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Romans 1:8-15 · Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

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  Beloved, we have so much to be thankful for.
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  Simply those things that our finite minds tend to label good,
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  ! If we are attentive, could fill our days with thanksgiving.
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  ! If it really stopped to really think about all the things that are easy to define as good.
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  We have limitless things to thank the Lord for.
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  And Paul is going to go on and tell us in Romans chapter 8 and verse 28
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  that we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good.
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  And so he broadens our horizon, not just to those things that are easy to call good,
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  but to everything that happens in our lives.
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  It is good.
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  Paul models thanksgiving for us here in verse 8.
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  And Paul exhorts in his writing again and again that we should be thankful.
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  One example.
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  In 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, verse 16 through 18, he says,
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  Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances,
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  for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
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  That you would rejoice always, that you would pray without ceasing,
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  and that you would give thanks in all circumstances.
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  It is God's will for you in Christ.
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  However you might feel today,
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  I want to invite you to take a moment to be thankful.
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  Just a quiet moment to thank God for the salvation of your soul.
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  If in fact you are found in him this morning.
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  I believe that often we forget how undeserving we are of the grace of our God to us in Christ.
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  We forget to be thankful for the very salvation of our souls.
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  This is a mine that could be mine forever, and it will be.
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  Thanksgiving for our salvation.
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  Take a moment this morning to thank God for your life.
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  Everyone here at the present moment is alive.
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  Glad for that.
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  You have great opportunity this day to see, to savor, and to glorify your God.
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  Might take a quiet moment to thank God for your family and the blessing they are,
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  even when they're not easy on a Sunday morning.
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  And perhaps like Paul, to thank God for the church.
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  Those that he's saved along with you, that he means to be such a grace to you.
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  We have so much to be thankful for.
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  I pray that it becomes the impulse of your heart and mine to begin.
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  First, I thank my God through Christ Jesus for.
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  And that we would spend our lives completing that sentence.
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  The theologian William Law once wrote.
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  Would you know who is the greatest saint in the world?
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  It is not he who prays the most or fast the most.
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  It is not he who lives the most.
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  But it is he who is always thankful to God.
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  Who receives everything as an instance of God's goodness.
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  And has a heart always ready to praise God for it.
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  Oh, I wonder how many things pass through my life that I fail to praise my God for.
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  However, I'm sure that my life is replete with neglected opportunity for thankfulness and praise.
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  Let's notice, secondly, Paul's obedience.
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  Look at a bit more text for this.
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  Verses 9 and 10 and then 13 through 15.
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  Before I read that again, just like to say, oh, that we would be obedient like Paul.
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  You see, Paul has a desire.
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  And as I'll show you in a bit, it is a God given desire.
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  But he is willing to submit in all things to the sovereign purpose of God.
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  So again, verse 9 and 10, he says, for God is my witness whom I serve with my spirit and the gospel of his son.
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  That without ceasing, I mention you always in my prayers.
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  And he gives us the specific asking that somehow by God's will, I may now at last succeed in coming to you.
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  He wants to be with them.
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  And he tells us for what purpose he wants to do this.
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  Verse 13 and following.
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  I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I've often intended to come to you, but thus far have been prevented.
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  In order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles.
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  He's talking about saving faith there.
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  He says, I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish.
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  So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
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  Paul is driven to see them, to minister to them, to see Romans come to faith in Christ.
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  It's all wonderfully good things that he desires to do.
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  All of these desires are of the Lord.
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  And yet Paul recognizes the restraining hand of God in preventing his coming.
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  Look back at verse 10.
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  He says, in his prayers, he asked that somehow by God's will, he may succeed in coming to those Roman believers.
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  He recognizes that God has not yet willed it, that he would be there.
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  Why?
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  Because he's not there.
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  Clearly it hasn't happened.
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  And therefore it hasn't been God's will that it would happen.
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  See, Paul only wants what the Lord wants.
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  He is confident that should God intend him to go, that he will at last succeed in coming to them.
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  Many of us wonder what God's will is for our lives and spend much time fretting about it.
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  This happens very often in life transitions.
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  Right, college students?
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  Paul desires to go.
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  He prays that he might and he submits himself to God's will.
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  I think that we would likely be wringing our hands.
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  Oh, to go to Rome or to not go to Rome, what am I to do?
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  We've spent all of our time preoccupied with the question.
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  Asking others what they think we ought to do.
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  Thinking constantly about it.
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  But listen to what Paul says later in this letter about knowing the will of God.
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  This is Romans chapter 12.
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  The very beginning, just after he has finished his systematic theological portion of this letter.
