Book of Romans - Ch. 13, Vs. 5-10 (04/30/2000)

Park Meadows Church

Subscribe

Download

Share

00

00:00

Before I get into the lesson, are there any answers from anyone, or a question

00:09

I might ask? We hope so. All right, everyone open up chapter 13, verse 5.

00:33

Paul had just been talking about let every soul be subject unto the higher powers.

00:43

Everyone has to answer to someone. The rulers are not a terror to good works, for he is the minister of God to thee for good.

00:59

Wherefore, ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience's sake.

01:12

Whose conscience are we talking about? Ours. Ours.

01:20

Our conscience is a strange animal. Virgie would think that we could control it.

01:31

But we can't. The conscience of a child of God is the voice of God.

01:44

Everyone hear me? To violate... Who said yesterday?

01:52

He's answered for the rest of us. What happens when you violate your conscience?

02:11

Indirect rebellion against God. All right. So could we say then that to violate our conscience is a sin?

02:20

You better believe it. Now, the next question.

02:29

You sin and your conscience bothers you. Why? All right.

02:38

Then would you all agree that it is God that controls your conscience? Again, Fred's answering for everybody.

02:49

I can hear you today. God can't save us from it.

02:57

All right. Now, we've decided that the conscience is the voice of God to all

03:03

His children. We've decided that if we violate our conscience, we sin.

03:10

We actually sin, and then the conscience comes. Well, that's not always right either.

03:17

Sometimes you know not to do what you do or think.

03:24

I must say what we think because that's where the sin is. It's not in the doing, it's in the thinking.

03:31

Sin is in the mind. The doing of it simply makes it visible and involves other people.

03:41

Now, if we have a guilty conscience, then how do we get rid of that guilty conscience?

03:50

Confess. Great. Confess. Confession. All right.

03:58

Now, David, where did he go? How do you know if you have truly confessed?

04:09

Because when you truly confess, the Lord gives you a sense of peace and you feel clean again.

04:18

You can't have that without true confession. All right. Then could we say that since he is the one that caused the guilty conscience, he is the only one that can remove it?

04:30

Yes. All right. You cannot cleanse your conscience by confessing to a man or by doing something by...

04:44

If you don't know how that train sounds, I hear it. We cannot get a clean conscience by giving more money to the church, by swearing that you'll come to church every time doors are open, by dressing better, looking better, acting better, read more, study more.

05:12

The only way that you can be removed of your conscience is to truly confess.

05:20

And the word confess means what, Richard? To agree with God in your mouth.

05:29

All right. It's the same as if you got over on his side and looked at it and agreed with him that, yes, what

05:36

I did was wrong or what I thought was wrong. I did commit a sin and I don't intend to ever do it again with your help.

05:46

All right. Then it's removed. Now, is our conscience, is a guilty conscience bad?

05:59

Who said that? I'm sure it won't justify that answer.

06:07

Well, if we do something, God has picked us for this and we know we're in his will.

06:14

But if we go ahead and do it, continue to do it, you know that we're not going to be sure. All right.

06:20

So it brings assurance. Anything else that it brings? Well, it brings opportunity.

06:33

All right. It also brings repentance, doesn't it? Now, in the sixth verse, for this cause, pay ye tribute also, for they are

06:51

God's ministers. What is meant, Debbie, by the fact that he says they are

06:57

God's ministers? Who's they? The power of God. All right.

07:04

What makes him say they are God's ministers? Because God's different in that vision.

07:16

Absolutely. Even some people we have in high office today.

07:24

I'm sorry to say, yes. As long as they operate within the rules of that office, yes.

07:35

You're really testing her doctrine, aren't you? Yes. So when they cross that line,

07:42

I think we've got a figure to cross the line.

07:49

Oh, definitely. When they go outside of the bounds of their office, they're guilty of breaking the law or whatever.

08:01

They're just like anybody else. But remember that office and the legality that goes with that office, whatever it is, for the aid of God.

08:12

There could be no office, no power without God, whether anybody ever recognizes it or not.

08:23

There have been some presidents in my time that I thoroughly disagreed with what they were doing.

08:32

But as long as they're in office, I have to honor the office. You don't honor the man, you honor the office.

08:41

Just like when a judge walks into a courtroom, everyone stands. It's not for that judge.

08:48

It's for the office that he displays to us. So, Brother Lewis, don't you think there's a time when

08:59

God's purpose for that particular occupant of the office is finished and there's a time for him to step down and be put down and somebody else to step in?

