Christ Church Bentonville

The law is not our problem.  Sin is our problem.  But the law is not the answer to our problem either.  The answer is grace.  

Paul begins what will be a chapter-long clarification of our relationship to the law.

Just as there is no third way in regard to our standing (we are either in Adam or in Christ), there is also no third way in regard to our living (we are either slaves of sin or slaves of righteousness; we either obey sin or we obey God).

Paul has an answer for those who fall into the ditches of legalism on one side and antinomianism on the other.  We must "consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus."

We are all either in Adam or in Christ.  There is no third way.

Justification by faith alone is not simply a biblical doctrine to be theologically critiqued or debated.  Justification by faith alone has life-altering blessings to which we should cling. 

God is fulfilling His promise to bless father Abraham with many sons and daughters as people embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ by faith alone.

Abraham was the prime example of justification by faith, righteousness being credited and not merited, and salvation being inclusive not exclusive.

There's no room for boasting in our salvation when the righteousness God offers is received by the faith God gives as a gift and the basis for the justification God declares.

In his closing argument, Paul says the evidence, which includes the compelling testimony of Scripture, has shown beyond any reasonable doubt that no one is without excuse and is guilty before God due to sin and no one is justified by the works of the law.  No not one!  

Paul pauses his case for the sinfulness of all mankind to address some objections. As we hear Paul's refutation, may we join him in being not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

Paul exposes both legalism and formalism for what they are, forms of self-righteousness and false hope in terms of our justification.

Having driven home the point that God's judgement is going to be just, patient, certain, impartial, and appropriate, Paul moves on to identify the standard by which everyone will be judged. 

The Jews were judging the Gentiles and not holding themselves to the same standard.  So Paul wanted them to know their only hope was the same hope as the Gentiles.  A righteousness not their own.

Are there sins more heinous than others?  Yes.  Do all sins deserve God's wrath?  Absolutely.  But there is hope. God offers salvation from them all in Christ.

We can't appreciate the good news unless we understand the bad news. Paul rightly diagnosed the bad news and we must apprehend the severity of it to appreciate the solution which is the Gospel. 

The gospel isn't something we do.  The gospel isn't something we live.  The gospel is an announcement of good news.

As a bondservant of Christ, Paul knew he was obligated to Christ.  Being obligated to Christ, Paul knew he was obligated to those for whom Christ died.

It's been called the Mount Everest of Paul's letters and it all begins with a simple but profound greeting that tells us who Paul was, who Jesus is, and who we are.

We end 2024 and look to 2025 in Psalm 3, a song of hope for those in hopeless circumstances.

Christ was the child that was born and the Son who was given that would change everything for us.

We should worship God as He is, as He deserves, and as He desires because He is our sovereign King who has rightful authority over us.

We should look away from ourselves and our circumstances and look to Jesus our Great High Priest.

He was promised.  He came.  He is coming again.  Until then, He speaks through what He has already spoken.  So we should listen to Him, not only this season but every season.

The final word is not a word of judgment but a word of repentance and restoration.

To this point, the relationship between God and His people had been described as a marriage, with God being the faithful husband and His people being the unfaithful wife.  But here the relationship is described as one between God, who is a loving father, and His people, who were an ungrateful and rebellious son.

Whether in times of joy or sadness, or in seasons of adversity or prosperity, Christ alone is the One upon whom we should call and the One upon whom we should depend.

Today, the Lord still desires for us to earnestly seek Him, and the evidence of our earnestness is the same as it was for Israel. 

Hosea 4 is a warning to us all to repent of our sins and turn to Christ, because those who obstinately continue in sin walk directly into judgment, but all who turn in faith to Christ will not receive judgment but everlasting life.

Hosea's goal was Gomer's reformation and their marriage's restoration.  And we know that because they were meant to be a picture that pointed to something greater.

The Lord warned Israel.  He disciplined them as well.  He also sought to affectionately woo them back to Him.

The relationship between Hosea and Gomer was to be a real-time drama that symbolized and pointed to the faithlessness of Israel and the faithfulness of God who is the God of the guilty.

If knowledge is power, and safety, and happiness (h/t Thomas Jefferson), then knowing Jesus is the greatest power, and safety, and happiness. John closes his letter with reminders of what he wants Christians to know.

Do you believe John's testimony that has been confirmed by God's three-fold testimony of the Spirit, the water, and the blood?

Our faith is not in our assurances.  Our faith is in Jesus.  We should be encouraged by them, but our eyes should remain on Him.  Our faith is a victorious faith because the object of that faith is victorious Savior. 

How do we know we know God and that we are in fellowship with Him?  John says it's not up for debate.  We know if we love one another.

The previous passage stressed the importance of loving one another.  The passage that follows will stress loving one another.  This passage in between the two stresses the importance of the truth.

We should love one another.  We must love one another.  We can love one another because God's love has been shed abroad in our hearts.

John continues to assure his readers of their salvation by pointing out who they are as children of God.

The anointing of the Holy Spirit isn't a second blessing that only the super-spiritual experience later in their Christian life.  It is the blessing every believer experiences at the point of salvation.  Therefore, Christians don't need some secret knowledge, special enlightenment, or mystical extra-biblical experience to know the truth.  The Holy Spirit who indwells us leads us into all truth.

We either love the world and the things of the world or we love God and the things of God.  We can't love both. 

In our text this week, John says God's light shines through both the law and the gospel, therefore faithful pulpits will preach both.