THE GOSPEL OF
CHRIST
SPREADING THE SOUL-SAVING MESSAGE OF JESUs
(Chapters 8-9)
Introduction by narrator accompanied by a cappella singing:
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST. Spreading the soul-saving message of Jesus. And now, Timothy Sparks and Ben Bailey.
Timothy Sparks:
“We know that God works all things
together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to
His purpose” (Rom.
Ben Bailey:
And I’m Ben Bailey. Welcome to our broadcast today, which
is being brought to you by individual members and congregations of the churches
of Christ. The
In Romans 8, we’re now going to be looking at how God works “all things together for good to those who love Him.” Through His providence, God works things out for us. We may not know exactly how God works, but we can know with certainty (from His Word) that He’s working things together for our good. This doesn’t mean, of course, that everything’s going to go perfect. There are going to be times when things may not go as we’d like for them to. There even may be times when what we wanted didn’t happen. But we always have to remember that God is doing what is best for us because He loves us. He takes care of us in so many ways. Romans 8 teaches us a great lesson about the love of God and how He provides for us.
Timothy Sparks:
The love of God works all things together for us—as long as we love God. The love that we have for God is shown in our obedience. In John 14:15, Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Then, in the next chapter, He said, “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you” (Jn. 15:14). John had more to say about this in 1 John 5:3 when he wrote, “This is the love of God that we keep His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome.” In Romans 8:28, Paul says, “We know that God works all things together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” Loving God requires that we keep His commandments. If we do not keep the commandments of God, His love does not abide in us. If we love God, then He will work things together for us as we are called according to His purpose. According to 2 Thessalonians 2:14, we are “called” by the Gospel—which is how we become children of God. If we continue to love God, He will work things out for us. In the context, I believe Paul is talking specifically about our eternal salvation. There are times when Christians can perhaps look back in their lives and see where God seemed to be working providentially. Perhaps a Christian man and a Christian woman find each other. get married, and have children. They can see that it looks like God has been at work in their lives. That would be in the realm of providence. We don’t have to know how God works. Rather, we just need to know that He works. In the final analysis, if we have done the will of God—if we’ve truly loved the Lord with all of our hearts, souls, mind, and strength—then we know that God will fulfill the promise He has made to us. We then will understand that there is a greater grandeur and glory that is going to be provided for those who have faithfully served Him in this life.
Ben Bailey:
In Romans 8:31, Paul asks, “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” If God is on your side, and you’re on His side, and you’re a child of God, what can anyone do to you to harm you eternally? The answer is: nothing. If you’re a child of God, then you have the greatest blessing, and the greatest protection, that could ever be provided for you. As a child of God, it doesn’t matter what individuals, or groups, or nations may do to us. Even if someone were to put you to death, that would only push you into glory. It would simply give you your eternal home. The psalmist wrote, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints” (116:15). We’re told in Revelation 14:13, “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord. ‘Yes,’ says the Spirit, ‘that they may rest from their labors and their works do follow them.’” So if we’re a child of God—if God has called us, if we’ve been justified through the blood resulting from the sacrifice of Jesus—there’s nothing anyone can ever do to us to take us away from God’s love and protection. God wants to love us and to protect us. We can remove ourselves from His protection, of course. But externally, there’s nothing that people can do to us that can remove us from His love and protection. This would have been a great message of hope for those living during the time of the writing of the Book of Romans. No doubt some of those Christians, who previously had been Jews, were being persecuted. They were living under in an ungodly Roman emperor. Persecution under Nero was very severe. Some of these Christians may have endured suffering in their own lives. So Paul’s encouragement to them is, “Don’t give up! You serve a God Who will take care of you, no matter what happens to you.” The same is true for us today. In our lives, we must remain true to God’s Word. We must never give in to the pressure of society to change and to do what the world wants us to do—even if people laugh at us or make fun of us, and even if all else (including our life) is taken away. If we remain true to God, it will be worth it all. This is a message that Paul is going to continue to stress.
