Sermon Central
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Romans, Part 14 Series
Contributed by T.j. Conwell on Feb 9, 2011 (message contributor)
Summary: Paul begins Chapter 5 with an affirmation of our being justified by faith through Jesus; and that even in the trials we are to persevere because it produces Christ-like hope within us.
Romans, Part 14
Introduction
- Eph 2:8-9, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”
- We “hope against hope” and receive eternal life; this is our purpose/focus
-- This is our charge in life; not to walk blindly – but to focus on His life
- BIG APP: Abraham’s faith was not blind, and neither can ours be either!
- Abraham worshipped and served a mighty God; one who is 100% faithful
- Genuine faith is strengthened when we wait on God’s promises to be fulfilled
- Read Romans 5:1-5 / Pray
Point 1 – Therefore … (1-2)
- Paul is tying in the previous verses here with one word chosen perfectly
- Essentially, what Paul does in verse 1 is summarize Chapters 1-4
-- Probably wondering why we had to do 13 messages to get here, right?
- There is NOW (present tense) a new relationship with God that we have
- It represents peace; access to God; and the hope that we each long for
- We hope because of the things in this world that are not hopeful
- We each have a place in our hearts that is void; that is darkened with sin
- But because of the sacrifice at Calvary, we have been given victory
- Access to God is something that mankind has not had since the Garden
- V2 says that we “have been gained access by faith into this grace …”
- It is however only because of what Jesus did on the cross that we have it
- Ephesians 2:18, “For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.”
- 1 Corinthians 15:1-2, “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, IF you hold firmly to word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.”
- APP: We stand on the Gospel because it is a foundation that life can be built on
- Not only did Jesus bring us access with a Father who loves us eternally
- Jesus gave us hope that one day we would be able to share in God’s glory
- APP: This allows us to face the future with excitement; to renew ourselves daily
- TRANS: We must understand what it takes to gain this new relationship …
Point 2 – Suffering for Christ (3-5)
- Hope is not a word that we toss around just to make ourselves feel good
- There is an actual process of hope that Paul defines very clearly for us
-- APP: It is something that is constantly refined in the life of a believer
- James 1:2-3, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.”
a. Suffering produces Perseverance
- Go to and read 2 Corinthians 11:23-33 (Challenge to read Ch. 12 as “homework”)
- How much more could you or I suffer if this is what God brought Paul through?
- The answer is: As much as God wanted to bring you through for His Glory
- So, we count the suffering in our lives as Him STRENGHTENING us daily!
b. Perseverance produces Character
- Sometimes we have to calculate the cost and consider what Jesus has done
-- Luke 9:23, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”
- Character demonstrates the set of values or integrity that you live by
- Your character matters; at the end of the day it is all that you and I have
- Character in your relationship to God can be measured in several ways:
-- Diligence to the scripture; in prayer; service FOR the Lord – real measures
c. Character produces Hope
- Hope will never disappoint you and I; it will never let us down if it’s Godly
- Think about the things we hope for on Christmas, birthdays, etc.
- When those items are not under the tree or in the gift bag we get bummed
- We might even be a little disappointed and hurt; feel left out or unwanted
- Hope that is Christ centered is something to strive for; to live for constantly
- Imagine for a moment the HOPE that Jesus had as He looked upon Jerusalem
- Knowing that the same crowd that cried “Hosanna” shouted “crucify Him”
- The hope that He brought with Him was a Godly hope; it was rightly placed
- It was a hope that even in all of this - the Father still cares for you and I
