Expound: Romans 1:24-2:29 - Part A

The righteousness of God is actually the righteousness whereby God converts a sinner he gives to you. He imputes to you his righteousness. You don't burn it. You don't try to try to do good works in order to get it you receive it before news of salvation shows us God's goodness today on connect with Skip Heitzig Skip shares of the gospel reveals God's incredible to tell you about a resource that will help you walk in the Holy Spirit, especially in the difficult moments in life when plaintiff's huge role in the biblical narrative from Eve to Esther to Betsy that to Priscilla.

We find stories of faith and family I think explores for Queens of the Bible and her new teaching theories.

Here's where we see Bernice sitting right by his side. Unfortunately, Bernice go with the flow, to peer pressure and remain silent hear more from Lynn yet. She explores four different queens in Scripture. And when you get $35 or more today will send you the Queens of the Bible collection of teaching saying thank you.

Peer pressure is a powerful thing. The crowd was watching Bernice was watching a cripple was watching and you know you do stupid things in peer pressure, you'll say you don't like the movie really like everybody else is they don't like it, whatever it is you come peer pressure.

Get your copy of the special teaching visit connectwithskip.com/offer to get online securely today or call 892 1888 Joy Skip today's message. I remember the first time I went to the city of Rome.

I had long to go there for years. It was a lifelong dream.

You know Rome, the eternal city has been inhabited.

I think almost 3000 years. There were so many sites I wanted to take in and when I sought it really truly was spectacular. The modern city ruins are still there though the coliseum the forum, many of the fountains of the place where Paul was incarcerated. It's a thrill to go there up all the apostle also wanted to go, but for a very different reason than Skip Heitzig.

He had an agenda on his mind and he announced in chapter 1 that he had wanted to go there and planned to go there on many occasions, but was hindered and eventually he does go there as we saw last week, but not like he planned he won as a prisoner. So God made sure that all of his expenses were paid by Caesar and he became a prisoner taken on a grain ship from Caesarea and sailed to Rome where he stood trial before Caesar Nero.

Now I wanted to go to Rome.

Paul wanted to go to Rome.

Probably you would mind going to Rome, but it's difficult for us to really understand the kind of anticipation and and stirring in the hearts of ancient people when they thought of Rome Rome in the ancient world was the center of the world was the center of civilization. Interestingly, it had become by the time Paul writes this a center of Christian faith and we say it's interesting because it's a church that the Paul writes to it. Paul never had gone there.

Paul never established a church in Rome like in so many other places and we saw last week that probably a church was started as a result of the visitors to Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost when the church was born in acts chapter 2 because there's a listing of all of the various groups of people from around the world that had been at the feast in Jerusalem and it says visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes were converts to Judaism, so there were people from all over the world. They saw the Holy Spirit and heard the Holy Spirit poured out in that city.

They went back to Rome. No doubt started some kind of a Bible study, some kind of evangelism group, whatever.

But by this time, a church has been established and is growing.

By the time the apostle does go there in the 28th chapter of the book of acts, you will be placed under house arrest. He will give home Bible studies from that place in the gospel will be firmly established even more. We last week, I purpose I told you to go to chapter 1 and two with you. We made it through chapter 1 verse 23, so I didn't make it but we always say doesn't matter, because we always pick up where we left off and we mosey on from there and stop when the clocks has run out and then pick it up next week, but eventually we are going to make it.

God willing of the Lord is not come back before then will make it through the entire book. There is a theme I don't want you to lose track of the theme we announced last week.

The theme of the book of Romans is the righteousness of God revealed in the gospel of Christ, the righteousness of God revealed in the good news the gospel, the good news about Jesus Christ. Now I told you last week that when Martin Luther was an Augustinian monk and he heard that phrase the righteousness of God.

It really bothered him because he took it to me not having really studied the book of Romans.

Yet he took it to mean that God is righteous and nobody can approach that kind of level of righteousness. So, in God's righteousness. He's going to judge the world.

Then he read the book of Romans as he studied it, and he came to that beautiful section here in Romans chapter 1, the just shall live by faith. He understood the righteousness of God is actually the righteousness whereby God converts a sinner he gives to you. He imputes to you his righteousness. You don't earn it.

You don't try to approach it. You don't try to do good works in order to get it you receive it so he confers his righteousness upon you, whereby when you believe in him you are made right with God. That's the idea of righteousness. You are made right with God.

So it is a term. The word righteousness found in this book no less than 60 times righteousness.

