This morning we are just going
to browse through the book of Romans, and we will start by
reading a couple of verses in chapter 9. I hope you will follow
along with me, or else listen carefully as I read. I am just
mostly going to read God's Word to you this morning, because
God's Word is very plain. Most of it needs very little
commentary. In Romans chapter 9, I read verses
14 and 15. What shall we say then? Is there
unrighteousness with God? God forbid. For he or God saith
to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I
will have compassion on whom I will. have compassion. So then, it is not of him that
willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy."
That is verses 14 through 16 of Romans 9. Now, man's greatest
need from God is mercy. Mercy means not getting what
we deserve. Man needs mercy from God, for
man is guilty before a holy God. Man is not under the love of
God, as most think, but rather under the wrath of God. The book
of Romans very clearly declares to us the depraved or desperate
state of man and his need of God's sovereign mercy. Go back
with me to Romans chapter 1. Now, Romans chapter 1 is a general
declaration of man's unbelief and depravity. Romans chapter
1, and it tells us, and I must skip over many verses for lack
of time, but in verse 20 it says, the invisible things of God from
the creation of the world are clearly seen being understood
by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead,
so that they are without excuse." In other words, all things clearly
point to an all-wise, all-powerful Creator. Things are clearly seen,
and His power and Godhead, or being Creator and sovereign ruler,
are clearly seen in the things that are made, so that all are
without excuse, from the jungle native to the corporate executive,
all can clearly see by this marvelous creation that an all-wise, powerful
Creator made all things. But it says in verse 21 that
when they knew God, or that is, these things clearly show us
there is a Creator, they glorified Him not as God. not as creator,
but rather evolution is the accepted belief. Neither were thankful,
that is, they did not give God credit for these things or give
Him thanks for them, but became vain in their imaginations and
their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise,
they became fools. The Apostle Paul one time called
those studyers of science, falsely so-called, that is, those who
pretend to want to get to the truth of things, science being
the study of truth, professed themselves to be wise but became
utter fools. Now, mankind has been brilliant
in so many ways from the beginning. Ancient civilizations were brilliant. Modern man is no more so brilliant
than some of the early civilizations, they had very complex societies
and scientific way. We have more modern conveniences,
yes, but no more brilliant than man has been in the past. And yet man has become foolish
concerning God. Foolish, so foolish as to make
himself idols. Verse 23 says, They change the
glory of the uncorruptible or unchanging God into the image
made like to corruptible man. That's the first thing that man
makes his God or imagines God to be, is like a man. You know,
that's what God said in Psalm 50. He said, Thou thoughtest
I was altogether such a one as thyself. Well, that is, you think
I'm like a man in every way. subject to this, subject to that,
reacting and with the same passions and so forth as man. But I'm
not, he said. I'll set things in order before
you. Well, since man refuses to acknowledge God and be thankful
and professes himself to be wise and rather becomes foolish in
his notions of God, that God is like a man, it says in verse
24, God gave man up to uncleanness for the lust of his own heart,
to dishonor his body, change the truth of God into a lie,
and worship and serve the creature more than the Creator. Mother
Earth, why save our planet, is the cry of the day when no one
is interested in the glory and the honor of God Almighty the
Creator. The result of this is, in verse
26, God gave them up unto vile affections, it says. And it goes
on to talk about homosexuality and sex being the rule, covetousness,
full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, backbiters, haters of
God, proud, boasters, disobedient to parents, and so forth, without
natural affection. Verse 32 of Romans 1 concludes,
the judgment of God, those who commit such things are worthy
of death. So this is a general description
of the natural man. Chapter 2 of Romans describes
religious man. Chapter 1 being a general declaration
of all man by nature. Chapter 2 is a description of
the religious man. who says in verse 2, the religious
man says, well, the judgment of God is according to truth
against them which commit such thing. In other words, the religious
man, the moral man says, well, the judgment of God is true against
those homosexuals, against those fornicators, against those who
commit sin. We are not committers of sin,
the religious person says. But Paul says to them in verse
3, You think, O man, that judges them which do such things, that
you will escape the judgment of God? And he said in verse
4 that you need to repent as much as they do. You need to
repent as much as they do. And he goes on to say in verse
11, God is no respecter of persons, or that is, God is not looking
at the outward man. And God is not listening to what
we're saying or looking at what we're doing. God looks on the
heart. Verse 16 says that God will judge the secrets of men
by Jesus Christ. The secrets of men. God looks
on the heart. And He goes on to expose all
men. Their thoughts will judge them,
the Scripture says. In verse 22, you say a man shall
not commit adultery. Do you commit adultery? Why,
our Lord said to look upon a woman. is to commit adultery. So, chapter
3 now of Romans, chapter 3 begins by saying this in verse 4. He
says, ìLet God be true in every man a liar, as it is written
in Psalm 51, that God might be justified in his sayings and
just when he judges.î In other words, whatever Godís Word says,
it says to all Let God be true, and every man a liar. And Paul
says in verse 9 of chapter 3, Are we better than they? That
is, speaking of believers, God's people. Are we better than they?
