"Saints Live Faith!" Romans pt. 2
Opening Illustration: Video clip from Blue Fish TV called Fast Food Parody - McFaith - This humorous clip expresses the truth of how some people approach and live their faith in today’s world.
Thesis: We learn from Paul in Romans that the saint will actually live their faith on a daily basis and it will be revealed to those who are around them. When we live our faith we actually encourage others in the Body of Christ.
Scripture Text: Romans 1:8-17:
8First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. 9God, whom I serve with my whole heart in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you 10in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you.
11I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong¡ 12that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. 13I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.
14I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. 15That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome.
16I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."
Introduction:
Saints -- The word means, "holy ones" or "set-apart ones." The N.T. designates all believers as "saints" because they are by position holy and set apart to God by way of Jesus.
Review of last week’s message:
* We as saints were created to serve God and God is calling on us as a "Saint" to be what He has called us to be. Anyone who is a Christian and has accepted the Lord as their Savior is a "Saint."
This means that you are no longer an "aint" because the Spirit has placed an "S" before "aint" and made you a "Saint."
* These "Saints" are known for their 7 character traits.
1. Saints are righteous
2. Saints are filled with goodness
3. Saints are claimed by God as His children
4. Saints are owned by God
5. Saints are set apart by God for His purposes.
6. Saints are called by God to be His witness to the world.
7. Saints are ones who live holy lives.
Illustration: A little boy was asked, "What is a saint?" He replied, "A saint is a person who lets the light shine through." Evidently he got this idea by watching the sun shine through the prophets and other great people of God in the stained-glass windows of his church. But he was certainly not far off base. A saint, or a person who is pure in heart, will let the light of God’s grace and mercy shine through. As that person’s heart remains pure, it remains transparent to God’s light. Contributed to sermon central by: Curtis Kittrell
I. The saint will live a life of faith that everyone around them will see (Romans 1:8).
a. Our faith as saints should be evident to those who are around us and the Bible tells us not to be ashamed of the Gospel.
i. In other words we as saints will have a reputation of being "Christ like."
1. Our faith will be manifested in faith filled acts of devotion to the Lord.
ii. Romans 1:16: "For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone."
1. Paul was not ashamed and no he was not embarrassed by the Gospel because he had absolute confidence in his faith in God.
2. There was not doubt to Paul that God would do what He said He would do. He had seen it work in 1,000 of lives and God proved that His word was reliable and powerful to change and transform a person’s life.
3. Paul was looking forward to coming to Rome so that another revival could break out among the Gentiles. He wanted to come to present this life transforming Gospel to this city. He was confident that many would come to righteousness and then live a life of faith as a witness for Jesus in this powerful city of the Roman Empire.
iii. Quote: Evangelism is not what we tell people, unless what we tell is totally consistent with who we are. It is who we are that is going to make the difference. If we do not truly enjoy our faith, nobody is going to catch the fire of enjoyment from us. If our lives are not totally centered on Christ, we will not be Christ-bearers for others, no matter how pious our words. [Show and Tell, Citation: Madeleine L. Engle, quoted in Christian Reader (May/June 1998, p. 50)]
1. Paul is in our text congratulating the Romans for doing an excellent job in living their faith in a society that was not acceptable to it.
2. Paul knew that hardship was associated with the Gospel in this era. But he was not ashamed of the Gospel and He knew it had power to change the course of even an empire like Rome.
3. Paul knew how important it was for the Christian saints in Rome to live their faith daily and to share the Good News with others.
b. Video Illustration: From Blue Fish TV, Illustrate Vol. 5 --- Takia --- struggles to live faith!
i. This clip shows that there is a struggle to live our faith in a society that does not value the Christian faith or even respect the Christian faith. But the apostle Paul tells us not to be ashamed of the Gospel and to make sure that we live our faith on a daily basis in spite of what other people may say or even do to us.
1. His life and his death paint the way a true Christian saint should live and that is they are live their faith!
c. Jesus said, "Have faith in God." Mk 11:22 and Paul in essence said, "I do have faith in God and in the Gospel and I trust him 100% so I am not ashamed to preach the truth to the lost!"
i. We are to live our lives by faith and our faith is to be evident to those who are around us.
