Romans 6: Believers in Christ are Now Married to Christ

Class Outline:

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No more flirting with the old self.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you’re in the resident congregation turn off your electronic devices and put them away. Let this be a place where you aren’t distracted by the world.

 

Welcome To

BARAH MINISTRIES

 

Rory Clark

Pastor-Teacher

 

Good Morning!

 

Welcome to Barah Ministries…an intimate, local Christian Church with a worldwide impact.  My name is Pastor Rory Clark.  Thanks for listening to this Bible lesson!

 

OPENING AGENDA

 

You may be wondering some things about Barah Ministries, like…

 

Who is the God we worship?

What is our source of truth?

Who is our enemy?

 

We’re always happy to begin each lesson by answering these questions after a short, thought-provoking introduction.

 

It’s my pleasure every week to teach a bunch of freaks!  If you are listening to this lesson, you are a freak!  You are one of the few of the seven billion people in the world who actually care what God has to say about things.  When you study the Word of God you care about God.

 

The other people are described by the apostle Paul in one of his pastoral epistles as he teaches his protégé Timothy what to expect in ministry in Second Timothy, Chapter 3, Verses 1 to 5…

 

SECOND TIMOTHY 3:1

(Timothy)…keep on knowing this…that in the last days (in every generation)…difficult times will set in.

 

SECOND TIMOTHY 3:2

For people will be lovers of self…lovers of money…boastful…arrogant…revilers…disobedient to parents…ungrateful…unholy…

 

SECOND TIMOTHY 3:3

…unloving…irreconcilable…malicious gossips…without self-control…brutal… haters of anything good…

 

SECOND TIMOTHY 3:4

…treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of “pleasure” rather than lovers of God…

 

SECOND TIMOTHY 3:5a

…holding to a superficial form of godliness (religion…the pseudo-spiritual life)…although they have denied the spiritual life’s power…

 

And what does God tell us through the apostle Paul about how we ought to value these people?

 

SECOND TIMOTHY 3:5b

…keep on avoiding such men as these!

 

Said as the Koine Greek says it…keep on shunning these people!  In other words, get the drama people out of your lives as you become different through studying the Word of God.  That's why we are here…not to get better, but to be different because of the changes God makes in us through the study of His Word.

 

Who is the God We Worshipat Barah Ministries?

 

We worship a Triune Godhead.  There is One God who reveals Himself to

mankind as three beings who are separate…distinct…co-equal…co-infinite…

co-eternal Persons…God the Father…God the Son…and God the Holy Spirit.

 

GOD THE FATHER is the author of the Triune Godhead’s plan for all creatures.

Your God and Father, along with the other members of the Triune Godhead, are always interested in changing your thinking.  In Romans, Chapter 12, Verse 3, the apostle Paul says…

 

 

ROMANS 12:3

…through the grace given to me (Paul) by God the Father (the grace gift of being an apostle...Paul’s spiritual gift), I say to everyone among youbelievers in Christ not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think...but to think so as to have sound judgment...the thinking that’s in line with the measure of faith distributed to you by God the Father (as your spiritual gift).

 

God the Father wants us to think like the new creation we are…the thinking that is to be expected of spiritual royalty.

 

GOD THE SON (the Lord) volunteered to execute God the Father’s plan…taking on human form as Jesus…the Christ (the Jewish Messiah).  Believing in Him is the ONE AND ONLY WAY to heaven.  We believers in Christ have the mind of Christ through the study of the Word of God…and as we make His thinking our thinking, we become the people who are beacons of light in this dark world.

Second Corinthians, Chapter 10, Verse 5…

 

SECOND CORINTHIANS10:5

(As believers in Christ)…we are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God…and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of the Christ (the Jewish Messiah)…

 

When you invest your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ…asking Him to save you…by believing in Him you instantly have the resurrection life…eternal life…in His name.

 

We worship GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT.  He is our Mentor and Teacher…the guide who is the rudder of a Christian’s life.  His enabling power is transformative in our lives.  His power transforms our thinking.  In Romans, Chapter 12, Verse 2, believers in Christ are commanded by God…

 

ROMANS 12:2a

…do not be conformed to this world (by Satan, by his cosmic system of thought, and by the flesh resident in you)...instead, keep on being transformed by God the Holy Spirit...through the renewing of your mind (by studying the Word of God)...

 

ROMANS 12:2b

...so that you may see clearly...through the testing of experience...what the will of

God is...and the will of God is that which is good for you and that which is acceptable to Him and that which is perfect (in result).

