Slaves - July 28th, 2013 Sermon

Three friends from the local congregation were asked, "When you're in your casket, and friends and congregation members are mourning over you, what would you like them to say?" Artie said: "I would like them to say I was a wonderful husband, a fine spiritual leader, and a great family man." Eugene commented: "I would like them to say I was a wonderful teacher and servant of God who made a huge difference in people's lives." Don said: "I'd like them to say, 'Look, he's moving!'"

Dead people do not get up and walk around. I hate to tell you this but The Walking Dead is not Science Fiction, its Fantasy. Dead is dead. There is no in between. Either a person is still alive or they are dead. Oh sure, a person can be mostly dead. But then that’s when you need Miracle Max to give you a magic pill coated in chocolate to bring you back to mostly alive. But still, there is death and there is life.

The difference between death and life is what Paul addressed in Romans chapter 5. The old man (Adam) introduced death. But the new Man (Jesus) provided life. And if a person accepts the sacrifice of Jesus they are given eternal life. Even though the body dies, a person who has been spiritually reborn will be in the presence of God for the rest of eternity. God is the giver of life. To be with Him is to be fully alive. To be banished from His presence is death.

Now I know this can be a rather difficult concept to understand. We look around us and see life. But Satan has hypnotized us into believing that what we see and experience in this world is life. However, the truth which Satan does not want us to see is that we are in bondage. We are slaves. We are held captive and don’t even know it. Satan has cast a spell, and we naively believe that living separated from God is freedom. But this simply is not true. We are slaves to sin and slaves to death. However, God, in His infinite mercy, has provided a way to break free from the bondage of death; to break the shackles of slavery, and find the freedom to choose. Before we met Jesus we had no choice. But because of Jesus, you and I have the freedom to choose; to either remain dead or choose life.

To choose life is to identify yourself with Jesus. To choose life is to leave death behind. Yet if this is what a person has chosen, why in the world do they still cling to death? Why would a person who is free from bondage still live like a slave? Why would a Christian allow themselves to be held captive by sin after Christ has set them free? This is the question Paul asks in Romans chapter six. ‎There is a big difference between a dead body and one that is alive. There should be a big difference between the actions of a person still dead in sin and the person who has been made alive through faith in Christ (Read Romans 6:1-14).

There is a key word in this section which is found at the end of verse 4; “we also may live new lives”. ‎Paul's use of the word "May" in this verse indicates a freedom we did not previously possess. Prior to being born again we were prisoners to sin. We had no choice. But since we have become Christians through faith in Jesus, we now have an option. We have a choice. Yet how many of us make the choice to still be bound by sin. How many of us remain slaves to the very sins which held us captive even though Christ has set us free.

Look closely at verse 11 here. “Consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus”. ‎Paul's point here is that our actions indicate who holds us captive. If (since) we are Christians, Jesus has broken the shackles of sin that held us captive. So we ought to be living as if we are indeed free. But if we continue to practice the same sins that once held us captive, who then is our master?

A popular argument in the world today is to claim that we are who we are. Among the homosexual community I often hear the phrase “God made me this way”. But the point Paul has been making up till now is that we have been made in the image of sin. Adam and Eve may have been created in God’s image, but you and I have been born in the image and likeness of Adam after he sinned. Consequently we all are born with sin’s mark in our lives and had no choice. However, if we become a believer, the shackles of sin are removed, and we finally do have a choice. We have a choice to become obedient to the commands of God. Sin is no longer our master, and we ought to be living in a way that demonstrates God is our Master.

This is the whole point to what Paul is saying in this section. When a person is set free from the bondage of sin and death, they are no longer slaves to sin. For the first time in their life they have a choice. They can either choose righteousness and obedience and holiness, or still allow sin to control the way they live. The unsaved do not have this choice, but Christians do.

So when we allow sin to wields its power in our lives we are following the wrong desires. But why would a Christian hang on to the old life and the old sins even after Christ has set them free? In other words, if a person has found life, why in the world would they desire the things of death? And don’t start blaming others for the sin in your life. It is not God’s fault that you struggle with sin and no, the Devil didn’t make you do it. You made a choice. You made the choice to allow sin to hold you captive. As a Christian you do have a choice. You are no longer a slave to sin. So make the decision today to “Stop letting sin reign”.

