Good evening. Open with me to
1 Corinthians chapter 15. 1 Corinthians 15, I'm going to
read the first 25 verses. Moreover, brethren, I declare
unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have
received and wherein ye stand. By which, by this gospel also
ye are saved. if you keep in memory what I
preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I
delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how
that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according
to the Scriptures. and that he was seen of Cephas,
then of the twelve. After that he was seen of above
five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain
unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that he
was seen of James, then of all the apostles, and last of all
he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time. For
I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called
an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the
grace of God, I am what I am. And his grace, which was bestowed
upon me, was not in vain. But I labored more abundantly
than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God, which was with
me. Therefore, whether it were I
or they, so we preach, and so ye believed. Now, if Christ be
preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you
that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there be
no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen. And
if Christ be not risen, then our preaching is vain, and your
faith is also vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses
of God, because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ,
whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. For
if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised. And if Christ
be not raised, your faith is vain, and ye are yet in your
sins. then they also which are fallen
asleep in Christ are perished. If in this life only we have
hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. But now is
Christ risen from the dead and become the first fruits of them
that slept. For since by man came death,
by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all
die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every
man in his own order, Christ the firstfruits, afterward they
that are Christ at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he
shall have delivered up the kingdom of God, even the Father. delivered up the kingdom to God,
even the Father, when He shall have put down all rule and all
authority and power. For He, Christ Jesus, must reign
till He hath put all enemies under His feet. Let's bow and
pray. Our blessed, gracious, merciful,
long-suffering Heavenly Father. Oh, Lord, how thankful we are
for Christ Jesus, your son. How thankful we are that he came He left the glory
and the bosom of the father. And he came in the likeness of
sinful man. He fulfilled the law, walked
before you in absolute perfection. And yet it pleased the father. To make him sin for us. And he died and shed his blood
upon that tree. For ruined, sinful men like those
of us gathered tonight. That we might be made the righteousness
of God in him. Father, thank you for your mercy
towards us. Lord, call us to you tonight.
Call us to the feet of Christ, that we might worship him, that
we might see him anew once more, high and lifted up, deserving
of all honor and glory. Father, subdue this wicked, sinful flesh that wants
to take pride in itself. Oh, humble us, Lord, in your
presence. Where can pride go when the glory
of God is shed upon it? Lord, we pray your blessing upon
this meeting. Oh, anoint the pastor with liberty
and unction to proclaim Christ. And Lord, open our ears. Open
our eyes that we might see Christ once more. Father, we pray for
the sick among us, for those who are troubled in heart, mind
and soul. Lord, lead us away from ourselves
and draw us to Christ, wherein is hope and healing for all our
ills. Father, thank you for this place
to worship. Thank you for giving us the desire and the ability
to come in here. Bless us as we go forth. For
it's in Christ's name we pray. Amen. You know who our mercy seat is.
The Lord Jesus, our mercy seat. Turn with me to Romans chapter
7. Romans chapter 7. The title of my message this
evening is the I Am's of the Apostle Paul here in Romans.
The I Am's of Paul in Romans. Now the Apostle Paul was a man. He called himself the chief of
sinners. I hope you read tonight where he said he wasn't even
worthy to be called an apostle. for he persecuted the church
of God. He was a persecutor. But though
he was the chief of sinners and called himself so, he was mightily,
mightily used of God. He said he is separated from
his mother's womb and called by God's blessed grace. He lived
for many years. an enemy of God, an enemy of
the Lord Jesus Christ. But he said, God separated me
from my mother's womb, called me by his grace. He didn't know
that until God taught him that. When he put him down on the Damascus
Road and told him, you know, it's hard for you to kick against
the Prince, Saul. He said, well, who are you? And
he said, I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest. And oh my, his life
changed dramatically that day. Radical change in that man's
life. And then God separated him under
the gospel. Separated him under the gospel.
Told him he was going to preach the gospel. And when he was out
in the world, he was hated. Oh, how he was hated by men.
Oh, they hated him. They despised him. But he was
loved of God. He was one of God's beloved.
