Romans: From Rags To Righteousness (Part 1)

Pastor Rocklyn Clarke - Sunday October 10, 2010

© 2010 Life Church Ministries, Inc.

http://www.LifeChurchBoston.org/

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Notes
V Introduction
V Bible Reading:
* OT Timeline:
* OT Contemporary Books:
> Review
V New Material
> Preparation
> Misc
V Romans: From Rags To Righteousness (Part 1)
V Raw Material
* Write a blog entry on James Ryles’ definition of grace.
The empowering presence of God that enables you to be who he has called you to be and to do what he has called you to do
V For a message:
* Make sure you know God - “I never knew you”: Visiting, feeding, clothing those in need aren’t to be done as rules, but rather as a reflection of knowing Jesus.
* 1Cor 13 “if I have not love”: Giving to the poor must be done out of love.
* Find Bible passage connection between this love and knowing God
V For the message
* Saying "I've never believed in any other God!" is like saying "I only root for the Celtics!". This is not the same as playing on the team and putting points on the board.
V Sermon Illustration:
* Our mission is not to permanently destroy the world’s system. It’s there to provide a “powerful delusion” for those who refuse to believe the truth. Our mission is to continually unravel the world’s system as a witness to the power and authority of God’s Kingdom.
V For the Message:
* Let the Ephesians 1 passage transform your thinking (Romans 8:5-6, racism as “2nd-hand smoke”)
* Romans 8
* You can do it too - let God design your relationships.
> Create resources for congregation:
* You have what you need! Use what you have!
* God: “They have been given my Spirit; teach them to listen to him.”
V The more Word you plant in your heart, the easier it will be for you to hear God’s Spirit.
* Romans 12:1-2
* The Spirit reminds us of what Jesus said - John 14 - 16
* For the message:
* The proper use of suffering.
* The way that I used TV to fight loneliness while Eva was away last night even though the Holy Spirit had told me to avoid TV during this period. This increased my vulnerability to sexual temptation.
* Use freedom - don’t worship it
* Deal with marriage sabbatical concept.
* Lexical search on judging.
> Preparation - Romans 1:18-32
> Standing Issues
V Introduction
* Welcome to another service at the Hampton Inn & Suites.
V Welcome Cards -
* “I want to call your attention to the Welcome Card that you were given on your way into the auditorium”
V These cards do two things for us:
* They help us get to know our new visitors better.
* They also give anyone (visitors or members) a chance to express a need or to give us feedback.
* By filling it out you will help us to better serve you.
V We're going to provide time for you to complete the cards at the end of our service, but we encourage you to start filling them out now.
* Please use this card:
if you’re a first time visitor or if you’ve never filled one out before,
to tell us about a decision you made today,
to ask us for more information, or to give us feedback.
Please include your contact information unless we already have it. At the end of service we’ll ask you to complete the card and then place it in the designated box or give it to someone from our staff on your way out.
* Transition
* Read Introductory Passage: Romans 1:1-17
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* Read the Passage - Romans 1:18-32
* Exegetical Idea
God expresses his wrath towards those who reject him by handing them over to their own increasingly depraved desires.
* Homiletical Idea:
Rejecting God is the road to wrath!
V What does this mean?
V God's wrath
* orge Gk. (orge) - anger
V God's revelation of himself
* God has revealed himself in creation:
V God's invisible qualities:
* eternal power
* divine nature
V This revelation is available to everyone.
* Intro to Paul on Mars Hill - Acts 17:16-21
* Paul on Mars Hill - Acts 17:22-31
V Rejecting God
* Sinful people reject God's revelation of himself in creation.
* In rejecting this revelation they suppress the truth.
V All of this results in God's wrath (anger).
* Jesus and man with the shriveled hand - Mark 3:1-6
V Handing over (examples):
* People are handed over to police, courts, jailers, etc.
* Jesus was handed over to the Sanhedrin, Herod, Pilate
V Increasingly depraved desires
* These desires quickly lead people downhill
* "sinful desires" - epiqumia Gk. epthumia = lust, strong desire
V Deparaved - aÓdo/kimoß Gk. (adokimos) - untested, unapproved
* 1Corinthians 9:27
No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
* 2Corinthians 13:5-7
Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you — unless, of course, you fail the test? And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test. Now we pray to God that you will not do anything wrong. Not that people will see that we have stood the test but that you will do what is right even though we may seem to have failed.
* 2Timothy 3:8
Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth — men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected.
* Titus 1:16
They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
* Hebrews 6:7-8
Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of God. But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned.
V Is it True? Do I believe it?
* Yes - I saw it happen in college!
* Yes - it's happening in our communities.
* Geto Boys: "My Mind Playin' Tricks On Me"
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V What difference does it make? So What?
* This is the bad news! It is the context for the good news.
* The righteousness revealed in the gospel balances the wrath of God revealed from heaven.
* This is the first part of the case that Paul makes against humanity. He starts with the most obvious parts of the problem.
* This gives us God's perspective on humanity - we have no excuse!
V The wrath is illustrated by the behavior of those under it.
* God's wrath on the Jews - 1Thessalonians 2:13-16
* Wrath is already here; judgement will come later.
* This is what the good news saves us from - Romans 1:16-17
* Homiletical Idea:
Rejecting God is the road to wrath!
V Purpose of the Sermon (what listeners should do)
* Understand the risk of rejecting God.
* Learn to recognize daily opportunities to embrace or reject God.
* Understand how to embrace God rather than reject him.
* Homiletical Idea:
Rejecting God is the road to wrath!
V Understand the risk of rejecting God.
V Rejecting God results in him releasing you to your own desires.
* This is where God's unhappiness with us starts.
* We tend to focus on lists of sins, but they are really just symptoms.
* We weren't designed for independence.
V The corruption in our flesh tends to multiply.
* A little leaven . . . - 1Cor 5:6; Gal 5:9
* Food left out of the refrigerator.
* Don't worship your freedom - use it to serve God. - Gal 5:13
V Learn to recognize daily opportunities to embrace or reject God.
* Will I talk to God this morning? Will I listen to him?
* Will I listen to what God says about events in my day"
* Is God trying to tell me something?
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V Understand how to embrace God rather than reject him.
V What makes God happy?
* Relating to him makes him happy.
* Refusing to relate to him makes him unhappy.
* Say "Yes" to God on a regular basis. Why not say it right now?
* Write it down!
* Reflect on it!
* Talk it over with other brothers and sisters.
V Practice relating to God during worship.
* Don't focus on the music!
* Focus on tell God what he means to you!
* Listen to what he's saying back to you.
V Conclusion
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V Altar Call / Welcome Cards / Communion ?
* Welcome Cards - refer to script
* We're almost ready to close this portion of our service, but first we want to give you a chance to respond to what you've heard.
* Earlier in the service we mentioned the welcome cards and we encouraged you to begin filling them out.
V Right now we want you to complete your welcome card. We especially want you to use this card if:
* if you’re a first time visitor
* if you’ve never filled one out before,
* if you want to tell us about a decision you made today,
* if you want to ask us for more information, or to give us feedback.
* Please be sure to include your up to date contact information unless we already have it.
* MC & Worship Team continue with tithes, offerings, and worship
* Benediction - Numbers 6:24-26
“‘“The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.”’
* Men's Prayer
V Life Group Material
V Life Group Word Material
These are sample discussion questions / topics. Your life group leaders may choose to adjust these questions, substitute new ones, or spend the Word section of the meeting in a different way altogether.

