Beholding our God in the Gospel

This recording is from our Grace Fellowship Church Conference Behold Our God 2026. Please visit our website at gfcedmonton .ca. You can also find us on Instagram at Grace Church Yeag, all one word, or on Facebook at Grace Fellowship Church.

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Longing for More of Christ in the Scriptures

I was truly hoping that we would just keep singing selfishly. Simultaneously, there is nowhere else I don't want to be, and there is nowhere else I'd rather be, and to proclaim the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness, that we might dwell in his marvelous light, to proclaim the unsearchable riches of Christ.

So we have a pretty lofty goal before us this afternoon. I want to preach the gospel of the glory of God in the face of Christ in the entire book of Romans, and here's a few texts that came to my mind.

I'm tired. I'm very tired. This has been glorious, but we need more Christ. Proverbs 30 came to mind. I'm weary, worn out. What do I need? I need a revelation of the Son. You can read that in Proverbs 30.

My soul clings to the dust. Revive me according to your word. I'm tired and I'm weary. Strengthen me according to your word. So here's a couple of the things that came to mind that I'm trying to accomplish.

I told Brother Ben this. Pastor Cliff, he's on his way back to Taber right now, but after Ben preached the first sermon, Pastor Cliff, he's just like, I just want to run through the wall and just start preaching the gospel to everyone I see, and the text that came to my mind, of course, is Psalm 119 .32.

I will run in the way of your commandments. How does it finish? When you enlarge my heart. And what is the best way to enlarge our tired, weary hearts, our hearts that are often overcome with sorrow and distress?

We go back to the source. We go back to the fountain. We go back. We need more of Christ, not less of Christ. And so what I was thinking of is in Luke 24. You remember the story? There was those two bedraggled, beleaguered saints, and they're dragging their feet, and all of a sudden, a visitor comes upon them, and he begins to talk with them.

He says, hey, what's the matter? Like, he's a Baptist? Why you guys look so miserable? They say, are you the only one who's not heard of what has happened? And they go on to talk about this one who was crucified, this one who they thought was the prophet, and perhaps was not, because it's been three days since then, and it seems like his promise has not come to pass.

And of course, we know the gotcha moment is that Jesus is the man that comes upon them, and he says, oh foolish ones and slow to believe all that the law and the prophets have written concerning me. And what did he do?

He took them through the Tanakh. He took them through the law and the writings. He took them through the law and the prophets and the Psalms, and what did he do? He showed them himself through the scriptures concerning himself.

And you remember the praise report, or sort of, you know, they come and see their friends, and what did they say? When our hearts burned. And so I don't know where everyone's at this afternoon. Perhaps you're a sinner like me, and some days you're just tired.

Some days you just want to give, give up, give in. And so what you need, is what I need, is what these men need, is to see a fresh glimpse of Christ, and to see him in all the scriptures. And I think Paul does that in all of his letters, but I think he does it most in the book of Romans, that he takes us through the law and the prophets, and even the Psalms, and he shows us the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

And so if you're able, before we pray, turn to Romans, and I want to show you that Romans is all about the gospel. You can read lots of commentators, and some will say, no, it's all about justification.

And I would give some credence to that, but I want to show you something that sort of steers me toward the idea that it's all about the gospel, which is the gospel of justification in Christ through faith.

But look at the very first sentence in the very last sentence in Romans. What is Romans all about? It's about election. Well, it has to do with election. It's about the church, and we're getting there.

It's about justification, or it's about, for sure, total depravity. And we're going to see that it indeed includes all of those aspects. And what I want you to see is this full-orbed presentation of the gospel according to Romans.

Our dear brother talked about the Sistine Chapel, and if you would just take some time to gaze upon it and to reflect upon it, to look at all the nuances, you would see all the glories. And some would say, well, the Sistine Chapel's about this, and it's about that, and it's about all of them, if we would just take the time to gaze upon it.

And I want to put before you that the gospel is gloriously comprehensive. I'm not going to quote who said it, but he said that the gospel is more than just the ABCs into the Christian life, but rather is the A to Z.