 

BOOM!  Keep on letting God change your thinking.

 

In God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit…believers in Christ have a power team that is always on their side…a team specializing in the impossible.  Are you calling on them for help in times of trouble?

 

What is Our Source of Truthat Barah Ministries?

 

It’s important to get to know Your God as a Person.  As Christians, the way to develop a deep, intimate, and personal relationship with the entire Godhead is through studying the Word of God.  The Bible is the Word of God.

 

You are a new creation from the moment of your salvation.  According to Ephesians, Chapter 4, Verses 22 and 23, the Word of God teaches you the new creation lifestyle…

 

EPHESIANS 4:22

…in reference to your former manner of life (when you were an unbeliever)…lay aside the practices of theold self…which keeps on being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit…

 

EPHESIANS 4:23

…instead, keep on being renewed in the spirit of your mind (a change in thinking through the daily study of the Word of God)…

 

The Bible is the Word of God…a supernatural work with supernatural impact…breathed into human writers by God…to provide us with the ultimate source of absolute truth.  At Barah Ministries, we teach the Bible from God’s perspective and not from man’s perspective because we refuse to teach as doctrinal truth the precepts of men.

 

Who is Our Enemyat Barah Ministries?

 

GOD HAS AN ENEMY…Satan…whom God made ‘the ruler of this world’ for a finite period.  He is the enemy of believers in Christ as well.  Satan’s favorite sport is twisting the Word of God.  He tried it with Jesus in Matthew, Chapter 4, Verses 5 and 6…

 

MATTHEW 4:5

Then the devil took Jesus into the holy city…Jerusalem…and had Jesus stand on the pinnacle of the temple…

 

MATTHEW 4:6

…and Satan said to Jesus, “If You are the Son of God…and of course you are…throw Yourself down from the temple…for it is written, ‘God the Father will command His angels concerning You’ … and ‘on their hands they will bear You up so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’”

 

Jesus says to Satan, “Nice try pal!” … and the Lord provides context to the Word of God…Matthew, Chapter 4, Verse 7…

 

MATTHEW 4:7

Jesus said to Satan, “On the other hand, it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

 

Satan is always taking Bible verses out of context because he knows the truth very well.  He seeks to twist the truth, creating doubt, and fostering consternation and speculation in our minds.  Don’t be fooled!  Have faith in what God says, not in what Satan says.

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Believers in Christ Are Now Married to Christ

 

LESSON INTRODUCTION

 

A divorce happened the moment believers in Christ were justified by faith through the generosity of our Almighty God.  From birth, we were married to Adam.  The moment we believed in Jesus Christ, we died to Adam…no longer under any legal or marital obligation to him…and we were wed to Christ.  In today's lesson, the apostle Paul uses a marriage analogy to help us understand the power of being IN CHRIST.

 

 

 

OPENING SONG INTRODUCTION

 

Let’s hear some music!Christians might ask the Lord, “Why did you justify us by

faith?”  Summing up God’s grace, June Murphy gives us God’s answer in song…

ALL BECAUSE YOU WANTED TO.

 

MUSIC

OPENING SONG

Let’s Sing the Lord’s Praises

 

ALL BECAUSE YOU WANTED TO

June Murphy

 

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 being loving and forgiving and righteous and just…thank you for your patience toward your children as God the Holy Spirit advances us to spiritual maturity…thank you as well for God the Holy Spirit’s ministry to unbelievers…inviting them to the free gift of eternal life…thank you for your Son…our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ…who made the ultimate sacrifice and paid the ultimate price voluntarily by dying on a Cross so we would be DEAD TO SIN and so we could have a relationship with You…

 

…give us insights into the messages You are sending us in Paul’s letter to the Romans today…put in our hearts a burning desire to see everyone in our periphery saved by providing them with the gospel message…help us to keep the value of our “so great” salvation always at the top of mind, never abusing our freedom by taking it for granted…and help us orient to our new husband like the brides of Christ that we are…

 

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

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Believers in Christ Are Now Married to Christ

 

LESSON PART ONE

 

We continue our study of the apostle Paul’s letter to first-century Rome believers in Christ in Chapter 7.  Today we’ll study the first passage.

 

You’ll remember some of the key details of the first six chapters of the letter.  Okay…maybe you don’t!  As a Pastor, reminding you is no problem!  Here’s what two famous Pastors have to say about reminders…Second Peter, Chapter 1, Verses 12 and 13…

 

SECOND PETER 1:12

Therefore, I (Peter) will always be ready to keep on reminding you of the things in the Word of God…even though you may already know them…and even though you have been established in the truth which is present with you.

