of sin and death”: </p>
<p>Noah – breaks free, lifted above a world condemned in sin <br>Egypt – God judges and destroys Egypt and its false gods <br>Jonah – 3 days and nights in the belly of the whale because of his sin and disobedience. </p>
<p>To be motivated by the “law of the Spirit of life” is to be motivated and moved by an all consuming passion for the Glory of God in my life beyond any other legitimate interest! </p>
<p>What was it that motivated: </p>
<p>Shadrach, Meshach and Abednigo to choose the furnace rather than compromise? <br>Daniel to chose being at the prayer meeting even if it meant facing the lions in the den? <br>Elijah to risk his life and face the false priests of Baal on Mt Carmel? <br>Elisha to leave his farm, his field and his family behind and follow Gods call? </p>
<p>This law of the Spirit of Life motivates men beyond personal safety, personal convenience, fatigue, tiredness, embarrassment and business! </p>
<p>This is an all consuming passion for the life of God above and beyond all things! </p>
<p>Why bother fulfilling righteousness in me? </p>
<p>Never be content with ½ answers from preachers! </p>
<p>Because righteousness overcomes a barrier: </p>
<p>“For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” (Rom 8:6-7) </p>
<p>The flesh pursuing sin brings separation and enmity with God </p>
<p>The Spirit producing righteousness brings relationship with God </p>
<p>How does Christ condemning “sin in the flesh” (8:3) result in the fulfilment of Gods righteousness in me (8:4)? Because we have His Spirit in us (8:4,9-11). </p>
<p>An exceptional movement of the Spirit of God is invariably marked by an exceptional righteousness: </p>
<p>Isaiah 6:5 <br>Ex 20: Moses on the Mount <br>Job 42:6 – God speaks: “I repent in dust and ashes” <br>Zech 3: Joshua the High Priest <br>Matt 5: The Sermon on the Mount <br>Acts 5: Ananias and Saphira </p>
<p>Mind (8:5-8) </p>
<p>What is the effect of the Spirit of God upon the mind? </p>
<p>Peace </p>
<p>Peace between which parties? Me and God (v7) </p>
<p>The carnal mind – enmity with God </p>
<p>The spiritual mind – peace with God. </p>
<p>Peace is the product of a restored relationship with God. </p>
<p>Body (8:9-13) </p>
<p>What is the effect upon the Spirit conquered body? </p>
<p>Life (8:10,11) </p>
<p>Whose life? The life of Christ (8:9,10) </p>
<p>“The body is dead because of sin” (v10) – seems to be alive? Is this: </p>
<p>An honest mistake? Hard to miss! <br>Ultimately the body will die? True but not the meaning here: </p>
<p>The present tense, in contrast to v11 where future events are accorded a future tense. <br>“dead” is an adjective describing this body, this body is a “dead body” </p>
<p>The body is dead presently because of sin. Sin originally inherited from Adam. That is Adam not simply as federal head which does not explain why I die when he sins, nor simply Adam as a representative man which would hardly satisfy the righteousness of God as defined in Ezek 18. Be careful about linking Adams federal headship and representative character with the universal condemnation of all men! Christ is of course the Head of a new creation (Col1) and He is also the representative man (Rom8:3) but that does not result in universal salvation to all men! The important point in Roms 5 is our connection with Adam and Christ! Who and what they are remains unaltered, the issue is am I connected to them? Do I have a relationship with Christ as I did with Adam? Adam as the first and only directly created man corrupted by sin and thus actually passing on the effects of and a fallen human nature to all mankind (Rom5:12). In other words the corruption from Adam flows to me not by any philosophical argument, nor by a legal fiction as some suggest but as a result of my relationship with Adam, which is the reason for the digression into Adam in Rom 5:12ff; as a means of explaining how I can receive righteousness from Christ (5:11). If I can receive sin and death from Adam by relationship, then I can receive righteousness and life from Christ by relationship, corrupted too by my sin, unfit for Gods presence and awaiting final redemption and transformation. This is also biologically true: Hayflick limit and apoptosis. </p>
<p>Spirit (8:14-17) </p>
<p>What is the effect upon the Spirit conquered Spirit? </p>
<p>Prayer (8:15) </p>
<p>A cry that arises out of crises: </p>
<p>Samson (Judges 16:28) – the only time “pray” is used in the life of Samson. <br>David (Ps 22:1-2; Ps51; Ps 42:9) <br>Elijah (1Kings 19:4) </p>
<p>“And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.” (Psa 50:15) </p>
<p>The cry out of crises that brings confidence in our God </p>
<p>He hears an answers in our crises!</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>38:45GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68011542009-12-29T19:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:23:51+00:00Romans chapter 7 vs 1 to 4 - A Passion to Serve - JS Gillespie<p>“Shall we continue in sin?” (Rom6:1) </p>
<p>We considered 4 reasons: </p>
<ol> <li>We are Dead to Sin (6:1-6) </li> <li>We are Alive to Christ (6:5-11) </li> <li>Because I Serve Another (6:12-20) </li> <li>Because Sin remains Sin (6:21-23) </li>
</ol>
<p>Because I Serve Another: </p>
<p>We thought about this practically </p>
<p>Consider how the whole body is used in service, start from the top: </p>
<p>Our master (6:12) – Tour Head <br>Our mortal body (6:12) – Our Human Desires / Lusts of the Body <br>Our members (6:13) – Our Hands <br>Our motive (6:17-19) – Our Heart </p>
<p>Our master (6:12) – Our Head </p>
<p>Who is in charge? Who is my master? </p>
<p>We chose our master! </p>
<p>There are only 2 possibilities: </p>
<p>Sin (5:21) <br>Christ (5:21; 6:10,11) </p>
<p>Who is my head in this action? </p>
<p>I no more control sin and Satan than I control Christ and righteousness. </p>
<p>Some thought they could control sin: </p>
<ul> <li>Noah and his wine – Lost his dignity </li> <li>Lot's wife and a love for the world – Lost her home, family and life </li> <li>Achan and materialism – Lost his life </li> <li>Solomon and his wives – Lost his Kingdom </li> <li>Samson and his fornication – Lost his life </li> <li>Judas and his love of money – Lost his soul </li>
</ul>
<p>Who exactly was in control? </p>
<p>We have a great advantage here, we are able to look back on these biblical characters and take in the whole scope and panorama of their life! </p>
<p>Our freedom lies in our ability to choose not in our freedom from the consequences of those decisions we make! </p>
<p>Our mortal body (6:12) – Our Human Desires </p>
<p>Know your mortal body </p>
<p>What is driving the activities of my mortal body? </p>
<p>The body itself was created by God and has God given desires that are good and right: </p>
<ul> <li>Appetite for food </li> <li>Thirst </li> <li>Sexual desires </li> <li>Appreciation of beauty </li> <li>Love of art </li>
</ul>
<p>Our bodies are subject to our human nature and that nature is a fallen human nature corrupted by sin – referred to as the “flesh” </p>
<p>The flesh constantly pulls me in the direction of gratifying the natural desires of the body, those desires are physical and earth bound and keep me tied to earth. </p>
<p>Only with conversion and the power of Gods Spirit can I rise any higher that the desire to simply satisfy the natural desires of the body and only with His Spirit do I really appreciate that there is anything beyond the material to aim for and desire! </p>
<p>Rom 8:5-13 </p>
<p>The desire and goal of the believer goes beyond simply enjoying the stimulation of bodily appetites satisfied: Rom 6:19, 22 – we have fruit to bring for God – our goal is “holiness”! </p>
<p>Is it the flesh driven by “lust” which is using: </p>
<p>My hands for its deeds? <br>My eyes for its satisfaction? <br>My lips for its message? </p>
<p>“Our members” (6:13) – Our Hands </p>
<p>Know your members </p>
<p>The emphasis here is on outcome, not simply actvity! </p>
<p>what am I actually achieving? </p>
<p>Consider Mary and Martha (Lk10:38-42) </p>
<p>Paradoxically when we apply the teaching of this section we may find that to be truly productive in the things of God we need to stop doing some things as we consider what they are actually achieving! I am a believer in that principle, of stopping service in a particular sphere as well as starting it! (Matt10:14; Mk6:11). </p>
<p>“Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin... your members as instruments of righteousness unto God... whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?...as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.” (Rom 6:13-19) </p>
<p>We are looking at outcome not only occupation! </p>
<p>Outcome in terms of “righteousness” - does it promote righteousness and “holiness” - does it further my pursuit of deeper holiness to God and encourage others in their pursuit of holiness, and “unto God” - is it acceptable to God? </p>
<p>But you say I am busy! Busy but barren? </p>
<p>Tests of worth / value: </p>
<p>What is the cause of my actions / activities (6:12-13). Is sin and the flesh the cause or is God the cause of this kind of action / activity / these words? <br>What is the character of my actions? Could I categorise it as “righteous” (v13) and consistent with Gods Word (v18) or is it “unrighteous”? <br>What are the consequences of this action (v19)? Where does it lead to? Is it “unto iniquity” (v19) or is it “unto holiness” (v19). <br>What about the conclusion of these actions? Do they end in death and with death (v16,21) or do these actions have eternal and enduring consequences (v22)? </p>
<p>Our motive (6:19) – Our Heart </p>
<p>Surely not more about service? </p>
<p>Surely this all isn't yet another message about doing more for God? </p>
<p>I recall as a young believer developing a reaction of 'not another message about what we are meant to be doing for God' </p>
<p>It is all very well speaking about service, exhorting to serve, talking about: </p>
<p>Responsibility <br>Obligation <br>Duty </p>
<p>To serve but this can leave us cold and uninspired! </p>
<p>Some of the people to whom Paul was writing had known most of their life about: </p>
<p>Responsibility <br>Obligation <br>Duty </p>
<p>as a motive for service, but this failed to achieve the desired result in their life and in the life of the apostle. </p>
<p>They knew “the law” (7:1), they knew all about their responsibility, obligation and duty under the law to serve God, but this is not the kind of service that Paul is speaking about in chp 6 to 8 of Romans. </p>
<p>Responsibility <br>Obligation <br>Duty </p>
<p>Simply spell ROD – and this becomes a rod for our back. </p>
<p>I can't recall a time in my own life when I didn't know that God was real and that he ought to be served. </p>
<p>Service took a variety of forms but particularly in the form of attending meetings! </p>
<p>I can only really recall enjoying meetings on 2 occasions: </p>
<p>July – when the meetings were cut down to Sunday mornings only <br>One gospel meeting when the speaker was short and told stories. </p>
<p>It never really struck me that it was a possibility to move from a place of have to serve to a place of want to serve. </p>
<p>True service for God, true Christian service for God is not motivated, is not dynamised by have to. </p>
<p>For true service I must move from: </p>
<p>Responsibility <br>Obligation <br>Duty </p>
<p>To the dynamic of true Christian service. </p>
<p>Consider the motivating principle behind the service of Christ for God: </p>
<p>“Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required. Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.” (Psa 40:6-8) </p>
<p>His service was motivated by 'delight' and not by 'duty'! </p>
<p>from </p>
<p>Desire </p>
<p>in </p>
<p>Enjoyment </p>
<p>Out of </p>
<p>Love </p>
<p>with </p>
<p>Intensity </p>
<p>To the </p>
<p>Glory of God </p>
<p>From the </p>
<p>Heart </p>
<p>with </p>
<p>Total commitment </p>
<p>This is the essence of true Christian service, motivated by delight rather than duty. </p>
<p>To serve in that way I would judge that I need 3 things: </p>
<p>A Passion to serve God <br>An Ability / Possibility to serve God <br>A Power to serve God </p>
<p>In chapter 7 I see: </p>
<p>A Passion to serve God (7:1-4) <br>An Ability / Possibility to serve God (7:5-13) <br>A Power to serve God (7:14-25) </p>
<p>A Passion to serve God (7:1-4) means Freedom from the law <br>An Ability / Possibility to serve God (7:5-13) – in contrast of the failure of being “in the flesh” <br>A Power to serve God (7:14-25) – in contrast to Frustration. </p>
<p>Therefore in Romans 7 I also have: </p>
<p>Freedom (7:1-4) <br>Failure (7:5-13) <br>Frustration (7:14-25) </p>
<p>Looked at positively we see: </p>
<p>A Passion to Serve (7:1-4) <br>A Possibility to serve (7:5-13) <br>A Power to Serve (7:14-25) </p>
<p>Chp 7:1-4 details a service born out of the passion of relationship </p>
<p> </p>
<p>A Passion to Serve - Freedom (7:1-4) </p>
<p>Death releases from the law (v1) </p>
<p>"The law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth" - the principle stated </p>
<p>The rule or dominion of law extends only to death, as does sin (Rom5:12) </p>
<p>In eternity there is no sin and can be no sin for there is no law either! </p>
<p>On the surface, a point that is straight forward enough! </p>
<p>But the apostle seems to chose a very complex parable as the means of conveying this truth. So complex that some would suggest that Paul has bitten off more than he can chew! That he has mad a bit of a mess of the illustration! </p>
<p>In the chapter the believer is freed (7:4), just like the woman but it isn't the woman who dies it is her husband! </p>
<p>But the parable illustrates something more than just the basic truth! </p>
<p>So some have said the parable is a bit mixed up! A kind of mixed metaphor! Maybe Paul has overstretched himself! </p>
<p>Others holding to the inspiration of the Word of God wouldn't maybe just go as far as saying that but would perhaps tacitly acknowledge it by saying, 'don't look too deeply into the parable,' or perhaps that the parable is only meant to illustrate the basic truth, perhaps indicating that underneath the surface the whole illustration is a bit of a mess! </p>
<p>But this is the inspired Word of God and "not one jot or title shall pass away" </p>
<p>"the Word of God is living and powerful..." </p>
<p>Interestingly there are plenty of simple examples that Paul could have used to illustrate his point that the rule of law extends only to death and then law has no more demands upon us: </p>
<p>Ahithophel - was he ever called to account for betraying the Lord's anointed? No he wasn't! Why? He hung himself! <br>Naomi's two sons were they ever dealt with by the law and put out of the congregation of Israel for marrying Moabite girls? No! Why? They both died in Moab! </p>
<p><br>Eli's two sons Hophni and Phinehas were they ever broad before the law for fornication? No! Why? They both died in battle! <br>Samson and his fornication and adultery? </p>
<p>But he doesn't chose a simple illustration, for as we shall see a simple example of this principle just would not have done, it would have been critically lacking in at least 2 perhaps 3 key areas. </p>
<p>Pauls example illustrates at least 4 key principles: </p>
<p>That death releases from the law <br>That in certain circumstances the death of another releases me from law <br>My relationship with another is critical in enjoying that release from law <br>Being released from law by death I am free to serve another </p>
<p>That death releases from the law (v1) </p>
<p>"The law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth" - the principle states </p>
<p>The rule or dominion of law extends only to death, as does sin (Rom5:12) </p>
<p>The principle stated is simple enough </p>
<p>That in certain circumstances the death of another releases me from law(v2,4) </p>
<p>Death releases me from the rule of law </p>
<p>In the parable however the death is not my death, the death of the woman, but the death of another! </p>
<p>Has Paul got mixed up? </p>
<p>Actually this point is quite consistent with the context of Romans so far </p>
<p>In chp 3+4 we came into blessing; the blessing of justification by faith, through death, the death of another! </p>
<p>In chp 5 Divine Grace was poured out, through the death of another. </p>
<p>In chp 6 our consecration to God was made possible because of our identification with Christ in His death – the death of another. </p>
<p>Not only is it the case that death frees from the law but that death is significantly the death of another! </p>
<p>Notice how that release by death occurs. </p>
<p>Our simple illustrations would again be inadequate here. </p>
<p>This is not release from the law in the same way that perhaps Hophni and Phinehas, Ahithophel, Naomis sons or Samson were released from the law. </p>
<p>This is not the release of a guilty party because of the weakness of the law, unable to pursue the sinner beyond death. </p>
<p>In our parable, significantly, it is the release of a guiltless individual who is now regarded as having fulfilled all legal obligations and death has now brought the claims of law to an end. </p>
<p>This is the release of the righteous rather than the unrighteous! </p>
<p>“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2Co 5:21) </p>
<p>“Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.” (Rom 3:28) </p>
<p>My relationship with another is critical in enjoying that release from law </p>
<p>My relationship with another who is dead to the law in certain exceptional circumstances can affect my status before the law too! </p>
<p>The death of another to the law can release me! </p>
<p>I think in the context of Roms 4 to 6 this is highly significant! </p>
<p>The nature of that relationship is also very interesting: marriage relationship! </p>
<p>Right the way through the NT scriptures the relationship between Christ and His church is consistently viewed as a marriage relationship: (Eph 5:24ff; Rev21). </p>
<p>In verse 4 we are "dead to the law" but it is by the "body of Christ" - the death of another! </p>
<p>Notice the logic of verse 4: “Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God” </p>
<p>Notice that nothing less than the “body of Christ” is needed to break me free from the demands of the law! </p>
<p>The theme of redemption in scripture: the person of Christ, the work of Calvary, the sacrifice of the lamb, the sufferings of Christ (Ps22; Ps69; Isa53) all of this mighty work and sacrifice impacts upon my life at this point! To release me from that which binds me that I might be free to “bring forth fruit unto God.” What is this fruit? </p>
<p>“But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.” (Rom 6:22) </p>
<p>Holiness is no add on to Christianity </p>
<p>Holiness is no after thought on Gods part to Christian experience </p>
<p>Holiness is the very essence of Christian experience! </p>
<p>Holiness is the impression of Calvary upon my being! </p>
<p>Being released from law by death I am free to serve another </p>
<p>In this complex parable of death releasing us from the law we see illustrated a point that could not be illustrated by a simple example of the death of the accused releasing him from the rule of law: </p>
<p>Ahithophel - what happened next? - Nothing he's dead. <br>Naomis' two sons - what happened next, after they were released from the law? Nothing - they were dead! <br>Eli's two sons - what happened to them next after they had been released from the law? Nothing - they were dead. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>But in the parable of Romans 7 after the release from the law there is a 'what happened next...' </p>
<p>The woman released from the law is ready to move on and be married to another (7:4) </p>
<p>And in our case: "that we should bring forth fruit unto God" (7:4) </p>
<p>So this death is not simply an end but a beginning! </p>
<p>Only because of the complex nature of this illustration is this point possible! <br>Some take 7:1-4 to indicate that divorce and remarriage effectively exclude people from assembly fellowship (7:3) </p>
<p>That interpretation sheds more light on the thinking of those who teach it than it does on the teaching of scripture on divorce and remarriage! </p>
<p>The teaching in this section relative to the woman marrying another is whilst she is "bound by the law." </p>
<p>There is no provision in the law for operation of Divine Grace. Those who draw their teaching on divorce and remarriage from this section likewise draw no provision from Divine Grace. </p>
<p>The conclusion of this section brings us to our true standing today of being "dead to the law" (7:4) and in our dealings with men and women we must likewise recognise that there is likewise "therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus." </p>
<p>There is good indication elsewhere that people from a background of divorce and remarriage were received into assembly fellowship: 1 Tim2; 1 Co7, John 4. </p>
<p>Salvation isn't the end it is the beginning! </p>
<p>Once you are save, you haven't 'done it' but rather God has 'begun it.'</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>45:22GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68011532009-12-06T19:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:29:15+00:00Romans Chp 7 – The Battle for Holiness - J Stewart Gillespie<p>3 great enemies of the believer (James 3:15): </p>
<ol> <li>The World </li> <li>The Flesh </li> <li>The Devil </li>
</ol>
<p>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. </p>
<p>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! </p>
<p>The Devil may well be a smarter enemy </p>
<p>The world may well be a bigger enemy but </p>
<p>The flesh is the weakest enemy and paradoxically therefore perhaps the most significant! </p>
<p>The flesh provides the final common pathway for the attack of the other two: </p>
<p>If it were possible to remove the flesh then the Devil would be unable to gain a foothold in my life? Is that correct? Consider: “Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.” (Joh 14:30) </p>
<p>If it were possible to remove the world then the Devil would be unable to gain a foothold in my life? Is that correct? Consider: “All that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life...” (1Jo2:16) </p>
<p>If it were possible to remove the flesh then sin would be unable to gain a foothold in my life? Is that correct? Consider Rom 7:5, 23. </p>
<p>The flesh then is the final common pathway of the world, sin and the Devil. </p>
<p>A hit on the flesh scuppers the effects of all 3! </p>
<p>One of the greatest discoveries, practically in the Christian life is that the battle to be fought is primarily internal rather than external. </p>
<p>There is within my person – 2 distinct pulls: </p>
<ol> <li>Flesh – pulls to the physical, the material, the sensual, ties me to earth, self ward </li> <li>Spirit – pulls to the spiritual, ties me to heaven, God centred </li>
</ol>
<p>The pursuit of the one is the persecution of the other </p>
<p>Very practical, I need to sit down and analyse my behaviour and ask does this pursuit / behaviour promote the one or the other (6:13) </p>
<p>That will empower me with a level of discernment beyond mere rules or 'what's the harm in it?' </p>
<p>Gods desire for you is not simply to preserve you from committing gross evil but it is the active pursuit of holiness: 6:19,22. </p>
<p>This appreciation of the battle is critical in the pursuit of holiness. </p>
<p>The High Priest dressed in garments of glory and beauty had: </p>
<p>Written on his heart – on the breastplate, the names of the 12 children of Israel. Consider his sympathy. <br>Written on his shoulders – on 2 stones, the names of the 12 children of Israel. Consider his support. <br>Written on his head, upon his miter – holiness to the Lord. Here is the highest calling and ambition of the High Priest: Holiness. </p>
<p>To miss that goal is to miss the point to our salvation! </p>
<p>Not service, not sacrifice but sanctification! </p>
<p>God didn't save you to watch the X-factor! </p>
<p>Romans 7 then is the front line in the battle for holiness </p>
<p>That front line is internal and not external </p>
<p>If I view my spiritual battle as primarily external then I will pursue / be dominated by certain ideas: </p>
<p>Separatism – because – you are the problem, you are the hindrance to my spiritual growth – this is rarely the case. Often behind schism lies pride! You're my problem! Usually I'm my problem! </p>
<p><br>Monasticism – because – it is the problem – the world is the hindrance to my spiritual growth. </p>
<p><br>Exclusivism – because that teaching is the hindrance to my spiritual growth. </p>
<p><br>Mysticim – because the Devil and his emissaries are the hindrance to my spiritual growth. </p>
<p><br>If the problem is my flesh then what is the solution? Consecration to the Spirit (8:1). The world and the Devil, find a friend in the flesh. All the time you are trying to battle the flesh is selling you out, double dealing behind your back with the enemy! I need to start here! </p>
<p>Depending upon how you view the battle determines how you go about the fight! </p>
<p>If I view the battle as primarily external what I need is another meeting! </p>
<p>If I view the battle as primarily internal what I need is to put into practice the things I heard at the last meeting. </p>
<p>If I view the battle as external; I may be heard to say: 'great preacher, great meeting.' </p>
<p>If I view the battle as internal; I am more likely to say: 'challenging message.' </p>
<p>If I view the battle as external; I will be looking for the perfect church! </p>
<p>If I view the battle as internal; I will be looking for a closer walk with Christ! </p>
<p>In chapter 7 we move from: </p>
<p>Death and sin in chapter 6 - death frees us from sin to </p>
<p>Death and law in 7:1-4 - death frees us from law </p>
<p>3 sections in chapter 7: </p>
<p>Death and Law - Freedom (7:1-4) <br>Law and Flesh - Failure (7:5-13) <br>Flesh and Will - Frustration (7:14-25) </p>
<p>Death and Law - Freedom (7:1-4) </p>
<p>The Rule of Law (v1) </p>
<p>"The law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth" - the principle stated </p>
<p>The rule or dominion of law extends only to death, as does sin (Rom5:12) </p>
<p>In eternity there is no sin and can be no sin for there is no law either! </p>
<p>On the surface, a point that is straight forward enough! </p>
<p>But the apostle seems to chose a very complex parable as the means of conveying this truth. So complex that some would suggest that Paul has bitten off more than he can chew! That he has mad a bit of a mess of the illustration! </p>
<p>In the chapter the believer is freed (7:4), just like the woman but it isn't the woman who dies it is her husband! </p>
<p>But the parable illustrates something more than just the basic truth! </p>
<p>So some have said the parable is a bit mixed up! A kind of mixed metaphor! Maybe Paul has overstretched himself! </p>
<p>Others holding to the inspiration of the Word of God wouldn't maybe just go as far as saying that but would perhaps tacitly acknowledge it by saying, 'don't look too deeply into the parable,' or perhaps that the parable is only meant to illustrate the basic truth, perhaps indicating that underneath the surface the whole illustration is a bit of a mess! </p>
<p>But this is the inspired Word of God and "not one jot or title shall pass away" </p>
<p>"the Word of God is living and powerful..." </p>
<p>Interestingly there are plenty of simple examples that Paul could have used to illustrate his point that the rule of law extends only to death and then law has no more demands upon us: </p>
<p>Ahithophel - was he ever called to account for betraying the Lord's anointed? No he wasn't! Why? He hung himself! <br>Naomi's two sons were they ever dealt with by the law and put out of the congregation of Israel for marrying Moabite girls? No! Why? They both died in Moab! <br>Eli's two sons Hophni and Phinehas were they ever broad before the law for fornication? No! Why? They both died in battle! <br>Samson and his fornication and adultery? </p>
<p>But he doesn't chose a simple illustration, for as we shall see a simple example of this principle just would not have done, it would have been critically lacking in at least 2 perhaps 3 key areas. </p>
<p>Pauls example illustrates at least 4 key principles: </p>
<ol> <li>The Rule of law </li> <li>The Release from Law </li> <li>The Role of Relationship in the release from Law </li> <li>The Result of Release from Law </li>
</ol>
<p>The Rule of Law (v1) </p>
<p>"The law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth" - the principle states </p>
<p>The rule or dominion of law extends only to death, as does sin (Rom5:12) </p>
<p>The principle stated is simple enough </p>
<p>The Release from Law (v2,4) </p>
<p>Death releases me from the rule of law </p>
<p>In the parable however the death is not my death, the death of the woman, but the death of another! </p>
<p>Has Paul got mixed up? </p>
<p>Actually this point is quite consistent with the context of Romans so far </p>
<p>In chp 3+4 we came into blessing; the blessing of justification by faith, through death, the death of another! </p>
<p>In chp 5 Divine Grace was poured out, through the death of another. </p>
<p>In chp 6 our consecration to God was made possible because of our identification with Christ in His death – the death of another. </p>
<p>Not only is it the case that death frees from the law but that death is significantly the death of another! </p>
<p>Notice how that release by death occurs. </p>
<p>Our simple illustrations would again be inadequate here. </p>
<p>This is not release from the law in the same way that perhaps Hophni and Phinehas, Ahithophel, Naomis sons or Samson were released from the law. </p>
<p>This is not the release of a guilty party because of the weakness of the law, unable to pursue the sinner beyond death. </p>
<p>In our parable, significantly, it is the release of a guiltless individual who is now regarded as having fulfilled all legal obligations and death has now brought the claims of law to an end. </p>
<p>This is the release of the righteous rather than the unrighteous! </p>
<p>“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2Co 5:21) </p>
<p>“Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.” (Rom 3:28) </p>
<p>The Role of Relationship in the release from the law: </p>
<p>My relationship with another who is dead to the law in certain exceptional circumstances can affect my status before the law too! </p>
<p>The death of another to the law can release me! </p>
<p>I think in the context of Roms 4 to 6 this is highly significant! </p>
<p>The nature of that relationship is also very interesting: marriage relationship! </p>
<p>Right the way through the NT scriptures the relationship between Christ and His church is consistently viewed as a marriage relationship: (Eph 5:24ff; Rev21). </p>
<p>In verse 4 we are "dead to the law" but it is by the "body of Christ" - the death of another! </p>
<p>Notice the logic of verse 4: “Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God” </p>
<p>Notice that nothing less than the “body of Christ” is needed to break me free from the demands of the law! </p>
<p>The theme of redemption in scripture: the person of Christ, the work of Calvary, the sacrifice of the lamb, the sufferings of Christ (Ps22; Ps69; Isa53) all of this mighty work and sacrifice impacts upon my life at this point! To release me from that which binds me that I might be free to “bring forth fruit unto God.” What is this fruit? </p>
<p>“But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.” (Rom 6:22) </p>
<p>Holiness is no add on to Christianity </p>
<p>Holiness is no after thought on Gods part to Christian experience </p>
<p>Holiness is the very essence of Christian experience! </p>
<p>Holiness is the impression of Calvary upon my being! </p>
<p>The Result of Release from the Law: </p>
<p>In this complex parable of death releasing us from the law we see illustrated a point that could not be illustrated by a simple example of the death of the accused releasing him from the rule of law: </p>
<p>Ahithophel - what happened next? - Nothing he's dead. <br>Naomis' two sons - what happened next, after they were released from the law? Nothing - they were dead! <br>Eli's two sons - what happened to them next after they had been released from the law? Nothing - they were dead. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>But in the parable of Romans 7 after the release from the law there is a 'what happened next...' </p>
<p>The woman released from the law is ready to move on and be married to another (7:4) </p>
<p>And in our case: "that we should bring forth fruit unto God" (7:4) </p>
<p>So this death is not simply an end but a beginning! </p>
<p>Only because of the complex nature of this illustration is this point possible! <br>Some take 7:1-4 to indicate that divorce and remarriage effectively exclude people from assembly fellowship (7:3) </p>
<p>That interpretation sheds more light on the thinking of those who teach it than it does on the teaching of scripture on divorce and remarriage! </p>
<p>The teaching in this section relative to the woman marrying another is whilst she is "bound by the law." </p>
<p>There is no provision in the law for operation of Divine Grace. Those who draw their teaching on divorce and remarriage from this section likewise draw no provision from Divine Grace. </p>
<p>The conclusion of this section brings us to our true standing today of being "dead to the law" (7:4) and in our dealings with men and women we must likewise recognise that there is likewise "therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus." </p>
<p>There is good indication elsewhere that people from a background of divorce and remarriage were received into assembly fellowship: 1 Tim2; 1 Co7, John 4. </p>
<p>Salvation isn't the end it is the beginning! </p>
<p>Once you are save, you haven't 'done it' but rather God has 'begun it.'</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>40:32GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68011512009-10-27T00:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:29:49+00:00Romans chp 6 vs 2 - Dead to Sin - Beginning with an End - J Stewart Gillespie<p>There is no doubt that 'death' brings an end, a closure to matters! </p>
<p>It is possible to miss the simple message of Romans 6, to get away from the simplicity and clarity of it! </p>
<p>The Christian life begins with a conversion – an end to the old and a beginning of the new! </p>
<p>There would hardly be a more clear cut, a more dramatic way of putting it: black and white, right and wrong, life and death! </p>
<p>This is an absolute! </p>
<p>We may go on a course, an Alpha Course and answer the questions but if there is no conversion, no death to the old and life to the new, if there is no personal faith and trust in Christ we will end up with the Alpha Curse! </p>
<p>Salvation isn't doing a course, saying a prayer or filling in a form. </p>
<p>Salvation is a life changing transaction between me and God, which I enter into by faith: </p>
<p>F – Forsaking </p>
<p>A – All </p>
<p>I </p>
<p>T – Trust </p>
<p>H – Him </p>
<p>As I look back at that experience and as others look on – what should they see? </p>
<p>What can they see?: </p>
<p>Can't see faith – that's a spiritual thing <br>Can't see my thoughts <br>Can't see my turmoil <br>Can't see my feelings <br>Can't see the peace in my soul </p>
<p>But what they ought to be able to see is a change in my life! </p>
<p>Important to get the order right: </p>
<p>Salvation – by grace and through faith (Acts 16:31,John 3:16), because of that trust in Christ <br>Change – by the Spirit </p>
<p>Important to get the order right, or we can run into bother! </p>
<p>It's not me changing my life that forces God to save me but rather it is receiving Gods son as Saviour that changes me! </p>
<p>There ought to be a real before and after transition! </p>
<p>This before and after Grace contrast comes out in the chapters we have before us: </p>
<p>Romans 5 tells me that by relationship with Christ I am linked to His life </p>
