Romans 149: Romans 5 - Who is Your Boss?Welcome To BARAH MINISTRIES a Christian Church Rory Clark Pastor-Teacher
Good Morning!
Welcome to Barah Ministries…a worldwide Christian Church based in Mesa, AZ…my name is Pastor Rory Clark.
God offers us two simple choices…and from these choices, one simple decision lay in front of us all…at every moment in time, the decision that lies before us is slavery or freedom. Galatians, Chapter 5, Verse 1 says…
GAL 5:1 It was for freedom that the Lord Jesus Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm in the freedom and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.
Simply stated, you get to choose your boss. Who is your boss…the boss of slavery…or the boss of freedom?
This week I got to spend some time in one of my favorite cities…Berlin… the capital of a reunified Germany. On a tour, I passed through Checkpoint Charlie, and as I have many times for the passing there, I was overcome with emotion. Checkpoint Charlie was the name given by the Western Allies to the best-known Berlin Wall crossing point between East Berlin and West Berlin during the Cold War between the United States and its allies and Russia and its allies. The Berlin Wall was constructed in 1961 to prevent escape across the city sector border from East Berlin to West Berlin. Checkpoint Charlie became a symbol of the Cold War, representing the separation of the East and the West. It was the separator between the slavery of the communist east and the freedom of the west.
During moments when I experience true history, I take a brief trip back to look at documentaries and newsreels to see what really happened, hoping to avoid the sanitized version of history perpetrated in tourist propaganda. What struck me as I watched these newsreels is how people ran from slavery to freedom…how they ran to the border to escape through it, hoping for a freer, better life. I could be wrong about this, but I think you’d be hard pressed to see many newsreels of people fleeing back toward slavery without some kind of coercion.
So here’s my question for you as we prepare for our lesson today…to what are you enslaved? Are you enslaved to yourself…to people…to things…to your mentality…to your emotions…to substances…to a job…to your family…to friends…to a relationship…to your ego? In this lesson, we’re asking you to consider this question, “Who is Your Boss?” You’ll probably find, as you assess it, that your boss is the one to whom you are enslaved. Welcome to a place where you can learn about the boss of the universe, the boss who stands for freedom, the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Peter reminds us in First Peter, Chapter 2, Verse 16…
1PE 2:16 Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use your freedom as bondslaves of God.
The study of the Word of God calls you to freely give yourselves to God, to freely learn from Him, to freely learn about Him and to freely construct a magnificent, and eternal life through Him. Welcome to bible study.
MUSIC AND REFLECTION Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ Enjoy the Singing of His Praises
CALLING YOU TO FREEDOM
Let’s begin our worship of the Lord with an opening song. Here’s June Murphy to sing…CALLING YOU TO FREEDOM.
OPENING PRAYER
Let us pray...
We’re grateful to you, Heavenly Father, for the privilege of studying Your absolute truth...the Word of God…
Thank you for letting freedom ring…thank you for giving us free will, and in that way sponsoring freedom…thank you for all in whose hearts you have emblazoned the ideal of freedom…may we never forget what you have done for us through Your Son…freeing us, through Him, from the bondage of sin and death by means of His blood…
Show us, through Your Word to us today, how to take advantage of Your free gift of freedom offer without taking it for granted…help us to enjoy freedom and to appreciate it everywhere we see it…
We ask this through the power of God the Holy Spirit...in Christ’s name... Amen.
TODAY’S STUDY Who is Your Boss?
Turn in your bibles to Romans, Chapter 5, Verse 1…let’s remind ourselves where we have been in this chapter as we continue our study…
<Read Romans, Chapter 5, Verses 1 to 11>
In the first part of Romans, Chapter 5 we learn the results of our righteousness and our justification by means of faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ alone. In Romans, Chapter 5, Verses 12 to 21, we get a new look at our salvation, and where it comes from. God offers us two simple choices…and from these choices, one simple decision lay in front of us all…we can choose slavery or we can choose freedom. This passage asks each one of us, in several ways, to announce our simple decision to the question, “Who is Your Boss?” The passage asks, “Are you ‘In Adam’ or are you ‘In Christ?’”
This passage, Romans, Chapter 5, Verses 12 to 21, is the tale of two men…
THE TALE OF TWO MEN
In Adam? or In Christ? THE FIRST ADAM THE LAST ADAM EN ADAM EN KRISTO IESUS
Turn to First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verse 22a…it describes your fate if you select the first Adam as your boss…
1CO 15:22a For as in Adam all are set to die the second death (in the Lake of Fire)…
First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verse 22b describes your fate if you select the last Adam, Jesus Christ, as your boss…
1CO 15:22b …in Christ all will be made alive.