He called himself, when they put him in prison, a prisoner
of the Lord Jesus Christ, a bond slave of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And he was held in chains, and he spent his last two years in
a hired house in Rome before they took him out and cut his
head off for his love and faithfulness to his master. That's what happened
to this man. But as you read his letters,
and I know all of you do this, as you read his letters, there's
14 of them, you get a feeling of his personality, a feeling
of his personality, what he was like, a feeling of his character.
And the more you read his letters and his epistles, it seems as
if his voice is what you're hearing in your head. That's the way
it is with me. When I read him, I hear his voice. I don't hear mine, I hear his.
I hear his reasoning, I see his character. His personality comes
through in his letters. And the Holy Spirit gives us
a glimpse of his spiritual experiences as we go through the epistles.
But the apostle often used this phrase, I am. I am. He used that phrase often. He
said in Galatians 2.20, he said, I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless I live, yet not
I liveth, but Christ liveth in me. And the life I now live by
faith, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and
gave himself for me. But he often used this phrase,
I am, to express his faith, to express his love, to express
his commitment to his master. And here in just Romans, just
Romans alone, we're not going to get out except to maybe look
at some other scriptures. But there are several of these
I Am's in Romans, and let's look at them one at a time. Look what
he said here in verse 14 of Romans chapter 7. Look what he says. For we know that the law is spiritual,
but I am carnal. sold under sin. I'm carnal. Here's a man that's an apostle
saying, I'm carnal. I'm fleshly, that's what he's
saying. But he says, you know, but the
law is spiritual. I'm a carnal man, but the law
is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. You see, the
law is spiritual. Here's a man who once boasted
of his keeping the law, having a righteousness that was blameless
in the law. He bragged about his righteousness.
He said, I had a righteousness after the law that was blameless.
I mean, I kept all the commandments. I did everything that the Lord
said to do. I've done all my cleansing. I've
done all my fasting. I did all my prayings. I did
everything that was supposed to be done. But I tell you, instead
of the law finding himself being just a spiritual thing, instead
of finding him blameless, the law come about and turned around
and made him to be a sinner when he had never been a sinner. He
found out by the law is the knowledge of sin. You know, people all
the time, they put up the Ten Commandments. Look in Romans
3 with me, just a minute. In Romans 3 20. You know, the law and they said if you
believe in the Ten Commandments pass this on pass that on the
other thing I believe in them I do the law is just holy and
good there's nothing wrong with God's law the problems with us
And God had to render obedience to His own law in order to save
us according to law, according to the righteousness of the law.
That law must be kept perfectly. Christ kept it perfectly. The
law must be obeyed from the cradle to the grave. Christ did. And bless His name. But now look
what He said here in Romans 3.19. For we know that whatsoever the things the
law saith, it saith them under the law, that every mouth may
be stopped." Look at that law. Love God with all your heart.
Have no gods before me. Make yourself no idols. Don't
make no images. Don't make no idols. Honor your
father. Honor your mother. Thou shalt
not bear false witness. Thou shalt not covet. And on
and on and on. And when I look at that, my mouth
is shut up. I can't say a word. Because I'm
guilty before God, before the world, of what that law says
for me to do. Guilty! And I tell you, your
mouth shuts up when you seek to be justified by the law, and
it comes to you, and you become guilty before God. Therefore,
by the deeds of the law, there's no flesh justified in His sight. For by the law is the what? The
knowledge of sin. the knowledge of sin. That's
why our Lord Jesus Christ said all the way through. The Sermon
on the Mount, you've heard it said, and he would quote something
that the law said, or the Pharisees said, but I say unto you, and
he took the law out of the hands of the Pharisees that made it
to be an outward act, and he made the law to be spiritual.
And the law is spiritual. And I tell you, the law being
spiritual, that means it comprehends everything about a soul and man
and woman in this world. What it means is this, it not
only exposes the actions that a man does, but it exposes and
finds out the attitude that caused him to do it. That's what our
Lord said. I said, our Lord says thou shall
not commit adultery. Our Lord says this. Now that's
a fact. You're not supposed to do that.
But he said, I'm telling you that if you look, Nobody knows
how man does with his eyes. And when you look, you're looking
with something besides your eyes. Whosoever look upon a woman to
lust after her has committed adultery with her, and that's
a spiritual act that you can't see. And this law exposes you. And God, you don't, I don't know
if you covet anything. You don't know if I covet anything.