I know that sounds like an old-fashioned word, you may want to translate it right it is being right with God in right standing before God. That's the idea, and it is used some 60 times.

I know we ended in verse 23, but I did want to go back and overlap just a little bit to to to underscore this idea of the righteousness of God in the gospel of Christ. So look again at verse 16 for I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed. So the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel of Christ. That's the theme is revealed from faith to faith as it is written, but just or the righteous or those who are right with God or right before God, the just shall live by faith. So, eternal life is not earned it is received, it is given by God as a free gift is not a fee. It is for free is not produced by us it is received by us and produced by God now beginning in verse 18. That theme is introduced. Remember what I told you last week that the book of Romans can be divided into four distinct sections. Section 1.

The wrath of God. Section 2. The grace of God. Section 3. The plan of God. Section for the will of God, and I gave you those divisions last week. He begins in verse 18 by saying, for the wrath of God is revealed.

That's the first section of the book after the introduction, the preamble comes the first major theme the wrath of God is revealed. Okay so this can help you when I when I tell you about the audience that he is writing to Paul is writing in his mind to an audience that he can see in his mind, comprised of three different groups of people. Group number one you're out and out pagan night and I know that sort of an ancient term. It is even seen as an offensive term but did you know the word pagan was devised by the Christians in the fourth century to describe Romans unbelievers agenda, a Gentile, largely Gentile unbelievers, non-Jewish unbelievers, so he writes to the pagan world.

That's one group. The other group that Paul is writing to. Are the moralists the moralists are quite pagans they may be Jewish. They may be Gentile. They have some higher standard of living than the pagans do and then the third group are the religionists and the religionists are people who trust in their religion, their self-righteousness, I I do this I do that I keep these rituals. I keep these regulations my father or mother raised me this way, and based upon their background and their religious upbringing, mostly Jewish people. Paul writes, so to pagans to moralists and to religionists and he begins by addressing the pagans. Then he goes on to the moralists in chapter 2 verse one been around verse 17 of chapter 2 to chapter 3 verse 16. Right around there. He speaks to the religionists then he writes to everybody, and he says that the whole world may be guilty before God, that every mouth may be stopped. So what he wants to do is show you and I whether you are a garden-variety pagan or just a moralists person moral upbringing hi standard, or you are a very devout religious person apart from Christ, you're all condemned. There is no hope. Apart from the righteousness of God in the gospel of Christ, so he paints a very dark picture to begin with the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in on righteousness. He wants you to know why the righteousness of God is necessary and here's why. The righteousness of God is necessary. The righteousness of God is necessary because the unrighteousness of humanity is a reality because we are unrighteous. And there's nothing we can do to be right before God. The only hope is for God to impute to you give it to you his righteousness, so that the picture that he paints and he's very very upfront about the judgment.

If you're familiar with Romans want to do is light while people whom he's punching the Ende in the spiritual face and the reason he is doing that is intended to make you feel bad, but to make you see that God is good and and and he's so good that he takes a pagan nest or a moralist or religionists once they admit that there is no hope, and said you know what there is hope. I'm to give you a righteousness you can earn by yourself. I will confirm it on you. Remember, Paul said he is a debtor right I'm a debtor both to the Greeks the barbarians the wise and the unwise. I owe it to the world to tell them the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so he tells the whole world the truth. What would it be like if you had a postal worker mail carrier may have a mailman or a male woman.

I'm sorry that didn't quite come out right but a male delivering person who only wanted to deliver good tidings just good news is happy news so your mail carrier sees that your house is going to be foreclosed because you have a envelope and on the out it's outside it says notice of foreclosure and stamped on the front and you're at your name is on the address in the in the post carrier says you're not unlocking to deliver this let him in an ominous roadway because it's good to make the person who owns a home feel really sad feel really bad. I don't like making people feel sad.

I only want to deliver happy news, throw it away when he's here she is not being faithful to their calling, or if the doctor said you know the radiologist report is positive and you have a month to live your cancer so advanced but I want to tell the patient that it's gonna make him cry so wanted to pat him on the back. Tell them to take two aspirin to go home because I want to make him feel good.

Paul is not that kinda guy. He is a debtor I owe it to people to tell them the whole truth so here's why God's righteousness is so necessary because man's unrighteousness is such a reality and so he paints that that dark picture here is the wrath of God is revealed. Verse 19 because we read a few of these verse, then stopped because what may be known of God is manifest shown revealed in them. For God is shown it to them. For since the creation of the world his invisible attributes are clearly seen are unmistakable, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead, so they are without excuse.

