True Faith Works - Romans 1:5

Today in the church. We seem to be enamored with better methods and ways for getting God to do what we wanted to do for us. Teachers tell us to pray certain prayers. These little incantations in using certain words deceivers instruct us to go and get a little group or lobby that we can somehow force got into doing what we want told the claimant and name it and speak it and simply vision it and it will happen from God. In this eternal butler will deliver the good my friend. True faith understands that he does the talking and we back to the time of the apostles. We know that were saved by faith, that salvation is accomplished apart from any works or actions that we do, but what about after were saved. What's the relationship between our faith and our actions as Christians. This is wisdom for the heart.

You've tuned into an important lesson today.

Stephen Devi is about to take you to Romans 15, you'll discover that true faith is obedient faith Stevens calling this lesson. True faith works. Grab your Bible. As we get started I whenever you are involved in a biblical discussion about the nature of the truth of the gospel. Sooner or later you come to the subject of faith and works just what is faith and what does it have to do with works.

Are these two subjects mutually exclusive or are they both part of the gospel truth that the reader of this verse is perhaps struck by an odd phrase that seems almost out of place is the phrase the obedience of faith.

Now that seems unfamiliar to your eyes and your ears as I say it.

It is in fact only used one other time in the entire New Testament in that other location happens to be the same letter effective you were to turn to the last chapter of Romans 16 in verse 25 you discover how similar Paul ends the letter with how he began the letter in fact I read verse 25 Romans 16 now to him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which is been kept secret for long ages past, but now is manifested by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God has been made known to all the nations leading to obedience of faith. Now there are similar themes.

Here you you can hear the gospel, which is summed up in the person of Jesus Christ you hear about it being announced long ago and in past times through the scriptures of the prophets. It is now to be preached to the nations which we just read in Romans 15 which leads to the obedience of faith. There it is again. What was Paul saying that faith and and obedience are inseparable. That disobedience reveals the absence of true faith. Is he saying that genuine faith is delivered in the gospel cannot exist without obedience to the gospel.

I have been asked similar questions in words like these.

Is it possible for somebody to be a Christian and not live the life of a Christian.

Is it possible to have saving faith without ever evidencing a spiritual walk is a person a Christian if they never pray, read the Bible and and only sporadically go to church. What you say about a man or a woman who says that they accepted Christ early in life, but now have absolutely no interest in the pursuit of the things of Christ are they really born again will in order to answer these questions, we have to understand what Paul meant in Romans chapter 1 and chapter 16 when he spoke of the obedience of faith and in order to do that we have to back up a little further and understand something of the nature of true faith.

So I want to begin by as clearly as possible. Defining genuine savings faith and let's for the moment, step back and perhaps look at some familiar territory.

First of all, faith is not mental acknowledgment of true if salvation men and women consists in nothing more than believing that God exists and believing that Jesus is the son of God, believing, furthermore, that heaven is real, or that hell is real, then every demon is a believer.

James wrote in chapter 2, verse 19 of his letter. You believe in the one and only true living God great you do well. The demons believe that and they tremble but no demon is on his way to heaven even though they believe all that they believe in God the way I believe in Julius Caesar. I believe that he was the dictator of Rome.

I believe that he was a military genius. I believe that he personally conquered most of his known world, but I have never met Julius Caesar, and furthermore I have never bent my knee to him and said Caesar you are Lord and I is your loyal subject will do your bidding for you to believe that Jesus is the son of God may mean nothing more than the demons you also believe that Jesus is the son of God because they will never bend their knees and worship to him is whether never you go to heaven. What's the difference my friend between you and what you believe, and a demon and what he believes.

Saving faith is not merit mental affirmation of historical truth. Secondly, faith is not temporary assurance and trial is always interesting to me to read some of this poll stuff with Gallup Junior is a believer puts a few of those out every once in a while and always so high.

People who say they believe in God is always smart enough to ask a few questions. After that, like, do you believe in the authority of Scripture and the numbers just plummet. They say they believe in God but only a fraction believe the Bible has any authority over their life, but they believe in God. If you asked them how you know you believe in God or how do you know you're going to heaven or whatever they will give you answers like I have been given over the years with something like this well.

I prayed when I lost my job and went to the difficult situation and God provided financially or he gave me the job and that's how I know that God is involved in my life or I had a child was sick or a spouse that was sick and I prayed that God would would bring them the hell the end date they got better and then that proves to me that God is in my life because I I talked to him about that their assurance has nothing to do with the gospel of saving faith.

It is merely temporary assurances that I've everything to do with their lives on earth but absolutely nothing to do with life in heaven.