But I know God knows if I do. That's why the law is spiritual.
It goes to the inner man. It comprehends the attitude and
not only the action. It condemns the thoughts, the
thoughts that a man thinks as well as the deed that he ends
up committing. You don't have to actually do
something to sin. That's what the law means. You sit right here in this service
and there's no telling how many sins we've committed in our life
sitting in a worship service. Would you all agree with that?
Huh? You know why you do that? Because
the law is spiritual. Ain't none of you going to jump
up and Say anything you're not supposed to do, not gonna get
mean, not gonna get ugly. But the law exposes us. But Paul
says this, but I'm carnal. I am carnal. I am carnal. I'm a fleshly man. Look in Romans
8, 7, just a minute. Look what he says here. And this
is what he talks about, carnal. And he says, Romans 8, 7, the
carnal mind is enmity against God. It's not subject to the
law of God. Neither, indeed, can it be. It
can't be. And then he goes on to say, then
they that are in the flesh cannot please God. And that's why the
apostle said here, we know that the law is spiritual, but I'm
carnal soul to understand. And what he's saying is this,
he says, I cannot fulfill or obey the spiritual law because
I'm carnal. Flesh can't keep it. Flesh can't
deal with it. Flesh can't obey it. And that's
what he's saying. In verse 18 here in Romans 7,
look what he says. For I know that in me that is
in my flesh dwelleth no good thing, for to will is present
with me. But how to perform, I know not
how. Perform that which is good, I
know not how. And what he's saying by being
carnal, and this law here, I cannot keep it. I can't obey it because
I'm carnal. And look what he said in verse
14 again. But I'm carnal, sold under sin. What did he mean by that? He
said, I'm sold under sin. I am in sin's bondage, just like
a slave's under sin's bondage. That's what our Lord Jesus meant.
If the Son sets you free, you're free indeed. And oh, and what
he says, sin is his master. Sin is the master. And he says,
God said, I desire truth in the inward part. And Paul's saying
here, when it comes to the law, it's spiritual, and I'm carnal,
and there's no way as a carnal man I can keep that spiritual
law. And I tell you what, and there's
no way in the world that me, you, or anybody else in this
body, in this flesh, can keep God's law. It's impossibility.
Because you know why? It's spiritual. But we're flesh. We're flesh. And then look in
Romans 7.24. Here's another one of them. Look
what he says. 7.24. O wretched man that I am. He put an exclamation point at
the end of that. O wretched man that I Oh my, who shall deliver me from
this body of death? I am wretched. We sang that old
song, amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch
like me. There are a lot of organizations
and denominations that change in that word, wretch. to a soul
like me or a person like me. They don't like the word wretch.
When they think of wretch, they think of somebody that's dirty
and vile and homeless and with no, you know, somebody that's
just about as low as you can get morally. And you just, you
know, you're the bottom of the barrel. You're the bottom rung
of society. That's the only wretched people
there are. Those of us that go to church, we're not wretched.
But Paul said, O wretched man that I am! When God shines the
light of His holiness and His righteousness into our sin-darkened
minds and hearts, there's a cry that comes from our heart. We
understand. We was talking about this coming
in this evening. Oh, God, oh, for God to bring
our children, to bring our grandchildren, our children to the point where
they cry, oh, wretched man that I am! Ain't nobody ever knows what
they're wretched until God turns the light on when he turns that
light on in your mind in your heart And he shines his holiness,
and he shines his righteousness And he shines his character into
your heart and soul there's only one cry that can come from your
heart. Oh wretched man Oh, and then he goes on to say,
who shall deliver me from this body of death? That's what he
says, this body I'm carrying around with me, this flesh that
I carry around with me, it's like death, it's like a body
I've got strapped to my back. And ain't that the way you feel
over your sin sometimes, that you got a body strapped to your
back and you just would like to shake it off and say, oh,
I'd like to be done with me. be done with me. Oh, everybody
else is so much better, more spiritual, more dedicated, committed
than me. Oh, God, have mercy on me and
get this awful, awful man off of me and away from me. Oh, and oh, they said, who's
going to deliver me from this body of death? That's why Job
cried out this way. He said, oh, that there was a
daysman. a daisman between me and God,
one that could reach and get a hold of God, and one that could
reach and get a hold of me, and bring us together. And that's
why Paul says, oh, the next verse is, I thank God through Jesus
Christ our Lord. And oh, listen, born wretched,
live wretched, and die wretched. if someone don't deliver me from
this body of sin, this old body of death, huh? Oh, my. This is, that's, you know, when
we feel the weight of this world, feel the weight of our sin, feel
the weight of the, of what we are in this world. I don't know
about you, but sometimes I say, Lord, I know I've got to stay here till
you get through with me. But I just assumed you'd take
me on home if you would. You know, do you ever feel like
that sometimes? You say, Lord, I'd just like to... Lord, I'm
just so weary of dealing with this old man that I have to deal
with. So weary of this world. So weary of this thing called
sin, Lord. If you want to take me home,
I wouldn't... I wouldn't resist. Do you all ever feel like that?