 

SECOND PETER 1:13

I (Peter) consider it due to you…as long as I am in this earthly dwelling (my physical body)…to keep on stirring you up by way of reminder…

 

In Philippians, Chapter 3, Verse 1, Paul says…

 

PHILIPPIANS 3:1

Finally, my brethren (believers in Christ)…rejoice in union with the Lord. To write the same things again and again is no trouble to me…and it is a safeguard for you.

 

So…here’s your safeguard…reminders about the first six chapters of Romans.

 

Romans teaches that the most fundamental problem in the universe is that God’s human creatures — ALL OF US — have sinned…and we fall short of the glory of God.  As a result, we are condemned under the omnipotent wrath of God the Father. This problem of our condition…SIN…began at our physical birth.

Whether you are moral, or immoral, or religious, or rich, or poor, or black, or white, or male, or female…there is very real guilt in God’s eyes on the part of every person…because of SIN…Adam’s sin…credited to our account from physical birth.

 

The first three chapters of Romans conclude in Romans, Chapter 3, Verses 10 to 18 with a scathing indictment of every member of the human race.  You can review these verses at your leisure.  The essence of the indictment is that God is not honored, not revered, not admired, not praised, not sought out, not esteemed, not treasured, not savored, not trusted, not relied upon, not obeyed, not respected, not feared, not cherished, not prized, and not loved by any human being who is in a state of spiritual death.  That’s ALL OF US from the moment of physical birth.  God is disregarded, disbelieved, disobeyed, and dishonored by everybody in the world who is spiritually dead. Outrageous!

 

According to Acts, Chapter 17, Verse 25, the Person being disrespected and disregarded is…

 

ACTS 17:25b

…the Lord Jesus Christ who gives to all people life and breath and all things…

 

From the moment of physical birth, because of Adam’s sin imputed to us… because of our condition of spiritual death…there is real condemnation…the wrath of God the Father…hanging over the heads of every person like the sword of Damocles.

 

When we choose to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as Abraham did…described in Romans, Chapter 4…we are justified by faith…declared legally righteous because God credits His righteousness to us as a free gift.  From that moment on we are saved, and there is no more condemnation.  As believers in Christ, we are no longer the targets of the wrath of God the Father.  We are on God’s team as children of God.

 

After our justification comes salvation…and after our salvation comes sanctification.  According to Romans, Chapter 5, we receive a plethora of gifts from God because we are now under the Federal Headship of the Last Adam…Jesus Christ.  We are no longer under the Federal Headship of the first Adam who was the man in the Garden of Eden.

 

Our works did not make us right with God.  The Law did not make us right with God.  We can't make ourselves into a new creation.  The glory for our justification, salvation, and sanctification are due to Jesus Christ alone.  How unreal is it that the Sovereign God of the Universe, the Lord Jesus Christ, shed His blood, died on the Cross, was buried, and on the third day rose from the dead to save us from His own anger?  Stupendously amazing.

 

During the sanctification portion of our lives here on earth…Romans, Chapter 6, Verses 11 to 13 instruct us…

 

ROMANS 6:11

…believers in Christ…consider yourselves to be DEAD TO SIN…but alive to God the Father in union with Christ Jesus.

 

ROMANS 6:12

Therefore, in light of this knowledge, do not keep on letting sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts...

 

ROMANS 6:13a

...and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness…

 

ROMANS 6:13b

…instead, present yourselves to God the Father as those who are spiritually alive from the among the spiritually dead would present themselves…and present the members of your body as instruments of righteousness to God.

 

As believers in Christ, we have no desire to keep on sinning and to abuse the

freedom God has provided.  We choose not to keep on sinning because we are not under the Law, hoping that God’s grace will overflow to us all the more.  We’re not schtoopid!

 

Now the first passage in Romans, Chapter 7, Verses 1 to 13 from the New American Standard Translation…

 

ROMANS 7:1

Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the Law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives?

 

ROMANS 7:2

For the married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living…but if her husband dies, she is released from the law concerning the husband.

 

ROMANS 7:3

So then, if while her husband is living she is joined to another man, she shall becalled an adulteress…but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she

is not an adulteress though she is joined to another man.

 

ROMANS 7:4

Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another…to Him who was raised from the deadso that we might bear fruit for God.

 

ROMANS 7:5

For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death.

 

ROMANS 7:6

But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.

 

ROMANS 7:7

What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law…for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “You shall not covet.”