Timothy Sparks:
Notice what Paul says in Romans 8:32, “He who did not spare His own son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not by Him also freely give us all things?” If God did not hold back in giving even His own Son, is there anything that God is going to hold back from giving to us? Absolutely not! God gave and gave and gave—until He finally gave Jesus Christ, His own Son, to die on the cross for your sins and for mine. That’s why Paul could make the statement, “If God is for us, who could be against us?” He didn’t even spare His own Son! Is He going to spare anything from helping us to be able to overcome and be abundant conquerors? One of the most beloved texts in all the Bible is Romans 8:35-39, where Paul says,
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: ‘For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.’ Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
This is a marvelous passage which tells us that we can overcome, we can conquer. God makes it completely possible. Paul’s point is, “Are you going to allow anything to separate you from the love of Christ? Are you going to let tribulation? Are you going to let distress or persecution? Are you going to let anything separate you from His love?” Only you can make the decision to be separated from the love of God that is found in Christ Jesus. If we decide to hold unswervingly to the hand of Jesus, and to hold to the love of God by keeping His commandments, then it doesn’t matter what comes our way. We will be able to overcome and conquer.
Ben Bailey:
This is why Paul says, “In all these things we are more
than conquerors through Him who loved us.” Christianity is a religion of
conquering. We conquer the world and all that is around us. No, this doesn’t
mean that we act like those involved in the Spanish inquisition, when people
actually went out and conquered other nations and forced them to convert to
Christ. We are not conquering in that way. We’re conquering in the sense that
we are victors. This is the idea behind Christianity. One of the key words in
the Book of Revelation is the word “victor” (or “victory”). Revelation is a book
that tells Christians that they can win the victory in Christ. Jesus said, “Be
faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life” (Rev. 2:10). I’m reminded
of the words of Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:57, “Thanks be to God who always gives
us the victory in our Lord Christ Jesus.” So we ask the question, and he makes
the response by saying, “In all these things we are more than conquerors. The
idea is that we are “abundant conquerors.” Who is going to separate us from
God? People can’t do it. God is going to keep His love flowing toward you. The
only person who can separate you from the love of God is you. If you choose to live the wrong way and do the wrong things,
the love of God is still there for you, but you’ve removed yourself from it. So
we must be careful to live faithfully every day of our life, to make sure we possess
the victory in Christ Jesus. That victory can very easily be ours if we’ll only
be faithful to the Savior. It requires having the mind of Christ (Phil. 2:5).
We are told to let the mind of Christ dwell in us. We’re told that, in every
avenue of our Christian walk, we are to follow the footsteps of Jesus (1 Pet.
2:21). We must do as Paul did. In 1 Corinthians 11:1, Paul said, “Imitate me,
as I imitate Christ.” We can overcome and be victorious in the battle if we
will truly follow Jesus. In Revelation 14, there’s a wonderful scene described.
The redeemed of all ages are standing on
Timothy Sparks:
We see from Romans 9 a tender side of the apostle Paul. He was a man who was filled with the love of Christ, and who had such great compassion for his wayward fellow Jews that he said he would even be willing to be separated from Christ himself on their behalf. Notice Romans 9:1-3, where Paul says, “I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh.” He tells them that they are Israelites, and he says that they had received the adoption. But they are not in Christ. He says that if it were possible, he would be willing to be lost and separated eternally from Christ, if it could mean their salvation. Paul knew that that was not possible because, as he pointed out in Romans 1:16-17, it is the Gospel that saves, and people must obey the Gospel in order to be saved. Think about Paul’s wish in Romans 9:1-3. Do you have that kind of love—a love for the lost that is so strong that you would be willing to trade places and be lost if it would mean the salvation of others? Paul was a man of great faith—a man of great love who willingly spent his life in the service of God and, history tells us, died as a Christian martyr. We learn from Romans 9 that God has an even greater love. God has such a love that He gave His Son, Jesus, to save us from our sins. Paul is telling us that that’s the most important thing—that people can be saved by submitting to Christ. One of the great blessings of being “in Christ” is that there is “no condemnation,” as Paul pointed out in Romans 8:1, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.” If you’re not in Christ, and thus don’t have the blessing of “no condemnation,” then you are lost. Do you have the blessing that we see in Romans 8:6—life and peace in Christ? Paul tells us, “To be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” If you’re not in Christ, you’re missing out on life—the abundant life (Jn. 10:10). You’re missing out on peace—the peace that “passes all understanding” (Phil. 4:7). You’re also missing out on serving the Prince of Peace (Isa. 9:6-7)—Jesus Christ. And you’re missing out on being a child of God. “As many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God” (Rom. 8:4). You’re also missing out on the great victory and glory that are yet to be revealed to those who are faithful children of God. In Romans 9, Paul says that he would be willing to give up all these blessings if he could save his fellow Jews. Paul, himself was constantly striving to go to Heaven. He wanted more than anything else in all the world to help others make it to Heaven as well. This tells us about the great love that we, too, should have.