No, he says, and know why? We before proved that both Jew
and Gentiles, they're all under sin. Verse 10 through 12 says,
There's none righteous, no, not one. Verse 12, they're all gone
out of the way. They've together become unprofitable.
There's none that doeth good, no, not one. Not one truly good man upon the
earth. There's none completely holy,
righteous without sin, no, not one. That's what it says in the
book of Job, the oldest book in the Bible. It says there's
not a just man on the earth that sinneth not. And so these Pharisees,
these self-righteous religious people that say that they have
quit sinning, they are liars. That is what John said, if any
man say he hath not sinned, hath no sin, he's a liar. We say we
have no sin, we deceive ourselves, the truth is not in us, we make
God a liar. Because God says there's none
righteous, there's none that doeth good. All right. Now, that's chapter 3. In chapter
4 of Romans, he tells us how a person is considered righteous
by God. How a person may be considered
righteous by God. Alright? He uses Abraham as an
example. Abraham was a 75-year-old idol-worshipping
man. 75 years old. Can you teach an
old man anything? No. You can't. He is set in his
way. Abraham worshipped idols, or
that is, he had a God that he had made up, and that is his
conception of God, and that is who he worshipped. And Paul one
time wrote to the Thessalonians, and he said this to them, you
have turned from your idols to serve the living and true God.
This is life eternal to know the true God is only one, and
Jesus Christ, whom he hath Well, how did Abraham turn from his
idols? How did Abraham come to know
the true and living God? Well, chapter 4 talks about how
God called Abraham. God made him to be a believer. Abraham didn't just up and decide
to believe God. He didn't even know God. He wasn't
seeking to know God. He didn't know the true God.
But God chose him. God called him. God revealed
himself to him. Okay? And Abraham wasn't considered
righteous by God because he kept the Ten Commandments. No, it
says that Abraham was considered righteous before the Ten Commandments
were ever written. That's what Romans 4 is all about.
Abraham was considered righteous because God gave him faith in
his son, the Lord Jesus Christ. And Romans 5 talks about being
justified by faith. That is, all who trust Christ
look to Christ as their righteousness. All who look to Christ as their
sin payment, Christ as their substitute, Christ as their righteous
representative before God are justified from all things. It's
not by the deeds of the law. That's what Romans 5 tells us. All right? Now, Romans chapter
6 tells us that just because we're justified by Christ doesn't
mean we can live any way we want to. But no, it says those who
are justified by Christ live unto Him. Romans 7, though, tells
us that we're still sinners. And Paul says we are still sinners. Even a believer is a sinner in
need of mercy. Romans chapter 8 says they will
be led by the Spirit of God. All believers will be led by
the Spirit of God. And then Romans chapter 9 tells
us who all of this is done for. Who the people of God are. And
he goes to great lengths to tell us how God chose His people. He chose his people. It says
in verse 11, the children being not yet born, neither having
done any good or evil, that the purpose of God, according to
election, might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth.
And he uses many examples here of whom he had chosen. And therefore,
therefore, it says, that I will have mercy on whom I will have
mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
So then it is not of him that willeth or of him that runneth,
but it is of God that showeth mercy. Therefore, he hath mercy
on whom he will, and whom he will he hardeneth." Now, that's
the Scripture. It tells us man's in a desperate
condition, desperately in need of mercy. He's guilty before
God, Romans 3.19. That not by the works of the
law, Can he make himself righteous before God? But it's righteousness
imputed, Romans 4, by the Lord Jesus Christ. And God does this
for whom He will. That's Romans 9. Well, I hope
you will take God's Word and read it for yourself. Search
the Scriptures to see if these things be so. Until next Sunday,
good day.