<p>This comes out in the content of the text but also in the pattern or structure: </p>
<p>Rom 5:15 “free gift... grace of God...the gift by grace” - 3 times in the verse we have either the word for “grace” or the cognate word “gift” </p>
<p>Rom 5:16 “but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.” - verse 16 takes us on from the free gift to imputed “righteousness” </p>
<p>Rom 5:17 “they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one” verse 17 takes us through “grace” to “righteousness” and then further on to “life” </p>
<p>Rom 5:18 “justification of life.” - emphasises “life” again </p>
<p>Rom 5:19 “shall many be made righteous.” - back to “righteousness” </p>
<p>Rom 5:20 “grace” </p>
<p>Rom 5:21 “grace...righteousness...life by Jesus Christ our Lord.” - all 3 themes in the concluding verse </p>
<p>Notice the pattern then: </p>
<p>A – Grace (v15) </p>
<p>B – Righteousness (v16) </p>
<p>C – Life (v17) </p>
<p>C – Life (v18) </p>
<p>B – Righteousness (v19) </p>
<p>A – Grace (v20) </p>
<p>A chiasmatic structure / symmetry to the later half of chapter 5. Why? </p>
<p>As an aid memoir?</p>
<p>In days of low literacy and expensive parchments by the time the local church had finished reading and preaching chapter 5 the saints would have memorised it?</p>
<p>Do we have low expectations of the Lords people as preachers?</p>
<p>Do we have passive expectations of the ministry of Gods Word?</p>
<p>Do we come expecting to allow the ministry to wash over us?</p>
<p>The ministry meeting isn't a sauna – allow the warm comforting mist of ministry to waft over us and clear out our blocked pours whilst we slumber and relax!</p>
<p>The ministry meeting is a school room where we need to focus down on the word of God, coming with an exercise to glean from the Lords word.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>As part of the structure of the passage it focuses our attention on the key thought: “life” at the centre! </p>
<p>In chapter 5 I am linked by relationship to Christ with His life! </p>
<p>Romans 6 begins by telling me that by relationship with Christ I am linked with His death! </p>
<p>Death is mentioned in every verse from 6:2 to 6:11. </p>
<p>Last week we noted that Romans 6 presents 4 reasons for not continuing in sin: </p>
<p>4 reasons why we don't continue in sin: </p>
<p>because I'm dead to Sin (6:1-7) <br>because I'm alive to God (6:8-11) <br>because I must serve God (6:12-20) <br>because sin remains sin (6:21-22) </p>
<p>because I'm dead to Sin (6:2-8) </p>
<p>In this section the Spirit doesn't so much use symmetry as repetition and a building up of an idea by piling one linked word to the next: </p>
<p>v2 – Death </p>
<p>v3 – Baptism and death </p>
<p>v4 – Burial, Baptism and Death </p>
<p>v5 – Planted – an extension of the idea of burial – this is burial with a future </p>
<p>Why say “planted” - why not say “buried” in v4? </p>
<p>Because “planted” is “buried” with a future” </p>
<p>If you dig up dandelions with all of their seeds, how do you dispose of them? </p>
<p>You don't take a handful of dandelion seeds and bury them? Why not? If you do you know they will have a future! That kind of burial is a planting! </p>
<p>The 2 ideas of spiritual death and resurrection in verse 4 and physical death and resurrection in verse 5 merge together here. </p>
<p>v6 – Body - “old man”, execution - “crucified” and destruction - “destroyed” </p>
<p>It becomes hard to miss the thought that I am “dead to sin” </p>
<p>vs2-3 – we are dead to sin </p>
<p>What does it mean to be “dead to sin”? </p>
<p>Notice “dead” is an aorist tense – point tense and usually past, a completed action </p>
<p>What does that mean? </p>
<p>Does this mean that we have lost the desire to sin? </p>
<p>Some point out that a dead body is an unresponsive thing, having the lost the ability to respond to light, touch, hearing and pain. </p>
<p>Having died to sin does that render us unresponsive, to sin, lacking any desire to sin? </p>
<p>This is inconsistent with 6:11-14 – for if being dead to sin renders us unresponsive and with no desire to sin and lacking the capacity to sin then Paul would hardly have to exhort us not to allow sin to reign in our bodies (6:12), not to obey sin (6:12) nor to give our bodies over to the service of sin (6:13)! </p>
<p>This interpretation is also inconsistent with Col 3:5 ff and Galatians 5:16ff. </p>
<p>We need to be wary of interpreting the scriptures with medical text books rather than using the scriptures to interpret themselves! </p>
<p>To understand 6:2 I think we need to look back at 5:21. </p>
<p>Before my conversion 'sin was King' (5:21) </p>
<p>I lived under the domain, the authority, the rule, the tyranny of King Sin (5:21) </p>
<p>Now I am saved I live in another Kingdom (5:21) the Kingdom of Grace under Jesus Christ our Lord (5:21). </p>
<p>I have at some point left the one Kingdom and come into the other. </p>
<p>“Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:” (Col 1:13) </p>
<p>Every Kingdom has its boundary, its border to which the rule of the sovereign extends and thus no further: </p>
<p>The boundary marker for the Kingdom of sin isn't a sign on the road or a line on the map, it is a boundary marker appropriate to sin. </p>
<p>Sin cannot cross the boundary marker of death! </p>
<p>That link between sin and death cannot be broken: </p>
<p>The Kingdom of Sin has a boundary: “as sin hath reigned unto death.” (5:21) </p>
<p>After death sin has no more claim upon me! </p>
<p>Does this mean there is no sinning in hell? </p>
<p>Sin is a falling short of Gods standard it is the rejection of or rebellion against the self revelation of God, but in hell, apart from the experience of Gods eternal judgement there is no revelation of God to reject, revile or rebel against: </p>
<p>God is Light – and sin is described as a rebellion against and a rejection of that light (John 3:19), but eternal judgement is “outer darkness” it is the “blackness of darkness forever” - Jude 1:13. </p>
<p><br>God is Love – and sin is a rejection of or a cutting off of the love of God into our life and experience (1John4:7,8) but eternal judgement is a “fearful looking forward to...” (Heb10:27) – a place dominated by fear because there is no love there (1 John4:18). </p>
<p><br>God is Life – man's greatest outrage against God was to kill the Prince of Life (Acts 3:15) - but eternal judgement is the “second death” (Rev20:14) </p>
<p><br>God is the source of Hope – but eternal judgement has no hope, it is eternal! (Heb6:2) </p>
<p><br>God is Peace – but eternal judgement knows no peace - “And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.” (Rev 14:11) </p>
<p><br>Christ is Saviour – John 16:9 compare Heb 10:26 – in eternal judgement there is no opportunity to reject Christ! There remaineth no more forgiveness of sins. </p>
<p>There is no revelation of God in hell to sin against! </p>
<p>At some point I came to the boundary of that kingdom of sin and crossed over into the Kingdom of Grace. </p>
<p>Being “dead to sin” represents a change of address from the Kingdom of Sin to the Kingdom of Grace </p>
<p>That link between sin and death: </p>
<p>It is an inevitable link – sin is a rebellion against God and a rejection of God, “in Him is life” therefore sin separated from the source of life and brings death </p>
<p>It is an inviolable link – that is a link that cannot be broken – because God has also decreed this link: </p>
<p>“But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” (Gen 2:17) </p>
<p>“Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.” (Eze 18:4) </p>
<p>“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Rom 6:23) </p>
<p>There is an exit from sin but that exit is labelled 'death' </p>
<p>The only way out of the Kingdom of Sin is by way of Death. </p>
<p>On the other side of that door marked death the door is labelled either deliverance or damnation! </p>
<p>This is an interesting idea that death marks the boundary for the Kingdom of Sin but do you have any clear cut evidence of it? </p>
<p>Rom 6:7 “For he that is dead is freed from sin.” </p>
<p>That word “freed” is very interesting because it is the word “δικαιόω” - justified! </p>
<p>How can death justify us from sin? </p>
<p>Does it not take the work of Christ to justify us from sin and make us right with God and bring us into a living relationship with God? (5:11-21) </p>
<p>Of course it does and I suspect that is why the word has been translated “freed” in this verse to avoid confusion! </p>
<p>This is “justify” in a different sense. </p>
<p>This justify does not have the positive thought of being declared righteous by a God satisfied with the work of Christ and being brought into a living relationship with God but this is the “justified” of a criminal, found guilty of a crime who takes his punishment and serves the sentence meted out. </p>
<p>He has done the crime and now he does the time. </p>
<p>Should he complete his punishment then the demands of righteousness are satisfied. </p>
<p>Sin demands death, once death has been reached sins demands have ended! </p>
<p>God doesn't defraud sin, He doesn't say 'I know that sin demands death but I'm going to bend the rules here.' Rather He pays the price for that righteous demand in the death of His Son! </p>
<p>We are therefore declared to have satisfied or fulfilled the Divine decree concerning sin: </p>
<p>“But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” (Gen 2:17) </p>
<p>“Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.” (Eze 18:4) </p>
<p>“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Rom 6:23) </p>
<p>So are you saying then that once we die then the demands of sin are satisfied and because we have suffered death for our sin we are then free from guilt? </p>
<p>Are saying that every sinner therefore who dies is justified and goes to heaven? </p>
<p>Who said anything about heaven? </p>
<p>The punishment for and the consequence of sin is death and without a Saviour death is simply not an event is an eternal state. </p>
<p>Hence eternal damnation in the lake of fire is referred to as the “second death” (Rev2:11; 20:6; 20:14; 21:8) for the just demands of sin against an eternal being is eternal death and separation. </p>
<p>But were there not in scripture those who have left the domain of sin without dieing? </p>
<p>Enoch (Gen 5:24; Heb11:5) <br>Elijah (2 Kings 2:11) <br>The saints of 1 Thess 4 and 1 Co 15:51 </p>
<p>How is this possible? </p>
<p>The work of Christ involves not only Christ bearing my sin (Isa 53; 1 Peter 3:18) but also dieing my death: </p>
<p>“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.” (Heb 2:9) </p>
<p>Albert Leckie: “Here it is dead to sin as governing my life” </p>
<p>Martyn Lloyd Jones: “Christ died to the realm and to the rule and to the reign of sin...we are dead to sin in the sense that we are no longer under its rule, being out of the territory and the jurisdiction of sin” </p>
<p>Free from the Domain of sin (5:21) from the Demands of sin and from the Domination of sin (6:9-12)! </p>
<p>This identification this union with Christ not only in His Life but also in His death allows me to move out of the Kingdom of Sin and to move on from the Kingdom of Sin, it sets me free from the Domain, the Demands and the Domination of sin. </p>
<p>Union with the death of Christ frees me from the POWER and PLACE of sin and one day from the PRESENCE of sin. </p>
<p>As far back as Job this truth appears: </p>
<p>“If a man die, shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come.” (Job 14:14) </p>
<p>Job saw death not simply as an end or termination but as a transition, not just a barrier but a boundary to something else, a transformation, a change! </p>
<p>Notice in this section we have a: </p>
<p>Burial <br>Baptism <br>Body (v6) – we have an old man hanging like a corpse on a cross </p>
<p>One of the reasons people don't come to Christ: we have too much invested in the Old Man </p>
<p>We make excuses that what the old man did was ok: </p>
<p>well I had to do it <br>my hands were tied <br>I was advised to do it <br>under the circumstances... <br>I couldn't have coped any other way... <br>It was different in those days... <br>The pressures were such that... </p>
<p>The Christian is a person who has faced the facts that what he or she has done is wrong, sinful, offensive to God and deserving of eternal condemnation in hell. </p>
<p>These were not little blips, imperfections, difficulties – they were sins, I was wrong and I confess them, I see my need of cleansing and forgiveness and I understand that Christ dies for me and my sin! </p>
<p>To that cross of Christ my “old man” - my pre-conversion life is crucified! </p>
<p>It is a painful, pitiful, shameful and embarrassing thing to watch the crucifixion of the “old man” (6:6) and so often I shy away from it. </p>
<p>What is the “old man”? (6:6) </p>
<p>What is the difference between the “old man” and the “flesh” </p>
<p>The “old man” dies at conversion (Rom 6:6), ends, on a cross, dead and crucified at conversion. The old man is the pre-conversion life lived out under the power of the flesh <br>The flesh continues even after conversion (Col 3:5ff; Gal 5:16ff) <br>After conversion we live according to the Spirit and live as a “new man” (2 Co5:17; Eph4:24; Col3:9,10; Rom8:1ff) </p>
<p>I have been to the cross, </p>
<p>I have seen dyeing there, </p>
<p>Thy Son tortured and bleeding for me, </p>
<p>And as I moved to depart, </p>
<p>My direction had changed, </p>
<p>I could see myself hanging with thee. </p>
<p>Having left all I was, </p>
<p>At Calvary's tree, </p>
<p>I stand empty and barren and bare, </p>
<p>A new life I must live, </p>
<p>For the old life has gone, </p>
<p>By His life there is a new me. </p>
<p>To serve that 'old man' </p>
<p>Hanging dead on the tree </p>
<p>Would be to still live in the past </p>
<p>But to serve a risen Lord, </p>
<p>Who sits high above all </p>
<p>Gives life meaning and purpose that lasts </p>
<p>To live still in sin </p>
<p>Just cannot be done </p>
<p>Now that sin is condemned in the flesh </p>
<p>For if sin was once wrong </p>
<p>Before Calvary's tree </p>
<p>How much more </p>
<p>Since it cost God His Son? </p>
<p>Not just an offence </p>
<p>That is bitter to taste </p>
<p>Reaping death, disaster and loss </p>
<p>But now it is clear, </p>
<p>It was the reason that Christ </p>
<p>Shed His blood, </p>
<p>Gave His life on the Cross.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>49:55GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68011522009-10-03T19:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:30:24+00:00Romans Chp 6 Vs 1 to 14; 2 Kings 4: 'Alive to God' - J Stewart Gillespie<p>“shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?” (6:1) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This might seem a bizarre idea, a strange suggestion </p>
<p>At times grace shields from our horizon the full consequences of our sin </p>
<p>God remains a Holy and Righteous God – He has not changed </p>
<p>It is possible however for this kind of idea to creep into our thinking </p>
<p>Am I trading on Gods Grace? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Would my behaviour change if: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>If I thought that my lie / deception would be dealt with the same way as Ananias Saphira's was? (Acts 5) 2 believers lie to the Holy Spirit, maybe a little ½ lie – they sold the land and gave 'most' of it for the work of the Lord and said that they had given 'all' of it. Just a slight exaggeration? Did it really matter? Ananias executed on the spot by the Spirit of God and his wife executed 3 hours later! God has not changed! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>If I thought that my greed / materialism would be dealt with in the same way as Achan's was – Joshua chp 7. Jericho has just fallen, and explicit instructions have been given by God that the city and all in it are cursed, nothing to be taken for any private use. The gold, silver, brass and iron can be used for the sanctuary but everything else is to be left. Achan – just one man amongst millions who obey, takes 3 items: “...a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight...” (Jos 7:21). Whats the big deal? A few items which were going to be wasted anyway? The righteousness of God was the BIG deal. “...a goodly Babylonish garment” - “a trendy outfit from the high street.” Because of this disobedience of one man the entire army of Israel is defeated at Ai and Achan and his sons and daughters and animals are stoned and burned! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>If I thought that my grumbling would be dealt with the same way as Miriam's was (Num 12). Miriam and others had an issue with Moses leadership and wanted to push him out and move in (Num12:2). They take a round about approach to manoeuvring Moses out and attack him from the side – his wife (12:1) – not really the issue! Be careful how we approach a ministry that challenges us! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>If I thought that discord with my brethren would be made as public as that of Euodias and Syntyche's was (Phil 4) – Paul wrote of it in a letter, sent it to the church, copied it around the world and published it for 2000 years! Way to go! If every email I wrote were copied to every recipient in outlook express, if every text message was copied to every number in my phone book, if every telephone conversation were recorded and made public, would I say / write or text the things I do? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>If it would change my behaviour to anticipate my sin being dealt with in these ways then I am trading on Divine Grace! </p>
<p>I am banking on Gods Grace to allow me to continue in sin! </p>
<p>4 reasons why we don't continue in sin: </p>
<p>because I'm dead to Sin (6:1-8) <br>because I'm alive to God (6:8-11) <br>because I must serve God (6:11-21) <br>because sin remains sin (6:21-23) </p>
<p>Dead to Sin </p>
<p>This may seem a strange idea, awkward thought, after all I am alive, am I not? </p>
<p>Positional truth – true because of my position in Christ, not because I hold the Bible at a strange angle! </p>
<p>Positional truth is not the opposite of real truth either (as was once suggested by a preacher at a conference)! </p>
<p>Positional truth is very real but not always fully realised! </p>
<p>Positional truth is true of me because it is true of Christ and I am in Christ, I have a relationship with Him! </p>
<p>Compare the benefits which the people of God had in the days of Samuel and David: they were in the land, with an inheritance, towns and homes to dwell in, but had they fought for them? Their forefathers had won them in the days of Joshua and because of their relationship with their forefathers what had previously been fought and won by another was now theirs! </p>
<p>This is no new idea for us in Romans, should already be familiar with it, cf. Roms chp 3 +4 – justification by faith. </p>
<p>I have been declared righteous! Am I righteous? God has said you are! </p>
<p>How can I be righteous? Because of my position in Christ (3:26) </p>
<p>Dead to sin doesn't mean unresponsive to sin (6:12-13) </p>
<p>I have moved out of the realm / sphere of sin </p>
<p>I have left the boundary within which king sin reigns (5:21) </p>
<p>Sin reigns to death and no further! </p>
<p>There is no sinning in heaven and there is no sinning in hell either! </p>
<p>Adam as created was able to sin <br>After the fall man was unable not to sin <br>After the new birth man is able not to sin <br>In eternity man is unable to sin </p>
<p>Does this idea of death to sin seem a strange truth? </p>
<p>That Christianity begins with an end: </p>
<p>death (v2) <br>baptism + death (v3) <br>burial + baptism + death (v4) <br>planted (v5) </p>
<p>Does it all seem a bit odd – a bit strange? </p>
<p>Actually its very familiar. </p>
<p>It is a very familiar truth but viewed from an unusual angle – from the back </p>
<p>It can be difficult to recognise familiar truth from the back </p>
<p>This is familiar truth </p>
<p>The truth of being dead to sin is the other side of being alive in Christ and alive to God! </p>
<p>This is one truth, connected together for example in v5 “planted” - the seed sown in the autumn, dead and lifeless and unexciting shoots up in the spring. </p>
<p>Burial and growth are 2 sides of the one truth! </p>
<p>Planting is death with a prospect! </p>
<p>Alive in Christ / Alive to God: 3 tremendous aspects: </p>
<p>Present Experience (v4) <br>Future Expectation (v5) <br>Eternal Enjoyment (v8) </p>
<p>We notice the pattern that future hope is founded on present help </p>
<p>This was the pattern noted previously in Rom 5:1-5 </p>
<p>Future expectation was founded on present experience </p>
<p>The same is true of life in Christ: future expectation is founded in present experience </p>
<p>This is no subtlety of exposition </p>
<p>This is no fine point of interpretation </p>
<p>This is no needless digression </p>
<p>This is why, as believers we have at times such a hard time! </p>
<p>“For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:” </p>
<p>(2Co 5:1-2) </p>
<p>“For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” (2Co 4:16) </p>
<p>It's not a pleasant thing to perish! </p>
<p>The 2 truths go hand in hand: death to the old life and new life in Christ </p>
<p>Our strength is taken that we might rest in His (Jer 9:23) </p>
<p>The day will soon come when time and sense and wealth and strength have been long gone and all that abides is Him! </p>
<p>In that day we will be grateful for all that the Lord stripped from us of earth prematurely that we might be drawn more closer to Him! </p>
<p>What does it mean to be: </p>
<p>“Alive to God” (6:10,12) </p>
<p>“Alive through Jesus Christ” (6:11) </p>
<p>2 Kings 4: </p>
<p>A child of promise (4:16), just like Isaac (Gen18) and just like us (Gal4:28) </p>
<p>This child of promise experiences a death, whilst busy in the field (4:18) and whilst reaping for his father </p>
<p>Practical: what do we do when we hit a period of barrenness in our service for Christ? </p>
<p>Recycle: </p>
<p>The approach of preachers gone stale. </p>
<p>Some hark back to a day when things were fresher, when Christ was closer and draw from better and brighter days! </p>
<p>I used to wonder what motivated so many dispensational preachers to affirm with such confidence that this was “the day of small things” (Zech4:10), until I realised that there were really speaking personally of their own spiritual experience. </p>
<p>They could look back on better days when Christ was real and fresh to them! </p>
<p>Resign: </p>
<p>There was a day when faith was bright, </p>
<p>Before the sun had reached its height (v20) </p>
<p>But now beneath a darkening evening sky, </p>
<p>With head so heavy and about to die (v19) </p>
<p>I drop the scythe, the field I leave behind (v18) </p>
<p>For from my Father's service I resign </p>
<p>A better comfort I have found upon my bed (v21) </p>
<p>Alas this is the place but for the dead! </p>
<p>Raised again / restored: </p>
<p>Refreshed with the life of Christ again </p>
<p>The Shunammite comes to Carmel (fruitfulness) </p>
<p>She heads to Elisha, personally, only he will do, not his servant and not his staff, only Elisha personally. </p>
<p>She would make it a priority to lay hold of Elisha (4:27,30)! </p>
<p>The one who was the source of life would be the sustainer of life </p>
<p>She would follow the pattern and path of Job and Jacob: </p>
<p>“Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.” (Job 13:15) </p>
<p>“And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.” (Gen 32:26) </p>
<p>A priority to pursue and lay hold of Him! </p>
<p>Determination is needed to lay hold of Divine blessing (4:27,30) </p>
<p>Restoration and revival (4:34) </p>
<p>mouth to mouth <br>eyes to eyes <br>hands to hands </p>
<p>The new life in Christ: </p>
<p>mouth to mouth (Col 3:8) <br>eyes to eyes (Col 3:12-14) <br>hands to hands (Col3:9) </p>
<p>Practically what is the new life in Christ? </p>
<p>It is to: </p>
<p>see with His eyes <br>speak with His lips <br>work with His hands </p>
<p>Then I am living the life of Christ </p>
<p>This is not works righteousness by the back door! </p>
<p>This can only be achieved in the power of His Spirit! </p>
<p>see with His eyes: </p>
<p>speak with His lips (Col 3:8-9) </p>
<p>work with His hands (Col 3:9) </p>
<p>When man sinned and left the service of God in the garden of Eden these 3 aspects of mans being were were consecrated to sin (Gen3:6): </p>
<p>“woman saw” / “pleasant to eyes” - eyes <br>“she took” - hands <br>“did eat” - mouth </p>
<p>The same pattern re-echoes in 1 Sam 14:27 in Jonathan as he partakes of the forbidden honey, hands eyes and mouth going in the wrong direction. </p>
<p>In the fall Satan captured man's life with his: </p>
<p>Action – hand <br>Appetite – month <br>Attention – eye </p>
<p>In salvation Christ restores man's life with its: </p>
<p>Action – hand <br>Appetite – mouth <br>Attention - eye </p>
<p>One part of the anatomy I noted was missing in 2 Kings 4 – what about the feet? </p>
<p>Why no mention of the feet? Very important part of the body for service – the walk! </p>
<p>How do you take a dog a walk? Tie a rope around its feet and drag it? </p>
<p>A collar and a lead – if you control the head the rest of the body follows on after! </p>
<p>If he has my hands, my eyes and my mouth the rest will follow on after!# </p>
<p>I will live out the life of Christ!</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>53:35GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67986462009-08-25T21:10:00+01:002022-01-08T21:31:27+00:00Finding Grace in our Greatest Grief: The Position of Children in Grace (Matt 18:1-14) - Romans chapter 5 - JS Gillespie<p>What happens when a child dies?</p>
<p>Where does a dead child go?</p>
<p>Is a child who dies saved or lost?</p>
<p>Do all dead children go to heaven?</p>
<p>These and other questions pertaining to the death of a child we wish to answer from what the Bible says and from what the Lord Jesus taught.</p>
<p>The position of children in Grace: </p>
<p>Far greater and completely different from their position before: </p>
<ul> <li>The law </li> <li>Roman and Greek society </li> <li>The disciples </li>
</ul>
<p> </p>
<p>There is perhaps no section that deals with children which turns our thinking on its head so much as Matthew chp 18! So much so as you read through some of the commentators on this chapter you will find an almost utterly astounding phenomenon that emerges: many if not most will spend much of their time trying to explain why Matthew chapter 18 doesn't apply to children! </p>
<p> </p>
<ul> <li>The Place of the Child (18:1-2) </li> <li>The Pattern of the Child (18:3-4) </li> <li>The Possession of the Child (18:5) – Possessed by God not by Man </li> <li>The Protection of the Child (18:6-9) </li> <li>The Privilege of the Child (18:10) </li> <li>The Pursuit of the Child (18:11-14) </li> <li>The Promise to the Child (18:14) </li>
</ul>
<p> </p>
<p>If our attitude to the child is better seen and not heard! </p>
<p>If our response to the child is one of impatience and intolerance and irritation! </p>
<p>If we view humanity as developing in importance as we move from childhood to adulthood, then in Matthew 18 we will find that our perspective on childhood is completely out of step with God! </p>
<p>There is perhaps no day, no hour, no place and no land when this teaching of the Word of God is more needed and more timely than in our own land and in our own day; a day wherein since 1967, society, government, hospitals, doctors, nurses, mothers and fathers, politicians and voters have regarded the life of the child as so utterly expendable and disposable that should the developing life of the unborn interfere with the priorities, desires, financial prosperity of the parents to be, then that developing life can be extinguished with impunity. </p>
<p>Since 1967: 7,000,000 such lives have been dealt with in that way in the UK. </p>
<p>To such the Saviour speaks these solemn words, which will not go away: </p>
<p> </p>
<p><em><strong>“ But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.” </strong></em></p>
<p> </p>
<p>One of the questions which ultimately our studies on this subject will ultimately address is this: 'where are the souls of those 7 million tonight?' Where does the dead child go? Where do the souls of the unborn go? What does the Bible have to say on the destiny of the child?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The answer I do believe is this: they stand as witnesses in the presence of God against a wicked and perverse generation! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>We cannot cut off the souls of those who have mediated access into the presence of God and expect to live thereafter with impunity (Matt 18:10) </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>The Place of the Child </strong>(18:1-2) </p>
<p>“at the same time” (v1) – at what “same time”? </p>
<p>When the resurrection Glory of the Lord Jesus Christ has been seen on the Mount of Transfiguration (17:1ff) </p>
<p>When the Lord has spoken of the fact that: </p>
<ul> <li>Devils / Demons (17:14-21) </li> <li>Death (17:23) </li> <li>Demands of men (17:24-27) – unpaid tax bills </li>
</ul>
<p>Cannot hinder the progress of His Kingdom! </p>
<p>“at the same time” (v1): </p>
<p>He was faced with a Demon who could not be cast out – so the Lord casts the demon out (17:14-21) <br>Death (17:23) <br>He was faced with the demands of men (17:24-27), and a tax bill that could not be paid, they had no money! </p>
<p>“at the same time” (v1): as so many of the preconceptions that men had about the kingdom were being swept away in the mighty torrent and flood of Christ's Glory! </p>
<p>“at the same time” (v1): as Christ was introducing the impossible to the eyes of the incredulous! </p>
<p>“at the same time” (v1): as the disciples had missed the point and failed to appreciate that the true essence of greatness in His Kingdom was humility! </p>
<p>As soon as they had been given a vision of the Glory of the Kingdom in Matthew 17 they are reminded that the Kingdom was introduced by the ministry of a child (17:10-12) – John the Baptist, a child filled by the Spirit of God from his mother's womb! </p>
<p>1 of 3 remarkable children in scripture involved with revival: </p>
<ul> <li><strong>Samuel – a child priest </strong></li> <li><strong>Josiah – a child King </strong></li> <li><strong>John the Baptist – a child prophet </strong></li>
</ul>
<p>This glorious Kingdom was introduced by the ministry of a child (Isa40) </p>
<p>As the disciples as the question: “who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” the Lord will take them back to the principle established at the beginning of the preaching of His Kingdom; introduced by a child. Filled by the Spirit of God, with a ministry: “to turn the heart of the fathers tot he children” (Lk1:17) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Here is something utterly amazing – down through the years as commentators and preachers have come to Matthew 18, as they have watched the Saviour place the child in their midst, listened to the mistake of the disciples and heard the teaching of the Saviour, one of the first things which these commentators and preachers have done is to immediately miss the point and make the same mistake as the disciples by attempting to exclude the child from the promises of this chapter. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>These promises only become the possession of adult 'child like' believers because they were first the possession of the child whom they have become like. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>In society, in the world and even before the disciples the child had little if any place: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Before the world: Luke 9:54 : “maid”: 3816: “pais” possibly from 3817: “paio” : to hit or to strike; a child or servant could be hot or struck with impunity. <br>Before the disciples: the disciples seemed to have little regard for the child: Matt 19:13-15; Mk 10:13ff; Luke 18:15ff. Perhaps more than a hint of this too in the way the gospel writers record numbers; the feeding of the 5000 – was the feeding of 5000 men plus women and children, the feeding of the 4000 wasn't the feeding of the 4000 at all but the feeding of 4000 men plus women and children! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The teachings of Christ are no reflection of the social and religious ideas of His day! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>In His teachings and in His person He is once again set apart as a man amongst men. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>As an aside, beware of the idea that before you interpret the scriptures you need to be familiar with the social, political and religious context of the passage! </p>
<p>You need to be aware of the biblical context: “rightly dividing the Word of truth” (2Tim2:15) comparing like scriptures with like but beware the Word of God is not and never has been a product neither of the social, the political nor of the religious context in which it is set, the teachings of Christ on the salvation of the child are a point in case! </p>
<p>The Bible is a message for all peoples, at all times, in all places, it is not bound! <br>The teachings of this book may well occur within the setting of human society but they are not the product of it <br>The real danger and threat of attempting to interpret the Word of God within the social, political and religious context in which we find it is that it fundamentally the shifts the authority of the Word of God away from the Word of God, applied by the Spirit of God to the hearts of the people of God to those who claim to hold the mystical key that unlocks the supposed historical, political and social context. </p>
<p>What place does Christ give to the child? </p>
<p>“...and set him in the midst of them” (18:2) </p>
<p>“in the midst” is a place of privilege and of prominence: </p>
<ul> <li>Christ in the midst of the church (Matt 18:20) </li> <li>The High Priest in the midst (Mk 14:60) of the courtroom </li> <li>Christ in the midst of the doctors (Luke 2:46) of the council </li> <li>Christ in the midst (Luke 5:19) </li> <li>Christ in the midst of the disciples (Luke 24:36; John 20:19; 20:26) </li> <li>Christ in the midst at Calvary (John 19:18) </li>
</ul>
<p> </p>
<p>But here the child is not placed in the midst of the: council, the courtroom nor of Calvary but the child is in the midst of the disciples (18:1). </p>
<p>Not only is this a place of privilege and of prominence but it is also a place , which in the gospels is uniquely reserved for Christ! </p>
<p>In the gospels it is only ever Christ who is to be found “in the midst” of His disciples: Matt 18:20; Luke 24:36; John 20:19; 20:26 except here.... </p>
<p>Where it is a child in the midst of the disciples! </p>
<p>Elsewhere in the NT Christ is still found pre-eminently in the midst of His disciples (Heb 2:12; Rev 1:13; 5:6) except in Acts 1:15 when Peter is in the midst of the disciples! </p>
<p>What a place of privilege the Lord places this child into! </p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>The Pattern of the Child </strong>(18:3) </p>
<p>If there is one reason above all others that the mind of man struggles and wrestles with the salvation of a child it is surely this: 'how can a child in the absence of learning and understanding come to exercise faith in Christ and so come to be saved?' </p>
<p> </p>
<p>In other words man's greatest problem with the salvation of the child is this: 'how can a child become like an adult to be saved as an adult is saved?' </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This appears on the surface to be perfectly reasonable but it does of course contain a very serious error: namely that salvation can be hindered by personal inability. If this were true then salvation would be in part dependant on the possession of personal abilities and if that were true salvation would not be entirely of Gods Grace at all. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Justification would be by faith and a certain quantity of intellectual, mental, and spiritual ability! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>We cannot supplement Christ without supplanting Christ – Jack Hunter </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Romans 5 was very clear on this that personal inability and weakness does not disqualify us from the Grace of God in salvation but rather it is a prerequisite: </p>
