Good morning. My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church.
And it's my joy to bring God's Word to you today.
A special welcome if you're new or visiting with us. We're glad that you're here.
And we're glad that you're here not because we're trying to fill seats,
but because we're following Jesus together as one community.
And as we follow Jesus together, we become convinced that there's no one so good.
They don't need God's grace, and no one so bad that they can't have it,
which is why we come back week after week to hear what God has to say to us in His Word.
We're continuing this morning our series in the book of Romans.
And you'll remember that the book of Romans is a letter.
It's a letter written by the Apostle Paul in the 50s AD.
And it's called Romans for a very simple reason, which is that it's written to the churches in the city of Rome.
This letter is about the gospel. It's about the good news of Jesus' death and resurrection.
And Paul's hope in writing it is that these churches would be established in the gospel.
That's what he goes on to say just a few verses later in chapter 1, verse 11.
And there are many applications that show up throughout this book,
but Paul has a special focus on the mission and the unity of the church.
There are many spokes that are going to shoot out, but as we've seen before,
and we'll see again this morning, those spokes are constantly returning back to the hub of the gospel.
And as I've told you many times now,
if you're nervous about the fact that we're moving so slowly through the book of Fear Not,
we will speed up a little bit, especially next week.
We're just working slowly through the introduction because there's so much for us to unpack here.
You'll remember last time we were in the book of Romans,
we took a look at verse 5 and we asked this big question,
what does success look like?
What does it look like when it comes to the mission of the church in God's people?
And we saw that the success was to bring about the obedience of faith.
Paul also gave us the why, why that actually matters,
and it matters because it's for the sake of his name.
We discussed the fact that it is in God's glory that we discover our good.
And then Paul gave us the scope that this is for all the world,
that it's for all people everywhere.
As we turn from verse 5 to verses 6 and 7,
we're asking a different question, which is,
who are you?
What is the basic definition of the Christian?
And if I ask you, who are you, really what I'm asking you is this,
what is most important?
What is the thing in life that matters more than anything else?
Now this might sound a little coming out of left field,
and that's because it is.
I'm going to ask you another question.
If you were going to get a tattoo, what would you get it of?
Now in asking that, I realize some of you already have tattoos,
and so you can already answer, oh, I already know.
I already have it.
Okay.
With that in mind, I'm going to invite you to turn with me to Romans 1.
For the sake of context, we're going to start at verse 1.
And as we do this, remember that this is God's word.
And God tells us that his word is more precious than gold,
even the finest gold,
and it's sweeter than honey,
even honey that comes straight from the honeycomb.
And that's why we read it now, Romans 1, starting at verse 1.
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle,
set apart for the gospel of God,
which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures,
concerning his son who was descended from David,
according to the flesh,
and was declared to be the son of God in power,
according to the spirit of holiness,
by his resurrection from the dead,
Jesus Christ our Lord,
through whom we have received grace and apostleship
to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name,
among all the nations,
including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.
To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints,
grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's word.
Our Father in heaven, we do thank you,
as we do every week, for your word that you've given to us.
You haven't abandoned us to figure things out on our own,
but instead, you make good on your promise.
You tell us that we belong to you,
and so you give us everything that we need.
We ask that you would do that this morning by your word,
that you would instruct us, you'd guide us, you'd shape us.
More than all of that, you'd show us Jesus,
that we would see his beauty and his power and his holiness and his majesty and his glory.
We'd be able to grow in knowing his mercy and his grace and his love.
And we thank you that we don't worry this morning
about whether we've earned or deserved these things.
We know, in fact, we haven't.
And so we simply ask them in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.
If you pay attention to things like this,
you may have noticed exactly three weeks ago today,
the Postal Service did what it does,
if not every year, every few years,
which is they raised the price of first-class stamps
from 68 cents to 73 cents.
It's about double what postage was back in 2002.
And it's no secret that the USPS is struggling
and has been struggling for some time.
struggling both with financial problems and also slow delivery.
In 2023, they had a net loss of $6.5 billion.
