Dr. Bradford Reaves
CrossWay Christian Fellowship
Hagerstown, MD
www.mycrossway.org
Before we begin with our study in the book of Romans, I want to take you to Matthew 3:7. This is part of our Prophecy Study tonight, and it is important to understand this, and it will relate to our future studies. There are many in the Church today who seem confused or uninformed about the nature of prophecy as it relates to the Gospel. It was during COVID that I realized this and how, as a pastor, I was neglecting the full counsel of God in my own teaching. The reason was simple: it wasn’t popular.
I think, in part, that is why God allows things like COVID or 9/11 to happen. It is to wake us up from our slumber. He is standing at the door and knocking so that we might answer (Revelation 3:20). Sometimes, we are uncomfortable with that image because Jesus wasn’t addressing the lost in that verse; he was addressing the church. Looking back, can we really say that our world is better off than we were on September 10, 2001? I don’t think so. Do any of us really remember what life was like before then?
Then I think about September 12. Everyone was genuinely looking at each other as humans. It wasn’t partisan or divisions. But then things didn’t go back to normal. We digressed as a society. We didn’t hear from God - we retaliated, we built a bigger tower, we decided we needed less freedom for ‘peace and security.” Then came COVID… are you seeing a pattern yet? There are people of power and influence waiting anxiously for the next 9/11 or COVID to happen.
So last week, I started our study with the first of the signs Jesus warned about in his Mt Olive Discourse, Matthew 24:5 “For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.” The first of many warnings Jesus gives us is deception and false hope - from many. And I’ve told you, as it relates to birth pangs, that these signs increase with intensity and frequency, and we’ve seen this. But what is happening now is something that we’ve never seen before - a convergence of these signs.
So that brings us back to Matthew 3:7. John the Baptist arrives on the scene and begins to preach the gospel, Matthew 3:2: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Hmmmm… not much different from what I am preaching today - ‘get right with God; time is short.’ And the Sadducees and Pharisees (the church police) arrive on the scene to find out what is going on, and this is where John gets interested. I never picked this up before the other day.
He says: "But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?" (Matthew 3:7 LSB)
I’ve always focused on the character differences: John the Baptist vs. The Pharisees. But did you notice his question: “Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” And it occurred to me as I drove the other day, and someone mentioned this verse on the radio; there is something we really must examine here:
Jesus was equally appalled by this group of Jewish leaders.
They were only fit for their hell (Matthew 23:15)
They were called blind guides and leaders (Matthew 23:24, 26; Matthew 25:14; Luke 6:39)
They were people who were evil who pretended to do good (Matthew 23:28)
They were snakes and children of snakes (Matthew 23:33)
They were guilty of all murder (Matthew 23:35).
Just to name a few. However, it is clear that Jesus does not count them as part of the heavenly kingdom. They are doomed to hell unless they repent. They are lost and condemned people, regardless of their national affiliation.
But what wrath is John referring to?
The Cross of Christ? Maybe, but John was asking them who told them to ‘flee’ the wrath to come. May I suggest to you that John was referring to what we call the Great Tribulation and final judgment of the living and the dead - in other words, the 7 Year Tribulation is the impending judgment of God’s wrath.
What we are witnessing now is a blip of what is about to come - foreshadows to wake us up and turn to God. Let me just quickly cover a couple of things that are happening in our world - what some would call ‘natural disasters.’ But I submit to you, they are the events mentioned in Matthew 24, with certain people in power manipulating them as a means to deceive many
In Lybia this week, devastating floods broke dams and swept away entire neighborhoods in coastal towns. More than 40,000 people have been displaced, and the national death toll is feared to exceed 10,000
In Slovenia, a few weeks ago, a month’s worth of rain fell in a day, causing massive flooding.
In China in early July, massive flooding wiped out crops, killing hundreds and causing over 5 billion in losses.
In Lahina, a massive wildfire devastated the entire city, leaving over 1000 dead.
There are wildfires happening all over the world like never seen before.
Earthquakes on historic levels, like in Morocco this past week.
Flooding in Alaska, the US Northeast over the summer.
In the United States, we experienced the highest number of weather disasters in history already in 2023. Not to mention train derailments and other man-made disasters
The media and environmentalists want you to believe this is caused by climate change. However, these are the beginnings of the birthing pangs. Now, we are no longer at the beginning as we witness the convergence of all of these taking place.
John makes it clear that the Spirit of the Antichrist is at work to set for the arrival of Satan's false messiah:
and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world. (1 John 4:3)
Scientists want to blame this on climate change, UFOs, and other man-made phenomena. But friends, these are warning signs of the times to flee the wrath that is yet to come. Nicodemus astounded Jesus, who failed to see the signs in his day. How much more should we be aware of?
Nicodemus answered and said to Him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? (John 3:9–10)
The wrath is about to come, and we must be ready to point to the signs and warn the world to flee.
There is a story from 9/11 that most of us either forget or never knew, and that is the story of “The Great Boat Lift.” I think this is a parable of the Church. Please watch this with me: https://youtu.be/MDOrzF7B2Kg?si=_8bHb6I95ZzBpTNB
It is the job of the church to prepare for the greatest evacuation that is about to occur - the Rapture of the Church. This brings me to our study of the introduction of Romans, where Paul tells the Church in Rome that Jesus came to save all of us. Our purpose is to warn them of the wrath to come:
Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, was called as an apostle, having been set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 who was designated as the Son of God in power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we received grace and apostleship for the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the sake of His name, 6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ; 7 to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 1:1–7)
Last week, we looked at the life of Paul. This week, we are going to finish Paul’s introduction to Romans by answering 2 questions. Why did Paul write this letter, and who were the people Paul was writing to?
