The Road to Redemption
In the 2002 Tom Hanks movie Road to Perdition
We see Hanks character
Gangster Mike Sullivan
Travels a road that leads to destruction
His life choices and decisions have determined the path of his life
And in the end
After many trials
He loses everything
including his life
And I know even though this is fictional
In order to fully understand what has happened
We need to understand the word
Perdition
Perdition in very simple terms is another name for hell
And this is where we can begin identifying with Tom’s character in the movie
He is on the road to hell
And make no mistake
Apart from a saving relationship with Jesus Christ
We are on the same road
And guys this is a rough and bumpy road that leads to a place that God never intended his creation
Those made in his image to go to
But he gave us free will
That means he gave us the choice of Redemption or perdition
And that is a choice we must all make
My desire today is to show you a better road
A road that leads to eternal life
I like to call it the road to redemption
That means forgiveness
Restoration
Many in the world today want to say and even believe that all roads lead to heaven
And listen
This is Just not true
And Guys I am very outspoken
I don’t sugar coat things
Anyone who tells you this is a liar and a horse thief
Jesus says in John 14:6
I am the way the truth and the life and no one comes to the father except by me
Jesus is the only way to travel the road to redemption
Any other choice puts on the road to perdition
The apostle Paul gives us the steps we must take to walk this glorious road in the book of Romans
If you grew up in church you know this as the Romans road to salvation
Let me take you down that road this morning
The Romans Road to salvation is a way of explaining the good news of salvation using verses from the Book of Romans.
It is a simple yet powerful method of explaining why we need salvation, how God provided salvation, how we can receive salvation, and what are the results of salvation.
Romans 3:23
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
We all have this in common with Mike Sullivan
We may not have killed people
But we all have sinned
That is ---we have all broken God’s law
Romans 3:10-18 give us a picture of what our sin looks like
As the Scriptures say,
“No one is righteous—
not even one.
11 No one is truly wise;
no one is seeking God.
12 All have turned away;
all have become useless.
No one does good,
not a single one.”[a]
13 “Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave.
Their tongues are filled with lies.”
“Snake venom drips from their lips.”[b]
14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”[c]
15 “They rush to commit murder.
16 Destruction and misery always follow them.
17 They don’t know where to find peace.”[d]
18 “They have no fear of God at all.
We have all sinned. We have all done things that are displeasing to God.
There is no one who is innocent.
And as a result of our sin we all deserve the punishment for sin which is found at the end of the road to perdition- eternal separation for our Father God
Romans 6:23
teaches us about the consequences of sin
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.
The punishment that we have earned for our sins is death.
Not just physical death, but eternal death, spiritual death
The second half of 6:23 begins our restoration process or better stated our redemption process
“but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 5:8 declares
“But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”
Jesus Christ died for us!
While we were still on the wrong road
Doing the wrong things
Living life our way instead of his way
Jesus' death paid for the price of our sins.
Jesus' resurrection proves that God accepted Jesus' death as the payment for our sins.
The next stop on the Romans Road to salvation is Romans 10:9
9 If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
This verse says will be saved
Not might be saved
Jesus died on our behalf, all we have to do is believe in Him, trusting His death as the payment for our sins - and we will be saved!
Romans 10:13 says it again, "for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
Jesus died to pay the penalty for our sins and rescue us from eternal death.
Salvation, the forgiveness of sins, is available to anyone who will trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.
The final part of the Romans Road to salvation is the results of salvation.
Romans 5:1 has this wonderful message,
" 5 Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace[a] with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.
Through Jesus Christ we can have a relationship of peace with God.
Romans 8:1 teaches us,
“ So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus”.
Because of Jesus' death on our behalf, we will never be condemned for our sins.
Finally, we have this precious promise of God from Romans 8:38-39
38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[a] neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Would you like to follow the Road to redemption?
If so, here is a simple prayer you can pray to God. Saying this prayer is a way to declare to God that you are relying on Jesus Christ for your salvation. The words themselves will not save you. Only faith in Jesus Christ can provide salvation! "God, I know that I have sinned against you and am deserving of punishment. But Jesus Christ took the punishment that I deserve so that through faith in Him I could be forgiven. With your help, I place my trust in You for salvation. Thank You for Your wonderful grace and forgiveness - the gift of eternal life! Amen!"
