ONE IN CHRIST
(Romans Bible Study Series Tape Thirty-Eight)
Recommended reading - Romans 16.
The purpose, of the Apostle Paul in the closing of his
letter to Roman Church, was to impart to the Roman brethren the Spiritual
truth that they might be established in Christ. Paul gives a benediction
at the close of the letter in Romans 16:25. He states his desire
for the brethren to be established according to the gospel. We should
likewise have learned and been established in the gospel, and without
doubt or question, we should be constant in our service toward God and His
people. We should continue to search the scriptures daily and continue in
our study of this particular letter to the Romans, being established in
Christ with a faith so strong that nothing can shake us. The Church of God
must have a clear understanding of the gospel and of Christ our
righteousness. The excitement, that we enjoy from this understanding,
should lead us to share this wonderful truth with others. Paul has a
common thread throughout a large portion of the letter to Rome. The
section of scripture dealing with Christian ethics must be studied in the
context of the whole theme of Romans. Paul teaches that Christian ethics
are the practical application, the outward demonstration of righteousness
by faith. Paul believes that there are good works. The practical
application of that is the outward demonstration of righteousness by
faith, which is the fruit of the gospel.
I. The just shall live by faith.
· The central
theme of Romans is expressed in Romans 1:17. Paul says that he
who is just by faith, shall live.
· The statement
made by Paul was taken from Habakkuk 2:4. Paul does not quote the
whole text, so it is worthwhile to review that whole section of
scripture in detail.
· One reason, why
Paul uses this scripture as the theme for the epistle, is because the
Jews had misinterpreted Habakkuk. The word faith, in that section of
scripture, could be translated faithful. The Jews felt that one could be
justified by his faithfulness.
· The Jews
twisted the text from the proper understanding of righteousness by faith
to a belief in righteousness by works. Paul was aware of this and
focused his attention upon properly clarifying the issue.
· It is not our
faithfulness that saves us; it is God's faithfulness that saves us. God
keeps His promise; the only way that man can be lost is by the
deliberate and willful rejection of the promise and gift of God.
II. Mankind is Spiritually bankrupt.
· The first
section of Romans is, Romans 1:18 to Romans 3:20. Paul proves
from every conceivable angle that man is Spiritually bankrupt;
therefore, he cannot save himself by his faithfulness because all are
under sin.
· Paul then
focuses on the point of the gospel, which is righteousness and that
justification is through God's gift - Jesus Christ.
· The gospel is
introduced in Romans 3:21, as the righteousness of God obtained
for us in the Holy history of our Lord Jesus Christ.
· The section of
scripture from Romans 3:21 to Romans 7:25, can be summed up by
reading Romans 3:28. We conclude that a man is justified by faith
apart from the deeds of the law.
· Man is
justified apart from his own faithfulness or performance. In Romans
8, Paul addresses the way Christ's righteousness becomes ours
through faith and is experienced in the life of the believer. The
important ingredient, for this to be accomplished, is the gift of the
Holy Spirit that dwells in every believer.
· The foundation
of Romans 12 to 16, is based upon the understanding of the gift
of the Holy Spirit.
· In Romans 9
to 11, Paul turned his attention to the Jews because they had
misinterpreted the scriptures concerning this matter. Paul concludes
with the glorious truth of how the message of righteousness by faith
will effect us in our daily Christian living.
III. The concluding chapter.
· Romans 16,
can be divided into four parts.
· The first part
is Verses 1-16. Paul greets 26 people by name and then 2 others
who are not mentioned by name. The greeting which Paul gave gives cause
for rejoicing. We should understand that, wherever Paul preached the
gospel, there were loyal supporters who stood for the truth that was
taught to them.
· Unfortunately,
not everyone stood by the truth. We read in the next section Verses
17-20, that Paul is warning the believers to be careful of those who
cause division.
· God wants us to
be one in Christ, which is one of the greatest evidences of the gospel.
