(#467) Romans 15 - God Always Keeps His Promises

Class Outline:

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God remembers His people.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome To 

BARAH MINISTRIES

a Christian Church

Rory Clark

Pastor-Teacher

 

Good Morning!

 

Welcome to Barah Ministries… a small, intimate, and local Christian Church with worldwide impact.  My name is Pastor Rory Clark.  At Barah Ministries, our God is the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  We make a difference by teaching the Word of God from God’s perspective, and not from man’s perspective…because how God sees things is very different from how we see things. 

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON - God Always Keeps His Promises

 

When I was ten years old, my Mom gave me an interesting birthday card. On the cover of the card was a very large elephant.  A little boy had a ladder leaned against the elephant, and with a marker, he was drawing on the elephant.  What he was drawing was groups of five sticks.

 

STICK SLIDE

 

One…two…three…four…five.  One…two…three…four…five.  Opening the card, it said, “It’s nice to have someone you can count on.”  It took me a while to get it.  By drawing stick groups on the elephant, the little boy was “counting” on the elephant.  It was interesting that a mother would say that her son was someone she could count on, especially a son of only ten years.

 

Well Mom was right.  It’s nice to have someone you can count on.  In this lesson, as we continue our study of Romans, Chapter 15, we’re going to learn that God is someone we can always count on!  Welcome to a place where you can learn the joy of counting on God through the study of His Word.

 

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!  There is nothing more profoundly American than Memorial Day, the holiday we observe at this time of the year.  Throughout our history, American Servicemen and Servicewomen have willingly put their lives on the line to strengthen this nation and to preserve its freedoms. The greatness of this Republic is founded on the selfless service of these ordinary heroes.  

 

So Memorial Day is much more than just the unofficial start of summer.  On Memorial Day we celebrate those who made the ultimate sacrifice…those who shed blood…those who gave their lives in combat.  Some of their bodies rest quietly beneath chalk white headstones.

 

HEADSTONES SLIDE

 

Some of their bodies rest in battlefield graves where they fell.  And some of their bodies rest in the depths of the oceans where they gave their lives to 

a cause…the principle of freedom.  

 

HONORING OUR HEROES SLIDE

 

Memorial Day is the time in the United States when we remember the men and women who died while serving in the country’s armed forces.

 

Yet whether it is men and women from our country, or whether it is men and women from allied nations, we pause every year to give our tribute to those who imitated the Lord Jesus Christ.  John, Chapter 15, Verse 13 says…

 

JOHN 15:13 Greater unconditional love has no one than this…the love that is demonstrated when one lays down his life for his friends. 

 

Let’s remember these brave people and the ideals that inspired them… especially the idea that there IS something greater than self.  This thought originated from and was demonstrated best by the Sovereign God of the Universe, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ when He died for our sins at the Cross.  

 

There are no words that can ease the pain of the family members who have

lost heroes in battle. Yet someone once said, “Grief shared is grief more easily borne.”  Today we honor the families of these heroes, and we grieve with them for their loss. Let’s honor our war dead today with THE ARMED FORCES MEDLEY, a collection of the fight songs of each military organization in the United States.

 

MUSIC AND REFLECTION

 

The Armed Forces Medley

 

MEMORIAL DAY TRIBUTE

Armed Force Medley

U.S. Army

 

 

MEMORIAL DAY TRIBUTE

Armed Force Medley

U.S. Marines

 

 

MEMORIAL DAY TRIBUTE

Armed Force Medley

U.S. Navy

 

 

MEMORIAL DAY TRIBUTE

Armed Force Medley

U.S. Coast Guard

 

 

MEMORIAL DAY TRIBUTE

Armed Force Medley

U.S. Air Force

 

MEMORIAL DAY TRIBUTE

 

God Bless America

 

OPENING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

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

 

Father, we praise You for many reasons, among them, that You give us HOPE…thank you for making our future bright…thank you for being there for us when our own power is inadequate to get the job done…which is all the time…thank you for being someone we can count on…and thank you for giving us people who are brave enough to lay down their lives to give us hope…the men and women who engage in military service…

 

Help us to inspire others with a living hope, and to help others make their dreams come true…

 

…we ask this through the power of God the Holy Spirit…in Christ’s

name...Amen.

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON - God Always Keeps His Promises

 

In the opening of every lesson at Barah Ministries, we learn something about God.  Today, we learn that we have a God who fills us with HOPE.    In the human realm, when we say, “I hope so,” we are expressing doubt that our dreams can come true.  The words are right, but the thought is different.  That’s why at Barah Ministries we study the Bible to learn God’s perspective…because how God sees things is very different from how we see things.  What is hope from the divine perspective?