I'm married to an American. It's the A to Z, right? The gospel is not the ABCs or the introduction, right? I believe the gospel, and now I continue on in the flesh like the Galatians had been bewitched to believe.

No, the gospel is the beginning and the end, from faith unto faith, but I'm getting ahead of myself. Look at the very first sentence. I'll read it in the last sentence, and we'll pray. Paul, a bondservant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle.

What has he been set apart for? What has he been consecrated for? He's been set apart for the gospel of God. There's many false gospels out there, and he's been commissioned. He's using very strong language when he says, I was set apart, and he's been set apart for the gospel of God.

Now, go to the very last chapter. This probably won't be the last nerdy comment I make, but it might be helpful. This is what you would call, a literary device called an inclusio, right? It begins and it ends with something, and everything in between is to be interpreted in light of that, and so there was a time years ago, and I think it was either Wendy's, but no, it was KFC, and they got rid of the dreaded hamburger bun, and they wrapped that chicken in bacon, and so when you eat that bacon chicken sandwich, the outer ends, the bacon, if you will, bookends, they actually flavor every bite, and that's what Paul wants us to see throughout these 16 chapters of Romans, is that actually all that's contained within is to be flavored and interpreted by the gospel, and so when you see people arguing in Romans 14 over secondary Adiabra, you need to say, we need to go back to the gospel, and we need to say this is a gospel issue, or when we see that Paul wants to be sent to Spain, and he's trying to procure from them funding, it's a gospel issue.

We need to understand that when religious Jews who are living in their own strengthening law is what will justify that, that's a gospel issue, and so Paul's last sentence in the Greek starts in verse 25, now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel, okay, first sentence in the Greek, last sentence in the Greek.

Romans, like all of the Bible, but Romans is a good place for a preacher to conclude a conference with, it's all about the gospel. Romans 8 .28 fits into the gospel. Romans 5 .1 fits into the gospel. Romans 3 .23 or 1 .16, whatever your favorite verse in Romans is, it should be then read through the lens of the gospel, okay, the A to Z of our Christian life, but let's pray.

Father, strengthen thou me according to your promise. Father, we would just pray now, help us, help us, Lord, to pay attention. The way that you supernaturally enabled Lydia, you opened her heart to pay attention to the things that Paul was teaching, but would you do that for us, and Father, I pray that if there's any here who are yet unconverted, Lord, that you would pierce their hearts with the glory of the gospel, but then mend them, show them their only hope is the gospel, their only hope of beholding the glory of God in the face of Christ is the gospel, and the gospel is that glorious gift, this glorious and gracious free gift that you offer to any who would receive it with the empty hand of faith.

Father, help us now in this last segment of the conference to finish well, and Father, would we be like Pastor Cliff running out of here? We'd be like Isaiah having seen the glory of God. Send me. I will kill whatever sin you tell me to kill.

I will share the gospel with whoever you tell me to share the gospel. I will get rid of any hindrance, and I will run the race looking to Jesus. Oh, Father, you can do this, for the gospel of your Son is your power unto salvation.

Father, please prove yourself as we heard. Prove yourself. Show yourself strong when we feel so weak. Show yourself strong this afternoon, Father, we ask in Jesus' name. Amen. I have seven points. Seven is a good number.

If you read John or Revelation, it's the number of completion. Romans is perhaps Paul's most famous letter. It's what many scholars call his magnum opus. It's his great letter where he is basically unpacking for his audience his message, his gospel.

We read that in Romans 16, 25. And there's a reason why he's doing this. Paul's never been to Rome. He doesn't feel the need to go there and set up churches because the foundation, according to chapter 15, has already been laid.

And you could probably discuss this with our missionary brethren here. They, I hope, will agree, or at least I hope I agree with them, is that Paul is writing this because he wants to start a new center of missions in Rome.

The gospel is going to the ends of the earth, but he wants to go to Spain. And Antioch there, of Syria, it's a little bit far from Spain. So he wants to go to Rome that he might have a sending church, because this gospel is such good news.

