Romans 16:20-27 - Established By The Word & The Spirit (06/11/2023)

Benefits of God’s Protection and the Value of Prayer

Good morning, everybody that was lovely singing today and Good time of prayer together lots of serious requests and praises today. Wow. So Pam, are you back to a hundred percent yet. Wow nice smile. It's awesome.

I can't imagine what you went through but the Lord took you through it and We'll be praying for Sharon and as well get a better report this week and Larry music by the way is About to have back surgery in the next week or so as soon as possible.

Hopefully it's been an awful lot of pain and finally just yesterday they found mainly Betsy found a good mix a better mix of Pain pills, they won't let him have the big one, you know, the oxy cotton or whatever you call it until after the surgery.

Which is smart because you get used to it and quits working. So Can't have that one. So it's basically like probing and Tylenol but a more powerful out of profile. But she finally found one mix that works better and he did better yesterday and hopefully still today I think he still did she sent me a text a second ago.

He's still better today. Lower pain level. And she said that she said to tell Ben it was a great Sunday school last by the way so we pray as well and pray for Sam. Oh. Surprised you didn't punch that dude.

But you restrained yourself you showed good self-constraint self-control. That's funny because the morning this happened yesterday yesterday morning around Four in the morning or so God woke me up and had me praying for each of my family members by name I prayed for Sam.

Oh by name for protection angels to be all around them and everything, but I had several family members on the road, but You were preaching you teaching preaching whatever you do at Sunday school Ben, but you're talking about Benefits, you know how the people of God back 400 years before Christ came were complaining because they had no benefit.

Following God well, it's because we're legalist and they weren't really following God. But those who do follow God have tremendous benefits and Sam sitting there today's proof of that God protected our family again, and he protects our church family.

It's been that way for many many years. Each you who go before the Lord and pray for your children your grandchildren your families have tremendous benefits and we get to heaven. We'll see how many times an angel or more sent us from thing and It's on the highway and all kinds of things.

Where they're protecting us and we we sometimes don't even know it. I was going out to Midland. When last year or so, I guess to check on the oil lease and I was in my before I had my car, but I had an Audi and I was In the fast in passing about to pass a van and a truck and I get ready with the van.

He just jerks it over like he's gonna pass the truck and I had to go in the ditch going at me five or whatever I won't confess my sins today was going at least 75 and I hit the ditch and it was my car took it just like it was pavement and the dude driving the van woke up and pulled back over and I just waited and he found it and I he's back on the highway and You just don't know what that would be like without angels protecting you, right?

So we have huge benefits. That was a great Sunday school lesson. Well, let us let's pray and we'll get started on today's message Lord. Thank you so much for your word Lord, you know I was talking to you about that this week about where it would we be if we did not have your word we would have really nothing physical in this world that could lead us and So, thank you that you've given us the perfect Word of God something objective in our hands and that's you speaking to us and What a wonderful love letter you wrote to all of us who are yours and Lord may we learn today and we ask in Jesus Name Amen.

Romans 16:17-19 and the Danger of Division

Well, I made a little funny mistake last week I think most of you got the email but like I I got up here to the end of my notes I was at time anyway, and I said. It felt weird. I felt like well I'm not really there's another verse or two left in Romans, but the notes are done and I all in the notes.

So I said, okay, we're done. I get home and my printer had run out of paper. So I had about three pages. Soon as I put the paper in it printed him. I said, oh, that's the rest of yet last Sunday sermon.

So we're gonna have to go one more time in Romans. Unfortunately, I'm sorry about that. But look 11 years. What's another day one more day? I'm thinking Ben keeps telling me how long it's been that we've been in Romans and I said, well, wouldn't that be an interesting title for a book?

11 years in Roman or would that be like too big of a book? I don't know. What do you think would that work? Would it fly nowadays? It'd probably be better like 15 minutes in Romans. Sell that to all the mega churches.

I would get rich. No one he would nobody would grow right? Okay, so Joke's over. Are you ready? Romans chapter 16. We're on verse 20. But last time we covered 17 18 19 and if you remember what they were talking about.

Do you remember the topic was kind of kind of interesting timing? I think. But like I said, these are prepared months and months ahead. Because I'm way ahead where I'm going verse by verse in my study.