 

HOPE (The Greek word elpis)

The absolute confidence that what a faithful God promises He will also deliver.

God always keeps His promises. 

 

I remember teaching HOPE to my sons through sports.  I remember specifically that when my younger son Elliott was a senior in high school, he was on a team with not much talent.  I encouraged him to inspire his team… to give them the hope that they could accomplish a worthy goal.  Every time they broke a huddle, at Elliott’s prompting they would put their hands together and say, “Glendale.”  Of course, Glendale is the site of the Arizona State Basketball Championship.  He was encouraging them to aspire to win the State Championship.

 

The team made it to the playoffs as the thirteenth seed (of sixteen teams…so just barely), and in the first round, they had a very tough draw…the fourth-seeded team from Cesar Chavez High School.  They were being dominated for most of the game, and with 1:52 left in the game, they were trailing by eight points.  At this point, most people would have no hope.  I’ll save you the suspense.  They won the game on a last-second shot.  They had hope, and their hope was rewarded.  They had the absolute confidence that the game was not over until there were zeroes on the clock.  They made it to Glendale…and there they learned that they should have had a bigger goal… State Champs.  They finished third.

 

Christianity is a lifestyle of hope.  The lives of Christians are filled with much tribulation, and what distinguishes us from the rest of the world is that we have the confident expectation that when there are zeroes on the scoreboard, we will ALWAYS have the victory. God gives us the victory. 

 

Here are just a few of the things the bible has to say about hope. The first is written about by Peter, the apostle who had a great reason not to hope because of His betrayal of the Lord Jesus Christ…First Peter, Chapter 1, Verses 3 to 5…

 

FIRST PETER 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us believers in Christ to be born again to a living hope (the spiritual birth) through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…

 

FIRST PETER 1:4  …to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you…

 

FIRST PETER 1:5  …you who are protected by the power of God (divine omnipotence) … through faith…for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

 

Why do Christians have hope?  It is because of the Source of hope…our almighty God!  We have a living hope because we have a living God…One who was resurrected from the dead.  A God who can conquer death can help us conquer anything.  Romans, Chapter 8, Verses 24 and 25…

 

ROMANS 8:24 For in hope we believers in Christ have been saved…but hope that is seen is not hope…for who hopes for what he already sees?

 

ROMANS 8:25  But if we hope for what we do not see, and of course we do, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.

 

When you are suffering, your doubt comes from a knowledge of your own lack of resources to solve the problem you are facing.  But a faithful God ALWAYS comes through for you.  When this deliverance happens enough times in your life, you start to realize that divine strength is perfected in human weakness. Because of God and His power, we believers in Christ have hope.  Romans, Chapter 8, Verse 18…  

 

ROMANS 8:18 For I (Paul) consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us (in the future).

 

Our future is so great that our present problems pale in comparison. It is God’s power that gives us a great future…Philippians, Chapter 1, Verse 6…

 

PHILIPPIANS 1:6 For I (Paul) am (absolutely) confident of this very thing (in other words…I have hope)…that God the Father, who began a good work in the creation of you, will keep on perfecting it until the day of Christ Jesus.

Hebrews, Chapter 10, Verse 23…

 

HEBREWS 10:23 Let us believers in Christ hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering…for God the Father who promised is faithful…

 

When you’re going through tough times, it’s important to remember God’s promises to you, like the one in First Peter, Chapter 5, Verse 10…

 

FIRST PETER 5:10 After you have suffered for a little while, the God and Father of all grace… who called you to His eternal glory in union with Christ…will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.

 

Here’s MercyMe to put those sentiments in song with their hit EVEN IF.

 

MUSIC AND REFLECTION

Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ

Enjoy the Singing of His Praises

 

EVEN IF

MercyMe

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON - God Always Keeps His Promises

 

We continue our study of Romans, Chapter 15 at the second passage… Verses 8 to 13…

 

ROMANS 15:8  For I (Paul) say that Jesus Christ has become a servant (the Greek word diakonos) to the circumcision (The Jews…Jesus is The Jewish Messiah)… to proclaim the truth of God the Father…to confirm the accuracy of the promises given to the fathers (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob)…

 

ROMANS 15:9  …and Jesus Christ also has become a servant to the Gentiles…so that they may glorify God the Father for His mercy…as it stands written by King David, “Therefore I (David) will give praise to You among the Gentiles, and I will sing to Your name.”

