WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:10.000 Morning everyone. We are going to read Romans chapter 16. So that starts on page 1142. 00:00:10.000 --> 00:00:26.839 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church of Sancria. I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of his people and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been a benefactor of many people, including me. 00:00:26.839 --> 00:00:38.060 Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus. They risk their lives for me. Not only I, but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them. 00:00:39.280 --> 00:00:47.460 Greet also the church that meets at their house. Greet my dear friend Eponetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia. 00:00:47.460 --> 00:01:01.340 Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you. Greet Adronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was. 00:01:02.700 --> 00:01:10.740 Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, my fellow worker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys. 00:01:10.739 --> 00:01:26.619 Greet Apellus, whose fidelity to Christ has stood the test. Greet those who belong to the house of Aristobulus. Greet Herodian, my fellow Jew. Greet those in the household of Narcissus, who are in the Lord. 00:01:27.939 --> 00:01:38.739 Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord. Greet my dear friend Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord. 00:01:38.739 --> 00:01:44.679 Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me too. 00:01:46.319 --> 00:01:54.319 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Petrobus, Hermas, and the other brothers and sisters with them. 00:01:55.719 --> 00:02:03.619 Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus, and his sister, and Olympus, and all the Lord's people who are with them. 00:02:04.519 --> 00:02:06.319 Greet one another with a holy kiss. 00:02:06.319 --> 00:02:09.239 All the churches of Christ send greetings. 00:02:10.780 --> 00:02:20.500 I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teachings you have learned. 00:02:21.239 --> 00:02:22.379 Keep away from them. 00:02:23.340 --> 00:02:27.759 For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. 00:02:28.699 --> 00:02:32.840 By smooth talk and flattery, they deceive the minds of naive people. 00:02:32.840 --> 00:02:37.719 Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you. 00:02:38.379 --> 00:02:42.719 But I want you to be wise about what is good and innocent about what is evil. 00:02:43.860 --> 00:02:47.120 The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. 00:02:47.900 --> 00:02:50.099 The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. 00:02:50.099 --> 00:02:54.180 Timothy, my co-worker, sends his greetings to you. 00:02:54.680 --> 00:03:00.240 As to Lucius, Jason, and Sussipater, my fellow Jews. 00:03:01.419 --> 00:03:04.599 I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord. 00:03:04.599 --> 00:03:09.799 Gaius, whose hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, send you his greetings. 00:03:11.079 --> 00:03:15.900 Erastus, who is the city's director of public works, and our brother Cortus, send you their greetings. 00:03:15.900 --> 00:03:24.879 Now to him who is able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, the message I proclaim about Jesus Christ, 00:03:25.680 --> 00:03:30.360 in keeping with the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, 00:03:31.259 --> 00:03:37.159 but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, 00:03:37.719 --> 00:03:41.620 so that all the Gentiles might come to the obedience that comes from faith, 00:03:41.620 --> 00:03:47.539 to the only wise God be glory forever, through Jesus Christ. Amen. 00:03:49.140 --> 00:03:51.539 I saw Hannah on Monday and did a mean thing. 00:03:52.180 --> 00:03:54.439 I said, Hannah, would you read for us on Sunday morning? 00:03:55.460 --> 00:03:57.900 And she said, yeah, yeah, I'm happy to read on Sunday morning, that's fine. 00:03:58.540 --> 00:04:00.659 I said, great, it's a list of names. 00:04:01.620 --> 00:04:02.200 She said, oh. 00:04:03.040 --> 00:04:07.379 So, yeah, when I ask you to read, you might want to look at the passage before you say yes, 00:04:07.460 --> 00:04:09.140 but thank you so much for reading for us, Hannah. 00:04:09.139 --> 00:04:11.979 Now let's pray and ask the Lord for his help as we come to his word. 00:04:12.059 --> 00:04:12.399 Let's pray. 00:04:14.259 --> 00:04:23.779 Father, we are so very grateful that you condescend to speak to people like us who don't deserve it. 00:04:25.139 --> 00:04:31.339 We're very conscious of our sin and our weakness, the unworthiness of our hearts, 00:04:31.339 --> 00:04:37.739 and yet, Lord, you speak words of grace and mercy and forgiveness and kindness. 00:04:38.799 --> 00:04:41.799 And so we want to pray this morning that you'd make us good at listening, 00:04:42.879 --> 00:04:45.419 that you give us open hearts to hear your word this morning. 00:04:45.939 --> 00:04:47.000 In Jesus' name. 00:04:47.859 --> 00:04:48.299 Amen. 00:04:48.639 --> 00:04:48.899 Amen. 00:04:48.899 --> 00:04:53.799 Now, if you are just joining us for the first time this morning, 00:04:53.899 --> 00:04:57.679 you find us at the end of a series in the book of Romans. 00:04:58.500 --> 00:05:05.359 So you need to know that I haven't chosen Romans 16 this morning for any particular reason, 00:05:06.199 --> 00:05:08.959 other than that we've been going through Romans since September, 00:05:08.959 --> 00:05:12.620 and our conviction as a church is that it is best, 00:05:12.759 --> 00:05:19.079 church is at its best when God sets the agenda through his word and not us through our ideas. 00:05:19.799 --> 00:05:22.939 I mean, it would be a terrible thing and a terrible place 00:05:22.939 --> 00:05:28.779 if church was mostly directed by my ideas or your ideas and our questions and our plans. 00:05:29.839 --> 00:05:31.799 That would be a futile gathering. 00:05:31.979 --> 00:05:33.659 We want to hear what God's questions are. 00:05:33.740 --> 00:05:36.279 We want to listen to his ideas and we want to hear his plans. 00:05:36.279 --> 00:05:42.019 And so because of that, the main thing that we do as a church when we gather together 00:05:42.019 --> 00:05:47.019 is we take books of the Bible, like Romans, and work our way through them 00:05:47.019 --> 00:05:50.319 and see what God has to say on his own terms. 