Romans 6: Now That Believers are Justified by Faith, What is the Christian Way of Living?

Class Outline:

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Conceit Retreat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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.

 

Veracity.

 

It’s a word we don’t hear very often anymore in our vocabulary-less society where the word “like” is used to substitute for unavailable vocabulary.

 

Veracity is “habitual truthfulness.”

 

It’s a great way to describe how God communicates with us.  He IS habitual in His truthfulness.  Our God can't do anything but tell the truth.  He can't lie.  What an encouraging thing!  There is someone we can count on ALWAYS to tell us the truth.  We come to Bible study to learn the truth…the absolute truth…and nothing but the truth through studying the Word of God.

 

What is the most important questionsto ask about eternal matters?  We ask,“Is the source of information we rely on for eternal matters true?”  At Barah Ministries we are relying on a God who always tells the truth, and we are relying on His Word as communicated in the Bible.  We are pursuing the truth as we study the Word of God.

 

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.

He never lies according to Hebrews, Chapter 6, Verse 18…

 

HEBREWS 6:18

…there are two unchangeable things…first, it is impossible for God the Father to lie…second, we who have taken refuge in Him have strong encouragementknowing there is hope set before us (the absolute confidence of a certain future).

 

We count on God the Father to tell us the absolute truth.

 

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.

 

The Lord not only tells us the truth…He IS the truth according to John, Chapter 14, Verse 6…

 

JOHN 14:6

Jesus said to the doubting apostleThomas, “I am the way (to salvation) … and I AM THE TRUTH (through the gospel message and the Word of God) … and I am the resurrection life (eternal life) …and no one comes to God the Father in heaven but through believing in Me.”

 

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.According to the Lord He makes the truth clear…John, Chapter 16, Verse 13…

 

JOHN 16:13

…when God the Holy Spirit of truth comes…He will guide you into all the truth…

 

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…a team that always tells the truth.  Are you calling on them for help in times of trouble?

 

What is Our Source of Truthat Barah Ministries?

 

The Bible is the Word of God.  It’s our source of absolute truth.  As Christians, how we develop a deep, intimate, and personal relationship with the Godhead…the way we get to know God as a Person…is through studying the Word of God.

 

In prayer the night before He went to the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ testified that God the Father and the entire Godhead can be counted on to tell the truth.  In John, Chapter 17, Verse 17 the Lord asks His Father to…

 

JOHN 17:17

Sanctify believers in Christ in the truth…Your word is truth.

 

Your source of truth for eternal matters is not an insignificant thing.  It has eternal consequences.  The Bible is a supernatural work…breathed into human writers by God…to provide us with the only source of absolute truth, especially about eternal things.

 

Because God is right all the time, the Bible is right all the time.  It contains no errors or contradictions.  You can trust the Bible as your source of truth.  At Barah Ministrieswe teach the Bible from God’s perspective, not from man’s perspective.  We refuse to teach as doctrinal truth the very fallible 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 can be counted onto tell absolute lies!In John, Chapter 8, Verse 44 the Lord says…

 

JOHN 8:44b

…Satan does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature…for he is a liar and he is the one who keeps on fathering lies.

 

Have you ever wondered why Jesus didn’t accept Satan’s offer in Matthew, Chapter 4, Verses 8 and 9?

 

MATTHEW 4:8

…the devil (Satan) took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory…

 

MATTHEW 4:9

…and Satan said to Jesus, “All these things I will give You, if (3) You fall down and worship me.”

 

Since Satan is the ruler of this world, offering his earthly kingdoms was a legitimate offer.  Yet it was easy for Jesus to refuse knowing that Satan is a liar.  Satan makes promises but he never keeps them.  Don’t listen to him and don’t believe him.  He is a liar.  Get your truth from the ultimate source of absolute truth…our God and His Word.

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Now That Believers are Justified by Faith, What is the Christian Way of Living?

 

LESSON INTRODUCTION

 

Once we become Christians, things change.  Christianity goes from being a gift to being an experience.  Even though we wish it were not true, during the experience we keep on sinning.  Our wise God doesn’t want us to sin, so He teaches us the folly of sin through experience…not by theory…not by lecture…not by condescension…not by “shoulds”…not by pontification.  Our God lets us learn by doing so we experience the truth of what happens when we disobey His suggestionsand so we experience the wisdom of living the Word of God.

