It'll be a couple of weeks and in a couple of weeks it'll be 486 years since William Tyndale was strangled to death and his body was burned at the stake for translating the Bible into the English language.
So it is no small matter for you to have the Bible open this morning and to engage what he gave his life for.
And he gave his life for it because he saw, was someone who experienced the gospel, transformation his life as the hope of all of humanity and we need to see what he saw.
And so his life was changed, transformed.
In fact, it's reported that the very last words he spoke were a prayer.
Lord, open the eyes of the King of England that he might see glory of Christ in the gospel and his life be transformed.
And so in the introduction to the book of Romans, in the edition of the English Bible that he translated two years before his death, which he was killed at the age of 42, he wrote this.
This epistle, this epistle, this epistle is the principle and the most excellent part of the New Testament.
Most pure gospel and a light and a way in unto the whole of scripture.
I think it is important that every Christian not only know it by rote, know it by heart, know it by heart, but also to exercise himself there in it continually.
In other words, put it to practice continually.
No person can read it too often or study it too well.
For the more it is studied, the easier it is.
And the more it is searched, the more precious things are found in it.
So great a treasure of spiritual things lie hid therein.
That's what we've been looking at since the first of May this year, the book of Romans.
Romans is the most closely reasoned and compelling book of the New Testament.
The massive theology of the first 11 chapters logically proceeds from the statement of the gospel in the very opening verses of chapter 1 to the need of the gospel that you see in chapters 1 to 3.
Human sin.
Next, it describes the provision of a right standing with God that comes by faith in Christ in chapters 3 and 4.
Then our position in Christ is beautifully described in chapter 5 as God making a new humanity in Christ.
And the secret of our spiritual victory of our overcoming in the end is mapped out in chapters 6, 7 and 8.
Chapters 9 to 11 is a vindication of God's work through all of history to find its culmination in Christ for his glory.
And as Paul concludes his massive theological argument, his foundational theology gives way to worship, which is where all theology ends.
With worship of God.
Chapter 36.
Everything is about him.
To him be glory forever.
Amen.
Then follows on the conclusion of that, a compelling call to live out the theology in practical Christian living in chapters 12 to 15.
Paul exhorts, he commands, and he encourages us to practice our theology by using our gifts to serve one another in love.
We are to subject ourselves to the authority over us.
Living by the law of love in the church, offering all of life to God.
That's the magnificent structure of this greatest theological essays ever written.
There is nothing like the book of Romans.
What we have in front of us is a transforming worldview where I see my life in clarity and where it fits for all time and eternity.
As I began this series on the 1st of May, I said that there is no doubt about the power of the book of Romans to radically change lives.
And the reason Romans has proved to be so life-changing and history-shaping is because of the gospel.
It's because of the gospel.
The gospel changes lives.
It can change your life.
It's because of the gospel.
It can change your life.
heart has he brought transformation and change in your life over these past few months?
I'm not asking you, first and foremost, when you become a Christian. If you have, that is
remarkable and massive change in your life. I'm asking you, for those who are Christian,
what has changed for you?
If nothing's changed, I grieve that that would be the case.
Hear these words. Recently, an ex-pastor of St. Paul's visited this church,
had face-to-face contact with a number of you. He said two things to me afterwards.
It's wonderful to see the transformation of that person over the last five to six years,
how they've grown. He also said, these people, nothing's changed. They're still the same.
Still the same. And so now we come to the last chapter of the fitting final words of this whole
letter. Three points in your St. Paul's app. Partners for God's glory, glory stealers, and glory to God
alone. So if you've got the St. Paul's app, open it up along with your Bibles. Not just because
Tyndall gave his life for it, but because it is the Word of God, and that it is through God's Word
that he brings transformation to our life. So first of all, partners for God's glory.
Now, as Paul winds up his letter, he sends greetings to 26 individuals, 24 of whom he names.
