1 00:00:00,380 --> 00:00:02,260 I'd like to read in Romans chapter 6. 2 00:00:05,110 --> 00:00:07,630 I told anyone here from Marion they might 3 00:00:07,630 --> 00:00:11,230 hear something they've heard before, but not quite 4 00:00:11,230 --> 00:00:11,790 the same. 5 00:00:13,810 --> 00:00:15,610 I've been adding more to it. 6 00:00:18,400 --> 00:00:20,040 Romans chapter 6. 7 00:00:22,340 --> 00:00:24,400 Actually I'd like to read from the last 8 00:00:24,400 --> 00:00:25,800 verse of chapter 5. 9 00:00:25,800 --> 00:00:33,510 That a sin hath reigned unto death, even 10 00:00:33,510 --> 00:00:38,310 so my grace reign through righteousness unto eternal 11 00:00:38,310 --> 00:00:42,230 life by Jesus Christ our Lord. 12 00:00:45,200 --> 00:00:49,340 So chapter 6, knowing this, that our old 13 00:00:49,340 --> 00:00:52,820 man has been crucified with him, that the 14 00:00:52,820 --> 00:00:56,380 body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth 15 00:00:56,380 --> 00:00:59,100 we should not serve sin. 16 00:01:00,980 --> 00:01:03,920 Tell the chapter a little in verse 12. 17 00:01:05,300 --> 00:01:08,660 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal 18 00:01:08,660 --> 00:01:11,340 body, that you should obey it in the 19 00:01:11,340 --> 00:01:12,120 lust thereof. 20 00:01:12,220 --> 00:01:15,520 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of 21 00:01:15,520 --> 00:01:20,180 unrighteousness unto sin, but yield yourselves unto God 22 00:01:20,180 --> 00:01:22,940 as those that are alive from the dead, 23 00:01:23,060 --> 00:01:27,120 and your members as instruments of righteousness unto 24 00:01:27,120 --> 00:01:27,920 God. 25 00:01:29,460 --> 00:01:31,200 And look down to the end of chapter 26 00:01:31,200 --> 00:01:36,170 7, verse 20. 27 00:01:36,990 --> 00:01:38,570 Now if I do what I would not, 28 00:01:38,670 --> 00:01:40,170 it is no more I that do it, 29 00:01:40,230 --> 00:01:41,790 but sin that dwelleth in me. 30 00:01:43,050 --> 00:01:45,510 I find then a law that is a 31 00:01:45,510 --> 00:01:48,870 principle, that when I who would do good, 32 00:01:48,950 --> 00:01:51,430 I would do good, evil is present with 33 00:01:51,430 --> 00:01:51,790 me. 34 00:01:52,530 --> 00:01:54,470 For I delight in the law of God 35 00:01:54,470 --> 00:01:56,290 after the inward man. 36 00:01:57,050 --> 00:01:59,390 But I see another law in my members, 37 00:01:59,590 --> 00:02:02,590 warring against the law of my mind, and 38 00:02:02,590 --> 00:02:04,810 bringing me into captivity to the law of 39 00:02:04,810 --> 00:02:07,110 sin, which is in my members. 40 00:02:07,949 --> 00:02:11,230 O wretched man that I am, who shall 41 00:02:11,230 --> 00:02:13,610 deliver me from the body of this death. 42 00:02:14,290 --> 00:02:17,850 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord, 43 00:02:18,570 --> 00:02:21,230 so that with the mind I myself serve 44 00:02:21,230 --> 00:02:23,870 the law of God, but with the flesh 45 00:02:23,870 --> 00:02:25,050 the law of sin. 46 00:02:26,210 --> 00:02:29,070 There is therefore now no condemnation to them 47 00:02:29,070 --> 00:02:32,230 which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not 48 00:02:32,230 --> 00:02:35,090 after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 49 00:02:39,100 --> 00:02:40,140 Verse 13. 50 00:02:41,780 --> 00:02:43,400 But if ye live after the flesh, ye 51 00:02:43,400 --> 00:02:43,980 shall die. 52 00:02:45,140 --> 00:02:47,260 But if ye through the Spirit do mortify 53 00:02:47,260 --> 00:02:49,340 the deeds of the body, ye shall live. 54 00:02:50,040 --> 00:02:51,960 For as many as are led by the 55 00:02:51,960 --> 00:02:54,440 Spirit of God, they are the sons of 56 00:02:54,440 --> 00:02:54,840 God. 57 00:02:55,700 --> 00:02:57,360 And verse 23. 58 00:02:57,720 --> 00:03:01,000 Not only they, but ourselves also, which have 59 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:04,260 the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves 60 00:03:04,260 --> 00:03:08,820 grown within ourselves, waiting for the adoption to 61 00:03:08,820 --> 00:03:11,780 wit the redemption of our body. 62 00:03:12,960 --> 00:03:17,040 I think if you study the epistles, and 63 00:03:17,040 --> 00:03:19,300 I appreciate what our brother Topley has been 64 00:03:19,300 --> 00:03:22,860 telling us about just the first verse of 65 00:03:22,860 --> 00:03:25,160 the epistle of Paul to the Ephesian believers, 66 00:03:25,920 --> 00:03:30,100 we appreciate some degree of the depth of 67 00:03:30,100 --> 00:03:32,660 the instruction and the revelation that is given 68 00:03:32,660 --> 00:03:35,580 to us by means of the Spirit of 69 00:03:35,580 --> 00:03:39,620 God moving these men to write the truth 70 00:03:39,620 --> 00:03:41,080 of the word of God for us. 71 00:03:42,180 --> 00:03:44,600 And they're well worth our time of studying 72 00:03:44,600 --> 00:03:44,900 them. 73 00:03:45,600 --> 00:03:47,480 We need to study the word of God 74 00:03:47,480 --> 00:03:49,060 even more than we do, I'm sure. 75 00:03:50,380 --> 00:03:51,840 I think that when you look at the 76 00:03:51,840 --> 00:03:55,360 epistles, you find that the Roman epistle is 77 00:03:55,360 --> 00:03:58,680 the basis of the nine epistles or the 78 00:03:58,680 --> 00:04:00,140 eight epistles that follow it. 79 00:04:01,180 --> 00:04:04,960 It's that which establishes the principle of Christian 80 00:04:04,960 --> 00:04:08,240 gathering, first of all, that has its beginning 81 00:04:08,240 --> 00:04:12,120 first in salvation, that is so clearly dealt 82 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:13,140 with in this epistle. 83 00:04:14,700 --> 00:04:17,320 Paul is laying the foundation for that which 84 00:04:17,320 --> 00:04:19,839 is to come in relation to the gathering 85 00:04:19,839 --> 00:04:22,800 of the saints and first Corinthians and proper 86 00:04:22,800 --> 00:04:28,960 assembly order, proper conduct, proper expression of the 87 00:04:28,960 --> 00:04:31,000 will of God and local testimonies. 88 00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:33,560 And as well, going on in the depth 89 00:04:33,560 --> 00:04:36,340 of the teaching that we have been encountering 90 00:04:36,340 --> 00:04:38,580 in the other epistles, such as in Ephesians 91 00:04:38,580 --> 00:04:42,140 and going right on until we find ourselves 92 00:04:42,140 --> 00:04:45,640 at the little epistle to Philemon. 93 00:04:47,080 --> 00:04:48,680 And when you look at the epistle to 94 00:04:48,680 --> 00:04:52,660 the Hebrews, you find there again a basis 95 00:04:52,660 --> 00:04:55,620 for the eight epistles that follow it right 96 00:04:55,620 --> 00:04:57,260 down through the remainder of the word of 97 00:04:57,260 --> 00:04:57,640 God. 98 00:04:57,640 --> 00:05:01,720 So those two would divide us into sections 99 00:05:01,720 --> 00:05:03,320 that have to do, first of all, with 100 00:05:03,320 --> 00:05:07,780 the principle of justification, the principle of salvation 101 00:05:07,780 --> 00:05:09,960 and the work of Christ entirely. 