Oh, do you ever feel like that? Oh, Lord, just let me, just,
but ain't gonna happen till it's time, is it? Then look what else
he said in Romans 1 16. Romans 1 16. He says, for I am not ashamed
of the gospel of Christ. I'm not ashamed of the gospel
of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone
believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. And when Paul
said, I'm not ashamed of the gospel, these words are so full
of meaning, they're remarkable words. when he says, I'm not
ashamed of the cross, not ashamed of the gospel. He is saying,
I glory in the cross and that man who hung there naked, beaten,
bruised and broken in his body and hung there crucified as a
common thief, as a common criminal. I'm not ashamed of that man and
what he accomplished hanging there that the Romans and the
Jews got together and said, we will not have this man. He says,
a blasphemer, and they crucified him. Paul says, you all, you
all may have been ashamed of him, but I'm not ashamed of him.
I'm not ashamed of the cross of Christ. That's what I glory
in. I have nothing to glory in except
what Christ accomplished and who accomplished it on that cross.
And what he's saying is that's the way of righteousness. That's
the only way that God could be righteous is by crucifying his
son. And the only way he could make
me righteous was by crucifying his son, by putting my sin on
him and putting my guilt on him and put my shame on him. That's
the only way I could be, God could be righteous and declare
me righteous is what he did to his son. And oh, and that's what
he gloryed in. And I tell you, boy, he wasn't
ashamed of the gospel. He wasn't ashamed of the gospel
before God. And this is where it really counts,
beloved. He rested his eternal soul on
the blood of the Son of God who was crucified outside Jerusalem. He rested his eternal soul in
that blood that cleansed him from sin. He rested and trusted
in the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ alone. He said,
I know who I have believed. I know whom I've believed. And
I know whatsoever I've committed unto Him, what I've trusted with
Him, I've trusted Him with my soul, I've trusted Him with my
gospel, I've trusted Him with my life, I trust Him with the
people I love, I trust Him, and I know that whatsoever I've committed
unto Him against that day, He gonna keep it. I can trust Him
with it. We trust people in this world.
We trust people in this world. Oh, how we trust people in this
world. If we trust people in this world, how much more do
we trust the eternal God, the Lord Jesus Christ. And oh my,
that's why he said in Romans 10, 11, he says, they therefore
shall not be ashamed or brought to shame. And oh, he was like
David that I talked about this morning. God hath made with me
a covenant, everlasting covenant, ordering all things in sure.
And he knew that other than the gospel of Christ and before the
right with Christ and what he accomplished, that he had no
other way of access or acceptance with God. And if the gospel failed,
everything failed. And you read it tonight in 1
Corinthians 15, 19. If in this life only, just for
this life, only for this life, no eternal life, no life past
here, no life with Christ after here. If in this life only we
have hope in Christ, no life after. If our hope was only for
this world, you know what it means? That means we're miserably
deceived miserably lost and with no hope whatsoever. But now is
Christ risen from the dead. Hey, you know, Paul paints this
dark picture, and then he says, but. And I was listening to Tom
Hardy's message, and he talked about that word, but. How, you
know, great big doors swing on little bitty hinges, and these
great big doors in the scripture swing on them little bitty hinges.