09:12

That doesn't mean that we're moving from our city duty of working to move a person from office.

09:23

Because that, too, could be as God's will. Absolutely. That's the way it's run.

09:30

But you just are not allowed to look at stepping outside the framework of the law to do that. That's right.

09:35

Or the one in the office or those of us outside of the office. Everything must be done decent and in order,

09:43

Paul says. And God says. So, just remember this.

09:51

We're responsible for what we do, but we do what we want to. That's right.

10:08

But we do what we do not knowing that it's ordained of him. We do it because we want to. That's how

10:15

Adam sinned. Because he wanted to. God told him that if he ate of that tree, in that day you'll die, knowing that he was going to eat of the tree.

10:29

But he didn't tell him that you're going to eat of the tree. Just like he doesn't tell us what we're going to do.

10:38

We do what we want to. You're here today because you want to. You might think when you were a child at home you did some things you didn't want to.

10:48

But I guarantee you, you didn't want the results worse. So you did the least of the two, which was what you wanted to do.

10:57

All right. For this cause pay ye tribute also, for they are

11:05

God's ministers attending continually upon this very thing.

11:11

Now the word tribute means annual tax levied upon houses, lands, persons.

11:19

Any payment extracted for protection. The word ministers, this is the same word that's used for ministering of angels.

11:30

Here we find that these ministers hold a divine appointed office. Render therefore to all their dues, tribute to whom tribute is due, custom to whom custom, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.

11:48

Tribute we pay, we're to pay even though we resent the way they're using the money.

11:55

We still pay because it's legal. They will be held responsible for how it's used.

12:05

Now that does not relieve you of a responsibility if you're giving to a

12:13

TV ministry. There's so many of them. I'm not saying there are no good ones, but there are.

12:20

But the good ones won't be counted in the money. The others, you're not, you are held responsible for the final distribution of that money that you give to this ministry.

12:35

You cannot give it and not follow up on how it's disbursed.

12:42

Because if it's illegally used, then you should not be giving. The main purpose of Christians in this world is to use their time, their talent, their money to get the word of God.

13:01

To learn the word and to get it out. Custom, we don't have this much anymore.

13:12

I remember when we paid tolls for bridges and roads. That's what it refers to.

13:19

Fear. Do not fear in reaching a decision while on jury duty.

13:25

I've had so many people talk to me at different times, especially if they're on jury or have been appalled.

13:32

And they say, well, I just could not, I could not condemn somebody to death.

13:39

Well, I have to make you aware of something. You're not. It's the law that does it, not you.

13:46

Just follow the law. This fear is the one accused should have fear.

14:00

And do not fear passing that fear on to him either. Honor, and I mentioned that a while ago about the judge.

14:10

Now, verse eight. Now, if there's any questions, please speak up. You're sinning if you don't.

14:19

Did you know that? To want to ask a question in class and not do it, you've sinned.

14:27

Because you're leaving the impression with everybody else that you know the answer. Oh, no man anything.

14:41

Boy. Oh, no man anything but to love one another.

14:47

For he that loves another has fulfilled the law. David, what law is he talking about? The law of Christ.

14:54

Right. Oh, no man anything. There should be a law.

15:01

Well, let me see what I wrote. Do not live on credit. Pay your bills when due, or don't buy the item.

15:11

I think it would be good in this country if there was a law making it very, very difficult for a young married couple to get into debt.

15:20

These credit cards are a curse. Now, we've used them so much that we think it's a wonderful thing to have credit cards.

15:30

And in some cases, I'm sure it is. But don't misuse them.

15:36

Don't think you're not spending money when you give them that number, because you are. Love one another.

15:46

David, this is a strange, what would you call it? Anyhow, it's a strange situation, the love.

16:00

When you have a bank account of money, David, and you spend it, what happens to the balance?

16:09

It goes down. It goes down. Did you realize that when you spend, love, it increases?

16:20

It's the only thing I know of that will increase for you. It will.

16:34

Is love a cause or effect? Fred, you're good at that.

16:40

Which is it? Love itself. Is it a cause or is it an effect?

16:50

Well, it is an effect of your applying the words that you've learned from the

16:58

Bible to how we should live. It is caused by your brain's knowledge of what you should be.

17:07

And it is caused by the reaction of the person you are loving.

17:14

You see something in him too, love. God has placed that there. What did he say?

17:23

He said he went around the room. He made some friends. Covered all that area.

17:29

It's supposed to cause everything. It's the effect of the love that you have received.