102 00:05:11,060 --> 00:05:14,540 And then the principle of sanctification that follows 103 00:05:14,540 --> 00:05:17,640 in the middle of this book, then other 104 00:05:17,640 --> 00:05:21,720 themes that follow on because and follow on 105 00:05:21,720 --> 00:05:22,840 behind that. 106 00:05:23,800 --> 00:05:26,020 And then, of course, we have other subjects 107 00:05:26,020 --> 00:05:27,340 as well that could be considered. 108 00:05:27,460 --> 00:05:30,160 I want to consider primarily with you what 109 00:05:30,160 --> 00:05:32,860 we have in the Roman epistle in some 110 00:05:32,860 --> 00:05:33,940 measure, very briefly. 111 00:05:35,060 --> 00:05:36,560 I think that when you look at this 112 00:05:36,560 --> 00:05:38,500 epistle, you can divide it into a number 113 00:05:38,500 --> 00:05:39,260 of parts. 114 00:05:39,860 --> 00:05:41,880 I've appreciated the fact that you can divide 115 00:05:41,880 --> 00:05:43,900 it, first of all, in the first five 116 00:05:43,900 --> 00:05:46,600 verses up until five and eleven. 117 00:05:47,400 --> 00:05:49,080 And I take it that that section is 118 00:05:49,080 --> 00:05:52,320 dealing with how can a guilty sinner like 119 00:05:52,320 --> 00:05:54,280 you and I are by nature and by 120 00:05:54,280 --> 00:05:54,820 practice? 121 00:05:55,140 --> 00:05:58,840 How can we be justified and made and 122 00:05:58,840 --> 00:06:01,040 declared righteous in the sight of God? 123 00:06:01,520 --> 00:06:03,620 How can we say we say from the 124 00:06:03,620 --> 00:06:05,860 condemnation that our sins deserve? 125 00:06:06,420 --> 00:06:08,240 How can we brought in to such a 126 00:06:08,240 --> 00:06:11,520 place of enjoying the freedom from the guilt 127 00:06:11,520 --> 00:06:14,860 and the recognition that I deserve to be 128 00:06:14,860 --> 00:06:16,200 punished for my sins? 129 00:06:16,200 --> 00:06:18,340 And I would take it in those five 130 00:06:18,340 --> 00:06:21,000 chapters, the first five chapters down through chapter 131 00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:22,200 five and verse eleven. 132 00:06:22,720 --> 00:06:28,900 Also, it completely unfolds to us the principles 133 00:06:28,900 --> 00:06:32,580 of justification that is by faith entirely setting 134 00:06:32,580 --> 00:06:36,020 aside all the religious attitudes and practices of 135 00:06:36,020 --> 00:06:37,000 the Jewish religion. 136 00:06:37,000 --> 00:06:40,720 And establishing very clearly that God has purpose 137 00:06:40,720 --> 00:06:44,480 in his sovereign grace to reach sinners simply 138 00:06:44,480 --> 00:06:47,460 on the grounds of believing the truth concerning 139 00:06:47,460 --> 00:06:50,100 the Lord Jesus and depending upon him. 140 00:06:51,100 --> 00:06:52,880 I think that when you come to chapter 141 00:06:52,880 --> 00:06:55,260 five and verse 12, the subject changes from 142 00:06:55,260 --> 00:06:58,600 the subject of our sins and the condemnation 143 00:06:58,600 --> 00:06:59,460 that we deserve. 144 00:06:59,460 --> 00:07:02,340 Then it's a subject of our sin and 145 00:07:02,340 --> 00:07:05,320 the power that seeks to overcome us and 146 00:07:05,320 --> 00:07:07,720 the means by which we cannot be justified. 147 00:07:08,440 --> 00:07:11,060 But how can a justified sinner be sanctified 148 00:07:11,060 --> 00:07:13,540 to live a holy and a righteous life? 149 00:07:13,740 --> 00:07:16,920 Because one should follow right on the other. 150 00:07:17,540 --> 00:07:19,640 The word of God doesn't speak to us 151 00:07:19,640 --> 00:07:22,320 in any way about a sinner being justified 152 00:07:22,320 --> 00:07:24,940 by faith in Christ and then feeling to 153 00:07:24,940 --> 00:07:28,360 be sanctified, set apart to live a holy 154 00:07:28,360 --> 00:07:31,320 life that is pleasing to God and honoring 155 00:07:31,320 --> 00:07:32,200 to his name. 156 00:07:32,560 --> 00:07:34,160 That's God's expectation. 157 00:07:35,580 --> 00:07:37,180 The world may be full of those that 158 00:07:37,180 --> 00:07:38,420 claim to be born again. 159 00:07:39,240 --> 00:07:41,320 People that say they they're saved. 160 00:07:42,060 --> 00:07:43,820 But the word of God teaches that the 161 00:07:43,820 --> 00:07:45,560 results of that is going to be a 162 00:07:45,560 --> 00:07:49,980 sanctified, holy life of a believer seeking to 163 00:07:49,980 --> 00:07:52,100 do that which is right for God, pleasing 164 00:07:52,100 --> 00:07:54,900 to the Lord Jesus and expressing submission to 165 00:07:54,900 --> 00:07:55,640 the Holy Spirit. 166 00:07:57,220 --> 00:07:59,140 And that's the subject you find in chapter 167 00:07:59,140 --> 00:08:00,640 six, seven and eight, I believe. 168 00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:03,060 How is it going to be done? 169 00:08:03,060 --> 00:08:07,230 Of course, when you come to chapter nine, 170 00:08:07,330 --> 00:08:09,630 10, 11, you have I don't think it's 171 00:08:09,630 --> 00:08:10,890 a parenthesis necessarily. 172 00:08:10,890 --> 00:08:12,050 It's just another section. 173 00:08:12,930 --> 00:08:15,850 Because there he's answering the question, if that 174 00:08:15,850 --> 00:08:17,510 is true, then how could it be? 175 00:08:17,610 --> 00:08:21,010 Because God instituted the law as a principle 176 00:08:21,010 --> 00:08:21,750 of life. 177 00:08:24,130 --> 00:08:25,890 And now you're saying that the law has 178 00:08:25,890 --> 00:08:29,090 no effect so far as justification and the 179 00:08:29,090 --> 00:08:31,250 law has no ability to sanctify. 180 00:08:31,890 --> 00:08:34,289 The law has no ability not only to 181 00:08:34,289 --> 00:08:36,350 save a person, but the law has no 182 00:08:36,350 --> 00:08:39,770 ability to sanctify a person and enable them 183 00:08:39,770 --> 00:08:40,890 to live a holy life. 184 00:08:42,190 --> 00:08:44,630 God doesn't intend to save us by keeping 185 00:08:44,630 --> 00:08:45,190 the law. 186 00:08:46,230 --> 00:08:48,130 He doesn't want to make us holy just 187 00:08:48,130 --> 00:08:51,390 by keeping laws, legalism. 188 00:08:53,050 --> 00:08:55,110 And then when you come to chapter 12 189 00:08:55,110 --> 00:08:56,630 for the end, I take it that there's 190 00:08:56,630 --> 00:08:59,590 the practical results of it, beginning with that 191 00:08:59,590 --> 00:09:01,850 lovely verse, chapter 12 and verse one and 192 00:09:01,850 --> 00:09:02,110 two. 193 00:09:02,670 --> 00:09:04,950 I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies 194 00:09:04,950 --> 00:09:08,150 of God, that you present like a living 195 00:09:08,150 --> 00:09:12,330 sacrifice your bodies, holy and acceptable to God. 196 00:09:13,290 --> 00:09:15,570 That's what God desires for life. 197 00:09:16,850 --> 00:09:18,850 And I lived and I have lived. 198 00:09:20,770 --> 00:09:23,070 I'm sure you have, too, in the past 199 00:09:23,070 --> 00:09:24,610 of your life, many years. 200 00:09:25,470 --> 00:09:28,570 But the subsequent reality of salvation has not 201 00:09:28,570 --> 00:09:33,070 been evident in practical terms and practical results. 