 

ROMANS 7:8

But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind…for apart from the Law sin is dead.

 

ROMANS 7:9

I (Paul) was once alive apart from the Law…but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died…

 

ROMANS 7:10

…and this commandment…which was to result in life…proved to result in death for me…

 

ROMANS 7:11

…for sin…taking an opportunity through the commandment…deceived me and through it killed me.

 

ROMANS 7:12

So then, the Law is holy…and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.

 

 

ROMANS 7:13

Therefore, did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be!Rather it was sin, so that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good…so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful.

 

Let's study the passage verse-by-verse.  You’ll remember Romans, Chapter 6, Verse 14…

 

ROMANS 6:14

For sin shall not any longer be a master over you believers in Christ…for you are not under law but (you have a new master…the Lord…and)…you are resident in (the sphere of His) GRACE.

 

Through our justification by faith, the Lord has released us from the power of sin and He has released us from the control of the Mosaic Law which was originally designed to make us aware that we are sinners who need a Savior.Romans, Chapter 7, Verse 1…

 

ROMANS 7:1

Or do you not know (are you ignorant?) Jewish brethren (for I, Paul, am speaking to those who know the principles of Law)…that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives?

 

Anyone who doesn't acknowledge what Paul is saying here is ignorant according to the apostle!  Law governs the living.  Romans, Chapter 7, Verses 2 and 3…

 

ROMANS 7:2

For example… the married woman (a wife) is bound in the past…and keeps on being bound by law to her husband while he is living…but if her husband dies (and it’s possible)…she is released from the law concerning the husband.

 

Paul is using an analogy.  He is not teaching about marriage.  A wife whose husband dies goes back to being a woman…she is no longer a wife because of the death of her husband.  Death breaks the legal bond of marriage.  This fact is accepted as true worldwide.  When the marriage relationship ends because of death, it makes possible a new relationship.

ROMANS 7:3

So then, if while her husband is living she is married to another man, she shall be

known publicly as an adulteress…but if her husband dies, she is free from the law so that she is not an adulteress even though she is married to another man.

 

Romans, Chapter 7, Verse 4…

 

ROMANS 7:4

Therefore, my Jewish brethren, you also were made to die to your marriage to the Mosaic Law through the body of Christ…so that you might be joined to another… joined to Lord Jesus Christ who was raised from the dead… so that we might bear fruit for God the Father.

 

Paul addresses Jewish believers because they were under the Mosaic Law.  The Gentiles were without law.  Now, in union with Christ, all believers are free to allow God to display the fruit of the Spirit in us…love, joy, peace in ourselves…patience, kindness, and goodness toward others…gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control in our relationship with God.  Believers…can you see yourselves as now identified with Christ?Romans, Chapter 7, Verses 5 and 6…

 

ROMANS 7:5

For while we Jewish believers were “in the flesh” (“IN ADAM” as unbelievers)… the sinful passions that were aroused by the Mosaic Law were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for sin and death.

 

ROMANS 7:6

But now we believers in Christ have been released from the Mosaic Law…having died to that by which we were bound…so that we serve in the newness of God the Holy Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter of the law.

 

“IN CHRIST” we Gentiles are not bound by the principle of law, either.  Both Jewish believers and Gentile believers are now residents in the sphere of God’s grace.  Galatians, Chapter 2, Verse 20…

 

GALATIANS 2:20

“I (as a believer in Jesus…the Christ…the Jewish Messiah) have been crucified with the Christ…and it is no longer I who live…but Christ lives indwelling me… and the life which I now live in my physical body I live by faith in the Son of God alone…faith in the Lord Jesus Christ…the One who loved me unconditionally and who gave Himself up as a sin substitute for me.”

 

When we return from the break we’ll take the offering and then we’ll finish up this first passage of Romans, Chapter 7.

 

FIVE-MINUTE BREAK

NOBODY

Casting Crowns

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Believers in Christ Are Now Married to Christ

 

OFFERING INTRODUCTION

 

When you’re giving, what’s important to God is your attitude.  Second Corinthians, Chapter 9, Verse 7…

 

SECOND CORINTHIANS 9:7

Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart…not grudgingly or under compulsion…for God loves a cheerful giver.

 

When we give, God wants us to give voluntarily, thoughtfully, cheerfully, prayerfully, generously, and enthusiastically.  I urge you believers in Christ to check your attitude as you give.  Make sure your attitude is an EXACT reflection of the voluntary, thoughtful, cheerful, prayerful, generous, and enthusiastic sacrifice that our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, made on your behalf at the Cross to provide for you a “so great” salvation.