Life - July 21st, 2013 Sermon

 

I love the above cartoon. It explains the necessity of the cross quite simply. To diminish the divinity of Christ takes away His ability to bring us to God. To diminish our sin might make our life easier and more convenient, but in the end we will find our sin still standing between us and God. There is only one way to bridge the great chasm that separates us from God, and this is accomplished through the death of Jesus. No one else can bridge the gap because no one else paid the debt. No one else offered themselves as a sinless sacrifice for sinful people. Upon the cross one Man offered one sacrifice for all people. And it is only through this one Man that humanity might be saved.

This is the story of the Bible in nutshell. God creates man. Man rejects God. God begins developing a plan to rescue man without breaking any of His laws. God sends Jesus to die in man’s place. Man accepts God’s offer of peace. Man gains eternal life. That’s the message of the Bible when you set aside all the theology and the different ways of practicing the faith. It really is a simple message. And it really is Good News. This is what Paul is trying to teach in the book of Romans. He explains God’s plan of redemption to his readers. It is a plan based upon faith. And when a sinful person places their faith in God's Son, they are at peace with God. God provides humanity a way to break free from sin and death, and instead find righteousness and life (Read Romans 5:12-21).

Setting the stage for chapter six, Paul reminds us that a Christian has moved from death to life; from being under the curse of sin to freedom in righteousness. And what is the curse of sin that has marked each of us? It is death. When Adam disobeyed a direct command from God, God pronounced judgment against that sin. Death was introduced into this world as the result of that sin. And every person born since the beginning has inherited that curse (you do realize that every human being that has lived since Adam and Eve have been a recreation, not a new creation). This is what Paul is pointing out here. Death became a part of this world because of Adam’s sin. And whether a person knows God’s Laws or not does not mean they are sinless (a person can’t break the law when there is no law to break). The fact that they die is an indication of their sin. Death is the mark of sin.

Each of us has been born into sin. And this fact is true, says Paul, because all people die. And honestly, the only way to escape this would to be born outside of the natural process where the seed of a man combines with the seed of a woman. You and I simply have no choice. To be born is to be born with the mark of sin. There is no way to escape this. There is only one way possible to conceive a human being. Even cloning is simply another way of recreating. The clone would still inherit the sin nature and be destined to die. We have no choice. Even if it is in a petri dish or a test tube, it’s still the same. We are marked by death. However, we do have a choice in being born again, which is to be spiritually reborn. We make that choice by believing in faith that Jesus paid the sacrifice for our sin. And because of our faith in Jesus, God removes the mark of sin (which is death) and replaces it with the mark of life (the Holy Spirit). In Adam all have the mark of sin because of death (see verse 17). But in Christ all have the mark of salvation because of eternal life.

Now I know some might argue that even believers die, so where is this “eternal life” that God promised. But those who ask such a question are only looking at things from an earthly perspective. They are not looking at things from a Spiritual perspective. Paul says that, “our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever” (1 Corinthians 15:50). So the lesson Paul is teaching here transcends the physical and speaks more to the spiritual. Truthfully, even though a person’s heart still beats and even though there is breath in their lungs, they are still dead from a spiritual perspective. They are dead in their relationship with God. They show no signs of Spiritual life.

This is the great deception of Satan. He has hypnotized the world into believing that there is life apart from God. But there is no greater lie than this. Apart from God there is no life. There is only sadness, sorrow, slavery, and death. Apart from God a person is empty of life. Satan wants us to think that life is only what we can see, hear, feel, touch, and taste. But God, on the on the other hand, offers us life; a life no longer ruled by sin and by death, but a life free from bondage and slavery.

We all have inherited death; both a physical death and a spiritual death. And there is nothing we can do to keep this from happening. But God, in His great mercy, has provided a way to escape the spiritual death. We will all die physically, but we need not die spiritually. This is God’s Good News. Through faith in Christ we can find life.

And now to the questions:

I was asked to explain what Paul meant in Romans 5:7 (Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good). To understand this verse, it must be read in conjunction with verse 8 (But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners). Paul is painting a contrast here. There are probably certain people someone would be willing to die for. I would gladly sacrifice my life for the lives of my family. But Paul’s point here is that not only would Jesus sacrifice Himself for the good and upright person in our community, but also the town drunk, the homeless person, the village prostitute, and the murderer in the county jail. This is the difference that separates Jesus from the rest of the crowd. He died for the people we would not.

Peace - July 14th, 2013 Sermon

During Napoleon's invasion of Russia, his troops were battling in the middle of a small town when he was accidentally separated from his men. A group of Russian soldiers spotted him and began chasing him through the streets. Napoleon ran for his life and ducked into a little furrier's shop on a side alley. As he entered the shop, he saw the furrier and cried, "Save me, save me! Where can I hide?" So the furrier hid Napoleon under a big pile of furs in the corner. When the Russian soldiers burst in the door looking for Napoleon, they searched everywhere, even poking the pile of furs with their swords, but could not find him. Eventually they left.