But, but. And oh, beloved, not only was
he not ashamed of the gospel before God, he's not ashamed
of the gospel before men. You know, Paul told Timothy,
he said, be not thou ashamed of me and my chains, me being
a prisoner, or the afflictions of the gospel. Don't be ashamed.
And all people say that's what his gospel got him. His gospel
got him put in jail. His gospel got him put in chains.
His gospel got him beat and stoned. His gospel got him whipped by
the Jews three times and lashed in the back. Got him put in stocks
one night. Is that what your gospel does
for you? Get you in trouble everywhere you go? He said, that's all right. That's okay. Oh, many sneered
at his gospel. And oh, listen, look in Acts
17, look right back here in Acts 17, right back to your left in
Acts 17, 18, just to look at it for a moment with me. Oh my,
many laughed at him for preaching another man's righteousness.
And that another man's righteousness was for wicked men, for sinners.
But he wasn't ashamed for he knew the gospel was their only
hope. Look what he said here in verse 18 of Acts 17. Then certain philosophers of
the Epicureans and of the Stoics encountered him. Did you see
that? He said they encountered him.
Paul didn't encounter them. They encountered him. They heard him do some preaching.
And some said, what will this babbler say? And you know what
it says in the margin? This lowlife, this base fella,
that's what it means. What will this lowlife fella
say? Another said, he seems to be
a setter forth of strange gods. We ain't never heard of any gods
he talks about because he preached unto them Jesus and the resurrection. And they took him under and brought
him under Areopagus saying, may me know what this new doctrine
were of thou speakest? He is, for thou bringest strange
things to our ears. We'd know what these things mean.
And when Paul preached them to him, they said, oh my, oh, that's
like Felix. He says, Paul, your much learning
has drove you mad. He said, oh, I'm not mad. I wish
you was just like me. That's what he told him. And
ah, beloved, he's not ashamed of the gospel because the power
of God's in it. You know, this gospel quickens
a soul, transforms men's lives, transforms their thinking, transforms
their relationship with God, transforms their hearts, transforms
and changes their lives in a radical, radical way. They go in one way
and then they turn around and go another. They think one way
and then all of a sudden they think another. They believe one
way, and then all of a sudden, they believe just the opposite.
How does that happen? The gospel does that, and that's
why we're not ashamed of it. It quickens the dead, gives sight
to the blind, gives a voice to the dumb, a heart of flesh for
a heart of stone. And Paul said, I'm not ashamed
of the gospel, for God reveals his righteousness in it, how
he can be just and justifier. And boy, when he talks about
the cross, he's talking about what Christ accomplished on that
cross, that cross. And then look up here in Romans
1.14 for just a moment. He says here in verse 14, Romans
1.14, I am debtor. both to the Greeks and to the
barbarians, both to the wise and to the unwise. Now, you know,
we all say, and we, there's a hymn, it's a beautiful hymn, wrote
by Robert Mary McShane, I'll never know until life's setting
sun how much I owe. But now, beloved, we preach grace. We preach free grace, sovereign
grace, pure grace. And if salvation's of grace,
then you can't owe anything for it. And that's why Paul said,
I'm in debt, but I'm not in debt to God. No, I'm not in debt to
God. Everything God done for me, he
did freely. Everything God gave me, he gave
it to me freely. Everything God did for us, he
did it freely. But he said, I'm a debtor, not
to God or Christ, for He gives to us freely. And I know we feel
that. That's why Paul says, you know,
we're constrained by the love of Christ. You know, He loves
us, so we love Him. And we cannot but love Him. We
cannot but give ourselves over to Him. Love so precious, so
divine, demands my life, my soul, my all. But we're not in debt
to God, we're not in debt to Christ. We didn't earn anything
and we don't have to pay God back. What an awful thing to
think that we're going to pay God back for what He's done for
us. He said that He Himself would
never, never be in debt to anybody. He says, you know, He said, who
would I ever ask counsel of that I might have to recompense them
for what they Wisdom that they offered me or counsel they gave
me who am I ever gonna do anything for that? I gotta pay them for
it I Know that's strange, you know,
but uh, but that's the West really the way it is, but I tell you
what we can do We can sure praise him We can bless him. We can sing songs and hymns and
praise and make melody in our heart to the Lord We can do that
and that's what we do Oh, to bless and praise His name, to
thank Him for such amazing grace, to thank Him for grace that came
to where we were, to grace that found us, grace that saved us,
grace that keeps us, grace that's sufficient for everything we
go through in this world. Blessing for it, praising for
it, thanking for it, but you can't pay Him for it. But oh,
he said, I'm obligated. I'm a debtor to the Jews and
to the Greeks, to the wise, to the unwise. I'm obligated to
make this gospel known because nobody's going to be saved without
it. He said, whosoever shall call
upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. That's true. But how are they going to call
on Him in whom they have not believed? And how are they going
to believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how are they
going to hear without a preacher? So then faith comes by hearing
and hearing by the word of God. But he said, I am debtor to the
Greeks and to the barbarians, to the wise and the unrighteous.