And Paul knows that God's glory is to go to the ends of the earth, that God is to fill the earth with his glory as the waters cover the sea. And so this is why Paul is a missionary, because he knows the gospel.

And so he's giving the gospel, not to unbelievers in Rome, but actually to believers in Rome. And so let me quickly go over the seven points that we have this afternoon. The meaning of the gospel. I just quickly want to define that.

The need of the gospel, the heart of the gospel, the power of the gospel, the success of the gospel, the fruit of the gospel, and the spread of the gospel. Now, I'm not going to be able to get into the nitty-gritty, and I hope you're okay with that.

There's a big sigh of relief, I'm sure. Some of you just want to go home and digest all of the good food that you've received here. So please forgive me if a certain verse that you're hoping I get to isn't maybe brought up, but I do want to show us the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ in the gospel that Paul was entrusted with to preach wherever he went, and for which I think he encapsulated well for us in this epistle, or this letter to the Romans.

Let us behold God in the gospel. Well, what does gospel mean? Perhaps some of you have heard the word euangelion, right? If you're a Christian, and maybe you're talking to a Catholic, or maybe even a Muslim, you would say, well, I'm an evangelical Christian, okay?

And that comes from the Greek word euangelion. If this is a little bit of a review, that's okay, but it's comprised of two Greek words. Anyone know what they are? This can be a little bit, I'm not going to get dialogical here, but does anyone know the two Greek words that it's made up of?

Euangelion. Who said that? Okay, and what does that Greek word usually mean? Right, so it can mean, so angels were often sent with a message, and so yeah, we have angelos here, which means we'll say message, so messenger or message, and then it starts with the little beginning, the prefix eu, so have you ever heard of a eulogy?

It's a good word, and so this is a good message. That's what evangelical means. We've got a good message here, and so the Romans in the Greek world, they would use this word often of good news with regards to some kind of military victory, perhaps that Caesar had accomplished.

Good news, he's conquered, and Paul is going to sort of have that flavor, his understanding, that this is good news, not from Caesar, but this is good news from God, about God, by God, that he has conquered.

That he has conquered the grave, and the death, and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, and this is good news. The kingdom is coming. The king has conquered. Receive now his word. It's also flavored from the Jewish scriptures.

You've perhaps heard in Isaiah chapter 50, right, we're saying behold the good news of those feet that are bringing it, and it's also of a military conquest, but not the military conquest that God has conquered the Babylonians, or even the Romans, to whom Paul is writing.

Rather, this word basar, it has the idea of God bringing his kingdom through conquest, and so Paul is saying that he has good news. He doesn't have good advice. He has good news, and the good news is this, is that the king has conquered.

Now, something is interesting is happening here in chapter one. I will speed it up, I promise. It's like a diesel truck, just slowly warming up, and then we'll get to cruise control, and we'll hopefully finish soon.

So, in verse one, what does he call it? I've been set apart for the gospel of who? That genitive, gospel of God. Look in verse nine. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of?

Of his son, and then as you get into verse 16 and 17, you see that it's the gospel of God's righteousness, and Paul's being very good here. He's sort of giving us, you know, the way when you're flying on a flight, and the pilot says, this is where we're going for the rest of the trip, and you'll notice this, and this, and this, and so he begins.

This is God's good news, but it's concerning his son, so the gospel of God is the gospel of his son, and the good news of his son is the righteousness which he now has provided for his people to be received by faith.

I hope you can see that, that this gospel is large, and it's God's good news about his son, and it has to do something about righteousness. Now, this understanding of the righteousness of God in verse 17, it can mean three things, and I think it means all three things.

Zeno never studied this out, that God's righteousness can refer firstly to his righteous character. If you ever heard of Luther's wrestling through the book of Romans, and how God, as it were, opened up the gates of paradise when he understood this, but do you remember Luther's struggle, his wrestling?

He said, what I struggle with is God's righteousness, that he is righteous in his holy character to damn me, a sinner. God's righteousness doesn't bring me hope, it brings me terror, and it should, but God and his righteousness refers firstly to who he is.

