Good morning. My name is Matthew Capone and I'm one of the pastors here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church and it's my joy to bring God's word to you today.
We're continuing this morning our series in the book of Romans. You'll remember that Romans is a letter written by the Apostle Paul in the 50s AD.
And it's called Romans because it's written to the churches in the city of Rome and this letter is about the gospel.
It's about the good news of Jesus' life and death and resurrection.
And we are now in the middle of chapter 8 which is about life in the Spirit.
That is life in the Holy Spirit.
And we are moving kind of from this discussion we've been having about holiness to all the benefits that come to Christians from the Holy Spirit.
So we're moving from talking about the life of holiness where we've been for a while to talking about all the benefits, all the blessings that God gives to his people through his Spirit.
And that's where we'll be in many ways through the rest of the chapter.
And so as in previous weeks we're going to go from top to bottom.
I invite you to turn with me to Romans chapter 8 starting at verse 14 which you'll find on page 7 of your worship guide.
And as we come to this passage remember that this is God's word.
Proverbs chapter 30 tells us every word of God proves true.
He's a shield to those who take refuge in him.
So that's why we read now Romans chapter 8 starting at verse 14.
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear.
But you have received the spirit of adoption as sons by whom we cry Abba Father.
The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.
And if children then heirs.
Heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.
Provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's word.
Our Father in heaven we do come again this morning to thank you and praise you.
For your words that you've given us.
To show us the great mercy and grace that you've given us in Jesus Christ.
Show us our great need for that very same grace.
And we ask that you would be with us by your spirit in a special way here and now as we look into your word.
That you would open our eyes.
You would unstop our ears.
You'd clear our minds.
You'd soften our hearts.
That we would be able to see and hear and understand and believe.
Everything written in your word.
And we ask these things in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Some people, many people, consider Romans chapter 8 to be among the greatest chapters in the entire Bible.
If not, in fact, the greatest chapter.
And it's for good reason.
This is the payoff of the work that we've done over the last number of months.
Paul has explained that salvation comes not by works but by God's grace.
That was chapter 5.
And then he spent chapters 6 and 7 in the beginning of chapter 8 talking about this question of holiness.
Are we still holy even though we're not saved by works?
Yes.
That's chapter 6.
Does that holiness come by the law?
No.
That's chapter 7.
Holiness instead comes by God's spirit.
That's chapter 8.
And now that Paul has clarified this need for holiness, the source of holiness, that it comes from the work of the Holy Spirit,
he's going to explain to us the great benefits, the great blessings that come from our salvation.
Now as we come to this portion, we need to remember where we left off last week because verse 14 picks up from where verse 13 left us.
You'll remember verse 13 tells us life comes from walking in the spirit.
Life now and life in the future comes from obedience, from living lives of holiness.
Which raises a question that takes us to verse 14.
Why is that so?
Why is it that our lives of holiness are the path to life?
Paul goes on to tell us verse 14, because walking in the spirit, obeying God, means that you are a son.
Verse 14.
For all who are led by the spirit of God are sons of God.
First, it's important to remember, to know what Paul means here by being led by the spirit.
He means what we've talked about previously the last number of weeks.
Being led by the spirit in context means that you are fighting against sin as empowered and enabled by God's spirit.
That's what it means to be led by the spirit.
In other words, it does not mean, sometimes Christians import a meaning from outside of the text,
being led by the spirit does not mean that God is going to tell you by his Holy Spirit which car to buy.
That is not what it means to be led by the spirit.
That's not what Paul's talking about in Romans 8.
No, he's talking about the obedience that comes from a new heart.
So you'll see on page 7, the leading of the Holy Spirit is his continual work to influence God's children
to understand the Holy Scriptures and obey them.
Are you in the battle?
Are you putting sin to death as we talked about last week?
Are you doing this work to understand the Holy Scriptures and obey them?
If so, you are being led by the spirit.
You're living the life that comes by the spirit.
Those who put sin to death have God's Holy Spirit.
Okay, that's review in a sense.