 

Let’s welcome up Deacon Denny Goodall with one of his always inspiring offering messages.

 

THE OFFERING

Deacon Denny Goodall

 

OFFERING VERSE

 

GALATIANS 5:24

Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions

and desires.

 

OFFERING SONG

THERE IS NONE LIKE YOU

Instrumental Version

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Believers in Christ Are Now Married to Christ

 

LESSON PART TWO

 

As we move into the final part of this first passage of Romans 7, we do well to note that this next part of the passage does not stop at verse thirteen, although that is where we will stop today.  This part of the passage continues to the end of Romans, Chapter 7 at Verse 25.

 

As a Jew and a Pharisee, well steeped in the study of the Mosaic Law, Paul enjoyed doing his best to keep the Mosaic Law.  He didn't succeed, yet he learned a valuable lesson.  The next several verses describe Paul's struggle…and it is a struggle that many believers in Christ go through today.

 

Paul struggles in his relationship with the Law.  He wants to make his flesh obedient to the Law.  He finds out he is powerless to do so.  Gentile believers do no such thing!  We count on God the Holy Spirit to deliver us. We know God will work things out so we don’t have to struggle.  Romans, Chapter 7, Verse 7…

 

ROMANS 7:7

What shall we say then? Is the Mosaic Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I (Paul) would not have come to know sin except through the Mosaic Law…for I would not have known about coveting (being a problem) if the Mosaic Law had not said, “You shall not covet.”

 

All of us covet.  We want what others have!  We are envious.  The Law helped Paul realize he had this in him, and he hated it.  Romans, Chapter 7, Verse 8…

 

ROMANS 7:8

But sin…taking opportunity through the commandment…produced in me coveting of every kind…for apart from the Mosaic Law sin is dead.

 

The flesh in us, which God left in us at the moment is salvation, is more powerful than we are.  We don’t have the willpower or the discipline to resist it.  Thanks be to God for handling this for us…Galatians, Chapter 5, Verse 17…

 

GALATIANS 5:17

For the flesh sets its desire against God the Holy Spirit…and God the Holy Spirit sets His desire against the flesh…for these two are in opposition to one another… so that you believers in Christ may not do whatever you please.

 

The indwelling Spirit works for believers in Christ!  He is more powerful than the flesh and He can tame it.  Romans, Chapter 7, Verses 9 to 11…

 

ROMANS 7:9

I (Paul) was once alive apart from the Mosaic Law (with no connection to it once)…but when the commandment came…sin became alive and I died…

 

ROMANS 7:10

…and this commandment (that your thoughts and evil desires are sin)…which was to result in life…proved to result in death for me…

 

ROMANS 7:11

…for sin…taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me.

 

Paul is beginning to realize his powerlessness to the flesh…but he has yet to understand it fully.  In Romans, Chapter 7, Verse 12, Paul makes it clear that the Law did its job…

 

ROMANS 7:12

So then, the Mosaic Law is holy…and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.

 

Romans, Chapter 7, Verse 13…

 

ROMANS 7:13

Therefore, did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin…in order that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good…so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful.

 

Let’s conclude this part of the study with a look at Romans, Chapter 7, Verses 1 to 13 in the New Living Translation…perhaps this translation sheds light on the meaning we can derive from the whole passage…

 

ROMANS 7:1

Now, dear brothers and sisters—you who are familiar with the law—don’t you know that the law applies only while a person is living?

 

ROMANS 7:2

For example, when a woman marries, the law binds her to her husband as long as he is alive. But if he dies, the laws of marriage no longer apply to her.

 

ROMANS 7:3

So, while her husband is alive, she would be committing adultery if she married another man. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law and does not commit adultery when she remarries.

 

ROMANS 7:4

So, my dear brothers and sisters, this is the point: You died to the power of the law when you died with Christ. And now you are united with the one who was raised from the dead. As a result, we can produce a harvest of good deeds for God.

 

ROMANS 7:5

When we were controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death.

 

ROMANS 7:6

But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in (union with) the Spirit.

 

ROMANS 7:7

Well then, am I suggesting that the law of God is sinful? Of course not! In fact, it was the law that showed me my sin. I would never have known that coveting is wrong if the law had not said, “You must not covet.”

 

 

ROMANS 7:8

But sin used this command to arouse all kinds of covetous desires within me! If there were no law, sin would not have that power.

