Our Responsibility

I could never do that. They pray for two hours a day and when they say they've been praying for me,

they actually mean it. I could never do that. They're the parent who reads the Bible with

their kids every day and their kids look like little saints. I could never do that. They've

just completed reading the Bible for the fourth time this year from cover to cover.

They talk about Jesus with every single person they've ever met.

I've had people say to me in the past, can you pray to God for me because God's more likely to

hear from you than he is from me. I wonder, can we make a separation between people that we think

are good Christians and people we think are not so good or maybe bad Christians?

Sometimes I wonder if we can see people who look like amazing Christians and think,

I just can't be like that person. I don't have the time or the effort. Or maybe they just look a

little bit weird. They're so zealous and fanatical. I wonder if sometimes we can see Christians and

compare ourselves and think, is that what I should be looking like? I wonder then if it makes us feel

a bit depressed about our relationship with God. I'm not nearly as good as them. I'm not a real

Christian. Or maybe it does the opposite. It makes us strive harder and to set the bar higher about what

our lives are to look like. We are in the middle of a series in the book of Romans called Made New,

seeing that we've been made new by God's grace in Jesus. We've seen that we all deserve punishment for

our sins, that we have rebelled against God, but he has justified us. He has offered us his grace

freely at the cross. And as Steve has showed last week, that our God is sovereign. He is in control

of all things. And he offers salvation to those he chooses. And we saw last week that Paul loves

the people that he came from, the Jewish people, the Israelites. And we're going to see that again

today. But now we come to see the reality of a free gospel, that it comes to people who have no history

of relationship with God. It went to the Jews first and now to the Gentiles. And we're going to see that

this causes a challenge for the Jewish people, that they were people who were passionate. They strove hard

to follow their God. But Paul is going to question today who they are actually trusting in. And today,

the challenge for us will be similar. Are we just seeking and striving ourselves to have a particularly

good view of ourselves as Christians? Maybe we are challenged by other Christians and go,

I want to look like that Christian. I want to strive hard. And so today, we're going to be challenged

by what Paul has to say to think, who are we actually trusting in? And to see if our life is

shaped by that. Let me pray for us as we have a look at Romans 9 and 10. Our Heavenly Father,

I thank you for your word to us today. I thank you that it speaks to us every day and in every season.

And I ask that you would be with us to hear your word today, Lord. Pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.

As we have a look at this part of the Bible, we have two points. The first point this morning is that

belief is not enough. And our second point this morning is that belief is enough. But that might

seem like a contradiction, but we will get there. First of all, we've seen that Paul has explained

that God is sovereign. He is in control of all things. He is the one who chooses who gets to come

into his kingdom. And Paul answers the question of why those outside of God's family get chosen and

not all of God's people. Have a look at verse 30 with me of Romans chapter 9.

Romans 9 · chapter mention

What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, those who are not Israel, Jewish people,

that the Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith.

But the people of Israel who pursued the law as the way of righteousness have not attained their goal.

Paul's saying that there are those people, the Gentiles, who have had such wicked lives,

they've been more open to the gospel compared with those people who have been pursuing righteousness.

The Jews knew that they had a deep need for righteousness.

But everybody else outside of Israel had no idea how much they needed from God.

But even though the Jews knew they needed righteousness from God,

they've pursued it in the wrong way.

Why haven't they obtained their goal? Verse 32,

because they pursued it not by faith, but by works.

They stumbled over this stumbling stone.

As it is written,

See, I lay a stone in Zion that causes people to stumble,

and a rock that makes them fall,

and the one who believes in him will never be put to shame.

A stumbling block has been put in the way of the Jewish people.

Now, as a parent of children who have Lego,

I constantly have stumbling blocks around my house.

I love Lego deeply, and a lot of it's my own fault,

because I carried over a good couple of boxes from my own childhood.

And there's nothing like finding a piece of Lego in the middle of the night.

But this stumbling block is far more painful,

far more significant than just an hour moment in the middle of the night.

This stumbling block has stopped the Jewish people

reaching the righteousness that they've been pursuing.

And this stumbling block is Jesus.

This stumbling block has required them to put their works down

and have faith in him.

Because faith in Jesus demands humility.

As long as anyone pursues faith by works,

as verse 32 said,

they're going to stumble pursuing this goal.

Imagine you were to die today.

This is a classic question.

