Gospel Mission
Romans 15:1-7
The GOSPEL AND adoption
rOMANS 15:1-7
Acts 17:6–7: “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also… saying that there is another king, Jesus.”
Main Idea: We are called to ordinary gospel-driven lives to the glory of God.
I. We Love Our Neighbors (15:1–2)
Romans 15:1–2: “We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up”
II. We Resolve to Appear Foolish for Christ’s Sake (15:3)
Romans 15:3: “For Christ did not please himself, but as it is written, “The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.”
1 Corinthians 1:18: “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”
III. We Holdfast to the Sufficiency of Scripture (15:4)
Romans 15:4: For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope
1 Peter 3:15: “In your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.”
1 Corinthians 15:3–4:“Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.”
IV. We Live in Christ Exalting Harmony (15:5-6)
Romans 15:5–6: May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
V. We Welcome One Another as Christ has Welcomed Us (15:7)
Romans 15:7: Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you
Conclusion: For the Glory of God (15:7b)
We exist to see a greater worship of Jesus through declaring and displaying the gospel.
The Gospel and Adoption
Romans 8:12-17
The GOSPEL AND adoption
rOMANS 8:12-17
What is a Christian? The question can be answered in many ways, but the richest answer I know is that a Christian is one who has God as Father… If you want to judge how well a person understands Christianity, find out how much he makes of the thought of being God’s child, and having God as his Father. If this is not the thought that prompts and controls his worship and prayers and his whole outlook on life, it means that he does not understand Christianity very well at all.
~ J.I. Packer, Knowing God
Main Idea: Though we were orphans, we have been adopted into God’s family and guaranteed an inheritance with Christ.
I. Brothers & Sisters by the Spirit (8:12-13)
John 14:16-18: “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”
II. Sons of the Father (8:14-16)
The Spirit makes the heart of Christ real to us: not just heard, but seen; not just seen, but felt; not just felt, but enjoyed. The Spirit takes what we read in the Bible and believe on paper about Jesus’ heart and moves it from theory to reality, from doctrine to experience. It is one thing, as a child, to be told your father loves you. You believe him. You take him at his word. But it is another thing, unutterably more real, to be swept up in his embrace, to feel the warmth, to hear his beating heart within his chest, to instantly know the protective grip of his arms. It’s one thing to hear he loves you; it’s another thing to feel his love. That is the glorious work of the Spirit.
~ Dane Ortlund, Gentle & Lowly
III. Co-Heirs with the Son (8:17)
We should not try to correct Scripture. It is true that in Rome ‘sonship’ was a status of privilege and power given only to males. Yet Paul now has the boldness to apply this to us - to all believers! This shows that God does not distinguish in giving honor. All Christians, male and female, are now his heirs. It was a subversive thing for Paul to take a masculine-only institution and show that, in Christ, the institution of "empowering-through-adoption" is used on females as well as males without distinction. Christian women should not resent being called "sons" any more than Christian men should resent being called part of the bride of Christ (Revelation 21:2).
~ Tim Keller, Romans 8-16 For You
Our inheritance with Christ means:
Our Past is Redefined (Gal. 3:13-14)
Our Present is Redeemed (Heb. 2:11)
Our Future is Secure (Eph. 1:3)
The Gospel and Church Planting
Romans 1:1-15
The GOSPEL AND CHURCH PLANTING
rOMANS 1:1-15
Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.
Main Idea: The gospel compels us to plant churches among the nations for the sake of Jesus’ name.
I. The Foundation of Church Planting (1:1-5a)
The Gospel of God (1:1; cf. 1:16)
The Word of God (1:2)
The Son of God (1:3-4)
The Grace and Commissioning of God (1:5a)
II. The Aim of Church Planting (1:5b)
“... to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name” (cf. Phil. 2:9-11)
The highest of all missionary motives is neither obedience to the Great Commission (important as that is), nor love for sinners who are alienated and perishing (strong as that incentive is), but rather zeal — burning and passionate zeal — for the glory of Jesus Christ.”
~ John Stott, The Message of Romans
III. The Scope of Church Planting (1:5c)
“... among all the nations.” (cf. 15:8-9, 20-24)
By planting churches, we have the privilege of being in on God's sovereign work in the world. God's redemptive plan has always involved having a people for himself (Titus 2:14; 1 Pet. 2:9-10). When you start a church, you’re doing more than starting an event at a storefront, school, under a tree, in a house, or at some other location You're actually participating in the grand narrative of God having a people for himself (Acts 18:10), a story that culminates in John's glorious vision in Revelation where a people from every tribe and language and nation are giving praise to the Lamb (Rev. 5:1-14). This vision compels us to be faithful in our present generation until the mission is finished.
~ Tony Merida, The Faithful Church Planter
IV. The Results of Church Planting (1:8-15)
The Gospel is Preached (1:15)
The Lost are Saved (1:13-14)
Churches are Strengthened (1:11-12)
God is Glorified
Implications:
We must pray for the work of church planting (cf. Matt. 9:35-38)
We must be generous toward the work of church planting
We must be eager to share the gospel to catalyze the work of church planting
Social networks are the basic mechanism through which conversions take place ... Most conversions are not produced by professional missionaries conveying a new message, but by [church] members who share their faith with their friends and relatives ... Although the very first Christian converts in the West may have been by full-time missionaries, the conversion process soon became self-sustaining as new converts accepted the obligation to spread their faith and did so by missionizing their immediate circle of intimates.
~ Rodney Stark, Cities of God