The self emptying agape love will make us one. The love of God will
unite us and this unity will be the witnessing of the gospel.
· The next
section Verses 21-24, delivers a greeting from his fellow workers
to the Christians in Rome. The verses, that include naming and greeting
of the fellow laborers, demonstrates that the preaching of the gospel
will not be finished until all laborers join hands in the effort.
· Every member
must join, with the Body in this labor of love, to teach and preach the
gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
· The final
section, Verses 25-27, is the longest benediction that Paul wrote
in the New Testament. He begins with the concern that the believers in
Rome should be established in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul then
clearly gives all of the glory to God.
IV. A great mystery.
· Paul describes
a great mystery, that is now made known to all nations.
· The mystery is
that the plan of salvation is available to all nations and that we are
to be God's Family.
· Every single
one of us has our part in the Body to teach and witness this message to
every nation.
V. We have a dual identity.
· In this chapter
we read two repeated phrases that have the same meaning. The phrases
are, "In the Lord" and "In Christ."
· Paul uses the
phrases with every person whom he mentions. Every single one of us has a
duel identity, who we are in ourselves(poor, educated, wealthy,
problems, etc.), and who we are in Christ.
· Paul is asking
that we accept one another, not as we are in ourselves, rather as we are
in Christ. The clear teaching in the New testament is that we accept one
another in Christ.
· Christ has
identified Himself with every human being. We see this point expressed
in Matthew 25:31-40. Christ states that as often as you have done
it to the least of My brethren, you have done it to me. We must all
understand this principle. We are to treat everyone, regardless of
church affiliation or any other difference, with the love of God.
· Christ has
identified Himself with the human race; when we mistreat any human
being, we are mistreating Christ.
· When God
originally dealt with Saul (later he become the Apostle Paul) who was
killing and persecuting God's people, God asked him why are you
persecuting Me? God did not say why are you persecuting people, or my
church. He said why are you persecuting Me?
· Whenever we say
anything negative about a fellow believer, remember, we are saying it
against Christ.
· Paul is
teaching acceptance, because we are all one in Christ. When we were
baptized we were not baptized into a denomination, we were baptized into
Christ, as Paul teaches in Romans 6:3.
VI. We are one Body.
· We are all one
Body and members of one another, as we read in Romans 12:5. Paul
uses the example of the human body to explain how the Church should
function.
· We have a
wonderful human body in the sense that the body is perfectly united
within itself. The human body is perfectly united because there is only
one boss, the mind (head). All are slaves to the mind (head).
· To experience
unity the Body of Christ must be slaves to the mind (head), which is
Jesus Christ. He is our Lord and our Master and we are to be in total
subjection to Him.
· Jesus prayed in
total subjection to the father; He wants us in total subjection to Him.
In Ephesians 4:1-6, we read God's desire for the Church and we
should pray that this becomes a reality.
VII. We are connected to the head.
· We are all to
be subject to the One God and when that occurs, we will reveal the power
of the gospel.
· The human body
is also in unity because there is a living connection between the body
and the mind. There is constant communication between the body and the
mind. We must keep a living connection with Christ. The living
connection will lead to a crossing of all boundaries and will unite.
· The strength of
God's people lies in their union with God through His only begotten Son
by the Holy Spirit.
· The true
believer must come to a proper and clear understanding of the meaning of
the Body, the Church, and being in Christ.
The Body of believers must be a Body who knows how to
love and to care. God has given a message to lift up Christ as the Savior
of the world. That message is also to bring unity and love to all who come
into contact with the Body. It is not enough to preach this message; the
world must see this message. The words of Jesus Christ, in His prayer to
His father, are so important to us as the very children of God; we read
these words in John 17:20-21. Christ prayed that all who believe
may be one so that the world may believe. Jesus said to His disciples in John
15:35, by this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have
love one for another. John 8:32, states that you shall know the
truth and the truth shall make you free. May God bless you as you seek to
serve Him. |
One in Christ 