Now, this is not just a skip over irrelevant list of names. You know, Paul's getting a little bit
personal at the end of it kind of thing. This is a glimpse. What we have here is a glimpse of God's
purpose for all of Romans. This is God's new society that the gospel builds. This is what God has been
doing through the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ for his glory. What you notice in this list of names
is the diversity of the early church, race, rank, and gender. What is confirmed in this list is what we
know already. The church in Rome had Jew and Gentile members. Aquila and Priscilla in verse 3 were Jewish,
as are Adronicus and Junia in verse 7, and Herodian in verse 11. Some of the names on the list were
probably of royal rank or certainly high rank in society. Aristopoulos in verse 10 and Narcissus in
verse 11. Both are said to be heads of household or an estate. It is most likely that Aristopoulos was the
grandson of Herod the Great and of the current Roman emperor in the day, Claudius. Narcissus was a
well-known and a rich and powerful person who exercised a very significant influence over
emperor Claudius. These are people in the royal court. And yet in a different way, the most distinguished
here is Rufus. What a name. It's a name that's really got to come back on, don't you think?
You know, like parents have got to, someone's got to call their son Rufus somewhere. Verse 13.
What makes him distinguished? His father is Simon of Cyrene, the man who carried the cross of Christ
to the place of execution. And yet on the other end of the social rank here are Ampliatus in verse 8,
Urbanus in verse 9, Hermes in 12, and Philogochus and Julia in verse 12. They are common names
for slaves in the first century in the Roman Empire. You had people in the court. You had people who were
slaves in the church in Rome. Then there's the gender diversity of the church. Nine of the 26 persons
here are greeted are women. And Paul particularly marks out four of them in the deepest level of
encouragement in this list. Singles out Mary, Tryphena and Tryphosa, who are twins, and Persis
as having worked hard. The word here implies a strong exertion for the church, for serving Christ.
This, along with the comments about Phoebe in verse 1, shows that women were active and influential
in the ongoing ministry and the mission of the church. Priscilla was one of Paul's fellow workers,
Junia, a well-known missionary, and Phoebe, a deacon, a servant of the church. And so we have here in
this list of names a picture of God's pattern for his new society in Jesus as a richly diverse one.
But the second thing we see in this list is the unity of this richly diverse people.
There is a profound unity that transcends the differences. Four times Paul calls his friends
here as being in Christ. Five times as being in the Lord. Twice he uses the language of a family unit
in referring to them as sisters and brothers. He even calls some of them his beloved.
My beloved. It's often translated as dear friends in the English.
He also mentions two experiences that strengthen Christian unity. Namely, they are fellow workers,
partners, verses 3 and 9, and they are fellow sufferers in verses 4 and 7.
Not just a mere glimpse into the makeup of the church in Rome.
The church is the only community in the world where Jesus Christ has broken down the barriers of division.
salvation. Why? Because we saw in chapter 5 that his whole purpose of salvation was not so that you could
go to heaven because he's building a new society for his glory. That's what he's doing. A new people for his glory.
So let me take you back very quickly into chapter 15 as we looked at last week.
Not because James didn't do it well, but because it serves my purpose here right now.
Chapter 15. As Paul is finishing his handling of how weak and strong should relate to each other in the church,
he tells them the purpose of the church.
The purpose of St. Paul's Chatswood.
And how Christ has set the pattern for how to build the church.
The purpose is in verses 5 and 6.
That's why Christ has saved you.
It's why he builds his church.
It's why he has bought it and builds it.
Not isolated individual worship, but unified voices, whether speaking or singing for the glory of God.
That's the purpose.
Displaying the magnificence, the glory of God is the aim of the church.
Then in verse 7, Paul gives, this is chapter 15 still, gives Christ as the pattern for building his church.
He says,
Therefore, welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you.
Why?
For the glory of God.
That is, Jesus does everything he does, including welcoming you into his family as his much-loved child,
building his church for the glory of God.
You are saved by Christ for the glory of God.
You are welcomed into friendship for the glory of God.
He is humbling.
Sorry, this is humbling because it means that we are never the final reason for anything.
That is culture shaping in an age of excessive individualism,
where everything exists for my reasoning and my purpose.
Romans says,
No!
You exist for something greater.
Something more joy-filling.
Has it not escaped anyone that the more excessive we become in our individualism,
the more anxiety rises in our culture?
It is gloriously good news because we should not want anything else but the glory of God.
God gets the glory and we get the joy.
Then in verses 8, I'm still back in chapter 15.
Verses 8 and 9,
Paul underscores Christ's pattern of building the church by showing that this is the very reason he came for the nations.
We're in mission month.
This is the reason right here.
For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God's truthfulness,
to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs,
in order that the Gentiles, the nations, might glorify God for his mercy.