1. It is not to be a secret but a lifestyle.
ii. What did Jesus mean from His statement in Mark?
1. What is the definition of faith?
a. Hebrews 11:1: "Faith is being sure of what we hope for."
i. Our faith is what gives us hope and for the Christian their hope is not in the military, it is not in money, it is not in their job, it is not in their good looks, it is not in their talents but it is actually in God and they know it.
b. Hebrews 11:3: "By faith we understand things that others cannot comprehend."
i. Our faith will enable us to see and understand things in life that others will not be able to see or even to understand.
ii. This insight into life should motivate us to live our life in faith because we know it has eternal impact on others.
iii. We should see and know that this life is to be lived with faith and righteousness because it is preparing us for the next life.
2. Faith means you trust God even when you don’t have all the answers to a situation.
a. Faith says, "I believe God and that settles it."
3. Faith means you trust God even when you don’t understand God’s response in a certain situation.
a. Faith says, "Not my way Lord but Your way!"
4. Holman defines FAITH: Trusting commitment of one person to another, particularly of a person to God. Faith is the central concept of Christianity. One may be called a Christian only if one has faith.
a. Holman adds: Our English word "faith" comes from the Latin fides, as developed through the Old French words "fei" and "feid". In Middle English (1150-1475) "faith" replaced a word that eventually evolved into "belief." "Faith" came to mean "loyalty to a person to whom one is bound by promise or duty."
d. We as saints need to grow our faith like the Romans church had. We need to be diligent in our learning of the Word of God because this is how our faith grows.
i. Story: It is told that the great preacher D.L. Moody said, "I prayed for faith and thought that some day it would come down and strike me like lightning. But faith didn’t seem to come. One day I read in Romans that "Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God." I had up to this time, closed my Bible and prayed for faith. Now I opened my Bible and began to study and faith has been growing ever since." Contributed to sermon central by: Jeremy Houck
1. Romans 10:17: "Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ."
ii. Moody learned as I did that my faith is expanded as I learn the Word of God.
1. My faith grew and grew as I listened to sermons and to Christian radio, especially radio preachers like Chuck Smith, Chuck Swindoll, HB London and the like and I learned to read the Bible daily, I learned to read Christian books. I discovered that these types of activities helped my faith to mature and to grow.
2. When I first became a Christian I would listen to messages at church for about 5 x a week. I listened to Christian radio and sermons all day at work! All these helped my faith to mature and to grow and it impacted and transformed my life.
3. Do you want your faith to grow? Then start listening to the Word more!
e. One a side not I want to say that faith is not foolishness. I read a good book back in 20’s that has helped me stay balanced in my Pentecostal walk with the Lord the book was called "Faith, foolishness or presumption." This book taught me to make sure that I balance everything against the cross of Jesus Christ. I learned that biblical faith builds a good reputation not a bizarre, weird, goofy reputation of faith filled extremes that are rooted in selfishness and emotionalism.
i. Charles Swindoll says, "To walk by faith does not mean that we stop thinking. To trust God does not imply becoming slovenly or lazy or apathetic. What a distortion of biblical faith! You and I need to trust God for our finances, but that is no license to spend foolishly. You and I ought to trust God for safety in the car, but we’re not wise to pass in a blind curve. We trust God for our health, but that doesn’t mean we can chain smoke, stay up half the night, and subsist on potato chips and Twinkies without consequences. Faith and careful planning go hand-in-hand. They always have."
[Charles Swindoll. Moses: A Man of Selfless Dedication. (Nashville: Word Publishing, 1999) p. 27]
f. When Paul addresses the Roman church he tells them that their reputation has spread world wide and their faith in Christ was their reputation and it was impacting others:
i. A reputation is a hard earned witness and if we are not careful we could lose in one moments weakness:
1. Quote from Freddy Fritz: Benjamin Franklin once said, "Glass, china, and reputation are easily cracked and never well mended."