00:05:50.819 --> 00:05:53.959 And so this morning, having been working our way through this letter, 00:05:54.159 --> 00:05:57.779 we find ourselves in Romans 16 and this is what God has for us this morning. 00:05:58.239 --> 00:06:02.659 And as it was read, as well as thinking what an awesome job Hannah was doing of reading the names, 00:06:02.660 --> 00:06:06.360 you might have been thinking, what on earth has this got to do with me today? 00:06:07.340 --> 00:06:09.120 This seems completely irrelevant. 00:06:10.160 --> 00:06:15.240 But I want to show you that it's not actually there's some really important truths in this chapter for us 00:06:15.240 --> 00:06:17.940 as he rounds off his letter and brings it all together. 00:06:18.640 --> 00:06:20.580 Let me try and show you how the chapter works first. 00:06:20.660 --> 00:06:23.440 So keep your Bibles open, keep looking down at it. 00:06:23.460 --> 00:06:28.460 And let me show you that there are effectively three sign-offs in the chapter, three sign-offs. 00:06:28.459 --> 00:06:35.139 So there are three points in the chapter where it appears as if Paul is bringing the plane into land and finishing his letter. 00:06:35.539 --> 00:06:38.739 Verse 16, all the churches of Christ send greetings. 00:06:39.500 --> 00:06:40.759 You might expect him to finish there. 00:06:41.079 --> 00:06:41.539 He doesn't. 00:06:41.899 --> 00:06:44.019 Verse 20 also sounds like an ending. 00:06:44.379 --> 00:06:46.939 The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. 00:06:47.639 --> 00:06:48.379 It's not the ending. 00:06:48.779 --> 00:06:50.519 Verse 27 then is the ending. 00:06:50.719 --> 00:06:54.379 To the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ. 00:06:54.500 --> 00:06:54.839 Amen. 00:06:54.839 --> 00:06:59.439 Now those are three doxologies, if you want the fancy word for them. 00:06:59.699 --> 00:07:04.000 And they really mark out what essentially are three sections in this chapter. 00:07:04.579 --> 00:07:11.379 So if you look down, verses 1 to 16 is largely this list of names of people that Paul knows and is connected with in Rome. 00:07:12.059 --> 00:07:16.419 Verses 17 to 20 is about a grave danger that the church faces. 00:07:16.799 --> 00:07:22.539 And then there's a sort of editorial note about who's writing down the letter and his circumstances at present. 00:07:22.540 --> 00:07:30.620 And then in verses 25 to 27, it's all about the glory of God and how the gospel secures God's glory. 00:07:31.900 --> 00:07:37.780 And so what I want us to do is just spend our time in those three sections that has been laid out before us in the chapter. 00:07:38.220 --> 00:07:43.060 And the first section, verses 1 to 16, I want you to see a diverse unity. 00:07:43.060 --> 00:07:53.000 Now, what at first might appear to be a list of names, I mean it is a list of names, but really is actually a fascinating description of what's going on in the church in Rome. 00:07:53.839 --> 00:07:57.019 And I want to show you, and this might sound a bit daunting, but I'm not going to spend long on them. 00:07:57.319 --> 00:08:00.439 I want to show you five surprises from the list. 00:08:00.540 --> 00:08:02.100 Five surprises from the list. 00:08:02.720 --> 00:08:05.459 The first surprise is the massive variety. 00:08:05.459 --> 00:08:10.219 Really, this, I think, is the standout point from all the others. 00:08:10.639 --> 00:08:16.120 The thing that you are to notice as you read the list is, oh my goodness, what a huge range of people. 00:08:16.939 --> 00:08:19.699 It starts with this woman, Phoebe, in verse 1. 00:08:19.799 --> 00:08:20.959 Phoebe is a Greek name. 00:08:21.419 --> 00:08:22.859 She's obviously a wealthy woman. 00:08:23.219 --> 00:08:27.959 She's called a benefactor or a patron of many people, including Paul. 00:08:28.459 --> 00:08:29.859 This is the woman with the money. 00:08:29.860 --> 00:08:38.240 And it appears that she is the person charged with delivering the letter to Rome from probably Corinth. 00:08:39.300 --> 00:08:43.600 She may be traveling there already on business, and so she gets to take the letter with her. 00:08:44.320 --> 00:08:48.539 Priscilla and Aquila are next, and Paul knows them from their time outside of Rome. 00:08:48.960 --> 00:08:56.460 We find out in Acts that Priscilla and Aquila are Jews, and they, along with all the other Jews, were kicked out of Rome by the emperor Claudius. 00:08:56.460 --> 00:09:00.379 Claudius decided he didn't want the Jews in Rome, so he turfed them all out. 00:09:00.720 --> 00:09:04.379 But now you find, Romans 16, that they have returned. 00:09:04.940 --> 00:09:09.200 Claudius is dead, and so the Jews have been allowed to return, and Paul greets them. 00:09:10.100 --> 00:09:18.860 Alongside those Jewish background believers and Greek believers, you've got Roman names like Urbanus and Ampilatus and Rufus. 00:09:19.759 --> 00:09:24.580 And you've also got people in significant households, Herodian and Narcissus. 00:09:24.580 --> 00:09:30.780 Narcissus was the chief secretary to the emperor Claudius. 00:09:31.660 --> 00:09:35.420 This is the top civil servant of the day. 00:09:36.320 --> 00:09:42.560 He himself, it turns out, is not in the church, but there are people in his household who are in the church. 00:09:43.420 --> 00:09:46.020 Others in the church are not so well connected. 00:09:46.180 --> 00:09:48.480 We just get their name, and we know nothing else about them. 00:09:49.259 --> 00:09:52.660 Some people in the list have been Christians for a very long time. 00:09:52.659 --> 00:09:59.319 Andronicus and Junia were Christians before Paul was, and seemed to be connected with the apostles in Jerusalem. 00:10:00.279 --> 00:10:02.819 Eponetus was the first convert in Asia. 00:10:03.480 --> 00:10:05.759 Others, I think we're right to assume, were younger Christians. 00:10:05.759 --> 00:10:09.919 Now, just put all that together with me for a moment. 00:10:09.980 --> 00:10:14.840 What you can see is that the church in Rome is made up of people from massively different ethnic backgrounds. 00:10:16.659 --> 00:10:18.360 Socioeconomically different backgrounds. 00:10:18.500 --> 00:10:23.600 You've got slaves and free, wealthy businesswomen traveling the empire. 