Now, there's many factors.
The most obvious factor in all of these things
is the emergence of email,
which is replacing much of snail mail.
And so there's just less volume in the Postal Service
because now, instead of sending each other letters,
we send each other texts and emails.
The current Postmaster General is a man named Louis DeJoy.
And in April of this year, he was interviewed,
and he said,
the Postal Service across the board is facing a crisis.
We have seen a dramatic decline in first-class mail delivery
as more and more people communicate online.
And so there's a dramatic shift that's happening in our world,
as all of us know,
dramatic changes in communication.
And in the midst of those changes,
there are some things that never change.
Whether you send an email or a letter,
you do something that people have done for millennia,
which is this.
You've got to say who it's to.
You have to say who it's from.
All right?
Some things never change.
And that's what's happening in this letter
that Paul is writing to the Romans.
We are finishing this week his introduction,
which takes up verses 1 through 7.
Verses 1 through 5 are Paul's introduction.
Paul has been saying in these last five verses,
here is who the letter is from.
It's from me, Paul.
And now if that surprises you,
remember,
because we've talked about a lot of things
that are not related to Paul, right?
We've talked about Jesus Christ
and the fact that he was descended from David
and that he's here to bring about the obedience of faith.
That's because Paul has used the introduction
about himself as an excuse to talk about Jesus.
So he says,
hey, this is from Paul,
and here's all these things you need to know
about me and my mission in Jesus.
Okay?
So verses 1 through 5,
that's the from part of the letter.
Verses 6 through 7,
we turn to the to.
Verses 1 through 6 then,
or 1 through 5,
who is Paul?
Who is the letter from?
Verses 6 through 7,
who is it to?
Who is Paul writing to?
And we're asking not just the name of the recipients here,
we're also asking about their identity.
And the very first thing he tells them
about their identity is this.
Verse 6,
you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.
This shouldn't sound new to you at all
if you've been here the last several weeks
in the book of Romans
because Paul has been circling
around the same themes over and over.
He is again saying something that he has said before.
We already knew that Paul belonged to Christ, right?
What did we see in verse 1?
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ.
And then we talked about it again last time
when we were at verse 5.
We talked about the why of Paul's mission,
that it is for the sake of his name.
In other words,
everything should lead back to Jesus Christ.
Everything revolves around
and centers on Jesus Christ.
That's why I've been telling you
that there are many spokes
that tie back to one hub.
And so I'm going to tell you
the same thing I told you
in verses 1 and 5.
There are three different options
for who we belong to.
Remember, option one,
you can belong to another person.
And I don't need to convince you
that that's probably not a great idea.
Because what you know
is that at the end of the day,
any human in this world
will ultimately choose themselves over you.
So option one,
belong to another person or an institution,
not great.
Option two,
this is the option that is tempting,
appealing, alluring.
We can belong to ourselves.
And as we talked about in verse 1 and verse 5,
that is not as good as it sounds.
And it's not as good as it sounds
for a variety of reasons.
First, we think we know what's best for us.
We actually don't.
Second, even if we do find out
what's best for us,
we don't actually do it.
And so each time we've discussed this,
I've given you a different quote,
looking at a different angle
of why it is in fact a terrible idea
to belong to yourself.
And I'm going to give you another one this morning.
Page 8 of your worship guide,
Third, autonomy offered us freedom
and gave us alienation.
Belonging to yourself
actually doesn't end very well.
Option three,
belong to God.
Belong to someone who loves you
more than you love yourself.
And that's what we discussed back in verse 5.
Last time we said,
it is in God's glory
that we discover our good.
It's in God's glory
that we discover our good.
That's actually what leads us
to the good life.
That brings me back to the question
I asked you just a few minutes ago.
What would you get a tattoo of?
And why?
If you've been paying attention
the last number of years
in our culture,
tattoos have been skyrocketing.
We now are at a place
where roughly one-third
of American adults
have a tattoo of some sort.
I've actually noticed
over the last couple years,
if you look at advertising
from clothing companies,
more and more
you'll see models
that are covered in tattoos.