John wrote in his first epistle.

These interesting words he said. By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious. Anyone who does not practice righteousness does not belong to God. Now, are you saying that that means a believer can't or won't send that mean that a believer can or will rebel against the Lord is that mean a believer won't disobey our campus event of the keyword in that text is the word practice is one thing to practice righteous living. It's one thing to practice the pursuit of God is one thing to practice righteousness and fail as you practice that it's another thing entirely to have nothing to do with God's righteous standard. Nothing to do with the claims of Jesus Christ. Nothing to do with the word and say somehow you belong to God. He says not unknown. I know it's obvious look at their lives were those who claim to know Jesus Christ but refused to follow him and live in sin. I want you to know my job is not to give you any shred of hope.

It is my job today. The comfort the afflicted and especially today afflict the comfortable apostle John did just that he uses these sobering words they went out from us, but they were really not all of us, for they had been obvious they would have remained with us, but they went out in order that it might be shown that they all are not all of us. First John 219. Charles Spurgeon said if the professed convert distinctly and deliberately declares that he knows the Lord's will, but does not mean in any way to obey it. You are not to pamper his presumptions, but it is your duty to assure him that he is not saved.

What is saving what is true, genuine faith, give you four thoughts.

First of all saving faith is trust in the living Lord Jesus Christ alone which brings personal forgiveness and eternal life. Is he as we define salvation we define it by faith alone. For by grace you have been saved through what not of yourselves, it is the gift of God not of what works, lest any man should boast. We sing by faith is found a resting place, not in device or create. I trust the ever living one his wounds. For me, shall plead I need no other argument I need no other plea. It is enough that Jesus died and that he died for me. As we define salvation.

It is faith in this one alone. Secondly, faith in Christ. Apart from any works brings salvation. Yet at the same time, genuine faith works. Ephesians 2 goes on for we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. In other words, real faith will always produce righteous works third. Good works are not the condition for salvation. They are the consequences of salvation.

Paul wrote in Titus 214 that he might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for himself a people for his possession, zealous for good deeds.

Finally, salvation then is God's gift of grace to us. Good works are our gifts of gratitude to God. Paul wrote with great rejoicing.

Romans six but thanks be to God that, though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching which you were committed and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness yes is a slave to righteousness.

You can sin but your greatest hope and your greatest desire is to honor him. Douglas Moo wrote these interesting, insightful words as he commented on this paragraph he said we can understand Paul's words, obedience and faith to be mutually interpreting.

Obedience always involves faith. Faith always involves obedience.

Paul called men and women to a faith that was always inseparable from obedience for the Savior in whom we believe is nothing less than our Lord into an obedience that can never be divorced from faith. For we can obey Jesus as Lord only when we have given ourselves to him in faith. Notice this faith and obedience are not separate stages of Christian experience.

I think that's well put. In other words, it is impossible to receive from God the gift of eternal life without desiring to give back to him the gifts of gratitude that come from living in a way that would please him.

How can anybody who is receive the gift of eternal life care nothing for the kind of faith do you have today my friend. The Bible talks about several different kinds. First of all, the Bible refers to dead face. James 217 talks about faith that is considered dead if it does not have accompanying works in Matthew seven, you have the horrifying description of deceived faith.

Not everyone. Matthew writes says to me, quoting the Lord, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven.

And over there and those are even calling him hard, but he who does the will of my father who is in heaven will enter another was those who obey him and his revealed will have assurance that their entering heaven. What is the will of God.

Will you go to the Bible study and discover certain things and one of them that I find in the Bible is work. Paul wrote, flee, abstain from fornication that is sexual relations outside of marriage. This is the will of God that you abstain from fornication. There is one way are you obeying that one way he says many will say to me on that day lard but did we not prophesy in your name. We have a lot of preachers are in your name cast out demons in your name perform many miracles got miracle workers in here now and then I will declare them. I never knew you talk about those who had visions taught by those who didn't just see miracles, but but literally were involved in miracles, we can tell now empowered by Satan himself. But they were involved in all of this and all in the name of Jesus and Jesus. The judge says I never knew you. That is, I never had a relationship with you.

Your deceived peer describes. I believe this crew of people in second Peter 23 is those people who were merchandising, the gospel, that is, they gather the following only so they could profit from their following all within the context of the gospel maybe was to boost their pride or to gather a following or to get rich or whatever reasons they displayed faith. They talked about their faith as being genuine, but they were putting on a show they knew not Christ.

Perhaps that's why it's so important. Men and women for every one of us to have the next kind of faith, it is examined faith.