<p> “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” (Ro 5:6) </p>
<p>Salvation was: </p>
<p>By His strength <br>In His season <br>By His Son </p>
<p>It is in fact a direct consequence of justification by faith that if Gods way of salvation is all of Grace and not of works then He must be the God who can save those who are unable to do anything whatsoever about the matter of salvation. </p>
<p>Their inability does not impact at all on Gods saving ability, it only serves to make His saving work all the more glorious! </p>
<p>As a result of this those who have had most doubts over the centuries concerning infant salvation are those who have compromised on justification by faith and added in works or merit of some sort – Roman Catholicism, which has had to come up with doctrines of limbo and baptismal regeneration to compensate for the infants inability to undertake any good works. </p>
<p>We might then from our studies in Romans anticipate that the answer of the Lord Jesus to this age old question of 'how can a child be saved?' would prove very interesting indeed, but I wonder if we would have anticipated just how interesting His answer would be! </p>
<p>The answer from the lips of the Saviour is little short of startling: not how can a child become like an adult to receive salvation on the same footing as an adult does but rather how can an adult become like a child to receive salvation on the same footing as a child? </p>
<p>“And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt 18:3) </p>
<p>We ask how can a child become like an adult to be saved? </p>
<p>Christ asks how can an adult become like a child to be saved? </p>
<p>The Possession of the Child (18:5) – Possessed by God not by Man </p>
<p>A remarkable statement, for: </p>
<p>To 'receive' the disciple was to 'receive' Christ (Matt 10:40; John 13:30) <br>To reject the disciple with Christ's gospel was to reject Christ <br>To receive the Son is to receive the Father who sent Him (John 5:43; Matt 10:40; John 13:20) <br>To receive Christ is to receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38) <br>“And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.” </p>
<p>Lets not miss the import of this statement – to receive this child in His name, is to receive Christ! In the same way that receiving a believer in Christ's name is to receive the Lord Jesus Himself! </p>
<p>Such a statement is only possible “because ye belong to Christ” (Mk9:41) </p>
<p>To be received in Christ's name is to belong to Christ! </p>
<p>Some have so stumbled at this statement of the Lord Jesus that they have resorted to Biblical gymnastics to contort these verses into something other than they plainly mean. </p>
<p>Some have correctly pointed out that in verses 3 & 4 the Lord Jesus has drawn a pattern from the dependant faith of the child, as a pattern for all who would come in faith to Christ, they then claim that from verse 5 onwards the Lord is not speaking about little children at all but rather of believers who have become as little children to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. </p>
<p>Let's just spend a moment to reclaim these verses about the little child for the little child. </p>
<p>I think that it would be safe to say that if it were not for verses 3 & 4 of Matthew 18 that no one would ever have reached that conclusion. So if it were the case that verses 3 + 4 were not there we could conclude with confidence that the little child who is received in verse 5 is a literal and physical little child? Consider Marks summary of this event: Mark 9:33 -37; consider Lukes summary of this event : Luke 9:46-48 – there is no reference in either of these sections to an adult becoming as a little child but the reception of that little child is still linked with the same dignity and blessing. <br>Who is it that is receiving the “little child” in verse 5? The audience is that of believers: “disciples” (v1). If these “little ones” are believers then why does the Lord have to exhort the disciples to be prepared to receive disciples?? <br>I think if we understand the setting given to us by Mark in his account we will see that no confusion could possibly have arisen in the minds of the disciples, for as the Lord utters Matthew 18:5 He has just a few seconds before picked up the little child of whom He is speaking and held him in His arms (Mark 9:36-37) </p>
<p>What is the Lord saying then in Matt18:5? </p>
<p>If I as His disciple extend my arms on His behalf to the objects of His affection I receive Him! </p>
<p>I am not saying and Christ is not saying that every child is indwelt by Christ, for one thing there is a condition attached to the reception of the child, they are not received simply because of what they are but they are received “in my name” </p>
<p>To receive Christ is by definition to receive the Father (John 13:20) – no qualification is required but to receive Christ in receiving the child a condition is attached : I must receive the child in His name! </p>
<p>How can I receive a child in His name? </p>
<p>Consider those who: </p>
<p>Gather “together in my name” (Matt18:20; 1Co5:4) <br>Belong to Christ and receive gifts in His name (Mk9:41) <br>Pray “in my name” (John 14:13; 14:14; 15:16; 16:23,24,26) </p>
<p>“in my name” implies at the very least the idea of belonging and perhaps even more the idea of fellowship. </p>
<p>We can only receive a child in “His name” if it is true that such a child belongs to Him! </p>
<p>If I as His disciple extend my arms on His behalf to the objects of His affection I receive Him! </p>
<p>As I read the scriptures to my children, grand children, nieces and nephews, teach the Sunday School class, I as His disciple extend my arms on His behalf to the objects of His affection, I thus receive Him! </p>
<p>The Protection of the Child (18:6-9) </p>
<p>Because that child belongs to Christ </p>
<p>Created for a Divine Purpose, enjoying Divine privilege and afforded Divine protection </p>
<p>From the moment of birth I am His by right </p>
<p>His by Creatorial Right: </p>
<p>Psalm 139:13-16, consider particularly: “For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.” (Psa 139:13) – God has creatorial rights over the individual. <br>Isa 43:1,7; 44:2;21 – God has creatorial rights over the redeemed of the nation of Israel <br>Isa 46:3-4; 44:19-21 – God has creatorial rights over the whole nation of Israel <br>Psalm 100:1-3 - “all ye lands” - God has creatorial rights over all peoples. </p>
<p>His by Creatorial Purpose: </p>
<p>Created for His glory (Isa 43:7) </p>
<p>Is it just some who have been created for His glory? Consider Rom 3:23; Rev 4:11 – Gods expectation and design for all of His creatures! </p>
<p>If we do not want to be for His Glory He has no part for us in His Universe! </p>
<p>If He has power to form the vessel and create the vessel He has power to make the vessel again (Jer 18:4)! </p>
<p>The fact that that vessel was damaged did not mean that it was dammed! The difference between the damaged vessels and the dammed vessels of Jeremiah 18 lay in their attitude to the Potter. </p>
<p>His by Creatorial Relationship </p>
<p>Psalm 100:1-3 </p>
<p>Luke 15 – the prodigal son – was he a backslider? Was he an unbeliever? </p>
<p>Quite clearly a lost sinner! </p>
<p>Context: Luke 15:1-3 – this is a parable to lost sinners <br>Character of the son (15:13) - “if we say that we love Him and keep not His commandments...” We could only regard him as a backslider if we develop a creedal view of Christianity. This would be completely unbiblical. Consider the Biblical view of Christian character in Luke 6! <br>Condition of the Son (Lk 15:24,32) – he was “dead” </p>
<p>But this boy starts off with a relationship with the Father! </p>
<p>He belonged by right at the beginning of the parable and by grace at the end! </p>
<p>No one ever suggests that the sheep or the coin was a backslider but they belonged to the fold! </p>
<p>God retains His creatorial rights over His creature in spite of the fall! </p>
<p>He is able to claim those rights and redeem His creature! </p>
<p>Eternal ruin and loss come when we reject His claims and His rights on our life and we render ourselves unprofitable. </p>
<p>From the moment of conversion I am His by redemption </p>
<p>The Privilege of the Child (18:10) </p>
<p>A privilege which parallels that of the believer and yet it is distinct from it </p>
<p>The believers access to the Father is not by angels! </p>
<p>Angels were linked with the old covenant (Acts 7:53; Gal3:19) </p>
<p>This was a temporary and transient arrangement for access to God. </p>
<p>Our access to the Father is not by angels but rather by the Son (Heb 4:14)! </p>
<p>This access by angels indicates a temporary or transient arrangement, which is either lost when a soul rejects Christ or is superseded by direct access through Christ at conversion. </p>
<p>The Pursuit of the Child (18:11-14) </p>
<p>Compare Matthew 18:11 “for the Son of Man is come to save that which was lost” - as spoken of the child to to that spoken of Zaccheus: “the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10) </p>
<p>Note the absence of seeking with the child! </p>
<p>No voluntary departure or rejection?? </p>
<p>The Promise to the Child (18:14)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans, on the subject of the eternal destiny of the child who dies. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>43:54GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67983512009-08-25T16:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:32:33+00:00Finding God's Grace Greater than our Grief: The Pictures of Grace to a Child (Roms 5:12; 2 Sam 12:20-25; 1Kings 17:18ff; 2Kings 4; Mk5) - J Stewart Gillespie<p>What happens when a child dies? </p>
<p>Where does a dead child go? </p>
<p>Is a child who dies saved or lost? </p>
<p>Is there any hope for such a child who dies before an age of understanding?</p>
<p>Do all dead children go to heaven? </p>
<p>These and other questions pertaining to the death of a child we wish to answer from what the Bible says and from what the Lord Jesus taught, in this bible study and in the messages from Romans chapter 5 where we address this topic in detail.</p>
<p>With respect to the salvation of a child and God's provision in grace for the death of child, consider the bibles teaching on this subject:</p>
<p> </p>
<ol> <li>Provision for the child in Grace(Romans 5) </li> <li>Place of the child in Grace (Matthew 18) </li> <li>Pictures of the child in Grace </li> <li>Pictures of Resurrection </li>
</ol>
<p> </p>
<p>Perhaps today in our own land one of the most prominent and certainly one of the most promoted anti-Christian philosophies would be that of evolution .</p>
<p>The atheist / agnostic and evolutionist would generally cite that their strongest evidence lies in the fact the events of the past have left their echo in the rocks of the present – they look for fossils: 'the present is the key to the past.' </p>
<p> </p>
<p>We as Christians know a God who knows not only the past but also the future and we as Christians would often cite as our strongest evidence the very converse of the evolutionist, that lying within the past are echoes of the future: in other words the past contained and continues to contain within it the key to the future! </p>
<p> </p>
<p> “Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:” (Isa 46:8-10) </p>
<p> “I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.” (Isa 46:11) </p>
<p>The Christian therefore looks not for fossils of the past in the present but the believer, fully appreciating the greatness and sovereignty of his God seeks for shadows of the future in the past! Only God can do that! </p>
<p>I want to do something that may seem strange therefore to the mind of the unbeliever, the educated but unenlightened mind, the philosopher of the world I want to look for hope in Christ in the future by looking at Gods hand working in the past! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>I am seeking Gods promises for the future by looking for Gods patterns in the past. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The believer understands why I am doing this! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>As I look back for hope of a future resurrection for the child, I find that out of 8 specific individuals raised again from the dead in scripture other than Christ there are 3 children who are specified as having being raised again from the dead in the past. These 3 are very interesting: </p>
<p> </p>
<ol> <li>Elijah and the widow of Zarephath's son (1 Kings 17) </li> <li>Elisha and the son of the Shunammite woman (2 Kings 4) </li> <li>Jarius Daughter (Mark chp 5) </li>
</ol>
<p> </p>
<p>In these 3 resurrections of children in the scriptures we have: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The resurrection of the son of the gentile woman (1 Kings 17) – in case we missed this the Lord emphasised this very point on the occasion of the commencement of His public ministry in the synagogue in Nazareth in Luke 4:26. </p>
<p><br>The resurrection of the daughter of a Jewish man – again hard to miss this; Jarius the scriptures highlight for us was the “ruler of the synagogue” - of what relevance did that have to the resurrection of his daughter or to the greatness of the need of the family? </p>
<p><br>The resurrection of a son “according to promise” (2 Kings 4:16) a condition identical to that of Isaac and the New Testament believer: “Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.” (Ga 4:28) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>We have therefore pictures of the resurrection of: </p>
<ul> <li>Children of the gentile nations </li> <li>Children of the Jewish nation </li> <li>Children of believers </li>
</ul>
<p> </p>
<p>In all 3 pictures, for some reason, the state of the dead child is linked with that of sleep: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Elijah before he will raise the dead boy of 1 Kings 17: “And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.” (1Ki 17:19) </p>
<p><br>Elisha before he will raise the dead son of the Shunammite in 2 Kings 4 will raise the child under similar circumstances: “And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed.” (2Ki 4:32) </p>
<p><br>Most explicitly of all we have the startling and perhaps slightly puzzling statement of the Lord Jesus concerning Jarius daughter: “And all wept, and bewailed her: but he said, Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth.” (Lu 8:52 AV) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Perhaps you say what could be more natural than for the Lord to raise up a dead person from their bed? Is that after all not where dead people are often to be found lieing on a bed? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Well interestingly if you you look at the other 5 specified resurrections of the Bible you find: </p>
<ol> <li>The man of 2 Kings 13:21 was raised from a sepulchre </li> <li>The widow of Nain's son, a “young man” was raised from his coffin </li> <li>Lazarus of John 11 was raised from the tomb </li> <li>Dorcas, a believer in Acts 9:39, raised from her place in the “upper chamber” - often used as a guest room </li> <li>Eutychus of Acts 20:9 the young man who fell asleep whilst Paul was preaching, mind you I have to reluctantly confess that the scriptures do seem to blame the preacher for the audience falling asleep: “as Paul was long preaching” - if the audience fall asleep the preacher needs to waken up. Eutychus may well have been in need of his bed but he wasn't raised up from his bed either but from the ground where he landed having fallen from his seat in the open window! </li>
</ol>
<p> </p>
<p>Add to this those who are raised en mass when the Saviour died, unspecified individuals (Matt 27:52) who were raised from the graves! </p>
<p>So as it turns out the children are the only ones to be raised from their beds in a state of sleep! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Although as we are aware, interestingly this picture of sleep becomes a consistent picture of the condition of the dead in Christ (John 11; 1 Thess 4), but ever before the believer in Christ died to sleep with the promise of a future awakening, the child had been for many generations entered already into the enjoyment of that very experience! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath: A Picture of Rapture: </p>
<p>A child dies, but more than this, a child is committed into the care of Elijah (17:19) </p>
<p>Carried by Elijah out of the bosom of his mother to abide where he abides, to rest where he rests (cf. Luke 16:22) </p>
<p>“he took him” (v19) </p>
<p>“give me thy son” (v19) </p>
<p>Many times the Lord asks us to give to Him that which we least desire to part with, that we might trust Him for that which means most to us. </p>
<p>This is the essence of faith. </p>
<p>This was the essence of Abraham's faith in Genesis 22: “take thy son thine only Isaac.” </p>
<p>The God who requires from me that which I least desire to part with is the God who “spared not His own Son but delivered Him up for us all.” </p>
<p>For the purposes of the narrative it would have been enough to record “he took him” but the Spirit adds “out of her bosom.” From a mothers heart. </p>
<p>For some time, up until the resurrection of her son that was all the mother knew – the pain and sorrow of an empty heart. </p>
<p>Here is our problem – our sorrow lies in time and our hope lies in eternity. </p>
<p>As Elijah departed with the child and the door closed behind them, this widow woman was unable to see what was transpiring above, in the upper room, she only knew of the sorrow which was her portion below, the sorrow of an empty heart. </p>
<p>Here is our great disability, our eyes can only see to the horizon of time. </p>
<p>That is where we are too, trapped in time but with our hope in eternity. </p>
<p>“carried him” (v19) </p>
<p>Notice the direction “up” and the location “loft” </p>
<p>“into a loft”: 5944: stair way, upper room, the sky </p>
<p>The deaths of at least 7 individuals in scripture are linked with the loft or upper room: </p>
<ol> <li>Eglon the king of Moab (Judges 3) </li> <li>David mourns for his dead Absalom in a loft or upper room (2Sam 18) </li> <li>Ahaziah falls through a lattice in the loft (2Kings 1) </li> <li>Son of the widow of Zarephath </li> <li>Shunammites son laid in the loft (2Kings 4) </li> <li>Dorcas lay in the upper chamber (Acts 9) </li> <li>Eutychus (Acts 20) falls from the upper chamber. </li>
</ol>
<p>Out of these 7 deaths linked with the loft or upper room, 4 know the power of Gods resurrection – the 2 believers and the 2 children! </p>
<p>The widows son is taken not just to a place but to His presence: “where he abode” </p>
<p>Gods place for us is of course consistently defined by His presence there: </p>
<p>“today shalt thou be with me in paradise” </p>
<p>“Abraham's bosom” </p>
<p>“in my Father's house...” </p>
<p>“laid him upon his own bed” (v19) </p>
<p>Not only a place and a presence but perhaps also the thought of peace </p>
<p>The place where Elijah slept is now the place where the child sleeps! </p>
<p>There are those who do not simply die and perish but who “sleep in Jesus” (1 Thess 4) perhaps like Lazarus of John 11 “our friend Lazarus sleepeth” </p>
<p>This is where the child is left at the end of verse 19 </p>
<p>Is the child left or is the child lost? </p>
<p>Out of the sight of the empty heart of the mother, is there the fear preying upon the mind that the child has not simply left but is actually lost? </p>
<p>Perhaps unappreciated by the mother, the one into whose hands she has committed her son is one who has a powerful intercessory ministry with God (v20) cf. James 5:17. </p>
<p>Will she see her son again? What is the setting of this reunion? </p>
<p>A cry / shout (17:20,21) <br>The “voice” of Elijah (17:22) <br>The resurrection of the child (17:22) <br>The child descends (17:22) <br>The child, the mother and Elijah united once again (17:23) </p>
<p>Oh yes, and who is Elijah? </p>
<p>'El' – God <br>'Jah' – Jehovah – the Lord </p>
<p>“For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. </p>
<p>For the Lord himself shall <br>descend from heaven <br>with a shout, <br>with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and <br>the dead in Christ shall rise first: <br>Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord...” (1Th 4:15-18) </p>
<p>In 2 Sam 12 David has a hope of being reunited with his dead child </p>
<p>In 1 Kings 17 the hope linked with Elijah is not that of being reunited in death but rather reunited in rapture together. </p>
<p>This is fitting of course for Elijah, since he is the prophet who himself never saw death but was raptured to heaven alive in the chariot of fire. </p>
<p>When we come to the hope of the Shunammite woman of 2 Kings 4 her hope is linked more resurrection, to be reunited in resurrection: </p>
<p>setting is “carmel” or fruitfulness <br>she is greated with a 3 fold “shalom” (2 Kings 4) as did the Lord His disciples after the resurrection in John 20. </p>
<p>Looking in particular at the NT miracle of the resurrection of Jarius daughter we find that in the pattern of Marks gospel this event is part of a triplet of events in Marks account of the ministry of the Lord Jesus. </p>
<p>There are 3 events in that gospel which are marked out as distinct as the only occasions when Christ is present together with the inner corm of the 3 disciples: Peter, James and John: </p>
<p>The raising of Jarius daughter – the resurrection of a dead child by Christ. </p>
<p>The Mount of transfiguration – the revelation of the future resurrection glory of Christ, along with the NT believers – Peter, James and John and Old Testament Saints – Elijah and Moses </p>
<p>The Garden of Gethsemane – the Lord returns from His sufferings to find His saints whom He has left in His absence, during the night to be active and in prayer, He finds them asleep and raises them up (Mark 14:37). This word “sleep” is the same word as that used of the sleeping saints whom the Lord finds at His return for the saints in 1 Thess 5:10. </p>
<p>Are these 3 groups in Marks gospel pointing forward to 3 groups who have part in His resurrection? </p>
<p>The child – covered by His blood <br>Expectant OT and NT saints who await and anticipate His coming <br>Sleeping NT saints – saved but not living on the tip toe of expectancy </p>
<p>The resurrection of Jarius daughter raises a number of problems: </p>
<p>Inability <br>Innocence <br>Inaccuracy <br>Inactivity </p>
<p>The Problem of Inability: </p>
<p>Can someone who is unable to believe be saved? The question of faith. </p>
<p>Can't believe is different from won't believe </p>
<p>Inability to accept Christ is distinct from active rejection of Christ </p>
<p>Gods eternal condemnation and personal, individual judgement of humanity is always based on the active rejection in part or in whole of the person and work of Christ. </p>
<p> “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” (Joh 3:19) </p>
<p> “He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (Joh 3:18) </p>
<p> “And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;” (2Pe 2:6) </p>
<p> “And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.” (Re 20:12-13) </p>
<p>The condemnation of the whole of humanity, in the opening 3 chapters of Romans and the conclusion of Romans 3:23 is on the basis not of our association with Adam – a reality that brings the condemnation of death in Roms 5:12 but it is on the basis of personal guilt, by virtue of the fact that I have transgressed the revelation of the true God in: </p>
<p>Creation (Roms 1) <br>Conscience (Roms 1+2) <br>Covenant (Roms 2+3) <br>Christ (Roms 3+4) </p>
<p>Condemnation to Divine Judgement in the first 3 chapters of Romans is as a consequence of personal corruption. </p>
<p>The condemnation of God in scripture rests upon those who are able but not willing to respond to God. </p>
<p>The Problem of Innocence: </p>
<p>What was her status before God? </p>
<p>Born in Adams sin, guilt imputed because Adam had sinned but without any personally committed sins – 'faultless failure'. </p>
<p>Was she condemned to judgement or covered by the blood? </p>
<p>The question of fairness. </p>
<p>Does God regard such as innocent? </p>
<p>Consider the following scriptures: </p>
<p>“For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings.”(Isa 7:16) </p>
<p>“Moreover your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, and your children, which in that day had no knowledge between good and evil, they shall go in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it.”(Deu 1:39) </p>
<p>“Also in thy skirts is found the blood of the souls of the poor innocents: I have not found it by secret search, but upon all these.”(Jer 2:34) </p>
<p>“Because they have forsaken me, and have estranged this place, and have burned incense in it unto other gods, whom neither they nor their fathers have known, nor the kings of Judah, and have filled this place with the blood of innocents;”(Jer 19:4) </p>
<p>“Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils, And shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood.”(Psa 106:37-38) </p>
<p>The Problem of Inaccuracy: </p>
<p>Why did Christ say “she is not dead” ? </p>
<p>There are perhaps echoes here of John 11: “These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.” (Joh 11:11), but the Lord goes a stage further than that here with Jarius daughter: “she is not dead but sleepeth” (Luke 8:52). </p>
<p>In John 11 Christ did not deny the reality of death but here in Luke chp 8 Christ denies the reality of death. </p>
<p>Why is this? Why does Christ not impute death to Jarius' daughter? </p>
<p>Was it simply because in this special case that Jarius' daughter was going to be raised from the dead or was there something different in essence about the death of Jarius' daughter compared to that of an adult? </p>
<p>The Lord did not say: 'she will not remain dead' or 'her death is not permanent' or as He did with Lazarus; 'your daughter will rise again' cf. John 11:23 but here with Jarius' daughter He denies the reality of death!! </p>
<p>The simple reading of the words of Christ here are not consistent with them being a reference to her impending resurrection at all! </p>
<p>Resurrection is life raised up from the dead. </p>
<p>The Lord denies that she is dead in the first place! </p>
<p>This is not the way the Lord approaches the issue of resurrection with Lazarus: </p>
<p> “Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.” (Joh 11:14). The Lord does not deny here the reality of Lazarus death! </p>
<p>How can the Lord say here “she is not dead but sleepeth” (Luke 8:52)? </p>
<p>Is it because He speaks not only as a man amongst men but as God? </p>
<p>Consider a very similar statement in this connection concerning the patriachs of old: “Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.” (Lu 20:37-38) </p>
<p>The Problem of Inactivity: </p>
<p>Why the wait? </p>
<p>Why the delay? </p>
<p>The Lord could have gone to Jarius house at the stage of Luke 8:4, but He took time to deal with the women with the issue of blood. </p>
<p>Why was this? </p>
<p>Jarius daughter had enjoyed 12 years of life. <br>The woman had endured 12 years of death! </p>
<p>But if Jarius daughter died and went to hell how could that delay have been justified?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>54:09GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67986332009-08-19T00:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:33:00+00:00'Children: Pictures of Hope and Possessors of Heaven' - Romans chapter 5 - JS Gillespie <p>Part of our series from Romans chapter 5 on what the bible says on the destiny of the child who dies.</p>
<p>Why is it that over 2000 years and 40 authors the answer to the question appears not to be clearly answered? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Why do we not have a book, a chapter, an epistle that answers the simple question how can a child be saved? After all we have many passages of scripture that appear to deal in fine detail with every aspect of life: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Vegetarianism (Rom14) <br>Food sacrificed to idols – (1 Co 10) <br>Head coverings – (1 Co 11) <br>Gifts of tongues (1Co14) <br>Personal qualifications of elders (1 Tim3) <br>The order of resurrections at the rapture (1 Peter 4) <br>Regulations on the manufacture of garments (Lev 19:19) <br>Regulations on sewage (Deut 23:13) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Yet when it comes to the question of what about the eternal destiny of children, a subject that affect about 1/3 of the worlds population, there scriptures seem, not so much to be silent but the problem does not seem to be addressed directly. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Sometimes we fail to find the answer to the question we ask because we fail to find the question! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>I think that above all else there is no clear answer to the problem in the scriptures of how can a child be saved because it is never envisaged that they are lost. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>In the OT sin had a legal definition. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The situation was simple: if you broke the law then you were a sinner, if you didn't break the law you weren't a sinner! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>There is the law written in scripture. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>That legal definition of sin, an objective definition rather than a subjective definition continues through the writings of Paul in Romans. </p>
<p>Therefore Paul in Romans chps 1 to 3 has to answer the problem, how can God judge men for their sin if they have never had the law? Hence the testimony of creation, conscience and covenant. </p>
<p>In particular: “Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another” (Ro 2:15) </p>
<p>Therefore to the Jewish mind, and to the Pauline mind there was no problem with infant salvation – they were not guilty of any personal sins from which they must repent and flee to God for refuge! </p>
<p>So far we have seen that: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>There is provision for the child in the doctrine of Romans 5 (5:18-20) <br>There is purpose in all God does – no problem exists without God ultimately allowing and superintending that problem to resound ultimately for His Glory – we dare not ask is there a Divine response to this problem but we can rest in this that there would be no problem if God did not have a purpose for that problem: there is Reason for the problem, there must be the possibility for the believer to Rejoice in the problem (5:1-5); there are ample Resources in Christ to deal with the problem (Rom 5:18, 20); ultimately Grace must Reign (5:21) and every impediment as far as human inability is concerned has been removed (5:6). </p>
<p><br>There is in all the teachings of the Lord Jesus – in particular in Matt 18, 19:3; Mark 9:36; Mark 10:13; Luke 18:16 a special place for the child. </p>
<p><br>There are pictures of the child raised again from the dead </p>
<p>But perhaps it would be good to be able to conclude our studies with something a little more concrete – with proof of God working in just that way? </p>
<ul> <li>John the Baptist (Luke 1:76) – God raises up a child prophet </li> <li>Samuel (1 Kings chps 1-3) – God raises up a child priest </li> <li>Josiah – God raises up a child King </li>
</ul>
<p>Greatest and most glorious of all: </p>
<p>Christ – God raises up a child Saviour (Lk 2:11-12; 2:27-30,34,38) </p>
<p>John the Baptist (Luke 1:76) – God raises up a child prophet </p>
<p>Samuel (1 Kings chps 1-3) – God raises up a child priest </p>
<p>Josiah – God raises up a child King </p>
<p>Few of the ages of the Kings of Israel are recorded as to when they began to reign but many of the ages of the kings of Judah are recorded, of those < 20 years we have: </p>
<p>Jehoash – 2 Kings chp 11 + 12 (Joash), he began to reign at aged 7 years (2 Kings 11:21); so long as the child was under the influence of Jehoiadah the priestly figure all went well with the kingdom, once this influence was lost, decline set in! </p>
<p><br>Azariah – 2 Kings 14:21; 15:1ff (Uzziah), little said about him but what is said is positive. He again was influenced heavily by his mother; Jecholiah of Jerusalem – Jecholiah: Jah will enable - “he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord.” </p>
<p><br>Manasseh (2Kings 21) – reigns at 12 years old; his mother was 'Hephzi-bah' – 'my delight is in her' and Manasseh “did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.” Note the influence of a mother, although ineterstingly he is a king who repents later on in life (2 Chron 33:10ff). </p>
<p><br>Josiah (2 Kings 22) – he began to reign at 8 years, his mothers name was Jedidah : 'beloved.' Josiah “did that which was right in the sight of the Lord.” “And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the LORD with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.” (2Ki 23:25) – remarkable words considering especially the fact that he was 'only' a child! </p>
<p>Aged 16 “he began to seek after the God of David” (2 Chron 24:3) <br>Aged 20 years “he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem” <br>Aged 26 years – he began to repair the house of the Lord. </p>
<p>The child Kings on the whole seem to have fared far better than the adult Kings! </p>
<p>Christ – God raises up a child Saviour (Lk 2:11-12; 2:27-30,34,38) </p>
<p>Their Pictures of Hope: </p>
<p>Of those children whose death is recorded in the scriptures but whose resurrection is not recorded, as the 3 are above we have a consistent and interesting association of hope: </p>
<p>Abijah the son of Jeroboam (1 Kings 14): “And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him: for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam.” (1Ki 14:13). </p>
<p>Gods reward or response to finding “some good thing toward the Lord God” in Abijah was both a natural and dignified death “...shall come to the grave” but also a premature death. <br>Why? We can see the 'reward' or moral appropriateness in one in whom some good thing was found in not having to suffer the indignities prophesied against the rest of Jeroboam's family: “Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat: for the LORD hath spoken it.” (1Ki 14:11). That is 'good' for 'good', but why the premature death? </p>
<p><br>In the OT old age and long years are seen consistently as evidence of Divine blessing; eg Abraham (Gen25:8). <br>Did he die young to prevent him committing evil? Yet if this was the case surely the rest of the family ought to have gone before Abijah, since his discerning feature was that in contrast the rest of the bunch “in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam.” He was the best of the lot of them! <br>How come the name of this dead child, who played no significant part in the politics, social history, nor in the spiritual and religious life of Israel is recorded in the word of God? <br>Not only that how come half of a whole chapter of the word of God is given over to one dead child? If the Lord was to give half a chapter to me in His Word, I would think that my life had been mightily worthwhile! <br>What does name mean? 'Father of Jehovah'! What a lovely name! </p>
<p>Does the answer lie in these verses of scripture? </p>
<p>“Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.” (Luk 10:20) </p>
<p>“But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.” (Isa 43:1) </p>
<p>“The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come.” (Isa 57:1) </p>