I don't remember that being the case
five years ago.
So this is increasingly
a factor in our culture.
There was an article
in World Magazine
that quoted Kevin Dougherty,
a professor of sociology
at Baylor University,
and he said,
Americans have embraced tattoos
as a way to say,
I get to choose for myself
who I am
and who I declare myself to be.
Think about that.
I get to choose for myself
who I am
and who I declare myself to be.
Now, there are lots
of different places
you might get a tattoo.
There are lots of different
types of tattoos.
Some tattoos are about
memories and experiences.
Some of them are about
family members,
those we love,
those who have passed.
There's one type of tattoo
that typically shows up
on someone's forearm
or their wrist.
And the forearm
or the wrist tattoo
is often meant
as a reminder
of a core value.
It's a core value
or a guiding principle,
a north star,
a first principle.
There's a phrase
or a word
that someone will pick
and it will remind them,
oh yes,
this is how I want
to live life.
This is the thing
that I want to guide me
in every decision.
Why the forearm
or the wrist?
Because I can always
look and see it.
Right?
When I'm faced
with a challenge in life,
when I'm faced
with a decision,
when I don't know
which way to go,
I can just pull out my arm
and be reminded
what it is
that guides me
most of all.
I can remember
what's more important
than anything else.
I had a pastor
in college
who said
if he were going
to get a tattoo,
he would put it
not on his wrist
or his forearm,
he would put it
on his forehead
right here,
which is a place
that you can put a tattoo.
It's a bold move.
And he said
he would do
one thing
and one thing only.
He would get
the Hebrew word
that shows up
in the Old Testament
and means
treasured possession.
The Hebrew word
segula,
which is the word
that God uses
to talk about
his people Israel.
He tells them
over and over,
this is how
I think of you.
This is how
I consider you.
You aren't
just my possession,
you're my treasured
possession.
And you're not
just treasured,
you're my possession.
Now, I'm not
endorsing tattoos
this morning.
I'm not saying
you should
or should not
get one.
I am simply
bringing this up
to say one thing.
If you are
a Christian,
I can tell you
right now
what your
North Star
should be.
I can tell you
this morning
what your
guiding principle
is.
And it is this.
You are
a treasured
possession.
What should you
pull out
to remember
your way
when you think
you've lost it?
What is it
that determines
your decisions
when they're
difficult?
what is it
that is
your first
principle?
Paul tells us
right here
in verse 6.
You
who are
called
to belong
to Jesus
Christ.
I get
to choose
for myself
who I am
and who
I declare
myself
to be.
No.
You actually
don't.
You in
fact
belong
to Jesus
Christ.
He has
already
decided
who you
are
and who
you will
be.
Now you
don't need
to get a
tattoo of
that.
One of the
reasons is
this.
God already
has one.
He tells
Israel in
Isaiah
chapter 49,
behold,
I have
engraved
you on
the palms
of my
hands.
That's
where the
reminder
is.
You don't
need to write
me on your
body.
I've already
written you
on mine.
Christian,
that is
your first
principle.
that is
your
north star.
Jesus
says this
in John
chapter 10,
my sheep
hear my
voice and
I know
them and
they follow
me.
Brothers
and sisters,
this is
radically
different than
what the
world around
us is
saying at
this moment
in 2024.
This is on
page 8
again of
your worship
guide.
Taylor Swift
gave a
commencement
address at
New York
University in
2022 and
she had
many things
to say.
One of the
things she
had to say
was this,
I have
some good
news.
It's
totally up
to you.
I have
some terrifying
news.
It's
totally up
to you.
One of
those statements
is correct.
She has
some terrifying
news.
That's what
our culture
is telling
you right
now.
It is
entirely
up.
It's
up to
you to
figure out
what exactly
your sexuality
or your
expression
should be.
It's
up to
you to
determine
what is
right or
wrong.
It's
up to
you to
decide
ultimate
reality
through
whichever
political
party
you
affiliate
with.
And
that is
a crushing
weight.