Imagine you were to die today.

Let's say it's not COVID-related.

I won't pick anything in particular then.

Let's say you were to die today,

and you were to stand before God,

and God asked you,

why should I let you into my heaven?

What would you say?

Just for a brief moment,

turn to the person next to you,

ask them,

what would you say?

God says,

why should I let you into my heaven?

What would you say?

Okay, I think that's enough.

Now, I would usually at this point

ask for people to shout out things,

but I'm not going to do that this week.

It could have been things like,

I've loved God.

I've gone to church every single week.

I've read my Bible cover to cover.

I've followed him.

I've been a good student.

I've been a good parent.

I've worked hard.

I wonder if the things we say

would start with that little letter I,

because that's the challenge of the Jews.

If they were to answer this question,

their answer would start

with that little letter I.

I've been pursuing righteousness.

I have worked hard in following God.

I have used all of my energy

and all of my effort to follow God.

And God has placed a rock before us,

a stumbling stone.

This stumbling stone

can either be something that stops us

in the way,

or it can be a foundation

which we build our lives on.

The Jews had everything they needed

for salvation,

but they've tripped over their desire

to follow their own path to salvation.

Last week, we saw that Paul put the responsibility

of belief and unbelief

in God's sovereign control.

And it seems that what Paul is now saying

is contradictory.

On the one hand,

Paul is saying,

God is sovereign.

He chooses who he will.

But now he's saying,

well, the Jews pursued the wrong path.

There was a stumbling stone in front of them

and they chose the wrong way.

So which one is it?

Well, both of these things are true.

God's sovereignty

and human responsibility

both stand together.

There's a quote,

it's a wonderful quote

from preacher Martin Lloyd-Jones.

He said,

we are responsible

for our rejection of the gospel,

but we are not responsible

for our acceptance.

This is how God's sovereignty

and human responsibility work together.

We are all responsible

for rejecting God,

for choosing to not follow him,

choosing our own path.

But God is the only one

who is responsible

for calling anybody to himself.

And for Paul,

this is not just a piece of cold doctrine.

This is not just something he theologizes.

He's just not just talking about predestination

in a very cold clinical context.

You can see Paul's pain

and his heart for people in verse 10.

Brothers and sisters,

sorry, in chapter 10, verse 1.

Brothers and sisters,

my heart's desire and prayer to God

is for the Israelites

that they may be saved.

I think for us,

when we talk about the Jews,

it's just a group of people

who are of the Bible.

We are in a part of Sydney

where I don't know

a lot of Jewish people.

I know I have Jewish people

a couple of generations back

in my family lineage.

But when I think of the Jews,

I just think of the biblical people.

I don't know many people

who are Jewish.

But for Paul,

this is family.

This is brothers and sisters,

his parents,

his cousins,

the people he worked with,

the people he taught,

the people in the shops.

This is all of the people

who were very close to him

that he cared for.

And for Paul,

this is just like us

being concerned

for our family and friends

who don't know Jesus.

And it's heightened

because these people

have been longing for Jesus.

They've been waiting for him.

They've been zealous

and desiring God to come.

And Paul speaks positively

of these people.

He sees how much passion

they have towards God.

Verse 2 of chapter 10,

for I can testify about them

that they are zealous for God.

I love this word, zealous.

Zeal can be defined

as great energy

or enthusiasm

in pursuit of a cause

or an objective.

I love talking to people

who are zealous about things.

You know,

there's some people

in our church

who are zealous about running.

And that's always fun

to talk about.

You can see their passion

just exploding out of them.

If you talk to me

for more than about eight seconds,

my zeal for Star Wars

will come out

and it's begun

to infect my children.

I'm sorry, children.

That's just how it is for you.

And there,

you can hear them

shouting out with joy

for Star Wars.

We're all zealous

and passionate about something.

Zeal is energy

and enthusiasm

in pursuit of a goal.

And it's contagious.

And Paul can see

that the Jews

have been zealous.

They have used

their energy

and enthusiasm

to pursue the goal

of righteousness with God.

They've been so zealous.

They've been willing

to go to any lengths

to obey God.

Think of the Old Testament laws.

You know,

sacrificial laws,

laws about the Sabbath,

cleansing,

sacrifices.

The Jews were so zealous

about the laws

that they put laws

on top of laws

on top of laws.

