Romans 255: Romans 8 - We Wait Eagerly, Anxiously, Patiently, and Confidently for Freedom

Welcome To

BARAH MINISTRIES

a Christian Church

Rory Clark

Pastor-Teacher

 

Good Morning!

 

Welcome to Barah Ministries…a Christian Church based in Mesa, AZ…my name is Pastor Rory Clark.  Barah Ministries has a worldwide reach and an intimate impact on lives, through the gracious provision of our omnipotent God, the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Thank you Lord for the internet, a place where anyone with access can be reached with Your Word.

 

TODAY’S LESSON

We Wait Eagerly, Anxiously, Patiently, and Confidently for Freedom

 

In other words, as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are obsessed with our certain and free future. 

 

What are you obsessed with? 

 

In the first century Corinthian church, they were obsessed with “speaking in tongues.”  The ability to speak in tongues is a NOW DEFUNCT spiritual gift from God the Holy Spirit.  First Corinthians, Chapter 13, Verses 8 to 11 say this…

 

First Corinthians 13:8

Unconditional love is the from God and it never ends; but if there are gifts of prophecy, and there are, they will be done away; if there are gifts of tongues, and there are, they will cease; and if there is the gift of knowledge, and there is, it will be done away.

 

First Corinthians 13:9

For we KNOW in part…and we PROPHESY in part…

 

First Corinthians 13:10

…but when the perfect comes (unconditional love), the partial will be done away.

First Corinthians 13:11

When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things.

 

The spiritual gift of tongues was the first incidence of the baptism of God the Holy Spirit, and it ushered in our present age…the Church Age.  The result of this first baptism of the Spirit was the spiritual gift of tongues, given by God to certain men who were given the ability to speak in their own language, but to be heard in the language of the person to whom they were speaking.  For example, if I had the spiritual gift of tongues today, I would be able to speak to you in English, and if you only spoke and understood Spanish, you would hear me in Spanish.  Acts, Chapter 2, Verses 1 to 8…

 

Acts 2:1

When the day of Pentecost had come (fifty days after the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead), several of the Lord’s followers were all together in one place.

 

Acts 2:2

And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

 

Acts 2:3

And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them.

 

Acts 2:4

And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.

 

Acts 2:5

Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven.

 

Acts 2:6

And when this sound occurred, the crowd came together, and were bewildered because each one of them was hearing the Lord’s followers speak in the hearer’s own native language.

Acts 2:7

The Jews living in Jerusalem were amazed and astonished, saying, “I ask you, are not all these who are speaking the Jews from Galilee?

 

Acts 2:8

And how is it that we each hear these Jews from Galilee in our own language to which we were born?

 

Today, the gift of tongues is merely a Satanic counterfeit of the original spiritual gift…a false claim of spirituality.   The people who allege that they speak in tongues make up guttural sounds, and you recognize the counterfeit when the utterances are not understandable to anyone around them.

 

The Lord wants Christians to grow up…to not be fooled by counterfeits to the genuine Christian Way of Living…First Corinthians, Chapter 14, Verse 20 says…

 

First Corinthians 14:20

Brethren (believers in Christ), do not be children in your thinking; perhaps in evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature.

 

There is more to a deep, intimate and personal relationship with the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ than meaningless babbling.  Welcome to a place where you can grow up, by getting to know the Sovereign God of the Universe through learning the truth as it is communicated through the inerrant Canon of Scripture, the Bible, the Word of God.

 

MUSIC AND REFLECTION

Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ

Enjoy the Singing of His Praises

 

AWESOME GOD

Rich Mullins

 

As we prepare our souls for worship, let’s enjoy the opening song… AWESOME GOD…sung by Rich Mullins.

 

OPENING PRAYER

Let us pray...

We’re grateful, Heavenly Father, for the privilege of studying Your absolute truth...the Word of God…

 

Father, thank you for providing us with everything…like faith and hope and love…FAITH…our confidence in You and Your Word…HOPE…the confident expectation of a certain future filled with an abundance that our minds can’t even grasp…and LOVE…we love ourselves and we love others because You, Father, have poured the gift of unconditional love into us…

 

Shake us up, Father, when we become obsessed with ourselves…shake us up when our dreams have come true because we have dreamed too small… shake us up when we are safe because we haven’t ventured away from the shorelines of our lives...shake us up, Father, when having an abundance of things causes us to lose our zest for relationships with people…shake us up, when we love this life more than we love our eternal destiny…shake us up, when our desire to build a better us and a better world cloud our vision of the New Self and the New Earth and Universe that You have created for our future…shake us up…and remind us we can’t be shaken because Your power and Your Person dwell in us…

 

Encourage us to use the Spirit’s power to act boldly…to venture onto new horizons…to travel stormier seas without fear, knowing the storms of suffering teach us endurance…

 

We ask this through the power of God the Holy Spirit…in Christ’s name... Amen.

 

TODAY’S LESSON

We Wait Eagerly, Anxiously, Patiently, and Confidently for Freedom

 

You’ve heard the expression, “I’m looking forward to it.”  It’s an expression of anticipation.  As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ we have much to look forward to…like it says in Isaiah, Chapter 11, verses 6 to 9…

 

Isaiah 11:6

And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the young lion and the fatling will lie down together…and a little boy will lead them.