00:10:24.059 --> 00:10:25.779 Others largely rooted in Rome. 00:10:26.220 --> 00:10:28.620 People from Jewish backgrounds who face persecution. 00:10:28.620 --> 00:10:35.060 And you've got people who've been Christians for a really long time who are mature Christians who are teaching the faith. 00:10:35.480 --> 00:10:38.340 And others who are young Christians who've just believed in Jesus. 00:10:39.560 --> 00:10:42.399 Church in Rome, it was church for everybody. 00:10:43.259 --> 00:10:48.179 Whoever you were, wherever you were from, there was no typical church profile. 00:10:49.159 --> 00:10:52.360 You know, they weren't wearing all the same clothes and all the same sandals. 00:10:52.360 --> 00:10:54.120 They looked different. 00:10:54.240 --> 00:10:55.080 They sounded different. 00:10:55.220 --> 00:10:56.200 They were from different backgrounds. 00:10:56.259 --> 00:10:57.940 And that's the standout thing from the list. 00:10:58.879 --> 00:11:02.440 I think the second surprise is the number of prominent women. 00:11:03.560 --> 00:11:05.279 Phoebe is at the top of that list. 00:11:05.779 --> 00:11:13.159 And as well as being a wealthy benefactor, she's also a deacon from the church in Sensore, which is the port of Corinth. 00:11:14.399 --> 00:11:16.580 Priscilla is mentioned in verse 3. 00:11:16.580 --> 00:11:22.700 Mary, she's in the book of Acts, a fellow worker with Paul and a theological educator along with her husband. 00:11:23.320 --> 00:11:25.340 She teaches Apollos to preach more clearly. 00:11:26.420 --> 00:11:28.480 Mary is next in verse 6. 00:11:28.940 --> 00:11:33.080 And like lots of women in the list, she is commended for being a hard worker. 00:11:34.600 --> 00:11:38.160 Junior, in verse 7, is almost certainly a woman's name. 00:11:38.680 --> 00:11:41.800 And she is said to be outstanding among the apostles. 00:11:42.960 --> 00:11:44.800 Literally, the word there is well known. 00:11:44.799 --> 00:11:54.199 Now, I don't think we can say that Paul is claiming that Junior is one of the capital A 12 apostles of Jesus Christ plus Paul. 00:11:54.559 --> 00:11:56.039 No one thinks that, I don't think. 00:11:56.139 --> 00:12:02.000 Really, what's happening here is either Paul is using the word apostles or sent ones in a different sense from founding apostles. 00:12:02.500 --> 00:12:08.979 Or, and I think this is probably more likely, she has been working alongside and known to the apostles from the very beginning. 00:12:09.099 --> 00:12:11.439 She is one of the early Jewish believers. 00:12:11.440 --> 00:12:21.660 Triphena and Triphosa, probably sisters, because, you know, rhyming names, that works for sisters, are named together in verse 12. 00:12:21.800 --> 00:12:23.620 They are also hard workers. 00:12:24.620 --> 00:12:28.100 Persis, at the end of verse 12, is another hardworking woman known to Paul. 00:12:28.520 --> 00:12:31.840 Rufus' mother, in verse 13, has been like a mother to Paul. 00:12:31.840 --> 00:12:36.259 And Julia and the sister of Nereus get mentioned in verse 15. 00:12:37.460 --> 00:12:43.700 Now, if I've counted that correctly, that means 10 of the 29 names in the list are women. 00:12:44.500 --> 00:12:50.340 And they're doing a wide variety of jobs, from sponsors to teachers to hospitality to hard work. 00:12:50.800 --> 00:12:54.519 And for Paul to call that out at the end of his letter is surprising, 00:12:54.519 --> 00:12:57.860 especially given the cultural attitudes to women at the time. 00:12:59.379 --> 00:13:03.399 Now, I told you this was more interesting than you might have first thought, right? 00:13:03.840 --> 00:13:08.879 Paul isn't writing here to give you an agenda for the roles of men and women in the life of the church. 00:13:09.000 --> 00:13:11.480 Paul is just describing the people who he knows. 00:13:11.879 --> 00:13:16.199 He's not prescribing what should happen, but describing what is happening. 00:13:17.059 --> 00:13:21.360 Now, we don't have to have female benefactors in the church, for example. 00:13:22.039 --> 00:13:23.460 And that's obvious from the way it's written. 00:13:23.460 --> 00:13:30.379 But still, in a world where lots of people, I think, assume that either the Bible as a whole, 00:13:30.500 --> 00:13:35.580 or certainly Paul in particular, is anti-women, it makes no sense of Romans 16. 00:13:37.300 --> 00:13:40.639 People think that the Bible is degrading to women. 00:13:40.900 --> 00:13:44.400 And actually, Romans 16 describes a church which is the opposite of that. 00:13:44.980 --> 00:13:47.900 Because here in ancient Rome, contrary to much of the rest of the culture, 00:13:48.320 --> 00:13:50.820 women were an active force in the life of the church. 00:13:50.820 --> 00:13:54.460 Now, that's really, really important for you to know and bear in mind, 00:13:54.520 --> 00:13:59.100 because it means that when you read the rest of the Bible and you find Paul teaching Timothy 00:13:59.100 --> 00:14:01.420 that the elders of the church should be men, 00:14:01.879 --> 00:14:04.400 something that you need to take seriously as a church, 00:14:04.820 --> 00:14:06.420 that we need to take seriously as a church, 00:14:06.640 --> 00:14:10.240 he's not saying that to undermine anything he's written in Romans 16, 00:14:10.420 --> 00:14:12.460 in a culture of female flourishing. 00:14:12.460 --> 00:14:16.019 Rather, we should assume that he's writing to support it. 00:14:16.800 --> 00:14:20.840 He's so positive here about the role of women in the church. 00:14:21.639 --> 00:14:22.680 Perhaps you could put it this way. 00:14:22.800 --> 00:14:28.139 Romans 16 shows us that the male eldership in the church described later on 00:14:28.139 --> 00:14:32.560 is meant to enliven and empower women's ministry and not to squash it. 00:14:33.360 --> 00:14:37.820 Elders are to be like good husbands and good fathers who empower wives and children. 00:14:37.820 --> 00:14:43.980 children and they should empower women in the church to serve fruitfully in accordance with their gifting. 00:14:45.520 --> 00:14:49.200 What's interesting here then is if you ditch the Bible's teaching on this, 00:14:49.320 --> 00:14:52.660 if you say, well, okay, we're just going to work out the roles of men and women 00:14:52.660 --> 00:14:54.800 and the difference between men and women from our culture, 00:14:55.720 --> 00:14:59.080 you end up with something very different to what's going on in the Bible. 