17:36

Because it is the effect of the love that you have received from Christ.

17:42

So is it a cause or effect? It is. It is an effect.

17:49

The cause is that God first loved us. And it's only in response to acknowledging his love that we then have love with him.

18:04

All right. The answer is it's both. A cause and an effect. That's what you all were trying to say.

18:10

Probably did. Is that what you said? I didn't. You said what?

18:17

I didn't. It's not love. I know you didn't.

18:23

I had it right at the very beginning that I love God. I see. I sinned by not saying it loud.

18:38

I'm working on being humble. I don't have my husband here. I'm trying to not do it either.

18:44

They have a daughter. They have a daughter that comes with them to Bible study.

18:51

And when we're in class and I ask her a question, if she was whispering what

18:58

I hear, I don't think I'd hear her. But I've noticed before class that there's other children there about her age.

19:05

She's the only one you can hear. So I know she can talk and talk loud.

19:12

But she gets that from her mother, I think. But she, in class, doesn't talk very loud.

19:20

All right. Oh, no one anything. Now, is that just a blanket statement that can apply to everything in your life,

19:32

Marianne? I don't know. That's all I can say. That's the most honest answer

19:44

I've heard from anyone. To owe no one anything or to owe everyone nothing does not apply to love.

20:02

We owe others love. Nine, for this thou shalt not commit adultery.

20:15

Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness.

20:22

Thou shalt not covet. And if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely,

20:32

Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Debbie, what kind of statements are these in May 9th?

20:44

They're imperative. Imperative. That's a pretty good -sized dollar word.

20:49

What's it mean? There's no doubt that it's going to happen. You have to do it. All right.

20:56

An imperative verb means the one that's speaking that has the power to see that it's carried out.

21:03

If I should tell Roger, I mean Richard, to leave this room immediately,

21:11

I better not say it unless I have the power to carry it out. If he didn't want to go, I wouldn't have that power.

21:18

But who is it that's speaking here? God. Does he have the power to cause things to happen?

21:26

Absolutely. All right, let's look at these. Thou shalt not commit adultery.

21:37

Now, rather than ask you what is the definition of adultery, let me give it to you.

21:45

And it's simply this. To give the love that belongs to one to another. This is why the

21:55

Lord called the Pharisees an adulterous generation. They took the love that was due to the

22:01

Heavenly Father and were giving it to themselves. Kill.

22:08

Thou shalt not kill. Verge, what if you're in war and you're fighting?

22:21

It says you're not to kill. I don't know.

22:26

I've had that question several times. I mean, I guess you'd be fulfilling the law that you were sent to do.

22:33

I mean, I don't know. My dad used to always ask that question because he was World War II and they did a lot of it.

22:40

The word kill here means murder. You shall not murder.

22:46

Because there are laws in the Old Testament very specific on when you can kill somebody.

22:55

If a person has broken into your house at daytime, you're not to kill him. If he breaks in at night, you're to kill him.

23:01

Don't any of you break into my house.

23:10

I've got to do the 357. All right. Kill. Now, murder, there are more ways than using a gun to murder people.

23:27

Gun, rope, knife, whatever. You can literally kill a person by ruining their reputation.

23:38

By taking their good name from them. Steel. Steel.

23:47

What do you suppose steel means? Dr. Martin, what does steel mean?

23:56

Take that which is not yours. All right. Fred, can you add something to that?

24:04

You better be real careful doing that. You're going to get shot. If you don't lay it down, don't pick it.

24:10

That's exactly where I was headed. You heard that someplace, didn't you? Don't pick up what you didn't lay down.

24:22

That pretty well stopped it. False witness.

24:31

We are to obey the laws for the sake of God, not to disobey

24:36

God for the sake of man. And how much of that's going on in the country.

24:47

I tell you, all that would have to be done in any church this morning is to read his word.

24:55

You wouldn't even have to expound upon it. Just read it. False witness.

25:02

Oh, there's so many avenues to lead off of that, we don't have time, but think about it.

25:10

Then the word covet. Roger.

25:18

Sir? Covet. All right.

25:27

It's a little bit more than that, but that's good. John? Covet.

25:38

Actually, take or use something that doesn't belong to you, I suppose.

25:43

Not like stealing, but just using something that doesn't belong to you.

25:50

Well, it could certainly lead to stealing, yes. Who's got their hand up? I do. I wish that I had, and you didn't.

25:59

That's it. I want something that you have. And you said about scheming how to get it.