And then when it comes time to preach it I have to go back over it that week because I've prepared it a couple of months earlier or whatever. So this has been ready to go, but the timing was interesting I thought but it says in Romans 16 17 now beseech you brethren mark them that cause divisions and offenses.

Contrary to the doctrine which you have learned and avoid those people for they that are such serve not the Lord Jesus Christ but their self and By good works and fair speeches deceive the hearts of Some and then verse 19 said for your obedience has come abroad unto all men.

I am glad therefore on your behalf. But yet I would have you wise unto that which is good and simple concerning evil. And I think I mentioned last time by the way that word simple in the Greek means unmixed.

Isn't that interesting. Like unmixed like you don't mix truth together with error. You don't mix like you don't take a half truth out of context and say something about somebody that's only half true.

But if you knew the whole context it wouldn't be true at all. You don't do that. So that's an interesting word in the Greek unmixed. So he wants you to be wise concerning that which is good and unmixed or simple.

Concerning that which is evil and I've taken that verse out of context my whole life and used it to try to teach people hey, don't talk don't read a bunch of books about demons or something because Paul said to be simple concerning evil and that's not even what it means in the context of this when you take verses 18 17 18 and 19 into consideration and then verse 20 is the next verse what it is actually saying is For us as a church body.

This would apply in your family in Your office if you have a Christian company or a company with mostly Christian people in it but mainly for church is what this is for is Paul is telling the people to be wise about the good things that the people in your church are doing and Don't know much about their weaknesses.

Don't think about their weaknesses. Be simple. Concerning their weaknesses or the bad things they might be doing now. That doesn't mean we overlook sin. I mean there's times when we rebuke and admonish and so forth but In general what it's saying is if you want to look at the bad in people you can find it every day.

And if you want to do that, you're never going to get along with anyone. You're just going to cause division everywhere. Because you're gonna pick the bad things about the people and tell the other people about it and turn them against that person and that Creates division in church.

That's what verse 19 is saying not to do. Be wise concerning the good in people but be simple concerning the evil or the weaknesses in the people and. So, you know, that's not natural. What we like to do is pick on each other for whatever reason and it's not good and when you when I think you know, we need to have times where we remind ourselves of these things because we forget and When we catch ourselves doing even if it's in our family of a couple of family members against another family member.

It's not there and you're talking about them catch yourselves and remind the person doing it. Hey, by the way, that person's not here right now. Just say something like that and it'll stop it. You see what I'm saying?

Hey, by the way, that person's not in the room. Oh, you're right, you know and That is a really good thing to practice. And if it really is a problem though that needs to be addressed. You just dial their number and hand it to the person say hey tell them tell them right now.

That is the way to be according to God's Word. So we can either live in the flesh and according the devil or we can live according to God's Word and when you do by The way you become weird. Okay, like everyone thinks you're a weird group because you're trying to live by the Bible on every issue.

They don't want you to be that that biblical. Okay. But I'm sorry if it's 30 of us till the day I die. I'm gonna be that biblical. And it drives people nuts and the farther we go along and this thing the more so it will be.

They will be gathering people to scratch their itching ears and they will hate people. That tell the truth and I don't think for a minute that I have a Messiah complex. I know I'm not the only one telling the truth.

There are little pockets of preachers all over this world that preach it right from the Bible. We just don't know who they are and where they are because they ain't famous right now. And the ones that are famous you got it, especially you know, they write a book that's a best-seller.

You got to read very carefully that book and see well. Why did the world like that book and I'm talking about the world of Christians? Why'd they like it? Well, you might have one in a million where it's actually really sound and they like it but you better read it very carefully if it's really really popular, right and That's just Jesus said you cannot please the world and please God at the same time.

And so it still holds true so that's what verse 20 We're I'm sorry verse 19 was talking about now verse 20. When you live this way. When you live by the Bible, even when it hurts. When you live by the Bible, even when people in church with you turn against you.

Then verse 20 comes true. So let's read it together. Then the God of peace will bruise Satan under your feet shortly and The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen. So when you get a group of people who say look we're gonna work on these things.