Look ahead to First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verse 45…
1CO 15:45 So also it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living soul.” The last Adam (Jesus Christ) became a life-giving spirit.
If you are in Adam, the bible describes you as the psuchikos man…the natural man…the seed of Adam. First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verse 46…
1CO 15:46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural is first, then the spiritual.
A seed must go into the ground and die before it becomes a life giving plant. The natural man must die to become the spiritual man.
1CO 15:47 The first man, Adam, is from the earth, thus he is earthy; the second man, Jesus Christ, is from heaven (thus He is heavenly).
1CO 15:48 As is the earthy (Adam), so also are those who are earthy (the natural men); and as is the heavenly (Jesus Christ), so also are those who are heavenly (the spiritual men).
1CO 15:49 Just as we have borne the image of the earthy (from physical birth), we believers in Christ will also bear the image of the heavenly. Who’s your boss? Are you ‘in Adam,’ or are you ‘in Christ?’ You get to choose…it’s one or the other…in the spiritual realm, you can’t have two bosses. The Lord Jesus Christ won’t let you slip into the “lukewarm no-man’s land.”
This passage, Romans, Chapter 5, Verses 12 to 21, is the tale of two choices…
THE TALE OF TWO CHOICES
In Adam or In Christ WRATH RIGHTEOUSNESS
If you choose to remain “in Adam,” your condition from physical birth, and you die physically while in that condition…then wrath. Romans, Chapter 1, Verse 18…
ROM 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and against the unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness…
I guarantee you do not want to be on the wrong end of the wrath of God! Well if you choose not wrath, then you choose righteousness…Romans, Chapter 1, Verse 17…
ROM 1:17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed from faith (for salvation) to faith (for all things); as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”
Who is your boss…the boss of wrath or the boss of righteousness?
This passage, Romans, Chapter 5, Verses 12 to 21, is the tale of two realms…
THE TALE OF TWO REALMS
In Adam or In Christ EARTHLY REALM HEAVENLY REALM “OF THE WORLD” “NOT OF THE WORLD”
…the earthly realm, described by the bible as “of the world” … and the heavenly realm, described as “not of the world.” In John, Chapter 15, Verse 19, Jesus is speaking about the two realms…
JOH 15:19 If you (my apostles) were of the world, and you are not, the world would love (you as) its own; but because you are not of the world, but I (the Lord Jesus Christ) chose you out of the world, because of this choosing,the world hates you.
If the Lord Jesus Christ chooses you out of the world, you are not of the world. Turn to Colossians, Chapter 3, Verse 1…
COL 3:1 Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, and you believers in Christ have, keep on seeking the things above, where Jesus Christ is, seated at the right hand of God the Father.
This calls for us to turn away from the practices of the old life and to adopt a completely new way of being…a completely new lifestyle.
COL 3:2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.
The change always begins with a change of thinking. Who’s your boss?
COL 3:3 For you believers in Christ have died and your life is hidden in union with Christ in God the Father.
Who’s your boss? If you are of the world, you belong to Satan, the enemy of God. If you are not of the world, then you are of the Lord’s kingdom. Take a five-minute break.
BREAK Better than Life Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Welcome back! This passage, Romans, Chapter 5, Verses 12 to 21, is the tale of two spheres…
THE TALE OF TWO SPHERES
In Adam or In Christ LAW GRACE
…the sphere of law, and the sphere of grace. Romans, Chapter 6, Verses 14 says…
ROM 6:14 For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but you are under grace.
Who is your boss? As a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ you are not to live in slavery to the laws which bind you to an old master. Look you're your boss did for you…Ephesians, Chapter 2, Verses 14 and 15…
EPH 2:14 For the Lord Jesus Christ Himself is our peace, who made both groups (Jews and Gentiles) into one group and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall…
EPH 2:15 …by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in union with Himself the Lord Jesus Christ might make the two groups (Jews and Gentiles) into one new man, thus establishing peace…
Who’s your boss, and what are His policies…the sphere laws that ensure that your sins will increase…or the sphere of grace…a place where you can make mistakes and recover from them without guilt or remorse or shame?
This passage, Romans, Chapter 5, Verses 12 to 21, is the tale of two natures…
THE TALE OF TWO NATURES
In Adam or In Christ IN THE FLESH IN THE SPIRIT
John, Chapter 3, Verse 6 makes it clear…
JOH 3:6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of God the Holy the Spirit is spirit.
