If you would, open your Bibles
with me to Romans chapter 6. Romans chapter 6. We miss our pastor when he is
not with us. I especially miss him when he's
not with us. We've been blessed with such
a faithful pastor to study and bring us God's word. I also want
to publicly thank Brother Streeter tonight. I know he wouldn't want
me to do this. He announced this morning that
our church now owns the property that we've been looking and that
he's been working on for months to secure. And just want to thank
you, Brother Streeter. You've been a faithful deacon,
and we appreciate you. Thank you for helping us secure
the land. Romans chapter six, verse number
one. What shall we say then? Shall
we continue in sin that grace may abound? Shall we continue in sin that
grace may abound? What would cause the apostle
to ask such a question as this? It's because self-righteous religious
people of his day, they hated the gospel message that the Apostle
Paul and the other apostles preached. That is that salvation is by
faith. It's by grace through faith.
that his salvation is only and solely based on the life and
work of the Lord Jesus Christ. And religious people in that
day hated that message, and self-righteous religious people today hate that
message. So why would he ask that? Shall
we continue in sin that grace may abound? The doctrine that
the apostle taught was charged with licentiousness. That is,
they were accused, as Paul says back in Romans chapter three,
he says, we be slanderously reported, and some affirm that we say,
let us do evil, that good may come. That absolutely was not
the message of the apostles and not the message of God's word,
but that's what they were slanderously accused of saying. So what was
the ground of that charge? Why would people charge the apostles
with that? Was it because they were loose
in their morals and life? Of course, you know that that's
not true. The apostle Paul said, be you
followers of me even as I am also of Christ. And you know
what the scripture teaches about the Lord Jesus Christ, that he
is holy. Holy, he's the only man who ever
lived his entire life in this world as a holy man. Yes, the God man, but as a man,
holy. Never had, think about this,
he never had one thought that was not pure. He never said one
word that was not holy and good. He never did one action that
was not right. He was holy, harmless, undefiled,
separate from sinners. And the Apostle Paul said, you
follow me as I follow the Lord Jesus Christ. That doesn't sound
like someone who lived a life that was loose in morals, does
it? Absolutely, absolutely not. Well, was it because they never
mentioned the importance that those of us who profess faith
in Christ, that we need to be careful to maintain good works?
Of course, you know that that's not true. We have been taught
to be careful to maintain good works. The scripture says, for
by grace are you saved through faith. and that not of yourselves,
it's the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast.
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works,
which he hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Not only did the apostles' message of salvation by grace, not only
did it not teach that men are not to live, holy lives. It actually taught that the same
God who chose us and the same God through whose grace called
us and gave us faith in the Lord Jesus Christ has ordained our
lives so that we would walk in good works. And look, if you would, go over
a few pages with me to Romans chapter 13. Romans chapter 13,
and we'll come back here to our passage, but look at Romans chapter
13, verse number 11. Scripture says, Paul said in
that, knowing that the time, that now it is high time to awake
out of sleep. For now is our salvation nearer
than when we believed. Aren't you glad about that tonight?
Our salvation tonight is nearer than when we believed. That day
in which God will call us home. Call us to be with the Lord Jesus
Christ and like the Lord Jesus Christ. Our salvation is nearer
today than when we first believed. The night is far spent. The day
is at hand. Let us, therefore, cast off the
works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let
us walk honestly, as in the day, not in writing or drunkenness,
not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying, but
put you on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the
flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof. So you see, When they accused
the Apostle Paul of saying, let us do evil that good may abound.
You know that's not, let us sin that grace may abound. That was
totally unfounded in the teaching. So why did they charge the Apostle
Paul with such a hateful and untrue charge? Why did they charge
him with that? It's because that the apostles
preached that the Lord Jesus is the one and only way that
any man, any man, woman, boy, or girl can come unto God and
be accepted. And it was only, it is only through
the life of the Lord Jesus Christ and through the death of the
Lord Jesus Christ that man may come unto God and God receive
us. that it was apart from anything,
that any good feeling we've ever had, any good action we've ever
done, that it's apart from any work on our behalf, that the
only way, the only way that God can receive us is only and solely
through the life and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. And religious
people of that day and self-righteous people of today continue to hate
that message. They preached that our acceptance
is entirely of grace, apart from any works or contribution on
our part, and only through the perfect person and work of the
Lord Jesus Christ. That's the message of the gospel. And the self-righteous people
hated that in his day, and so they accused them of these things
that were not true. The gospel that they preached,
you see, it's in direct opposition to the pride of man. The gospel
leaves no room for glory except to glory in the Lord Jesus Christ. We have nothing to glory in ourselves,
do we? The gospel leaves no space, not
just a little bit, for man to glory. Our salvation is all of
grace, and it's all through the work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
See, the gospel teaches that whether a person has been zealous,
a zealous religious person all their life, or whether they've
been the worst, most wretched person that ever walked upon
this earth, that all of us stand on level ground. And that the
only hope for any sinner to be at peace with God is the Lord
Jesus Christ. That's why he came into this
world. If it was possible for us somehow, some way to make
ourselves acceptable to God, why would God give his son? But you see, men want to have
something to hold on that they can say, yeah, that part I did. I'm so glad that God's helped
me in salvation, but I needed to do this, or I needed to do
that. That's why they accused the apostle of saying what they
said he said, which was not true. You see, the gospel leaves no
room for boasting. There's no credit for man. It's
the free and marvelous grace of God. And the Pharisee and
the zealous religionists and the greatest sinner ever to walk
upon this earth. None of us have anything to recommend
us unto God. And that goes against the pride
of man, doesn't it? That just works against the pride
of man. And that's why they would make
such an awful accusation. To even imagine that the apostle
would say, shall we continue in sin that grace may abound. Obviously those people had not
heard the apostle preach. So nothing could be further from
the truth. A sinner saved by the sovereign
free grace of God, we lament the fact. Let me speak for myself. I lament the fact that I cannot
live a holy life. Scripture commands me to. But
I know I fall far, far short. But the believer is not wishing
that he could live in sin more. The believer's desire is that
we not live in sin. Isn't that true? The grace of
God does not make a sinner say, well, salvation's all of grace,
so then that means that I'll just go out and live in sin because
it doesn't matter how I live because salvation's all of grace.