Second Corinthians 13 verse five says test yourselves to see if you are in the faith he is writing to a church that was for the most part disobedient to the will of the Lord, and he tells them. Listen, you need a test yourselves to see if you're in the faith.

He goes on examine yourselves or do you not recognize this about yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you, unless indeed you fail the test. Can you imagine, failing that test and for all eternity. Reaping the consequence because you never examine heavy rest yourself the question, I really a Christian that I just grow up in the church.

My parents you know they they took me in this the right thing to do and the rest yourself. Do you have hunger for the word Lord is escrowed dust Sunday to Saturday differ ask yourself why is it that I don't want to talk to the Lord. Could be that your deceived people who have all of the spiritual religious language, but have never examine themselves, and Paul exhorts them to take a close look and examine themselves to see if they are indeed in the faith.

I like to ask it this way. If you are arrested for being a Christian with there be enough evidence to convict you in a court of law, take inventory over last week or last month is the evidence which you listen to on the radio that honor God.

What you watch on television which are soul troubled by the sin that paraded its way across the screen when you read did you read this book you ever bend your knee and prayer. What does the evidence say to you, and finally there is genuine faith.

What are some of the evidences or passions or actions of genuine faith will those who have it, live it, were told to live by faith. Romans 117. The just will live by faith: Romans one verse eight.

I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, and that your faith is being proclaimed throughout all of the world is not necessarily some dramatic thing, but faithfulness to God's is something that creates ripples like a stone thrown in a pond and the influence ever widening. We are to live our faith.

Secondly, we are to keep the faith negativity for seven to reference not to somehow hanging on your salvation. If you hold on real tight. Maybe you make it in that it has a reference to being faithful to the gospel truth.

That is what we all want to do will want to end well known and living for Jesus Christ and we fear as Paul feared living in such a way that we are disqualified.

As John wrote, we forfeit that full reward by her disobedience to our Lord. He was able to say he was faithful all the way to the last lab were also to communicate the faith.

Second Timothy two to the things you've heard from me in the presence of many witnesses Munich it does to others. Other faithful believers, faithful men who will be able to teach others also. We are also to contend for the faith, contending for the faith means to to defend the truth of the gospel against those whom Jude warns us will appear within the context of the gospel within the context of the church only to lead people astray. These deceivers and false teachers doesn't bother you when you hear something or you read something that attacks the credibility of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Talk to that television as you're watching the news and little messages you give it depicted here and change its text were to contend that is something within us once to defend the purity of the gospel finally were to fight the good fight of faith for 7612 let me summarize the relationship between faith and works before we go further faith is that spiritual internal reality which brings about physical external results. Faith is the attitude works are the action that with that is my introduction let's go to Romans chapter 1 verse five. I have basically been expounding the meaning of it, but must take one closer look at it, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith. There are three phrases. This is the first. This refers to this unhesitating action of our faith to obey. Here is seen as the substance of faith and faith is seen as the substance of obedience. Paul here can fathom anybody saying that I believe in Jesus Christ but I will bail. I asked him in my heart but living far, that is a whole different subject can find them of that here. Maybe it's because he himself encountered the Lord in the dramatic way on the Damascus Road. Remember riding his horse is going the persecuted and put in jail and probably signed a decree for some to die who followed Christ and he's trotting along and suddenly the brilliance of the resurrected Lord shown he was able to have that vision of our Lord which gave him the credibility of later being called an apostle.

We had to see him. He saw him in and that one moment the brilliance of the Lord shone in his heart and he realized he was persecuting the wrong people. He wasn't following the true Lord and there in his very first words to the risen Savior revealed the changing of his mind and repentance of his heart and the evidence of his genuine conversion to faith in Christ when he simply said what do you want me to do Lord that is the heart of the one who truly knows the Savior what you want me to do for you today in the church. We seem to be enamored with better methods and ways for getting God to do what we wanted to do for us.

False teachers tell us to pray certain prayers. These little incantations and use these certain words and deceivers instruct us to go and get a little group or lobby that we could somehow force got into doing what we want and were told the claimant and name it and speak it and simply vision it and it will happen from God and the C-terminal Butler will deliver the goods, my friend. True faith understands that he does the talking and we do the Butler ring will ring him up and tell them what we want.

He brings us up and tells us what he wants. True faith understands the relationship and obedience of faith says, Lord, whatever you want me to do.