 

ROMANS 15:10  Again Moses says, “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people (The Jewish Race and Israel).”

 

ROMANS 15:11  And again a psalmist says, “Praise the Lord all you Gentiles…and let all the peoples praise Him.”

 

ROMANS 15:12  Again Isaiah says, “There shall come the root of Jesse (the Messiah…the

Lord Jesus Christ)…and He who arises to rule over the Gentiles…in Him shall the Gentiles hope.”

 

ROMANS 15:13  Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so

that you will abound in hope by the power of God the Holy Spirit.

 

When we return from our five-minute break, we’ll take the offering and then we’ll extract the lesson from this amazing passage.

 

FIVE MINUTE BREAK

Unconditional Love

Donna Summers

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON - God Always Keeps His Promises

 

Let’s welcome Deacon Denny Goodall with today’s offering message.

 

THE OFFERING

Deacon Denny Goodall

 

 

OFFERING VERSE

 

FIRST THESSALONIANS 5:14 We urge you, brethren…admonish the unruly…encourage the fainthearted… help the weak…be patient with everyone.

 

OFFERING VERSE

 

FIRST THESSALONIANS 5:15  See to it that no one repays another with evil for evil…but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people.

 

OFFERING SONG

THERE IS NONE LIKE YOU

David Bauer, Instrumental

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON - God Always Keeps His Promises

 

Psalm 118, Verse 24 says…

 

PSALM 118:24 This is the day which the Lord has made…let us rejoice today and be glad.

 

Psalm 118, Verses 5 and 6…

 

PSALM 118:5 From my distress, I called upon the Lord…the Lord answered me and set me in a large place.

 

PSALM 118:6  The Lord is for me…therefore I will not fear…what can anyone do to hurt me?|

 

We have a God who is worthy of worship because He gives us hope.  Here’s MercyMe to praise Him in their song I WORSHIP YOU.

 

MUSIC AND REFLECTION

Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ

Enjoy the Singing of His Praises

 

I WORSHIP YOU

MercyMe

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON - God Always Keeps His Promises

 

Welcome back!  

 

If we look back at the road we have traveled in studying this magnificent letter to the believers in Christ at first century Rome, we will see messages both to the Gentiles and to the Jews.  Romans 1 to 8 and Romans 12 to 16 to the Gentiles…Romans 9 to 11 to the Jews. 

 

The Lord Jesus Christ ministry…first and foremost…was a ministry to The Jewish Race and to His Chosen Nation Israel.  The Lord Jesus Christ came to earth to confirm that the set of promises that were made to the fathers… Abraham…Isaac…and Jacob…were absolutely true…that there was to be a Messiah coming for Israel and The Jewish Race…the Christ.  Jesus Christ is God in the flesh.

 

God always keeps his promises.  

 

He promised a Messiah to The Jewish Race and He delivered a Messiah. Matthew, Chapter 15, Verse 24…

 

MATTHEW 15:24b …“I (the Lord Jesus Christ) was sent (to earth by my Father) only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

 

Unfortunately, Israel and The Jewish Race rejected their Messiah. John, Chapter 1, Verse 11…

 

JOHN 1:11 The Lord Jesus Christ came to His own (The Jewish Race and Israel), and those who were His own did not receive Him.

The Jewish rejection of the Messiah broke the apostle Paul’s heart, mostly because Paul was Jewish…and he offered himself up as a sacrifice for them…Romans, Chapter 9, Verses 1 to 6…

 

ROMANS 9:1 I am telling the truth in union with Christ…I am not lying…my conscience testifies with me in union with the Holy Spirit…

 

ROMANS 9:2  …that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart.

 

ROMANS 9:3  For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ (in the Lake of Fire) for the sake of my brethren (The Jewish Race)…my kinsmen according to the flesh…

 

ROMANS 9:4  …my brethren who are Israelites….to whom belongs the adoption as sons…and the Shekinah glory…and the covenants…and the giving of the Mosaic Law…and the temple service…and the promises (to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob)…

 

ROMANS 9:5  …these Israelites of the fathers (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob)…and from whose midst is the Christ (The Jewish Messiah)…God the Son who came in the flesh…the God who is over all…the God who is blessed forever. Amen.

 

Why is Paul lamenting?  He told us when we studied Romans, Chapter 11 at Verse 25…

 

ROMANS 11:25 For I (Paul) do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation (Gentiles…don’t be arrogant)—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in…

 

The Jewish Race and Israel developed a hardened heart toward their God…and just as God did with Pharaoh in Egypt, God allowed the hardening.  In the meantime, God turned His glorious mercies to the Gentiles…yet He has not forgotten the Jews…not by any means.  God always keeps His promises, and ESPECIALLY to The Jewish Race.