So what is the post-justification experience of Christians?  In today’s lesson, the second half of Romans, Chapter 7, the apostle Paul clarifies our post-salvation experience.

 

And as we do every month, we’ll celebrate the Lord’s Supper.  At the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ demonstrated the SELFLESS life.

 

OPENING SONG INTRODUCTION

 

Let’s hear some music!Second Corinthians, Chapter 5, Verse 21 says…

 

SECOND CORINTHIANS

God the Father made Jesus Christ…who knew no sin…to BE sin on our behalf…so that we might have the righteousness of God in union with Him.

 

At the moment you believe in Christ you are justified by faith.  As the group MercyMe rightly says…the Lord’s work on the Cross makes us FLAWLESS!

 

MUSIC

OPENING SONG

Let’s Sing the Lord’s Praises

 

FLAWLESS

MercyMe

 

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 the things we don’t see that You have planned for our lives…with both eagerness and groaning we await the manifestation of Your grace in every area of our lives… thank you Father for never giving any of us what we deserve, especially Your believers…because of Your graciousness we get to keep on learning through our mistakes…and because You work all things together for our good we actually prosper despite our mistakes…thank you for working everything out for us…thank you for always giving us opportunities to learn and to grow through experience rather than lecture…

 

…as we learnYour Word in today’s lesson, let our spiritual eyes be enlightened as we studyso we know how exciting the future is for those of us who are in union with Your Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ…help us to hear the still small voice of God the Holy Spirit as He directs our lives…help us to feel good about ourselves as You would want us to…help us to understand deeply the conflict we have inside as believers in Christ…and help us to mature every day so we see the Christian Way of Living from Your perspective…

 

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

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Now That Believers are Justified by Faith, What is the Christian Way of Living?

 

LESSON PART ONE

 

The next passage of the apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans is one of the most important passages in the Bible, and it lives in the most important New Testament letter for Christians.  Paul’s letter to the Romans is the foundational teaching of Biblical Christianity.

 

The passage we are about to study is worth dwelling on for a few lessons, and we will.

 

On the night He was betrayed, the night before He went to the Cross to be crucified at the hands of godless men, the Lord Jesus Christ expressed His compassion for His disciples because He knew them better than they knew themselves…Matthew, Chapter 26, Verse 41…

 

MATTHEW 26:41

“Keep on watching and keep on praying that you may not enter into temptation… your spirit is willing…but your flesh is weak.”

 

The Lord Jesus Christ knew His disciples were weaker than they were strong, and He was preparing them for what was to come.  They all abandoned Him when He was arrested and led to the slaughter.  Why?  They had a tremendous conflict inside.  They were more selfish than selfless.  They were more self-concerned than they were Jesus concerned.  Yet our Lord loved them unconditionally anyway.

 

Believers in Christ…you'll see yourselves in this passage…and you need to grasp the passage’s meaning so you can enjoy the Christian Way of Living rather than turning Christianity into an endless guilt trip filled with shame.

 

Let’s begin with a look at the NEW LIVING TRANSLATION of this passage.  Then we’ll introduce the learning in this passage with a few insights that will help you grasp what we are about to study.  Romans, Chapter 7, Verses 14 to 25 and Romans, Chapter 8, Verses 1 and 2…

 

ROMANS 7:14

The trouble is not with the law…for the law is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me…for I am all too human…a slave to sin.

 

ROMANS 7:15

And I don’t really understand myself…for I want to do what is right…but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate.

 

ROMANS 7:16

But if I know what I am doing is wrong, and I do, this shows that I agree that the law is good.

 

ROMANS 7:17

So…I am not the one doing wrong…it is sin living in me that does it.

 

ROMANS 7:18

And I know that nothing good lives in me…that is, in my sinful nature (the flesh).

 

ROMANS 7:19

For I want to do what is good…but I don’t.  I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway.

 

ROMANS 7:20

But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing the wrong…it is indwelling sin (the flesh) living in me that does the wrong things.

 

 

ROMANS 7:21

I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right…I inevitably do what is wrong.

 

ROMANS 7:22

I love God’s law with all my heart.

 

ROMANS 7:23

But another power within me is at war with my mind.  This power makes me a slave to the indwelling sin (the flesh) that is still within me.

 

ROMANS 7:24

Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death (from the flesh)?

 

ROMANS 7:25

Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord who will free me from the life dominated by sin and death. So you see how it is…in my mind I really want to obeyGod's law…but because of my sinful nature (the flesh), I am a slave to sin (not obeying God's law).