We're gonna try hard not to talk about each other. What is it called in the Bible by the way when you talk about someone who's not in the room with you? What's that called? Backbiting, okay, but yet when you're the person doing it, you don't think you're a backbiter.

You do realize that right you just think well, we're just trying to help this person by talking about him. We're we're really like if we can get together and maybe you know. It'll help them by us talking about their weaknesses behind their back.

It'll help them be better. We can change them and you know, why not just don't talk to the person just go in your closet and pray to Jesus say Hey help that person. They have a weakness. Would that work?

Do you think the Holy Spirit can fix people? Okay, then ask him to do it not your friend you see but but when you you have to remind yourself and I have to too. Are we just naturally will gravitate into talking about people behind their backs?

Now if we can avoid that and in other areas of Scripture where we ought to walk according to the Word of God then verse 20 comes true and we Will together have peace from God, but we will bruise Satan Under our feet now, how does that happen?

Well, let me tell you when you have a problem in your marriage or with a church member or with the pastor. If you will not let the Sun go down on your anger and go to him that day it would be best but certainly before the next service because you're not supposed to worship as long as you or Have something against somebody or they got something against you you're supposed to go fix it before you worship the next and if you do that, which means you get to it quickly and You communicate in love and truth.

The problem will go away and Satan will have to flee and that's what it means when it says you will put Satan under your feet like he cannot handle Godly loving communication between truthful real born-again people now if it's a tear it doesn't work.

You can talk to a tear all day long and they're not gonna get right with you. And I'm not saying that everybody that didn't get right with David Mitchell is a tear. I'm not saying that. But I'm just saying in general that like this stuff doesn't work with tears but when you have sheep and They get cross-grained over no matter what it is if you just sit down and talk and tell what like, okay I said that but in my heart I meant this and the other person says, okay I'm more interested in what you meant in your heart than I am what you said, so I forgive you.

You see how that works and you run into people all the time and say yeah, but you said it. Well, okay, so you're perfect like you never said anything wrong to anybody so you're gonna hold me up to that standard see that won't work.

Will it? So you have to have an attitude where each person apologizes to the other person because you both probably did something wrong. Otherwise, you're not cross-grained, right? So when you have that attitude You bruise Satan under your feet shortly, isn't that interesting?

And so the opposite is true too when you don't have that attitude Satan wins a little battle and we don't like that do we. Okay. So now let's go to verse 21 now here you see some other people that are commended Timothy is The one that he wrote Timothy first second Timothy to teaching him how to be a preacher how to run a church and so forth in Lucius and Jason and Sossipater how you like that name?

There's a good one for your boys. You could change on that Ashton you baby's not born yet. You could change to Sossipater thy kinsmen salute you and then Tertius who wrote this epistle how many of you know what that means you say?

Well, I thought Paul wrote the book of Romans, but the Bible says Tertius wrote it. Well, that's why it take me so long to preach all the way through it because it tortious wrote it you get that. It's a joke.

All right, sort of too good. I just thought of it so I had to say it. But Paul they think Paul had trouble with his vision. And so he would have other people. He would dictate and they would put it in writing and that's what we have not all of the books.

But several of the books he had a penman. Write what he told them to write. So that's who Tertius was and Gaius my host and of the whole church salute you. So a lot of these folks had churches in their house at first when it was in a new area Erastus the Chamberlain of the city so they had they had reached some political leaders who had become born again who had influence not many but some a few and that's always good if you have a few of those and Quartus a brother just means he's born again, right?

So that tells you once again, how many times have we heard preachers say? Well, they don't have a yellow stripe on their back. You can't tell who they are. But sometimes apparently you can tell who a Christian is.

How many of you think that the brothers and sisters that you know in this room? You kind of think they're saved. Don't raise your hand because I don't want to know the ones that don't think they're saved or that I'm saved or whatever.

But you you you obviously can tell a brother from a tear over time. Now you can't always tell. In a short amount of time because people can say the right words. Can they not they can look, you know dress right for church and all that stuff, but over time.

The bible says the apostle paul under the inspiration of spirit said. That it will be revealed. Who the true christians are and who people are just not? Doing right for whatever reason it will reveal who they are just it happens, but it takes time.