2. Quote from Freddy Fritz: William Shakespeare’s Othello lamented the loss of his reputation after he had acted foolishly, ’Reputation, reputation, reputation! O, I have lost my reputation! I have lost the immortal part of myself; and what remains is bestial!" (Othello, Act II, Scene 3).
ii. Freddy Fritz in his sermon from sermon central called "A reputation worth having." states, "Reputation is a strange thing, isn’t it? How are we to think of reputation? Is it fragile like glass and china? Is it immortal? Is it worth having? Or is it better for us not even to be concerned about such matters? The answer, it seems to me, is that it depends on what we have a reputation for. In his letter to the Romans, Paul commends the Christians in Rome for the reputation they had acquired. In fact, the reputation of their faith is the very first thing Paul notes as he begins the body of his letter. We read about this in Romans 1:8: "First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world" (Romans 1:8).
g. If you recall from last week one of the character traits of a "saint" was being a faithful witness for the Lord.
i. This has to do with our reputation ¡V our witness to others!
ii. A Godly reputation will impact others in a positive way whereas an ungodly reputation will impact others in a negative way.
h. Reality Check: A saint will live righteous life that all around will see and acknowledge.
T.S. - A saint’s faith will be evident to all who are around them and it will impact others as they live their faith on a daily basis. A person filled with faith and living their faith will be a breath of encouragement to others in the Body of Christ.
II. The saint’s life of faith will be an encouragement to others in the Body of Christ (Romans 1:11, 12).
a. Have you ever thought about how when you live by faith -- in other words you live the life of a saint -- another way to say if you have the 7 character traits of the saint manifested in your life that this type of life style encourages others in their faith.
i. Saints are righteous
ii. Saints are filled with goodness
iii. Saints live as God’s children
iv. Saints are owned by God
v. Saints are set apart by God for His purposes.
vi. Saints are called by God to be His witness to the world.
vii. Saints are ones who live holy lives.
1. If the saint lives these seven character traits then you will have an individual who will impact others in a positive and in an encouraging way.
2. The opposite is true too though --- if you have someone not living the faith filled life then they will bring discouragement to the Body of Christ.
a. Ted Haggard discouraged the church when he fell into sin. It hurt many people in his church!
b. Jim Baker’s fall discouraged the church and hurt many people in the church.
c. A pastor and I were talking at our last pastor’s meeting about some families we had known and ministered too. He had just discovered they these two families had both ended up going through divorces and he saw how it had negatively impacted their kids. He said with emption, "Boy that is very discouraging to here and if it was not for my faith in the Lord and knowing He is faithful it makes you just want to quit!"
i. So the truth is people’s failures in the life of faith do bring discouragement to those around them.
ii. It causes pain to the church and it gives the Lord grief!
b. The Word makes it clear that we need to be men and women of faith and live it!
i. Hab. 2:4 states, "But the righteous will live by his faith." His soul = the Chaldean’s soul. In contrast, the righteous shall live (enjoy deliverance and abundance of life) by his faith or, better, faithfulness; i.e., moral steadfastness. A person who has faith is a person who trusts and who can be trusted (Ryrie Study Bible).
1. The Word in Hab. notes that the wicked will live by pride and by greed - arrogance will drive them and this person’s desires will be evil and wicked and they will steal from others. Those who do not live by faith will live like this!
ii. A person who leads a faithless lifestyle is not an encouraging type of person.
1. "How’s Your Faith?" by Victor Knowles--Paul was concerned about people’s faith. Notice the different degrees of faith. Which is yours?
a. Dead Faith (James 2:17,20,26),
b. Little Faith (Matthew 6:30),
c. Weak Faith (Rom. 4:19),
d. Increasing Faith (Luke 17:5),
e. Obedient Faith (Heb. 11:8),
f. Working Faith (Gal. 5:6),
g. Growing Faith (2 Thess. 1:3),
h. Strong Faith (Rom 4:20),
i. Great Faith (Matthew 8:5-10)
j. Mustard Seed Faith (Matthew 17:20),
k. Perfect (Complete or Accomplishing Its Destined Purpose; James 2:22),
2. Conclusion: "Nevertheless: when the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8) If the Lord should come today, what degree of faith would He find in you? Contributed to sermon central by: Clarence Clough
c. Quote: Recently I heard Dieter Zander, the pastor of the first GenX church in America speak at a conference about reaching people in the age of relativism. He cited a Barna study that asked people to use single words to describe Jesus. They responded, "wise, accepting, compassionate, gracious, humble." Then he asked them to use single words to describe Christians, they said, "critical, exclusive, self righteous, narrow and repressive." "There is a difference between knowing the good news and being the good news," Zander said. "We are the evidence! How we live our lives are the evidence. Everything counts--all the time." Contributed to sermon-central by Paul Fritz
d. Reality Check: The truth is we will either encourage others will a life style of faith or discourage them with a lifestyle filled with no faith.