Christ came to prove that God is faithful to his promises and to be glorified to the nations,
amongst the nations.
That is why evangelism, it's why missions, it's why church planning, it's why treasuring together and St. Paul's exists.
St. Paul exists.
Not for our name, but for God's glory.
The vision of the church, the Roman gives us here in this list of names,
is a family drawn from every nation, tribe, people and language
who are singing God's praise from mouths and hearts unified in him, in the gospel.
And it is to be the vision of this church,
laboring and suffering together to bring glory to God for our joy.
What a picture we have.
And that's why Paul makes this sharp transition.
It feels like a very sharp transition into verse 17,
from greeting this church with warmth to a warning, this church of glory stealers.
In verse 17, he warns the church family about divisions and obstacles.
He's warning those who would actively cause division.
Described in verse 18 as not serving our Lord, but their own appetites.
How are these glory stealers recognised?
They are divisive.
They teach what is contrary to the gospel.
They are self-serving.
And they persuade people through their flattery.
They have no love for Jesus in the end.
They love themselves.
They have a rampant, expressive individualism.
It's about them.
They have no desire to be his willing servants and disciples.
They are utterly self-centred.
And their desire is to rob you of gospel hope and joy.
Now, one of the subtle ways that this has been happening across the Western church for decades
is that the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ
is less about divine rescue mission for God's glory
and more about Jesus coming as on a self-help mission to help you realise your true self.
It's turning the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ around
to the point where you are not in desperate need of rescue
that you are dead in your transgressions and sins
into a he saw potential in you.
And so the gospel becomes about you.
Turns Jesus into a love guru
who is there to affirm my opinions,
to affirm my decisions in life
and it results in a discipleship that is radically individualistic
where the church exists for my needs,
to provide programs for me
and my needs.
It's about Jesus being my saviour.
His job is to provide for me
eternal life in heaven
but has no knowledge of his lordship over my life right now.
Where I submit to him,
Jesus becomes the extra fuel in my tank
to get to the destination that I've chosen for my life.
It knows little of sacrifice,
of service,
it only knows a life of comfort and security
all in the name of Christ.
The late J.I. Packer called it
laid-back religion.
He did not know of the term excessive individualism
when he wrote that book.
And yet excessive individualism
is the culture that we are all marinating in right now.
Everything exists for my glory.
And it robs God of his glory
and it robs you of gospel joy and hope.
So how are these glory stealers stopped?
We're back into chapter 16,
verse 19.
I want you to be wise about what is good
and innocent about what is evil.
The way to stop glory stealers is in fact
to grow in wisdom and obedience to God.
That is, glory stealers are stopped
the more and more we see
and we are conformed to God's glory.
And what that means is
that against every bit of teaching you hear,
against every moral issue you face,
every choice that you are confronted with every day,
there are at least three questions to throw against it.
Does it agree with scripture?
Does it glorify the Lord Jesus?
Does it promote goodness for others?
Three questions.
In other words,
is it about me giving my life for the glory of God?
Does this decision that I'm making now
make much of me
or make much of Christ?
And the assurance is for the Christian
who continues to pursue that life
that the ultimate glory stealer,
Satan himself, verse 20,
will be crushed.
Satan was defeated by the death
and the resurrection of Jesus,
but he is yet to concede his defeat.
This is the great encouragement here
for the church of Jesus Christ.
Satan, who is the great liar,
the great liar,
and one of his chief weapons is divisive,
half-truth gospel
that puts you at the center of everything.
And when you're at the center of everything,
it means you must push other people away.
Everyone else is a threat to you being at the center
because everyone else wants your throne.
And it divides the church again and again
and again and again and again and again.
And the great news of verse 20
is that Satan has been,
he is being,
and he will be defeated.
And we, the church,
are called to resist him.
And the promise here in these verses
is that we, the church of Jesus Christ,
are not passive in this.
We play a part in the victory,
Christ's victory over Satan.
How does that happen?
Mission month.
Well, more specifically, mission.
Satan suffers a blow
every single time
someone puts their faith in Jesus Christ
and receives his righteousness
and escapes eternal damnation.
That's punching Satan,
poof, in the belly.
Every time that happens.
We take part in this victory
every single time
we obey our heavenly father joyfully.