Secondly, it refers to God's faithfulness, so this word used in the Old Testament, tzaddik, it's used in Isaiah especially, when God will righteously save his people. So firstly, God's righteousness deals with his righteous character.

The gospel is all about God's righteous character, that he is righteous, and he will righteousify the one who has faith in Jesus. It's all about God's righteous character. He doesn't forgive without punishing sin, and we have to understand the gospel, but it's also his faithfulness.

He promises that by his righteousness, he will save his people, and so when the Jews heard about the righteousness of God, they thought of his character, but they also thought of his promises. The gospel is a promise, and we need to see it rightly.

It's his nature, it's a promise, but thirdly, and Augustine was good for this. He saw God's righteousness as a gift. It's wonderful. This is what makes the gospel good news, is that the holy God, who demands righteousness, he offers the very righteousness he demands in the person and work of his son, and we receive it simply by faith.

This is good news to those who are toiling and laboring. This is good news to those who are depressed, and to those who are religious. This is very good news of this triumphant king, who now offers the spoils of victory to any who would believe.

Now, before we get on to our second point, we're looking at the understanding of the gospel. If there's one thing I want you to leave with, well, there's a lot of things, but the very first verse, this is the effect of the gospel.

This is what the gospel does. It makes slaves of righteousness. It makes slaves of the gospel. It makes us slaves of Jesus Christ. We'll get there in Romans 6 and in Romans 7, but if you're having a hard time serving, giving up, the solution is to look to Christ.

Paul himself has gazed upon this one, and rather than addressing himself as an apostle or a learned scholar, he says he's a slave. Of Christ. But let's get to our second point. We've seen the definition of the gospel.

It means good news, right? What's this gospel business? I've got good news for you. However, before there's good news, the gospel shows us there's bad news. You've heard this before, and I don't mind saying it again, but you need to show people from the gospel their great need of the gospel.

We've defined it. The second point is simply this, the need of it, and this is chapter 118 to chapter 320, if you're writing notes, right? So we add our sort of prologue or introduction, chapter 1, verse 1 to verse 17, and Paul says in verse 16, I'm not ashamed of the gospel.

It's the power of God that brings salvation to anyone and everyone who believes, whether you're Jew or Gentile, for in it, in this gospel, God's righteousness is being revealed from heaven against all kinds of godlessness and unrighteousness of men.

So we have here the need of the gospel. The gospel is revealing God's righteousness in verse 16. What's being revealed in verse 18? I hope you guys are tracking in your Bibles here or have it memorized.

This will keep you awake. I'll put you to sleep if you don't have an open Bible, and if you just even turn your pages, it'll trick me, right? So why do we need to reveal the gospel to our Indian neighbors, to our Muslim neighbors, to our atheist neighbors, to our false Christian neighbors?

Why do they need that revelation? Because it says here in verse 18, the wrath of God is being revealed. Remember? His righteousness is to be revealed because his wrath is being revealed against who? Against all.

Against all people, whether pagans or whether religious people, whether Jew or Gentile, whether they're wise intellectuals or they're foolish. We all need the gospel. The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.

So when you're sharing the gospel with people, this is what they need. They need a perfect righteousness if they're to stand before a perfectly righteous God. The bad news is is that they are only unrighteous.

That's the dilemma. We saw earlier this morning from Exodus 34. Yes, the Lord, he is gracious and compassionate. He is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, but by no means will he clear the guilty.

That's the bad news, that we have all sinned, fallen short of the glory of God, that we're all under sin. This is the great need of the gospel. We are depraved. We are totally depraved. We need this good news of God's sovereign victory over sin because of the bad news of our depravity in sin.

Isaiah 64 .6, we know this verse. All of our deeds on our best day that we would even consider righteous, what are they in the eyes of this holy and righteous God? They're filthy rags. And this is why when you're reading through Isaiah, he, God himself, promises to put on the battle armament, as it were, and that he's going to be like a woman crying out in labor as he goes to war.

And he's accomplishing victory for his sin-cursed people who cannot deliver themselves. So this is the good news of this righteous God who makes a promise to save his people. And he does so through the gospel.