26:09

Covet's dangerous. Now, you may desire something like what they have, but don't get it from them.

26:24

Is it the same as envy, then? What? Is it the same as envy? Envy. Envy?

26:31

No. Well, isn't envy wanting something? John, I'm going to make everybody put their hand up when they talk.

26:42

Now. Oh, okay. Yes, but covet's something about how to get it. Envy is simply wanting what they have.

26:52

It falls under covet when you begin to plan and plot and scheme. That's like a day at the time, then, when he was plotting.

27:05

Who do you love the most? Well, I want to love

27:15

Jesus the most, but that's probably not a real understanding for myself.

27:23

I take better care of myself than I do anybody else. Why is it that we love ourselves more when it comes right down to lots of things?

27:37

But why is it that we love ourselves the most? Because we are in the image of Jesus, and that is the most perfect thing that we know.

27:52

We feel that closeness, and that's probably the wrong answer.

28:00

I like his positive thinking. We like to be on the throne of our own lives, and instead of the life of Christ filling us constantly, we allow our old

28:21

Adamic self to be in the forefront without us.

28:28

That's certainly true, but God put in us self -preservation.

28:35

And don't ever kid yourself. When it comes right down to the last, last, last bit, you'll try to protect yourself.

28:45

And I can't say that's all wrong, because God put it in us to do that.

28:53

Just don't run to it at the front end of the trouble. Now it says we are to love our neighbor the same as we do ourself.

29:08

You don't know my neighbors. Well, I grant you.

29:25

But that brings up the question, who is our neighbor? Joy, who's your neighbor?

29:30

I think I've struggled with that one for a long time, and I think

29:37

I've figured it out. I believe our neighbor is anyone that God puts in our path to minister to.

29:48

The next one he brings to you is your neighbor. Now, it is not wrong to love ourself, is it?

29:57

No. Or is it? Is it wrong to love yourself?

30:03

Not if you put it in us. If we don't love ourselves.

30:08

Yes. I think you should love yourself as far as taking care of yourself. You shouldn't put yourself...

30:15

You shouldn't be self -centered. That's right. Or be resentful. That's right. But see, he tells us here, you shall love yourself as you love your neighbor.

30:31

You should love your neighbor as you love yourself. So it's not wrong to love yourself. I have known one or two in my life that seemingly they cared nothing about themselves.

30:44

Nothing. You can imagine what they looked like. Deplorable. Our love was revealed in what way?

31:05

Now, let's see. Is Trudy here? She's down here.

31:12

Oh, that was me. How can we reveal our love for others?

31:26

Action. Action. Life is always action. Action. Actions.

31:33

Well, that's true. And that's certainly one way in which we do.

31:41

But... You know, I was thinking right up here where it says, Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself.

31:49

That we should love the neighbor and hold the neighbor to our standards. In other words, if we love ourselves to know that we did something wrong, then we should love our neighbor enough...

32:04

That's right. Absolutely. You know what the definition of Christian love is?

32:10

Virgin. What Trudy said. That would be a pretty good explanation.

32:18

I would say that she was saying that. Tell me what she said. What she said.

32:28

That we love them enough to be honest. Yeah, you've got to be honest with them. In other words, if they do something right, praise them for it, too.

32:38

I mean, just... Never justify a fault with a situation. Have a solution for it or keep your mouth shut.

32:47

Two. A Christian love is to seek the highest good for others.

32:54

That may mean putting them in jail. That might mean let

33:02

God teach them a lesson. Yes. Well, we can't let God do anything.

33:07

Well, I mean, you know what I'm saying. Not interfering. In other words, if someone... If, let's just say someone took their whole paycheck and went out and partied, and now they're hungry.

33:17

Yes. Are you going to feed them or are you going to let God teach them a lesson for a while?

33:23

Well, I'd help God, I think. You see what

33:29

I'm saying, don't you? Yes. My wife's oldest brother had four boys.

33:36

When the older one was 16, 17, he got drunk. Now, he was raised in a

33:43

Christian home. He got drunk and they put him in jail. He called his dad that night to come get him out.

33:50

He said, there's no way I'm coming to get you out. You stay there until they turn you out.

33:57

You know, he never got drunk again. But see, that wasn't the easiest thing for Carlos to do.

34:07

But he knew it was the right thing. My dad did the opposite. My brother came home drunk, and my dad took him to the police station and said, arrest my son now so he knows what it would be like if he gets caught drinking.

34:20

That's good. That's good. I remember my dad taking him.