Ben Bailey:
As Christians, we ought to love the souls of those who are lost. This is a message that is seen throughout the New Testament. Jesus, of course, is the prime example of this. In Luke 19:10, the Bible says that Jesus came to seek and save those who were lost. Well, who is lost? Everyone is! Jesus came to seek and save all of us, and we need to have this same attitude. The Bible tells Christians that they are to go “into all the world” and spread the Gospel. People need to be saved. In Colossians 1:28, Paul says of Christ, “whom we proclaim, admonishing every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ.” Our job as Christians is to reach out to others, just as Paul felt he had to do. Today, we also have to feel a need that, if it were possible, we would give our souls to save others. Paul knew such an action on his part was not possible. Therefore, in Romans 9 he discussed several people who had choices to make. Some of them made the right choices. Some made the wrong choices. He begins with one of the favorite patriarchs, Abraham, and shows how he and Sarah had a choice to make. When they followed God, God was right there with them—helping them, working in their lives, and assisting them as they accomplished the task that He had set before them. Then Paul brings up Jacob and Esau, who are probably two of the best-known brothers in the Bible. One (Jacob) was pleasing to God; the other (Esau) was not. Esau was condemned because he was willing to sell everything he had for what amounted to a meager bowl of soup. “Jacob, I have loved,” said God (vs. 13). It was because Jacob had done God’s will. “Choices” is what Romans 9 is all about—making the right choices in life, making the choice to serve God, etc. Then Paul also brings up the example of Pharaoh. Pharaoh had choices to make. But he hardened his heart. The Bible says variously: (a) that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart; (b) that Pharaoh hardened his own heart; and (c) that Pharaoh’s heart “was hardened.” As you read the Book of Exodus, these three statements occur. As we read these types of things, we must understand that God hardening Pharaoh’s heart was not some kind of “predestination”—as if Pharaoh himself had no free will. The Scriptures also say that Pharaoh hardened his own heart. What is going on here? The Word of God was sent to Pharaoh (through Moses). He had a choice to make as to what he would do with it. If he chose to accept it, his heart would have become soft and he would have obeyed God. If he chose not to accept it, his heart would have become hardened, and he would have ended up rejecting the will of God. God never forces anyone to do anything. We’re free moral agents. We have the right to choose what we want to do. The message of Romans 9 is that we must make the right choices. Abraham made a right choice. In the case of Jacob and Esau, one made a right choice, and one didn’t. In the example of Pharaoh, he made several wrong choices that led to his own demise. So Romans 9 really stresses that we have to be careful to make choices that are pleasing to God.
Timothy Sparks:
In Romans 9:15, we see God saying to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” Some people come to this passage and say, “This shows that God predestines people; some are ‘born saved,’ while others are ‘born lost.’ God’s either going to show mercy on you, or He’s not, according to whatever He has predetermined.” Calvinistic predestination is nowhere taught in the Scriptures. What God is saying is, “He will have mercy on those who will receive His mercy through obedience.” “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” As you read the rest of the New Testament, you see that God is not willing that anyone should perish (2 Pet. 3:9). God wants all people to be saved, and to come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4). Jesus has become the author of eternal salvation to all those who obey Him. (Heb. 5:8-9). So, God will have mercy and compassion on those who are willing to obey the Gospel. If people refuse to obey the Gospel, God is not going to have mercy and compassion on them. He wants to. But people who refuse to be saved—people who refuse to take hold of the lifeline of the Gospel—cannot be saved. Imagine that someone is drowning in a lake. You throw them a lifeline, and they say, “No, I want to be saved without taking hold of the rope.” They thus refuse to take hold of the rope. They had every opportunity to take hold of it. But they drown. Was it the rope that caused them to die? No, it was their refusal to take hold of the rope. That’s the same way it is with the Gospel. When people refuse to receive and obey the Gospel, God cannot save them because the Gospel is God’s power to save (Rom. 1:16-17), and is the only way we can be truly delivered from sin.