But before people run to the cure, they need to know the diagnosis. And the diagnosis is that we desperately need righteousness. Now, as you're working through Romans, please try to track with me. I've been praying the Spirit will help you track with my scattered brain.

There's two kinds of righteousnesses in this world. There's a righteousness of works, and there's a righteousness of God, which a brother quoted from Philippians 3. Do you understand that there's two kinds of righteousness which will be presented before the throne on judgment day?

Where's our brother who was asking the Greek questions, and is he still here? I can't see him. There's no article in Romans 1, 16, and 17 when it comes to the idea of the righteousness of God. I would translate this.

For in the gospel, a righteousness is revealed, comma, the righteousness of God. Meaning what? That there's another kind of righteousness that people are striving after, a righteousness according to works.

Whether it's the works of the law of Moses, or the works of any kind of pagan religion. But that righteousness will not pass on judgment day. It will be incinerated. And so the gospel offers the righteousness, the only righteousness of God, which has been purchased and provided by the Lord Jesus Christ.

The bad news for all of us is that we are unrighteous, ungodly sinners, and that God himself is righteous and holy. So our brothers know Paul Washer, he was talking about, he was at a university, and he was saying, this should be the scariest thought that ever goes across your mind.

God is good. And I kind of laughed it off, like Lot's son-in-law. Oh, good one, Paul. We know God is good. I'm driving a nice car, I got a good job, of course God is good. That's a terrifying prospect when you understand who God is according to scripture, as he's revealed himself.

And so that's what Paul's desperate need for this righteousness that they need. Their righteousness, whether Jew or Gentile, is a filthy, tainted, loathsome, stinking, festering offering. And God will reject it.

Paul makes it abundantly clear in chapter one that it's not just godless pagans who need this righteousness. He shows us in chapter two that it's also religious Jews who need it. Therefore, you have no excuse, oh man.

Every one of you judging the pagans, you do the exact same thing. You just dress it up in religious garb. And so Paul is trying to convince the Romans that everyone needs the gospel, including the Spaniards.

They don't get a pass. They know there's a God. They see him in creation. They know his eternal attributes of his divine nature and power. They see it in the things that have been made. They're without excuse.

And so Paul says, send me. They need the gospel. Why? Because they're depraved and they have not the righteousness of God. And so he works through chapter two and he begins to now compare the religious Jew to the irreligious Gentile, saying you're in just as much need of the gospel, that you all desperately need it.

Actually, Jew, you need it even more because you now are turning God's kindness and forbearance and patience into an excuse for sin. And he says that you, like the Gentile, are storing up wrath for the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed according to my gospel.

This is terrifying. I don't know why I'm not weeping right now, why we're not telling and pleading and begging sinners. You must be reconciled to this, God. You're in big trouble. Well, turn to chapter three.

I just want to give you the quick synopsis or summary of this. Why do we need the gospel? Why do Jew and Gentile alike need the gospel? Well, 3 .9, we know the answer. What then are we, Jews, any better off?

No, not at all, for we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greek, are under sin. That's the bad news. It's not just that they sin, but rather that they're under sin. They're under its dominion, under its power.

Sin is their Lord. Sin is their master. This is why people need to not just turn over a new leaf. They need power. And what does Romans 116 say again? I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God.

It can save those who are under the power of sin. It's a greater power. Christ conquered the power of sin by his death and resurrection. And so Paul says that we're all under sin. Whether you're Jew or Greek, you're under sin, even as it is written.

And as our brother quoted again this morning, none is righteous. No, not one. No one understands. No one seeks God. Put that in your pocket. Not so you can win a debate against an Armenian. No one's seeking after God.

That's why Paul says, send me to Spain. They're not seeking God. So send me. Understand the glories of the gospel and what God brought to you. And understand that the people in Spain need the gospel just as desperately as you did.

They're under sin. No, they're not seeking him. They don't understand. Together they have become worthless, corrupt. No one does good. Not even one. From the top of their head, like Isaiah says, to their stinking foul breath of their mouth, to the very feet that run to do evil.