In fact,
I would
tell you
it's more
than a crushing
weight.
It's a
weight that
humans are
not designed
to bear
up under.
It is
in fact
too much.
We should
not be
surprised that
anxiety and
depression
spike the
more we
tell people
it's totally
up to
you.
And Paul
here has a
radical and
transformative
word.
you who
are called
to belong
to Jesus
Christ.
That is
the fundamental
reality of
the Christian.
That is
the
foundation.
Why is
it as
Christians
that we
should turn
the other
cheek?
Why would
you not
vindicate
yourself and
get the
revenge that
you need,
right?
You're not
going to get
perfect justice
anywhere else.
why not
take it all
up into
your own
hands?
Because you
belong to
Jesus Christ
and therefore
you know
that he
will defend
you.
Even more
than that,
bringing
ultimate
justice is
his job,
not your
job.
And he
will do
it for
his
children.
Why
would you
be generous
with your
money
when the
future is
filled with
all sorts
of unknown
and frightening
things?
You do
it for
one reason
and one
reason only,
because you
belong to
Jesus Christ.
And Jesus
Christ takes
care of
and preserves
and upholds
those who
belong to
him.
Why should
you embrace
hope?
As you
survey the
shameful
moments
and the
failures
and the
mistakes of
your life.
and as
you
realize
that the
older
you
get,
the
more
of
those
there
are
to
review.
For one
reason
and one
reason only,
because you
belong to
Jesus Christ.
And because
you belong
to him,
you have a
future
and a
hope.
It is in
fact not
all up to
you.
he has
written your
story.
He is
still writing
your story.
We already
sang this
this morning.
If you go
back to
page four
of your
worship guide,
look at
verse four.
I am not
my own
and now
my heart
is free.
O
maker,
come and
make what
you will
of me.
There is
nothing
broken
that you
cannot
repair.
So
Lord,
I leave
my life
in your
loving
care.
We
embrace
hope
because
we
belong
to
Jesus
Christ.
Why are
we stingy
with our
bodies?
Why is it
that we
only have
sex with
people we're
married to?
Because
and only
because
you belong
to Jesus
Christ.
your body
is his,
it is not
your own.
We sang
that too.
We sang
that in the
second verse.
My body
is a temple
of the
living God.
I'll worship
in this
house that
his blood
has bald.
As I
bear his
image,
oh may
I not
profane
the holiness
I hold
in this
earthly
frame.
what was
the lie
that Satan
told Adam
and Eve
in the
garden?
The lie
was that
they belonged
to themselves.
The lie
was that
God did
not want
the best
for them.
The lie
was that
God was
not looking
out for
them.
It was
all up
to you.
I have
some good
news.
It's
totally
up to
you.
I have
some
terrifying
news.
It's
totally
up
to
you.
And of
course,
it's only
terrifying
news.
It's the
lie that
Adam and
Eve
believed
so many
decades
ago,
millennia
ago,
in the
garden.
It's the
lie that
you and
I continue
to believe
today.
I belong
to the
Lord.
I am
not my
own.
I will
honor him
for this
I know.
Now,
you might
be thinking,
thanks a
lot,
pastor.
Of course,
you're going
to say
that.
Realtors
always believe
it's a good
time to
buy.
Pastors
always believe
it's a good
time to
belong to
Jesus.
Why?
Why is
this the
touchstone
above all
other things?
Why should
this be
the north
star?
Even more
than that,
is it safe?
Is it
good?
Will I
regret
belonging
to Jesus
Christ?
Thankfully,
Paul doesn't
leave us to
wonder.
He tells us
many other
things.
He goes
on in
verse 7
to tell us
this.
to all
those in
Rome
who are
loved
by God.
Remember,
treasured
possession.
Verse 6,
what we've
talked about
is possession.
Verse 7,
what we're
going to
talk about
is treasured.
And what
does he
mean here
that we're
loved by
God?
We talked
about this
back in
verse 1.
This gets
us back
from the
spoke to
the hub.
This ties
us back
down to
the heart
of the
gospel.