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  When he turns his attention after a beautiful doxology to practically apply all that he's taught so far.
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  He says this.
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  This is verse 1 and 2 of Romans 12.
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  I appeal to you, therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice.
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  That is, submit your whole self to him.
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  Utter submission.
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  Utter obedience.
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  Recall Paul in verse 1 calls himself a servant of Christ, Jesus.
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  He goes on in verse 1, chapter 12.
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  Holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
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  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind.
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  That by testing you may discern what is the will of God.
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  What is good and acceptable and perfect.
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  Our minds are renewed by what?
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  Now, he tells us this in Romans chapter 8.
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  As he talks about the things of the Spirit and the word of Christ.
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  Our minds are renewed by the word of God.
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  So train yourself and be trained in the word.
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  If you desire to be submissive to Christ.
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  Read it.
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  Memorize it.
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  Meditate upon it.
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  Apply it obediently to every facet of your life.
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  If you, by grace, are obedient in increasing measure to all that the Bible commands.
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  Then you need not worry about the particular what and who and when.
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  Because you will find yourself discerning what is the will of God.
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  What is good and acceptable and perfect.
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  Don't become distracted by trying to sort out the details.
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  So that you neglect the very clear commands that God has already given to you.
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  Donald Barnhouse once wrote, this is on your bulletin if you care to reference it.
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  It says, the score of God's plan is set forth in the Bible.
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  In the measure that I learn it, submit myself to it, and seek to live in accordance with all that is therein set forth.
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  I shall find myself in joy and in harmony with God and his plans.
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  So in any circumstance, with Paul's good impulse to want to go, Paul was willing to submit himself to the restraining hand of God at this point in his life.
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  So that was Paul's obedience.
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  Notice thirdly, Paul's longing.
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  See this at the very beginning of verse 11.
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  A significant marker of a mature Christian is his or her love for the church.
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  Note that Paul is longing to see these people, to know and to be in fellowship with them.
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  This is not his local church.
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  This is not the people he knows best, but they are those saved by God in Christ.
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  And therefore, he also loves them.
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  John writes in 1 John chapter 4, verse 19 and 20.
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  We love because he first loved us.
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  If anyone says, I love God and hates his brother, he is a liar.
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  For he who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.
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  Show me a person who claims to follow Christ that does not love the church.
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  And I will show you a person who most likely is not a Christ follower.
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  If you love Jesus, then you will love the church, even with all her imperfections.
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  In Acts chapter 20 and verse 28, Paul says that Jesus obtained the church with his own blood.
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  You don't have to love the church's imperfections.
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  In fact, you shouldn't.
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  But you have to love her.
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  You have to desire holiness for her and long to be with her that you might serve her.
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  That you might help to build up this thing that Jesus shed his own blood for.
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  We'll see further in a moment.
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  That's the very drive for Paul's longing.
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  What is it that he longs to do?
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  We'll note here in just a bit.
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  He wants to see the church built up for the glory of God.
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  I fear that too many Christians these days attend a church, perhaps call themselves part of a church for what they might get out of it.
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  They might particularly like the singing or the teaching.
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  It checks particular boxes for them.
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  They aren't really willing to participate in the life of the church.
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  They're not really willing to get in the mix and to help it grow in holiness.
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  Paul writes in 1 Corinthians chapter 13 verse 1 and following to a people who were eager for gifting and expressions of gifting and being known for that.
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  He has a lot to say about love.
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  What ought to drive the impulse for any service to the church ought not be pride, but love.
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  You may be familiar with some of this, not just a marriage text.
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  Beginning in verse 1, he says,
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  If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
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  And if I have prophetic powers and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
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  If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
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  And I think he's exaggerating intentionally.
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  I think he's saying, you can't do any of these things.
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  You're not going to be this people.
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  But if you even think you can, if you can obtain to this, but you have not love, you're noisy, you're nothing, and you gain nothing.
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  And he goes on.
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  Love is patient and kind.
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  Love does not envy or boast.
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  It is not arrogant or rude.
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  It does not insist on its own way.
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  It is not irritable or resentful.
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  It does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.
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  Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
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  Beloved, we would do well to emulate Paul's longing to be with this church, to love this church, and to impart something to it for its benefit.
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  So in thinking about that into the rest of verse 11 and on to verse 12, notice Paul's humility.
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  Notice his humility.
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  He says that he longs to be with them, to see them, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you.
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  That is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine.
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  Now, from my perspective, if anyone had a reason to boast, it was Paul.
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  But he does not.
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  I feel as if Paul didn't need to write verse 12, but he does.