He said, I'm debtor to the Gentiles. I'm debtor to barbarians. You
go places where they're wearing bones in their nose and they're
naked and they paint their bodies. And there's places in this world
they still do that. They put clay in their hair,
make it red, got bones in their nose and in their ears, and they
run around naked, little loincloths on, still carrying spears and
killing things with spears. And he says, that's who I'm in
debt to. I need to carry the gospel to
them. Lance Heller, where he lives and preaches the gospel,
he has to walk for miles everywhere he goes. And it's not like walking
around here. Mountains like this, mountains
like that. And he goes and deals with people,
and you know what they have to sit on? He sits on a bucket most
of the time, and they sit around outside. Sometimes they'll build
a hat that's rough, and they get under it. He said, that's who I'm in debt
to. I've got to get the gospel to the barbarians. And oh, and
there's that wise fellow. There's them Epicureans and philosophers.
I've got to preach the gospel to them. Whether they believe
it or not, that don't make any difference. But they're wise
men. I'm going to go preach the gospel to the wise men. See that
fellow over there can't read his name in boxcars letters and
ain't got sense enough hardly to know how to live in this world.
He said, that's the man I'm going to preach the gospel to. He said
a man's standing in this world, a man's position in this world,
a man's education in this world, a man's uneducation in this world,
his standing in this world has nothing to do with who I'm going
to preach the gospel to. I'm in debt to carry the gospel
to men and women. And look what he said in Romans
9. Look what he said in Romans 9 with me. Look what he said. This is what he's talking about.
I'm in debt. I'm in debt to bring the gospel to people. And I have
not a clue what this means when I read it to you. I would not
dare to comment on it, except to say that Paul said, I say
the truth in Christ and I'm not lying. I mean, I'm telling you
the truth in Christ, my conscience also bearing me witness in the
Holy Ghost, that I have a great heaviness and a continual sorrow
in my heart. Now listen, this is what I don't
get. I do not understand this. For I could wish that myself
were cursed, separated from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen,
according to the flesh. I don't want to be separated
from Christ from anybody, do you? But Saul Paul said, I'm
willing to do that. Separate me from Christ if these
men would believe the gospel. And oh my, and it's the same
gospel for all men, cultured or barbarian, learned or ignorant. And that's what I love about
the gospel. Absolutely, men's place and position in standing
in this world does not enter into it. Unimpressive. Me and
Todd talked about this and Bruce talked about this, I don't know
how many times over the years. The only thing that impresses
another believer, a believer is a person's relationship with
Christ. Not the car they drive, the house
they live in, That don't have, those are just,
those are just houses and just cars. But all to know men and
women in fellowship with men and women who love Christ and
love his gospel and rejoice in the gospel. Now that impresses
me. That impresses me to be around
folks who love the gospel and delight in the gospel. That's
the folks I want to be with and be around. And then look what
else he said down in verse 15. Here Romans 1 15 now. I am debtor
both to the Greeks, to the barbarians, to the wise, so as much as in
me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are in Rome
also. I'm ready to preach the gospel
to you. How do you know I've never been
to Rome? But I'm ready to go. I'm ready to go to Rome. I'm
ready to do my master's bidding. Though it cost me, the cost to
me is absolutely insignificant. I'm a soldier of the Lord Jesus
Christ and I'm ready to follow the captain of my salvation.