Now we talked in verse 9 about the fact that all Christians have the spirit.
Verse 14, though, tells us something new.
Those who have the spirit are sons of God.
Now we have to understand here the meaning of sons.
Son is what Paul uses because in his context, first century Rome, that was inheritance language.
Sons were the heirs.
So if you are a woman and you are a Christian, guess what?
You are a son of God.
And you're a son of God in the sense that you're an heir.
You receive the inheritance.
It's helpful that Paul then in verses 16 and 17 also uses the word children.
So we're not left just with the word son.
But he's saying, and we're going to get to this in a little bit, in verse 17,
the inheritance is yours.
It is not simply or merely that God has forgiven your sins on behalf of Christ and credited you with his righteousness.
No, even more than that, he's adopted you.
You're his child.
The inheritance is all yours.
So last week, living by the spirit, we ended seeing that it leads to life, right?
Life now, life in the future.
Paul now adds on to that.
It is not only that the spirit leads to life.
It also leads to inheritance and intimacy.
The spirit does not just lead to life, although it does.
The spirit also leads to inheritance and intimacy.
First, verse 15, Paul tells us about the intimacy of our sonship.
For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear,
but you have received the spirit of adoption as sons by whom we cry, Abba, Father.
So he starts in the negative.
No, there is no spirit of slavery to fall back into fear.
Paul here is referring to what it was like when sin was controlling your life.
Remember, we spent a ton of time talking about this in chapter 6.
Chapter 6, we dove deep into what is the power center of your heart, of your life?
Is it a power center controlled by sin, or is it a power center controlled by the Holy Spirit?
And if you're a Christian, it is the latter.
The Holy Spirit rules and reigns in your life.
So fear and slavery, those are all behind you.
There's no need to fall back into that.
No, actually, you have something now positive.
You've received the spirit of adoption as sons.
Received reminds us of what we saw a couple weeks ago,
that every Christian has the Holy Spirit.
There are not some special Christians with the spirit and normal, regular Christians without it.
No, it is what you receive as God's gift as one of his children.
Every Christian is given the spirit.
And it's given by grace as a gift.
The spirit of adoption as sons is reaffirming verse 14,
which is that those with the spirit are sons.
They are heirs.
Even more than that, the Holy Spirit communicates this reality to you
in the deepest places of your heart.
The Holy Spirit communicates this reality to you
that you are one of God's children in the deepest places of your heart.
That's what Paul is getting at when he says,
by whom we cry, Abba, Father.
By whom?
Meaning it's by the spirit.
The spirit.
God's Holy Spirit.
Enables and empowers us to cry out to God as our father in prayer.
The Holy Spirit enables and empowers us to cry out to God as our father in prayer.
And it's in that sense that the Holy Spirit is the spirit of adoption.
So our God is not a distant or far off God,
but a God who gives us the intimacy of a child with their father.
Our God is not a distant or far off God.
He's a God who by his spirit assures us and gives us the intimacy of a child with their father.
This word cry is significant as well.
Notice what Paul doesn't say.
He doesn't say pray,
although this cry is a type of prayer.
He does not say that we call God father,
although we do,
because it's not strong enough.
No, we cry.
The Greek word here is a crying out,
almost a wailing.
We cry to our father,
reminding us, telling us, teaching us
that God our father is the one to whom we run when we are in distress.
God our father is the one to whom we run in our distress.
We feel, because of the Holy Spirit,
deep in our souls that we belong to God.
And so because of the Holy Spirit,
in and with the Holy Spirit,
it comes out of us as a cry.
A cry for help.
A cry for aid.
And the point is this.
Because of the Holy Spirit,
when trouble comes,
we run to God in prayer.
Because of the Holy Spirit,
when trouble comes,
we bring it to our father unfiltered.
We bring him the deepest pains and longings of our heart,
which helps us to begin to see
why Romans chapter 8
is one of,
if not the greatest chapter in the Bible.
You did not receive the spirit of slavery
to fall back into fear,
but you have received the spirit of adoption as sons
by whom we cry,
Abba, Father.