Remember that last week, I mentioned that Paul was a man who knew redemption and grace personally. Paul’s story is a story of redemption through Jesus Christ. He was a learned and elevated in the Sanhedrin Counsel, likely among those 70 who condemned Jesus to crucifixion. He became an ardent opponent and persecutor of Christians until he had a powerful encounter with the resurrected Christ. From that point on, he was one of the most influential voices of The Way. He is known as The Apostle to the Gentiles (Romans 11:13; Ephesians 3:1)
Paul’s life is a series of important events that allowed God to fashion him into the man he needed to be to share the gospel throughout the known world. The importance of this is because of knowing his authority. The inclusion of Paul’s letters in the New Testament Canon isn’t about political or personal affluence. This is the intention of the Holy Spirit as men in the first-generation Church who were appointed to write these Scriptures. So, with that, we can turn to these writings with confidence in their truth and use the words inspired by the Holy Spirit to keep us from deception.
Now, Paul delivers a customary salutary greeting to the believers in Rome by identifying himself as a “slave” (v.1), a ‘doulos’ or ‘bondservant’ of Jesus Christ, and he is known for his passionate preaching and proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This is the heart of the message to the Romans because, in these pages, we find some of the most renowned truths of the Gospel and Scripture.
Herein may lie the answers to why this book was written and stands at the front of all other letters written by Paul. Immediately after all the Gospel and history of the early Church comes this marvelous book with its comprehensive treatment of the truth of God in order to safeguard the believers against the clever attacks of the enemy.
I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that, 15 if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth. (1 Timothy 3:14–15)
And so right out of the gate, in typical Pauline style, the Apostle lavishes us with some incredible truths that should instantly draw us in:
set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 who was designated as the Son of God in power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we received grace and apostleship for the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the sake of His name, (Romans 1:1–5)
Here we find four things powerfully affirmed by Paul about Jesus: His Name, His Humanity, His Deity, and His Authority.
First, Paul calls him “God’s Son, Jesus, Christ, Our Lord.”
“Son” defines his unique relationship to the Father.
That phrase, “spirit of holiness,” is not a reference to the Holy Spirit, although it is not absent of the Holy Spirit’s inclusion of the Trinity. What Paul is referencing here is Jesus’ essence of the Divine.
“There is a shrinking contrast between the verbs used in this introduction. As to his humanity, he was made the seed of David; by to his divine nature, he is the Son of God. Humanity is a created thing; the flesh of Christ came at a definite point in history, but his divine nature has existed through eternity and needed only to be declared that men might see it.” (Alvin J. McClain)
“Jesus” refers to his humanity, being both Divine and man.
?And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)
Jesus was not born flesh, but he was made flesh. He was not born as the seed of man but the seed of the Holy Spirit. This is why the Virgin Birth is a central doctrine of the faith.
“Christ” speaks of his messianic office and is intimately linked to verse 3 as “the seed of David according to the flesh.” Christ is Greek for Messiah or Anointed One.
?“I, Jesus, sent My angel to bear witness to you of these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” (Revelation 22:16)
“Lord” refers to his exalted position as above all.
Therefore, God also highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that EVERY TONGUE WILL CONFESS that Jesus Christ is LORD, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9–11)
It is by the Authority that Christ received that Paul is able even to write this letter. Nobody but the risen Christ can dispense the office of apostleship. What is amazing here is that Paul didn’t appoint himself as an apostle. He didn’t even consider himself worthy of being an apostle. He humbly carried the title as a “doulos.”
I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He regarded me faithful, putting me into service, 13 even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; 14 and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. 15 It is a trustworthy saying and deserving full acceptance: that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost. (1 Timothy 1:12–15)
And now, he adorns his readers in Rome a treasure: Romans 1:6-7
among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ; 7 to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 1:6–7)
What a glorious expression of love from our Lord and his Apostle. The first title given to the believers, “beloved of God,” fits everyone (Chuck Smith). Friends, you are a beloved of God. Sometimes, it is difficult for us to fully appreciate and accept God’s love because we can never understand how God can truly know us and still love us. Moreover, we have a hard time loving ourselves, much more believing that the King of the Universe cares for us that way. But he does, and Paul reminds us of that and includes a customary but wonderful salutation, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Chuck Smith calls the Siamese twins of the New Testament because they are always coupled together and must be in this order. You can’t have the peace of God until you know His grace, which Paul reminds us in Ephesians 2:8 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;”
According to Acts 18 and secular history, Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome somewhere around 49 AD. It is reasonable to assume that Christianity also faced significant political and cultural opposition. There is no stated reason why Paul wrote the letter, but the consensus is that it is an encouragement to the believers there in Rome, and Paul encourages them with the truths of God and the Gospel.
Many Christians think that once they become a Christian, the gospel is behind them, but in reality, it is contrary. Rather than focusing on the gospel, many believers tend to focus on relatively peripheral issues. But the gospel continues to be central good news to everyone. we have heaven before us, but we can live in the presence of God today unlike before in your shackles of sin.
