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Part 13 of 20
How To Get Right With God
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The book of Romans is an ancient letter written by the apostle Paul and is undoubtedly one of the most scrutinized and influential letters ever written. It is a literary masterpiece whose influence around the world remains unmatched. Still, 2,000 years later, people continue to study, debate, write about, and discuss Romans. What the Lord inspired through the Holy Spirit in Paul's life to compose such a letter is remarkable.
Paul writes this letter to a budding church on the doorstep of Nero's palace in the epicenter of the Roman Empire. He addresses a small church facing a unique dilemma and tackles significant questions. Remarkably, Paul goes to the marketplace with his faith in a respectful, gentle, and brilliant creative way, calling all critics and skeptics to the table.
The entire Greco-Roman world would have been influenced by Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics, and maniacal leaders like Emperor Claudius and Emperor Nero. Paul recognized that people are conditioned to think in certain ways based on their cultural nurturing.
Instead of dismissing opposition, Paul says: "Can we just sit down at the table and have a meaningful conversation about questions that face all of us?" He invites everyone to consider fundamental questions: Is this world random? Is it just a byproduct of accident? Or is there purpose behind it and a designer behind it all?
Paul's approach is courageous. He essentially says: "I'll put Christianity out there. What else you got?" Let's all put our beliefs on the table and walk away considering which has the most credibility.
The book of Romans is known as the believer's constitution. There is no document that more concisely, with greater clarity, spanning and applying to such a diverse group of people than Romans. When you start to get into it, you realize that Jesus is in a complete league of his own.
Christianity is not anchored to a wise fable or urban legend. We are not following after something mythical. We have a historically verified story that every single one of us is a part of, and it continues to unfold before our very eyes. Much of this story has been influenced by this letter and what takes place in the chapters we're studying.
Chapters 1 through 8 comprise the gospel presentation. Before you walk away from Christianity, understand what we actually believe. Chances are you don't like something in the church that we also don't like. Make sure you're understanding the faith accurately before dismissing it.
Chapters 1 through 8 end with this triumphant declaration: nothing can separate us from the love of God. If you come in thinking God is out to get you with lightning bolts ready to take you out when you're not looking, that's the wrong idea. God is not mad at you as much as he's mad about you. Our God is love—the full, complete fulfillment of perfect, eternal, unconditional love. That force is at our back every single day.
We live with the mindset that we are more than conquerors. Not because we're impressive or great, but because the same power that conquered the grave lives and resides in us. Those of us who have placed our faith in Jesus Christ have welcomed the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, where we are now maturing in Christ, taking on the image and likeness of our Savior, and are empowered for mission to carry forward the gospel.
Salvation is not a wage. It is not based on your work or effort. None of us are that impressive. You cannot access it by merit or compensation. It is a gift—something God chose out of the goodness of his heart and the generosity of his being to extend to us.
We do not access this gift by achieving and earning. It is certainly not anchored in our effort. It is simply by believing and receiving that we have access to this gift, pardon from our sins, and have been accredited the righteousness of Christ.
The fulfillment of the law is now imputed into our life. Jesus shows up, fulfills the law, and takes the yoke of bondage and the burden of our damnation from our shoulders. He liberates us to live a free life knowing that everything we do moving forward is simply extra credit. We live in a fulfilled law.
Now we move forward recognizing: if death cannot defeat us, nothing can defeat us. Trials, persecution, famine, despair, hatred, evil, and wickedness—our Savior came and stared death, hell, the devil, and the grave in the face and conquered it all on your behalf and mine. Not because we manipulated the heartstrings of heaven or figured out a way to get to God. God figured out a way to get to us.
Paul knows that the moment he says the good news of the gospel is available to the entire world, it changes everything. The echo of Romans is: the world. The world. The world. John 3:16 says, "For God so loved the world."
When you look up "world" in Greek or Hebrew, it means everybody. We want to dance around this as if God has fences on his heart, but God is endearing, intentional, and willing to accept anyone and everyone despite your background, despite what you've done, your mistakes—the ones people know about and all your shameful secrets.
Here's the deal: The one who knows you the best knows all of that and loves you the most. He stares into your mess and still sees purpose, still sees potential. That comes with a great deal of hope.
Emperor Claudius kicked the Jews out of Rome. They had to leave their homes, their possessions, even their church. Then Emperor Claudius passed and Emperor Nero took power. He had his own agenda and could care less whether the Jews lived in Rome. He lifted the ban, and the Jews came back.
What they discovered shocked them: their church still existed, but it was now predominantly—100%—Gentile. The Jews showed up and thought, "We are the people of God. We are his chosen nation. We are set apart for his purpose. We are children of the promise. You're now letting the Gentiles in?" (Gentiles are those of non-Jewish descent.)
The Jews believed this shouldn't be allowed. They assumed Paul had gone off the rails, deviated from the faith, and was becoming a cult leader teaching false doctrine and endorsing heresy. Paul knew their assumption.
In chapters 9, 10, and 11, Paul begins to address the questions, doubts, and accusations of his own tribe. It is harder to turn to your own people and offer them a humbling or sobering truth.