00:15:00.080 --> 00:15:01.900 And if you did that here in present day London, 00:15:01.960 --> 00:15:04.860 you'd end up saying, well, there's absolutely no difference between men and women. 00:15:04.860 --> 00:15:08.279 And in the church or the home, we think there's no distinction. 00:15:08.659 --> 00:15:09.680 That's what our culture thinks. 00:15:09.720 --> 00:15:11.240 So that's what we should think in the church. 00:15:11.539 --> 00:15:13.100 And that's what many churches have done. 00:15:13.200 --> 00:15:16.539 They've ditched what Paul teaches in the New Testament on the roles of men and women 00:15:16.539 --> 00:15:19.759 because, well, to be honest, it's just a bit too difficult in our culture. 00:15:19.840 --> 00:15:21.820 So let's just go with what our culture says. 00:15:23.500 --> 00:15:27.820 In Victorian Britain, the cultural flow was in an opposite direction, wasn't it? 00:15:27.820 --> 00:15:28.419 It was hostile. 00:15:29.379 --> 00:15:34.580 And so women were treated appallingly and excluded from serving and flourishing and voting even. 00:15:35.860 --> 00:15:39.259 And that culture was dragged into the church and damaged the church's witness. 00:15:40.200 --> 00:15:41.440 And what's Paul's solution? 00:15:42.159 --> 00:15:45.000 Paul's solution is that don't just go with the cultural flow. 00:15:45.899 --> 00:15:48.340 Teach what the Bible says about men and women, 00:15:48.840 --> 00:15:51.840 and you will see men and women flourish in the church. 00:15:52.740 --> 00:15:57.480 And so he teaches that both men and women are equal in dignity and standing before the Lord, 00:15:57.480 --> 00:16:00.659 but are complementary in role, made with differences given by God, 00:16:00.779 --> 00:16:02.220 who loves his creatures. 00:16:02.220 --> 00:16:06.680 And that creates the countercultural culture of Romans 16, 00:16:06.920 --> 00:16:12.100 where men and women are flourishing together in the life of the church with their differences and distinctions. 00:16:14.500 --> 00:16:19.320 Third thing to notice, a movement of people or movement of people. 00:16:19.320 --> 00:16:21.660 I'll deal with this more quickly. 00:16:22.660 --> 00:16:26.340 But the big surprise here is just how many people are in the list. 00:16:26.640 --> 00:16:27.720 29 people. 00:16:28.940 --> 00:16:32.400 You know from other places in the letter that Paul has never been to Rome. 00:16:33.360 --> 00:16:37.120 And despite never being there, he seems to know an awful lot of people there. 00:16:37.920 --> 00:16:40.120 29 in total, perhaps others as well. 00:16:40.120 --> 00:16:46.720 And really that's because Paul's missionary activity arrives at a point in history where people are on the move geographically. 00:16:47.860 --> 00:16:51.879 Roman Empire means that people are now traveling freely between different places. 00:16:53.080 --> 00:16:55.279 And some of these people have been with Paul in Jerusalem. 00:16:55.580 --> 00:16:59.639 Some of them have been in prison with Paul, perhaps in Philippi or Ephesus. 00:16:59.639 --> 00:17:04.099 And again, Paul isn't saying that this movement is good or this movement is bad. 00:17:04.099 --> 00:17:10.359 But what you can see is, can't you, that God has used the movement of people to establish his church in Rome. 00:17:11.039 --> 00:17:14.859 So that when people are on the move, God is on the move. 00:17:15.440 --> 00:17:17.839 Taking the message of Jesus Christ to the nations. 00:17:18.819 --> 00:17:19.980 And that's what we're finding today. 00:17:19.980 --> 00:17:24.539 The fourth surprise is the prominence of house churches. 00:17:25.500 --> 00:17:26.860 This I think is fascinating. 00:17:27.900 --> 00:17:29.980 We don't really have time to explore it fully. 00:17:30.120 --> 00:17:33.660 But it doesn't seem as if there is just one church in Rome. 00:17:34.799 --> 00:17:37.779 Really, this is a letter to the churches in Rome in a way. 00:17:38.620 --> 00:17:43.700 Notice there is a church in the house of Priscilla and Aquila, which gets mentioned in verse 5. 00:17:44.480 --> 00:17:49.039 Other house churches are hinted at in verse 10, 11, 14 and 15. 00:17:49.039 --> 00:17:52.539 Saying things like, all the Lord's people who are with them. 00:17:53.420 --> 00:17:58.440 Now again, remember, Paul is describing and he's not prescribing. 00:17:58.720 --> 00:18:02.359 So he's not saying that church has to meet in a house. 00:18:02.700 --> 00:18:10.019 But it is interesting to see, isn't it, that gospel preaching in Rome did not start a mega church. 00:18:10.339 --> 00:18:14.480 But instead, lots of, if you like, minor churches, smaller churches. 00:18:15.519 --> 00:18:18.359 Now there's no doubt that in Rome that was safer for them. 00:18:18.359 --> 00:18:22.000 The church was heavily persecuted and it's about to get worse for them under Nero. 00:18:23.139 --> 00:18:26.500 But it does mean, doesn't it, that churches don't have to be big. 00:18:26.819 --> 00:18:28.819 And churches don't have to have buildings. 00:18:29.299 --> 00:18:31.500 And cities don't have to have cathedrals. 00:18:32.379 --> 00:18:35.119 And churches don't have to be mega to be meaningful. 00:18:36.079 --> 00:18:40.519 And cities don't need mega churches in order to transform them. 00:18:40.519 --> 00:18:44.960 Rome ultimately was transformed by the gospel and Christianity. 00:18:45.299 --> 00:18:49.920 Not by the work of a mega church in the middle, but by lots of minor churches. 00:18:50.839 --> 00:18:53.099 Sharing the good news of Jesus below the radar. 00:18:53.799 --> 00:18:55.160 Transforming it from the underneath. 00:18:56.339 --> 00:18:57.039 House churches. 00:18:57.299 --> 00:18:59.700 Fifth and finally, the affection for people. 00:18:59.700 --> 00:19:03.259 Now these people are in different household churches. 00:19:04.039 --> 00:19:06.799 They are brothers and sisters, yeah, and they know each other, don't they? 00:19:07.019 --> 00:19:09.920 And they are to greet one another with a holy kiss in verse 16. 00:19:10.880 --> 00:19:16.660 In other words, these friendships in the church and between the churches are not trivial. 00:19:17.380 --> 00:19:20.039 They're to deeply care for one another and love one another. 00:19:20.620 --> 00:19:24.660 They're to enjoy time together and to support one another and encourage each other. 