And every time God's people worship together
in faith and unity.
and every time we sacrifice
for God's mission
to advance it in this world.
We play a part in crushing Satan.
The great liar and deceiver.
And so that brings me to the end of Romans.
What's the ending of Romans?
The glory of God
in the face of Jesus Christ.
That is,
what Paul does here at the end
is he takes us back to the beginning.
He takes us back to the gospel.
Back to chapter one.
His aim is for us
to give glory to God
by reminding us once more
of the gospel.
He reminds us firstly
of what the gospel does.
In verse 25,
he says that the gospel
is God's way
of establishing us.
The gospel is the power of God.
The gospel is how God changes people
and changes their futures.
Paul doesn't simply say here,
the gospel is able to save you.
I mean,
that's how it's normally communicated
in the Western church.
The gospel is God's way
of saving you.
It is.
But he says here,
it's God's way
of establishing you.
The gospel is not only
the entry point
of the Christian life.
It is also the way
that we continue in,
we grow in,
and we enjoy
the Christian life
in Jesus.
The gospel saves us.
The gospel transforms us.
In other words,
Paul says here,
the way to beat
the glory stealers,
continue in the gospel.
Continue embracing it.
Continue applying it
to your life.
It is the window
through which you are
to view your life,
which you are
to view society,
which you are
to view the world,
which you are
to view your future.
The gospel window.
And then,
he reminds us
in verse 25
what the gospel is.
The message I proclaim
is about Jesus Christ.
The center of the gospel
is Jesus,
the divine man
who laid aside
his glory,
became like us
in human form,
died on the cross
for our sin,
rose triumphant
over all that is evil
and wicked
so that we
might partake
in his glory
for God's glory.
Jesus Christ,
who now rules
as the king
over all of creation
for all of eternity.
The gospel
is
Jesus.
No one else
can save us.
No one else
can change us.
The gospel
is Jesus Christ,
the rescuer
and the ruler
who was predicted,
as it says,
has been revealed
and is now
proclaimed
to the ends
of the earth.
Proclaimed,
as verse 26 says,
so that all nations
might believe
and obey him
in verse 26.
And for 20 centuries
since Paul wrote
these words,
this gospel
has been proclaimed
and lives
have been changed
from every language,
tribe,
people,
and nation
as they embrace
Jesus
as saviour
and lord
for the glory
of God
and for their joy.
And maybe
that's the step
you need to take today.
And so as we get
to the end
of Romans,
we join with Paul
in verse 27,
to the only wise God
be glory
forever
through Jesus Christ.
Amen.
But I'm not finished yet.
God's glory,
I've used it
multiple times.
It's in fact
the title of this talk.
What is it?
God's glory
is the beginning,
it is the end,
it is the purpose
of all things.
It is the pinnacle,
it is the top
of all of Paul's
theological reasoning.
It's the thing
that binds
all of his theology
together.
It's the thing
and I,
for the sake
of your time,
I really wanted
to go through
every single chapter
of Romans
and show you
glory of God,
it comes up
in every single
chapter and section
of this book.
It's what holds
it all together.
It's the glue.
So what does it mean?
What does it mean,
the glory of God?
Well,
it's almost
impossible
to define.
The reason
I say that,
the word glory
is
almost the same
is the word beauty.
It's more
like beauty
than it is
like basketball.
Right?
Bear with me.
You can define
a basketball
by saying
it's round,
it's inflated,
it's used
to bounce
and you've got
to put it
through this
hoop thing.
it's part
of a game.
But you can't
do the same
with the word beauty.
As the saying
goes,
beauty is in the
eyes of the
beholder.
What might
help
is
to get a
definition
of the glory
of God
is to
contrast it
with the
holiness
of God,
which we can
define to a
degree.
God is
holy
means that
God is
in a
class of
perfection
and greatness
and value
in and of
himself,
by himself.
He is
incomparable.
Nothing
compares with
him.
He defines
all things
but it's not
defined by
anything.
His holiness
is
his
utterly
unique
and
perfect
divine
essence.
It
determines
all that
he is,
all that
he does,
and it's
determined by
nothing and
no one
outside of
himself.
His
being is
not determined
by anything
else.
His
holiness
is what
he is
as God,
which no
one else
is or
ever will
be,
and it
signifies
his
intrinsic
infinite
worth in
and of
himself.