The apostle was talking about something we call general revelation God is revealed himself generally to the world by the world itself. You look around you look around at the University earth the biosphere the cosmos that we live in. It looks like a finely tuned place that we we we RN and so you concur by looking around this.

This design must of had a designer there must be a God, a God who loves people and has ensured that they can live in this environment. One will lead you to the other in Apollo saying it has God has revealed himself generally, and I even quoted last week that Psalm Psalm 19 were Davis at the heavens declare the glory of God. The firmament shows his handiwork Dan today they utter their speech night and tonight they reveal knowledge there is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. So the ideas is there's not a person on the planet that has an excuse.

You live in the jungle you live in the desert live by an ocean you live up in the mountains there's enough information in the physical world by general revelation to make a thinking person realize with great obviousness that there is indeed a God so he says, verse 20 they are without excuse because although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God, nor were thankful but they became futile in their thoughts and their foolish hearts were darkened. In other words, at some point in pagan history. There was a deliberate refusal to acknowledge the revelation of God. And so when they did that when they shut down that revelation their moral capacities were darkened it. They had reduced the level of God to be like people they made images they made God to look like images, the people they meet little statues and and they worship those images. That's idolatry. So there there made in the image of God but they're making God in them. Image of mankind of humans, so there turning away from the revelation of God in reducing God to to their level so there morals were darkened and notice in verse 21. It's interesting because he just sort of throws his sin, but I want you to miss it. So when there turning off the revelation of goddesses, nor were they thankful now that makes sense because if you deny God if you start denying God and say let's not God, and there's no evidence of God, and pretty soon there's nobody to think you rule got out so you don't because you're not a thankful person.

This is why as believers we should make it a point, a habit to be thankful on a daily basis to be reminded.

God is good God has given me breath got it sustained me and in the very least. Thank you Lord for that. Thank you for another day.

Now some of you may roll your eyes and say Skip what you in the dark, don't you know this whole year is been a pandemic and economic freefall. What is there to thank God, about why I'm glad you asked. Let me tell you a little story in World War II when the when the 10 boom family was arrested for hiding Jews in their house and they were taken to the concentration camps. When Corrie 10 boom is a young girl and her sister Betsy were placed in a concentration camp as punishment. They went from one concentration camp to another concentration camp to the worst of all, Robbins Brook, the worst that that experience and while they were in Robbins Brook. The barracks were overcrowded and flea infested. And yet one morning Corey and Betsy 10 boom sisters were having their little devotional Bible study together in prayer time and they happen to be reading that day. First Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 16, 17 and 18, rejoice evermore, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Betsy close her Bible look right into the eyes of her sister.

According to Cory, we need to stop right now and thank God Cory said I won't do it.

I refuse to think I'm in a concentration camp. Have you noticed this place that were sleeping and is fully infested, what thank God for the fleas. That's what you said. Thank God for the fleas yet what they noticed, unlike the other concentration camps is they had a certain freedom in Robbins Brook to have prayer meetings and Bible studies and they didn't know why until months later they discovered the reason is the guards refused to come into their barracks because of the fleas which awarded them a certain freedom for prayer and Bible study.

What thank God for the fleas nor were they thankful, but became futile or empty in their thoughts and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools.

The word fools is a very interesting word in Greek moron us, you know, that sounds like that's exactly where the word comes from morons professing themselves to be wise, they became moron's and they change the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man and birds and four-footed beasts, and creeping things. It's ludicrous.

It's even hilarious word. Not so eternally sad how people look around at this universe and they don't get it. And they say yeah. It's amazing how everything just so happened to be the way it is.

It's just one of those fortuitous occurrences of accidental circumstance really. You're telling me it just so happened that the temperature of the sun is 12,000°F and that the earth is 93 million miles away from the sun giving us the temperatures that we enjoy in the year if the earth was as close as Venus. We would all burn up. If we were as far away as Mars. We had all died of weed freeze to death you told me that just so happened you telling me it just so happened that the earth spins on its axis CCCLXV in the third times as he makes his journey around the sun. Why, why not 30 times if it was 30 times our seasons would be 10 times longer than they are and life couldn't be sustained on this planet. The alternate freezing and burning would be too much, but it just so happened and was really wild.

It just so happened that the earth is tilted on its axis 23°, which gives us those four seasons that we do enjoy that's good message from the series expound want to tell you about a number two you have to take your knowledge of God's word to a deeper level. It's never too late to start taking classes in the studies.

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