So wouldn't you agree that this where he where paul is telling you. Oh, this guy is a brother. It proves that we can tell who the brothers and sisters are at some point. Would you agree? So the idea that you can't know is false so we can know and You know when we have a brother or sister who acts inappropriately in any area listed by scripture.

Not just that we think is wrong, but where scripture says don't do that or do that and they're not. Then we should go and talk to them privately find out where you know find out why because. You know either they're backslidden or they're a tear.

And the only way you can figure out is to go talk to them. So you go and you talk to them and if they won't hear you the bible says you take another brother or two with you. Talk to them again. If they won't hear you you bring it before the whole church.

And you let the whole church know about this person and what they're doing or not doing. That's how god says deal with these kinds of things and other than that. Um, you know when when you're living together in peace over long periods of time like I kind of think sharon bland is a saved person.

You know raymond seems kind of saved to me. Right and and everybody I guess viviana and her crew are like the newest but i've been watching them and I think they're saved. Right, you can just you look in people's eyes.

You can tell even in a short period of time I'm Telling you you can just you can tell and this proves it even though this Is a funny little verse here. You wouldn't think well, that doesn't prove anything.

But when he says quartus a brother. It tells you paul looked in his eyes and said, okay, he's saved right? So now we now we have information showing us that. We can know that verse 24 the grace of our lord.

Jesus christ be with you all amen now from 25 through the rest of the chapter which ends the book of romans if my notes are all printed. Uh, some theologians call this the doxology. And so let's take a look at it now to him that is of power to establish you.

According to my gospel. That's the word. What what two things do we have to have just to review in order to be saved and to keep walking with the lord. Two Things what are they? The water and the spirit right and the water is represents the word of god.

So where it says the gospel, that's the word of god component. So paul here is saying That he that's god who has the power to establish you according to the word of god or by the word of god. And the preaching of jesus christ so that so first he mentions the gospel, which is very specific.

It means. It means that jesus died. For his own he was buried with the sins of his own on it on his body. He rose again. And so that we might be risen in him. That's the gospel and people have to hear that to be saved.

You cannot be saved without hearing that message and receiving it. As truth for you personally, right? But the other then he broadens it out when he says the preaching of jesus christ. That's the whole.

And really the whole old testament. So now you got the whole word of god involved here so god uses the gospel and the entire word of god um to establish you and the power that it mentions you see how it says, um.

Now to him that is Of power to establish you the power is the holy spirit part. So now you have the spirit and you have the word you have those two components. It's the only thing that'll save anybody the only thing that'll cause anyone to grow and without it.

You're not real. Without it, you won't grow you're not real you'll fall away. So when you have those two components though god Has the power to establish you? Now, what do you think the word establish means?

If something is established, what does it mean? It's solid it doesn't turn it's just there and it's there to stay so this is Talking about a major doctrine. That you can go all through the bible. And find it and it's called eternal security.

Now i've been criticized for preaching that way where you're going along here verse 21 22 23 24. Now we get to 25 and it says god's got the power to establish you. I am not supposed to stop there and talk about eternal security all through the bible.

And yet that's how god taught me to preach because I didn't go to seminary. So that's how god taught me to preach now. It's funny that john macarthur preaches the same way and he did go to seminary. And spurgeon preaches the same way and he didn't go he never even went to college.

And arthur pink preaches that way and he did and then he quit early because it was boring and he already knew that stuff. So, I mean, I I think it's a good way to do it. Now i'm not going to do that today because I told you we're going to finish romans.

But now ben did tell me this morning. I said dad if you could go just a few months more it'd be 12 full years. And if you're going to write a book 12 years in romans sounds better than 11 years in romans so we could Take a little trip here on eternal security if we wanted to but that's what it's talking about being established.

According to the word of god and by the holy spirit power. Isn't that awesome? That's what keeps us safe. See those who teach you can lose it. They don't get this. They think they got it by doing something good, but they'll tell you oh what but we don't believe in salvation by works.

But they live it they practice salvation by works because the only way you could lose it is you've got it by works. And then you messed up, right? But if it's not by whether you did it right or messed up or not.

But it's by grace and the holy spirit power in the bible is what god used to regenerate you then god saved you. And if god saved you it says he cannot repent from what he does. He cannot turn from his promises.