202 00:09:33,830 --> 00:09:36,470 It's a wonderful thing to see a believer 203 00:09:36,470 --> 00:09:38,710 like we reminded this morning of the Apostle 204 00:09:38,710 --> 00:09:39,130 Paul. 205 00:09:40,090 --> 00:09:41,830 For the moment he was saved, he had 206 00:09:41,830 --> 00:09:43,870 two questions even before he was saved. 207 00:09:43,870 --> 00:09:46,490 And I would take those two single questions 208 00:09:46,490 --> 00:09:49,630 controlled and motivated his life for the rest 209 00:09:49,630 --> 00:09:50,230 of the journey. 210 00:09:51,450 --> 00:09:53,710 The first one was, who are thou, Lord? 211 00:09:55,370 --> 00:09:57,450 You find a man that was burning with 212 00:09:57,450 --> 00:09:59,030 desire to know the Lord Jesus. 213 00:10:00,750 --> 00:10:03,010 Chapter three of Philippians, he says that I 214 00:10:03,010 --> 00:10:03,770 may know him. 215 00:10:04,970 --> 00:10:06,350 That's his great desire. 216 00:10:06,450 --> 00:10:07,870 That should be our great desire. 217 00:10:08,850 --> 00:10:12,050 And that's enough to control our desires so 218 00:10:12,050 --> 00:10:14,570 far as what we long to know, to 219 00:10:14,570 --> 00:10:15,170 know him. 220 00:10:16,410 --> 00:10:19,150 But he had another question that also directed 221 00:10:19,150 --> 00:10:19,690 his life. 222 00:10:20,070 --> 00:10:21,570 What will thou have me to do? 223 00:10:23,050 --> 00:10:25,250 And his entire life from that point on 224 00:10:25,250 --> 00:10:27,850 was not only occupied with seeking to know 225 00:10:27,850 --> 00:10:28,110 Christ. 226 00:10:29,130 --> 00:10:31,030 Not just know about him, but to know 227 00:10:31,030 --> 00:10:33,430 intimate fellowship and relationship with him. 228 00:10:34,530 --> 00:10:37,070 And also be obedient to his will that 229 00:10:37,070 --> 00:10:38,090 was revealed to him. 230 00:10:39,970 --> 00:10:42,170 There's a man who before the very beginning, 231 00:10:42,350 --> 00:10:44,130 even before he was ever saved, he could 232 00:10:44,130 --> 00:10:46,850 say, I've lived in all good conscience before 233 00:10:46,850 --> 00:10:47,890 God on this day. 234 00:10:48,630 --> 00:10:49,830 I envy that man. 235 00:10:51,170 --> 00:10:53,690 Tremendous to think that according to the light 236 00:10:53,690 --> 00:10:56,210 that he had, even in his unsaved days, 237 00:10:56,530 --> 00:10:58,070 he was seeking to please God. 238 00:10:58,350 --> 00:10:59,970 He had a zeal for God like he 239 00:10:59,970 --> 00:11:02,230 could say in chapter 10 of Romans, but 240 00:11:02,230 --> 00:11:03,410 not according to knowledge. 241 00:11:05,030 --> 00:11:06,910 When you look at the first part of 242 00:11:06,910 --> 00:11:09,050 this epistle, I don't want to take the 243 00:11:09,050 --> 00:11:09,770 rest of the time. 244 00:11:10,970 --> 00:11:12,150 It's too much anyway. 245 00:11:14,290 --> 00:11:15,950 We look at the rest of the first 246 00:11:15,950 --> 00:11:16,870 part of this epistle. 247 00:11:17,030 --> 00:11:18,850 I want to say that I believe that 248 00:11:18,850 --> 00:11:20,830 he is dealing with three different groups of 249 00:11:20,830 --> 00:11:21,770 unsaved people. 250 00:11:22,670 --> 00:11:24,570 You may differ on that, but that's the 251 00:11:24,570 --> 00:11:25,270 way I see it. 252 00:11:25,830 --> 00:11:27,850 I believe, first of all, he's dealing with 253 00:11:27,850 --> 00:11:30,550 a pagan that lives in absolute darkness. 254 00:11:30,550 --> 00:11:33,550 The one that has been degenerating from the 255 00:11:33,550 --> 00:11:36,230 very beginning when he says they once knew 256 00:11:36,230 --> 00:11:39,010 God, but they glorified him not as God. 257 00:11:39,390 --> 00:11:42,010 Neither were thankful and their evil heart was 258 00:11:42,010 --> 00:11:42,630 darkened. 259 00:11:43,870 --> 00:11:45,810 And so you have from the very beginning 260 00:11:45,810 --> 00:11:51,330 a darkening, a blinding, a movement, a direction 261 00:11:51,330 --> 00:11:53,710 has been taken that has resulted in men 262 00:11:53,710 --> 00:11:55,830 knowing the judgment of God. 263 00:11:57,170 --> 00:11:59,250 That they who do such things are worthy 264 00:11:59,250 --> 00:11:59,990 of death. 265 00:12:00,610 --> 00:12:02,990 They not only do those things, but they 266 00:12:02,990 --> 00:12:04,530 take pleasure in them to do them. 267 00:12:05,350 --> 00:12:07,170 He's dealing with men that are not under 268 00:12:07,170 --> 00:12:07,710 the law. 269 00:12:08,430 --> 00:12:10,010 He's dealing with men that are not too 270 00:12:10,010 --> 00:12:12,130 much concerned about trying to live a life 271 00:12:12,130 --> 00:12:13,590 like Paul was living. 272 00:12:15,490 --> 00:12:17,870 He says, is there any hope for them? 273 00:12:19,750 --> 00:12:22,770 I believe that the pagan living in absolute 274 00:12:22,770 --> 00:12:24,310 darkness can be saved. 275 00:12:25,010 --> 00:12:26,250 I hope you do too. 276 00:12:27,390 --> 00:12:30,830 They might get saved much more quickly than 277 00:12:30,830 --> 00:12:32,290 the religious sinner. 278 00:12:34,130 --> 00:12:36,150 There are three things I see that they 279 00:12:36,150 --> 00:12:38,630 need to come to realize this man that 280 00:12:38,630 --> 00:12:40,530 has no knowledge of truth whatsoever. 281 00:12:42,170 --> 00:12:44,570 He needs, first of all, to realize that 282 00:12:44,570 --> 00:12:48,810 he has been rejecting the truth that God 283 00:12:48,810 --> 00:12:50,090 has given him in creation. 284 00:12:51,070 --> 00:12:53,090 He needs to come to realize and to 285 00:12:53,090 --> 00:12:56,810 recognize the fact that the glorious hand of 286 00:12:56,810 --> 00:13:00,670 God's handiwork, the glorious display of God's handiwork 287 00:13:00,670 --> 00:13:03,670 is seen in everything that is seen, everything 288 00:13:03,670 --> 00:13:04,510 that is observed. 289 00:13:05,570 --> 00:13:07,890 The whole creation attests to the reality of 290 00:13:07,890 --> 00:13:08,330 God. 291 00:13:09,410 --> 00:13:12,990 Begin to honor God by the recognition of 292 00:13:12,990 --> 00:13:14,350 his creatorial power. 293 00:13:15,790 --> 00:13:18,050 Then, in fact, he also needs, I believe, 294 00:13:18,130 --> 00:13:20,990 to realize that he's been, in verse 25, 295 00:13:21,130 --> 00:13:23,810 chapter one, he needs to recognize he's been 296 00:13:23,810 --> 00:13:27,890 serving and religiously serving the creature rather than 297 00:13:27,890 --> 00:13:28,390 the creator. 298 00:13:29,290 --> 00:13:31,550 He's been directed his worship toward the wrong 299 00:13:31,550 --> 00:13:32,150 object. 300 00:13:33,210 --> 00:13:37,190 He's been occupied with the wrong kind of 301 00:13:37,190 --> 00:13:40,330 God in his own mind. 302 00:13:41,470 --> 00:13:43,090 He needs to realize there is a real 303 00:13:43,090 --> 00:13:43,590 creator. 304 00:13:44,490 --> 00:13:46,510 It's not only a God in heaven, but 305 00:13:46,510 --> 00:13:49,410 there is also one who has made me 306 00:13:49,410 --> 00:13:51,110 and to whom I'm responsible. 307 00:13:53,090 --> 00:13:54,990 It's a sad thing, by the way, in 308 00:13:54,990 --> 00:13:55,510 our day. 309 00:13:58,540 --> 00:14:02,980 The religious Christian so-called seminaries are turning 310 00:14:02,980 --> 00:14:05,260 to the worship of the creature more than 311 00:14:05,260 --> 00:14:05,860 the creator. 312 00:14:07,840 --> 00:14:11,100 It wasn't very long ago that Union Theological 313 00:14:11,100 --> 00:14:16,600 Seminary in New York had a chapel service 314 00:14:16,600 --> 00:14:18,560 in which they gathered around a number of 315 00:14:18,560 --> 00:14:22,240 different kinds of plants and confessed their sins 316 00:14:22,240 --> 00:14:23,280 to these plants. 317 00:14:24,480 --> 00:14:28,460 The sins of ecological harm and danger that 318 00:14:28,460 --> 00:14:29,040 they have done. 319 00:14:29,200 --> 00:14:30,320 That's a seminary. 320 00:14:30,400 --> 00:14:31,820 That's a Christian seminary. 321 00:14:33,340 --> 00:14:36,100 And one that attends that seminary I read 322 00:14:36,100 --> 00:14:39,400 said that at chapels they don't know whether 323 00:14:39,400 --> 00:14:41,240 it's going to be a Hindu service or 324 00:14:41,240 --> 00:14:44,260 a Muslim service or who knows what kind 325 00:14:44,260 --> 00:14:44,900 of service. 326 00:14:45,820 --> 00:14:48,400 He says it's a changing situation. 327 00:14:48,920 --> 00:14:49,660 I guess so. 328 00:14:51,020 --> 00:14:54,820 They worship and serve the creature more than 329 00:14:54,820 --> 00:14:55,360 the creator. 330 00:14:55,360 --> 00:14:59,200 So the pagan needs to understand that you're 331 00:14:59,200 --> 00:15:02,480 occupied in worshiping the wrong object. 332 00:15:03,660 --> 00:15:05,700 And not only that, it comes to the 333 00:15:05,700 --> 00:15:06,580 last verse here. 334 00:15:06,660 --> 00:15:09,580 He says that person needs to realize that 335 00:15:09,580 --> 00:15:11,420 he really deserves God's judgment. 336 00:15:11,620 --> 00:15:12,220 He's guilty. 337 00:15:13,080 --> 00:15:15,480 He's doing things that he consciously knows that 338 00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:15,960 are wrong. 339 00:15:17,300 --> 00:15:19,240 And there's a person that can be saved 340 00:15:19,240 --> 00:15:21,160 if they face the reality of their own 341 00:15:21,160 --> 00:15:22,180 sin and their guilt. 342 00:15:23,060 --> 00:15:24,480 Their salvation for them. 343 00:15:25,660 --> 00:15:27,480 When you look at the next group, I 344 00:15:27,480 --> 00:15:30,120 take it that they're the religious or philosophers 345 00:15:30,120 --> 00:15:31,100 that are enlightened. 346 00:15:32,060 --> 00:15:33,040 The ones that know. 347 00:15:33,580 --> 00:15:35,240 The ones that have a high standard of 348 00:15:35,240 --> 00:15:35,500 living. 349 00:15:36,320 --> 00:15:39,600 The one who, like the Greek philosophers, sought 350 00:15:39,600 --> 00:15:42,060 to realize and to determine what is the 351 00:15:42,060 --> 00:15:42,980 purpose of life? 352 00:15:43,460 --> 00:15:44,760 Where does life come from? 353 00:15:45,140 --> 00:15:46,140 Why am I here? 354 00:15:46,460 --> 00:15:47,860 What am I supposed to be doing? 355 00:15:48,520 --> 00:15:51,460 Men that sought to know the answers to 356 00:15:51,460 --> 00:15:54,260 life's riddles on the wrong level. 357 00:15:57,250 --> 00:15:58,130 What about those people? 358 00:15:59,870 --> 00:16:01,550 I believe that when you look at chapter 359 00:16:01,550 --> 00:16:04,010 two, we find, first of all, they need 360 00:16:04,010 --> 00:16:06,690 to realize that God's judgment is not according 361 00:16:06,690 --> 00:16:08,430 to man's estimation. 362 00:16:08,690 --> 00:16:10,190 It's not a matter of whether they think 363 00:16:10,190 --> 00:16:12,590 they're right or whether friends think they're right 364 00:16:12,590 --> 00:16:14,270 or others think they're right. 365 00:16:14,470 --> 00:16:17,010 They need to realize God's judgment is according 366 00:16:17,010 --> 00:16:20,570 to truth against those that do such things. 367 00:16:20,970 --> 00:16:22,970 God's standard is never deviating. 368 00:16:24,150 --> 00:16:25,910 Religious or rather, I'm sorry. 369 00:16:27,210 --> 00:16:29,630 Enlightened philosophers, those that seek to live by 370 00:16:29,630 --> 00:16:32,230 a high standard, need to come to realize 371 00:16:32,230 --> 00:16:33,910 my standard is not high enough. 372 00:16:34,570 --> 00:16:37,790 It falls short of God's requirements because God's 373 00:16:37,790 --> 00:16:38,830 standard is too high. 374 00:16:40,870 --> 00:16:42,610 The second thing that person, I would take 375 00:16:42,610 --> 00:16:45,770 it, needs to understand is that there is 376 00:16:45,770 --> 00:16:46,850 going to be a judgment. 377 00:16:46,850 --> 00:16:49,950 Now in verse 12 and 13, it's not 378 00:16:49,950 --> 00:16:52,570 according to what the law itself says necessarily. 379 00:16:52,930 --> 00:16:54,990 It's going to be according to even the 380 00:16:54,990 --> 00:16:57,570 fact that what I believe to be right, 381 00:16:57,670 --> 00:16:59,350 I don't even live according to it. 382 00:17:00,770 --> 00:17:03,089 Man naturally knows a lot more than he 383 00:17:03,089 --> 00:17:03,569 practices. 384 00:17:04,910 --> 00:17:06,790 And because of that, he's judged by his 385 00:17:06,790 --> 00:17:08,810 own standard and he comes short and he 386 00:17:08,810 --> 00:17:09,290 fails. 387 00:17:10,369 --> 00:17:12,210 There's hope for that man as well. 388 00:17:13,349 --> 00:17:15,530 And he needs to realize as well in 389 00:17:15,530 --> 00:17:17,609 verse 16 of chapter 2 that there's a 390 00:17:17,609 --> 00:17:19,790 day when God is not only going to 391 00:17:19,790 --> 00:17:21,210 judge his deeds. 392 00:17:22,329 --> 00:17:23,950 He's going to judge the secrets of his 393 00:17:23,950 --> 00:17:24,410 heart. 394 00:17:25,670 --> 00:17:27,590 And when that's exposed, he's going to find 395 00:17:27,590 --> 00:17:29,210 himself condemned before God. 396 00:17:29,510 --> 00:17:30,890 He needs to face reality. 397 00:17:32,250 --> 00:17:35,010 And there's salvation for even a man like 398 00:17:35,010 --> 00:17:35,390 that. 399 00:17:35,970 --> 00:17:37,290 But he has to be honest. 400 00:17:38,670 --> 00:17:41,690 When you look in the verses following beginning 401 00:17:41,690 --> 00:17:44,550 in verse 17 of chapter 2, he's turning 402 00:17:44,550 --> 00:17:46,710 his attention to the Jew as a law. 403 00:17:47,890 --> 00:17:49,330 He claims to be a teacher. 404 00:17:50,390 --> 00:17:52,270 He claims to be one that is upholding 405 00:17:52,270 --> 00:17:54,490 right standards and the principles that God has 406 00:17:54,490 --> 00:17:54,770 given. 407 00:17:55,370 --> 00:17:57,890 But he says, first of all, you have 408 00:17:57,890 --> 00:17:59,790 to realize if you're going to be saved, 409 00:18:01,670 --> 00:18:05,210 that even what you claim to hold as 410 00:18:05,210 --> 00:18:07,910 a high principle in your life, that you're 411 00:18:07,910 --> 00:18:09,690 not even attaining to it yourself. 412 00:18:11,610 --> 00:18:15,350 And as Paul unfolds the history in this 413 00:18:15,350 --> 00:18:17,330 chapter, he looks down over their history and 414 00:18:17,330 --> 00:18:18,710 their past and their condition. 415 00:18:19,010 --> 00:18:21,270 As he looks inside them, he says there's 416 00:18:21,270 --> 00:18:26,950 nothing but ruinous, rottenness, ritualism and religion. 417 00:18:27,570 --> 00:18:29,770 Nothing there that's pleasing to God. 418 00:18:31,070 --> 00:18:32,750 And ultimately, that person would have to come 419 00:18:32,750 --> 00:18:35,050 to verse 19 like the Apostle Paul did. 420 00:18:35,570 --> 00:18:37,450 Wherefore, by the deeds of the law shall 421 00:18:37,450 --> 00:18:40,210 no flesh be justified in his sight, for 422 00:18:40,210 --> 00:18:42,070 by the law is the knowledge of sin. 423 00:18:42,630 --> 00:18:45,130 There's salvation for a religious Jew as well. 424 00:18:46,430 --> 00:18:49,150 And so God, by the pen of the 425 00:18:49,150 --> 00:18:52,110 Apostle Paul, unfolds in verses that follow. 426 00:18:52,530 --> 00:18:54,490 How can a man like that be justified? 427 00:18:55,070 --> 00:18:58,210 Being justified freely by his grace through the 428 00:18:58,210 --> 00:19:00,070 redemption that is in Christ Jesus. 429 00:19:00,930 --> 00:19:03,110 And God has set forth a propitiation through 430 00:19:03,110 --> 00:19:06,050 faith in his blood to declare, I say 431 00:19:06,050 --> 00:19:07,470 at this time, his righteousness. 432 00:19:08,150 --> 00:19:10,130 That he might be just, that he might 433 00:19:10,130 --> 00:19:12,990 be righteous and the justifier of him that 434 00:19:12,990 --> 00:19:14,070 believeth in Jesus. 435 00:19:14,970 --> 00:19:16,990 What a blessed salvation we enjoy. 436 00:19:18,150 --> 00:19:19,570 You know, you and I ought to rise 437 00:19:19,570 --> 00:19:21,610 every morning with thanks to God for his 438 00:19:21,610 --> 00:19:22,070 salvation. 439 00:19:22,630 --> 00:19:24,990 We ought to enjoy it for 24 hours 440 00:19:24,990 --> 00:19:27,010 of the day until you rise again and 441 00:19:27,010 --> 00:19:29,410 thank God again that he ever saved your 442 00:19:29,410 --> 00:19:29,790 soul. 443 00:19:31,230 --> 00:19:33,410 Because you and I were just as steeped 444 00:19:33,410 --> 00:19:36,490 in sin as any other person in this 445 00:19:36,490 --> 00:19:37,270 world tonight. 446 00:19:38,390 --> 00:19:40,310 And I found that out before I was 447 00:19:40,310 --> 00:19:42,650 ever saved as a boy in a Christian 448 00:19:42,650 --> 00:19:43,010 home. 449 00:19:44,550 --> 00:19:46,510 We all have to face the fact that 450 00:19:46,510 --> 00:19:48,930 we are, we have sinned and come short 451 00:19:48,930 --> 00:19:50,110 to the glory of God. 452 00:19:51,110 --> 00:19:54,090 But God has the means by which sinners 453 00:19:54,090 --> 00:19:55,230 can be justified. 454 00:19:55,470 --> 00:19:57,830 And sinners today in this meeting, as we've 455 00:19:57,830 --> 00:20:00,750 been hearing already, they can be justified freely 456 00:20:00,750 --> 00:20:02,770 by the grace of God through the work 457 00:20:02,770 --> 00:20:04,550 of Christ and through Christ alone. 458 00:20:05,890 --> 00:20:08,010 He develops that in chapter 4 where he 459 00:20:08,010 --> 00:20:10,130 makes it very clear that just like Abraham, 460 00:20:10,910 --> 00:20:13,230 believe God, just believe God. 461 00:20:14,810 --> 00:20:16,750 And it was counted to him for righteousness. 462 00:20:17,570 --> 00:20:19,670 The same principle holds today. 463 00:20:21,870 --> 00:20:24,610 But when I think about chapter 6, which 464 00:20:24,610 --> 00:20:26,290 is where I want to look at primarily, 465 00:20:27,390 --> 00:20:30,910 there you have six mentions of the believer's 466 00:20:30,910 --> 00:20:31,330 body. 467 00:20:32,390 --> 00:20:34,730 There's no mention really of a believer's body 468 00:20:34,730 --> 00:20:36,610 at any other part of this epistle. 469 00:20:37,610 --> 00:20:39,150 But when it comes to this section having 470 00:20:39,150 --> 00:20:42,530 to do with sanctification, with the exercise to 471 00:20:42,530 --> 00:20:43,550 live a holy life. 472 00:20:43,550 --> 00:20:46,190 A life that is set apart to God. 473 00:20:46,690 --> 00:20:49,270 A life that recognizes the claims of Christ 474 00:20:49,270 --> 00:20:50,050 upon us. 475 00:20:50,650 --> 00:20:52,470 A life that is seeking to rise in 476 00:20:52,470 --> 00:20:56,850 the responsibility and the responsiveness to the grace 477 00:20:56,850 --> 00:20:58,930 of God expressed toward us. 478 00:20:59,390 --> 00:21:00,830 He says now we have to think about 479 00:21:00,830 --> 00:21:01,390 your body. 480 00:21:03,940 --> 00:21:05,820 In chapter 6, I think it's down about 481 00:21:05,820 --> 00:21:07,940 verse 12 or so, he says it's your 482 00:21:07,940 --> 00:21:09,020 mortal body. 483 00:21:10,440 --> 00:21:11,980 That's where we have the fight. 484 00:21:12,780 --> 00:21:14,840 That's where we have the warfare, that's where 485 00:21:14,840 --> 00:21:16,080 we have the contention. 486 00:21:16,580 --> 00:21:18,720 Because he's not dealing with the sins that 487 00:21:18,720 --> 00:21:20,540 we commit so much as he's dealing with 488 00:21:20,540 --> 00:21:23,060 the power of sin that seeks to dominate 489 00:21:23,060 --> 00:21:23,520 us. 490 00:21:24,660 --> 00:21:26,440 And dear child of God, you and I 491 00:21:26,440 --> 00:21:27,900 still have a problem with it. 492 00:21:29,720 --> 00:21:30,840 We still sin. 493 00:21:32,040 --> 00:21:34,240 But God is basically saying that we should 494 00:21:34,240 --> 00:21:36,500 not be under the domination of sin. 495 00:21:37,860 --> 00:21:40,740 Sin does not have to control you and 496 00:21:40,740 --> 00:21:41,080 me. 497 00:21:41,980 --> 00:21:43,820 As it did in the days before salvation. 498 00:21:45,620 --> 00:21:47,240 He talks about our body. 499 00:21:47,780 --> 00:21:48,860 Now the body is neutral. 500 00:21:49,560 --> 00:21:51,960 The body has its potential to live for 501 00:21:51,960 --> 00:21:54,180 God and to be used of God, to 502 00:21:54,180 --> 00:21:55,580 be an instrument in service. 503 00:21:56,140 --> 00:21:57,700 To be a means of bringing the gospel 504 00:21:57,700 --> 00:21:58,400 to others. 505 00:21:58,960 --> 00:22:01,820 To be instrumental in serving God's people. 506 00:22:03,660 --> 00:22:05,500 But the body can be used either one 507 00:22:05,500 --> 00:22:06,180 way or the other. 508 00:22:06,820 --> 00:22:08,320 We have a body that has been given 509 00:22:08,320 --> 00:22:08,740 us. 510 00:22:09,360 --> 00:22:11,300 And the body is made out of flesh 511 00:22:11,300 --> 00:22:11,820 and blood. 512 00:22:13,000 --> 00:22:15,280 And it's intended as a result of God's 513 00:22:15,280 --> 00:22:15,740 salvation. 514 00:22:15,960 --> 00:22:19,920 Because salvation has claimed you and me entirely. 515 00:22:21,120 --> 00:22:23,120 More than our possessions. 516 00:22:24,160 --> 00:22:26,140 More than our plans and all the rest 517 00:22:26,140 --> 00:22:26,440 of it. 518 00:22:26,760 --> 00:22:31,400 God wants you and me physically, emotionally, spiritually, 519 00:22:31,840 --> 00:22:32,380 entirely. 520 00:22:33,260 --> 00:22:35,200 That's what we read in chapter 12 in 521 00:22:35,200 --> 00:22:35,980 verse 1 and 2. 522 00:22:35,980 --> 00:22:38,120 And if we fall short of that, because 523 00:22:38,120 --> 00:22:38,580 we do. 524 00:22:39,440 --> 00:22:42,740 We're failing to really respond as we should 525 00:22:42,740 --> 00:22:43,840 to the grace of God. 526 00:22:46,660 --> 00:22:48,360 Now he deals with the body, he says 527 00:22:48,360 --> 00:22:49,740 in chapter 6. 528 00:22:50,080 --> 00:22:53,960 Going down here he says, verse 12. 529 00:22:54,120 --> 00:22:56,040 Let not sin therefore reign. 530 00:22:57,280 --> 00:22:59,380 He's looking at the picture of a king. 531 00:23:00,020 --> 00:23:00,980 A despot. 532 00:23:01,520 --> 00:23:03,900 Who has absolute control over his subjects. 533 00:23:03,900 --> 00:23:09,520 He says, don't let sin control absolutely in 534 00:23:09,520 --> 00:23:11,180 your mortal bodies. 535 00:23:11,960 --> 00:23:13,640 You know our bodies are mortal. 536 00:23:15,180 --> 00:23:17,300 That means they are subject to death. 537 00:23:18,240 --> 00:23:20,280 Apart from the Lord's coming that we hold 538 00:23:20,280 --> 00:23:21,860 as a precious hope in our hearts. 539 00:23:22,200 --> 00:23:23,700 We are all going to die. 540 00:23:25,200 --> 00:23:27,880 In 1 Corinthians 15 we read about the 541 00:23:27,880 --> 00:23:29,080 mortal putting on immortality. 542 00:23:30,240 --> 00:23:32,280 I take it that refers to the rapture 543 00:23:32,280 --> 00:23:33,060 of the believer. 544 00:23:33,920 --> 00:23:35,680 Because as long as we're in this world 545 00:23:35,680 --> 00:23:36,400 we're mortal. 546 00:23:37,060 --> 00:23:39,340 But we're going to put on immortality and 547 00:23:39,340 --> 00:23:41,760 we'll be in a condition we'll never die. 548 00:23:42,880 --> 00:23:45,520 He says the corruptible needs to put, will 549 00:23:45,520 --> 00:23:46,960 be put in on incorruption. 550 00:23:47,460 --> 00:23:50,840 That is those that have died are going 551 00:23:50,840 --> 00:23:54,160 to be raised again to be incorruptible. 552 00:23:55,480 --> 00:23:57,520 But right now we're in mortal bodies. 553 00:23:58,500 --> 00:24:00,960 And brother or sister your body can be 554 00:24:00,960 --> 00:24:04,240 used for the fulfillment of God's purposes. 555 00:24:05,200 --> 00:24:07,020 You know God didn't save you and me 556 00:24:07,020 --> 00:24:08,340 just to save you from hell. 557 00:24:10,540 --> 00:24:12,540 That would be the very lowest level. 558 00:24:12,760 --> 00:24:14,200 And in fact I don't even read a 559 00:24:14,200 --> 00:24:16,980 place in my New Testament to tell me 560 00:24:16,980 --> 00:24:19,380 that the Lord Jesus died so that I 561 00:24:19,380 --> 00:24:20,240 wouldn't go to hell. 562 00:24:21,580 --> 00:24:23,920 He saved us so we might be his. 563 00:24:24,580 --> 00:24:26,240 He saved us so we might live for 564 00:24:26,240 --> 00:24:26,580 him. 565 00:24:27,520 --> 00:24:28,820 He saved us so we might devote our 566 00:24:28,820 --> 00:24:30,620 lives in full service for him. 567 00:24:31,360 --> 00:24:33,540 We all should be full-time servants. 568 00:24:34,580 --> 00:24:36,520 We can't all be full-time preachers. 569 00:24:37,900 --> 00:24:39,240 I'm not sure any of us are full 570 00:24:39,240 --> 00:24:41,260 -time preachers because we do other things too. 571 00:24:41,360 --> 00:24:43,660 But we should be full-time servants. 572 00:24:44,200 --> 00:24:46,080 And we should all be the Lord's servants. 573 00:24:47,040 --> 00:24:48,680 That's who we should be living for. 574 00:24:49,700 --> 00:24:52,380 He says don't let sin, because sin was 575 00:24:52,380 --> 00:24:55,620 never intended to dominate and control a believer's 576 00:24:55,620 --> 00:24:56,840 mortal body. 577 00:24:58,760 --> 00:25:01,820 He says the reason is there's a new 578 00:25:01,820 --> 00:25:03,160 master that's taken over. 579 00:25:04,660 --> 00:25:07,180 Going back to chapter in verse 6 he 580 00:25:07,180 --> 00:25:10,020 says knowing this that our old man, that's 581 00:25:10,020 --> 00:25:12,380 what you and I were before God saved 582 00:25:12,380 --> 00:25:12,780 us. 583 00:25:13,880 --> 00:25:15,520 That's not the flesh. 584 00:25:16,100 --> 00:25:17,380 We still have the flesh. 585 00:25:18,260 --> 00:25:20,360 He says our old man has been crucified 586 00:25:20,360 --> 00:25:21,200 with Christ. 587 00:25:21,680 --> 00:25:26,120 It was judicially executed when Christ died on 588 00:25:26,120 --> 00:25:26,800 the cross. 589 00:25:27,520 --> 00:25:29,620 All that we were before God in our 590 00:25:29,620 --> 00:25:32,440 sinful state, in a body that was totally 591 00:25:32,440 --> 00:25:34,680 devoted to sin, a body that could do 592 00:25:34,680 --> 00:25:36,000 nothing else but sin. 593 00:25:36,280 --> 00:25:39,020 He says that has been crucified with Christ. 594 00:25:39,880 --> 00:25:41,560 It's not something you and I have to 595 00:25:41,560 --> 00:25:41,740 do. 596 00:25:41,800 --> 00:25:42,660 It's already been done. 597 00:25:44,140 --> 00:25:46,520 He says so that the body of sin, 598 00:25:46,660 --> 00:25:49,000 a body that was devoted to sin, a 599 00:25:49,000 --> 00:25:52,340 body that could do nothing but sin, regardless 600 00:25:52,340 --> 00:25:53,980 of what kind of sin it might have 601 00:25:53,980 --> 00:25:56,420 been, might have been religious sin. 602 00:25:57,520 --> 00:26:00,180 It might have simply been a matter of 603 00:26:00,180 --> 00:26:02,060 self-will, sin of some form or another. 604 00:26:02,380 --> 00:26:05,400 It was still sin because all that the 605 00:26:05,400 --> 00:26:06,620 body could do was sin. 606 00:26:07,700 --> 00:26:10,660 That that body that was entirely occupied with 607 00:26:10,660 --> 00:26:13,020 sin might be annulled. 608 00:26:13,580 --> 00:26:15,260 That its power might be broken. 609 00:26:15,980 --> 00:26:16,740 It's not destroyed. 610 00:26:18,260 --> 00:26:21,900 Well it might no longer be in that 611 00:26:21,900 --> 00:26:25,220 condition under absolute control of sin. 612 00:26:26,200 --> 00:26:27,520 Sin was a master. 613 00:26:28,660 --> 00:26:30,840 And you know when sin was our master, 614 00:26:31,000 --> 00:26:33,100 brother or sister, we didn't even realize it. 615 00:26:34,540 --> 00:26:36,800 We might have been occupied with sins, but 616 00:26:36,800 --> 00:26:38,860 we weren't occupied with the whole principle that 617 00:26:38,860 --> 00:26:39,740 was behind it. 618 00:26:39,940 --> 00:26:43,520 The principle of sin that was operating and 619 00:26:43,520 --> 00:26:45,540 causing such havoc in the life. 620 00:26:47,160 --> 00:26:49,440 But in this chapter he says very simply 621 00:26:49,440 --> 00:26:52,460 that there's a basis for our sanctification. 622 00:26:52,460 --> 00:26:55,500 A basis for our liberation from the dominating 623 00:26:55,500 --> 00:26:56,420 power of sin. 624 00:26:56,680 --> 00:26:58,860 He says that's the fact that we died 625 00:26:58,860 --> 00:27:01,280 with Christ. 626 00:27:02,780 --> 00:27:04,740 You say well baptism really is a picture 627 00:27:04,740 --> 00:27:05,240 of death. 628 00:27:05,340 --> 00:27:06,760 No it's not a picture of death, it's 629 00:27:06,760 --> 00:27:07,620 a picture of burial. 630 00:27:09,200 --> 00:27:11,100 But you bury people that have died. 631 00:27:12,200 --> 00:27:13,960 It's a bad deal when you bury somebody 632 00:27:13,960 --> 00:27:14,640 that's not died. 633 00:27:16,000 --> 00:27:17,480 You know they don't like that. 634 00:27:20,460 --> 00:27:23,240 But baptism indicates something has already taken place. 635 00:27:25,070 --> 00:27:27,050 And that's why a person really has no 636 00:27:27,050 --> 00:27:29,550 business getting baptized if death has not already 637 00:27:29,550 --> 00:27:30,190 taken place. 638 00:27:30,310 --> 00:27:32,490 But a dead person should be baptized. 639 00:27:34,450 --> 00:27:36,350 And if there's a Christian here today, younger 640 00:27:36,350 --> 00:27:38,850 or older, that has never been baptized, you 641 00:27:38,850 --> 00:27:42,030 fail to realize or confess before others and 642 00:27:42,030 --> 00:27:44,410 to God himself, I died with Christ. 643 00:27:47,360 --> 00:27:49,220 And that means the old life is over 644 00:27:49,220 --> 00:27:49,580 with. 645 00:27:50,080 --> 00:27:52,240 That means that's a separation that has taken 646 00:27:52,240 --> 00:27:52,600 place. 647 00:27:52,680 --> 00:27:54,900 That's what happens you know when there's death, 648 00:27:54,980 --> 00:27:55,660 there's separation. 649 00:27:57,220 --> 00:27:59,580 You don't communicate with dead spirits. 650 00:28:00,360 --> 00:28:02,920 At least I never saw the reality of 651 00:28:02,920 --> 00:28:03,160 that. 652 00:28:05,160 --> 00:28:07,740 So here's a person that died with Christ. 653 00:28:07,840 --> 00:28:13,020 He says you're separated and it's expressed symbolically 654 00:28:13,020 --> 00:28:15,400 in the fact that you've been buried by 655 00:28:15,400 --> 00:28:15,960 baptism. 656 00:28:17,340 --> 00:28:19,140 But he says Christ was buried but he 657 00:28:19,140 --> 00:28:20,180 wasn't left in a grave. 658 00:28:20,280 --> 00:28:21,600 He rose again the third day. 659 00:28:22,380 --> 00:28:24,440 He says you and I are raised also. 660 00:28:24,660 --> 00:28:26,160 But it's not to walk in the same 661 00:28:26,160 --> 00:28:26,920 kind of life. 662 00:28:27,760 --> 00:28:29,880 Because that old life was under the control 663 00:28:29,880 --> 00:28:30,920 of the body of sin. 664 00:28:31,200 --> 00:28:33,860 But now he says you're living in association 665 00:28:33,860 --> 00:28:35,640 with a risen Christ. 666 00:28:36,160 --> 00:28:38,920 The one that is at God's right hand. 667 00:28:40,460 --> 00:28:41,940 He's the one that you're linked with. 668 00:28:42,680 --> 00:28:44,320 He's the one you're identified with. 669 00:28:44,400 --> 00:28:46,260 You're baptized in the name of the Father, 670 00:28:46,380 --> 00:28:48,020 the Son, and the Holy Spirit. 671 00:28:48,020 --> 00:28:50,760 And you're identified with a Christ who died 672 00:28:50,760 --> 00:28:51,540 for you. 673 00:28:51,640 --> 00:28:54,440 And you died with him and he rose 674 00:28:54,440 --> 00:28:54,880 again. 675 00:28:55,620 --> 00:28:57,620 And we live in the newness of life. 676 00:28:58,780 --> 00:29:01,080 So he says that's the fact that you 677 00:29:01,080 --> 00:29:01,840 should not. 678 00:29:02,440 --> 00:29:06,700 He says you should not allow sin to 679 00:29:06,700 --> 00:29:08,420 dominate your life. 680 00:29:09,820 --> 00:29:13,020 In fact he says verse 14, sin shall 681 00:29:13,020 --> 00:29:15,300 not or will not have dominion over you. 682 00:29:15,300 --> 00:29:17,540 For you're not under the law but under 683 00:29:17,540 --> 00:29:18,020 grace. 684 00:29:19,560 --> 00:29:22,180 You know child of God and I say 685 00:29:22,180 --> 00:29:23,080 this to myself. 686 00:29:23,980 --> 00:29:26,700 When we allow sin in our life. 687 00:29:27,680 --> 00:29:30,300 We're yielding to something that has no right 688 00:29:30,300 --> 00:29:31,500 to control. 689 00:29:32,720 --> 00:29:35,260 Sin does not have a right to control 690 00:29:35,260 --> 00:29:35,960 your life. 691 00:29:37,220 --> 00:29:38,800 And when we sin. 692 00:29:40,320 --> 00:29:43,580 What we're doing is allowing sin to exercise 693 00:29:43,580 --> 00:29:45,280 a right that it really doesn't have. 694 00:29:46,300 --> 00:29:48,720 But it'll do it every opportunity it gets. 695 00:29:49,980 --> 00:29:52,060 And sin itself is a principle, is a 696 00:29:52,060 --> 00:29:54,800 power that motivates and controls. 697 00:29:55,620 --> 00:29:56,860 Still works for the flesh. 698 00:29:57,580 --> 00:29:59,740 And still seeks to control your life and 699 00:29:59,740 --> 00:30:00,000 mine. 700 00:30:00,900 --> 00:30:02,340 I have two more chapters to look at 701 00:30:02,340 --> 00:30:03,680 but I'm going to say it very quickly. 702 00:30:04,680 --> 00:30:06,700 Chapter 7 tells us very simply. 703 00:30:07,440 --> 00:30:09,520 The law is absolutely ineffective. 704 00:30:10,680 --> 00:30:12,100 Paul says I tried that. 705 00:30:12,460 --> 00:30:14,100 I think it's Paul's experience. 706 00:30:14,900 --> 00:30:16,880 He says I tried keeping the law before 707 00:30:16,880 --> 00:30:17,660 I was saved. 708 00:30:18,540 --> 00:30:20,780 And I came down to the Ten Commandments 709 00:30:20,780 --> 00:30:22,360 and I thought I was doing really well. 710 00:30:22,440 --> 00:30:23,860 But then I came to the last one. 711 00:30:24,140 --> 00:30:24,980 Thou shall not covet. 712 00:30:26,380 --> 00:30:28,480 And you know coveting is only an attitude 713 00:30:28,480 --> 00:30:29,140 of the mind. 714 00:30:29,260 --> 00:30:30,760 It's not really an action at all. 715 00:30:31,800 --> 00:30:32,920 And he knew I was lost. 716 00:30:34,360 --> 00:30:36,420 He says the law doesn't make a person 717 00:30:36,420 --> 00:30:36,680 sanctified. 718 00:30:38,000 --> 00:30:40,060 It doesn't make them holy before God. 719 00:30:40,120 --> 00:30:41,680 Because all it can do is to judge 720 00:30:41,680 --> 00:30:43,360 him and condemn him for his sin. 721 00:30:45,940 --> 00:30:48,020 No he says what the law really does 722 00:30:48,020 --> 00:30:49,220 is that sin nature. 723 00:30:50,380 --> 00:30:52,760 That thing that is within me, the flesh. 724 00:30:53,140 --> 00:30:55,220 It just reacts against the law. 725 00:30:55,720 --> 00:30:56,900 And all it wants to do is to 726 00:30:56,900 --> 00:30:57,640 do it anyway. 727 00:30:58,600 --> 00:31:00,460 In spite of the fact that God says 728 00:31:00,460 --> 00:31:00,820 no. 729 00:31:01,480 --> 00:31:03,660 The natural tendency is to do it anyway. 730 00:31:03,680 --> 00:31:06,160 He says the law will never do it. 731 00:31:06,380 --> 00:31:08,960 The law can't make a person righteous. 732 00:31:09,780 --> 00:31:11,380 The law can only tell you when you're 733 00:31:11,380 --> 00:31:12,060 unrighteous. 734 00:31:12,820 --> 00:31:13,760 When you're wrong. 735 00:31:14,700 --> 00:31:16,240 He says I tried that before I was 736 00:31:16,240 --> 00:31:16,680 saved. 737 00:31:17,060 --> 00:31:18,380 I think that's the first part of the 738 00:31:18,380 --> 00:31:18,720 chapter. 739 00:31:20,380 --> 00:31:22,180 And if you allow me so, I think 740 00:31:22,180 --> 00:31:22,960 it's biographical. 741 00:31:23,240 --> 00:31:24,620 I think that he is also saying that 742 00:31:24,620 --> 00:31:26,020 I tried that in the early days of 743 00:31:26,020 --> 00:31:27,700 my life as a Christian. 744 00:31:28,180 --> 00:31:29,760 And I found it wouldn't work anyway. 745 00:31:30,440 --> 00:31:33,740 Because he says I was subject to a 746 00:31:33,740 --> 00:31:34,640 body of death. 747 00:31:35,120 --> 00:31:37,920 A body that just simply didn't cooperate. 748 00:31:38,660 --> 00:31:40,200 A body that didn't do what it was 749 00:31:40,200 --> 00:31:40,840 supposed to do. 750 00:31:41,800 --> 00:31:43,340 He says who is going to deliver me 751 00:31:43,340 --> 00:31:44,620 from the body of this death? 752 00:31:45,580 --> 00:31:48,100 I thank God through Jesus Christ my Lord. 753 00:31:49,560 --> 00:31:51,400 When you come to chapter 8 though. 754 00:31:51,900 --> 00:31:54,560 I'll leave that to another night, another day. 755 00:31:56,440 --> 00:31:58,520 Chapter 8 is a beautiful chapter. 756 00:31:59,360 --> 00:32:01,080 I love chapter 8. 757 00:32:02,200 --> 00:32:04,600 In chapter 8 you learn that there's one 758 00:32:04,600 --> 00:32:06,680 resource for you and me. 759 00:32:07,400 --> 00:32:09,860 That has been provided so liberally and abundantly. 760 00:32:10,600 --> 00:32:13,020 It's the indwelling presence of the power of 761 00:32:13,020 --> 00:32:13,800 the Holy Spirit. 762 00:32:15,200 --> 00:32:17,160 You know that's why he's there, child of 763 00:32:17,160 --> 00:32:17,540 God. 764 00:32:18,160 --> 00:32:20,140 He indwells us so that he might enable 765 00:32:20,140 --> 00:32:20,620 us. 766 00:32:21,080 --> 00:32:23,520 Not to do what the law demands, but 767 00:32:23,520 --> 00:32:25,160 to do what pleases the Lord. 768 00:32:25,160 --> 00:32:28,320 And to do it because there's a nature 769 00:32:28,320 --> 00:32:29,500 within us that responds. 770 00:32:30,840 --> 00:32:33,000 When you look at the first 27 verses 771 00:32:33,000 --> 00:32:33,980 of chapter 8. 772 00:32:34,440 --> 00:32:36,980 You'll notice you'll find there that the Spirit 773 00:32:36,980 --> 00:32:40,800 of God himself is energetically moving on your 774 00:32:40,800 --> 00:32:41,380 behalf. 775 00:32:42,120 --> 00:32:43,820 The Spirit of God is for you. 776 00:32:44,720 --> 00:32:48,340 He's the one that is encouraging. 777 00:32:49,160 --> 00:32:50,400 He's the one that empowers. 778 00:32:51,260 --> 00:32:53,520 He's the one that makes us able to 779 00:32:53,520 --> 00:32:56,320 overcome these evil impulses. 780 00:32:57,380 --> 00:32:59,640 He says the Spirit of God even himself 781 00:32:59,640 --> 00:33:02,820 makes intercession for us with groanings that cannot 782 00:33:02,820 --> 00:33:03,980 be uttered. 783 00:33:04,440 --> 00:33:06,400 In other words, even in our failures and 784 00:33:06,400 --> 00:33:08,160 our infirmities, our limitations. 785 00:33:08,440 --> 00:33:11,880 He says he's the one that stands before 786 00:33:11,880 --> 00:33:13,380 God on our behalf. 787 00:33:14,340 --> 00:33:17,220 He's the one that is able to meet 788 00:33:17,220 --> 00:33:17,960 our every need. 789 00:33:18,480 --> 00:33:20,580 The next section we find out that God 790 00:33:20,580 --> 00:33:21,820 himself is for us. 791 00:33:22,740 --> 00:33:25,260 There's a forged link of God's eternal purpose 792 00:33:25,260 --> 00:33:26,480 that is going to be fulfilled. 793 00:33:27,400 --> 00:33:29,400 He says of God before us or since 794 00:33:29,400 --> 00:33:30,880 he is for us, who can be against 795 00:33:30,880 --> 00:33:31,260 us? 796 00:33:32,160 --> 00:33:33,820 And then I love the last part of 797 00:33:33,820 --> 00:33:36,220 the chapter because we find out the Lord 798 00:33:36,220 --> 00:33:37,700 Jesus is for us as well. 799 00:33:38,480 --> 00:33:41,940 He's a God's right hand interceding for us. 800 00:33:41,940 --> 00:33:45,780 He says nothing, nothing ever can separate us 801 00:33:45,780 --> 00:33:47,760 from the love of God that is in 802 00:33:47,760 --> 00:33:48,400 Christ Jesus. 803 00:33:48,640 --> 00:33:50,380 You and I feel like failures, don't we? 804 00:33:51,600 --> 00:33:53,160 Maybe I shouldn't say you and I. 805 00:33:53,340 --> 00:33:55,120 I feel like a failure a lot of 806 00:33:55,120 --> 00:33:55,480 the time. 807 00:33:56,480 --> 00:33:58,120 I feel like I'm not what I ought 808 00:33:58,120 --> 00:33:59,340 to be and I know I'm not. 809 00:34:00,100 --> 00:34:01,580 I long to be something more. 810 00:34:03,000 --> 00:34:04,620 But you know, that's a healthy desire. 811 00:34:06,140 --> 00:34:08,179 We could never have a better position than 812 00:34:08,179 --> 00:34:10,420 we have presently before God in the Lord 813 00:34:10,420 --> 00:34:10,780 Jesus. 814 00:34:11,400 --> 00:34:13,639 Or we can have a better condition. 815 00:34:14,560 --> 00:34:16,320 And we should seek with all of our 816 00:34:16,320 --> 00:34:20,080 hearts to enable, to put into practice the 817 00:34:20,080 --> 00:34:21,800 truths that God has given us. 818 00:34:22,659 --> 00:34:24,480 And to allow the spirit of God, the 819 00:34:24,480 --> 00:34:27,880 liberty of working in us to produce what 820 00:34:27,880 --> 00:34:29,360 only he can produce. 821 00:34:29,780 --> 00:34:31,100 The law can't produce it. 822 00:34:31,380 --> 00:34:32,560 The flesh can't do it. 823 00:34:33,360 --> 00:34:35,280 Other means are of no avail. 824 00:34:36,120 --> 00:34:38,900 But thank God, remember the spirit of God 825 00:34:38,900 --> 00:34:39,860 is in you. 826 00:34:39,860 --> 00:34:41,679 He dwells there. 827 00:34:42,760 --> 00:34:44,179 He represents Christ there. 828 00:34:45,100 --> 00:34:47,460 And he wants to empower you and me 829 00:34:47,460 --> 00:34:48,000 as well. 830 00:34:49,120 --> 00:34:53,880 To respond in a warm, wholehearted way to 831 00:34:53,880 --> 00:34:55,280 the desires of the Lord Jesus. 832 00:34:55,880 --> 00:34:58,280 And to enable us to put it into 833 00:34:58,280 --> 00:34:58,660 practice. 834 00:34:58,920 --> 00:35:00,860 He's the one that is the power for 835 00:35:00,860 --> 00:35:01,600 Christian living. 836 00:35:02,520 --> 00:35:04,060 He works with the word of God that 837 00:35:04,060 --> 00:35:07,360 he might enable us to please the Lord 838 00:35:07,360 --> 00:35:07,680 Jesus. 839 00:35:07,680 --> 00:35:10,240 Thank God we have such a blessing in 840 00:35:10,240 --> 00:35:10,700 Christ. 841 00:35:11,500 --> 00:35:13,420 I wish I could appreciate it more. 842 00:35:15,220 --> 00:35:16,580 Wonderful to be saved. 843 00:35:17,600 --> 00:35:19,520 And even better to live for the Lord 844 00:35:19,520 --> 00:35:22,560 Jesus with true joy in your soul.