00:19:24.660 --> 00:19:34.420 Now I think if you put those five things together, so diversity, the flourishing of men and women, gospel on the move, small churches where you're known and loved, 00:19:35.400 --> 00:19:39.900 I suggest to you that's a really enticing view of a local church. 00:19:41.360 --> 00:19:45.460 Perhaps you're a guest here this morning, and it's really brilliant you're here. 00:19:45.540 --> 00:19:49.400 I wonder whether you come to church with some preconceived ideas about what church should be like. 00:19:50.620 --> 00:19:53.980 You know, maybe you come with some preconceived bad ideas because of bad experiences. 00:19:53.980 --> 00:19:57.779 And there are bad churches, so people do have bad experiences of church. 00:19:58.779 --> 00:20:00.500 And so perhaps you've come to a conclusion, do you know what? 00:20:00.559 --> 00:20:03.460 Church is not for people like me. 00:20:05.220 --> 00:20:07.839 It's maybe for others, but it's not for me. 00:20:09.660 --> 00:20:14.759 Well, don't you look at this list in Romans and think, well, I'd like to be in that church. 00:20:15.259 --> 00:20:16.860 I'd like to be in a church like that. 00:20:16.859 --> 00:20:28.019 I'd love to be in a community where I'm known and loved and cared for and where the teaching on my role and my position is leading to my flourishing. 00:20:28.759 --> 00:20:33.019 I'd love to be in a place where the gospel is on the move. 00:20:33.019 --> 00:20:37.519 I'd love to be in a place where everybody is welcome, whatever their background. 00:20:39.039 --> 00:20:40.480 Well, that's the local church. 00:20:42.940 --> 00:20:47.279 And church is for you, whoever you are, wherever you're from. 00:20:47.279 --> 00:20:51.639 Secondly, notice there's a serious warning. 00:20:51.980 --> 00:20:57.500 So there's diverse unity and then a serious warning in verses 17 to 20. 00:20:57.879 --> 00:20:58.799 Look down at those verses. 00:20:58.899 --> 00:20:59.839 Let me read them to you again. 00:21:00.619 --> 00:21:01.240 Verse 17. 00:21:01.240 --> 00:21:09.140 I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you've learned. 00:21:09.279 --> 00:21:10.660 Keep away from them. 00:21:11.599 --> 00:21:15.620 For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. 00:21:16.259 --> 00:21:20.339 By smooth talk and flattery, they deceive the minds of naive people. 00:21:20.960 --> 00:21:24.059 Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you. 00:21:24.319 --> 00:21:28.180 But I want you to be wise about what is good and innocent about what is evil. 00:21:28.180 --> 00:21:32.779 For the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. 00:21:33.580 --> 00:21:38.539 Now, notice here that this community faces a great danger, a grave danger. 00:21:39.320 --> 00:21:43.360 And the danger is from those who would cause divisions and put obstacles in their way. 00:21:44.820 --> 00:21:49.779 Divisions and obstacles which are contrary to the teaching that they've learned and Paul has been giving in his letter. 00:21:50.680 --> 00:21:53.259 Now, as you look down at it, the detail here is very limited. 00:21:53.400 --> 00:21:54.799 You're not told exactly what's been taught. 00:21:54.880 --> 00:21:56.480 You're not told who's teaching it. 00:21:56.480 --> 00:21:58.839 We're not told exactly what form it comes. 00:21:59.220 --> 00:22:00.480 And I think that's deliberate. 00:22:01.180 --> 00:22:05.259 It's deliberate so as a reader you don't think, oh, that's a Roman church problem. 00:22:05.339 --> 00:22:06.539 It's not really our problem. 00:22:07.200 --> 00:22:12.279 Actually, you're taught it this way so that you are on your guard also for false teaching. 00:22:13.079 --> 00:22:16.079 Because the problem nearly, sorry, the problem never goes away. 00:22:17.079 --> 00:22:18.759 And so notice the shape of the trouble. 00:22:19.019 --> 00:22:20.019 Look at verse 18. 00:22:20.019 --> 00:22:25.779 See, the trouble starts when people are driven by their own desires and not by serving the Lord. 00:22:26.759 --> 00:22:30.359 The word there for desires is literally the word for stomachs. 00:22:30.960 --> 00:22:34.940 And so what's going on here is this is a passion to fill yourself up. 00:22:35.920 --> 00:22:36.980 This is a desire. 00:22:37.240 --> 00:22:38.079 This is where it goes wrong. 00:22:38.079 --> 00:22:44.859 It's the desire to use church for your own satisfaction and not for God's glory. 00:22:45.679 --> 00:22:52.599 So these teachers in the church, they are using the church as a platform for their own performance and their own achievements, 00:22:52.599 --> 00:22:55.839 rather than to encourage people to follow Jesus. 00:22:57.480 --> 00:23:03.059 Maybe it's with novel teaching, perhaps, that puts obstacles in people's way, verse 17. 00:23:03.339 --> 00:23:06.619 Maybe suggesting that Gentile converts need to get circumcised, for example. 00:23:06.619 --> 00:23:07.739 That was going on at the time. 00:23:08.199 --> 00:23:11.179 Or it could be to contradict the gospel or the teaching that they've learned. 00:23:11.399 --> 00:23:15.959 Or it could be the smooth talk and flattery in verse 18 that's aimed at deceiving people. 00:23:16.039 --> 00:23:17.419 Look, don't listen to them. 00:23:17.500 --> 00:23:18.239 Come and listen to me. 00:23:18.299 --> 00:23:20.299 I'll tell you some nice things that you want to hear. 00:23:22.279 --> 00:23:25.219 Notice then the problem isn't just, oh, no, they're not teaching the truth. 00:23:27.319 --> 00:23:28.879 They could be teaching the truth. 00:23:29.059 --> 00:23:33.500 The problem is they're teaching it for their own ends and their own satisfaction. 00:23:33.500 --> 00:23:38.440 And Paul points out to you this is the oldest playbook in the world because according to verse 20, 00:23:38.519 --> 00:23:46.980 it belongs to Satan, who in Genesis 3 persuades Eve and Adam to be more interested in their own glory than God's. 00:23:48.019 --> 00:23:54.579 And then in a repetition of Genesis 3.15, Paul reminds them that Satan will be crushed beneath the feet of the church of Jesus Christ. 00:23:54.579 --> 00:24:01.259 So perhaps you can see with me that this is a live warning for any church that's enjoying God's blessing. 00:24:02.039 --> 00:24:05.679 Even churches in verse 19 where everyone has heard of our obedience. 00:24:07.000 --> 00:24:09.079 So that means it must be a warning for us. 00:24:09.079 --> 00:24:18.240 That as we experience the blessing of God, the danger for us is that we ruin it by self-interest. 