So if he promised you that he has given you eternal life. You cannot lose it without making god a liar and I don't think anybody in this room can do that. Now ben was talking about some people in in the book of malachi.

Malachi, right? Because he was in habakkuk a while back getting confused and malachi. Who actually you know, they they actually thought they could make god a liar. But guess what happened they just sort of went into nothingness for 400 years.

Never amounted to anything and then ended up being the pharisees that killed jesus. So we don't want to think god can ever be a liar because he can't be. All right, so god can establish you and give you.

Make you grow until you meet jesus and not lose your salvation and He does it through the power of the holy spirit and through the gospel and the whole word of god. But then it also says according to the revelation of the mystery.

Which was kept secret since the world began. You know what that is there is one mystery. That the old testament prophets and the psalmist david and solomon and the law and all the priests. There's a mystery that they all looked into and could not understand it, but they tried but they could not.

And and even the other apostles peter james john none of them could see it either. And when paul spent the better part of three years in the arabian desert people have challenged me on that. Can you prove that from the bible?

Yeah, I can through inference but um. The better part of three years that paul spent in the arabian desert with jesus. And jesus appeared to him in person. And taught him and how do I know that because you can't be an apostle unless you see him in person.

And paul is an apostle and peter said he was. So jesus taught peter paul i'm robbing paul. Hey peter or something here, but he taught paul Something that no one ever knew from the time of adam and eve.

No one ever knew it. Noah didn't know it. No one knew it. Until paul. And that's the mystery it's talking about here. Does anyone know what the mystery is? Now if you just search that word only in the new testaments where you should search it.

You'll find quite a few mentions of the word mystery, but not many. I mean maybe 10. So it's a finite number. And if you read all those you'll find out what the mystery is and it it it really is one main thing.

But it can there are some verses where it goes into specific like like if the main thing was a roman numeral one. And there's other verses that go into an a b or c under it. But it's all about the main thing and the main thing is this.

It kind of has to do with the jew not believing god would save a gentile for one thing. So the mystery is that god in christ Will bring the jew and the gentile To himself through the gospel and the indwelling of the holy spirit which had never happened before.

The old testament saints had the spirit with them. But jesus said you shall he shall he said he's been with you. He told the apostles this he said he has been with you. But he shall be in you and that happened at pentecost.

That's when the church started. And at that point christians were indwelt by the holy spirit and sealed. He was sealed within your body until the day of redemption. That means when jesus comes back. So now there's another proof of eternal security because when you look at when god puts a seal on something it's like it's a done deal.

Uh, it is Established. Okay. So when the holy spirit is placed within you at the moment, you're saved when you're regenerated. He is placed in you and sealed within you. And your body becomes the temple of the living god and he's sealed there until the day of redemption.

You cannot lose it because you're sealed. And then check out when god puts a seal on stuff. There aren't too many occasions in the bible where he sealed something but every time he did it it was a done deal.

And it's the same way with this. So now we see that this revelation of the mystery the mystery is that when you get born again. You are indwelt by the holy spirit. And you're connected to every other church member rather jew or gentile.

And one of the little a b's or c's under that whole idea is there's coming a day. When the last trump will sound. And jesus christ will return and every knee will bow. And the church will be raptured and we'll all be tied together by the holy spirit and brought up together to be with him.

That's part of that mystery as well. But the only reason that happens is because he lives in us and jesus Brings his people from the four corners of the earth to himself at the rapture. So that's part of the mystery as well, but it's all the same thing.

It's all dealing with the indwelling of the holy spirit within the church by church. I mean save people all the saved people. We're connected by that. We're connected to each other. That's why we don't have division among us.

We're like we're. The same we're the same connection with jesus and with the father and the holy spirit connects jesus with the father the father with jesus. Jesus with us us with jesus and the father and us with each other.

And the only thing listed in the bible that grieves the holy spirit is division among his people grieves him. So we can't afford to have that so before the sun goes down you fix it before the next worship service.

You go to the person in person not on a text not in an email face to face and you fix it. That takes guts, doesn't it? I mean if you like admitting maybe you were wrong about something to another person.

