Romans 3:19-28 “What We Now Know Is Only”
1. Today we celebrate Reformation Sunday 500 years ago Martin Luther nailed his 95 statements "theses" on the castle church door at Wittenberg hoping to spark a discussion of what He now knows. Martin Luther now knows as a result of prayer, fasting, studying,Digging, desiring God Only
• Martin Now knows the whole life of a believer should be repentance
• The church at the time was practicing indulgences which released people from needing to repent of the bad things they did. The more serious the crime, the higher the cost of the indulgence. A popular jingle at the time that the seller of indulgences would sing was "As soon as the coin in the coffer rings a soul from Purgatory springs."
• Luther felt that the church was teaching people that they could literally buy their way into the kingdom of God or buy God's favor when in fact, the sale of indulgences was fattening the wallets of local clergymen, and the treasury of the larger church itself.
• An indulgence could also be purchased to shorten the time a loved one needed to spend in Purgatory -- a period of purification and cleansing one had to endure before going to heaven
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2. What We Now Know because of Luther
• An expanded priesthood argued both lay and clergy shared in the priesthood of Jesus. This marked the beginning of the doctrine known as the “priesthood of all believers,” meaning all baptized have direct access to God without a human mediator.
• The Bible in everyday language all should have ready access to God’s word. That premise led Luther to what was perhaps his most momentous work — a translation of the Bible into vernacular German
• New Ways of worship influenced the creation of England’s Book of Common Prayer, Instead of just listening the congregation should be a participant by Singing, Luther also encouraged Christians to pray together in daily services
• Mass education: The Reformation benefited from rising literacy that began in the 1440s with Johannes Gutenberg’s invention of the printing press
• Reminder of Repentance
• Lady Liberty Luther wrote in a 1520 treatise. “Does the pope set up laws?” “Let him set them up for himself, and keep hands off my liberty, or I will take it by stealth!” Luther’s preface to Romans helped spur Wesley’s spiritual renewal on the night of May 24, 1738.“About a quarter before nine, while the leader was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed,” Wesley wrote in his diary. “I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation ….”
• Inspired by that spirit of defiance, a Baptist pastor named Michael King reportedly decided to change his name and that of his young son to that of the reformer’s. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. went on to champion freedom and justice in his own way.
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3. Paul says in the text What we now know Hear some of the I Now Know statements of Paul
I now know after I prayed, I fasted, I studied, I dug into the Word, I desired,
• I Now Know know that the law cannot justify us. 19 “the law says the whole world is accountable to God “
• I now know there is righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ 22We find righteousness of
God through faith in Jesus Christ* for all who believe.
• I Now Know were all a mess all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God vs.
23Our results are we all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God;
• I Now Know we are justified by Grace Alone24Paul says, “we are now justified by his grace as a
gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25Jesus is a sacrifice for our atonement
• I Now know salvation is through Christ Alone vs. 26 God justifies the one who has faith in Jesus.*
• I Now Know that we are justified by Faith Alone 28Paul says, “I believe that a person is justified
by faith apart from works which is prescribed by the law
4. Martin Luther Now Knows "True theology and recognition of God are in the crucified Christ."
What Martin now knows Only Scripture, Only by Grace, Only by Faith.
• Only Scripture : God’s word is final authority for the Christian (2 Tim. 3:14-17).
• Sola Scriptura. Central to Luther's view of the primacy of Scripture is his theology of
the cross that emerges from it.
• The one in whom we are to trust is the one who hung on the cross -- and who was raised on
the third day.
5. Martin Now Knows by grace Alone are we reconciled to God. Nothing we do can earn God's favor
• The view in Luther’s day was that if you wanted to get into heaven and be saved from
eternal damnation, you needed to work for it.
• We have such a strong sense of the virtue of fairness that we tend to believe that God is also fair. And, being fair, God will give people who try hard, give it their best effort and
live a good, clean life a ticket to the heavenly show.
Luther said, “That no one is embraced by God because of good works. It is only because of God's grace and unmerited favor that we are invited to be a member of the family of God. See Ephesians 2:10.
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6. Martin Now knows it is Only by Faith trusting in Jesus puts us right with God.
• Faith alone. Only by placing our trust in Christ can we be made right with God. It is “not a result of
works, so that no one may boast” (Eph. 2:9).
• This settlement occurred on the cross. We cannot do anything to achieve reconciliation on our own. We can only receive this by faith in the saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross. Then, and only then, are we reconciled with God.
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7. What can we take away from today is What We Now Know is “Only”.
• Only Jesus, Only Scripture, Only grace and Only faith.
• We are empty vessels needing to be filled Lord Fill Me with more of Jesus
• Lord I am Weak in Faith strengthen me by giving me more of Jesus
• Lord I am Cold in Love warm me that I might reach out to others Give me more of Jesus Amen.
Luther and Paul at some point had moments where they now know it is only Jesus..
What is the most important thing is that I know Only Jesus" ?