00:24:19.179 --> 00:24:20.779 And that goes for me. 00:24:21.639 --> 00:24:24.939 You know, Pastor Steve, you could ruin it by your own self-interest. 00:24:26.199 --> 00:24:30.319 Don't be more concerned with what people think of you than what they think of Jesus Christ. 00:24:30.319 --> 00:24:34.679 Don't lead people to follow you. 00:24:34.960 --> 00:24:36.579 Lead them to follow Jesus. 00:24:37.480 --> 00:24:40.619 Do that by teaching them from God's words, not from your own head. 00:24:41.480 --> 00:24:43.799 But it goes for the church leader as well, doesn't it? 00:24:43.799 --> 00:24:47.439 Who needs to watch out that they don't treat the church as a platform for their own importance. 00:24:48.720 --> 00:24:53.419 If you think you have to be a leader, if you can't imagine being in church without being a leader, 00:24:54.179 --> 00:24:55.759 then it's a warning, isn't it? 00:24:56.680 --> 00:24:59.640 Instead, you're to use the position that God has given you to defend the truth, 00:24:59.720 --> 00:25:01.740 to serve Christ and point away from yourself. 00:25:02.900 --> 00:25:04.940 It's a warning for every church member, isn't it? 00:25:05.160 --> 00:25:06.039 Watch out. 00:25:06.539 --> 00:25:10.460 Do not threaten the unity of the church by gossip or false accusations 00:25:10.460 --> 00:25:13.359 or assuming that because everything is not to your liking, 00:25:13.359 --> 00:25:15.420 it must be being run to someone else's liking. 00:25:16.259 --> 00:25:17.480 Deliberately to frustrate you. 00:25:18.539 --> 00:25:20.079 Don't listen to those who speak like that. 00:25:20.160 --> 00:25:20.920 Keep away from them. 00:25:22.720 --> 00:25:24.460 I want to try and be really practical here, 00:25:24.460 --> 00:25:27.240 but we do need to see the dynamic first of what's going on. 00:25:27.940 --> 00:25:29.279 Notice what Paul is saying here. 00:25:29.559 --> 00:25:35.380 He is saying that to the church, unity is given to the church as a gift of the gospel. 00:25:36.240 --> 00:25:37.779 Unity is not something they build. 00:25:37.900 --> 00:25:39.680 It's a precious gift that they are given 00:25:39.680 --> 00:25:44.360 and they are told not to ruin by their own self-interest. 00:25:45.100 --> 00:25:48.180 So when it comes to unity, it's not something you are creating. 00:25:48.380 --> 00:25:50.900 It's something you're caring for in the life of the church, 00:25:51.240 --> 00:25:53.160 walking carefully not to damage it. 00:25:53.160 --> 00:25:57.100 And if I can be a bit bolder than the sort of general appeal this morning, 00:25:57.300 --> 00:26:00.140 let me try and talk about the specifics of our church situation. 00:26:00.259 --> 00:26:02.740 And if you're a visitor this morning, you're very welcome here. 00:26:02.820 --> 00:26:03.840 Please just listen in. 00:26:05.259 --> 00:26:07.540 You know, if you're a member of the church, you'll know, won't you, 00:26:07.580 --> 00:26:10.640 that this summer is a season of change for us. 00:26:11.279 --> 00:26:15.779 We're moving from a joint leadership team that's overseen the merger of two different churches 00:26:15.779 --> 00:26:19.900 over the last 18 months to a team of elders and a team of deacons. 00:26:19.900 --> 00:26:23.980 Now, that's a model that we believe the New Testament teaches churches. 00:26:24.220 --> 00:26:27.080 That's how we are to set up leadership in the church. 00:26:27.079 --> 00:26:32.000 But the truth is that neither of the churches actually had that up and running previously 00:26:32.000 --> 00:26:33.679 in a kind of functional way. 00:26:34.199 --> 00:26:36.779 So this is a time of change for us as a church. 00:26:37.480 --> 00:26:42.619 And power and influence in the church is being redistributed over the next few months. 00:26:43.619 --> 00:26:46.839 And at a time like that, when something like that is happening in the church, 00:26:47.059 --> 00:26:50.339 there's going to be a voice in all of our ears that says something like this, 00:26:50.879 --> 00:26:53.519 this is a really good time to get exactly what you want. 00:26:53.519 --> 00:26:57.119 Maybe now's the time to get what you want. 00:26:58.200 --> 00:26:59.799 And so we need to be careful, don't we? 00:27:00.119 --> 00:27:03.119 We need to be especially careful at the moment. 00:27:03.639 --> 00:27:05.619 Careful about what we say about one another. 00:27:06.400 --> 00:27:08.059 Careful about our own motives. 00:27:08.559 --> 00:27:11.359 Slow to judge the motives of others about what we can't see. 00:27:12.559 --> 00:27:14.059 I don't know whether this helps you this morning, 00:27:14.139 --> 00:27:17.379 but imagine it like an army battalion or troop. 00:27:17.559 --> 00:27:19.660 They're walking their way through a minefield. 00:27:19.660 --> 00:27:22.759 And someone has been there before, right? 00:27:22.860 --> 00:27:25.480 So they have put flags on top of all the mines 00:27:25.480 --> 00:27:26.820 so that you know where they are. 00:27:28.580 --> 00:27:34.060 But still, the job of every person, individual in the battalion 00:27:34.060 --> 00:27:36.840 is to tread through that minefield really carefully 00:27:36.840 --> 00:27:38.700 and not to tread on any of the mines. 00:27:39.759 --> 00:27:42.680 And it's important not just for them individually, 00:27:43.000 --> 00:27:44.740 it's important for the whole battalion. 00:27:44.920 --> 00:27:47.019 Because if any one of them treads on the mine, 00:27:47.019 --> 00:27:48.940 they blow up the whole lot, right? 00:27:50.059 --> 00:27:52.839 And if you like, that's what's going on here in Romans 16. 00:27:53.180 --> 00:27:54.859 Paul is putting flags in the landmines. 00:27:55.079 --> 00:27:56.819 Self-interest, avoid that one. 00:27:58.200 --> 00:27:59.900 Flattery, avoid that one. 00:28:00.319 --> 00:28:02.160 Smooth talk that just, you know, 00:28:02.259 --> 00:28:03.660 tries to make everything nice 00:28:03.660 --> 00:28:05.720 and pushes things under the carpet. 00:28:05.879 --> 00:28:06.619 Avoid that one. 00:28:07.079 --> 00:28:08.599 False teaching, twisting the gospel. 00:28:09.160 --> 00:28:10.980 Flagging, don't do that. 00:28:11.799 --> 00:28:14.059 Deception, mm-mm, don't do that. 00:28:14.059 --> 00:28:19.079 Now, church, walk through that minefield. 00:28:19.879 --> 00:28:24.039 And every individual one of us needs to watch out 00:28:24.039 --> 00:28:26.480 that we don't tread on any one of those. 