I would rather be the person that gets wronged than the person that did the wronging. Because I hate having to go admit. Oh, man, I was so wrong. Don't you? But we have to and when we don't we grieve the holy spirit.

So Isn't it funny that all of this is in context together here in this passage at the end of romans. It's all talking about the same thing so, um. According to the revelation of the mystery. That's the indwelling of the church predominantly and some other minor points under it that are connected to that whole idea.

Which was kept secret since the world began, isn't it? Wonderful that we live in a time when that's not a secret anymore. But now it has been made manifest what this miss this mystery has been made manifest.

Which means it's come to pass that it's real in the world. Now. You can see it. It's real. It's been made manifest and by the scriptures Of the prophets according to the commandment of the everlasting god.

It has been made known to all nations for the obedience of faith. Now, how many of you think that's an interesting phrase? Obedience of faith. Because don't we contrast the two? Works salvation versus grace, which is by faith works is over here and it's a part.

You know salvation is apart from that and there's a great gulf between the works and the faith and you've heard that. We learned that in romans about what eight years ago when we got to that passage and here it says.

Uh, this mystery has been made known to all nations. For the obedience of faith. What does that mean? Well, it's not talking about a mixture of faith plus works to save you. That's impossible so what it's talking about is Obeying the gospel and what's interesting if you look that word up, in fact, I wish someone would date.

Do you have a phone where you can look it up? Tell me what the greek word I should have done it. But I I didn't for obedience is right there because I think I know it's the reason I didn't look it up.

But every once in a while There'll be a different word for that. So I want to know what the word in verse 26 romans 16 26 for obedience. What is the word and what is what's the definition. Okay, what's what's it mean to obey obedience compliance submission, all right submission that's the word I was looking for.

So it means to submit to the gospel submit to salvation by faith rather than salvation by works. Now do you get that? I mean think about that. If you don't if you don't understand the mystery. Which is the indwelling holy spirit.

And this goes back to ben's sunday school lesson as well. If you don't understand the mystery of the indwelling of the holy spirit God in us the hope of glory. Then you will start to make rules for everybody to follow because you don't think the holy spirit can fix them.

So you tell the women what they can wear and can't wear. You tell the men how long their hair can be brother raymond. You tell you tell the kids what music they can and can't listen to. And you make up all these rules because you don't believe in the mystery.

Now, what does the mystery say that if god now lives in you can't the holy spirit tell you what music to listen to? Can he tell you how to dress at church or at home or anywhere and how not to can he tell you everything?

And teach you what he wants to do if you're in fellowship with him. The answer is absolutely yes. And so that's what obedience to the faith means. Is that the gospel. And I thought I find this interesting don't you in the first century the gospel had already gone Into all the nations of the known world of that time.

That would mean all the european in the eastern middle east nations of the world where the roman empire was. This gospel had gone everywhere by the time this was written and it's real interesting that when we sent missionaries to africa for the first time from england.

There were already churches there in africa. What do you remember the story of the ethiopian eunuch that got baptized in the pond or like we say in texas the stock tank? Right. Guess what? He started churches and so.

It had already gone there and a lot of people don't understand that but they'll say well. What about you know, how can this be fair christianity fair over in africa and india where they never even heard the gospel?

The bible tells me they have heard the gospel. They just rejected it. And many of them chose to worship rocks and trees and animals. In india and in africa in particular. But there have been many missionaries and there are a lot of christians there now mixed in with all the other stuff and.

So anyway, this is really fascinating information from 2000 years ago that tells us these things so. This mystery has been made manifest. And by the scriptures of the prophets so the old testament spoke of it, but they didn't understand what they were writing.

It mentioned it talked about a new heart rather than a stony heart. Remember that? I think in isaiah, is that right? Jeremiah. Ezekiel, thank you. Uh, that's what happens when you're reading through the bible every day staying up with that stuff, but Ezekiel I don't think it's the only place but it talks in the old testament about getting a new heart.

That is a thing they didn't fully understand yet, but paul explained it and that was made known to all nations. So that people could obey salvation by faith. Rather than salvation by works, which cannot change the heart.

Salvation by works tries to take the old corrupt heart and make it do better. How many of you think that'll last? It just doesn't work. And then verse 27 to god only wise be glory through jesus christ forever amen now.