Now you keep this and look in Acts 26 and verse 2. 26 and verse
2. And oh, this man was absolutely
He was ready to preach the gospel wherever he went. If I go to
Rome, I'll preach to them barbarians, to the Greeks over there, to
the Romans over there, to all them people, the slaves over
there, from all over the world. He said in Acts 26 too, and Paul
was standing before Ogrippa, king of Grippa, being examined
for him. He said in verse two, I thank
myself happy. I am most blessed, King Agrippa,
because I shall answer for myself this day before thee, touching
all things where I am, I am accused of the Jews." He said, here he's
standing before a king being examined He had brought an orator
down to accuse him of all the things that he'd done, and the
first thing out of his mind was, he said, I'm here unjustly. You
fellows are mistreating me. God's going to get even with
you for the way you're treating me. This is wrong. I'll tell you what, that's not
what he said. He said, the first thing out of his mouth was, I
am so happy. I am so blessed. I'm rejoicing. I counted a blessed, blessed
thing. I'm just tickled to death to
tell you why I'm standing here before you. And he preached unto
him Christ. Over in Acts 21, look what he
says in Acts 21. Now, you know, He was in that,
him and Silas was in that Philippian jail in those stocks. They had
them bound in stocks. And oh my, midnight they started
to sing. They started singing and praising
the Lord. We'd be over there, what are
they gonna do to me in the morning? What are they gonna do to me
in the morning? Paul and Silas were singing. Oh my, to have a faith like that,
wouldn't it be something? Oh my. But look what he said
here in Acts 21 and verse 11. I think that's where, yes, let
me see. Yeah, and when he was come unto us, he took Paul's
girdle, This is Agabus now, the prophet. And when he was come
unto us, he took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet,
and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem
bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him
into the hands of the Gentiles. And when he heard these things,
both we and they of that place besought him, besought Paul not
to go up to Jerusalem. Paul answered, What mean ye to
weep and to break mine heart? For I am not ready to be bound
only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake.
I'm ready to die. Look in 2 Timothy chapter 4. Oh my, I'm ready. I'm ready to go wherever the
Lord sends me. to deal with whatever the Lord
puts me in. Look in 2 Timothy chapter 4. Oh, listen. This man was so ready. I'm a soldier of Christ. I'm
ready to follow my captain. I know I got, when I was in the
Marines, I got out of uniform one day because I wore a, it
got really, really cold, and I put on a civilian coat over
my uniform. Man, that was a mistake. That was a real mistake. Oh,
you know, they'd rather be froze to death than done that. You
know, you'd never been talked to. He called me everything but
a white man. And needless to say, I had to
take that coat off instead. But oh, my. I learned then and
there. You know why they call you GI?
That means you're a government issue. You belong to the government
and you ain't got nothing that we don't give to you. So you do what they tell you
or else. But anyway, look what it said here in 2 Timothy 4.6. Now listen to what Paul says. For I am now, I am now ready
to be offered and the time of my departure is at hand. You
know, when they see these ships and they'll say, listen, cast
off, take the ropes, throw them over on board. Take the rope
off here, stern and aft, throw them over, catch them. Cast off. And the boat starts making its
way away. That's what Paul says. I'm cast off. I'm cast off. I'm cast off. Everything's cast
off, it's going to keep me. Then he says, The time of my
departure is at hand. I'm unloosening. I'm breaking
up camp. I'm ready to go somewhere. I
fought a good fight. I mean, I fought and I fought
and I fought. But I'm done now. I'm done. And you know what I did all the
days that I was fighting this fight? I kept that faith that
Christ delivered to me. The things that he taught me,
the truths that he taught me, I kept it. And henceforth there
is laid up for me a crown of righteousness which the Lord,
bless His holy name, the righteous judge, shall give me at that
day. And He's not only going to do
it for me, but He's going to do it for all those also that
love His appearing. Not just for me, everybody that
loves His appearing. You're going to get one of them
too, that's what Paul said. And all bless his name listen
let me hurry up look in Romans chapter 838 Romans 838 Let me
give you another and real quick now. I don't have a clue how
long I've been at it Romans 838 Well I get there myself there
we go He said, for I am persuaded, I am persuaded, that neither
death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers,
nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth,
nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the
love of God which is in Christ. And what he's saying was, death,
people that I love dearly when they die, that's not going to
separate me from the love of Christ. Some of you have lost
children. It never separates you from the
love of Christ. You lose your mothers, you lose your dads.