00:28:26.799 --> 00:28:31.319 Because our collective life is in all of our hands. 00:28:32.539 --> 00:28:34.079 And we need to be aware, don't we, 00:28:34.099 --> 00:28:38.099 that Satan would love to divide the church. 00:28:38.980 --> 00:28:40.740 It's been his scheme all along. 00:28:40.740 --> 00:28:43.579 And he will one day be crushed. 00:28:43.940 --> 00:28:46.140 But that day is not yet today. 00:28:47.039 --> 00:28:50.480 And so we need to fight to maintain the unity. 00:28:51.640 --> 00:28:54.299 So if you're in church and you find that you're church friends, right? 00:28:54.319 --> 00:28:56.339 If you've got friends at church, 00:28:56.339 --> 00:28:57.539 I hope you've got friends at church, right? 00:28:58.000 --> 00:28:59.380 And you talk about church, yeah? 00:28:59.859 --> 00:29:02.700 And they always agree with everything you say, right? 00:29:03.039 --> 00:29:04.420 They say, oh yeah, that's really good. 00:29:05.019 --> 00:29:06.140 All your ideas are brilliant. 00:29:06.759 --> 00:29:08.120 I don't think you ever get anything wrong. 00:29:08.119 --> 00:29:08.719 Right? 00:29:08.839 --> 00:29:13.179 If they say that to you, you've found a smooth talker and a flatterer. 00:29:13.479 --> 00:29:14.959 And you need to avoid them. 00:29:15.539 --> 00:29:17.259 Or at least call them out on it. 00:29:17.519 --> 00:29:21.659 Because the truth is that no one of us will get everything right. 00:29:22.479 --> 00:29:26.019 But it doesn't mean that we should gossip or moan either, does it? 00:29:26.459 --> 00:29:29.599 We need to be careful to speak up and speak to the leaders. 00:29:30.299 --> 00:29:33.979 We need to be even more careful to pray and to pray earnestly for the church. 00:29:33.980 --> 00:29:42.640 That all of us, and this is it, would act out of concern for the glory of God and not out of self-interest. 00:29:44.339 --> 00:29:49.500 Thirdly, finally, all for God's glory, verses 25 to 27. 00:29:50.380 --> 00:29:52.319 This then is where the letter ends. 00:29:53.000 --> 00:29:56.240 And notice just how carefully Paul brings the plane into land. 00:29:56.240 --> 00:30:03.960 If you look at these verses, you can see, let me try and show you at least, verse 25 could very easily just run into verse 27. 00:30:04.420 --> 00:30:05.799 Look down, let me read it to you like that. 00:30:06.200 --> 00:30:11.779 Now to him who is able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, skip to verse 27, 00:30:12.220 --> 00:30:16.380 to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ, amen. 00:30:17.180 --> 00:30:18.960 Now that would work as a sentence. 00:30:19.079 --> 00:30:19.940 That works fine. 00:30:19.940 --> 00:30:23.240 But instead, Paul inserts more than that, doesn't he? 00:30:23.420 --> 00:30:28.259 He inserts verse 26 to give one final expansion of the gospel. 00:30:29.039 --> 00:30:36.980 It's as if Paul can't really say, you know, I want to establish you in my gospel without actually then just going what the gospel is. 00:30:37.680 --> 00:30:38.940 So look at what he says. 00:30:39.160 --> 00:30:41.059 Notice how he expands on the gospel. 00:30:41.279 --> 00:30:46.180 Now to him who is able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, which is what? 00:30:46.460 --> 00:30:49.519 The message I proclaim about Jesus Christ. 00:30:49.940 --> 00:30:54.720 In other words, the gospel, he says, is the message about Jesus. 00:30:55.380 --> 00:31:01.140 The gospel that makes the church, that's at the heart of the church, is not about you or me and what we do. 00:31:01.559 --> 00:31:04.700 It's about what Jesus has already done. 00:31:05.440 --> 00:31:07.480 Jesus is the message of the gospel. 00:31:08.779 --> 00:31:09.720 And keep looking down. 00:31:09.799 --> 00:31:11.100 What is it that Jesus has done? 00:31:11.279 --> 00:31:16.160 Well, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past. 00:31:16.759 --> 00:31:19.900 In other words, Jesus' work was not meant to be, oh, that's a surprise. 00:31:20.019 --> 00:31:20.980 Never saw that coming. 00:31:22.060 --> 00:31:25.540 Wow, I never thought that the Messiah would come and live and die and rise again. 00:31:26.180 --> 00:31:29.680 No, all of that was written down in long ages past, he says. 00:31:29.940 --> 00:31:32.440 It's been hidden, but there in the Old Testament. 00:31:32.940 --> 00:31:37.259 And now since Jesus has been, verse 26, that message has been, look down at it, 00:31:37.259 --> 00:31:43.119 been revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God. 00:31:44.420 --> 00:31:47.460 So Jesus has made known the plan of God. 00:31:47.740 --> 00:31:53.379 So if you know Jesus, you can read the Bible and it will make sense. 00:31:53.740 --> 00:31:58.039 And without Jesus, it will make no sense to you at all. 00:31:58.039 --> 00:32:01.139 Listen, this happens all the time, doesn't it? 00:32:02.659 --> 00:32:08.200 People read the Bible and they don't understand it because they don't see that Jesus is at the heart of it. 00:32:09.839 --> 00:32:10.960 You know, people read, don't they? 00:32:10.960 --> 00:32:14.119 They read in the Old Testament, they read about the building of the temple in Jerusalem. 00:32:15.740 --> 00:32:17.299 And they think, oh, well, that's interesting, isn't it? 00:32:17.299 --> 00:32:18.279 Maybe we need another one. 00:32:19.019 --> 00:32:20.279 Maybe we need to repair that one. 00:32:20.279 --> 00:32:25.839 But they don't see, do they, that actually the temple was intended to be a picture of Jesus. 00:32:27.000 --> 00:32:29.019 But where do you go to meet God? 00:32:29.579 --> 00:32:32.480 You don't go to a building, you go to Jesus Christ. 00:32:32.639 --> 00:32:34.319 That's where you meet God. 00:32:34.660 --> 00:32:36.660 The gospel is Jesus Christ. 00:32:37.160 --> 00:32:41.539 And the temple is a picture of the sacred place that you go to meet with God. 00:32:41.839 --> 00:32:44.519 It's Jesus, God with us. 00:32:46.019 --> 00:32:50.019 If you read of sacrifices in the Old Testament, perhaps you presume we need those. 00:32:50.980 --> 00:32:51.859 Oh, you don't. 00:32:52.420 --> 00:32:54.399 Jesus is the sacrificial lamb. 00:32:54.839 --> 00:32:57.740 It's his blood that saves from the guilt of sin. 00:32:58.359 --> 00:33:02.339 So that feeling that people have had all through history, every time they've done something wrong, 00:33:02.399 --> 00:33:05.240 that you have, that I have whenever I do anything wrong, 00:33:05.480 --> 00:33:07.720 which is that feeling of guilt and shame. 