That's the furthest thing from the mind, from the heart of a
believer, isn't it? But the thing that the self-righteous
hates is the gospel that we love. Aren't you thankful tonight?
Aren't you thankful tonight that God is not depending on you? He's not depending on me for
anything when it comes to our salvation. Aren't you thankful
for that? The believer loves that. We love
that. Nothing makes our heart more
joyful, more happy. That's the good news, isn't it?
That salvation doesn't depend on us and what we do and what
we feel and what we say and anything about us. That the Lord Jesus
Christ is the Savior from start to finish. He is Alpha and Omega
in salvation from beginning to end. So notice just a few things
here. Go back into Romans chapter 5
and we see some reasons why. the message that the apostles
preach caused these men to falsely accuse him. Look back in Romans
5, verse number one. Scripture says, therefore, being
justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus
Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ gives us
peace with God. And that peace is only on account
of what He has done for us. The Lord God said, I will by
no means clear the guilty. That's in the scripture, right?
God said, I will by no means clear the guilty. And we're guilty. So how can we be, as sinners,
how can we be at peace with God? The answer is here in this verse.
Being justified by faith, we have peace with God, how? Through
our Lord Jesus Christ. And see, it doesn't say through
our Lord Jesus Christ plus anything. No, we have peace with God through
our Lord Jesus Christ. Notice, look at a couple verses with
me. Look back in verse number 23
of chapter four. Verse 23 of chapter 4, how can
there be peace between God and us? Notice now, it was not written
for his sake alone. That is, it wasn't written for
Abraham's sake alone that Abraham believed God and it was imputed
unto him for righteousness. So it wasn't written for his
sake alone that it was imputed to him, but for us also, to whom
it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our
Lord from the dead. Notice, who was delivered for
our offenses, and he was raised again for our justification. So how can we be at peace with
God? How can God clear us who are
guilty? Because the Lord Jesus Christ,
he was delivered for our offenses and he was raised again for our
justification. I won't have you turn to this
passage, but let me read you these verses from Isaiah 53,
where it talks about the suffering of our Savior. Listen, surely
he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. Yet we did
esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he
was wounded for our transgressions. Notice the word wounded, it actually
is the word tormented. He was tormented for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace
was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep
have gone astray, we've turned everyone to his own way. And
the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. You see in
that verse it says, the chastisement of our peace was upon him. How can we be at peace with God
and how can God be at peace with us? Through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, being justified by
faith, we have peace with God. through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Peace with God. What a blessing. What a blessing
to think tonight God is not angry with us. What a horrible position to be
in, believing that God is angry, angry with you. Peace in our
hearts. The peace that passeth understanding. Believing tonight that God receives
us and accepts us, and yes, is even well pleased with us through
the Lord Jesus Christ. Peace with God, peace in our
hearts, and as I mentioned this morning, peace with one another.
Christians are peacemakers. The Lord Jesus said, blessed
are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children
of God. Why are we peacemakers? Because
the Lord Jesus Christ has created peace for us with God and created
peace in our hearts. Now notice a few other things
here in Romans chapter 5. For whom did the Lord Jesus give
his life? Was it for the good? Or was it
for those who are just a little bit broken? Is that who the Lord
Jesus Christ came and died for? Was it for those who were just
a little bit broken? Of course not. He gave his life
not for the good, but for the ungodly and for sinners. Notice verse number six of chapter
five. For when we were yet without
strength, in due time Christ died. Who did he die for? For
the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous
man will one die, yet for adventure for a good man some would even
dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward
us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."