 

Isaiah 11:7

Also the cow and the bear will graze, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox.

 

Isaiah 11:8

The nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child will put his hand on the viper’s den.

 

Isaiah 11:9

They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth will be as full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

 

During the Millennial reign of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ…during His one thousand year reign on the earth…we will be in all our glory…a harmony that does not currently exists will dwell throughout the earth.  It’s a freedom like we have never experienced.  These are among the things for which we wait eagerly, anxiously, patiently and confidently.  We’ll learn more about our future in today’s lesson.

 

BARAH MINISTRIES ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

NEXT WEEK!

The Next Lord’s Supper Celebration

February 14, 2016

 

Valentine’s Day!

 

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

Next Deacon’s Meeting

February 27

7:30A-9:00A

 

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

No Face-to Face Teaching

March 6, 2016

 

Lessons will be posted.

 

TAKE THE WORD OF GOD WITH YOU WHEREVER YOU GO

 

Download the Barah Ministries APP

 

It’s available at Google Play, at the Windows Apps Store, or at the iTunes Store.  It’s also downloadable from the Barah Ministries website.  Tell your friends about the APP.  It’s never been easier to have the Word of God at your disposal all the time. 

 

BARAH MINISTRIES IS BACK ON THE RADIO

KXEG 1280AM

Sundays at Noon

 

We’re on at a new time…right before Through the Bible with J. Vernon McGee…a great time slot.  Lessons are also posted on line at the station’s website and on the Barah Ministries website as well.

 

PRAYERS

Barah Ministries Prayer Request Group

 

Join me in prayer directed at all the intercessions and all the petitions of the people visiting the Barah Ministries Prayer Request Group.

 

TODAY’S LESSON

We Wait Eagerly, Anxiously, Patiently, and Confidently for Freedom

 

Romans, Chapter 8, beginning at Verses 18…

 

Romans 8:18

For I (Paul) know for a fact that the sufferings of this present time (both RIGHT NOW, and throughout the Church Age…this present evil age) are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed IN us believers in Christ (IN THE FUTURE).

 

We know that suffering is a GAUNTLET of this life.  What is a gauntlet?

 

GAUNTLET

A column of enemy forces, formed with two lines of personnel, which we walk between.  The enemy strikes us multiple times and multiple ways from the two sides as we pass.  The experiences often devastate us.  Yet God causes us to be edified by the experiences so that we can keep on enduring other experiences in the future.

 

We’ve looked at the suffering associated with watching a loved one suffer…we’ve looked at the suffering associated with watching a loved one pass on in physical death…we’ve looked at the suffering associated with not having the money to build our new church building…we’ve looked at the suffering associated with not knowing what we want from this life.  There are many forms of suffering, and when we suffer, as believers in Christ, we often think things probably aren’t going to work out for us.  God encourages us to embrace the suffering of this life…John, Chapter 16, Verse 33…

 

John 16:33

“These things I have spoken to you, so that in union with Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation (suffering), but take courage; I have overcome the world.”

 

There is suffering on the one hand, but there is glory at the other end of the gauntlet of suffering.  Imagine spending all the money in your bank account, then waking up to check the balance and seeing that your account has been totally replenished.  The Lord Jesus Christ, our Suffering Servant, always gives us what we need.  Romans, Chapter 8, Verse 19…

 

Romans 8:19

For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.

 

As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are not waiting for the fantasy of utopia, a fictional perfect society created by man…we are not waiting for the dream of evolution, a false promise of a biological transformation that solves all our problems…we are not waiting for the human being who will come to free us from the misery of our current ways of life.  NO!  We are waiting for our glory to be revealed by God, an absolutely certain and irrevocable fact concerning the apocalypse, the uncovering, the revealing coming in our future.  Our bodies are not redeemed…this world is not reformed… but we know that God has the power and the will to change the old into new…the power to eradicate sin and to create an earth and a universe where sin does not exist.  This is the certainty we look forward to.  Romans, Chapter 8, Verse 20…

 

Romans 8:20

For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, on the basis of hope (the confident expectation of a great and certain future)…

 

The world around us…Satan’s kingdom…is filled with futility…and we know that God has allowed us to experience it.  And often, it robs us of happiness…Solomon, after his dealings with the world said in Ecclesiastes, Chapter 1, Verse 8…

 

Ecclesiastes 1:8

All things are wearisome; man is not able to tell it.  The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor is the ear filled with hearing.

 

And Solomon’s summary, after trying everything the world has to offer, and finding it to be vanity, in Ecclesiastes, Chapter 12, Verses 13 and 14 says…

 

Ecclesiastes 12:13

The conclusion, when all has been heard, is this: respect the Lord and keep His mandates, because this applies to every person.

 

Ecclesiastes 12:14

For the Lord will bring every act to evaluation, even everything which is hidden, as to whether it is good or whether it is evil.