Physical birth and spiritual birth are different. Physical birth is mortal. It dies. Spiritual birth is immortal. It never dies. Said another way…that which is born of Adam, that which is born of flesh, is ‘in Adam,’ and it dies… that which is born by means of the baptism of God the Holy Spirit is ‘in Christ,’ and it lives forever. Colossians, Chapter 2, Verses 11 to 13…
COL 2:11 …and in union with Christ you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, not just physical circumcision in the removal of the body of the flesh but by the spiritual circumcision of union with Christ…
Spiritual circumcision gives you a new boss.
COL 2:12 …having been buried with Jesus Christ in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Christ (resurrected from the dead) through faith in the working of God the Father, who also raised Jesus Christ from the dead.
As believers in Christ you have put off the old life by dying to it. You believers now have a new boss…Christ!
COL 2:13 When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God the Father made you alive together with Christ, having forgiven you all your transgressions…
Who is your boss? The soul once born never dies, and you get to select where it spends eternity. You get to choose your boss. This passage, Romans, Chapter 5, Verses 12 to 21, is the tale of two heredities…
THE TALE OF TWO HEREDITIES
In Adam or In Christ THE OLD MAN THE NEW MAN
Romans, Chapter 6, Verse 6 says…
ROM 6:6 …knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Jesus Christ, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin…
Who’s your boss…your old self or your new self? Second Corinthians, Chapter 5, Verse 17 implores you…
2CO 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, and all believers in Christ are, he is a new creature; the old self things have passed away; behold, the new self things have come.
Who’s your boss? The old self is not a polished up version of the old you…it’s a totally new you. Is the boss of the new self your boss?
This passage, Romans, Chapter 5, Verses 12 to 21, is the tale of two births…
THE TALE OF TWO BIRTHS
In Adam or In Christ PHYSICAL BIRTH SPIRITUAL BIRTH
John, Chapter 3, Verse 5 says…
JOH 3:5 Jesus answered Nicodemus and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again…(the spiritual birth by means) of water and (by means of the baptism of God) the (Holy) Spirit…he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”
John, Chapter 3, Verse 7 says…
JOH 3:7 “Do not be amazed, Nicodemus, that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’”
Nicodemus was being asked by Jesus Christ, “Who’s your boss?” If you remain in physical birth, you are a slave to sin…if you choose the spiritual birth you are free from the slavery of sin and death.
This passage, Romans, Chapter 5, Verses 12 to 21, is the tale of two results…two destinies…
THE TALE OF TWO RESULTS (DESTINIES)
In Adam or In Christ CONDEMNATION SALVATION GUILT JUSTIFICATION ETERNAL DEATH ETERNAL LIFE
It’s been said, “You can take the boy out of the ghetto…but you can’t take the ghetto out of the boy!” I say, “Not true!” God is dealing with our dead old self in us. Who’s your boss? Is Adam in your heart or is Christ in your heart? Many of us Christians keep looking back fondly to our times of slavery to the old self, and we wonder why we sin! We sin because we do what we know. We know our Adamic side very well. But many of us Christians don’t know our new self at all. Who is our new man? What are his desires for us? Colossians, Chapter 1, Verses 25 to 27 say…
COL 1:25 Of this church I (Paul) was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God…
COL 1:26 …that is, the preaching about the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to all His saints…
Paul is dealing with the mystics in Colossae in this passage, who claimed that the knowledge of the Word of God was only for a few…the “special” Jews…but Paul made it known that everyone could choose the Lord Jesus Christ as a boss…
COL 1:27 …to whom God the Father willed to make known what is the glorious riches of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ indwelling you, the hope of glory.
Who’s your boss? If Adam is your boss then death is the result. If Christ is your boss, indwelling you, then life is the result.Matthew, Chapter 10, beginning at Verse 34…
MAT 10:34 “Do not think that I (the Lord Jesus Christ) came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.”
MAT 10:35 “For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law…”
MAT 10:36 “…and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household.”
MAT 10:37 “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.”
MAT 10:38 “And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.”
MAT 10:39 “He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it.”
Choosing the Lord Jesus Christ as your boss may have a cost…but it’s well worth it.
The Promises of the Lord Jesus Christ
When God makes a promise… 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.”
JOH 14:6 Jesus said to doubting Thomas, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through believing in Me.
JOH 3:36 He who believes in the Son has eternal life (the ZOE life); but he who does not obey the (command to believe in the) Son will not see (the Zoe) life, but instead the wrath of God the Father abides on him.”
CLOSING SONG BLANK
CLOSING PRAYER Let us pray...
THANKS- INTERCESSION- PETITION
And we pray that You continue to shape the messages from this pulpit that are an accurate reflection of Your unconditional love, Your glorious Person, Your lucid thinking, Your impeccable work, and Your magnificent essence...we ask this through the power of God the Holy Spirit, in Christ’s name, Amen.
Thanks for coming…for watching…for listening!
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