 

ROMANS 8:1

However, there is now no condemnation for those who are in union with Christ Jesus.

 

ROMANS 8:2

For the law of God the Holy Spirit…guide of the resurrection life in union with Christ Jesus…has set believers in Christ free from the law of sin and of death.

 

Why would God give us this information?  As one Bible commentator put it, “Man longs to keep the Law perfectly…and his continued and complete inability to do so troubles him.”

 

Amen?

 

We wish we were “better” Christians.  Yet we need constant reminders that God is completely satisfied with us.  God loves the sinner and He hates sin.  Yet we are NEVER satisfied with ourselves.  This passage gives us a chance to choose to be satisfied with ourselves.

Some Christians seek what is hopeless…perfectionism.  They think they should never sin.  Other Christians wallow in defeat…they can’t understand why they don’t keep the law and they get depressed about it.  Our God does not offer a happy medium.  He offers a third place…a different place…a sphere of grace…a place where God does all the work for us because He realizes that our own works

are useless.

 

Christians are not comfortable with their own helplessness.  This passage helps us be free.  It helps us to be comfortable with our imperfections.  When we are, there is no hypocrisy…no boast of perfection…no phony Christian faces…no disgusting superficiality (sound byte Christianity…because of you, Lord!).

 

God helps us see our failures through experience.  He hopes that as we see ourselves for who we are…helpless and hopeless even after being saved…we are less quick to judge the flaws of others and we are more gentle with ourselves.

 

Indwelling sinexplains why Christians are not perfect and don’t measure up either to God’s high standards or our own high standards.

 

As believers in Christ we are a new creation from God…a new creature in union with Christ…yet we still sin.

 

We can be at peace with continuing to sin knowing that it’s God's job to battle it.  Anyone who thinks this infers that we should love sinning is sadly mistaken as we learned in Romans, Chapter 6, Verses 1 and 2…

 

ROMANS 6:1

What shall we believers in Christ say then? Are we to keep on sinning so that God’s grace may increase (overflowing to us)?

 

ROMANS 6:2

May it never be! How shall such ones as we believers in Christ (the children of a King)…who DIED TO SIN (as an established fact at the moment of our salvation)…still live in sin (as if sin is still our master)?

 

We have already won the war against sin because of Christ’s sacrifice at the Cross.  Now God the Holy Spirit is responsible for leading us away from sin to bear fruit for God.  Sin is NOT the fruit of the Spirit…it’s the fruit of the flesh.  It is death.

 

For the rest of our lives as believers in Christ, God will allow us to experience many humiliating memorials of our remaining imperfections.  This passage reminds us to relax about it, knowing that God is responsible for handling our sanctification just as surely as He handled our salvation…all without our help.

 

Let’s look at the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD version of the passage.  Let these words really sink in.  Is this your Christian experience?  Romans, Chapter 7, Verses 14 to 25 and Romans, Chapter 8, Verses 1 and 2…

 

ROMANS 7:14

For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin.

 

ROMANS 7:15

For what I am doing, I do not understand…for I am not practicing what I would like to do…but I am doing the very thing I hate.

 

ROMANS 7:16

But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good.

 

ROMANS 7:17

So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me.

 

ROMANS 7:18

For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh…for the willingness to do good is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.

 

ROMANS 7:19

For the good that I want, I do not do…but I practice the very evil that I do not want.

 

ROMANS 7:20

But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me.

 

ROMANS 7:21

I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good.

 

 

ROMANS 7:22

For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man…

 

ROMANS 7:23

…but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law

of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members.

 

ROMANS 7:24

Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?

 

Can you relate?

 

ROMANS 7:25

Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.

 

ROMANS 8:1

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

 

ROMANS 8:2

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.

 

God didn’t give you a bad body.  God didn’t give you a bad mind.  God did allow you to have indwelling sin after salvation.  When we finish studying this passage, I hope you give up the fruitless pursuit of perfection…hoping that somehowthrough your own works you can make yourself pleasing to God.

 

Instead, I hope you know that God doesn’t need you to work to please Him…He is already pleased with you.  It is my hope that you learn to be comfortable in your own skin…comfortable with your imperfections.

 

We’re looking forward to the next few lesson where we will explore this passage in depth to glean all the goodness that it means to be a Christian.

 

When we return from the break, we’ll take the offering and then we’ll celebrate the Lord’s Supper.