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.
V Romans 1:7-17
To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. God, whom I serve with my whole heart in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you.
I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong — that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.
I am obligated both to Greeks and Non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome.
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
V Discussion Questions / Topics:
* How have you handled the gospel (i.e. the good news about Jesus Christ) this past week? Have you treated it like the power of God to save people? Discuss.
V Romans 1:18-32
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator — who is forever praised. Amen.
Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.
Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
V Discussion Questions / Topics:
* God's revelation of himself in nature leaves us without excuse for failing to acknowledge him. Do you believe that people have no excuse for rejecting God? Discuss.
* When people reject God's revelation of himself he gives them over to their own sinful desires. Can you recognize this process in any of your own history? Have you seen this in the lives of others? Discuss.
* Paul writes about people who "worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator". Are there any ways in which this applies to you? Discuss.
* Consider the various sins listed in this passage: idolatry, sexual immorality (heterosexual and homosexual), greed, envy, murder, deceit, gossip, slander, etc. Are there things about this list which surprise you? Are there items on this list that are especially meaningful to you? Discuss.
V Life Group Witnessing Activities
V Key Passage - Ephesians 1:15-23
For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
V Activities
* Begin praying this prayer four yourself and for the members of your life group.
> Scriptures For 10/10/2010 Life Church Sermon
Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.