Essentially, Paul runs the gauntlet on Jewish history, making it clear: "Hey, this was God's plan the entire time." He talks about Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Esau, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Hosea, David, and Moses. He's running the list.
Time and time again, when the Jewish people question "What about this?" Paul says, "Let's go to the scriptures. What does God's word say?" We would do much better if we would pause on our opinions and ask, "What does God's word say?" Some of us are quoting God's word saying things that aren't in it. That's spiritual forgery, folks. Make sure you get God's authorization before you make a declaration on his behalf.
The title of this message is "The Raising of a Remnant." Paul's initial idea is: "Guys, this is not a deviation. This is a pattern." If you look at scripture, you see God has been remarkably consistent time and time again.
Romans 11:1-2 begins: "I asked them, Did God reject his people? By no means. I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham from the tribe of Benjamin. Did God reject his people whom he foreknew?"
What does "raise a remnant" mean? Time and time again, the people of God kept getting it wrong. They kept falling into the worship of false idols. They kept turning their back on and rejecting God's word and ways. They were reckless and reaped the consequences of their own poor decisions.
Yet despite the brokenness of the world and the extreme failures of humanity, God meticulously, brilliantly, creatively, and powerfully moves history forward on a thread. When you go through history, you realize it was so close to this whole thing coming to an end. The people of God sometimes got down to just a few people, and God said, "I'm still going to carry it forward."
When the evilness in the world became so great that the judgment of a flood was appropriate, God still said, "Despite their recklessness and destruction, I see this one family—Noah and his family—and I'm going to carry forward with this small remnant my purpose."
The prophets would warn: "If you continue turning your back on God, if you continue rejecting his ways, if you continue swelling up in pride and rebelling against his decrees, it's going to come with a bad destination and undesirable results." Isaiah and Jeremiah would prophesy, the people would ignore and reject, destruction would come, and the prophets would say, "But God once more will raise up a remnant."
Even when ransacked and demolished, when a few were taken as hostages and prisoners, even in situations where Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were held prisoner, God was raising a remnant and somehow continuing to carry forward his redemptive promise.
Even though they mess up, even though they turn their back, even though they throw in the towel, even though the majority reject and rebel, God does not give up on his people. He's committed to do whatever it takes to get the job done.
If you don't get excited about the fact that God does not give up on his people and is committed to carry forward his plan, that's amazing. It comes with our full adoration, devotion, and surrender. Why wouldn't you want to live fully devoted to a God who's been so good to you?
You surrender it all because you discover he truly does work all things together for our good. You start to realize, I can fully entrust my life into the tender care of this God.
Paul is saying: God is doing it again. God is raising a remnant and he is moving forward his plan for history.
Personally, I think the church in America in our context feels like a bit of a remnant season. The last five years have come with a lot of disturbance. Scripture says what can be shaken will be shaken. What we have watched over the last five years, and I'm sure we'll see even more of it in the days to come, is the evaporation of cultural Christianity.
For a long time, people in our country called themselves Christian because it was popular. But what happens when the gospel is no longer popular? Well, fickle fans get exposed pretty quickly and true disciples emerge to the surface.
Over the past five years, the post-pandemic church in America has become smaller in terms of numbers, but it has grown in greater substance and purity. There is a deeper hunger and a deeper devotion among believers. Many have realized they built their lives on shallow things and are now committed to a firm foundation, living with hearts wide open and anticipation, hope, and confidence.
God is still in the business of raising up a remnant, and we can be part of his redemptive work moving forward as he carries out his promise to his people.
Paul references Elijah, one of the great heroes of faith. Elijah's entire life can be summarized in four words: bouts, droughts, doubts, and routes.
Elijah had significant bouts—most famously, the battle on Mount Carmel where he faced off with the prophets of Baal and called down fire from heaven. But exhilaration can lead to exhaustion. Following this victory, he found himself fatigued, suicidal, and wanting to end it all. He faced famine and need, and he began to wrestle with threatening doubts.
God also called Elijah to go on different journeys—to meet with a widow in the middle of nowhere on the other side of the region. That's a random route. Similar to Elijah, every single one of us has been called by God to live out a route—to be a person of certain gifting and purpose, to live out God's will and ways for our lives.
There is a next step, a path for every single one of us. God wants us to continue moving in the direction of his full and perfect plan. But it's up to us to say yes.
Whether you've been a Christian for 40 years or you're not even a Christian, you have a next step. For some, your first step is placing your trust in Jesus Christ. For others, it might be joining a team, leading a life group, going on a mission trip, being part of a local service project, giving for the first time, or attending more regularly. But we all have a next step.
A lot of times we're complaining, wanting to experience the God of the Bible, but we're unwilling to live like the people of the Bible. The people of the Bible said yes to God's word, and God showed up in outstanding ways. What a model for us.
When Elijah felt outnumbered and overwhelmed, God told him: "I know you feel outnumbered, but no, you shouldn't feel overwhelmed. I have reserved 7,000 prophets who have not bowed the knee."