His
holiness
is the
incomparable
perfection
and greatness
of his
divine
nature.
and we
would not
know
him
unless he
was to
reveal himself
to us.
So great
is his
holiness.
We have
no
comprehension
of grasping
his holiness
unless he
was to
reveal it
to us
and that
is what
his glory
is.
his glory
is when
he chooses
to reveal
himself.
Holy,
holy,
holy
is the
Lord
almighty.
Isaiah
6,
3.
The
whole
earth
is full
of his
glory.
He
has
himself.
He
glory.
His
glory is
the
open
revelation
of the
secret
of his
holiness.
When
God
shows
himself
to be
holy,
what we
see
is
glory,
magnificence.
glory is
the
beauty of
his
holiness
is what
we see.
The
glory of
God
is the
infinite
beauty
and
greatness
of his
manifold
perfections.
So what
do we
mean?
What
does Paul
mean when
he says
to God
be glory?
What does
that mean?
As
he ends
the
book of
Romans,
to God
be glory,
what does
he mean
by that?
Because
if he
can
understand
that,
it
helps
us
understand
what
happens
to
us?
How
do
we
do
this?
Now
the
way
that
Paul
wrote
this
in
the
original
language,
there
is
no
verb
in
this.
That's
a
doing
word.
I
have
to
keep
telling
myself
that,
verb,
doing
word,
right?
It
simply
says
in
the
original
language,
to
him
glory.
I
think
it
is
both
a
worshipful
statement
of
fact
and
it's
a
expression
of
longing.
In
worship,
we
herald
the
fact
that
God
is
glorious.
We've
done it
already
this
morning.
Whether
we
said
or
not,
we're
glorious.
He
has
it,
he
displays
it.
The
expression
of
longing
is
something
like,
may
glory
be
given
to
him,
may
people
see
him
as
glorious,
may
they
praise
him
as
glorious.
So
when I
asked you
at the
beginning
of this
message,
what
change
has
happened?
That's
the
change
I'm
looking
for.
That's
what this
whole
Romans
is
about.
Are
you
seeing
and
praising
the
glory
of God
more?
Paul.
In
other
words,
the
longing
here
from
Paul
right at
the
end
is
may
the
nations
acknowledge
him
and
treasure
him.
These
are the
final words
in
Romans
and I
want to
ask
you,
are
they
the
cry
of
your
heart?
Do
you
love
Jesus?
do
you
love
the
glory
of
God?
If
your
journey
in
Romans
has
been,
oh,
I've
got a
bit
more
clarity
on
that
verse
that's
troubling
me
all
these
years,
but
it
hasn't
flown
over
into
surrender,
adoration,
you
haven't
seen
the
glory
of
God.
God
is
calling
for
your
attention
in
Romans.
He is
calling
for
your
adoration
in
Romans
and
he's
calling
for
your
attention
and
your
adoration
every
single
day
of
the
year
because
Psalm
19
verse
1
says
the
heavens
declare
the
glory
of
God.
God
is
calling
out
to
you
behold
my
beauty
behold
my
glory
the
gospel
is
radiant
with
the
glory
of
God
in
the
face
of
Jesus
Christ
read
your
Bibles
and
see
his
beauty
see
his
glory
do
you
see
it
do
you
love
it
you
were
made
for
this
something
deep
in
your
soul
is
saying
to
you
I
was
made
for
this
to
behold
the
glory
of
God
and
to
become
a
glorious
Jesus
reflecting
person
receive
the
Lord
Jesus
and
you
will
become
a
child
of
God
and
if
you
become
a
child
of
God
you
will
see
him
and
you
will
love
him
and
grow
up
all
the
way
up
to
be
like
him
for
his
glory
this
is
God's
plan
for
the
nations
it
is
plans
for
all
people
it's
his
plans
for
you
it's
his
plans
for
this
church
and
so
in
the
words
of
Martin
Luther
have
you
got
the
breakthrough
yet
do
not
plead
for it
this
morning
do
not
sit
there
in
the
malaise
of
well
I
want
Jesus
to come
into my
heart
20
years
ago
that's
good
enough
don't
sit
there
move
towards
Christ
do
you
love
God
more
are
you
enjoying
your
identity
as a
child
of
God
more
are
you
offering
yourself
to
God
in
new
ways
for
his
glory
and
your
joy
more