 

FIVE-MINUTE BREAK

NOBODY

Casting Crowns

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Now That Believers are Justified by Faith, What is the Christian Way of

Living?

 

OFFERING INTRODUCTION

 

When God blesses us financially, He wants us to raise our standard of GIVING, not our standard of living.  Remember, God is the One who seeks and saves the lost…the lost don’t seek Him…Romans, Chapter 3, Verse 11 says…

 

ROMANS 3:11

No creature understands God or any divine thing…there is no creature who seeks a relationship with God…

 

In Luke, Chapter 15, Verse 4, Jesus says…

 

LUKE 15:4

“What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them,

does not leave the ninety-nine sheep in the open pasture and go after the one sheep which is lost until he finds it?”

 

The Lord Jesus Christ is the Shepherd.  As His creatures, we are the sheep.  What does the Shepherd do for the sheep who are not seeking a relationship with Him?  He goes after them.  Your generosity creates the opportunity for Barah Ministries to provide the gift of the gospel message to the unbelievers God brings to this ministry.  You help God go after them.

 

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

 

THE OFFERING

Deacon Denny Goodall

 

 

 

OFFERING VERSE

 

GALATIANS 5:16

But I (Paul) say (to you Galatian believers in Christ and to all believers in Christ)…walk by the guidance of God the Holy Spirit, and you will not (no way…not no how be able to) carry out the desire of the flesh.

 

OFFERING SONG

THERE IS NONE LIKE YOU

Instrumental Version

 

THE LORD’S SUPPER CELEBRATION

Through the Cross, the Lord Jesus ChristDemonstrated the Selfless Life

 

Welcome to the Lord’s Supper Celebration!

 

As we remember the Lord, let’s enjoy recalling the things the Lord has done for us, especially His work on the Cross on our behalf.  The Lord’s Supper gives us a chance to direct our focus to the Lord alone.

 

Concerning the Lord’s Supper, our God commands us in Luke, Chapter 22, Verse 19 to…

 

LUKE 22:19c

“…keep on doing this Lord’s Supper Celebrationin remembrance of Me.”

 

In celebrating the Lord’s Supper, the Lord Jesus Christ wants us to make time to think about everything special in our lives, especially the most important relationship in our lives…whether we are believers in Christ or even unbelievers… the relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.  A relationship with the Lord is critically and eternally important.

 

Yet the Lord’s Supper Celebration is for the born-again ones…for spiritually alive

believers in Christ who were placed into union with Christ through the baptism of God the Holy Spirit at the moment of their salvation.  God the Holy Spirit turned us into eternal companions of Christ.

 

It is not wise to celebrate The Lord’s Supper on the move.  It’s a chance to be still and to reflect on the blessings the Lord directs to us.

 

Through the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ taught us many lessons.  One of those lessons was SELFLESSNESS.  John, Chapter 15, Verse 13…

 

JOHN 15:13

Greater unconditional love has no one than this…that one lay down his life for his friends.

 

The Lord Jesus Christ died for you.  He gave His life in sacrifice for you.  He has forgiven you.  His sacrifice was propitiatory…the only sacrifice acceptable to God the Father to remove you from being a target of God the Father’s wrath.  He taught you where to invest your faith…in Him.  He placed you into union with Him when you placed your faith in Him.  You are justified by faith and you’re in a marriage you can’t get out of…for all eternity!  There are many ways to describe what the Lord did for us at the Cross.  One of them is the demonstration of unconditional love.  Another is the demonstration of selflessness.  He is a stunning example of selflessness.

 

Who are the recipients of His amazing, unconditional, selfless love?  WHOSOEVER.

 

Unfortunately, there is selfishness at work within us.  When it is an identity, selfishnessbecomesthe self-life.  It is the life of unbelievers.  For those who are selfish, their only concern is themselves, and not in a good way.  You see, a person who is REALLY self-concerned would never want to spend eternity in the Lake of Fire.  Yet this is not the self-life being discussed.  We’re discussing the self-life that demonstrates a total lack of concern for others.

 

Among the things Jesus came to earth for, it was to offer adifferent way of living...SELFLESSNESS.  In Matthew, Chapter 22, Verses 36 to 40, Jesus was challenged by a religious Pharisee who was also a lawyer, who said to the Lord…

 

MATTHEW 22:36

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Mosaic Law?”

 

He asked the question thinking he knew the answer.