Ben Bailey:
In life, we have to make a deliberate choice to have the right friends. Young people, you need to be very careful whom you choose as your friends, because those friends are going to impact you for life. In 1 Corinthians 15:33, we’re taught that “evil companions corrupt good morals.” As a young Christian, and as someone who’s just obeyed the Gospel, you must be careful that you don’t start hanging around with people who do ungodly things. One of the best choices you can make is to choose Christian friends. As a Christian, you have to choose not to get involved in much of the drunkenness and revelry that occurs in our day. Proverbs 20:1 says that “wine is a mocker, and strong drink is a brawler.” In Ephesians 5:18, we’re told “not to be drunk with wine where in is dissipation, but to be filled with God’s spirit”—the spirit we find in the Word of God. Another wise choice you can make is to stay away from the allurements of alcohol and drugs. Stay away from the sexual allurements that are so prevalent today. Peter said in 1 Peter 2:11, “I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul.” As a child of God, you must make sure that you don’t get caught up in sexual sins that often bring horrible problems like AIDS, unwanted pregnancies, etc. All of those are the results of unrestrained sexual activity.
If you are not a child of God, the best choice, and the most important choice, that you could make today would be to obey the Gospel. Have you dedicated your life to Jesus Christ? Have you made the choice to become a child of God? You can do that very simply by believing in Jesus as the Son of God (Jn. 8:24). Believe in Him so much that you are willing to repent. Change from sin, and turn to God. Then, confess Jesus as the Son of God. The Bible says in Romans 10:10, “With the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Then you must be baptized into Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins. In Acts 2, when the first Gospel sermon was preached, Peter responded to the cry, “Men and brethren what must we do?” by saying, “Repent and be baptized everyone of you for the forgiveness of your sins.” From the example of Paul’s conversion in Acts 9 and Acts 22, we learn that prayer and belief alone are not enough. Paul undoubtedly believed. He prayed for three days and nights. Yet, he still wasn’t saved. When Ananias came to him in Acts 22:16, Ananias said, “Why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.” We call on the name of the Lord today through baptism, and by making sure that we do those things that are according to God’s will.
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Narrator accompanied by a cappella singing:
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1. According to John 15:14, how do we know that we are Jesus’ friend?
2. John (1 John 5:3) tells us that there is one thing God’s commandments are not. What is that?
3. From 2 Thessalonians 2:14, we learn that we are “called by the Gospel.” How, exactly, are we “called”?
4. What external forces or circumstances can pull us away from the love of God, and put our salvation in jeopardy?
5. What internal force or circumstance can pull us away from the love of God, and put our salvation in jeopardy?
6. Explain the point of Romans 8:32, “He who did not spare His own son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not by Him also freely give us all things?”
7. One of the most beloved texts of the Bible is Romans 8:35-39. Summarize its main points.
8. How are Christians “more than conquerors”?
9. Who are the people described in Revelation 14:1-4?
10. In Romans 9:1-3, we see a tender side of the apostle Paul. What was the wish that Paul expressed in this passage?
11. How should the teaching of Romans 9:1-3 impact us today?
12. Romans 9 informs us that God had an even greater love for lost souls than the apostle Paul. How so?
13. What is the key word of the Book of Revelation—a concept that is echoed in Romans 8:35-39 as well?
14. According to Luke 19:10, why did Jesus come to the Earth?
15. What is one of the goals of Christians, in light of Paul’s teaching in Colossians 1:28?
16. One of the main thrusts of Romans 9 is about making “something.” What is that something?
17. What did God mean when He said, “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion” (Rom. 9:15)?
18. What false religious concept is not taught in God’s statement, “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion”?
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST,