Romans
Authority Fallen, Part II: Abdication
We were created with authority over the things God made, but in our fallenness, we abdicate that authority and those things begin to exercise authority over us.
Citylight Center City | February 13, 2022 from Citylight Church on Vimeo.
God Is For You
Over the last two weeks in Romans 8, we’ve learned that God says to us sufferers, “your present suffering is nothing compared to the glory that I’m going to reveal to you and, while you wait for glory, I’m working in all of the waiting for your ultimate good.” But in today’s passage, the Apostle Paul flips the question from “what does God say?” to “what do you say?”
This morning’s passage shows us that we can say “God is for you.” We know this because the passage explains that God gave his son for you, God justifies you, and nothing will separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
God is Working in Our Waiting
God is working in our waiting:
- Through the Spirit
- For Good
- For Christians
Future Glory
What does God say to sufferers? He doesn’t avoid suffering; He speaks right into it, but with hope: Your present sufferings are nothing compared to your future glory.
That We Might Be Identified with Him
Christ identified with us, and now we see that it was so we might be identified with Him in His death and resurrection, that we might die and walk in newness of life.
Forgiveness of Sins (Definitive)
As a society, we’ve become less religious, but guilt strangely persists. Can it really be dealt with? Only if God forgives.
“I Believe”
What does it mean to begin the Apostles’ Creed with “I Believe”? It’s very different from the Creed by which we all naturally live: “I’ve done.”
Welcoming One Another
In order for the church to speak prophetically to our world about racial justice, we must be a racially just community. How are commanded to do so? It begins with welcoming one another as Christ as welcomed us, to the glory of God.
Be Thankful for Grace
In 1 Timothy, we see the Scriptures calling us to be thankful for the power of God’s Grace! We can be thankful for God’s Grace because it transforms undeserving people and highlights the indescribable God that loves them.