<p>The slaughter of the innocents under Herod in Matthew chp2, for which prophetic reference is drawn by Matthew from Jeremiah, but note the next verse in Jeremiah 31, not quoted by Matthew: </p>
<p>“Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. Thus saith the LORD; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy.”(Jer 31:15-16) </p>
<p>Davids son born to Bathsheba: “But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.” (2Sa 12:23) </p>
<p>Consider too the strange statement made by the Shunammite woman following the death of her son: “Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well.” (2Ki 4:26). Was it indeed well with the child? </p>
<p>Their Place in the Kingdom: </p>
<p>Note the promise of the Lord: “But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” (Mat 19:14) </p>
<p>Their Prominence in the Kingdom: </p>
<p>It is interesting to notice the prominence given to children in the millenial kingdom: </p>
<p>So many children they could hardly imagine where they all came from: “Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.” (Isa 66:8) <br>Children brought forth without birth? “Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child.” (Isa 66:7) <br>Children restored who once were lost: “Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rachel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not.” (Jer 31:15) <br>Children restored: “The children which thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the other, shall say again in thine ears, The place is too strait for me: give place to me that I may dwell. Then shalt thou say in thine heart, Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? and who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where had they been?” (Isa 49:20-21) <br>“He shall judge the poor of the people, he shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor.” (Psa 72:4) </p>
<p>Are these lost children of previous generations to repopulate the millennial Kingdom of Revelation 20?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67983502009-08-18T16:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:34:53+00:00Finding God's Grace Greater than our Grief: The Provision for Children (Romans chp 5) - J Stewart Gillespie<p>A walk through the old grave yard in New Cumnock, there lies amongst the many headstones the remains of one, incomplete, on which reads the following: </p>
<p>their 3 children who were born on the 13th March 1870 </p>
<p>and died a son at birth </p>
<p>a son aged 29 hours </p>
<p>Mary Craig aged 20 days </p>
<p>James Craig their son born 27th October 1878 died 28th October 1883 </p>
<p>Mary Craig their daughter born 13th March 1877 died 1st October 1888 </p>
<p>Bessie their daughter born 7th May 1889 died 19th April 1890 </p>
<p>Robert Craig their son born the 8th January 1885 died 28th June 1900 </p>
<p>The above </p>
<p>Richard Gilbertson Herbertson </p>
<p>Physician and surgeon </p>
<p>who died Bradford aged 72 years </p>
<p> </p>
<p>One family, not by any ways unique but the echo of whose grief can still be heard amongst the decaying memorials of a now almost forgotten generation. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Triplets, a naturally rare event, born on the 13th March 1870 all died – not perhaps surprisingly, they would have been born early and would have been below average weight, 2 boys who died so soon after birth they weren't even named and only the daughter received a name – Mary, surviving for only 3 weeks. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Why did they die? Their only fault was to have shared a womb with too many others! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The story continues from tears to tragedy, for 7 years to the day, on the same date - 13th of March another child is born and named after the Mary who died 7 years previously, but this Mary too will die, still in child hood, almost an echo of Jarius daughter, at 11 years of age. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Bessie will die at 1 year old </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Robert will die at 5 years of age </p>
<p> </p>
<p>A tragic story indeed, but tragedy turns into irony for this is the family of one Richard Gilbertson Herbertson, physician and surgeon, the man who 140 years ago was doing my job here in New Cumnock! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>As Dr. Herbertson was busy about his duties delivering children, dealing with measles, whooping cough, diptheria, meningitis, small pox and flu his own family were dying around him! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Was there an even more bitter pill to swallow than this for Dr Herbertson, why were his children all dieing so young? Was it due to one or some of the many childhood killer diseases of the Victorian period? The same ones he was seeing in the village week by week? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Was he doing his best, committed to his duty and calling of tending to the sick and dying in the village of New Cumnock whilst all of the time he was bringing back those very same infections to his own family? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Why the story? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Well it touched me, for obvious reasons. </p>
<p><br>It challenged me, for this record presents the Christian message of the gospel and our studies in Romans in 2009 in New Cumnock, with a very real problem. We need a faith that can come up some kind of answers to that kind of suffering and problem – real answers – robust answers </p>
<p><br>It encouraged me! Encouraged you? Yes I did say that, for not only does that story present me with a big problem it presents me with an almost greater paradox. Why? This story, better recorded than most, was not unique in those days and in this village, this was part and parcel of lifes common experience for our forefathers, and yet just a few feet away from that broken grave stone lies another 2 pieces of broken grave stone, wether it belonged to this head stone or not I do not know, but lieing by itself amongst the death, disease, sorrow and suffering of a by gone day are 2 small fragments of stone, on the one is engraved these words: “thy will be done” and on the other: “until He come.” Here is the paradox; at a time when our sorrow and suffering was at its greatest, nationally Christianity, at least professing Christianity, church attendances and the promotion of Christ in our land was at its most vigorous! 1851 census – 40% UK population attended church, 2005 – 7 % attended church. That kind of suffering may have killed off many of our children but for many it did not kill off their faith, in fact if the remnants of those stories are left to tell their own tale in the midst of their greatest grief, many found an even greater grace! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Just in case you make the mistake of regarding that hope as simply the product of sentimentality and superstition, I will make it clear that I make one assumption about the grief of a bygone day, the sorrow of the parents of a previous generation, namely that their tears were every bit as wet as ours, their sorrow was felt every bit as deeply as ours, their cots were every bit as empty as ours would be and that their need for answers was every bit as real as ours! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Did you notice that when it came to recording the deaths of those triplets in 1870: “a son died 29 hours” - not 1 day, or 2 days, or shortly after birth but each hour was counted, precious to the heart of a grieving mother and father! </p>
<p>Do not be tempted to assume that sentimentality was the pattern of a previous generation whereas intelligence and sensibility is the preserve of our generation! Many of those who lie their in those graves were men and women brought up and taught in the Scottish Presbyterian tradition, in a day, unlike today, when many of their ministers were God fearing men who knew Christ and who taught and preached the word of God. </p>
<p>That generation was a generation which had imbibed the reformation teachings of Calvin and Luther and which mark you had a carefully thought out Theology, not all of which I would personally agree with but which none the less correctly identified within the work of Christ and within the pages of the Word of God, a provision for their children, in Grace, which was greater than their grief. </p>
<p>I want tonight to lay bear the foundations of that hope, that Divine provision in Grace for those who died because Adam sinned but who I trust we will see over coming nights must live again, because Christ has died. </p>
<p>That provision in Grace is perhaps seen nowhere more clearly in the Word of God than it is here in Romans chapter 5. </p>
<p>Not only do I intend to look at Gods provision in grace over coming nights but I would also like to consider: </p>
<p>Provision for the child (Romans 5) <br>Place of the child (Matthew 18) <br>Pictures of the child in resurrection – as seen in 3 prominent examples <br>Prophecies of the child in resurrection <br>Proof of grace to the child as seen in 3 prominent examples </p>
<p>The Provision for the Child (Romans 5) </p>
<p>Romans 5 does not specifically address the matter of the death of a child, but the chapter is of fundamental and critical importance in addressing this problem because: </p>
<p>Romans 5 does give the reason for the presence of death even in the presence of personal innocence (Rom 5:12-15), it explains the reason behind 'faultless failure' <br>Romans 5 makes Gods provision in grace for a child a moral and spiritual necessity, by the time we have finished Romans chapter 5 it is completely clear that their must be a provision in Gods Grace in Christ for the 'innocent dead.' <br>Romans chps 3,4 and explicitly chp 5 explain why it is that it is possible for a person to be saved who is unable to contribute anything to their salvation expect for their helpless need of it and thus it is Romans chp 5 which explicitly removes the most stubborn objection to the salvation of the innocent – how can they be saved they cannot understand and they cannot respond to Gods plan of salvation. </p>
<p>A provision for the child in Gods Grace in Christ is a spiritual absolute necessity because: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Rejoicing: The believer MUST rejoice (5:3). The believer must be able to “rejoice in tribulations also” (5:3) – not only in the smooth seas but in the stormy seas also, in the furnace (Shadrach, Meshach and Abednigo), in the flood (the children of Israel), and even in the vomit (Jonah). If there were no provision in grace for this frequent and tragic encounter in life, Roms 5:3-5 would simply not be true! I know that this of itself is perhaps not a bullet proof reason for believing in the salvation of children but it is what motivates us on our search. We do not want to believe that a child who dies falls into a pitiless, merciless, cruel, black hole. We are looking for hope, and Rom 5:3-5 assures us that faced with such a hole we have precisely that in Him (5:4-5), “because the love of God is shed abroad...” (5:5). </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Reigning: Grace must reign (5:21) – a grace that is sovereign must be a grace that is sufficient and if His grace does not reach down certain cul de sacs of human experience – Gods grace is not sufficient and it is therefore not sovereign – it does not reign. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Reaching: Every soul MUST be reached by the grace of God in Christ (5:18) – the scope of the work of Christ is at least as extensive as the wickedness of Adam. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Removing: Any impediment due solely to personal inability, for being unable to enjoy Gods salvation MUST be and has been removed (Rom5:6) – salvation is by His Strength, in His Season, and by His Son! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>We can never use the reason for a soul being lost as having been due to their inability to comprehend or inability to apprehend the gospel. </p>
<p><br>If personal inability were a real reason for missing out on the blessings of Gods grace, this would mean that personal ability was required to apprehend Gods Grace, in which case Gods grace is not sufficient for the needs of a lost humanity and thus salvation would be partly grace and partly works! </p>
<p><br>Furthermore if my inability is actually what prevents me from enjoying the gospel then what I am really saying is that personal inability is ultimately far greater, more powerful and of greater importance than Divine ability. Human inability becomes the defining matter and deciding issue rather than Divine ability. I ascribe to my weakness the place of omnipotence and relegate Gods all sufficiency to some place of lower importance! </p>
<p><br>The problem of infant salvation cannot therefore terminate in a conclusion that they are not able therefore they cannot be saved! </p>
<p><br>If that is where my thinking concludes there can be only one logical conclusion drawn from that conclusion – that God is not sufficient for the problem. </p>
<p>Reasoning: Every problem that sin throws up MUST have a reason. We have seen in Romans chp 5 one over arching pattern: “that where sin abounded Grace did much more abound” - that Gods Purposes preceed mans Problems! God is Sovereign over Life's Problems (5:1-5); God is Sovereign over Salvations Plan (5:6-11) and God is Sovereign over Man's Plight (5:12-21). Because the solution precedes the problem I can never ask is their a provision from God in Grace for this problem which sin and self and Satan has thrown up? If there was no purpose, if there was no Divine response the problem would not exist! That is not to say that every sin and every problem and rebellion of sinful man must ultimately conclude with their salvation but that even in the depths of human sin and rebellion God has His purpose and ultimately all will be headed up in Christ. We therefore can search with expectancy to find Gods purposes in all problems of life. Even in Eden as God planted the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, His eye went way beyond the events in that garden, to Calvary and beyond, to a far greater tree! You say – surely that's conjecture Stewart! You're making that up! You mean you don't take my word for it? How many trees were there in Eden? Thousands? Millions? How many were mentioned? 2! The tree of knowledge of good and evil, is mentioned for obvious reasons, it plays a critical part in what is happening there! A second tree is mentioned: the tree of life. Why is this tree mentioned? It plays no part in what happens, does it? Its the tree that is there but Adam can't get! So why tell us about it? Why tell me about the place of a tree that plays no part in the story? Because even in Eden as God planted the tree of knowledge of good and evil, His eye went to Calvary and beyond. It takes us till Revelation 22 to lay hold of the fruit of that tree! But just in case you ever think that this tree has been produced as a reflex or a reaction to man's problems – it has been in Gods purpose since at least Genesis 2! But before you reach that tree you are going to have to work through 21 other trees from Genesis to Malachi on which men hang under a curse: the baker (Gen 40:22); Absalom – David's first son to be called King, the King of Ai (Joshua 8:29), the 5 Kings of the Amorites, amongst whom was Adonizedek (Joshua 10), Bigthan and Tersh the 2 Eunuchs of Ahasuerus (Esther 2:23); Haman and his 10 sons, until we finally reach the 3 trees at Calvary and can pass onto the enjoyment of the tree of life, our sin having been dealt with! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Responding: Gods response to our need is not condemnation, that is Gods response to our sin (Rom chps 1 to 3) but Gods response to our need is His Glorious Provision of Grace (Rom 5:6,8,10), just as in the same way God does not condemn men and women who have not heard the gospel because they have not heard the gospel but God does condemn men and women who have not heard the gospel because they are sinners. It is not our need that condemns us it is our sin! If we conclude that all infants dieing in childhood come under the condemnation of God because of their need please realise that this must be the only time ever in Gods dealings with men when He breaks with the principles of His eternal justice and righteousness to respond to man's need with wrath rather than with Grace! God delights to respond to man's need with grace: </p>
<p> </p>
<p> “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.” (Ps 50:15 AV) <br> “In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.” (Ps 86:7) <br> “He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.” (Ps 91:15) <br> “Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble; incline thine ear unto me: in the day when I call answer me speedily.” (Ps 102:2) <br> “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” (Isa 55:1) <br> “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,” (Tit 2:11) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>But grace rejected: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“But unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth? Seeing thou hatest instruction, and castest my words behind thee.” (Ps 50:16-17) <br>“He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:” (Joh 1:11-12) <br>The final judgement on man in Rev 20 is not as a needy sinner but man as a : </p>
<p>Christ rejecting <br>God hating <br>Conscience defiling <br>Gospel despising <br>Heaven mocking <br>Grace disbelieving </p>
<p>Sinner </p>
<p>“This is the condemnation that light is come into the world and men preferred darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil.” </p>
<p>He rejects us because we reject Him: </p>
<p>Gods Word rejected (2 Sam 15:23,36) <br>God rejected Personally (1 Sam 8:7) <br>Gods commandment and law rejected (2Kings 17:20) <br>Gods law rejected (Jer 6:19) <br>Knowledge Rejected (Hos 4:6) <br>Gods Son rejected (Matt 21:42) </p>
<p>This pattern is most clearly seen in the 2 Advents of Christ: </p>
<p>The 1st Advent of Christ – Man rejects Christ <br>The 2nd Advent of Christ – Christ rejects God </p>
<p>Consider one example of this: A Coat for Adam. </p>
<p>These conclusions from Grace are by the end of chapter 5 clearly non negotiable!</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans, focusing for these messages on the subject of the death of a child; there eternal destiny and the care of God for the child. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>53:50GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/68011432009-07-08T19:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:49:07+00:00Romans Chp 5 Vs 6 to 11: 'Rejoicing in Vomit' - J Stewart Gillespie<p>A heavy chapter of doctrine, </p>
<p>Great doctrinal subjects such as: </p>
<p>The sovereignty of God <br>The plan of salvation <br>The all sufficiency of Gods Grace </p>
<p>See in the 3 sections that Gods Grace is sufficient for and Gods purposes are Sovereign over: </p>
<ol> <li>Life's Problems (5:-5) </li> <li>Salvation's Plan (5:6-11) </li> <li>Man's Plight (5:12-21) </li>
</ol>
<p>Or to put it another way He is enough for the: </p>
<ol> <li>Worries of Life (5:-5) </li> <li>Weakness of Self (5:6-11) </li> <li>Wickedness of Man (5:12-21) </li>
</ol>
<p>I can rest in His all Sufficient Grace in: </p>
<ol> <li>Life's Distresses (5:-5) </li> <li>My Disabilities (5:6-11) </li> <li>Worlds Disasters (5:12-21) </li>
</ol>
<p> </p>
<p>Yet Romans 5 is a fascinating chapter, for whilst it deals with so many of the great themes and subjects of the gospel and whilst it fits into the flow of the epistle so far: </p>
<ol> <li>Sin (Chps to 3) </li> <li>Salvation (Chps 3 to 4) </li> <li>Standing in Grace (5:1-2) </li>
</ol>
<p>Romans 5 is not written as a chapter in a text book to explain the doctrines of the gospel. <br>This is not a chapter for the intellectually curious <br>This is not a chapter written to satisfy our inquisitiveness about how it all works and why the world is as it is, why life's problems are as they are, why the innocent die and how the righteousness of Christ can be transferred to the sinner. <br>This is a section which really breaks off from the main line of the teaching given so far to develop one particular theme and explain one particular issue: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“... and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only so, but we rejoice in tribulations also...” (Rom 5:2-3) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>We move from 'rejoicing' in our salvation in the future to 'rejoicing' in the every day problems of life. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The real issue that sparks off this development in the epistle of the Romans lies in this question: did I not put my trust and commit my salvation to: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>A Saviour who is all powerful? - Yes certainly : "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth" (Matt28:8) <br>A Saviour who is all knowing? - Yes certainly : "Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee." (John1:17) <br>A Saviour who is all wise? - Yes certainly: "In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Col2:) <br>A Saviour who is always with me?- Yes certainly: "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." (Matt 28:20) </p>
<p>Well if that is true then how come I am having a hard time?' </p>
<p>We need answers to that kind of a question! </p>
<p>Does Christianity have real power?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Christ died in chapter 3 </p>
<p>I've just got saved in chapter 4 </p>
<p>Then why am I having trouble in my life in chapter 5? </p>
<p>Can't we just cut the tribulation and get to the triumph? Please?? </p>
<p>Is the believers faith just pie in the sky when you die? </p>
<p>If so then herein lies one of the great assurances of the reality of Christian experience, one of the great confirmations of the reality and genuineness of the relationship with God established by justification by faith for if salvation is just pie in the sky when you die then the furnace of affliction ought to produce from the Christian the ashes of Christian crumble. </p>
<p>Actually and amazingly it doesn't! </p>
<p>The apostle who writes in Romans 5 : "we rejoice in tribulations also" (Rom5:3) is the same apostle who recounts his trials and sufferings in 2 Co11:23-28! </p>
<p>How do we reconcile these 2 passages as coming from the pen of the same man? </p>
<p>Either we have here: </p>
<p>A man who has been cracked by the trials of life or <br>A man who has cracked the trials of life: a man for whom the veil that separates the purposes of a sovereign God in eternity and the pain of mortal man in time has just split apart, so that with unclouded sight he is able to penetrate the mists of Divine purpose and with the hymn writer he is able to 'trace the rainbow through the rain.' </p>
<p>Has he found a God who is able to triumph in life's tragedies? </p>
<p>Has he found that life's problems are but the prelude to a deeper and richer experience of the presence of God? </p>
<p>In: </p>
<p>Life's Problems (5:-5) <br>Salvation's Plan (5:6-11) <br>Man's Plight (5:12-21) </p>
<p>In the: </p>
<p>Worries of Life (5:1-5) <br>Weakness of Self (5:6-11) <br>Wickedness of Man (5:12-21) </p>
<p>In: </p>
<p>Life's Distresses (5:1-5) <br>My Disabilities (5:6-11) <br>Worlds Disasters (5:12-21) </p>
<p>Is this not a consistent pattern right the way through the word of God? </p>
<p>Are there not a number of such moments in the Word of God? </p>
<p>Moments when all seems dark, bleak, lost, hopeless and finished, when the darkness of despair comes like a storm cloud over the landscape carved by the love and gracious purposes of God? But is it not the case that even the toil of man's tragedy is used to sow the seeds of Gods triumph? </p>
<p>Are we not so often left asking the question: 'Is nothing too great for our God?' </p>
<p>Consider the 'wow' moments of scripture: </p>
<p>Daniel 3 - Shadrach, Meschech and Abednigo in the fiery furnace and then "one like unto the Son of God" </p>
<p>Daniel 6 - Out of the jaws of the lion: "O king live forever" </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Exodus 14 - the people of Israel trapped between the armies of Pharaoh and the Red Sea, they're mad, 300,000 unarmed civilians, what do you think Pharaohs armies are going to do when they reach them? Ask them nicely if they would like to come back home? This nation responsible for the death of every first-born in the land? Caught between the sea and the soldiers: "stand still and see the salvation of the Lord" Praise the Lord that Exodus 14 is followed by Moses Song of triumph in Exodus 15 </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Jonah 3 - A great fish washed up onto dry land, vomits and there in the vomit.</p>
<p>Our God is a God who is able even to use vomit for His Glory!</p>
<p>He is able to bring Glory out of the flames of Dan 3, out of the lions mouth in Dan 6,</p>
<p>Through the flood of Exodus 14 and yes even out of vomit!</p>
<p>Ever considered why the account of Jonahs experience are recorded in all their stomach churning detail? Because as that man arises out the vomit, God will use Him as instrumental in the conversion of over 1 million people; calculation based on there being 120,000 children under 5 and a fairly even distribution of ages between 0 and 50 years = 1.2 million people! How would we reach 1.2 million people for Christ? 12 million tracts? The God channel? Radio? Power Point? How does God start? With vomit! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Romans 5 deals with some heady theology, deep questions, heavy doctrine but all of it arises from 1 simple question: If God is sovereign how come I'm having a hard time? </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The clue is in the crises! </p>
<p>In Romans 5 I trace the total sovereignty of God in all things! </p>
<p>Every aspect of human experience is under His control! </p>
<p>What is the meaning of Romans 5? </p>
<p>What is heavens purpose behind earth's pain? </p>
<p>The opening 2 verses of chapter 5 clearly follow on from the subject of the preceding sections: </p>
<p>Sin (chps 1 to 3) <br>Salvation (chps 3 & 4) <br>Standing in Grace (5:1-2) </p>
<p>The opening 2 verses of chapter 5 follow on logically and progressively in the development of the chapter so far </p>
<p>We have already seen that in chapter 4 the great subject of justification by faith is: </p>
<p>Justification by faith is nothing new <br>Justification by faith is faith in a person <br>Justification by faith is by faith alone <br>Justification by faith is a full salvation <br>Justification by faith is the beginning not the end </p>
<p>Since Justification by faith is the beginning not the end what could be more reasonable and logical than for chapter 5 to open up with the consequences, the result of this justification, what does it bring me to? It brings me into a relationship with the Lord: into this grace wherein we stand. </p>
<p>From the end of verse 2 the chapter then goes off at something of a tangent from the theme so far and the remainder of the chapter really pick up on the closing words of verse 2 : "we rejoice in hope of the Glory of God" </p>
<p>This them of rejoicing is then pick up on in verse 3: "and not only so but we rejoice in tribulations also...." </p>
<p>This theme of rejoicing which flows from our salvation flows through the whole chapter! </p>
<p>A rejoicing that flows through: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Life's Problems (5:1-5) <br>Salvation's Plan (5:6-11) <br>Man's Plight (5:12-21) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Worries of Life (5:1-5) <br>Weakness of Self (5:6-11) <br>Wickedness of Man (5:12-21) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Life's Distresses (5:1-5) <br>My Disabilities (5:6-11) <br>Worlds Disasters (5:12-21) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>How can this be? </p>
<p>For my God is Sovereign and His Grace is sufficient in every trial and difficulty of life. </p>
<p>That joy that flows from our salvation is able to permeate every aspect of our life. </p>
<p>Every aspect of our life? </p>
<p>Is there any limit? </p>
<p>In Romans 5 there is no limit! He is in control of: </p>
<p>Life's Problems (5:1-5) <br>Salvation's Plan (5:6-11) <br>Man's Plight (5:12-21) </p>
<p>Worries of Life (5:1-5) <br>Weakness of Self (5:6-11) <br>Wickedness of Man (5:12-21) </p>
<p>Life's Distresses (5:1-5) <br>My Disabilities (5:6-11) <br>Worlds Disasters (5:12-21) </p>
<p>Working all for His Glory: </p>
<p>In Life's Problems He's there (5:1-5) bringing patience and experience and hope from those experiences </p>
<p>In Salvations Plan He's there, before it starts (5:6, 8, 10) </p>
<p>In Man's Plight He is sovereign (5:12-21) - Adam may have brought the disaster but Christ has brought the deliverance - Adam is the figure but Christ is the fullness </p>
<p>The reason for tribulations lies in 5:6 : " For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly" </p>
<p>God saves: </p>
<p>By His Strength <br>In His Season <br>By His Son </p>
<p>The way God Saves is the way God Sanctifies </p>
<p>The way God begins His work is the way God completes His work in us </p>
<p>He molds us in our misery </p>
<p>He transforms me in my trials </p>
<p>It is when my strength is gone that I draw on His strength, when my mind has reached the limits of its understanding that I draw on His wisdom and when my resources have proven insufficient that I draw on His infinite resources: " Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise [man] glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty [man] glory in his might, let not the rich [man] glory in his riches:" (Jer 9:23) when my: </p>
<p>Wisdom <br>Work <br>Wealth </p>
<p>Comes to an end then I draw from the depths of His resources in Christ. </p>
<p>The principles by which God deals with us in Salvation (5:6-11) are the same as the principles by which He deals with me in tribulation and sanctification (5:1-5) </p>
<p>So I can see: </p>
<p>The Results of Tribulation (5:1-5) - Fruit - 'patience,' 'experience,' 'hope,' 'faith' <br>The Reason for Tribulations (5:6-11) <br>The Resources in Tribulations (5:6-11) - God (5:5), The Holy Spirit (5:5), The Person of Christ (5:6-11) <br>The Reassurance from Tribulations </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Resources in Tribulations (5:6-11) - </p>
<p>God (5:5) </p>
<p>The Holy Spirit (5:5) </p>
<p>The Person of Christ (5:6-11) </p>
<p>By His Strength <br>In His Season <br>By His Son </p>
<p>A trinitarian section: </p>
<p>The Spirit (v5) <br>God the Father (v5) <br>The Son (v6-11) </p>
<p>6 verses from 5:6 to 5:11 - all of Christ: </p>
<p>4/6 verses Christ is named - v6, v8, v10, v11 </p>
<p>1/6 verses has a personal pronoun for Christ (v9) </p>
<p>The remaining verse is all about the work of Christ (v7) </p>
<p>When God works in Salvation and when God works in Sanctification it is all of Christ </p>
<p>Notice what these verses do not say: </p>
<p>Christ died for those without strength <br>Christ died for sinners <br>Christ died for His enemies </p>
<p>All of that would be true and that is often what we take from those verses but that is not quite what these verses are saying </p>
<p>These verses go beyond that </p>
<p>The subject of these verse is not so much about my standing before God in my: </p>
<p>Strength (lack of it) (5:6) <br>Sin (5:8) <br>Status as an enemy (5:10) </p>
<p>Rather these verses are really about the setting of His redemptive plan, notice the difference: </p>
<p>"when we were yet without strength" <br>"while we were yet sinners" <br>"when we were enemies" </p>
<p>These verses are not simply describing my status or standing before God but rather they are describing the setting or season of His redemptive work in Christ! </p>
<p>These verses not only point out my weakness but they point out His sufficiency </p>
<p>These verses don't preach half a gospel message! </p>
<p>Here is: </p>
<p>Despair that leads to deliverance </p>
<p>Crises that leads to Christ </p>
<p>These verses not only record my trouble but more than that they record Gods timing </p>
<p>The glorious subject of these verses is His: </p>
<p>Substitutionary Death (v6, v8, v10) <br>Sufficiency of His Resurrection Life (v8, v10) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Reassurance from Tribulations: </p>
<p>Notice again how the chapter is building up: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Life's Problems (5:1-5) <br>Salvation's Plan (5:6-11) <br>Man's Plight (5:12-21) </p>
<p>Worries of Life (5:1-5) <br>Weakness of Self (5:6-11) <br>Wickedness of Man (5:12-21) </p>
<p>Life's Distresses (5:1-5) <br>My Disabilities (5:6-11) <br>Worlds Disasters (5:12-21) </p>
<p>Do you see the pattern? </p>
<p>Do you see how we move from: </p>
<p>My personal experience (5:1-5) to </p>
<p>Gods plan expounded and explained in scripture (5:6-11) to </p>
<p>The expectation of Christ's triumph over all of man's sin and suffering and sorrow (5:12-21) </p>
<p>We move from: </p>
<p>what we have experienced in our own private and personal trials and tragedies to </p>
<p>an understanding of what is unfolded in scripture in Christ and the onto </p>
<p>what is yet unseen and not yet fulfilled but expected of Christ's triumph in the depth of man's sin and failure </p>
<p>Each step leads us deeper and deeper into an understanding of Gods purposes and into a deeper and deeper faith in His sovereign power and ability </p>
<p>How far does His power and authority go? </p>
<p>How broad are His Shoulders? </p>
<p>Is he able to bring opportunity out of all trials of life - yes and more than that! </p>
<p>God does not only bring opportunity out of the tribulations but He brings the trial with its opportunity! </p>
<p>Where are the boundaries of my rejoicing in the midst of adversity? </p>
<p>Romans 5 - says there are none! </p>
<p>We need not wonder - is there a solution to every problem </p>
<p>We can rest in this - that was there no solution - there would be no problem! </p>
<p>He is Sovereign over all - if He is not sovereign over all, He is not Sovereign at all! </p>
<p>Illust: Hadrians wall - to stop the Scots; a wild and barbaric bunch, especially round about dinner time! Hadrian knew if he was to be ruler of Britain he had to be ruler of all </p>
<p>There is no Hadrian wall in Gods sovereignty! There are no no go areas, there are no cul-de-sac out with His authority! </p>
<p>I can rejoice in every circumstance of life! </p>
<p>Betsy Ten Boom: "There is no pit so deep that God’s love is not deeper still"</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>39:25GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67964942009-03-24T22:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:48:06+00:00Romans Chp 4 Vs 1 to 8: Justification by Faith is A Full Salvation - Dr J Stewart Gillespie<p>Righteousness is Credited (4:1-5) </p>
<p><br>Sin is Cleansed (4:6-8) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>2 Errors of Mark 10:17-31: </p>
<p>Salvation is Deserved: “what shall I do that I may inherit...” (10:17); “all these have I observed” (10:20) </p>
<p><br>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.</p>
<p>Faith in Christ means turning away from sin, Satan and self. </p>
<p>Often emphasises the 2 sides to a sinner coming to Christ: repentance and faith: </p>
<p>“Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Act 20:21) </p>
<p><br>“Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,” (Heb 6:1) </p>
<p><br>“And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” (Mar 1:15) </p>
<p>They are of course part and parcel of the same thing </p>
<p><br>Repentance: “μετανοέω” - a change of mind: </p>
<p>Turning to Christ in faith <br>Turning form sin </p>