34:26

I'm going, he didn't even get caught. All right, verse 10.

34:33

Before we get on to verse 10, I have a question about a part of this verse.

34:40

And if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended by saying so forth.

34:46

All right. What I'm going back to then is when we are to honor, respect, and obey those whom

34:55

God has put in authority over us. For example, in, say, the law enforcement business, if you are forced to kill someone, and there are occasions when that occurs, you are doing it out of a duty that has been imposed upon you by God.

35:26

That would not violate the commandment, thou shalt not kill. Oh, no. Isn't it covered by this one sentence?

35:35

Good. Thank you. Oh, you have come to the line of duty. You know, he says, you know,

35:50

Otis, I have to go from being a peacemaker to a killer in a very, very fraction of a second.

35:59

And I've got to answer a whole lot of questions in that split second to stay alive and to stop whatever's going on.

36:08

I had never thought of it before, but they do. They're a special breed of people, and it's an awesome responsibility.

36:18

Oh, Fred, in the line of duty, if it's part of the authority given to you and expected of you, then it would be the same as any other.

36:29

That kind of goes back to the ones that does execution. It's appointed to them by the state anyway.

36:36

Like the ones that does the execution in Huntsville and all that, then they would be following the law of the land and what they're instructed to do there.

36:46

I'm not understanding. The ones that carry out the execution.

36:52

Are following the law. Now, if they do it on their own, they're not.

36:58

But if they do it according to law, yes. What Fred was talking about.

37:09

All right. That's why the gentlemen that do not believe in abortion, but go and take the life of a doctor, feeling he's saving all these lives, is sinning.

37:23

Because he has not been given the authority by anybody to go and take the life.

37:28

That's right. Although he believes he's been given the authority of God, from God. And I think that's his own pride, thinking that.

37:38

I do not claim to understand. I don't think any of us can.

37:48

But for that situation, first of all, I'd have to know it was ordained of God, which it would.

37:58

But it immediately raises a lot of questions in my mind that I cannot answer. But I know that nothing occurring with what he has ordained it to occur.

38:08

And we've got lots of examples in the Old Testament where exactly the same thing happened. Well, Jesus. When Moses was born, all of the, was it all of the children or just men?

38:23

Males. Two years. And if I was to tell you some of the methods they used in killing them, you'd want to leave.

38:34

Because it was awful. And that's all I can say about it. The Scripture is full of things that, well,

38:45

God's had whole nations wiped out. Men, women, children, cattle, everything else.

38:53

So, but see, we live in a time that all of that is so far removed from us that we tend to think, well, that was then.

39:04

This is now. Well, there is no then or now to God. It's all present. All right.

39:11

Let's go. One more verse. Love worketh no ill to his neighbor.

39:18

Therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law. Love works no evil to his neighbor.

39:28

If you truly care about the well -being of someone and they have done something to violate the law, that is evil or something, for you to ignore it is doing ill to them.

39:49

God gives us nothing to ignore. Whatever he brings into our vision, into our presence, we are to take care of it in some fashion.

40:02

Now, that does not mean we have to do it, but it does mean I know somebody that will.

40:08

In other words, I must be the catalyst to get something taken care of.

40:14

If somebody needed brain surgery, they certainly wouldn't come to me to do it. They may come to me, though, in the beginning, and I certainly would find someone who knew what to do.

40:26

But he brings nothing to us to ignore, nothing. And we'll have to answer for everything.

40:34

We need to stop here, leave a little room for discussion. Is there any more discussion?

40:40

We've had a good class this morning. I think it was because of the presence of the doctor and his wife that you acted rather nice today.

40:58

Is there anything from anybody? On this last verse about love is the fulfillment of hope, would it be then appropriate to say that as we are spirit -filled in our daily life with the

41:24

Lord leading us, that we're not under the thou shalt not, not, not, this sort of a rule, rather a liberty to allow

41:41

God to love others through us, to be helpers, to be consistent with his nature of loving, and with hilarity, so to speak, we would be equipped to be his wherever he put us in caring for humanity, not only the house of God, but also those that...

42:06

That's right. So it's the fulfilling of this, not in our strength, but because God has equipped the saint with his spirit to enable us, he is the enabler for us then to be able to do the impossible in our own self, we can't do these things.

42:29

No, we can do nothing in our self. All we can do in our self is sin. That's right.

42:34

Let me say this and we'll close. Make the most of whatever you have, wherever you are, right now.

42:45

If we do that, we've fulfilled the law of Christ. A stand will be dismissed.