There is no fear of God before their eyes. And what is the only solution? The gospel. This is how desperate people are. And so we don't say, hey, I got some religion for you. Hey, try this. This philosopher could help.

No, they need power. They need the gospel. And that's what Paul gets at in the second section. The third, we'll spend maybe a little more time. This is the heart of the gospel. Justification by imputation.

So look at how he ends verse 19 and 20 in chapter three. He's transitioning here. Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, purpose so that what? Every mouth may be stopped and the whole world may be held accountable to God.

Or I would translate that will be guilty before God. That's a pretty universal statement. Some mouths, all mouths. Some guilty, all guilty. For by works of law, no flesh will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.

So we're in big trouble. Some of you are probably glad that Romans is more than two chapters, but because you're tired and want to go home, you're actually wishing it was only two chapters. But that's kind of his conclusion.

We're in big trouble. That's my paraphrase of it. But here's the heart of God in the heart of the gospel. But now, apart from the law, God's righteousness has been manifested, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it.

God's righteousness. Again, remember I said there's two kinds of righteousness that people are going to try to present before God. And this is why there's religion everywhere, because people are trying to earn righteousness.

They know there's a God, Romans 1. They know there's a God by conscience and law, Romans 2. And so here they are in their depraved state with their low view of God, thinking that their little works of praying towards Jerusalem or Mecca or believing in some silly thing like doing works for saints is going to save them.

No, Paul says, God is too holy. The gospel shows God is so holy in His righteousness that only His righteousness can save you. And that's what he gets at to the heart of the gospel. The law and the prophets bear witness to it.

So when you're reading your Old Testament, like Jesus was to the two on the road to Emmaus, Paul is doing that for us. He's getting all of us from the Old Testament, because God promised a day when He would reveal His righteousness to His people.

And so Paul is here contrasting man's quote-unquote righteousness versus his own righteousness. The righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe, for there's no distinction for all who have sinned and fall short.

That Greek word means to lack. They lack the glory of God. And so God is so holy that He requires perfection to dwell in His perfect presence. Or He demands a perfect glory to be able to, as it were, bask in His glorious presence.

And what Paul is saying is because of sin, both Adam's and ours, we lack it. We fall short of it. Some people say it's like the archery term and you're shooting an arrow and it misses. But that's not the best picture of it.

Not only are you off to the right by like 80 degrees. You know what? Like when I'm trying to shoot a bow and then, you know, you let go and then the arrow falls down. Like it doesn't even like launch out of the bow.

Have you ever done that? Come on. Ben says he has. Right? You're like this and then you let go and the string goes and then the arrow falls. That's your righteousness. It misses and it falls utterly short of God's perfect standard, which is why we need His righteousness, which never has missed, never has fallen short, never lacked it because His righteousness comes from Christ, which He offers to us.

And so our brother exhorted us to not stop in verse 23. That's half of it. Do you remember? Not only do you fall short, that's the bad news. Here's the good news. Here's the heart of it. Being justified by His grace as a gift.

He's piling up the word grace there. He gives His grace graciously, undeservedly. We can't merit it. Grace upon grace, we might say from John 1. And this is what He offers. You offer Him that arrow that barely made it out of your bow.

And He offers you the righteousness of Christ, born under the law, kept the law, actively, passively, dying in our place, rising on the third day because of God's faithfulness. And the righteousness that God now accepts from Christ is offered to us in the gospel.

That's good news. What does it mean to be justified? I'll quickly say what it means. It simply means this, to be declared right before the Holy God. It's a legal term. It's a court term. And so basically what is happening is that, as we sang in one of the songs, that when God looks upon you, Steve, He sees the righteousness of Christ upon you.

That's bad, but it wasn't perfect. I was looking for a foot rub and all kinds of other things. He's a good host, but he wasn't perfect. It lacked my high standards of what I require as a celebrity preacher at a conference.

But what God does is actually, Steve, when he heard the gospel, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the crema of Christ, and he is regenerated. He receives all of Christ, and that righteousness is imputed.