<p><br>Repentance from sin is implicit in faith towards the Lord Jesus Christ <br>One of the reasons that justification by faith alone does not mean I can be saved and still live as I please! <br>Right from the start faith in Christ demands and implies repentance from sin! </p>
<p>Justification by Faith is a Full Salvation: </p>
<p>2 Aspects to this Full Salvation: answering to to faith and repentance <br>Pervading Judaism and there in Mark chapter 10 was the idea that when it comes to salvation you get what you deserve <br>Abraham was often presented as an example of this – he got what he deserved: </p>
<p>served God from age 3 years <br>kept the law before it was written <br>The 1st of 7 men responsible for bring the Shekinah glory into the tabernacle <br>Only righteous man in his generation </p>
<p>Abraham's path to salvation was very different form the way many Jews imagined it to be: </p>
<p>Called out not from perfection to follow God but form idolatry: “And Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor: and they served other gods. And I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac.” (Jos 24:2-3) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>At times incomplete obedience was (Gen11:31; 12:5), not until Terah dies does Abraham fully obey the commandment of God and move out of Haran! Is it possible that Abrahams disobedience resulted in the death of Terah to bring Abraham to obedience? It is a feature of Abrahams life that: </p>
<p>Abraham's obedience brings blessings to multitudes and <br>Abraham's disobedience brings problems to those around him (cf. Pharaoh in Gen 12) </p>
<p>At times imperfect faith was: Gen 12:10 doubted Gods ability to meet his need in famine conditions; he went down to Egypt. A minor matter? A reasonable decision? One made without consulting the Lord! Reasonable, rational, responsible but but not guided by the Lord. Did it matter? </p>
<p>from that he gained flocks <br>from the flocks strife developed between Abraham and Lot, <br>the strife resulted in the separation of Abraham and Lot <br>as a consequence Lot went down towards Sodom <br>as a result Lots daughters were born and brought up in Sodom <br>as a consequence of this Lot when he was rescued from Sodom was alone in a cave with 2 girls educated and indoctrinated in the ways of Sodom. <br>the incestuous relationship between Lot and his daughters resulted in the Moabites and the Ammonites (Gen 19:37). <br>It was the Moabites and the Ammonites who oppressed Israel for years and it would be Ammonite and Moabite wives that Solomon would one day take to himself, they would bring in idolatry to the nation of Israel and ultimately the removal of the Kingdom (1Kings11:1ff). <br>In other words that simple step of 'minor' disobedience ultimately was responsible for the greatest attack that Abraham's descendants experienced on gaining and enjoying the promises of Gods covenant with Abraham! <br>How important to be obedient in every step for Christ! <br>Not only that but in Egypt Abraham gained a servant girl Hagar from whom came Ishmael and the Arab nations and Islam, who to this very day hate and attack Israel! <br>It is so often the small, the apparently inconsequential decisions of life that have huge consequences for the future. <br>The path and the journey through life takes a lifetime of decisions and directions and determination and walking yet the briefest of decisions at one of lifes crossroads can profoundly change the direction of life forever! <br>There may only be a few steps of a difference between turning right and left but they completely change my direction. <br>The difference between faithfulness and failure may only be the difference of 2 or 3 footsteps. <br>A simple, sensible but not spiritual decision to move from famine to food can spell disaster in the longer term. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>At times interrupted communion (Gen12:8; 13:4) – no altar in Egypt? <br>At time inadequate appreciation of Gods purpose (Gen15:2) <br>At times impatience with Gods timing and Gods methods (Gen16:1-5) – Abraham knew it was wrong (Gen16:5) <br>An incomplete appreciation of the power and ability of God (Gen 17:17-18) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>So was Abraham saved because he was perfect? <br>Was Abraham justified by works? (Rom4:2) <br>Abraham was justified by faith (Gen15:6) <br>Was God indebted to justify Abraham (Rom4:4)? <br>Did Abraham get what he deserved? <br>If righteousness was reckoned as it was earned then the righteousness reckoned to Abraham would have been an imperfect righteousness, for Abrahams works were imperfect. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Sin is Cleansed (4:6-8) </p>
<p>If Abraham got more than he might have expected then David received less than he might justly have deserved – a full salvation! <br>In 2 Sam 24:1, 10-16 – 3 days of pestilence were cut to 1 day! <br>Was God just in saying 3 days of pestilence as a punishment (24:13)? <br>Surely God is just! <br>So what do we say when instead of going for 3 days of pestilence God gives 1 day and then stops destroying Jerusalem? <br>If one is justice then the other is surely grace! <br>The pestilence was stayed by the grace of God (2 Sam24:16) and that in response to the repentance of the sinner (2 Sam24:17) <br>Cf. also: “And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die.” (2Sa 12:13) <br>Why should David die? “The soul that sinneth it shall die” (Ezek 18:4,20) <br>David had broken the commandments: </p>
<p>Thou shalt not kill – Uriah <br>Thou shalt not commit adultery <br>Thou shalt not steal <br>Thou shalt not covet <br>Thou shalt not bear false witness <br>He caused the heathen to blaspheme <br>David desired and pursued Bathsheba </p>
<p>The punishment for any 1 broken law was death <br>David broke 7 commandments <br>For defrauding his brother of offspring God slew Onan (Gen38) was God righteous? <br>For raping Dinah God allowed the men of Shechem to be slain – was God righteous? <br>God said: “thou shalt not suffer a murderer to live” was God righteous? <br>By the righteous standard of the law David ought to have been put to death. <br>So what is 2 Sam 12:13 all about? Grace! <br>Not only that but the law would have condemned Bathsheba to death too but not only is she allowed to live but from Bathsheba comes Solomon, wait for the punch line: “and the Lord loved him” called his name “Jedidiah” : “Loved of the Lord” <br>So David can speak of: </p>
<p>A 4 fold blessedness (Rom4:6-9) <br>A triple forgiveness: (Rom4:7,8) <br>A double negative (Rom4:8) <br>A single justification </p>
<p>A triple forgiveness: (Rom4:7,8) </p>
<p>“Forgiven” (4:7) : 863 : “aphiemi” – to send forth / to send away, to dismiss: to remove the sins from someone <br>Used of a debt cancelled (Matt18:27, 32, 35) – forgiveness is not merely the suspension of a payment, a payment holiday where the debt remains but we can stop paying it up, forgiveness means the debt is removed, it is cancelled <br>'I can forgive but I can't forget' often has harboured within it a grudge pointing to no forgiveness at all! <br>Forgiveness is not the shell around the nut of bitter resentment! <br>Gods people must be a forgiving people because Gods people are a forgiven people! <br>Forgiveness removes presence of the debt <br>Forgiveness removes the power of that sin (Matt9:2,6; Mk2:5,7,9) <br>“aphiemi” – used of the Lord sending away the multitude (Mk4:36) <br>“aphiemi” – used in “Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.” (Mat 4:11) <br>That's good the Lord has “forgiven” my sin but He still knows about it! <br>“who's sins are covered” : “ἐπικαλύπτω” - a double word 'epi' and 'kalupto' – covered over! <br>Well they are forgiven – put away and they are covered over – not seen by God but what about if God brings that covering off? Will they not come back to haunt me? What if God changes His mind? <br>“will not impute sin” - double negative – “will not ever impute sin” - “will not at all impute sin” <br>“impute”: “λογίζομαι” : to credit or to reckon </p>
<p>Sin is cancelled – a debt removed and forgiven <br>Sin is covered <br>Sin is never credited again </p>
<p>It is possible to be saved and then to be determined to live under a constant cloud of oppression and guilt for past sin – that is not honouring to Christ! </p>
<p>The man sick of the palsy had to take up his bed and walk <br>The man of the Gaderenes had to leave the grave yard, go and tell and go and show. <br>Paul had to “Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.” (Acts9:6) </p>
<p>God has purchased a people at great cost to enjoy a full salvation <br>Righteousness Credited and Sin cleansed.</p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>50:24GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67964792009-02-24T22:30:00+00:002021-11-02T22:28:36+00:00Romans Chp 3 Vs 21 – 31; 4: 1-12 - Justification by Faith – Is Trusting a Person - Dr J Stewart Gillespie<p>3 Key Words: </p>
<p>Righteousness (v21) – a “righteousness apart from the law” - we considered Gods righteous Standard in chapters 1 – 3 and in this transitional verse we noted a Righteousness from God that is able to bring salvation rather than damnation, justification rather than condemnation. We found an example of a righteousness of God that saves in the book of Joshua, in Rahab the Harlot saved on the basis of righteousness! Gods Righteousness is not only a standard but it also becomes a standing by faith in Christ. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Redemption (v24) – for that we went to the book of Exodus and to the Passover, we found a 7 fold redemption in Exodus chp 6, God would release His people from their Burden and from their Bondage to draw us to Himself. We saw the key words of Release, Removal, Redemption, Relationship and Responsibility! They were brought out of Egypt by a “mighty hand and an outstretched arm” (Deut26:8) and led out by a little lamb! We asked the people of Israel, how was it that you were brought out of Egypt and we heard their reply: 'it depends on which way that you look at it!' From the perspective of the Jew they were led out under the blood of the lamb, from the perspective of the Egyptian they came out under the blood of the firstborn! How often we must be humbled: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.” (Isa 55:8), “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:” (1Pe 5:6). We say our redemption prefigured in Exodus brought out under the blood of the lamb and brought out under the blood of the first-born! (1 Peter1:18-19) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Propitiation (v25) – We went to the book of Leviticus and to the 16th chapter to see this truth prefigured in the OT in the blood stained 'mercy seat.' Propitiation deals with the problem of sin by the power of the blood at the place of mercy. The priest came in with a purity imputed, the white linen covered him before the presence of God. Propitiation has 3 aspects: God ward it is God satisfied, Man ward it is man justified and Christ ward its is Christ crucified. As simple as I could make it and as deep as I knew it! God satisfied, man justified and Christ crucified! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Righteousness apart from the law we saw it in Joshua <br>Redemption by blood we saw it in Exodus <br>Propitiation – we saw it in Leviticus </p>
<p> </p>
<p>You and I have discovered that the roots of our salvation go deep, very deep into the OT scriptures! <br>In fact they go even deeper than that: </p>
<p>Righteousness apart from the law, a righteousness of God that saves we will see goes back even beyond the book of Joshua, in Romans 4 we will see that it goes back to at least Abraham in Genesis chp 15! <br>Redemption – whilst so clearly seen in Exodus, the first mention of redemption is in fact in the book of Genesis: “The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.” (Gen 48:16). Interestingly this is a redemption from evil! </p>
<p><br>Propitiation – we saw it in Leviticus, but again we could go back much further than that! The first mention of the Hebrew word for atonement goes back to Noah and His ark – pitched within and without with pitch (Gen6:14)! Possibly we could go back even further still to the garden of Eden: “Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.” (Gen 3:21) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>There are many links here with the outworking of the great purposes of God from generations gone by! <br>There is more to your salvation and mine than you ever understood the day you were saved! </p>
<p><br>Salvation does not consist in understanding a process but resting in a person! </p>
<p><br>This of course is exceedingly important! </p>
<p><br>If the way of salvation was new it would be extremely suspect!</p>
<p>Either God has had no interest in the world up until the past 2000 years, or God is not righteous in His dealings with men excluding much of human history from salvation or this means of salvation is completely fabricated! </p>
<p><br>James Montgomery Boice sees the significance of this: <strong><em>“All this is proof of Christianity's timeless validity. If Christianity were merely something founded by Jesus Christ some 2000 years ago it might be interesting but it would have no more ultimate claim upon us than the dogmas of any other human religion” </em></strong></p>
<p><br>If the roots of our salvation go deep into the OT scriptures then, all of this raises the very interesting question of wither or not it was possible for men and women to be saved before the death of the Lord Jesus Christ? Did salvation begin with us? </p>
<p><br>We must acknowledge that there are many things that were unclear, incompletely apprehended by the OT believers, suggested by OT texts and made explicitly clear in the NT: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Job : “Then Job answered and said, I know it is so of a truth: but how should man be just with God? If he will contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand.” (Job 9:1-3) – Jobs understanding of the means of justification by faith seems at least at the beginning of the book of Job to be incomplete. Yet God describes Job at the very beginning of the book: “And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?” (Job 1:8) </p>
<p><br>Abraham: called in Gen 12, a relationship with God in existence in chp 13 with the erection of an Altar at Hebron, called “Abraham of the most High God” in chp 14 by Melchezedek and yet Abrahams question at the beginning of chapter 15 indicates an incomplete understanding of Divine purpose: “What wilt thou give me seeing I go childless?” (15:2) </p>
<p><br>Isaac: in a covenant relationship (26:24) yet in Genesis 27 he seems ready to bless the wrong boy, the one through whom Christ would not come! </p>
<p><br>The prophets: 1 Peter 1:10 – their understanding was incomplete, there was a need to search, a need to enquire and a need to seek further revelation. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Daniel – clearly a man of God from the beginning of the book of Daniel: Dan2:47; 4:18; 5:14; 6:3, 10, 16, 22, 26 and in Dan 9:23 “thou art greatly beloved” and yet it is not until Dan 9:24ff that we have the revelation of the details of the coming of Christ and His death for sin (9:24) and Gods plan of salvation! </p>
<p>Add to all of this the quite clear and explicit statements in the NT that certain aspects of Gods plan of salvation were deliberately hidden from past generations as mysteries, many of them fundamental to our appreciation of the Gospel: </p>
<p>Mystery of the Gospel (Rom 16:25; Eph 6:19) <br>Mystery of the Cross of Christ (1 Co2:7) <br>Mystery of the Rapture (1Co15:51) <br>Mystery of His Will (Eph 1:7-10) - All things in Christ <br>Mystery of Christ (Eph 3:3,4;Col 4:3 ) – the Gentiles fellow heirs and of the same body. <br>Mystery of Christ and the Church (Eph5:32) <br>Mystery of Christ in you the hope of Glory (Col 1:26,27) <br>Mystery of Godliness (1 Tim 3:16) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Consider also that the OT peoples had the “parable” (Heb9:9) and had a “shadow of good things to come and not the very image of the things” (Heb10:1) and we begin to see that many of these OT saints could not have had the fullness of the appreciation of the Person and Work of Christ which is possible for us! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This is perhaps most clearly stated in Heb 2:2-3 “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;” (Heb 2:3). It is quite clear that the message of the Gospel of Gods free grace and saving power “began” to be preached in the fashion which you and I are familiar with only with the advent of Christ Himself! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This of course is already strongly implied in: “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;” (Rom 3:25) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Where does that leave us then practically?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Romans Chp 1 told us that mankind with only the testimony of creation stands condemned if they reject that testimony to Gods eternal Power and Godhead.</p>
<p>Romans chp 2 tells us that man with conscience and the testimony to the righteousness of God stands condemned and chapter 2 tells us that man with the OT covenant stands condemned for falling short of the standards they profess to hold dear!</p>
<p>So here we are today with the testimony of Creation, Conscience and Covenant and NT scriptures as well as the preaching and teaching of those OT scriptures! What a tremendous privilege and what an awesome responsibility!</p>
<p>“Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; “ (Heb 2:1-3) </p>
<p>There must well have been aspects to the work of salvation that some of these OT believers did not appreciate, that seems clear! </p>
<p><br>Yet the roots of salvation go deep into those OT scriptures! </p>
<p><br>In Romans chp 4 we find specific mention of 2 prominent OT characters who found that salvation! <br>Furthermore it is clear form the gospels that many others in the OT were saved by the work of Christ: </p>
<p>Elijah and Moses on the mount of transfiguration </p>
<p><br>“There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. “ (Luk 13:28) </p>
<p>We must acknowledge that there are many things that were unclear to them, incompletely apprehended by the OT believers, yet the scriptures are clear many of them were saved! <br>How is this possible? <br>They may not have fully understood Gods Plan of Salvation or the Process of Salvation but they did trust in the Person who was able to justify and save them. </p>
<p>These OT saints depended upon the same: </p>
<p>Person – Christ <br>Principle – Justification by Faith <br>Prospect – Salvation and Eternal Life </p>
<p>Not only do the roots of our salvation go deep into the OT scriptures but so too the Saviour. <br>These OT saints all depended upon Christ for Justification: </p>
<p>Moses: “Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.” (Heb 11:26); Deut 32:2-4; 15-18; 1 Co10:1-4 “that rock was Christ” (1Co11:1-4). </p>
<p><br>Abraham: Gal3:8, 16 – the Gospel of the future blessing in Christ; John 8:56. </p>
<p><br>David: Psalm 110:1; Heb 1:13; Matt 22:41-46: Davids Lord was Christ! Acts 2:25, 29-32 </p>
<p><br>Jacob: Gen 28:12-13; John 1:41 – Jacobs ladder, his connection between heaven and earth, was Christ! </p>
<p><br>Daniel: Daniel 10:5-18; 8:15; 10:9-10, 16; Rev 1:13-17 – Daniel encountered the same person as did John! </p>
<p><br>Shadrach, Meshech and Abednego in the fiery furnace (Dan 3:25-26) who will protect them in the flames?</p>
<p>Surely the God whom they serve, the “Son of God”. </p>
<p><br>Prophets: Moved by the Spirit of Christ (1Peter1:11) </p>
<p>These OT saints all depended upon Christ for Justification! </p>
<p><br>Justification then we would conclude from the pattern of the OT scriptures came when these OT believers exerted faith in a Person, the Person of Christ, rather than Faith in a Process or faith in their understanding of a process! </p>
<p><br>Some did not understand the process but they benefited from it by faith in the Person! </p>
<p><br>Salvation came when they exercised faith in the justifier: “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” (Rom 4:5) </p>
<p>This is the same means by which you and I are justified and saved in the NT </p>
<p> “Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Act 20:21) </p>
<p>“For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.” (2Ti 1:12) </p>
<p>“And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” (Luk 23:42-43) </p>
<p>“Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.” (1Pe 2:6) </p>
<p>“But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.” (Mat 18:6) – were these little ones saved? Certainly: “he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.” (1Pe 2:6) – did they understand propitiation, redemption and justification by faith? </p>
<p>“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”(Joh 5:24) </p>
<p>“And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.”(Joh 6:40) </p>
<p>“Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.” (Joh 12:44-46) </p>
<p>“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (Joh 3:16) – spoken to Nicodemus before the death and sufferings and resurrection of Christ! <br>Consider also: Luke 8:48; Acts 20:21; Acts 26:18; Acts 8:37; 13:39; 16:31; Col 2:5-7; 2 Tim 3:15; Heb 6:1; 12:2; James 2:1; 1 Peter 1:21; Rev 14:21. </p>
<p>Justification comes by faith in the person of Christ rather than from my understanding of the work of Christ – God doesn't save us because we are smart enough to be able to work it all out! </p>
<p><br>God does not save me because I have faith that the process of justification that it is good, true and right! Job for example didn't even understand the process! </p>
<p><br>God does not save by virtue of the fact that I have a sufficiently strong grasp or a deep enough appreciation of the truth concerning the person and work of Christ! </p>
<p><br>God doesn't save you once you become a 'mature' Christian, God saves whilst you are “yet without strength” but willing to exercise faith, that is to trust and depend upon Christ for salvation. <br>Neither does He save by my participation in the activities of Christianity, my knowledge of the Bible! <br>Consider the following scriptures: </p>
<p>1 Co13:1-2 – My knowledge of spiritual truths and my confidence in those spiritual truths as dependable Divinely revealed facts, of itself does not profit, there must be “love” the product of a relationship with Christ personally (Gal 5:22; John 13:34-35; John 15:9, 12; 1 John4:7) – knowledge of the process is of no profit without knowledge of the person! <br>2 Co 3:6 - “Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” (2Co 3:6) – facts and the appreciation and understanding of them alone does not save! </p>
<p>Derek Tidball: The Message of the Cross: The Bible Speaks Today </p>
<p>“The object of our faith makes all the difference. Only faith in Christ enables us to appropriate justification personally. To have faith in Him requires us to relinquish faith in anything else or anyone else as the hope of our salvation. It is to trust in Him entirely and exclusively.” (p197) </p>
<p>John Stott: </p>
<p>“Faith is the eye that looks to Christ, the hand that lays hold of Him, the mouth that drinks the water of life. And the more clearly we see the absolute adequacy of Jesus Christ's Divine – Human Person and sin-bearing death the more incongruous does it appear that anybody could suppose that we have anything to offer. That is why justification by faith alone, to quote Cranmer again, 'advances the true Glory of Christ and beats down the vain glory of man.” </p>
<p>Philip Graham Ryken: The Message of Salvation: The Bible Speaks Today: </p>
<p>“Faith is merely the instrument of our justification, the channel by which we receive the righteousness of Jesus Christ. It is often described as the empty hand that reaches out to receive the gift of Gods righteousness.” (p202) </p>
<p>JC Ryle: </p>
<p>“True faith....is but laying hold of a Saviour's hand, leaning on a husbands arm and receiving a physicians medicine. It brings with it nothing to Christ but a sinful man's soul. It gives nothing, contributes nothing, pays nothing, performs nothing. It only receives, takes, accepts, grasps and embraces the glorious gift of justification which Christ bestows” </p>
<p>Philip Graham Ryken: The Message of Salvation: The Bible Speaks Today: </p>
<p>“it is not faith itself (or even the doctrine of justification by faith) that saves us. Rather it is Christ who saves us and faith is simply that way that we appropriate Christ.” (p202) </p>
<p>What do we mean by Faith? </p>
<p>“Faith is believing that Christ is what He is said to be and that He will do what He has promised to do and then to expect this of Him.” (CH Spurgeon) </p>
<p>“knowledge...belief...trust” (CH Spurgeon) </p>
<p>“awareness...assent...commitment” (Lloyd Jones) </p>
<p>Know it <br>Accept it <br>Rest in it </p>
<p>C Gordon Olson: 'Beyond Calvinism and Arminianism' </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Faith has to be more than mere profession, more than intellectual assent to certain propositions about the gospel. It is the appropriation or receiving of Christ into the life, which means trust in the person and work of the Divine Messiah (John 1:12). The essence of Evangelicalism is a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus. Nothing less will do.” (p287) </p>
<p>Dr. Norman Geisler: Systematic Theology: Vol 3 Sin Salvation </p>
<p>“In short, faith (belief) implies trust in, commitment to, obedience to and hope (confidence) in its object. As applied to faith in Jesus, the implications for saving faith are clear: It is the kind of belief that has trust and confidence in Christ for salvation and thereby implies a commitment to follow and obey Him.” (p518) </p>
<p>As a consequence of the means and source of salvation, to grow as a Christian means to develop and grow in in Christ! Our salvation begins with faith in Christ as the source and supplier of salvation and thus to grow as a Christian is to grow in our relationship with Christ and our appreciation of Christ! <br>If our salvation were to be rooted in works then to grow as a Christian would mean to grow in works! <br>If our salvation were rooted in the knowledge of facts then to grow as a Christian would primarily mean going on an intensive college course or training school! <br>You can tell a lot about what a Christian is depending upon for their salvation by their approach to Christian maturity! </p>
<p>Christian maturity thus lies in a deepening relationship with Christ, often referred to as the 'knowledge' of Christ, a word and idea first used in scripture within the context of a relationship, that of Adam and Eve: </p>
<p>“But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.” (2Pe 3:18) <br>“Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,” (2Pe 1:2) <br>“And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2Pe 1:5-8) <br>“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:” (Eph 1:17) <br>“Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,” (Php 3:8) </p>
<p>Salvation comes not from my understanding of a principle or a process but rather on the basis of the work completed by Christ (Rom3:25) by means of faith He becomes my Saviour the moment I trust Him (Rom 3:28) <br>All who have ever been saved have been saved by the same means: </p>
<p>Saved by the same person – Christ <br>Resting in the same principle – Justification by Faith <br>Looking for the same prospect – salvation <br>Saved by the same power – the blood of Christ <br>All on the basis of the same propitiation. </p>
<p>“To say that we are justified “through Christ” points to His historical death; to say that we are justified “in Christ” points to the personal relationship with Him which by faith we now enjoy. This simple fact makes it impossible for us to think of justification as a purely external transaction; it cannot be isolated from our union with Christ and all the benefits which this brings.” (John Stott) <br>Does all of this mean then that the details of the gospel don't matter? <br>Just so long as I believe in Jesus? <br>Not quite! For faith is: </p>
<p>Defined by Gods Word (Rom1:2; 3:21; 10:17, 20; 1Peter1:11) <br>Born of Gods Word (1Peter 1:23) <br>Sustained by Gods Word (1 Peter 2:1) </p>
<p>The common thread in justification by faith is that it was always faith in Christ and in His ability to make the sinner right! <br>My faith must be in the real Christ of God and not in a figment of my imagination. <br>The faith I exercise is faith in the Christ of Gods revealed Word. </p>
<p>John Wesley: </p>
<p>“In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street, where one was reading Luther’s preface to the Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone, for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death. I began to pray with all my might for those who had in a more especial manner despitefully used me and persecuted me. I then testified openly to all there what I now first felt in my heart.” - The conversion of John Wesley aged 35 years!</p>53:17GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67964882009-02-17T22:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:45:36+00:00Romans Chp 3 Vs 21 – 31; 4: 1-12 Justification by Faith – Nothing New - Dr J Stewart Gillespie<p>3 Key Words: </p>
<p>Righteousness (v21) – a “righteousness apart from the law” - we considered Gods righteous Standard in chapters 1 – 3 and in this transitional verse we noted a Righteousness from God that is able to bring salvation rather than damnation, justification rather than condemnation. We found an example of a righteousness of God that saves in the book of Joshua, in Rahab the Harlot saved on the basis of righteousness! Gods Righteousness is not only a standard but it also becomes a standing by faith in Christ. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Redemption (v24) – for that we went to the book of Exodus and to the Passover, we found a 7 fold redemption in Exodus chp 6, God would release His people from their Burden and from their Bondage to draw us to Himself. We saw the key words of Release, Removal, Redemption, Relationship and Responsibility! They were brought out of Egypt by a “mighty hand and an outstretched arm” (Deut26:8) and led out by a little lamb! We asked the people of Israel, how was it that you were brought out of Egypt and we heard their reply: 'it depends on which way that you look at it!' From the perspective of the Jew they were led out under the blood of the lamb, from the perspective of the Egyptian they came out under the blood of the firstborn! How often we must be humbled: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.” (Isa 55:8), “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:” (1Pe 5:6). We say our redemption prefigured in Exodus brought out under the blood of the lamb and brought out under the blood of the first-born! (1 Peter1:18-19) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Propitiation (v25) – We went to the book of Leviticus and to the 16th chapter to see this truth prefigured in the OT in the blood stained 'mercy seat.' Propitiation deals with the problem of sin by the power of the blood at the place of mercy. The priest came in with a purity imputed, the white linen covered him before the presence of God. Propitiation has 3 aspects: God ward it is God satisfied, Man ward it is man justified and Christ ward its is Christ crucified. As simple as I could make it and as deep as I knew it! God satisfied, man justified and Christ crucified! </p>
<p>We have also learned something else as a side effect! <br>Not all side effects are bad! Illust the man whose hair went black with the stomach treatment! <br>We have learned an important lesson: </p>
<p>Righteousness apart from the law we saw it in Joshua <br>Redemption by blood we saw it in Exodus <br>Propitiation – we saw it in Leviticus </p>
<p>You and I have discovered that the roots of our salvation go deep, very deep into the OT scriptures! <br>In fact they go even deeper than that: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Righteousness apart from the law, a righteousness of God that saves we will see goes back even beyond the book of Joshua, in Romans 4 we will see that it goes back to at least Abraham in Genesis chp 15! <br>Redemption – whilst so clearly seen in Exodus, the first mention of redemption is in fact in the book of Genesis: “The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.” (Gen 48:16). Interestingly this is a redemption from evil! <br>Propitiation – we saw it in Leviticus, but again we could go back much further than that! The first mention of the Hebrew word for atonement goes back to Noah and His ark – pitched within and without with pitch (Gen6:14)! Possibly we could go back even further still to the garden of Eden: “Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.” (Gen 3:21) </p>
<p>There are many links here with the outworking of the great purposes of God from generations gone by! <br>There is more to your salvation and mine than you ever understood the day you were saved! <br>Salvation does not consist in understanding a process but resting in a person! <br>This of course is exceedingly important! <br>If the way of salvation was new it would be extremely suspect! Either God has had no interest in the world up until the past 2000 years, or God is not righteous in His dealings with men excluding much of human history from salvation or this means of salvation is completely fabricated! <br>James Montgomery Boice sees the significance of this: “All this is proof of Christianity's timeless validity. If Christianity were merely something founded by Jesus Christ some 2000 years ago it might be interesting but it would have no more ultimate claim upon us than the dogmas of any other human religion” <br>If the roots of our salvation go deep into the OT scriptures then, all of this raises the very interesting question of wither or not it was possible for men and women to be saved before the death of the Lord Jesus Christ? Did salvation begin with us? <br>We must acknowledge that there are many things that were unclear, incompletely apprehended by the OT believers, suggested by OT texts and made explicitly clear in the NT: </p>
<p>Job : “Then Job answered and said, I know it is so of a truth: but how should man be just with God? If he will contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand.” (Job 9:1-3) – Jobs understanding of the means of justification by faith seems at least at the beginning of the book of Job to be incomplete. Yet God describes Job at the very beginning of the book: “And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?” (Job 1:8) <br>Abraham: called in Gen 12, a relationship with God in existence in chp 13 with the erection of an Altar at Hebron, called “Abraham of the most High God” in chp 14 by Melchezedek and yet Abrahams question at the beginning of chapter 15 indicates an incomplete understanding of Divine purpose: “What wilt thou give me seeing I go childless?” (15:2) <br>Isaac: in a covenant relationship (26:24) yet in Genesis 27 he seems ready to bless the wrong boy, the one through whom Christ would not come! <br>The prophets: 1 Peter 1:10 – their understanding was incomplete, there was a need to search, a need to enquire and a need to seek further revelation. <br>Daniel – clearly a man of God from the beginning of the book of Daniel: Dan2:47; 4:18; 5:14; 6:3, 10, 16, 22, 26 and in Dan 9:23 “thou art greatly beloved” and yet it is not until Dan 9:24ff that we have the revelation of the details of the coming of Christ and His death for sin (9:24) and Gods plan of salvation! </p>
<p>Add to all of this the quite clear and explicit statements in the NT that certain aspects of Gods plan of salvation were deliberately hidden from past generations as mysteries, many of them fundamental to our appreciation of the Gospel: </p>