Verse 16 goes on to tell us
why we can be so bold.
The spirit himself bears witness with our spirit
that we are children of God.
In other words,
the Holy Spirit gives you
the confidence and the boldness
that you need
to approach God in this way.
And even more than that,
the Holy Spirit gives you
a deep and firmly rooted certainty
that God is your father.
The Holy Spirit gives you
this unshakable trust and confidence
that you belong to him.
Do you have certainty
that God is your father?
Do you know
beyond a shadow of a doubt
that you belong to him?
Do you know it,
we might say,
deep down?
Does it run
all the way
to your roots?
I hope it does.
What Paul is telling us
is that when it does,
that is because
of the work
of the Holy Spirit.
God's spirit
at work in your heart
assuring you,
reminding you,
convincing you
that you belong to him.
He bears witness
with our spirit
that we are children
of God.
Spirit gives you
powerful confidence.
Spirit gives you
this felt sense
of God's love.
Remember we talked
about that
in Romans chapter 5,
verse 5.
The love of God
poured into your hearts
by the Holy Spirit.
It doesn't say
the love of God
poured into your mind
by the Holy Spirit,
although of course
our minds understand
God's love.
No, God's love
poured into your hearts.
It's a felt sense
of God's love
given to you
by his spirit.
And it's not something
that you can generate
on your own.
Do you have confidence
that God is your father
and that you belong to him?
If you do,
that is because of God's
spirit at work
in you.
The spirit himself
bears witness
with our spirit
that we are children
of God.
That is the intimacy,
the connection
that comes
because you are a son,
whether you're a man
or a woman
because you're a son
of God.
You're one of God's children.
Belong to him.
Now I said with sonship
there is both inheritance
and intimacy.
Now we've seen the intimacy.
Now verse 17
takes us
to the inheritance.
And if children,
then heirs.
Heirs of God
and fellow
heirs
with Christ.
Now if I came to you
and I said,
you know what?
There is a will
and you're in it.
What would you want to know?
What am I getting?
What does the will give to me?
Does the will give me
the baseball card collection
or does it give me the stocks?
You know,
how much is it worth?
We have the same question here.
If we are heirs,
if we're in the will,
what is it exactly
that Paul is telling us
we're going to get?
Of course the inheritance
is great.
We could spend
multiple sermons
talking about it.
I will remind you
of a few things
that you already know.
If you are
an heir of God
and a fellow heir
with Christ Jesus,
you are inheriting
a world
without sin.
If you are one
of God's sons,
whether you're a man
or a woman,
you are going to receive
a new body.
It's going to be a body
without sickness,
disease,
or decay.
You are going to rule
with God
over the entire earth.
And even more
than all that,
saving the best
for last,
you will have
God himself.
God's promise
in the Old Testament,
his covenant promise
to his people
will be fully
and finally true.
And that promise
is this,
I will be your God,
you will be my people,
and I will dwell
with you forever.
forever.
In fact,
Revelation chapter 21
gives us
an idea
of what the inheritance
looks like.
And I heard a loud voice
from the throne
saying,
behold,
the dwelling place
of God
is with man.
That's God's presence,
that's part of your inheritance.
He will dwell with them
and they will be his people
and God himself
will be with them
as their God.
that's the best part.
Because God
is with you,
will be with you
as your God,
this will also happen.
He will wipe away
every tear
from their eyes
and death
shall be no more.
Neither
shall there be mourning
nor crying
nor pain
anymore
for the former things
have passed
away.
That's your inheritance.
That's what you have
to look forward to.
That is what is named
for you
in the will.
That's what comes
because you
are a son
of God.
And how do you get
this inheritance?
How do you become
a son?
Now Paul tells us
it's because
verse 17
we are fellow
heirs
with Christ.
He'll tell us
later in chapter 8
in verse 29
that Jesus
is the first
born
among
many
brothers.
So you
are God's
son,
his heir,
his child.