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  In verse 1, I mentioned previously, he expressed the humility of referring to himself as a servant of Christ Jesus.
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  And here he recognizes the opportunity for mutual encouragement.
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  This Paul, Paul the apostle, right, sees the opportunity for them to also encourage him.
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  In the modern discipling model, you'll often hear things like, everyone needs a Paul and everyone needs a Timothy.
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  In fact, I'm pretty sure I have said something to this effect in the past.
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  And the sentiment is good, right?
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  Find someone who can invest in you and find someone that you can invest in.
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  This kind of assumes some sort of spiritual ranking, doesn't it?
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  Like we just move in degree and every part of our maturity just levels up.
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  And we keep on doing that.
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  Areas of our life do grow and we do get stronger and we do improve.
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  But it's prideful for us to think that we've reached a level where everybody then is below and we invest in them and we have to find that super Christian to invest into us.
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  And it kind of becomes a tragic pyramid scheme.
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  Paul longs to see these Christians because he knows the Lord will use him to strengthen them in the faith.
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  Isn't that astounding?
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  Verse 12.
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  May impart some spiritual gift to strengthen you.
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  Verse 12.
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  That is, he clarifies that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine.
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  You see, beloved, humility is a prerequisite for growth in faith.
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  And healthy humility yields increased faith.
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  When we realize that we are not the source of all that is necessary for life and godliness, and we are not.
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  We have nowhere to run except to the one who is the source of life and godliness.
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  What a beautiful thing it is when God's people walk in humility with one another.
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  Seeing each other as a grace given by our God for the increase of our faith.
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  And laboring, working to bring about that in others as well.
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  That we might be mutually encouraged by each other's faith.
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  Both yours and mine.
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  Church is a beautiful community project of faith.
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  Progressing together.
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  Growing in holiness together to the praise of our God.
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  Paul expresses this very idea in Ephesians chapter 4.
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  It's one of my favorite church texts.
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  So you spend much time with me.
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  I will reference it once again.
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  Here in chapter 4, Paul talks about Jesus ascending and descending and giving gifts to men.
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  And he lists those beginning in verse 11.
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  Where he says, and he gave the apostles, the prophets.
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  Which I will argue just for two seconds.
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  I think he's referring to the Bible there.
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  I think he's referring to the writing of the Old Testament and the writing of the New Testament.
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  Then he says, besides the point.
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  Then he says, the evangelists and the shepherd teachers.
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  Why?
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  Why did he give these gifts to the church?
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  To equip the saints for the work of ministry.
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  This is verse 12.
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  And here's the work of ministry.
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  For building up the body of Christ.
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  So catch what he's saying there.
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  Here's that mutual encouragement of faith.
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  All of us working together to build up the body of Christ.
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  Verse 13.
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  He says it has a goal.
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  Until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God.
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  To mature manhood.
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  To the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
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  So that we may no longer be children.
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  Tossed to and fro by the waves.
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  And carried about by every wind of doctrine.
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  By human cunning.
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  By craftiness.
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  In deceitful schemes.
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  Rather.
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  Speaking the truth.
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  In love.
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  We are to grow up in every way.
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  Into him who is the head.
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  Into Christ.
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  From whom the whole body.
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  Joined and held together.
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  By every joint with which it is equipped.
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  When each part is working properly.
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  Makes the body grow.
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  So that it builds itself up.
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  In love.
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  Isn't that beautiful?
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  Each part.
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  Every part.
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  Necessary.
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  Right?
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  Not ranked in spiritual order.
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  But necessary.
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  And working properly.
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  When the body is doing this.
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  We speak the truth in love to one another.
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  We encourage each other.
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  In the scripture.
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  To grow up into Christ likeness.
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  For the praise.
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  Of our great God.
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  And beloved.
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  All of that.
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  Starts with humility.
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  All of that begins.
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  Believing.
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  That others can invest.
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  Into you.
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  And be used as a grace.
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  By our God.
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  To grow you.
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  In the faith.
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  Paul.
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  Paul thinks that.
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  Surely we should think.
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  That.
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  So we see.
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  In this text.
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  As Paul expresses his desire.
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  He's writing them to say.
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  I've longed to come to you.
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  I've been prevented from coming to you.
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  I hope someday.
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  I'll get to come to you.
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  These character qualities.
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  In him.
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  These dispositions.
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  As he writes.
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  These verses.
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  This text.
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  Paul expresses.
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  His thankfulness.
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  His obedience.
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  His longing.
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  And his humility.
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  Let's pray together.
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  For the grace.
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  To emulate.
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  These qualities.
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  To be with us.