The one
who died
for us
is the
only one
we can
give ourselves
over to
completely.
The one
who died
for us
is the
one we
can trust
more
than we
trust
ourselves.
Why is
it good
that we
belong to
God?
It's good
that we
belong to
God
because
we are
loved
by God.
God
says,
whether you're
a Christian
or not
a Christian,
there is
one thing
that I
know that
you need.
You
need to
be cared
for
and protected
by someone
who loves
you more
than you
love
yourself.
Jesus
says this,
John chapter
10,
I am
the good
shepherd.
I know
my own
and my
own
know me.
Just as
the father
knows me
and I
know the
father
and I
lay down
my life
for the
sheep.
That's
what you
need.
You need
a shepherd
who lays
down his
life
for the
sheep.
You
won't find
that in a
human
institution.
You
won't find
that in
another
person.
And I
can
guarantee
you will
not find
it in
yourself.
You
cannot
be
your
own
shepherd.
At
least not
very well.
And so
Paul is
reminding us
at the
very beginning
of the
letter
of this.
You
need to
belong
not to
someone
else.
You
need to
belong
not to
yourself.
You
need to
belong
to your
Lord and
Savior
Jesus
Christ.
the
one
whose
love
led
him
to
lay
down
his
life
for
you.
Now
how do
you get
that
kind
of
shepherd?
How do
you get
the care
and
protection
that you
need?
If it's
true that
non-Christians
and Christians
both need
someone who
loves them
more than
they love
themselves,
what is
it that
you need
to do?
Wrong
question.
verse 7
of your
worship
guide.
We are
Christians
for one
reason only
and that
is that
God has
set his
love upon
us.
That is
the thing
that brings
us out
of the
world
and out
of the
dominion
of Satan.
We are
what we
are,
not because
of our
goodness,
not because
of our
lives,
not because
of anything
in us.
it all
comes from
the love
of God.
There is
nothing to
do.
There's
nothing to
do except
to accept
and follow
Jesus as
your Lord
and King.
To know
what Paul
tells us at
the end
here, he
says,
called to be
saints,
grace to
you and
peace.
Grace,
Paul is
reminding
us of
God's
undeserved
mercy and
favor on
his people,
that he
has given
us what
we do
not
deserve.
And the
peace
reminds us
that while
at one
point we
were at
enmity with
God, we
were at
war with
him, we
have now
been granted
reconciliation
through Jesus
Christ.
In other
words, you
cannot pull
yourself up
by your
bootstraps.
You cannot
do anything
to prove
something to
God or
earn anything
from him.
No, it's
rooted and
grounded in
the love
of God,
the grace
and peace
of Jesus
Christ.
that's what
results in
them.
This is
verse 7,
called to
be saints.
I was
talking to
someone about
a month
ago at
a coffee
shop and
this person
said, hey,
I've really
started to
study the
saints
recently.
And I
said, you're
a saint.
Everyone who
is a
Christian is
a saint.
How do I
know?
Paul tells
us right
here.
Saint simply
means set
apart for
God.
Does it
mean that
we live in
a certain
way?
Yes,
because
first we've
been set
apart.
God's
unmerited
favor, his
grace, favor
we didn't
earn.
God's
peace,
reconciliation,
we don't
deserve.
We are
Christians for
one reason
only, and
that is that
God has
set his
love upon
us.
That is the
thing that
brings us
out of the
world and
out of the
dominion of
Satan.
I belong to
the Lord.
I am not
my own.
I will
honor him
for this I
know.
I belong
to the
Lord.
I am
not my
own.
Let's
pray.
Our
Father in
heaven, we
thank you
and we
praise you
that you
have called
us to
belong to
Jesus Christ.
We thank
you you
don't do
it for
anything we've
done, to
earn it or
deserve it.
You do it
because you
have set
your love
on us and
you've
called us
to be
saints.
We ask
that you
would remind
us of
that, that
we would
give up
other
belongings and
that we
would embrace
our identity
in you.
We ask
these things
in the
mighty name
of Jesus
Christ.
Amen.