<p>Mystery of the Gospel (Rom 16:25; Eph 6:19) <br>Mystery of the Cross of Christ (1 Co2:7) <br>Mystery of the Rapture (1Co15:51) <br>Mystery of His Will (Eph 1:7-10) - All things in Christ <br>Mystery of Christ (Eph 3:3,4;Col 4:3 ) – the Gentiles fellow heirs and of the same body. <br>Mystery of Christ and the Church (Eph5:32) <br>Mystery of Christ in you the hope of Glory (Col 1:26,27) <br>Mystery of Godliness (1 Tim 3:16) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Consider also that the OT peoples had the “parable” (Heb9:9) and had a “shadow of good things to come and not the very image of the things” (Heb10:1) and we begin to see that many of these OT saints could not have had the fullness of the appreciation of the Person and Work of Christ which is possible for us! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This is perhaps most clearly stated in Heb 2:2-3 “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;” (Heb 2:3). It is quite clear that the message of the Gospel of Gods free grace and saving power “began” to be preached in the fashion which you and I are familiar with only with the advent of Christ Himself! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>This of course is already strongly implied in: “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;” (Rom 3:25) </p>
<p>Where does that leave us then practically? Romans Chp 1 told us that mankind with only the testimony of creation stands condemned if they reject that testimony to Gods eternal Power and Godhead. Romans chp 2 tells us that man with conscience and the testimony to the righteousness of God stands condemned and chapter 2 tells us that man with the OT covenant stands condemned for falling short of the standards they profess to hold dear! So here we are today with the testimony of Creation, Conscience and Covenant and NT scriptures as well as the preaching and teaching of those OT scriptures! What a tremendous privilege and what an awesome responsibility! “Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; “ (Heb 2:1-3) </p>
<p>There must well have been aspects to the work of salvation that some of these OT believers did not appreciate, that seems clear! <br>Yet the roots of salvation go deep into those OT scriptures! <br>In Romans chp 4 we find specific mention of 2 prominent OT characters who found that salvation! <br>Furthermore it is clear form the gospels that many others in the OT were saved by the work of Christ: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Elijah and Moses on the mount of transfiguration <br>“There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. “ (Luk 13:28) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>We must acknowledge that there are many things that were unclear to them, incompletely apprehended by the OT believers, yet the scriptures are clear many of them were saved! <br>How is this possible? <br>They may not have fully understood Gods Plan of Salvation or the Process of Salvation but they did trust in the Person who was able to justify and save them. </p>
<p>These OT saints depended upon the same: </p>
<p>Person – Christ <br>Principle – Justification by Faith <br>Prospect – Salvation and Eternal Life </p>
<p>Not only do the roots of our salvation go deep into the OT scriptures but so too the Saviour. <br>These OT saints all depended upon Christ for Justification: </p>
<p>Moses: “Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.” (Heb 11:26); Deut 32:2-4; 15-18; 1 Co10:1-4 “that rock was Christ” (1Co11:1-4). </p>
<p><br>Abraham: Gal3:8, 16 – the Gospel of the future blessing in Christ; John 8:56. </p>
<p><br>David: Psalm 110:1; Heb 1:13; Matt 22:41-46: Davids Lord was Christ! Acts 2:25, 29-32 </p>
<p><br>Jacob: Gen 28:12-13; John 1:41 – Jacobs ladder, his connection between heaven and earth, was Christ! </p>
<p><br>Daniel: Daniel 10:5-18; 8:15; 10:9-10, 16; Rev 1:13-17 – Daniel encountered the same person as did John! </p>
<p><br>Shadrach, Meshech and Abednego in the fiery furnace (Dan 3:25-26) who will protect them in the flames? Surely the God whom they serve, the “Son of God”. </p>
<p><br>Prophets: Moved by the Spirit of Christ (1Peter1:11) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>These OT saints all depended upon Christ for Justification! <br>Justification then we would conclude from the pattern of the OT scriptures came when these OT believers exerted faith in a Person, the Person of Christ, rather than Faith in a Process or faith in their understanding of a process! <br>Some did not understand the process but they benefited from it by faith in the Person! <br>Salvation came when they exercised faith in the justifier: “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” (Rom 4:5)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>55:11GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67964872009-02-15T22:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:41:22+00:00'Showing and Sharing the Righteousness of God' (Romans Chp 3 Vs 19 to 31) - J Stewart Gillespie<p>God Shows His Righteousness in Salvation </p>
<p>There is a light that shines through the whole of scripture from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22. </p>
<p>The Word of God makes me aware that that Light and the apparent source of that Light are not one and the same! </p>
<p>The Word of God distinguishes between the source and the substance </p>
<p>Generally the ancient mind failed to do this: the commonest god to be worshiped by pagan man: Romans, Egyptians, Philistines, Hindus was the sun god. Why? Because the sun was regarded as the source of all light. Not so in the Word of God. </p>
<p>Genesis chapter 1: Light is present from day 1 but the sun is not created until day 4 </p>
<p>From Genesis to Revelation the light may well be linked with the sun, the light may well shine as the sun rises morning by morning and diminish as the sun sets evening by evening but long before the sun ever arose for the first time there was Light and long after the sun has sunk for a final time, below the horizon of eternity; the true Light will still shine forever. </p>
<p>In life my great passion must be to look beyond the horizon of time to lay hold of the eternal Light which radiates from God Himself! </p>
<p>We often think of the 2 interchangeably but they are not, a bit like light and the sun! In Genesis chp1 ever before God creates the sun He says “let there be light” and at the end of all things there is no sun any longer in heaven for “the Lamb is the light thereof” (Rev21:23). </p>
<p>The sun and the light are helpful to us as a picture of the distinction between source and substance </p>
<p>It is especially helpful when we recall that 'light' is often given to us in scripture as a picture of Gods righteousness (1 john1:7-10) </p>
<p>“But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifest...” (v21) </p>
<p>"manifested" - revealed or shown “φανερόω” from the Gk word to shine! Gods righteousness is able to shine, in its own intrinsic light independent from the law as the light and the sun! </p>
<p>Just as it is possible for the light to shine without the sun, so it is possible for righteousness to shine without the law. </p>
<p>It is Gods righteousness before it is ours : </p>
<p>Not an inferior righteousness </p>
<p>Given by God, not Gained by man </p>
<p>Gods righteousness comes down not worked up </p>
<p>Experienced by man not earned by mans efforts </p>
<p>Gods righteousness is as operative in salvation as in condemnation </p>
<p>Gods righteousness is satisfied by justification not denied </p>
<p>Not playing off one Divine attribute against another! </p>
<p>God is always what He is, unchanging </p>
<p>"I am the Lord I change not." </p>
<p>"Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever" </p>
<p>God is not sometimes all knowing <br>God is not sometimes all powerful <br>God is not sometimes Holy <br>God is not sometimes righteous </p>
<p>It is not His love and grace desiring to save against His righteousness refusing to save. </p>
<p>Sometimes we are painted a picture of God being in internal tension, His Righteousness desiring to condemn man and His Grace and Mercy Desiring to save man, this is not the case. </p>
<p>Rather Gods righteousness comes through His grace (3:24) </p>
<p>In salvation God is not working in order to deny an essential attribute of His being rather to satisfy that essential attribute of His being! 'I AM just behold and see, let the universe and the heavens examine, I have saved sinners from hell and I am the justifier of those who believe in Jesus.' </p>
<p>Gods righteous work of salvation is not a contradiction of His condemnation of mans sin but rather a consequence of his condemnation </p>
<p>Gods righteousness in salvation is not a different righteousness </p>
<p>It is the attainment of that righteousness by a means other than the law (3:21) </p>
<p>That righteousness which commences as Gods (3:21) continues as mans (3:22) </p>
<p>f righteousness as a sta Not a second class righteousness, not a make do righteousness as if we couldn't manage it the proper way, so this will do instead! </p>
<p>This is "Gods righteousness without law" (3:21) </p>
<p>In other words we often think of righteousness as a standard, that standard is the law. </p>
<p>The law did not give rise to righteousness because something or someone gave rise to the law! </p>
<p>Therefore the righteousness which we have in the law is really a reflection of the righteousness of God which He gave in the law. </p>
<p>To put it another way: the law doesn't give righteousness, righteousness gave the law! </p>
<p>The law was Gods means of conveying His righteousness, like the sun is His means of conveying His light but He is not restricted to it! </p>
<p>So Gods righteousness is greater than the law, since the righteousness gave the law. </p>
<p>We may well reasonably ask the question: is there more to Gods righteousness than we know in the law? </p>
<p>The answer is yes! 'The righteousness of God without the law' (3:21) </p>
<p>This is an interesting idea but not a new one; that Gods Righteousness is greater than the law and extends in scope even beyond the law that He gave because it has already been “witnessed by the law and the prophets,” really the theme of Romans 3:21-31 and chapter 4. </p>
<p>Is there discernible in the OT scriptures: </p>
<p>A Righteousness of God “without law”? <br>A Righteousness of God that saves rather than condemns? </p>
<p>Gods righteousness in law is a righteousness that condemns man that finds fault with man, that ushers in judgment (3:20) </p>
<p>Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 18 & 19) </p>
<p>Gods righteousness in law condemned Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen18:20) : “sin” - the knowledge of “sin” is by the law (Rom3:20), where there is no law sin is not imputed (Rom5:13) so they were under the law – perhaps Gods Creatorial and moral law of Rom 1 or the “law” of conscience (Rom2:14-15). In condemning Sodom and Gomorrah God acted in righteousness as a judge (Gen 18:25). But Lot and his 2 daughters and his wife were brought out of Sodom and Gomorrah! Was he legally righteous? cf. Gen 19:8; 20,32,33. Yet God was acting in righteousness in dealing with this matter (Gen18:25). God was righteous in condemning Sodom. God was righteous in saving Lot. </p>
<p>Rahab the Harlot (Joshua chp 2) – condemned to die on at least 3 accounts by Gods righteousness in the law: as a cananite, as an inhabitant of Jericho, as an harlot maybe even as being a false witness (2:4), yet Rahab was saved out of Jericho! On what did she depend for her salvation? What gave her the confidence to betray her own people and trust in the Lord? “Ye shall also show kindness” (2:12).... “true token...” (2:12). This is a righteous principle: kindness for kindness, like for like, devotion for devotion! Yet how could she lay claim to Gods righteousness and to that of the righteousness of His servants? She was not righteous and had no righteousness of the law? Gods righteousness condemned her, how could she rest upon that righteousness? We may well say to Rahab: 'I would keep quite about righteousness if I were you!' It was Gods righteousness that would condmen her. Here was a righteousness apart from the law. “We will deal kindly and truly with thee” (v14). A pledge of fairness and righteousness. The righteousness of God that condemns her is the righteousness of God that is able to save her. Gods righteousness condemns Jericho. Gods righteousness saves Rahab. </p>
<p>The Man Born Blind (John chp 9) </p>
<p>In John chapter 9 the Lord will create eyes and give light, He will save from blindness. What does that have to do with the righteousness of God? How is Christ revealed in John chp 9? Remember that each miracle in John's Gospel is a “sign”, Christ is being revealed as the “light” in Johns Gospel! There are 2 features of light in the scriptures: </p>
<p>Light reveals and illuminates understanding <br>Light brings in Gods righteousness (1John1:5-7) </p>
<p>It is as Christ is revealed as the righteousness of God that He moves to save this man from darkness. The Light of God, a picture of His Righteousness, a righteousness which does not utterly destroy this man but which illuminates this man in his darkness. </p>
<p>God Shares His Righteousness by Faith (v22) </p>
<p>Gods righteousness unobtainable by law / by deeds (3:20) is attainable by faith, ours by “faith” (3:22) </p>
<p>Rahab put out the scarlet thread </p>
<p>Lot went out of Sodom and Gomorrah with the angel, did not look back </p>
<p>The blind man went and washed in the pool of Siloam. </p>
<p>If the righteousness of God is not by law then I do not do nor do I keep something to gain it, so how do I gain Gods Righteousness without law? </p>
<p>I rest in it! I depend upon it! I trust in Him! </p>
<p>The righteousness of God is not bound by rules / codes / acts / deeds and therefore cannot be received by rules, codes, acts or deeds, it is received by faith! </p>
<p>Grace brings justification (v24). </p>
<p>How can God make me righteous if I am a sinner? </p>
<p>There are 2 words that appear in this section which in English are quite different but in Greek are in fact very similar: righteousness: 'Standard of God ' and justification: 'Standing before God.' </p>
<p>God Satisfies His Righteousness by Faith (3:25-26) </p>
<p>Salvation does not run contrary to Gods Righteousness </p>
<p>Salvation is constructed by Gods Righteousness </p>
<p>The Cause of Salvation lies in Gods Righteousness : “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” (Jas 4:17). If there was a way to save men and women and to maintain Gods character if God failed to take that step He would not be perfectly righteous!It would constitute a sin of omission! The plan of salvation is thus in one aspect a product of righteous necessity! God cannot fail to be less than perfectly righteous! The angle could not destroy Sodom and Gomorrah until Lot was out (Gen19), a scarlet thread was provided for Rahab, Christ did not walk by on the other side of the blind man as the did the priest and the Levite in the parable of the good Samaritan! </p>
<p>Illust: Car driving too fast, speeds by on a blind bend, ends upside down on a roundabout, bodies lieing out on the ground, 2 people injured and intoxicated, could take the view that they have broken the law, sinned and this is the inevitable consequence of their actions leave them to it! Would this be a righteous response? </p>
<p>Salvation is constructed by Gods Righteousness The whole plan of salvation is carefully constructed in such a way as to maintain Gods righteousness. Salvation is not a way of getting off with sin! It is the means of buying back the sinner (3:24). God in saving the sinner provides a sacrifice for the sinner. If God saves, God sacrifices (3:25). The cost is real and the cost is paid. The righteousness of God is built into the whole plan of salvation. Righteous ends by righteous means (3:25,26). </p>
<p>Salvation is Completed and Concluded in Gods Righteousness Gods work in the past in “remitting sins” (v25) is fulfilled now at this time (3:26) in the work of Christ. </p>
<p>God Saves by His Righteousness - not mine (3:27-31)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>47:47GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67964862009-02-10T22:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:40:08+00:00Romans Chapter 3 Vs 21 to 31; Leviticus Chapter 16: Propitiation - Dr J Stewart Gillespie<p> Surely the very first discovery that we make on our spiritual journey is that there is a God! <br>We make come to this discovery by means of considering: </p>
<p>Creation – the subject of Romans chp 1 <br>Conscience – the moral order Romans chp 2 <br>Covenant – God speaking by His Word – Romans chp 2 <br>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 Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” (Lk23:42) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The 2nd significant discovery which we make on our spiritual journey is that the fact there is a God doesn't solve our problem, for He is for some reason afar off, He is an offended God: “But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” (Isa 59:2) </p>
<p><br>The solution to this 2nd great discovery is the 3rd spiritual discovery, the subject of our meeting tonight: The subject of propitiation. <br>Many years ago, as Adolf Hitler was rising to power in Germany in 1930's, another German, Gerhard Kittel was compiling a dictionary of NT words: TDNT, 10 volumes, Prof. Kittel when he comes to define 'propitiation' takes over 20 pages! <br>I'm not going to take 20 pages! I'll take 3 fingers! <br>Propitiation has 3 dimensions: </p>
<p>Upwards – God satisfied <br>Backward – Man justified <br>At 90 degrees, side to side, bringing in the breadth of Gods mighty work of salvation – Christ Crucified. </p>
<p>Propitiation: 'God satisfied, Man Justified by Christ Crucified' <br>Only 1 way to be right with God. <br>Everyone who has ever been right with God, was right with God by this very means: by the power of the sacrifice of Christ! <br>See that in various places in scripture: “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (Joh 14:6); “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Act 4:12) <br>See it again here in Romans 3: as God forgave men there sins in days gone by, men who trusted and rested that God could forgive sin, exactly how it would be that God could forgive their sins remained in part obscure: </p>
<p> “These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.” (Heb 11:13) </p>
<p>“Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.” (1Pe 1:10-12) </p>
<p> “Then Job answered and said, I know it is so of a truth: but how should man be just with God?” (Job 9:1-2) </p>
<p>It seems clear that Godly men of old knew that God would and that God could save the sinner but at times they were at least in part in ignorance as to How God would save the sinner. <br>David is clear that his sins are forgiven (Rom 4:7; Psalm 32:1,2; Psalm 51:7-14) <br>A question mark hangs over all of the OT scriptures, how can a just God forgive sins? <br>It is not until “this time” (Rom 3:26) that God has revealed and declared His righteousness in forgiving the sinner His sins. <br>If His righteousness was ever under question, the answer is now given, and Hios righteousness is 'declared' (3:25). </p>
<p>Leviticus Chp 16: Propitiation Pictured: </p>
<p>The Problem - of sin (16:1-2) <br>The Place - of relationship / of meeting / of mercy (16:2) <br>The Purity - of the priest <br>The Power - of the blood </p>
<p>The Problem - of sin (16:1-2) </p>
<p>The whole subject of atonement, in one of these little echoes of scripture is interestingly prefaced by the loss of a son! <br>The subject of redemption was likewise prefaced by the loss of a son, brought out under the blood of the lamb and under the blood of the firstborn son! <br>The first mention of the meal offering (Gen 4:3) – linked with the death of a son. <br>The first mention of the sin offering (Gen 4:7) – linked with the death of a son <br>The 2nd mention of the ascending offering (Gen 22:2) – linked with the death of a son! <br>The chapter begins with a reference to the loss of Aarons 2 sons: to the problem of sin and the consequences of sin. <br>Verse 1 takes us back to Leviticus chapter 10 to the death of Nadab and Abihu who "offered strange fire before the Lord" (10:1) <br>Possibly they were drunk (Lev 10:9) with their judgment impaired and compromised <br>So serious was their sin that Aaron their father was not even permitted to mourn for them (10:6) <br>There sin although specific to them is a picture of the consequences of all sin: separation from the presence of God <br>Linked with the problem of sin we have the reason that sin is such a problem: the Holiness and the Righteousness of God <br>This too is how Rom 3:21-31 begins <br>The Problem of Sin in chapters 1 to 3 of Romans, linked with the Righteousness of God in condemning men and women (Rom3:23) <br>God reminds Moses in Lev 16:1-2 of the Righteousness that keeps men out <br>The question is - is there a righteousness that can bring men in? <br>We have previously seen that there is a righteousness of God that saves from wrath, we saw that in the case of Lot and Rahab <br>There is a righteousness of God that saves from judgment <br>Is there a righteousness that draws us near to Himself? <br>Not only can Gods righteousness save us from WRATH but can Gods righteousness bring me into Relationship? <br>These 2 are not the same thing. <br>Nadab and Abihu died under the wrath of God - for drawing near to God with strange fire - they died <br>You could avoid dieing like Nadab and Abihu by not drawing near to God with strange fire! <br>That would save me from His WRATH! <br>But it wouldn't bring me into RELATIONSHIP with Him. <br>Is it possible for God not only to save from judgment but also to bring me into His presence? <br>We need to be sure about this for if we get it wrong the consequences are huge: "and died" (16:1) <br>Not good enough to do what we think, do what we please or 'come as you are to worship'! <br>To fail to meet Him and to fall short of Him is to fail to meet He who is Life and Light and Love! <br>The stakes are high! Agreed? <br>Can Gods Righteousness not only: </p>
<p>Bring us out - of wrath </p>
<p>can it also: </p>
<p>Bring us into Relationship? </p>
<p>The Place - of relationship / of meeting / of mercy (16:2) </p>
<p>3 Closely related words in this chapter: </p>
<p>Mercy Seat <br>Atonement <br>Propitiation </p>
<p>Very simply we might consider these 3 words as referring to: </p>
<p>Mercy Seat – The Place / Object (16:2) <br>Atonement – The Sacrifice (16:6,10) <br>Propitiation – occurs when the place and the sacrifice come together, it is the blood stained mercy seat (Rom 3:25) – in Rom 3:25 you notice the importance of the blood! </p>
<p>God would meet with Aaron the High Priest, but at 1 place; the "mercy seat" <br>"mercy seat": Heb. 'kapporeth' from the Heb. word 'kippur' - atonement <br>'Yom Kippur' : the Day of Atonement <br>What is 'atonement' - 'at-one-ment' - reconciliation - relationship <br>Mercy seat is the place of reconciliation or relationship <br>"mercy seat": 'kappoerth' in Greek the word is 'hilasterion' <br>What does that have to do with me and our studies in Romans? <br>Rom 3:25: 'propitiation' : 'hilasterion' <br>The place of the mercy seat becomes a picture of the work of Christ! <br>Place where God and man could meet 16:2, but only when a condition had been fulfilled: 16:14 when blood was sprinkled </p>
<p>The Power - of the blood (16:11-15) </p>
<p>As it was with redemption so too it is with propitiation – the power is in the blood. <br>Don't want to make the message unnecessarily complex and the debate of scholars goes beyond the simplicity of our thoughts on Rom 3:25 but there is a little problem with the translation / interpretation of Rom 3:25, over the precise meaning of "propitiation" <br>Not everyone agrees that the word here 'hilasterion' refers simply to the mercy seat: </p>
<p>The article is perhaps wrong for this meaning to hold <br>We note the importance of "His blood" in Rom 3:25. </p>
<p>So some scholars have suggested that really it is not so much the mercy seat that Christ is been likened to but rather the sacrifice whose blood was sprinkled upon the mercy seat. <br>In reality of course the 2 go hand in hand <br>The picture and the pattern are seen foreshadowed quite clearly here in Leviticus chapter 16 <br>The mercy seat had no power without the blood sprinkled on it <br>Without the blood, the mercy seat was merely an aspiration and not a reality <br>Without the blood there was still no relationship <br>The mercy seat in fact took its name from the sacrifice: the 'kapporeth' and the 'kippur' <br>The place has no real significance without the sacrifice <br>Today we can have every vestige, every outer appearance of religion, bibles, baptisms, names, routines, services, prayers but if the sacrifice, the power of the death, dieing, suffering and resurrection of Christ is absent, the whole thing is powerless <br>It is as powerless as a mercy seat with no blood! <br>It is the blood that puts the mercy into the mercy seat! <br>Why was the blood so powerful? <br>It was the blood of sacrifice (16:11, 14-15) for sin - blood of the sin offering <br>Sprinkled 7 X – Gods work, cf. Redemption 7 X in Exodus chp 6. <br>In picture sin was transferred from the offerer to the offering <br>The sacrifice was consumed with fire as the wrath of God fell on the sacrifice <br>Perhaps a little echo in Lev 16:14 of a looking forward to of something more: "eastward" : the side of the rising sun, that is how Malachi chp 4 ends with the "sun of righteousness rising with healing in His wings" <br>The day of of atonement looked forward to the dawning of a new day! </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Purity - of the priest (Lev 16:4) </p>
<p>"And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints." (Rev 19:8) <br>The sacrifice not only brings the offerer in but makes him fit to come in. <br>God satisfied, man justified by Christ crucified!</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>51:08GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67925022008-12-02T21:00:00+00:002021-10-31T20:51:56+00:00Romans Chp 2 Vs 17 to 29: 'The Religious Sinner' - J Stewart Gillespie<p>A section that deals with the failings of the Jewish people <br>At last a section that I can fall asleep during! <br>Of no relevance to me! <br>I can see the relevance of Chps 1 + 2: </p>
<p>The Power of the Gospel to change lives (Rom1:1) <br>The Proof of the Gospel in personal experience (Rom1:1), in the Promise of the Gospel (1:2); in the Person in the Gospel (1:3); in the Power of His resurrection (1:4) and in the Product of the Gospel in changed lives (1:5) <br>That section on doubts and deliverance (1:1-7) <br>The Result of the Gospel (1:8-17) in changed lives <br>The descent of man (1:18-32) rejecting the Worship of God, the Ways of God, the Wisdom of God and the Works of God </p>
<p>But here is a section that I can switch off on – there is no relevance to me, it is about where the Jewish people of old went wrong! <br>Before you dismiss it altogether, a word of caution, where the Jew of yesterday went wrong the professing Church of today goes wrong! <br>I can see many parallels between the condition of the Jew of Romans 3 and the professing believer of Revelation 3:20 at Laodicea – the Church of the last days of the Church age; Christ is on the outside: “I stand at the door and knock...” a condition so very similar to the nation of Israel at the 1st coming of Christ: “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.” (Joh 1:11) the condition of Israel at His 1st coming is the same as the condition of the Church as His 2nd Coming approaches; He is on the outside! <br>We have outward formality but no inward reality <br>We have religion but no relationship <br>We have a church but no Christ <br>v1 – there is one obvious problem with the conclusion Paul has so far drawn from his examination of all peoples at all times, all concluded under sin (3:23) <br>Paul has concluded all under sin: </p>
<p>The Rotten Sinner of Rom1 <br>The Self Righteous Sinner of Rom2 <br>The Religious Sinner of Rom 2 </p>
<p>In Johns Gospel we find: </p>
<p>Things we don't know (John 21:21-22) <br>Things we will know (Jo13:7) <br>Things we ought to know (Jo3:10) <br>Things we know but we didn't know that we knew them (Jo14:5,6,9) </p>
<p>All of the above represents a journey of learning into the infinity of Gods ways and purposes. </p>
<p>All of the above represent encounters between Christ and those seeking for the truth. </p>
<p>In Johns gospel there is also another group, another attitude and a different spirit. </p>
<p>People who think they know it all! </p>
<p>They thought they knew the prophets (John 7:40-44,52) <br>They thought they knew the law (Jo8:4-9) <br>They thought they knew the scriptures (Jo5:39) <br>They thought they knew God (Jo8:54-55) <br>They thought they knew Christ (Jo7:12,20) <br>They thought they knew the Father (Jo8:33,39,44) </p>
<p>There are few things in our life so dangerous as a conviction drawn from inadequate information, not just in Johns gospel: Matt22:23ff. </p>
<p>It might be the best conclusion we can draw but if we don't have the right information we draw the wrong conclusion. </p>
<p>It seems that confidence is no guarantee of certainty! </p>
<p>It seems that you can be wrong! </p>
<p>Illust: Old blue mini, a bit of rust here and there, thought I knew how to spray it, it looked great till the first time I washed it, in a few minutes the colour changed from Tahiti Blue to battleship grey with the gleam of bare metal. I thought I knew, it looked alright, till it came to the test! </p>
<p>Many things in life that perhaps it doesn't matter too much if we think we know and get it wrong! </p>
<p>When it comes to salvation, be very careful about getting it wrong! </p>
<p>It will certainly come out in the wash but by then it will be too late; “depart from me I never knew you.” </p>
<p>In Romans 2:17-29 we are dealing with the same people as in Johns gospel! </p>
<p>In this section there are those who think they have salvation sussed! </p>
<p>“Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God,” (Rom 2:17) </p>
<p>They have a 3 X confidence and a '3 fold cord is not easily broken!' </p>
<p>There 3 Fold Confidence / 3 Fold Boast: </p>
<p>Jew - Racial Claims – Race <br>Law - Righteous Claims – Rules <br>God - Religious Claims – Religion </p>
<p>We may well ask: 'so what is wrong with all of that?' </p>
<p>Law - Righteous Claims – Rules </p>
<p>They had learned the desires of God </p>
<p>They had gained knowledge (v18) and understanding, they knew the “will” of God, they had an understanding of what was pleasing to God in any given situation, a great advantage, they understood the desires of God. <br>What do you do if someone says: 'I've a great new god come and worship it with me'? The men of chapter 1 would have jumped on the band wagon but not the Jew they had the commands of God: “Thou shalt worship no other God except Me” <br>What do you do if society begins to say that life is expendable, that human life is not valuable only because it is human life, that some lifes can be destroyed for purposes of convenience? The Jew knew the desires of God; “thou shalt not kill.” <br>What do you do when the government of the land loses its discernment into a pit of deep rooted moral corruption, when politicians are easily swayed by men and woman pursuing their own lusts, and laws begin to change permitting the union of men with men and women with women. The Jew knew the desires of God on this: “male and female created He them.” <br>How quickly and easily and clearly the Word of God deals with moral errors of their day and of ours too! <br>Paul will give a few simple and clear examples of these (2:21,22), not hard to understand. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> They had learned the discernment of God </p>
<p>Even beyond that they had learned discernment: “approvest the things that are more excellent” - a sensitivity not only to outright evil but an ability to choose the best. <br>Not only what was right but what was best! <br>There can be a subtlety and a sensitivity to that! <br>The Jew had gone beyond the expectations of some Christians with: 'what is the harm in it?' <br>Many an excuse can be used for sin when God given discernment is lost: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Lot (Gen19:20): “this city is near to flee unto...it is a little one.”. Its a smaller sin than the last one! Its just ½ the size! I've cut down, not so much, not so often. It's a little one! Maybe it is but its still a sin! <br>Achan (Joshua 7:20ff): “a goodly Babylonish garment...” Its a good one. Shame to let it go to waste! <br>Saul (1Sam15:9ff): He kept the “best of the sheep”. Its the best one! </p>
<p>How we need the Word of God to keep us from compromise! Times might change, the world might change but as God looks down on our tiny sinful, little planet He does not feel compelled to keep up with latest fashions upon earth. Our God does not change and His Word does not change! <br>His Word keeps us from compromise: </p>
<p>Shammah (2Sam23:11) defends a field of lentils against the Philistines, doesn't matter the value, they belong to the king! No compromise. <br>David (1Sam17:34) rescues a lamb from the mouth of the lion, he's the shepherd and it is his lamb, no compromise! </p>
<p> They had learned direction from God </p>
<p>In a dark world they were able to “guide” the heathen, they had direction (2:19) </p>
<p> They considered themselves doctors of Gods Law </p>
<p>They considered themselves to be “instructors” and “teachers” the word for doctors of the law (cf. Luke 2:46) </p>
<p>It didn't bring them any closer to Him! <br>What's the problem? The difference between knowing and doing! <br>Rules can tell us what's right but they can't make you righteous! <br>“Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” (Rom 3:20) </p>
<p>God - Religious Claims – Religion (v23-24) </p>
<p>Made their “boast of God” (v17) <br>Actually they caused others to “blaspheme” God (v24) <br>They had : </p>
<p>Broken His Laws (v23) <br>Blasphemed His name (v24) </p>
<p>There religion did not bring them into a relationship <br>Do you bring honour to God (v23) or Glory to His name (v24)? </p>
<p>Jew - Racial Claims – Race (v25-29) </p>
<p>If their religion lacked relationship then then racial claims lacked reality <br>They had the token and the sign of circumcision but the reality of it <br>Circumcision had been given to Abraham as a token of Gods covenant (Gen 17). <br>The promises passed to the next generation by Gods election and not by natura; generation: they passed onto Isaac the son of promise and not to Ishmael! <br>Circumsion was a sign of Gods promise to Abraham, a covenant. <br>Did Abraham have a side to keep in this promise? <br>That covenant did begin with a command to Abraham: “... the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.” (Gen 17:1) <br>This covenant was a sovereign act of God in grace but it was also set in the context of Abraham's spiritual and moral conditions! <br>God had chosen Abraham, a man who God had marked out by: </p>
<p>Separation by Faith (Gen12:1) <br>Justification by Faith (Gen15:6) <br>Sanctification by Faith (Gen14:23) <br>Consecration by Faith (Gen17:1) </p>
<p>Abraham had one thing to do as part of this covenant “thou shalt keep my covenant” (17:9) – to circumcise his male offspring! <br>What did that circumcision on the 8th day mean? <br>If it meant anything it meant separation and consecration from the world around. <br>Abraham was different and his seed had to be different <br>No point in claiming the token (Gen17:11) and denying the reality!</p>47:25GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67925012008-11-11T21:00:00+00:002021-10-31T20:49:26+00:00Romans chapter 2 - The Self Righteous Sinner - JS Gillespie<p>The Corruption and the Condemnation of Conscience (v1) <br>The Source and the Standard of Conscience (v2) <br>The Problem and the Purpose of Conscience (v3-4) <br>The Response to and the Results of Conscience (v5-12) <br>The Evidence and Experience of Conscience (v13-16) </p>