 

 

 

MATTHEW 22:37

And Jesus said to the lawyer, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heartand with all your souland with all your mind.’”

 

MATTHEW 22:38

This is the great and foremost commandment.

 

MATTHEW 22:39

“The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor unconditionally just as you are to love yourself…unconditionally.’”

 

MATTHEW 22:40

“On these two commandments depend the whole Mosaic Law and all the teaching of the Prophets.”

 

If two things could be said about what the Lord does not want foryou, one is that He does not want you to go to the Lake of Fire.  Second, He doesn’t want you to be selfish.  The old self life is quite selfish.

 

The Bible has many warnings about avoiding the characteristics of a selfish life.  Galatians, Chapter 6, Verse 3 warns us not to be arrogant…

 

GALATIANS 6:3

For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, and many do, he deceives himself.

 

Philippians, Chapter 2, Verse 3 warns us about being conceited…

 

PHILIPPIANS 2:3

Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit…but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves…

 

Proverbs 25, Verse 28 discourages a lack of self-control…

 

PROVERBS 25:28

Like a city that is broken into and without walls is a man who has no self-control over his spirit.

 

Proverbs 26, Verse 11 tells us not to be foolish…

 

PROVERBS 26:11

Like a dog that returns to its vomit is a fool who repeats his folly.

 

Mark, Chapter 11, Verse 25 tells us not to be unforgiving…

 

MARK 11:25b

Whenever you stand praying…forgive…if you have anything against anyone…

 

None of these things describe the Lord.  He is not arrogant or conceited or without self-control or foolish or unforgiving.  He is SELFLESS.

 

As we bring the Lord into clear focus during the Lord’s Supper Celebration, let’s remember His selflessness.  At the Cross, He is teaching us many lessons.  Selflessness is one.  Let’s do what He would have us do in experience.  Let’s emulate Him in the way we show up in the world.  Let’s be selfless.

 

THE LORD’S SUPPER CELEBRATION

Enjoying the Elements

 

Bread and wine.

 

The Lord gave us these things to remember Him.  We will enjoy the elements together in a few moments as we listen to The Lord’s Supper Song.

 

Matthew, Chapter 26, Verses 26 to 28 tells us the reason the Lord wants us to celebrate this meal together…

 

MATTHEW 26:26

While the apostles were eating, Jesus took some bread…and after a blessing…He

broke the bread, gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take…eat…this is My body which is being broken for you.”

 

MATTHEW 26:27

And when Jesus had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it…all of you…”

 

 

 

MATTHEW 26:28

“…for this is My blood…the blood of a new covenant…My blood…poured out for WHOSOEVER…for the forgiveness of sins.”

 

We celebrate to remember.  Jesus Christ died as our sin substitute…Jesus Christ is risen from the dead to prove His Deity…Jesus Christ loves us unconditionally… Jesus Christ forgives us once and for all time through His work on the Cross… Jesus Christ’s BLOOD paid for our sins…Jesus Christ saved us from the wrath of God the Father…Jesus Christ will come again to gather us unto Himself.  As believers in Christ, we celebrate the Lord’s Supper and we are grateful that His work on the Cross taught us to be SELFLESS.

 

Enjoy the elements as we listen to Steve Chapman remind us to use God’s strength and not our own in everything we do…especially as we strive to be selfless… because HIS STRENGTH IS PERFECT.

 

THE LORD’S SUPPER SONG

 

HIS STRENGTH IS PERFECT

Steven Curtis Chapman

 

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!

He Wants You Make the Most Important Decision of Your Life

 

If you’re listening to this message you need to know that the Lord Jesus Christ is Your Creator…John, Chapter 1, Verse 3…

 

JOHN 1:3

All things came into being through the Lord (God the Son)…and apart fromHim,nothing (including you) came into being that has come into being.

 

The Lord Jesus Christ loves you…UNconditionally…with NO conditions… First John, Chapter 4, Verse 8…

 

FIRST JOHN 4:8

The one who does not love unconditionally does not know the Lord…for the LordISunconditional love (in His very Person).

 

If you think these things are true, then there is no reason for you to end up in the Lake of Fire, commonly referred to as hell, when you close your eyes in this life.  To go to heaven, you simply choose to have a relationship with Christ.

 

Unfortunately for you, God considers you to be a sinner from the moment of your physical birth.  Ephesians, Chapter 2, Verse 1 says that from the moment of your birth…

 

 

EPHESIANS 2:1

…you were spiritually dead in your trespasses and sins…

 

It’s not your fault that you were born a sinner, but it is your circumstance.