You have the
intimacy
that a son
or a daughter
has with their
father.
and you
have the
inheritance
that comes
to children
in the will
because of
the work
of Jesus
Christ
on your
behalf.
Because of
the first
born son
you
and all
of God's
people
are brought
in
as his
children,
his heirs,
his other
sons.
that's
what you
have.
That's
what's
waiting
for you
because
of
God's
work
by his
son
through
the
spirit.
Finally,
Paul tells us
the path
to
inheritance
runs
through
suffering.
Suffering
comes as
part of
the journey
to the
destination.
Verse 17,
provided we
suffer with
him in
order that
we may
also be
glorified
with
him.
Paul here
is talking
about the
suffering
that comes
to you
because
you're a
Christian.
Remember years
ago we talked
about the fact
there's different
types of
suffering in
the world.
There's
suffering that
you experience
because you
did something
really stupid.
There's
suffering that
you experience
just because
of general
sin in the
world.
You know,
when you
get a
cold or
pneumonia,
that's
because of
sin and
sickness,
general sin.
And then
there's the
suffering that
you experience
as a follower
of Jesus.
Paul here is
talking about
that last
suffering.
He's saying
as you live
in this world
as a
Christian,
it is
unavoidable
that following
Jesus will
bring
hardship.
Paul says
this also in
2 Timothy
chapter 3,
indeed,
all who
desire to
live a
godly life
in Christ
Jesus will
be persecuted.
So it's
not optional.
Every Christian
in some
way will
in this
world suffer
for the
name of
Jesus
Christ.
Jesus
himself
tells us
that.
John
chapter 15,
remember the
word that I
said to you,
a servant
is not
greater than
his master.
If they
persecuted
me,
they will
also
persecute
you.
If they
kept my
word,
they will
also
keep
yours.
In other
words,
as go
the master,
so go
his servants.
As goes
the teacher,
so goes
the students.
as goes
Jesus,
so goes
us.
Jesus
suffered in
this world.
If you
follow him,
you will
too.
Jesus
says the
same thing,
Matthew
chapter 5.
Blessed are
those who
are persecuted
for righteousness
sake,
for theirs
is the
kingdom
of heaven.
Suffering
in
glory.
By the
way,
here's a
teaser for
next week.
Verse 18.
We're going
to look only
at verse 18
next week.
Paul says
this,
guess what?
Everything
to come
is so
great,
the future
is so
glorious,
that everything
else fades
in comparison.
The suffering
isn't even
worth talking
about,
given how
amazing
everything
to come
is.
Remember,
I've been
telling you,
and I'll
tell you
again,
that Romans
is the
fifth gospel,
because what
Paul teaches,
Jesus taught
first.
Jesus teaches
that we're
his heirs.
Matthew
chapter 5,
again,
blessed are
the meek,
for they
will what?
Inherit
the earth.
Blessed
are the
poor in
spirit,
for theirs
is the
kingdom
of heaven.
Remember,
I said
part of
our inheritance
is that we
will be
with God.
God
himself
is what's
coming.
Blessed
are the
pure in
heart,
for they
will what?
See
God.
Blessed
are the
peacemakers,
for they
shall be
called
sons
of God,
heirs.
And so,
we're going
to sing
now that
very same
hope.
What
reward
will
heaven
bring?
Everlasting
life with
him,
it's the
inheritance
that waits
for you.
There we
will rise
to meet
the Lord,
then sin
and death
will be
destroyed,
and we
will feast
in endless
joy when
Christ is
ours
forever.
Let's
pray.
God,
our
Father in
heaven,
we do
thank you
and praise
you that
you have
not just
saved us
from the
penalty,
the power
of sin,
but you've
also adopted
us as your
sons and
daughters.
You have
given us
the ability
to cry out
to you as
a father,
and you've
assured us
of that by
your spirit
that you
have put
within us.
You've
promised us
a great
inheritance
in the world
to come.
We ask
that you
would use
that to
transform our
hearts and
our minds
and our
lives,
that we
would follow
you and
love you and
obey you in
faith.
We ask all
of these
things in
Jesus' name.
Amen.