I find no greater joy than that and I will do it. Secondly, Paul reveals the unlimited arena of our faith, we have the unhesitating action of our faith, which leads to this unlimited arena of our faith is next prepositional phrase reads among all the Gentiles. What an amazing thing. He just said that you catch that, among all the Gentiles. That's another sermon in itself, but I know you want to get the verse 60 will move forward as quickly as we can see Paul is been a Pharisee. He hates Gentiles he would walk through the market and he would gather his garment around because of the brushed up against some Gentile, he considered himself unclean and he would have all these rituals to go through to make himself now clean again. He would wake up every morning as the Pharisees did and sign God among other things, that he had not been created. Gentile now he says I can't wait my faith is so revolutionized my life. My entire attitude is changed as I've come to this gospel of Christ, and I wanted tell every Gentile I meet, but the saving truth of Christ. This man is different as your faith somehow worked its way out where you live and work really can a person that looks for an opportunity to share or is it a big secret to I want to examine yourself today because the reason it is a secret perhaps could be because you don't have it and those who have it desire to share what amazing change occurring right before our very eyes. And this man named Paul.

Finally, the last phrase reveals the ultimate ambition of our faith. Paul writes for his name's sake. What's his name again, Jesus Christ our Lord gave it to us earlier in the paragraph for the glory of Jesus Christ our Lord greatest passion. We have been whatever we do for him is for him. Let me make two quick commentators we wrap it up. Number one, you will never tally on earth. The effects of your faith with Paul told these believers in your faith has been confined throughout the whole world. I imagine they looked at each other and said to be kidding, and yet 2000 years later was still talking about them. The impact you're making my friends on the child or that member of your athletic team marked that student in your classroom or that coworker on your floor or that neighbor you have no idea what kind of impact you are making by simply being obedient to your faith and it will take heaven and the bema to calculated all and in light of that coming day number two you will never regret every act and attitude of faith this past couple weeks I've had lunches with different men. Some of them go to our church.

All of them done and it's amazing to me as I ate with these men to hear them basically giving testimony to this text. One man told me said Stephen.

I I started a business out of the back end of my pickup truck about 14 years ago we lived on the edge and he said, as you know, I've recently come to faith in Christ and he said this year our company will pull in about 25 million in business. He said I'm not ready.

I don't have the spiritual armor that I need for that kind of pressure on them grow deeper in my walk with Christ. They looked at me and he said would you tell me what to do when I was hearing from that man was nothing less than the obedience of faith. I had lunch a few days ago with another gentleman who said Stephen I have been so convicted with my lack of passion for God's eyes would fill up with tears throughout our lunch in a bowl of soup.

He never touched.

He said I have been for the most part, disobedient, been disobedient to the Lord.

I was accepted Christ as a little boy raised in a Christian home and he said I don't know what's happening in my life. But he said a few weeks ago I was so convicted of my apathy and my sin affected my employees that work with me know me by profanity and off-color stories and I never talk about the Lord and that's a secret and something happened couple of weeks ago where I got arrested my heart said I went home and I talked to my wife and confessed to her the fact that I was a living a pure life and I confessed to the Lord and he said we just began to talk about how we were raised in the church but yet there was no obedience and I walked to the Lord and we just began going through the house collecting stuff to throw away said we got CDs and videos and movies and whatever that wouldn't contribute to righteousness. He said we were up until 3 AM throwing the stuff away. Said one point I sat down on the couch of how it to my wife and we were just on fire and we asked each other, what else can we do everything else without a throw away. He looked at me and he said with tears in his item. I'm tired of playing games. I want to be real for God, my friends, is the obedience of faith as a pastor I would give him assurance of salvation. If I could only God spirit can, but I would not on the basis of what happened when he was a kid. What happened there is a way to second. You should've told him that when you're a kid yet as Christ in your heart and in you know, tell them don't worry about that steelwork does appear about the awesome little thing. Some of you have have signed a card when you're a kid that you join that church.

You got wet. You had a Bible with your name on it. When you work 12 and and and that's look right there is that Bible years ago and that's my assurance, my friend, I'm asking you today where is your vibrant obedient faith may be deceived. Your testimony should be as fresh as yesterday was an old hymn text that combines these two elements of faith or trust in obedience says it simply and yet profoundly trust and obey, for there's no other way to be happy and to trust and obey is another way of saying Romans chapter 1 verse five refers to the obedience's of faith important truth to know and understand. Thanks for joining us today here on wisdom for the heart with Stephen, Davey, we want to help you deepen your walk with Jesus Christ this year and Stevens written a devotional booklet called a 30 day wisdom retreat. Call us at 86 648 Bible for information that's 866-482-4253 will continue through this section from Romans on tomorrow's broadcast. So join us here on wisdom for the heart