T.S. - A saint living a lifestyle of faith will encourage others in the Body of Christ and will illuminate a righteous life.
III. Paul tells us with strong emotion and conviction that the righteous will live by faith from start to finish and this is how saints are to live their lives and end their lives.
a. They need to be righteous and in right standing with God!
i. This means they do not live a life filled with sin.
ii. This means they live a life that pleases God on a daily basis.
1. Faith is not only a commitment to the promises of Christ; faith is also a commitment to the demands of Christ.
¡X William Barclay, The Letters of James and Peter
iii. This means that no matter what saints do all day and all night it will be pleasing to God.
1. William Booth tied faith and works together perfectly when He said this in an article in Christianity Today "Faith and works should travel side by side, step answering to step, like the legs of men walking. First faith, and then works; and then faith again, and then works again -- until they can scarcely distinguish which is the one and which is the other." Contributed to sermon central by: Noah Kaye
iv. The other idea here that Paul is promoting is that what they do and how saints live will be in line with God’s Word and therefore the presence of God will be attached to what they are doing.
1. Saints of God are to have the presence of the Lord following them each and every day. Their lifestyle and their actions should cultivate the presence of God in their life not drive it away!
v. To live our faith from start to finish implies that our faith should not waver or die down the longer we are in Christ.
1. Our faith needs to be as vibrant today as it was the day we accepted the Lord Jesus as our Savior.
2. Saints then are ones who live righteous lives from the 1st day of their new birth until the last day they are on this earth.
3. Saints are to start strong and finish strong in their faith.
b. Jesus cautioned us that in the last days people will turn away from the faith. He predicted that many will not finish strong for the Lord because they will turn away from the faith.
i. Jesus warned us in Mark 24:10 that, "Many will turn away from the faith." (In the last days!)
1. I see it happening all over America today and there are many turning away from the Christian faith.
2. I see people buying into lies and false hoods and in turn rejecting the truth of scripture.
3. I see people in the media, in Hollywood and the like not just denying Christianity but actually attacking it at its core.
4. I see exactly what Jesus predicted would happen and it is happening in America!
ii. Matthew 24:4-14:
1. Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. 5For many will come in my name, claiming, ’I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of birth pains. 9¡§Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come."
2. As Romans chapter 1 progresses Paul will become very specific in the types of sin that will over-run a society in the last days (see the rest of the chapter).
a. Why? Because they are not living by faith and they are not living righteous lives.
b. They have walked away from the faith!
c. They are not in right relationship with the Lord!
d. They are not in right standing with the Lord.
e. They are deceived!
f. They are living a depraved mindset!
3. The Christian saint needs to live a life filled with righteousness and be the leader they need to be in a lost society!
a. When the spiritual leaders of a society fail to lead people toward God and teach the people His way then people will break the faith they have with God.
i. Breaking the faith is common in a society when the leadership breaks down and fails to do its job.
ii. Breaking the faith means the people of God will walk away from God and His ways and follow after false and deceptive ways that lead to their demise.
iii. Breaking the faith means people no longer trust God nor His way and, therefore they substitute the right way for the wrong way.
iv. When people break the faith and quit trusting and following God’s path then an impact is made on their personal lives which in turn effects their family¡¦s lives.
b. George Barna affirms this truth when he claims "People’s faith commitment impacts their moral perspectives. There is a clear relationship between a deep Christian commitment and serious concern about the moral state of America. This is one of those moments in history when genuine, fervent leaders of righteous character and with a vision to foster higher ideals can galvanize the public will for a better society. The big question is whether those who are capable of providing moral leadership are willing to pay the personal price to redirect the heart of the nation." The more deeply a person is committed to the Christian faith, the greater their concern for the nation¡¦s moral condition. In fact 56% of adults associated with a non-Christian faith group are concerned; 68% of those who are with the Christian faith but are not born again; 89% of the born again; and 92% of evangelicals. (Barna Online 5/1/01) http://www.garydfoster.com Contributed by: Sermon Central
Conclusion:
1. If we are going to be like the saints Paul is addressing in Romans then our faith must be manifested in our lives on a daily basis.