<p>The Corruption and the Condemnation of Conscience (v1) </p>
<p>Anyone who can appreciate that there is a problem with the list of 23 moral evils in Romans 1:29-32 has a major problem on their hands – they are fit for hell! <br>Gen39:6-21 – can we perceive that there is a problem, an injustice in the events of Genesis chp 39? Can we discern in this story of Joseph that there is injustice, unfairness and sin? Can we see: </p>
<p>“unrighteousness” in the dealings of Potiphars wife with Joseph? He did only good (Gen39:6,8,9) and she rewarded it with evil. <br>“fornication,” <br>“wickedness,” <br>“covetousness” - she desired what was not hers – Joseph <br>“maliciousness” - acted with revenge and spite when she failed to get what she wanted (39:17ff), she didn't just accept that things were not going to go her way! <br>“envy” - wanted to take away from Joseph what she could not have! <br>“murder” - her actions could easily have resulted in the death of Joseph as per the baker of Genesis 40. <br> “deceit” - she deceived her husband <br>“malignity” <br>“whisperers” - Constructing and concocting a story before her husband returns (Gen39:14) <br>“Backbiters” - with vengeful hatred on Joseph </p>
<p>Anyone who can appreciate that there is a problem with the list of 23 moral evils in Romans 1:29-32 has a major problem on their hands – they have a conscience. <br>Sometimes it is easier to see the significance of these sins in the context of human actions rather than simply in a list of events. <br>We know that certain things are right and some things are wrong <br>If they are wrong for others they are wrong for us too! <br>The first time we read of conscience coming into action in Genesis 3:7; by verse 12 it is corrupted – instead of being used to convict Adam of his own sin he is using it to criticise and condemn his wife! </p>
<p>The Source and the Standard of Conscience (v2) </p>
<p>What is the source of human conscience? <br>Conscience has its origins back in Genesis chp 3 <br>Conscience comes to us as an echo out of Eden! <br>Conscience is a universal pointer to an absolute standard of right and wrong <br>Conscience at it simplest is the inner awareness in the heart of man that his actions have a significance beyond the immediate context in which they occur. <br>Conscience involves at least 3 separate components: </p>
<p>A knowledge of an absolute standard of righteous (Rom 2:15; 9:1) <br>An awareness of a responsibility towards God: (1 Peter2:19; 3:21; Acts 23:1; Acts 24:16) <br>A warning or conviction when we have fallen short of that standard / when we have broken or offended that standard (1Co8:7,10,12; 10:25,27,28; 2Co1:12;4:2; 1Tim1:19;3:9;4:2; Heb9:9,14; 10:2,22) </p>
<p>How did that conscience come to be? <br>Romans 2 makes it quite clear that conscience is a reflection of the standards of the creator (2:2,3,15) <br>Man first experienced the stirrings of conscience in the garden of Eden <br>Conscience was not the direct product of sin, conscience was not created by sin and Satan – sin and Satan are not creatorial, only Christ is creatorial: “(Joh 1:3) All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” </p>
<p>“(Col 1:16) For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:” </p>
<p>Sin cannot truly give rise to light but rather to darkness <br>It is not sin that gives us a knowledge of Gods standards but rather God Himself: “(Joh 1:9) That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” <br>But it was in the garden of Eden that the conscience first fired up as man created in the image of God, with the knowledge of Gods character, reflecting the nature and standards of the Creator sinned against his creator. <br>Something foreign to that creation and those to standards God had given was introduced into that creation and man perceived that this was alien to his creator – these were the first stirrings of conscience. <br>It was not that sin created conscience but rather conscience triggered a response to sin in the heart of man! </p>
<p><br>Illust: pain and the needle, the needle does not create pain, the nerve cells, the prostoglandins, the prostocyclines, the elctrical impulses in the nerve cells, the connections to the spinal cord and to the brain cause pain, the needle only triggers the process set up by God from creation. <br>The conscience came from God (Rom2:2) the standards are Gods (Rom2:2,14) sin merely triggers the response. </p>
<p>The Problem and the Purpose of Conscience (v3-4) </p>
<p>No sooner did Adam perceive the effects of conscience on his soul than he misused it: Gen 3:12 – to accuse another, to accuse Eve, but if Eve's behaviour was wrong then so was Adams! <br>Conscience had a purpose, not only was conscience an echo out of Eden that tells us that we have eaten of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil but it is also an echo that reminds us that there is a tree of life! <br>The message of this book is that there is such a tree of life! <br>“As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness even so must the Son of Man be lifted up.” <br>(Act 5:30) “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.” <br>Conscience is not only the emptiness that comes form eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil it is also the gnawing, painful hungering and yearning after the fruit of the tree of life! Praise God for conscience! <br>The true purpose of conscience is not only to convict of sin but it is to convert the soul <br>Conscience is designed to prove to our hearts that we are sinners and that salvation can never be on the basis of how good I am but rather if I am ever to be saved it must be upon the basis of what and who God is. <br>Salvation can only be possible if God is “forbearing” - patient, forgiving of the repentant sinner (v4) <br>Conscience has its final work not only in convicting of sin but in casting me upon the grace and mercy <br>Conscience is not there for me to be critical of others nor to be scathing of God but rather to convict of my own sin. <br>Believers 252: “Here conscience ends its strife and faith delights to prove, the sweetness of the Bread of Life, the fullness of thy love.” </p>
<p>The Response to and the Results of Conscience (v5-12) </p>
<p>I can do 1 of 2 things: </p>
<p>Reject conscience and harden my heart (v5) – The Barrier of Conscience. This was interestingly Adams first reaction in the garden of Eden: to hide! To hide under the fig leaves (3:7) and to hide behind the trees in the garden (3:8) and to hide behind his wife (3:12). Convicted of sin he knew that there was a problem within, his response was impulsive rather than intelligent, reactive rather than reasoned – he felt his sin exposed and so hide. The Barrier of Conscience. Leaves me with overwhelming guilt! </p>
<p>Respond to conscience (v7) - The Brokenness of Conscience – (Psa 111:3) “His work is honourable and glorious: and his righteousness endureth for ever.” They seek for the 'work of God' - “Glory, honour and immortality” is the work of God. down through the generations there have been those who have responded to conscience, to the light of creation and to the light of conscience and on that basis have, even in the days before the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ have been given further light: </p>
<p>Abel: (Heb 11:4) “By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.” - the same conscience that drove his father to cover and hide drew Able to bring of the firstlings of the flock as a sin offering to God to make reconciliation between God and man! <br>Job: (Job 1:8) “And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?” <br>Noah: (Gen 6:8) “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.” <br>Job, Noah and Daniel: (Eze 14:14) “Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord GOD.” </p>
<p>David: (1Sa 13:14) “But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.” <br>(Heb 11:13) “These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.” <br>(Heb 11:40) “God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.” <br>(Heb 12:23) “To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect” </p>
<p>The Brokenness of Conscience. Leads me to all sufficient grace! </p>
<p>The Evidence and Experience of Conscience (v13-16) </p>
<p>In giving me conscience God has given me a terrifying gift – He has given me the ability to comprehend His basis of judgement <br>We saw that in creation God gave me the ability to comprehend His character in that creation (Rom1:19-20), so too in conscience God has given me the ability to understand His basis for judgement and His verdict against me! <br>No one will be in hell who does nor understand why they are there! <br>Hell will no doubt come as a shock to many but perhaps not a surprise. <br>Conscience is the evidence for the prosecution against me (v14-15) <br>God has laid up in the very nature of your being, in the very foundations of your heart the ability to understand why He casts you into hell. <br>The ability to understand what is happening and why it is happening. <br>That ought to make us tremble if we are unsaved.</p>45:45GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67924992008-10-28T20:00:00+00:002022-01-08T21:39:14+00:00'The Descent of Man' : Romans Chapter 1 vs 18 to 32 - Dr J Stewart Gillespie <p>The whole of humanity is examined in this section, under the scrutiny of a righteous and Holy God: </p>
<p>Rotten Sinner (1:18-32) <br>Self-Righteous Sinner (2:1-16) <br>Religious Sinner (2:17-3:20) </p>
<p>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: </p>
<p>Rotten Sinner (1:18-32) - has the light of creation <br>Self-Righteous Sinner (2:1-16) - has the light of conscience <br>Religious Sinner (2:17-3:20) - has the light of law or covenant </p>
<p>Then the conclusion is drawn, often quoted out with the context of Romans, in which the Spirit of God and the apostle Paul has invested much time and effort proving the truth of the statement:</p>
<p>"For all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God" (3:23) </p>
<p>There is only one way of salvation and one way back to God (1:16-17) </p>
<p>Over the years and generations God has given humanity every opportunity to try the options: </p>
<p>A perfect environment - Eden (Gen chps1-3) <br>A perfect education - Adam and Eve left Eden with the "knowledge of good and evil", now 'enlightened' with their new enlightenment would this prove the way back to God? <br>A perfect organisation - The law with legislation on human government, worship, contract, families, relationships, marriage, business, farming and even health! </p>
<p>All of these means have failed </p>
<p>There is only one way back to God: </p>
<p>Justification by faith (1:16-17; 3:21) </p>
<p>Perhaps very often this pattern that is true of humanity as a whole, down through many generations is worked out often times in the individual lives of men and women: </p>
<p>Start in infancy in innocence (Jer19:4; Jonah 4:11; Matt18:1) <br>Move to self confidence and knowledge and education <br>Progress to the organisation of religion / a system / a method <br>By grace finally arrive at the only means of salvation: justification by faith </p>
<p>In Romans chp 1 man sinks deeper and deeper into sin and degradation: </p>
<p>“Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts... For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:... And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;” </p>
<p>(Rom 1:24-28) </p>
<p>"God gave them up" (1:24) </p>
<p>"God gave them up" (1:26) </p>
<p>"God gave them over" (1:28) </p>
<p>Man is able to fall deeper into sin and degradation </p>
<p>There are many ways down </p>
<p>There is only one way up and out: </p>
<p>“And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:” (Eph 2:6) </p>
<p>Romans Chp1 vs 16 - 28 </p>
<p>Revelation of the Righteousness of God (v16-17) <br>Reasons for the Wrath of God (v18-20) <br>Results of the Rejection of God (v21-28) </p>
<p>Every refusal of God followed by a removal from God <br>Every rejection of God followed by a response form God <br>Every step away from God followed by a stoop further into degradation <br>Every wrong decision followed by consequent disaster </p>
<p>The "wrath" of God is here 'revealed' in the present tense. </p>
<p>How is His wrath presently revealed? </p>
<p>By: "handing sinners over to themselves" (John Stott): </p>
<p>"God gave them up" (1:24) </p>
<p>"God gave them up" (1:26) </p>
<p>"God gave them over" (1:28) </p>
<p>Sometimes the worst words we can hear form God is: 'that's fine, have it your way,' that's what we ant isn't it? To do it our way? To be our own boss? </p>
<p>From this subject arises another question - is God righteous in revealing His wrath upon sinful men and women? </p>
<p>Do men and woman really deserve it? </p>
<p>This section begins with the revelation of the wrath of God against man (1:18) </p>
<p>This wrath is in response to, proportionate response to and appropriate type for type response to the decisions made by man. </p>
<p>This section presents a 4 fold rejection of Gods revelation: </p>
<p>Worship of God (v18) </p>
<p>"ungodliness" : “ἀσέβεια” : literally 'unworshipfullness' </p>
<p>So why is God angry with us? Why is His wrath revealed? </p>
<p>Surely we haven't done anything, have we? </p>
<p>At least many seem to be under the impression that individually whilst we may have our faults and failings, hell is most certainly for someone else and well our life is lived to a pretty high standard and we surely haven't done anything, have we? </p>
<p>Gods first condemnation in Romans 1:18, Gods first reason for wrath is: </p>
<p>"you haven't done anything"! </p>
<p>"ungodliness" : “ἀσέβεια” : literally 'unworshipfullness' </p>
<p>A failure to worship God </p>
<p>God expects to be Central to and He expects to be Sovereign over my life </p>
<p>Not just to be an accessory or an appendage to my life! </p>
<p>The testimony of creation is intended to leave me awe struck before the creator and to bow my heart and my head in worship! </p>
<p>Indulgent in life but ignorant of the life giver. </p>
<p>Delighting in creation but despising the creator. </p>
<p>The worship of God is righteously and reasonably expected / demanded by the creator God. </p>
<p>In refusing to worship God man rejects the work of God. </p>
<p>God is not looking for man to simply believe in God: consider the strange repetition of Psalm 14 and Psalm 53 - repeated almost word for word - unbelief in God is foolish: "The fool has said in his heart there is no God." </p>
<p>"Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble." James 2:19 </p>
<p>God is not looking for us simply to believe in Him but rather God expects our 'worship' - that is a response of heart and of life whereby we are humble before Him: </p>
<p>"He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God." (Micah6:8) </p>
<p>"For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." (Isa57:15) </p>
<p>Worship begins by living out my life subject to the God of creation who is absolute and sovereign over all things including me! </p>
<p>Ways of God (v18) </p>
<p>"unrighteousness" </p>
<p>Man rejects not only creations testimony but also consciences testimony </p>
<p>“who hold the truth in unrighteousness” - the truth is held in an atmosphere of unrighteousness. </p>
<p>The truth shines gloriously even in the darkest moments of man's rejection of God! </p>
<p>As man attempts to live an unrighteous life, man's unrighteousness is a constant testimony to the fact that there is a standard he has fallen short of! </p>
<p>Ravi Zacharias in his book recounts the testimony of the conversion of one atheistic philosopher to Christ. </p>
<p>It was studying the events of the Nazi holocaust that led this prominent atheist to Christ! </p>
<p>It was as he read the stories of the survivors of this holocaust and of how some had risked their lives to help them that he felt compassion and emotions that the old atheistic professor never knew he even had. </p>
<p>Studying those days of great evil led that professor to see that these events were set within a moral context! </p>
<p>A moral context that he understood and felt deep within himself, intuitively. </p>
<p>Good and evil, right and wrong did exist, he knew it, he felt it and the moral discernment between right and wrong was built into humanity. </p>
<p>Man's unrighteousness constantly stands testimony to the absolute fact of the Divine truth which it attempts to reject. </p>
<p>Man rejects Gods testimony: </p>
<p>Wisdom of God (v18) </p>
<p>"who hold the truth in unrighteousness" </p>
<p>Works of God (v19-21) </p>
<p>Man rejects the testimony of creation: the works of God. </p>
<p>Verse 19 presents 2 aspects to this testimony: </p>
<p>"In them" (v19) - The testimony of consciousness rather than of conscience which is the subject of chapter 2 <br>"unto them" (v19) - The testimony of creation </p>
<p>"In them" (v19) – Subjective <br>"unto them" (v19) – Objective </p>
<p>"In them" (v19) - the experience <br>"unto them" (v19) - the evidence </p>
<p>"In them" (v19) - the appreciation <br>"unto them" (v19) - the revelation </p>
<p>God has not only given us the evidence of His eternal power and Godhead but He has provided the keys to interpret and to understand that evidence, the keys of intelligence, enquiry, reason and understanding, cause and logic. </p>
<p>We desire to know why and to know the answer and to find and understand the answer </p>
<p>CS Lewis: 'unless God created me and created the universe I can think of no reason why I should be able to understand that universe.' </p>
<p>A car is a product of the car factory but it has no ability to understand the factory from which it came! </p>
<p>Why is there not only a universe and creation but why do I have the desire and the ability to understand? </p>
<p>"Godhead" - difficult word to translate, all that is associated with God </p>
<p>Certainly involves: </p>
<p>Intelligence - God is clever; DNA, life, design, the cell </p>
<p>Beauty - creation is not a purely mechanical phenomena, marked by colours and attractiveness, birds singing and children laughing and the beauty of the butterfly, fragrance of the rose </p>
<p>As man rejects the worship of God, the ways of God, the wisdom of God and the works of God, the "wrath of God is revealed" </p>
<p>But they haven't actually heard about Christ? </p>
<p>They haven't actually heard the gospel as we know it, have they? </p>
<p>They haven't had Gods final testimony: the WORD of God, written and incarnate? </p>
<p>Lets examine what we have rejected so far: </p>
<p>In rejecting the Creator (Rom1:20) – they reject Christ (John1:3) <br>In rejecting the light of Conscience (Rom1:19) they reject Christ (John1:9) <br>In rejecting the truth (Rom1:25) – they reject Christ (John14:6) <br>In rejecting Divine illumination (Rom1:21) – they reject Christ (John1:9) </p>
<p>If man rejects the worship of God, ways of God the works of God and the wisdom of God, is God then morally obliged to reveal the word of God to them? </p>
<p>Consider the Samaritan woman at the well who was able to discuss God, worship, the temple, Jacob and Moses: “The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.” (John 4:25) – Christ is the fullness and the fulfilment of all revelation and the woman was ready to receive Him. </p>
<p>We cannot expect to receive the fullness (Eph1:23) if we reject that which is in part (1Co13:12) </p>
<p>We cannot expect to receive the reality if we reject the shadow (Heb8:5; 10:1) </p>
<p>How can God speak to someone with their fingers in their ears (Zech7:8ff; Matt11:15ff; 13:9ff; Acts7:57) </p>
<p>Surely God must take their fingers out of their ears? But God is looking for willing hearts to be given over to Him! So God moves by convicting and convincing men to take their fingers out of their own ears! </p>
<p>What then is the result of revealing the gospel of Christ or the person of Christ to an unbelieving mind and heart? </p>
<p>The experiment was done: “He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not.” (John 1:10-11) </p>
<p>“And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” (John 3:19) </p>
<p>What are the consequences of this 4 fold rejection of God? </p>
<p>Religious Confusion (vs21-22) - from rejecting His Worship <br>Moral Confusion(v23-24) - from rejecting His Ways <br>Creatorial Confusion (v25-27) - from rejecting His Works <br>Intellectual Confusion (v28) - from rejecting His Wisdom </p>
<p>Each deliberate decision made by man is followed by a downward stoop permitted by God </p>
<p>One of the worst words a man can ever hear from God is: 'ok have it your way.' </p>
<p>Man desperately wants to 'do it my way' and in Romans chapter 1 God lets him! </p>
<p>Note that the downward spiritual spiral is at man's instigation </p>
<p>God merely confirms man's decision and withdraws restraining grace: </p>
<p>Every refusal of God followed by a removal of grace <br>Every rejection of God followed by a response from God <br>Every step away from God followed by a stoop further into degradation <br>Every wrong decision followed by consequent disaster </p>
<p>Religious Confusion(vs21-22) - from rejecting His Worship </p>
<p>As a direct result of refusing Gods testimony in creation, refusing to Glorify God and refusing to be 'thankful', they became 'vain' - proud, self centred men who with no God in their life become their own gods! </p>
<p>This directly results in "their foolish heart was darkened" </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Moral Confusion (v23-24) - from rejecting His Ways </p>
<p>Not only now rejecting Gods authority and His worship but making God in their own image! </p>
<p>They decided what God would look like </p>
<p>They corrupted their view of God, they mocked the image of God! </p>
<p>They create their own view of God and consequently live by their own standards </p>
<p>Such false religious systems are usually fairly easily spotted - they are created from the perspective of earth, bringing God down to mans level rather than lifting man up to Gods level! </p>
<p>Note that Gods response is proportionate, righteous and fair </p>
<p>Man has corrupted the image of God (v23) </p>
<p>God gives man up to corrupt mans image "to dishonour their own bodies" (v24) </p>
<p>'if it feels good do it' </p>
<p>Creatorial Confusion (v25-27) - from rejecting His Works </p>
<p>"worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator" (v25) </p>
<p>"God gave them up unto vile affections" </p>
<p>Gods response was to allow that very creatorial order to break down in their own married lives, home lives and relationships </p>
<p>This was a fair "recompence of their error which was meet" (v27) - in other words - fairs fair </p>
<p>In rejecting the Creator and the Creatorial Order which He instituted man forgot that his own existence depended upon this very order! </p>
<p>Like the old cartoons of the man sitting in the tree cutting off the branch he is sitting on. </p>
<p>Intellectual Confusion (v28) - from rejecting His Wisdom </p>
<p>"δοκιμάζω" - 'did not like to' </p>
<p>"ἀδόκιμος" - 'reprobate' </p>
<p>They rejected God and therefore God gave them over to possess the mind of a God rejecter. </p>
<p>Men poured the jelly into the mould - God allowed it to set! </p>
<p>Is God righteous in revealing His Wrath against man? </p>
<p>Gods wrath is revealed as a step by step response to the decisions man makes! </p>
<p>Why does God respect the decisions man makes? </p>
<p>Because God cannot both fulfil and not fulfil His Purpose! </p>
<p>What is Gods purpose? </p>
<p>2 Fold: </p>
<p>Relationship (Eph1:5) - "Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will" <br>Resemblance (1 John 3:1ff; Rom 8:29) </p>
<p>God cannot fulfil His Purpose of having men and women conformed to the image of His Son by having them conformed to the image of a machine. </p>
<p>To be like Christ, to be conformed to the image of His Son, we must respond to God of our own volition: </p>
<p>"Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required. Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart." (Psalm 40:6-8) </p>
<p>Hence one of the oldest lessons taught in the Word of God concerning the life of the man or woman of God: </p>
<p>“And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.” </p>
<p>(1Sa 15:22-23) </p>
<p>To refuse to do what God tells me to do is a very serious sin indeed – it hits at the very core of what it means to be a believer! </p>
<p>Be ruthless in judging disobedience to the Lord and self will in your life. </p>
<p>A person cannot be both be born again and converted to Christ and consistently disobedient and self willed – the two are diametrically opposed. </p>
<p>To be like Christ cannot come from Divine Compulsion it must come from willing devotion, a response to the love of God in His Son! </p>
<p>In election and predestination we see Gods great vision for the true potential of man. </p>
<p>We cannot fulfil that vision and potential and simultaneously refuse to fulfil it! </p>
<p>Consider: </p>
<p>Gods view of man in creation - Psalm 8 <br>Gods elevation of manhood in the incarnation - Phil 2:8; Heb2:11 <br>Gods purpose for man in election and predestination - Rom8:29; 1 John 3:1ff </p>
<p>Could man ever fulfil that vision of humanity and simultaneously not only </p>
<p>Reject the Worship of God <br>Reject the Works of God <br>Reject the Ways of God <br>Reject the Wisdom of God </p>
<p>but also have an attitude / heart of rejection? </p>
<p>Herein lies the problem! </p>
<p>If man will not voluntarily submit to the grace of God and respond to the love of God and come under the mercy of God enjoying the salvation of God, then God has no use for, no purpose for and no place for the wilful rejection of Himself in eternity! </p>
<p>The acceptance of Gods salvation and repentance must be voluntary, since Gods purpose for man is ultimately to be like Christ - to be conformed to the image of His Son. </p>
<p>God created man twice: </p>
<p>Out of the dust of the earth – this act of original creation was totally passive on the part of man, we had nothing to do with it. <br>“in Christ” - Gods work in the new creation (2Co5:17) and the new birth (Jo3:3) represents a new and greater work of God (Eph2:10; Phil2:13). In this work however God does not start off with the dust of the ground He works on man with a consciousness and a will. This work of the new creation whilst it is all of God is not passive on man's part. God requires the willing surrender of man's will, man's desire for Christ and man's devotion to Christ (Rev3:20). </p>
<p>To be conformed to His image cannot be by compulsion, for the essence of Christ is love and love cannot be by compulsion or it is not love at all but rather duty.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>48:01GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67924972008-10-21T20:50:00+01:002022-01-08T21:37:53+00:00Romans chapter 1 verses 8 to 17 - The Results of the Gospel - J Stewart Gillespie<p>Vs 1- 7 – The Reality of the Gospel – Confidence of Paul <br>Vs 8-17 – The Results of the Gospel – Converts at Rome <br>Vs 17-32 – Requirement for the Gospel – Condition of Fallen Humanity </p>
<p>Vs 1- 7 – The Reality of the Gospel – Confidence of Paul </p>
<p>Don't need to understand everything </p>
<p>Our faith doesn't lie in the fact that we have answers to all of the possible questions that could be asked but rather our faith is founded upon certainties, we at the moment see through a glass darkly. </p>
<p>Vs 8-17 – The Results of the Gospel – Converts at Rome </p>
<p>We all need encouragement to keep going especially in gospel work </p>
<p>The results of the gospel at the heart of the Roman empire spurned Paul on. </p>
<p>Vs 17-32 – Requirement for the Gospel – Condition of Fallen Humanity </p>
<p>Why do we need the gospel? </p>
<p>Because we are in a terrible state! </p>
<p>Vs 8-17 – The Results of the Gospel – Converts at Rome </p>
<p>Pauls Prayers (v8-10) <br>Pauls Purpose (v11-14) <br>Pauls Preaching (v15,16) </p>
<p>Consider the same pattern in Colossians 4:2,3 of prayer and purpose and preaching. </p>
<p>Consider Acts 1:14,21 – Prayer and then Acts 2 Preaching </p>
<p>Why the priority of prayer? Consider the following scriptures: </p>
<p>“All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” (John 6:37) <br>“No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. “ (John 6:44) <br>“So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.” (Rom 9:16) </p>
<p>If we are serious about evangelism – start with prayer! </p>
<p>One of the greatest blessing God can give us is failure, failure in our own strength that we might turn yo Him for strength! </p>
<p>Consider the pattern of failure followed by faith in: </p>
<p>Abraham (Gen 12) down into Egypt but once up and out of Egypt he gets back to the altar and then rescues Lot <br>Moses – attempts to deliver the nation in his own strength in Exodus 2 only to then fail and to return to God in Exodus 3:11,14 for His strength <br>Gideon (Judges 6+7) against a back drop of failure in the nation and repression under the Midianites. <br>Samson (Judges 16) his greatest victory after his greatest failure <br>Joshua (Josh 7+8) – The nations failure at Ai followed by success. </p>
<p>Pauls Prayers (v8-10) </p>
<p>Note the 3 different kind of prayers here: </p>
<p>v8 – Thanksgiving <br>v9 – Intercession <br>v10 – Request / Supplication </p>
<p>v8 – Thanksgiving <br>v9 – Intercession – on behalf of others, perhaps others who are unable or unwilling to pray for themselves? <br>v10 – Request / Supplication </p>
<p>Pauls Purpose (v11-14) </p>
<p>“For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established;” (Rom 1:11) </p>
<p>Pauls Preaching (v15,16) </p>
<p>v8 – A Faith Worth Speaking About <br>v9 – A God Worth Serving <br>v9-10 – People Worth Praying For <br>v11-12 – A Gift worth Giving </p>
<p>v8 – A Faith Worth Speaking About: Proven Conversion </p>
<p>Does our testimony talk? </p>
<p>Not so much do we talk? We need to of course, but more importantly does our testimony talk? </p>
<p>“And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;”(2Pe 2:5) </p>
<p>When did Noah preach? Did he actually preach as we would think of it? We don't know but what we do know for certain from the book of Genesis is that he lived out the reality of His relationship with the Lord. </p>
<p>“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.”(Gen 6:8) </p>
<p>“Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.” (Gen 6:22) </p>
<p>Was Noah's life his sermon? </p>
<p>Was he a living message? </p>
<p>Does our testimony talk? </p>
<p>Does our Gospel get Gossiped? </p>
<p>Does our salvation speak? </p>
<p>Lives changed by the power of the Spirit of God by faith in the Son of God for the Glory of God is part and parcel of the NT means of evangelism, cf. 1Thess1:8. </p>
<p>Once a person has been truly converted and led to Christ they take on a spiritual life independent of the person who led them to the Saviour. </p>
<p>Like a child – nurtured and fed but ultimately independent of the parents, a distinct individual with a life of his own. </p>
<p>Christianity is not Guru based nor Imam based nor Rabbi based it is centred upon Christ! </p>
<p>They were a source of praise not a source of problems! </p>
<p>Consider the time the gospel hit the world. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Much of the civilised and populated world was able to speak Latin / Greek: Israel, Turkey, Greece, Spain, Italy, France and Britain. </p>
<p>Therefore: “your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world” </p>
<p>The conversion of the Romans not due to Paul nor to man: “thank my God” and “through Jesus Christ.” </p>
<p>v9 – A God Worth Serving: Passionate Commitment </p>
<p>I emphasise the word “worth” - there is much I could serve with my life but it is not “worth” serving! </p>
<p>Illust: Santa Pola, boys making sand castles, then elderly chap, huge sand castle, moats, turrets, bricks, men, steps, the lot, tremendous but just till the next tide! </p>
<p>Is what I am serving worth serving? </p>
<p>It doesn't matter how big the sandcastle is, it is just a sandcastle and it goes with the next tide! In fact the paradox was the bigger and grander the sandcastle the greater the folly in investing time and talents and treasures in it! </p>
<p>Why is it that when men are presented with something transient and trivial it is so often pursued with such energy and enthusiasm: sports, football teams, pop idols, hobbies and yet when presented with the God, the person of Christ and salvation they treat the things of God with mediocrity and half heartedness! </p>
<p>“with my spirit” </p>
<p>Not with “eye service as men pleasers” (Eph6:6) </p>
<p>Not to please “itching ears” (2Tim4:3) </p>
<p>An all or nothing service! </p>
<p>Don't mess about! </p>
<p>God takes service personally! </p>
<p>God takes a snub personally! </p>
<p>God takes mediocrity personally! </p>
<p>For the gospel is the “gospel of His Son” </p>
<p>It's not just; 'the meeting' nor 'prayer' nor 'hearing the preacher' </p>
<p>It is the “gospel of His Son” </p>
<p>Today we have: 'gospel meetings' and 'gospel preachers' and 'gospel efforts' and 'gospel hymn books' and 'gospel halls' but do I have a 'gospel heart'? </p>
<p>v9-10 – People Worth Praying For: Prayerful Concern </p>
<p>If they are worth praying for then they are worth keeping praying for (v9b) </p>
<p>Your best friends are the ones that pray for you. </p>
<p>A 3 fold prayer: </p>
<p>v8 – Thanksgiving – praise and rejoicing <br>v9 – Intercession <br>v10 – Request </p>
<p>The great advancement in the gospel in the NT days was linked with a great burden in prayer, consider 1 Thess, begins with prayer, ends in prayer and in the middle there is a prayer (1Thess1:2; 3:10; 5:17). </p>
<p>Do we ever think at times that some don't need our prayers? </p>
<p>Perhaps they need them most: “brethren pray for us,” (1Thess 5:25; 2Thess3:1) </p>
<p>v11-12 – A Gift worth Giving: Prosperous Journey </p>
<p>Cf. Rom12:6 – variety of gifts that he could have imparted </p>
<p>It is easy to abuse communications and fellowship </p>
<p>2 Thess 3 and 1 Tim 5:13 – warns of gossiping and unprofitable visiting </p>
<p>There is a possible profitable use of our time and communications – to build one another up. </p>
<p>Not a gossipy nor a social thing, Paul's vision is much higher than that! </p>
<p>To 'establish' them (v11)! </p>
<p>Ought to make it our ambition / goal to: 'encourage,' 'help,' and to 'lift up,' someone today! </p>
<p>We need to be spiritually in tune for this task: “mutual faith.” </p>
<p>Visiting others when we are away from the Lord will generally not be a source of spiritual uplift to anyone! We may prove more of a hindrance! </p>
<p>The believer ought not to be someone who: </p>
<p>'Gives a piece of my mind' – rather ought to be one who brings the gospel of peace (Rom10:15; Isa 52:7) <br>'Tear a strip off of...' - Rather build up and establish us (Rom1:11; 14:20) <br>Not so much insisting on his rights as bearing others wrongs – Rom 15:1-3 <br>'Sort them out...tell them a few home truths' – Not for us to be judging our brothers conscience nor his weaknesses (Rom14:12), the assembly is bound by God of course to judge His sins (Rom14:13) </p>
<p>The Roman epistle begins with the attitude of a spiritual man and ends by examining the attitude of the unspiritual man. </p>
<p>Examine your motives / words / attitude of heart – is it of the flesh? Of the Spirit? </p>
<p>Never underestimate the importance of an encouraging / building up ministry (1Co12:28). </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Where are we going? </p>
<p>What are we doing? </p>
<p>Living with a purpose? </p>
<p>Gods purposes are not always the same as our plans (v13). </p>
<p>It is “by the will of God” (v10) </p>
<p>God has a definite agenda with evangelism (Acts 8:29; Acts 10:19; 16:7) </p>
<p>Paul hindered in his coming to Rome by the gospel work elsewhere (Rom15:22)</p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>50:25GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67925002008-10-21T20:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:37:11+00:00Romans Chapter 2 Vs 1 to 6 'Many People One Path' - JS Gillespie<p>3 Categories of Sinners: </p>