00:33:07.720 --> 00:33:14.899 It is not dealt with by any sacrifice of anything else other than the sacrifice of God's own son on the cross. 00:33:15.299 --> 00:33:16.940 His blood in our place. 00:33:16.940 --> 00:33:24.380 Without Jesus, you read the story of Jonah and it may come up in a children's Bible that you read with your kids. 00:33:24.880 --> 00:33:26.440 And you'll see, that's a cute story, isn't it? 00:33:27.039 --> 00:33:28.299 It's a guy who went to preach. 00:33:28.400 --> 00:33:29.960 He ended up in the belly of a fish. 00:33:30.500 --> 00:33:31.700 He was there for three days. 00:33:32.100 --> 00:33:33.080 He got puked up. 00:33:33.079 --> 00:33:36.919 He then went and preached and people kind of listened. 00:33:37.639 --> 00:33:38.519 What a cute story. 00:33:39.799 --> 00:33:48.000 But if you see Jesus, you see that that story is about a resurrected preacher who was three days dead 00:33:48.000 --> 00:33:52.279 and then rose again and preached and the nations believed. 00:33:52.960 --> 00:33:53.460 It's Jesus. 00:33:55.160 --> 00:33:59.759 And what's the purpose of this message of Jesus Christ that's in the Bible from the beginning to end? 00:34:00.160 --> 00:34:01.359 Keep looking at verse 26. 00:34:01.460 --> 00:34:02.539 We're not quite at the end of it. 00:34:02.539 --> 00:34:11.759 So that all the Gentiles, literally the nations to ethne, might come to the obedience that comes from faith. 00:34:11.760 --> 00:34:19.520 Now, if you happen to be one of those rare people that is really super switched on, 00:34:20.140 --> 00:34:25.940 you might hear that sentence so that the Gentiles might come to the obedience that comes from faith. 00:34:26.300 --> 00:34:29.480 And you're thinking, I've heard that before. 00:34:30.260 --> 00:34:38.300 I heard that in September 2025 when Steve preached Romans 1 verse 5. 00:34:38.300 --> 00:34:41.980 If you're thinking that, please come and see me at the end because you're a genius, right? 00:34:43.000 --> 00:34:47.360 But Paul uses the same sentence at the beginning and the end of his letter. 00:34:47.660 --> 00:34:50.380 He's tying it all together and saying, listen, 00:34:50.720 --> 00:34:56.580 everything that comes between this sentence in chapter 1 verse 5 and this sentence in chapter 16 verse 26, 00:34:56.880 --> 00:35:02.760 all of that is so that the Gentile nations, all people of the world, 00:35:03.160 --> 00:35:07.300 might come to the obedience that comes from faith. 00:35:08.300 --> 00:35:14.740 That people might trust in Jesus from wherever they're from and that they might follow Jesus. 00:35:15.060 --> 00:35:19.280 Notice it's not that he wants to bring them through obedience to faith. 00:35:20.039 --> 00:35:23.580 Rather, he wants them to come to faith that brings obedience. 00:35:24.360 --> 00:35:30.019 So that as we trust in Christ, we also find we want to live for Christ, all for the glory of God. 00:35:30.019 --> 00:35:38.539 Let me try just in a few sentences to summarize everything that we've seen in Romans over the last 12 months or so. 00:35:40.320 --> 00:35:46.079 Romans is saying, whoever you are this morning, wherever you're from, whatever your background, 00:35:46.920 --> 00:35:49.519 whether you've been to church a lot, whether you've not been before, 00:35:50.519 --> 00:35:54.280 Romans is saying there is good news for you. 00:35:54.280 --> 00:35:57.340 The news is about Jesus. 00:35:58.640 --> 00:36:02.480 The news has been told from the beginning of the world right through to now. 00:36:03.160 --> 00:36:11.700 And it's news about how you can know God and live for his glory forever and ever and ever. 00:36:12.640 --> 00:36:16.120 And listen, there's nothing better than that. 00:36:16.119 --> 00:36:20.299 We're going to share in a brilliant barbecue. 00:36:20.619 --> 00:36:24.900 If you've never tasted Clifford's chicken before, it's a revelation. 00:36:26.960 --> 00:36:28.779 But it's not as good as this. 00:36:29.960 --> 00:36:34.480 Here is a message for every single individual in the room 00:36:34.480 --> 00:36:38.299 that can unite you with the God who made you 00:36:38.299 --> 00:36:44.559 to live with him and for his glory forever and ever and ever. 00:36:44.559 --> 00:36:48.299 It can wash away your guilt and your sin 00:36:48.299 --> 00:36:52.219 so that you're not afraid to meet him when you do, when you die. 00:36:52.719 --> 00:36:55.980 Because you know he'll welcome you home through his son, the Lord Jesus. 00:36:56.320 --> 00:36:57.940 There's nothing better than that. 00:36:58.380 --> 00:37:01.019 Because until you've found Jesus like that, 00:37:01.500 --> 00:37:04.880 you haven't found what your life is for or about. 00:37:05.380 --> 00:37:06.480 Because this is it. 00:37:07.059 --> 00:37:09.360 And Paul's whole letter is about it. 00:37:09.360 --> 00:37:12.579 So that he might look you in the eye and say, 00:37:12.780 --> 00:37:14.480 this is for you this morning. 00:37:15.039 --> 00:37:17.079 The gospel is for you. 00:37:17.880 --> 00:37:20.460 Let me pray as I close and then we'll sing. 00:37:26.920 --> 00:37:31.220 Heavenly Father, there is such great joy 00:37:31.219 --> 00:37:36.739 that there is a message for sinful, broken, fallen, wandering people like us 00:37:36.739 --> 00:37:38.939 to bring us home to you. 00:37:39.799 --> 00:37:42.839 And the message isn't about what we do, but about what Christ has done. 00:37:43.739 --> 00:37:47.359 And so please, Lord, this morning we pray, might we listen? 00:37:49.119 --> 00:37:51.819 Maybe we've never trusted in Jesus Christ 00:37:51.819 --> 00:37:54.139 and we pray, please, Lord, that you would help us to do that 00:37:54.139 --> 00:37:57.179 even now in these moments, to say, 00:37:57.759 --> 00:37:59.599 Lord Jesus, I trust in you. 00:38:00.339 --> 00:38:02.659 Forgive me of my sin and bring me to glory. 00:38:03.719 --> 00:38:05.839 And maybe we've been Christians for years 00:38:05.839 --> 00:38:09.639 and Lord, we say, we're sorry. 00:38:09.759 --> 00:38:10.659 We trust in Jesus. 00:38:10.819 --> 00:38:11.639 Bring us to glory. 00:38:12.500 --> 00:38:15.299 Refresh us, renew us, we ask. 00:38:15.920 --> 00:38:16.819 Bless us, we pray. 00:38:17.219 --> 00:38:19.259 In Jesus' name, amen. 00:38:24.139 --> 00:38:26.139 Amen.