 

ROMANS 7:9

At one time I lived without understanding the law. But when I learned the command not to covet, for instance, the power of sin came to life…

 

ROMANS 7:10

…and I died. So, I discovered that the law’s commands, which were supposed to bring life, brought spiritual death instead.

 

ROMANS 7:11

Sin took advantage of those commands and deceived me…it used the commands to kill me.

 

ROMANS 7:12

But still, the law itself is holy…and its commands are holy and right and good.

 

ROMANS 7:13

But how can that be?Did the law, which is good, cause my death? Of course not! Sin used what was good to bring about my condemnation to death. So, we can see how terrible sin really is. It uses God’s good commands for its own evil purposes.

 

As believers in Christ, we are not preoccupied with the Law.  We now belong to another…we are married to the Lord Jesus Christ…the One who is risen from the dead.  He is the still point in the turning world of our lives.  As long as we are on earth, we let Him use us to reflect His unconditional love, forgiveness and grace to a lost and dying world.

 

THE GOSPEL MESSAGE

The Good News of Jesus Christ’s Salvation Offer to the Human Race

 

The closing moments of this lesson could be the ten most important minutes of

your life.  You’ll be introduced to the good news concerning how you can spend all eternity in heaven when you close your eyes in this life.  We want you to know that…

 

 

GOD WANTS YOU!

Make the Most Important Decision of Your Life

 

You are one of God’s creatures!  If you choose, you can be a child of God.  John, Chapter 1, Verse 12 says…

 

JOHN 1:12

But as many as received the invitation from Jesus to be saved…to them He gave the right to become children of God the Father…even to those who believe in Jesus’ name…

 

The problem is you may think the Lord is like our human parents…

emotional, arbitrary, and sentimental.  Our parents tell us what to do…we do the opposite…and they let us off the hook.  Your Divine Parent, the Lord Jesus Christ, does not operate that way.  Matthew, Chapter 7, Verses 24 to 27…

 

MATTHEW 24:24

“Therefore, everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on themmay be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.”

 

MATTHEW 24:25

“And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house…and yet the house did not fallfor it had been founded on the rock.”

 

MATTHEW 24:26

“Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on themwill be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.”

 

MATTHEW 24:27

“The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house…and the house fell…and great was its fall.”

 

God is inviting you to be saved, and He tells you EXACTLY what you must do to be saved.  God says there is ONE WAY to heaven in John, Chapter 14, Verse 6…

 

JOHN 14:6

Jesus said … “I am the way (to salvation) … and I am the truth (through the gospel message in 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.”

 

God has a plan for your salvation.  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 of heaven.”

 

What IS the will of God the Father for your salvation?  It’s simple…Acts, Chapter 16, Verse 31…

 

ACTS 16:31

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

 

It takes about thirty seconds of your time to be saved.  You simply turn to the God who saves you and ask for salvation.  You can do it RIGHT THIS MINUTE.  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 primary importance the gospel message I also received from God…that it was Jesus Christ who died for our sins according to the Old Testament 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 Old Testament Scriptures…

 

If you ignore God’s offer of salvation, there are consequences…Revelation, Chapter 21, Verse 8…

 

REVELATION 21:8

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

 

There’s spiritual death and there is the second death in the Lake of Fire…the eternal home of those who reject a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

We encourage you to accept the invitation and heed the warning of 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.”

 

When you believe, you simply take God’s word for it concerning what it takes to be saved!  Do it RIGHT NOW and you’ll be saved for all time!

 

THE GOSPEL MESSAGE

The Good News of Jesus Christ’s Salvation Offer to the Human Race

 

CLOSING SONG INTRODUCTION

 

Let’s close with music! As believers in Christ, because we forget about the power of God’s Word and the power of the Lord Jesus Christ’s work on the Cross, we don’t feel good enough to have justification by faith.  June Murphy speaks for God in song…MY CROSS MADE YOU GOOD ENOUGH.

 

MUSIC

CLOSING SONG

Let’s Sing the Lord’s Praises

 

MY CROSS MADE YOU GOOD ENOUGH

June Murphy

 

CLOSING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

Almighty God and Father…

 

…thank you for your generosity and patience toward your creatures…teach us how to love You…how to love ourselves…and how to love others, especially unbelievers…so much…that we tell them all about Your Son and what He is willing to do for them…

 

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

 

THE ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

Please make it a habit to listen to the announcements.  They are posted separately.  Keep current on the things going on and coming up in Barah Ministries.

 

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pastor@barahministries.com

 

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KEEP ON STUDYING THE WORD OF GOD DAILY!

 

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www.barahministries.com