Who did the Lord Jesus Christ die for? He died for the ungodly. He died for sinners. And that's
good news for me. because I see myself in those
descriptions. And those, when the Lord Jesus
was upon the earth, they thought that they were really saying
something bad about him when they said that he was the friend
of publicans and sinners. Little did they know that they
were actually telling the truth, that he is the friend of publican
and sinners, that he came to seek and save that which was
lost. Surely the Lord Jesus must have
died at least for those who are friendly towards God, right? He must have died for those who
at least have some affinity towards God. We'll see if that's what
the scripture says in verse number 10. Notice it says, for if when
we were enemies, does that sound like we were a little bit of
friends to God? No, when we were enemies, We were reconciled to
God by the death of his son. Much more being reconciled, we
shall be saved by his life. You see, all of these things
that I'm pointing out here, the message of the gospel, this goes
totally contrary to the pride of man. Totally contrary to the
pride of man. Men will acknowledge that election
is in the scripture and they'll say, yeah, well, God looked forward
and he saw that some people were going to believe and some people
were not going to believe. So he chose those who were going
to believe. How foolish. That's nowhere,
nowhere to be found in the scripture. Why would they do that? Because
men by nature, the gospel goes against the pride of man. that
God saves sinners all by His choice and by His grace, apart
from anything, anything good in us. And like I said a second
ago, what the self-righteous religious person hates, we love,
don't we? I love this message. I love this
message that my salvation doesn't depend in any way upon anything
that I have ever done, that I'm doing today, or that I will ever
do in this world. And I know you love that message
as well. Believer, the Lord Jesus, through his perfect life and
death, and only through his life and death, he reconciled and
restored us to God. You see that in verse 11. And
not only so, but we also joy in God, through our Lord Jesus
Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement, the reconciliation. We rejoice in God tonight. How? Through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through whom we've received the
reconciliation, the atonement. We have been made one. We have
been brought at oneness with God through the reconciliation
that the Lord Jesus Christ purchased for us. Well, someone might think,
well, surely salvation shall be for those who Christ died
for but also do something. Surely salvation shall be for
those who Christ died for, and surely we do something. Some
kind of good work or works, something. No, that's not what the scripture
teaches. And thank God, salvation is on
account and only on account of the obedience of the Lord Jesus
Christ. Isn't that what the scripture
says here? Look down in verse number 19. Notice, for as by
one man's disobedience, many were made sinners. Who's that
talking about? That's speaking about Adam. When
Adam willfully disobeyed God, he fell into sin. He plunged
all of us, all of mankind into sin. We all became guilty. When
Adam became guilty, we all became guilty. That's what it says. For as by one man's disobedience,
many were made sinners. Notice, so by the obedience of
one shall many be made righteous. See, it's not by the obedience
of many. as by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. Moreover, the law entered that
the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace
did much more abound. That as sin hath reigned unto
death, even so might grace reign. through righteousness unto eternal
life by Jesus Christ our Lord. You see, grace reigns. Grace reigns, not apart from
righteousness, but through righteousness unto eternal life. Well, how
is that possible? By Jesus Christ our Lord. By
what he did, by his obedience, by his righteousness, we are
saved. Having said all of that, what
did the apostles teach believers concerning sin? Having said everything
that I've said, what did the apostles teach us concerning
sin? Look down chapter six, verse
number 12, and I'll be very brief here. Back in chapter six, verse number
12, The apostle said, let not sin therefore reign in your mortal
body. Now notice he doesn't say let
not sin therefore remain in your mortal body because we are sinners. We were born sinners. And the
last breath we take upon this world, we will still be sinners.
So he doesn't say, don't let sin remain in you. That's not
what he says. It says, let not sin therefore
reign. Don't let it have the kingship
in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lust thereof.
Neither yield your members as instruments of unrighteousness
unto sin, but yield yourself unto God as those that are alive
from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness
unto God. For sin shall not have dominion
over you. For you are not under the law,
but under grace." You see, the very opposite of what the apostles,
what the enemies of the gospel taught, or said that the gospel
taught, the very opposite is true. See, for sin shall not
have dominion over you, for you are not under the law, but under
grace. What then? Shall we sin because
we're not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know you not that to whom you
yield yourself servants to obey, his servants you are to whom
you obey, whether of sin unto death or of obedience unto righteousness. but God be thanked. You were
the servants of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart that
form of doctrine, that form of teaching, which was delivered
you. You know, I, I feel so miserably. I feel so miserably that I confess
it's very difficult for me to preach. from passages of scripture
such as these. But these are just as much part
of the word of God. And we need this exhortation.
I need this exhortation. I'm exhorted to not let sin reign
in this mortal body. And I need that teaching. I need
that exhortation. But you know, every time I think
about this, and read the portions of the epistles where we're exhorted
to live holy lives. I think of that song that the
orchestra played right before the service. There is a fountain
filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel's veins, and sinners
plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains. And
I think especially of that verse, dear dying lamb, Thy precious
blood shall never lose its power till all the ransomed church
of God be saved to sin no more. Be saved to sin no more. Be saved to sin no more. Till all the ransomed church
of God be saved to sin no more. I think William Cowper knew something
about this struggle with sin. That day hasn't come for us yet,
has it, when we sin no more? But praise God, the blood of
the Lord Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin, and his blood
is never going to lose its fire till all the ransomed church
of God, all of us, are saved to sin no more. May the Lord
bless this word to our hearts. Brother Bill, if you would, let's
sing a song. And if you would, dismiss this
in prayer.