<p>Rotten Sinners of chp 1 <br>Self-Righteous Sinners of 2:1-6 <br>Religious Sinners for chp 2 </p>
<p>Rotten Sinners of chapter 1 </p>
<p>The pagan idolaters </p>
<p>Self-Righteous Sinners (2:1-6) </p>
<p>They are able to discern sin but not to dispense with sin! <br>Judge sin in others but not in self <br>No repentance from their own sin <br>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 that they have committed and continue to commit (2:4) <br>Judgement is made against their attitude of heart rather than against their ability to lead sinless lives! <br>God will continue on from where they left of and will bring judgement to its "righteous" conclusion (2:5) and that against them! <br>Compare 1 John3:4 where Gods condemnation is not so much against mans inevitable inability to keep to the righteous law of God but rather Gods judgement is against the heart of man, the attitude of man to Gods righteous law: "....for sin is the transgression of the law." or literally "for sin is lawlessness" as attitude of anti-law, of anti-God and of anti-Christ that permeates through the whole of humanity and forms much of the subject of the epistle of 1 John. <br>These men begin the spiritual journey; they feel the conviction of sin but it never becomes a personal challenge / conviction <br>Religion but no reality <br>The religious hypocrite, like the Pharisee of Matthew 23 <br>So easy to agree with the facts of scripture <br>Easy to learn the doctrines and the dogmas of scripture <br>Easy to preach and teach the letter but to miss the Spirit <br>Easy to fail to apply the truth to our own heart and life </p>
<p>Religious Sinners (chapter 2) </p>
<p>The Jew with the law </p>
<p>3 Groups of People: </p>
<p>Pagan Idolater (chapter 1) <br>Enlightened / educated / religious gentile (2:1-16) <br>Jew (2:17ff) </p>
<p>3 distinct administrations / dispensations of God <br>3 distinct ways in which God has dealt with people <br>3 distinct ways in which God has given men the opportunity to find Him <br>There is a 4th - not mentioned in the opening 2 chapters of Romans </p>
<p>The Age of Innocence <br>The Age of Conscience <br>The Age of Law <br>The Age of Grace </p>
<p>Why has God dealt with men in different ways? <br>To demonstrate to all who are willing to come to Him in faith that there is only one way by which men and women can come. <br>There is only one foundation upon which a man or woman can know God <br>That is to come in humility and faith before God, receiving salvation as a free Gift on the Gods terms and not ours. <br>Mans only hope lies not in himself but only in God! <br>One by one God allows man to explore the options leading to salvation and to systematically fail. <br>Man must come in his search for salvation to one conclusion and one alone: </p>
<p>"Without ME ye can do nothing" </p>
<p>"Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God that in due season He might lift the up..." </p>
<p>"Ask and it shall be given..." </p>
<p>But man might say: </p>
<p>If only we had the right ENVIRONMENT we would be alright </p>
<p>SO Gods first administration was in a perfect environment - Eden </p>
<p>No Sin, No Suffering, No Strife, No Poverty, No drugs, No Drink </p>
<p>Man failed, man fell </p>
<p>In the perfect environment man chose to trust Satan rather than the creator </p>
<p>The problem lay in mans heart </p>
<p>There is only one desirable feature in man that God could not create: that was willing obedience, devotion that flows from desire rather than design. </p>
<p>God could not create, uncreated devotion </p>
<p>God desired a Passion for God from mans Pleasure in God </p>
<p>Man chose sin and Satan! </p>
<p>If only we had the right EDUCATION we would be alright </p>
<p>Man left the garden of Eden with the knowledge of good and evil believing that, that knowledge would fit him to become: </p>
<p> "as gods knowing both good and evil" (Gen3:5) </p>
<p>This knowledge, this instinctive appreciation of right and wrong is picked up in Romans chapter 1 + 2 (eg 1:28; 2:1-6) and is constantly and consistently rejected by man! </p>
<p>Man constantly acts contrary to conscience and delights in it! </p>
<p>Perhaps then what we need is something a bit more formal: </p>
<p>If only we had the right ORGANISATION we would be alright! </p>
<p>This is a very modern idea! </p>
<p>Organise problems out of mans life: communism and socialism of the last century - organise out inequalities, greed, suffering and organise in equality and even distribution of wealth. </p>
<p>See it even in our sphere of work, every time a problem is encountered the response is more organisation, greater administration, new protocol. </p>
<p>If mans heart is not right we will never organise an attitude to be right before God. </p>
<p>Gods next administration was that of LAW </p>
<p>A perfect law and not only a law but the organisation and structure with it. </p>
<p>God intended that the nation be led not by a king but by prophets and priestly men. </p>
<p>They had rules governing worship, family life, contracts, health, infection, food, hygiene, war and farming. </p>
<p>This failed, men knew more than ever before but this lead simply to an even greater condemnation than ever before (2:12)! </p>
<p>So what does that lead us to then? </p>
<p>The Day / Dispensation of Grace </p>
<p>What are the principles here? </p>
<p>You've failed <br>You cannot do it yourself: not by environment, education or organisation <br>Shout for help: "He that calleth upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" <br>There is help , there is salvation for us in Christ: "when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly." </p>
<p>One of the great truths of the book of Romans is that in every day and age there have been those who have come to the truth: </p>
<p>You've failed <br>You cannot do it yourself: not by environment, education or organisation <br>Shout for help: "He that calleth upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" <br>There is help , there is salvation for us in Christ: "when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly." </p>
<p>Amongst them: </p>
<p>Abraham (Rom4:1ff) <br>David (Rom4:6ff) <br>Job (Job1:1ff) <br>Noah (Ezek 14:14; Gen 6:8) <br>Daniel (Ezek 14:14) <br>Isaac (Matt8:11) <br>Jacob (Matt8:11) <br>Elijah (Matt 17:3) <br>Moses (Matt 17:3) <br>Abel (Matt 23:35; Heb 11:4) <br>and those great men and women of faith of Hebrews chapter 11! </p>
<p>In the gospels, Christ connects with the men and women of faith in the past: </p>
<p>John 4:6 - Jacobs Well <br>John 8:56 – Abraham <br>Luke 18:22 – Abraham <br>Matt 8:11 – Isaac <br>Matt 8:11 – Abraham <br>Matt 8:11 – Jacob <br>Matt 8:17 – Isaiah <br>Matt 17:3 – Moses <br>Matt 17:3 – Elijah <br>Matt 23:35 – Abel <br>Matt 23:35 – Zechariah </p>
<p>There is continuity between the old and the new <br>That continuity lies in 1 person - Christ (Romans 2:16) <br>cf. Psalm 132:9ff; Gen 22:18 <br>Of these Paul speaks in Romans 2:7. <br>Psalm 111:2-3 - These were all saved by faith <br>There were those who unlike the Rotten Sinners of Romans 1 responded to the <br>"Works of the Lord" by "seeking" Him out (Psalm 111:2) and by seeking for His: 'honour' and 'Glory' and 'righteousness' and that 'forever' (Psalm 111:3) <br>They 'humbled themselves under the mighty hand of God' <br>They were marked by repentance towards sin: </p>
<p>Abraham left his idols (Gen 12; Joshua 24:2) <br>David sought forgiveness (Psalm 51) <br>Jacob wrestled with God <br>Rahab left the old life behind her and let down the scarlet thread <br>Ruth turned her back on Moab</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67924932008-10-06T20:35:00+01:002022-01-08T21:36:10+00:00Romans chapter 1 verses 1 to 7 - Doubts and Deliverance<p>If you are going to give your life for Christ and the Gospel, you need to have confidence / need to be convinced that it is real <br>Paul gave his life for the gospel <br>He needed total confidence in the message <br>Sometimes our service for Christ can be hindered by a lack of confidence in Christ and in the message: </p>
<p>Is it real? <br>Is it reliable? <br>What about all the other messages? <br>Can so many people be wrong? </p>
<p>When faced with doubts there are 3 things we can so: </p>
<p>Deny them - they tend to come back <br>Be Destroyed by them - give in, doubt Christ, doubt His Word <br>Deal with the doubts - this is the path the Spirit of God will take us down, confronted with the reality of the doubts and then presented in His Word with the solution to those doubts. Is this perhaps why so often the Spirit of God will bring us face to face with our doubts? Confront us with our doubts? </p>
<p>Illust: Templeton and Billy Graham - 2 very different responses to the very same problems. The year was 1949, a preacher and pastor by the name of Charles Templeton who had been used in a prominent and public way in Canada and the USA had a spectacular crises of faith. Charles Templeton with some others had been responsible for setting up Youth for Christ in USA and had seen many come to faith in Christ. Templeton became troubled with doubts, exposed to evolutionary teaching, millions of years theory and doubts about the reliability of scripture. He would eventually follow those doubts down a slippery slope of backsliding and apostasy like Judas Iscariot of old. At the time of Chuck Templetons crises of faith he had a close friend, another young American preacher. Templeton told his friend: “You are 50 years out of date, people no longer accept the Bible as being inspired the way you do. Your faith is too simple.” Templetons friend, challenged by Templetons unbelief went out on a lonely walk through the San Bernadino Mountains, bringing his friend to a crisis of faith that night, “At last the Holy Spirit freed me to say it. 'Father I am going to accept this as Thy Word – by faith! I'm going to allow faith to go beyond my intellectual questions and doubts and I will believe this to be Your inspired Word.” <br>Who was Chuck Templetons friend? A young preacher aged 30 by the name of William Graham, that year saw Billy Graham take a campaign in Los Angeles and that launched his ministry as a powerful evangelist of the gospel. <br>Two men so similar in so many ways both faced with the same questions. <br>Questions do not necessarily lead to doubts it is equally as possible that as the Spirit of God and the Word of God take dealings with us that those questions instead of leading to doubts lead rather to a renewed to determination to trust and a renewed sense of dependence upon the God who does have the answers which we do not have. <br>So much of Gods work in my life is in dealing with my doubts <br>"From doubts and fear set free, teach me thy way" <br>To deal with my doubts the Spirit of God: </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Doubts exposed become <br>Doubts examined in the light of His Word become <br>Doubts explained become <br>Doubts expired becomes <br>Dependence experienced becomes <br>Determination renewed </p>
<p>“Trials should not surprise us, or cause us to doubt God's faithfulness. Rather, we should actually be glad for them. God sends trials to strengthen our trust in him so that our faith will not fail. Our trials keep us trusting; they burn away our self confidence and drive us to our Saviour.” Edmund Clowney, Commentary on 1 Peter. <br>I have never had a doubt that His Word has not answered! <br>In Romans 1:1 we have a picture of total commitment <br>For total commitment I must have total confidence <br>For total confidence I must have complete conviction <br>In Romans 1:1-7 we have the: Conviction / Confidence / Proof of reality, the reason for that total commitment. <br>Here is a peek into the mind of a man burning out for Christ! <br>Jim Elliot: Burn out or rust out </p>
<p>Personal Experience (verse 1) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, 16The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth." (Gen48:15-16) </p>
<p>The way He has led us and fed us with His Word <br>Our experience and encounter with Him through scripture (1 Peter 2:1ff) <br>The change that we have known in our life cf. Saul to Paul (Acts 9 and Rom1:1) <br>His guidance and help day by day: "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye" (Psalm32:8) </p>
<p>Promise (verse 2) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Gospel is really one message through many prophets over 1000's of years and down through all generations. <br>Already seen that Paul as he writes Romans does not design the gospel but rather discerns the gospel down through the pages of scriptures: </p>
<p>SIN (chps 1-3) </p>
<p>Sin is proven from the law of Moses (Exodus 20) – Rom2:20-22 <br>Sin is proven from the Psalms of David - Rom 3 </p>
<p>Salvation (Chps 3-5) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Salvation from the Priest (3:25) <br>Salvation from the Patriach (4:3) <br>Salvation from the Psalmist (4:6ff) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Person (v3-4) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>" For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day" (2 Tim1:12) <br>"That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;" (Phil3:10) <br>"And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." (Acts9:5) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>v3 - His Incarnation - Humility and Humanity </p>
<p>v4 - His Resurrection - Power and Glory and Deity </p>
<p>When we think of these 2 aspects of Christ: </p>
<p>His Incarnation (v3) </p>
<p>He was born - but weren't we all? <br>What is so remarkable about the birth of Christ? <br>So much of the OT prophetic scriptures were focused upon His birth <br>In particular, keeping to the text: "seed of David" <br>The line by which He would come: </p>
<p>"And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:" Isa 11:1 </p>
<p>"For thy servant David's sake turn not away the face of thine anointed. 11The LORD hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne. 12If thy children will keep my covenant and my testimony that I shall teach them, their children shall also sit upon thy throne for evermore." Psalm 132:11-12. </p>
<p>"And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever." 2 Sam 7:12-13. </p>
<p>When shall all this happen? <br>Ezek 37:21-28 <br>In keeping with Christ as the Son of David Micah 5:2 prophesied that He will be born in Bethlehem in the city of David: </p>
<p>"But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." (Micah5:2) </p>
<p>The incarnation is only part of the story in these verses There is more to Christ than His link with David and with humanity <br>If that is all v3 was to tell us we wouldn't need the phrase: "according to the flesh" <br>In other words Christ was truly human, born into the lineage of David with a real physical link in His flesh to the humanity He came to save and that through Mary. <br>Christ was truly human but not only or solely human <br>Their was a further aspect to His being. <br>Christ did indeed have His roots firmly anchored in humanity (Isa11:1;53:1) <br>But His origins lay in eternity: </p>
<p>"I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father." (John16:28) </p>
<p>"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God." (John1:1-2) </p>
<p>"Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am." (John8:58) </p>
<p>The humanity of Christ came through the seed of David but not His: </p>
<p>Personality - Divine Person <br>Identity - Preceded His birth <br>Life - He is the origin of life: </p>
<p>"In him was life; and the life was the light of men" (John1:4) </p>
<p>"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John14:6) </p>
<p>"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:" (John11:25) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>When God created man, God said: "And God said, Let us make man in our image" (Gen1:26) <br>Who is the "us" and the "our"? <br>Surely the Father, The Son and the Spirit of God? <br>All 3 Divine persons were involved in the creation of man. <br>Having created mans physical form: "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground," God then "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul" <br>In Hebrew literally "the breath of lifes" <br>The lifes that would subsequently come from the lineage of Adam were breathed into man at that point <br>The life that I now possess was originally breathed into Adam in Genesis 2. <br>All human life was potential in Adam <br>Therefore when Adam fell, his fall affected all subsequent offspring: </p>
<p>"Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:" (Rom5:12) </p>
<p>Christ did not inherit that fallen and corrupted life from Adam, Christ is the origin of all creation. </p>
<p>"Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. In Christ we have a distinct, pure and powerful source of life, uncorrupted, undefiled and eternal:" (Col1:15-17) </p>
<p>"All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men." (John1:3-4) </p>
<p>The life of Christ is therefore distinct from the life that flows from Adam. <br>Christ breathed life into Adam in Genesis 2 He did not take His life from Adam! <br>The Life of and from Christ is uncorrupted, undefiled and eternal: </p>
<p>"And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit." (1 Co15:45) </p>
<p>All of this was already a feature of OT prophecy and had been for well over 1000 years: </p>
<p>"And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." (Gen3:25) </p>
<p>"For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me." (Job19:25-27) </p>
<p>"Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion." (Psalm 2:6) - The Son of David - seated on the throne in Davids city </p>
<p>"I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee." (Psalm 2:7) - The Son of God </p>
<p>"My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer." (Psalm 45:1) - Messiah </p>
<p>"Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for ever." (Psalm45:2) - Humanity </p>
<p>"Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre." (Psalm 45:6) - Deity </p>
<p>Psalm 110 </p>
<p>"Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." (Isa 7:14) </p>
<p>"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." (Isa9:6) </p>
<p>"The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God." (Isa40:3) </p>
<p>"O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! 10Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him." (Isa 40:9-10) </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Power: </p>
<p>There is no Power in a dead Saviour! <br>Christianity is unique in many ways: </p>
<p>Buddhists follow the teachings of Buddha <br>Muslims the writings of Muhammed <br>Confucianism the sayings of the philosophers </p>
<p>But Christ said: "I AM the way..." <br>The apostles said: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved..." <br>"There is no name under heaven given amongst men whereby we must be saved" <br>"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." (1John5:12) <br>If Christianity stopped at the cross of Christ there would have been no Christianity! <br>The men of NT days were no different made from the men of today <br>Having seen their Lord and Saviour tried and condemned and crucified and buried they became deeply discouraged and began to despair: </p>
<p>Luke 24:17 <br>John 20:19ff <br>John 18:25-27 <br>Matt 26:56 </p>
<p>There is nothing terribly inspiring about a dead Saviour! <br>I know that down through the generations many have preached the words / the works / philosophies / teachings / ideas of a dead man: Buddha, Mohammed, Confucius, Tao and Zoroaster <br>But what they have not done is preach salvation by virtue of the fact he is present, alive and able to save! <br>It has been a message of follow his teachings, his path, his revelation! <br>The message that the apostles preached was the message of a living Saviour: <br>"Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans, and of the Stoicks, encountered him. And some said, What will this babbler say? other some, He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods: because he preached unto them Jesus, and the resurrection." (Acts17:18) <br>If we say that these men were wrong about the resurrection of Christ then we are saying that: </p>
<p>They are preaching error - admittedly this is very common in religion </p>
<p>But more importantly: </p>
<p>They are knowingly preaching error - since the apostles were also the "witnesses to His resurrection" (Acts1:22). Normally religious fundamentalists believe what they are preaching - that is why they are so convincing. If these witnesses to the resurrection were nothing of the sort they were lieing and thus not only were they preaching error but they were knowingly preaching error! This sometimes happens for normally a self serving reason: make money eg Benny Hinn, Cefla Dollar, Oral Roberts. <br>These men died for the message they preached! They died for a message they knew was false! Not just a false message but a message that they knew was false! </p>
<p>If we say they were not witnesses to the resurrection we then are saying: </p>
<p>They lied about seeing Christ alive and resurrected <br>They founded their ministry on a lie <br>They then died for what they knew was false! <br>ie. they were mad! </p>
<p>Is the letter to the Romans the work of a mad man? <br>Surely it is reasoned, logical, intelligent, knowledgeable and meets the need of my heart? <br>It is surely the Word of God! <br>The testimony of the apostles to the resurrection is therefore very important and very convincing, yet it does not stand alone: </p>
<p>Romans 1:4 "...according to the Spirit of holiness..." </p>
<p>Romans 1:4 emphasises the role of the Spirit of God in the resurrection of Christ. <br>Why is this? Was only the Spirit of God so involved with the resurrection of Christ? <br>Surely both the Father and the Son were active in the resurrection? </p>
<p>"Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." (John2:19) <br>"Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." (Rom6:4) </p>
<p>Why the emphasis on the activity of the Spirit of God in the resurrection? <br>Is it not because His testimony is ongoing and evident not only to the apostles at the time of the resurrection but even then to the readers of the epistle to the Romans and to you and I today? <br>The testimony of the Spirit of God to the resurrection of Christ is present with us today! <br>It is His Power that continues to run right the way through this epistle and this message of the gospel (Rom8:1) <br>It was by virtue of the resurrection of Christ that the Spirit of God descended: </p>
<p>Acts 2 </p>
<p>John 14 </p>
<p>Eph 4 </p>
<p>Thus today in the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and in the reading of the inspired Word of God His Spirit is operative in a powerful way: </p>
<p>"convict of sin..." <br>"Convinced of all" (1Co14) <br>"speak as oracle of God" (1Peter4) "not in Word only" (2Thess 1)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>55:53GraceinChrist Bible Teachingtag:graceinchrist.org,2005:Post/67924962008-09-02T20:00:00+01:002022-01-08T21:35:38+00:00Romans chapter 1 verses 2 to 4 - Proving the Gospel is Real <p>'If its new its not true and if its true its not new' </p>
<p>How authentic is this message? </p>
<p>Did it come from man? </p>
<p>Did it come from God? </p>
<p>The authenticity of the Gospel. </p>
<p>verse 1 - The Man </p>
<p>verse 2 - The Message </p>
<p>Hardly a more important question than this - is it real? </p>
<p>Reasons the Gospel is Real: </p>
<p>Personal Experience (v1) – Paul – Servant, Sent One and Separated <br>The Promise (v2) - The Gospel lies (not very well) hidden in OT promises <br>The Person (v3) - The Lord Jesus Christ is real <br>The Power (v4) - The power of His resurrection is real <br>The Product (v5) - The results are real </p>
<p>The gospel is not real because I have a perfect understanding of it in all things! </p>
<p>I</p>
<p>Personal Experience (v1) </p>
<p>First word we are presented with in this book about the gospel is a new name for an old man! <br>Acts 9 – Sauls Complete Conversion from: </p>
<p>Destroyer (9:21) to Disciple (9:19) <br>Persecutor (9:4) to Preacher (9:20) <br>Taking Christians out of the synagogue (9:2) to putting Christians into the synagogue (9:20) <br>Darkness to light <br>Foe to Friend <br>Hunter (9:1-2) to hunted (9:23) </p>
<p>Saul had to experience the gospel before he expounded or explained the gospel! <br>It took the greatest work of God in the Chief of sinners (1Tim1:15), a murderer, a blasphemer and persecutor of the body of Christ, for the greatest exposition of the gospel to be written! <br>Lets not miss the basics in our exposition of the book of Romans: this message changes lives! This much is evident in the first word of this epistle! <br>Saul felt the gospel before he telt the gospel! <br>We must know the power of Christ in our life before we will have a passion for Him! <br>Paul was an example of the gospel before he was an expounder of the gospel! <br>“servant” - “δοῦλος” - a slave <br>First mention of “δοῦλος” in the NT: “Mat 8:9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.” <br>Here is the priniciple of the “δοῦλος” - a slave: “do this and he doeth it” <br>Do we think that the apostle Paul suffered floggings, imprisonment, stoning and ship wreck because he enjoyed that kind of thing? Because it was convenient? Because he didn't have anything better to do? Because he wasn't otherwise busy that night? Because he didn't have a better offer? <br>As God would take us and change us, knock off the rough edges, soften our hearts, take away lust and give us lust, take away resentments and give us rejoicing, turn bitterness into sweetness, move us from grudges to grace, give us victory over our addictions, and in place of fear fill us with faith. <br>Then men can say what they will about the Gospel of Jesus Christ but this one thing they must face: that it is real and that it works! </p>
<p>The Promise (v2) </p>
<p>This message was promised <br>As Paul begins to preach this message he will draw it all from the OT scriptures <br>This path of salvation is nothing new! <br>The gospel does not just go back to the 1st Century AD, goes way back beyond that: </p>
<p>Psalm 19 – Creation </p>
<p>Psalm 19 – Conscience of Sin </p>
<p>Psalm 19:12 – Cleansing form sin </p>
<p>Psalm 20 – Sacrifice (20:3) </p>
<p>Psalm 20 + 21 – Salvation (20:5; 21:1,5) </p>
<p>Psalm 22 – Christ and the Cross </p>
<p>The ABC of salvation has not changed: </p>
<p>A – Awareness of God – Creation </p>
<p>B – Burden of Sin – Conscience and the Law </p>
<p>C – Christ, Cleansing and the Cross of Calvary </p>
<p>Can add D, E, F, G </p>
<p>D – Decision </p>
<p>E – Evidence (Rom5) </p>
<p>F – Fight (Rom 6,7,8) </p>
<p>G – Glory (Rom 8) </p>
<p>The gospel does not just go back to the 1st Century AD, goes way back beyond that: </p>
<p>Sin: </p>
<p>The Law (2:21) </p>
<p>Thou shalt not steal (2:21) <br>Thou shalt not commit adultery (2:22) <br>Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image (2:22) <br>Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. (2:24) </p>
<p>All of this is very ancient, extending back to the days of Moses: Exodus 20 and Deut 5. Nothing that the Gospel has to say about sin is new! </p>
<p>The Psalms </p>
<p>"As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one" Rom 3:10 - Ps14:1-3 + Ps 53:1-3 <br>"Their throat [is] an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps [is] under their lips" (Rom3:13) - Psalm 5:9 <br>"There is no fear of God before their eyes" (Rom3:18) - Psalm 36:1. <br>The teaching here on sin is nothing new <br>God has not changed His mind about sin <br>We can trace back this teaching on sin to: </p>
<p>Moses and the 10 commandments <br>David and the Psalms </p>
<p>Salvation: </p>
<p>The second section of Romans is on the great subject of salvation (3:21ff) <br>Look how this section begins: <br>"Being witnessed by the law and the prophets" <br>How did men get to God in the Old Testament? <br>Paul takes 3 examples: </p>
<p>The Priest <br>The Patriarch (Abraham) <br>The Psalmist (David) </p>
<p>The Priest </p>
<p>The holiest man (or at least he ought to have been) in the nation <br>Separated to the service of God <br>Separated from birth <br>Underwent elaborate rituals of cleansing and consecration <br>Dressed in special white linen <br>At times some had been known to give their lives in the service of the Lord eg. Zechariah the son of Jehoida in 2 Chron 24:20. <br>Yet when it came to approaching near to the presence of God in the temple or tabernacle how did the priest get into the presence of God? <br>On the basis of who he was? On the basis of his birth? On the basis of his elaborate religious ritual? <br>No - the priest draws near on the basis of shed blood! <br>The language of 3:25 is drawn from the OT language of the priesthood. <br>"Whom God hath set forth [to be] a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God" (3:25) <br>" ἱλαστήριον" - propitiation: 'mercy seat' <br>The priest could only draw near to God because blood had been sprinkled on top of the law! <br>The priest needed mercy like any other man needed mercy! <br>Mercy came by shed blood! <br>Not that the blood of an animal could placate a righteous and Holy God but the Priest had to come with "faith in...blood" <br>The Priest had to trust that the Lord would accept the blood and allow him access into His presence! <br>This is as it is with Christ: "through faith in His blood" (3:25) <br>Not only was this the way of the Priest but it was also the: </p>
<p>The Patriarch - Abraham (Rom4:3) </p>
<p>"Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness" (Rom4:3) <br>Faith was "reckoned" it was "credited" to him as "righteousness" <br>Abraham did not gain favour with God He was given favour with God. <br>Abraham did not know how Gods purposes and plans would be worked out in Christ but he trusted God that they would be! <br>This verse has implications for the question as to what about those who never heard the gospel? <br>If this message is so important how come we only have heard about it in the last 2000 years? <br>There were those who were saved who rested in the fact that God would one day bring His salvation to pass, they did not know precisely of what that salvation consisted but they trusted Him to bring it to pass. </p>
<p>The Psalmist </p>
<p>Rom4:7 and Psalm 32:1,2 <br>Bring these all together <br>David states it negatively, God does not impute sin (4:8), God deals with sin (4:7) <br>Abraham states it positively (4:3) <br>Priest presents it practically - brought in by faith in His blood </p>
<p>The Person (v3-4) </p>
<p>Here is the subject of the Gospel: the person and work of Christ! </p>
<p>We note here: </p>
<p>Humanity of Christ (v3) </p>
<p>Consider the prophecies of His humanity: Isa 7:14 <br>Consider the specific prophecies that Christ would come through the family of Jesse (Isa11:1) and from the seed of David in particular: Ps132:11,12; 2 Sam 7:12-13, 16; Isa11:1; Ezek 34:23; 36:24ff; 37:24ff. </p>
<p>Deity of Christ (v4) </p>
<p>Consider the prophecies of His Deity: Isa 7:14; 40:1; Ps110; Ps2:7,12. </p>
<p>The Power (v4) </p>
<p>“Spirit of Holiness” <br>Christ is separated from the rest, separated from sinners, from the dead! <br>He is different! <br>One unique man in history! <br>The usual natural laws were broken, biological principles reversed, for this to have happened God as the author and sustainer of these laws must have been involved! <br>He is therefore: “declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” <br>Christ is: </p>
<p>The Son of God who came by Promise (v2) <br>The Son of God declared by Power (v4) </p>
<p>“And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. (1Co 15:17)” <br>The apostles preached “Christ and the resurrection” (Acts 2:31) <br>The Gospel is not a collection of ideas, a philosophy, a set of dogmas it is the power of God unto Salvation (Rom1:16)! <br>By His Power the Christian life comences (Rom1:6,16) and by His resurrection power the Christian life continues (Rom8:1ff) <br>“δύναμις” - “power” - 120 X in the NT and 7 X in Romans </p>
<p>The Product of it (v6-7) </p>
<p>Outline of Romans: </p>
<p>Sin : Why do we need the Gospel: answered in chps 1 to3 – Sin and Condemnation: </p>
<p>The Rotten Sinner (chp1) </p>
<p>The (self) Righteous Sinner (chp2) and </p>
<p>The Religious Sinner (chp2+3) </p>
<p>Salvation : What is the gospel, What did Christ actually do (chps3-5)? – Propitiation. How do I receive salvation (chp 4+5) – justification by faith. What are the products of salvation? The 4 'Rs' – Righteousness (5:1) Reconciliation (5:2,10), Rejoicing (5:2,17) and Regeneration (5:12-21). <br>Struggle : Chapter 6 to 8 – Living the Christian Life – death to the old life (chps 6+7) and new life in Christ (chp 8). It is a struggle! This pattern seems a bit familiar? You could have written this yourself? When God saves us, for the first time in our life He gives us the liberty and ability to chose! We've never actually had that before. The extent to which we chose to be yielded to Christ and to His Spirit is the extent to which I enjoy victory, and His peace, presence and joy. If I allow the passions of the flesh to dictate my paths and my priorities, I will live a life of spiritual failure, misery and sorrow and disappointment. Life is a struggle? Do you think nominal Christians have a struggle? Do you think unregenerate men and women have a great spiritual struggle in their life? Take courage Christian, a struggle means there is a battle going one for the Spirits victory over the flesh! When it stops being a struggle you are either home in heaven or you've just back slidden! <br>Spirit : The Solution : Chapter 8 – how we gain the victory in Christ <br>Sovereign Purpose - Chapters 9 to 11 – Election! </p>
<p>Dealing with serious objections to the Gospel! </p>
<p>There are some silly objections you meet over the years: 'you don't believe that a man could be raised from the dead?' or 'You don't actually believe that water could be turned into wine?' - well yes I do believe that God can raise the dead and turn water into wine! </p>
<p>There are some serious objections and problems: </p>
<p>'If God is so great and the Gospel is so obviously true why doesn't everyone believe?' (9:6). </p>
<p>'If God does save some and reject others is God fair?' (9:14) </p>
<p>'If this gospel is so important as you say it is then why hasn't everyone heard it and what about those who have never heard the gospel?' (chp9 &10) </p>
<p>'So you believe in a God who created the universe, a thousand million stars in a thousand million galaxies and He's interested in YOU! Aye right, get a grip, get real!' - answered in chapter 9! </p>
<p>Sacrifice and Sanctification: (Chps 12) </p>
<p>The Struggle and the Spirit </p>
<p>Dieing and living in newness of life </p>
<p>2 Kings4:15-17 - The son given by promise </p>
<p>2 Kings4:20 - The boy dies </p>
<p>2 Kings4:23 - Elisha will be approached on the ground of grace not of law </p>
<p>2 Kings4:25 - The Shunammite woman comes to Carmel - the place of fruitfulness </p>
<p>2 Kings4:26 - The 3 fold "Shalom" - resurrection ground </p>
<p>2 Kings4:31 - The staff of Elisha is not enough we need his presence and person </p>
<p>2 Kings4:34 - Both Elisha and the boy identified in death and thus identified in life </p>
<p>2 Kings4:35 - The child sneezes 7 X - work of the Spirit of God </p>
<p>The one who is the source of the life is the one who sustains life </p>
<p>We must be identified with Him in death so that we might know the power of His resurrection </p>
<p>We must die to the flesh and to the world that we might live to Christ</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Notes from our bible study teaching series of messages preached systematically, verse by verse, through Paul's letter to the Romans. Free to download audio mp3 recordings of this sermon and other sermons are available at the end of this blog and on the website page. </p>
<p>Yours by Grace in Christ </p>
<p>Dr J Stewart Gillespie</p>47:05GraceinChrist Bible Teaching