Napoleon crept out from under the furs, unharmed, just as his personal guards came in the door. The furrier asked Napoleon, "What was it like to be under those furs, knowing that the next moment might be your last?" Insulted, Napoleon bellowed, "How could you ask me such a question? Guards, take this man out, blindfold him and execute him."

The guards grabbed the furrier, dragged him outside, stood him against a wall and blindfolded him. The furrier could see nothing, but he could hear the guards shuffle into line and prepare their rifles. Then he heard Napoleon clear his throat and call out, "Ready! Aim!" In that moment, a feeling he could not describe welled up within him; tears poured down his cheeks. But the blindfold was stripped from his eyes and Napoleon said, "Now you know."

I believe it is the same with grace. It will be difficult for someone to understanding grace until they experience it for themselves. And I suspect a person will have difficulty extending grace until they realize just how much grace they have been shown by God.

As we've been reading through the book of Romans, Paul has been dealing quite harshly with his readers. He has basically said, "You are all sinner; both the Jew and the Gentile. We all have no excuse. A person can't claim that they were unaware God exists. A person can't claim they are right with God because of all the religious things they have done. A person can't claim they are right with God because their great grandfather was a preacher. Everyone has sinned. Everyone has fallen short of the glory of God. Now, these are not the warmest words, nor are they very politically correct in today’s society. I’m sure it’s not the best way to get invited back to preach a second sermon. But Paul had his reasons, which we will see in a moment. Just give the man one more moment of your time because his teaching is about to turn a corner (Read Romans 5:1-11).

Chapter five of Romans doesn't impact a person until they realize that they are a sinner. Grace means nothing until a person knows they need grace; until they know they stand before God condemned. Because of our faith we are declared guilt free by God, and the penalty for our sin has been paid by another. That person is, of course, our Lord Jesus. However, as comforting as these words are, we will not know their full impact until we are willing to admit that we are sinners. This is why Paul spent three whole chapters dismantling the platform of excuses we all so eagerly build beneath us. He tears these down so that verse 8 has its desired impact. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. But we will not fully grasp the magnitude of this claim until we fully grasp the magnitude of our sin.

Without realizing that our sin causes us to stand condemned before God, we will not fully appreciate the extent of Grace. We will not know what Grace really feels like until we are willing to stand before Him expecting the full extent of His wrath. Sobbing and weeping, we have no excuse, and we know it. But rather than pronounce our sentence, God provides an opportunity for Grace. Before He shouts “fire” He offers terms of peace. God extends His arm toward those who are condemned beckoning that they be spared simply by believing Jesus paid the penalty for their sin. And if the condemned believe and accept God’s offer of peace, God chooses grace. And those who knew they were condemned are the ones who appreciate grace the most.

Consider the story of Simon and the sinner in Luke 7. In verse 47 Jesus says, “I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” Jesus does not mean the woman loved Him more because she had more sins to be forgiven. Jesus was pointing out the difference between the woman's attitude toward sin and Simon's attitude. Simon could have had the same great love for Jesus if only he would have climbed down off the platform of righteousness he had built for himself and admitted that he too was a sinner no different than this woman.

We can argue against grace all we want, but it still will not change the fact that God has chosen to grant grace toward anyone who places their faith in the Messiah. Yes, you heard me right. Grace is God’s choice. It is part of His plan. God intended from the very beginning to provide a way for sinful humanity to be at peace with Him. It did not involve humanity removing its sin, but God making peace with a sinful humanity. This is what Paul is trying to get his readers to understand. We don’t make peace with God, but rather, God has made peace with us. He established peace with us through the death of Jesus while we were yet sinners! And all we need to do is simply except His terms of peace. And His terms are to simply believe in faith that peace comes through Christ.

And now the questions:

One question I was asked after the June 23^rd sermon had to do with living out our faith. Can a person simply have faith but never put it to work? In other words, if we do have faith in the promise of God found in Jesus, shouldn’t that faith change our lives? Does a Christian have to act like a Christian once they are a Christian? That’s a great question, which is answered in detail in Romans 6. But the short answer is yes, there should be a difference in a person’s behavior once they become a Christian, if they can. If a Christian has the time and the opportunity, there should be a noticeable difference in the way they live. We will talk about this in more detail in two weeks.