 

Even when the apostles were sent forth to evangelize the whole world, the Lord made sure they knew their first priority was The Jewish Race… Matthew, Chapter 10, Verses 5 to 7…

 

MATTHEW 10:5 These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: “Do not go in the way of the Gentiles…and do not enter any city of the Samaritans…”

 

MATTHEW 10:6  “…but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

 

MATTHEW 10:7  “And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”

 

In Micah, Chapter 7, Verses 18 to 20…the man with the name that means, “Who is like Yahweh?” says…

 

MICAH 7:18 Who is a God like You…who pardons iniquity and passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession?  He does not retain His anger forever…because He delights in unchanging love.

 

MICAH 7:19 He will again have compassion on us (The Jewish Race and Israel)…He will tread our iniquities under foot.  Yes…You will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.

 

MICAH 7:20 You will give truth to Jacob and unchanging love to Abraham, which You swore to our forefathers from the days of old.

 

God always keeps His promises.

 

Next week when we look at this passage verse by verse, the part of it that we’ll remember most is probably Romans, Chapter 15, Verse 13…

 

ROMANS 15:13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so

that you will abound in hope by the power of God the Holy Spirit.

 

We have a God who always keeps His promises…and because of this we always have hope…the confident expectation that our future is much brighter than our past or present.

 

GOD WANTS YOU!

Make the Most Important Decision of Your Life

 

The closing moments of our study are for the benefit of anyone who does not have a personal relationship with the Sovereign God of the Universe, the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  We want you to know that GOD WANTS YOU. 

 

As human parents, often we are emotional, arbitrary, and sentimental. We tell our children exactly what we want them to do, expecting that they will do it.  Quite often, they do the opposite.  And when they do the opposite, often they ask us for an exception to our request.  “I know I didn’t do exactly what you asked…but please, please, please…can I do it my way?”  Our emotional, arbitrary, and sentimental side kicks in, and we allow them to go against our requests.  By doing this, we teach them to ignore our requests.

 

Many people think God is a similar parent.  God tells us exactly what we must do to be saved, and many don’t do it, but they think in the end God will be emotional, arbitrary, and sentimental...and He will let them into heaven their own way.  But in John, Chapter 14, Verse 6…

 

JOHN 14:6 Jesus said…“I am the way (to salvation)…and I am the truth (through the Word of God)…and I am the resurrection life…and no one comes to God the Father (in heaven) but through believing in Me.”

  

The Lord isn’t emotional, or arbitrary, or sentimental.  In Matthew, Chapter 7, Verse 21, the Lord says…

 

MATTHEW 7:21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven...but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter into the kingdom.”

 

What is God’s will in the matter of your salvation?  First, Second Peter, Chapter 3, Verse 9 tells us what is not God’s will…

 

SECOND PETER 3:9b …(it is not God’s will) for any of you (unbelievers) to perish (in the Lake of Fire) but for all of you to come to repentance (a change of mind about having a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ).

 

What God wants from you is a simple thing, revealed in Acts, Chapter 16, Verse 31…

 

ACTS 16:31  “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and everyone in your household who also believes.”

 

If we ignore God’s request, there are consequences… John, Chapter 3, Verse 36…

 

JOHN 3:36 “He who believes in the Son has the resurrection life right at that moment… but he who does not obey the command to believe in the Son will not see the resurrection life…instead the wrath of God (the Lake of Fire) abides on him.”

 

Who is this God who saves you?  The apostle Paul describes the Lord Jesus Christ…in First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verses 3 and 4… 

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:3 For I (Paul) delivered to you as of first importance what I also received… that it was Jesus Christ who died for our sins according to the Scriptures…

 

FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:4  …and that He was buried…and that He was raised from the dead on the third day…according to the Scriptures…

So if you want to get to heaven, it’s probably just best to do what God asks you to do…Acts, Chapter 16, Verse 31…

 

ACTS 16:31  “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and everyone in your household who also believes.”

 

When we believe, we take God’s word for it in the matter of what it takes to be saved.

 

Does God really want you?  Here’s June Murphy, a believer in Christ, reflecting on how much God wants us in her song FATHER I’M YOURS.

 

CLOSING SONG

FATHER I’M YOURS

June Murphy 

 

CLOSING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

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Thanks for listening!

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