For the isolated Christian, maybe you need to hear that message: You're not alone. There still are faithful followers who refuse to bow the knee to any other God besides Christ and Christ alone.
God is raising up a remnant. He has not rejected the Jewish people—the Jewish people have rejected him. But there is still hope. There is still time.
Jesus tells a parable at a Pharisee's house about a man preparing a great banquet who invited many guests. When it was time, he sent his servant to tell those invited: "Come, for everything is now ready." But they all began to make excuses.
One said he had bought a field and must see it. Another said he had bought oxen and was going to try them out. Another said he had just gotten married and couldn't come. The servant reported this to his master, and the owner became angry. He told his servant: "Go out quickly into the streets and the alleys of the town, and bring the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame."
Every single one of us can identify with those four labels. We are spiritually poor and impoverished in our soul. Many of us understand our brokenness. Being lame means having the function of your body but being overwhelmed by the pain of your life—unable to function. Many can relate to being pinned down by pain.
God says: "Bring to me everyone. The one who is poor in spirit. Bring to me the one who is utterly broken. Bring to me the one who is pinned down in pain. And bring to me the person who is utterly blind. And I will provide a seat at the table with me."
The servant said: "Sir, what you ordered has been done, but there is still room." The master told his servant: "Go out to the roads and the country lanes and make them come in so that my house will be full."
Overlay that parable to what Paul just wrote in his letter. This is what Scripture was saying was going to happen all along. God was extending an incredible invitation, and the people of God were rejecting it. So God said: "If you don't want to come to the party, I'll go out into the highways and byways, the alleys. I'll get everybody." And they came back saying: "Master, we've done what you ordered. But there's still room."
Thank God there's still room in the family of God for another broken person, another person with a painful past or a weird journey.
It doesn't matter where you've been. It doesn't matter what you've done. If you confess that Jesus Christ has conquered death, hell, and the grave, resurrected and ascended to the Father, and is Lord and Savior, and you believe in your heart that what he did on the cross was for your behalf, you will be saved.
Everyone—anyone who opens their heart to God—can discover life-altering grace. And how does Paul describe it? Riches. Riches. Riches. His grace is abundant and abounding. It doesn't play to our preferences, but it exceeds our expectations.
If you want to understand grace, turn it into an acronym: G.R.A.C.E.—God's Riches At Christ's Expense.
For whatever reason, this God showed up and was so good. He footed the bill. He paid the tab. He served as the fulfillment of our ransom note. Why? He's just that good. As long as we keep trying to explain grace based on who we are and what we've done, we'll miss the mark and end up in something that's not grace. We get the riches of the kingdom. We are heirs to the family of God—at Christ's expense.
If you're a Christian and you lack an appreciation or awareness of the remarkable history and foundation laid through the Jewish community and the nation of Israel, you will always lack substance in your faith. You will actually lack confidence in your faith.
When it comes to historical records, Christianity is unmatched in terms of historical verification. Paul is inviting us into understanding our story. He turns to his tribe and says: "Guys, it's not a deviation. It's a pattern. He's raising up a remnant. And if you place your faith in Jesus Christ, you too can be saved."
What's amazing is they believed him. How do we know? Because a church worshiping Jesus took root on the doorstep of Nero's palace in an empire where it was illegal, where Christians were persecuted, where they were crucified along the roadside to spark fear. Despite the destruction, despair, and hardships, God still got the job done.
Eventually, Christianity toppled the Roman Empire. By the 4th century, Constantine became a Christian. Jesus Christ was crucified on a Roman cross—a torture tool. And that torture tool became a universal symbol of love. Only a redemptive, creative, and brilliant God can say: "I am going to redeem the empire. I'm going to have greater influence. I'll use your roads and your ports."
As a Christian, you ought to live with that at your back every single day. But please rid yourself of the unnecessary insecurity and self-deprecating behavior that fosters your shame and gives God a million reasons why he can't love you. That's nonsense. He loves you. He's for you. He's done the unthinkable on your behalf. He pursues you every single day.
Your goodness is running after you every single day of your life, and surely you will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. God is going to get the job done. The heavy lifting is on his shoulder, not yours. All you have to do is do the small things like they're big things, trusting he's going to do the big things like they're small things.
Paul ends his letter with a remarkable statement. He writes:
"Now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey him—the only wise God forever."
When Paul thought about God, he said: He's the only wise one. He's brilliant. All these other idols people chase after are foolish. We serve the only wise God. That puts your mind at rest because the deeper you dive, the more you realize there's still mystery—but it makes sense and it's unmatched.
Jesus is my Savior. Why wouldn't you live every single day enjoying that? Stop trying to explain it and just enjoy the experience.
He is a faithful God. He is a merciful God. He gets the heavy lifting done, and he is the source of all that we need. When you're overwhelmed with anxiety, he's your source of peace. When you're overcome with despair, he's your source of joy. When you're confused, he's your source of wisdom. When you're weak, he's your source of strength. When you're fearful, he's your courage. He's our foundation.