 

What’s another word for the sentiment that Solomon is expressing?  Futility…all in the world is futility.  Romans, Chapter 8, Verse 21…

 

Romans 8:21

…that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

 

If there is music in heaven, you can bet it will not be the blues.  Here on earth we experience decay…but in heaven we will experience constant blooming.  Romans, Chapter 8, Verse 22…

 

 

Romans 8:22

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning and suffering pains like the pains of childbirth together, right up to the present time.

 

All is not right with the world…the smiley face Christian is kidding himself.  A World War I song encouraged us to, “Pack up our troubles in an old kit bag and smile…smile…smile…what’s the use of worrying…it’s not worthwhile!”  True.  We smile while we groan in this life.  As we get older our bodies start to decay and even getting up and down from a seat causes us to groan.  And while all may not be right with the world, all is right with God. Romans, Chapter 8, Verse 23…

 

Romans 8:23

And not only this, but also we believers in Christ ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.

 

The “first fruits” of God the Holy Spirit is us as Church Age believers, who are being renovated in the New Self every day through the enabling power of God the Holy Spirit.  Even so…we groan…and we wait eagerly, anxiously, patiently, and confidently for the freedom of the glory of the children of God.  The indwelling of God the Holy Spirit inside the body of every Church Age believer is a signature guarantee of our promised future of sharing the glory of the risen Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

Romans, Chapter 8, Verse 24…

 

Romans 8:24

For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees?

 

We are confident that we will live in our resurrection bodies in the future.  Romans, Chapter 8, Verse 25…

 

Romans 8:25

But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.

 

Our faith will pass away…we will no longer need to concern ourselves with our faith in the Lord when we are face-to-face with Him…our hope will pass away…we don’t need a future when the future glory is our current reality… but the one virtue that endures is LOVE.  When we are like God, we ARE LOVE, just as He is LOVE.  Love continues to abide when all else fades away.

 

Let’s luxuriate in our journey from suffering to glory, and let’s think about how great our God is, on our short music break.

 

MUSIC BREAK

HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD

Chris Tomlin

 

TODAY’S LESSON

We Wait Eagerly, Anxiously, Patiently, and Confidently for Freedom

 

Feelings.  This passage contains a lot of emotions…eagerness, anxiousness, patience and confidence.  What else can we have as believers in Christ but an absolute bevy of emotions as we look forward to our future, a future free from suffering and full of glory.  First John, Chapter 2, Verses 15 to 17…

 

First John 2:15

 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of God the Father is not in him.

 

Unbelievers love the world…it’s all they know.  Believers are encouraged

not to consort with “the world” and “the flesh.”

 

First John 2:16

For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from God the Father, but is from the world.

 

First John 2:17

The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

 

James said it this way, in James, Chapter 4, Verse 4…

 

James 4:4

You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

 

As believers in Christ, we are not friends with the world.  We are never to forget that God left “the flesh” in us and put us “in the world” for a reason…He did it to show us that the Trinity indwelling us is more powerful than “the flesh” in us, if our will allows Them to be.  Romans, Chapter 8, Verses 20 to 22…

 

Romans 8:20

For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, on the basis of hope (the confident expectation of a great and certain future)…

 

Romans 8:21

…that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

 

Romans 8:22

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning and suffering pains like the pains of childbirth together, right up to the present time.

 

Among the things we wait eagerly, anxiously, patiently, and confidently for is the new heavens and the new earth…what a beautiful future…a beautiful picture…if you’re not driving, close your eyes and imagine it if you can…Revelation, Chapter 21, Verses 1 to 8…

 

Revelation 21:1

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.

 

Revelation 21:2

And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God the Father, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.

 

Revelation 21:3

And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God the Father is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God the Father Himself will be among them…”

 

Revelation 21:4

“…and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

 

Revelation 21:5

And He who sits on the throne (the King of kings and the Lord of lords) said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write John, for these words are faithful and true.”

 

Revelation 21:6

Then the Lord Jesus Christ said to me (John), “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.”

 

Revelation 21:7

“He who overcomes (every believer in Christ) will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son.”

 

Revelation 21:8

“But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

 

There are a lot of things to get quite emotional about.  So if you are lost, just know that the Lord is looking for you.  He wants you to share in this victory.

 

When the Lord Jesus Christ

Promises Salvation, It’s a Guarantee!

 

ACT 16:31

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and everyone in your household who also believes.”

 

ACT 4:12

“And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given to mankind by which we must be saved (except the name of the Lord Jesus Christ).”

 

LUK 19:10

“For the Son of Man (the Lord Jesus Christ) has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

 

1TI 2:9

…the Lord has saved us and called us to a holy life, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and through the grace which was granted to us in union with Christ Jesus from all eternity…

 

CLOSING SONG

YOU RAN AFTER ME

June Murphy 

 

CLOSING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

          THANKS- INTERCESSION- PETITION

 

And we pray You protect our steps as we go out into the world, Father…and that you keep us on the narrow way, completely dependent on You and Your Guiding, Mentoring Spirit…we ask this in Christ’s name, Amen.

 

Thanks for coming!

Thanks for watching!

Thanks for listening!

 

www.barahministries.com