2. This living faith will be a point of encouragement for others in the Body Christ and it will help them to live their faith. But if we do not commit to live a righteous life and a holy life then we will be a discouragement to others in the faith.
3. We saints must live righteous lives in an unrighteous world and therefore glorify Jesus and lead others to the truth. Our faith is to be strong at our "new birth" and even stronger at our death. We need to live our Christian faith from the beginning of our spiritual life here on earth all the way to the end of our life here on the earth.
*Jesus warned us that in the last days many will depart the faith and therefore walk away from the truth because they will become deceived.
*Don’t allow yourself to become deceived!
Word of encouragement: "Faith enables us to understand what God does. Faith enables us to see what others cannot see. As a result, faith enables us to do what others cannot do." SOURCE: Warren Wiersbe
Freddy Fritz shares this story and illustration from sermon central:
The Roman Christians had a reputation worth having because their faith was genuine and it was contagious. Their faith was being reported all over the world because they trusted in Jesus Christ alone as their Lord and Savior. And because Jesus Christ had rescued them from hell, they were passionate about sharing the good news with the lost and perishing.
An unknown author wrote that on a dangerous seacoast where shipwrecks were frequent, there once existed a little lifesaving station. The building was just a hut, and there was only one boat, but the few devoted volunteers kept a constant watch over the sea. With no thought for their own safety they went out day and night, tirelessly rescuing the lost. Many lives were saved, and the station became famous.
Some of those who were saved, along with others in the surrounding area, wanted to become associated with the station. They gave time, money, and effort to support its work. They bought new boats and trained new crews, and the lifesaving station grew.
Some of those who volunteered at the station soon became upset that the building was so crude and poorly equipped. They felt a more comfortable place should be provided as the first refuge of those saved from the sea. So they replaced the emergency cots and beds and put better furniture in a new, larger building.
As a result, the lifesaving station became a popular gathering place for its volunteers. They decorated it exquisitely and began to use it as a club and even charged membership dues. Because fewer members were now interested in going to sea on lifesaving missions, they hired lifeboat crews to do the work. The lifesaving motif still prevailed on the club emblems and stationery, however, and there was a symbolic lifeboat in the room where club initiations were held.
About this time a large ship was wrecked off the coast, and the hired crews brought in loads of cold, wet, half-drowned people. Because these survivors were dirty and sick, they soon messed up the beautiful new club. So the property committee immediately had a shower house built outside the club where the shipwreck victims could be cleaned up before coming inside.
At the next meeting there was a split in the club membership. Most of the members wanted to stop the lifesaving activities altogether because they thought it was a hindrance and unpleasant to the normal social life of the club. Other members insisted on lifesaving as their primary purpose and pointed out that, after all, the club was still a lifesaving station. But those members were finally voted down and told that if they wanted to save the lives of various people shipwrecked in those waters, they could begin their own lifesaving station down the coast, which they did.
As the years went by, the new station gradually faced the same problems the other one had experienced. It, too, evolved into a club, and its lifesaving work became less and less of a priority. The few members who remained dedicated to saving lives founded yet another lifesaving station.
History continued to repeat itself, and if you visit that coast today you’ll find a number of exclusive clubs along the shore. Shipwrecks are still frequent, but most of the people drown.
What a striking illustration of the history of so many churches!
Concluding thought: We need to all as "saints" live a life filled with righteousness and holiness. We need to encourage each other with lives of faith. We need to honor God with faith filled lives. We need to be the faithful witnesses that we are called to be for God. We as saints must impact this world for Christ by being willing to go out and to save lives.