All of us were born spiritually dead, and spiritually dead sinners need a Savior.  The Savior is the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

The Lord sent this message to you…the gospel message…good news about His salvation offer…because He wants a relationship with you.  This message is your roadmap to salvation!  First Timothy, Chapter 2, Verses 3 and 4 say…

 

FIRST TIMOTHY 2:3

This is what’s good and acceptable in the sight of the God who is our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ…

 

FIRST TIMOTHY 2:4

…who desires all men to be saved and who desiresfor all men to come to the knowledge of the truth.

 

There is something the Lord Jesus Christ doesn’t want for you…He doesn’t want you to go to the Lake of Fire…Second Peter, Chapter 3, Verse 9 says…

 

 

SECOND PETER 3:9

The Lord is not slow about His promise of salvationas some accuse Him of…instead, He is patient toward unbelievers…not wishing for any of you 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).

 

You will go to the Lake of Fire at physical death if you choose not to believe in Jesus Christ.

 

To make a place for you in heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ forgives all of your sins…Isaiah, Chapter 43, Verse 25…

 

ISAIAH 43:25

“I, even I (the Lord), am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake…and I will not remember your sins.”

 

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 (the apostle 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…

 

This loving, forgiving, patient God offers you the chance to be saved as a free gift, and He wants to save you right this minute.  RIGHT WHERE YOU SIT…RIGHT NOW…you can tell God the Father that you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and that is the moment of eternal life for you.  Acts, Chapter 16, Verse 31 says…

 

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.”

 

You don’t have to work to be saved…in fact, you can’t work to be saved… Romans, Chapter 11, Verse 6 says…

ROMANS 11:6

But if salvation is by grace, and of course it is, it is no longer based on your works…otherwise grace is no longer grace.

 

To be saved, you simply accept the free gift from God of eternal life by believing in the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

The Lord warns those who reject His salvation offer in Matthew, Chapter 25, Verse 41…

 

MATTHEW 25:41

“Then the Lord Jesus Christ will say to those on His left (unbelievers)…‘Depart from Me… accursed ones…into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels…’”

 

Believe me…you never want to hear those words.

So heed the warning and accept the invitation of John, Chapter 3, Verse 36…

 

JOHN 3:36

“He who believes in the Son has the resurrection life (eternal 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 realize the power of this gospel message, and as you get to know Jesus Christ’s love for you, you’ll have no problem placing your confidence in Him, both for your salvation and for anything else.  Why?  Because you’ll know that the Sovereign God of the Universe wants a relationship with you.  He loves you, and He died for you.

 

Take advantage of His grace and choose to be saved RIGHT NOW!

 

THE GOSPEL MESSAGE

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

 

CLOSING SONG INTRODUCTION

 

Let’s close with music!  Are the cares of the world weighing you down?  As we learned from our Guest Speaker Al Gleasonlast week, sometimes fear is bigger than faith.  The Lord ALWAYS has a remedy for our situations, and He reveals it in First Peter, Chapter 5, Verses 6 and 7…

 

FIRST PETER 5:6

…humble yourselves under the mighty hand of Godthat He may promote you at the proper time…

 

FIRST PETER 5:7

…slamming all your cares on His back…because He cares for you.

 

God considers all ofyour problems to be His responsibility. The group Finding Favour reminds us where to go when we have problems in their song CAST MY CARES.

 

MUSIC

CLOSING SONG

Let’s Sing the Lord’s Praises

 

CAST MY CARES

Finding Favour

 

CLOSING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

Almighty God and Father…

 

…thank you for reminding us that your Son’s actions on the Cross provide us with a model for a selfless life…

 

…as we interact with others during the coming week, remind us to consider others as more important than ourselves…and when it comes to self, let us be comfortable with our imperfections knowing that God the Holy Spirit is busy conforming us to the image of Your Son…

 

…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.

 

DISCUSSING THE LESSON AND PRAYER CIRCLE

 

Join us Live or on ZoomImmediately Following the Lesson

 

GOT BIBLICAL QUESTIONS?

 

Ask the Pastor

pastor@barahministries.com

 

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Send your request to pastor@barahministries.com

 

KEEP ON STUDYING THE WORD OF GOD DAILY!

 

Thanks for coming!

Thanks for watching!

Thanks for listening!

 

www.barahministries.com