You've lost your wives, you've lost your husbands. But it never
separates you from the love of Christ. In fact, it made you
depend on Christ and look to Christ and trust Christ. You
didn't think you was going to be able to bear it, but you did. Can you trust him? And all in
life. All life. Oh, I've got a new
baby. I've got a new grandson. I need to take him here. I need
to take him there. All this life that he's got.
I'm so wrapped up in him. I ain't got time for the gospel
anymore. No, no. I don't care whose life it is.
Baby's life. Grandson's life. Great grandson. That ain't going
to do it. And there's angels that come. Principalities in
this world. wicked principalities in this
world, or powers and all these powers that's in the world, things
present, things that we're dealing with right now, or anything that's
going to come in the future. I don't care how high it gets.
I don't care how deep it gets. And there ain't a creature on
the top side of God's earth. And Paul said, I know this without
a shadow of a doubt, shall be able to separate us from the
love of God, which is in Christ Jesus. You see, we're weak. but he's strong. We don't know
what tomorrow holds, but he does. We can't control our circumstances,
but he can and he does. We have trials, we have enemies
within and without, but nothing, absolutely nothing can separate
us from the love of God that's in Christ Jesus our Lord. Nothing,
nothing. And then let me give you the
last one, Romans 10. I mean, excuse me, Romans 16.
Romans 16. Look what he says here. 16, 18, and 19. For your obedience has come abroad
unto all. Now listen to this. I am glad. I am glad. Therefore, on your behalf, But
yet I'd have you wise under that which is good and simple concerning
evil. And the God of peace shall bruise
you, Satan, under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
be with you. Amen. He said, I'm glad. And what's he glad for? For your
obedience under Christ. He said, I'm glad for that. I've
heard about it. I've heard about your obedience
to the gospel. I've heard about your obedience
to the gospel. And I'm glad, and this is what I want you to
know, and I'm glad to be able to say this to you. I want you
to be wise concerning that which is good. I want you to be wise
in what is good and what is right. I want you to be well-versed.
I want you to be wise in acts of kindness and charity and promoting
good and love and generosity. I want you to be wise in that
which is good. But when it comes to evil, I want you to be simple. I want you to be concerned in
evil. I want you to be harmless. I want you to be naive. I want
you to be unaffected. I want you to be unsophisticated
in the ways of evil and deceit. I don't want you to know a lot
about evil. Be simple about it. Be simple
about it. I want you to be unsophisticated
in it. And then he said, and I'm glad
of this, the God of peace. You know what he's going to do
to you one of these days? He's going to take Satan under
your feet. Ain't that what he says? Shall
brew Satan under your feet shortly. Everybody talks about how powerful
the devil is and all that, and the devil does this, the devil
does that. Listen, God said I'm going to put him under your feet
one of these days. And it won't be as long as it
has been. I'm going to do it. We're not
going to put him under our feet. God said, I'm going to do it
for you. And you're going to bruise him and you're going to
bruise him good. And the grace of, I'm glad that the grace of
our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. Oh, our father, our father, our
father. You're the God and you're the
Father of our blessed Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, Lord Jesus, thank
you for the gospel. Thank you for all these wonderful
truths, these things that make us flee to Christ, trust Christ,
and embrace Christ, need the Lord Jesus Christ. And I pray
that you'd create in hearts, create in hearts, creating the
will, creating the understanding, all these wonderful, wonderful
things concerning our Lord Jesus Christ. All for you to cause
us to love you more, to obey you more, to seek you more, to
rest in you greater. All these things is in our desire
to do. And Lord, work in us to do these
things. We ask it in your holy name.
Amen. Amen. My soul. Jesus. My Jesus. He's the Savior of my soul. He's the Savior of my soul. Jesus. Jesus. Jesus, Jesus. He's the Savior of my soul. He's the Savior of my soul. See you Wednesday, guys.