They were so concerned

with not breaking the laws,

they protected those laws

by making sure

they didn't even get close

to those laws,

which ended up being

their downfall

when Jesus came

because they didn't know

the heart of the law.

They were extremely focused

on pleasing,

honoring,

and serving God.

But,

the rest of verse 2,

but their zeal

is not based on knowledge.

Since they did not know

the righteousness of God

and sought to establish

their own,

they did not submit

to God's righteousness.

Christ is the culmination

of the law

so that there may be righteousness

for everyone

who believes.

This is the complete opposite

of the modern thought,

it doesn't matter

what you believe

as long as you believe it.

Have you heard this

in talking with people?

Oh, you know,

I'm glad you've got

your beliefs.

I'm happy for you

to have your beliefs.

It's good that you've got

your beliefs.

And I've got my beliefs.

And so it's good for us.

As long as you believe

what you believe,

I'll believe what I believe,

as long as,

you know,

you try not to force

your beliefs on me.

You keep yours over there,

I'll have my beliefs

over here.

This is what the modern day

view of faith

and belief is.

And Paul says,

no,

it doesn't work.

Because the Jews

were very sincere

and devout.

They were zealous

about their beliefs.

They believed

and they would have looked

far more devout,

far better

than many Christians today.

The same could be said

of Buddhists

and Muslims.

We can see people

and think,

you are so devout,

you are pursuing

righteousness

with all of your energy,

with all of your zeal.

But Paul is saying,

it doesn't matter

how much you believe,

it doesn't matter

how committed you are,

it doesn't matter

how much of your life

or your money

you give away,

if it is all

a mistake.

If your zeal

is not based on knowledge,

you're just

running very hard

down the wrong path.

The truth is

that zeal

without knowledge

is just fanaticism.

It is my wife

Alyssa's birthday

this Friday.

She's turning

very young again.

You thought I was

going to get in trouble

then, didn't you?

And let's say

out of my love

and zeal for her,

I made her

a birthday cake.

I know,

great husband, right?

And I'm going to pour

a lot of my time

and my energy

into this cake.

And it gets

to her birthday

and I've made

an amazing sponge cake.

One of my favourites.

Loads of cream

because that's

what I like.

And as she's eating it,

you know,

at first she's joyful

and happy

and thankful

that her husband

has not only made the cake

but cleaned up

after the cake.

And as she's eating it,

her face

slowly changes,

getting more

and more concerned

with each chew.

And Alyssa says,

this doesn't have dairy

in it, does it?

You know

I'm intolerant

to dairy.

It turns out

I've ruined her day

in the next couple of days.

In that situation,

I've had zeal

and passion

and love

and works

and I can say,

yes,

I'm an awesome husband,

I'm a great husband.

But I haven't had knowledge.

And it's disastrous.

Belief

is not

enough.

The Jews,

Paul says,

they've pursued

the wrong thing.

And so it doesn't matter

how hard

we run

down a path

if it's the wrong path.

What are our lives

built on?

Will Jesus

be a stumbling block

or will he be

the foundation

of our lives?

The hard truth is

that it is possible

to come to church.

It is possible

to have

all outward appearance

of following Jesus.

But to still

in effect

be like the Jews,

trusting ourselves.

When we come

with humility,

then we see

that we bring

nothing

except our need.

And so

on that day

when we get

to meet Jesus,

on that day

when we stand

before God

and he says,

why should I let you

into my heaven?

I can truthfully say,

do you know what God?

There is no reason

why I should come in.

You know me

far better than I do.

You know that I have

rebelled against you.

You know that I have

hurt you.

I've hurt

my own family,

my loved ones.

I've disobeyed you.

There is

no reason

why you should

let me in.

Except Jesus said

I can come in.

Just believing

really hard

in something

is not enough.

And yet,

brothers and sisters,

belief is

enough.

Paul says

we don't need

works to save us.

And he uses

language from

Deuteronomy

in verse 6

of chapter 10.

Who will ascend

to heaven

to bring Christ down?

Or who's going

to descend

into the deep?

That is,

to bring Christ

up from the deep.

This is a,

it's a picture

of what we have

to do to get

into heaven,

to deal

with our sins

or to be good

enough to get

into heaven.

But instead,

what we have

to do,

what needs

to be done

is very near.

verse 9,

if you declare

with your mouth

Jesus is Lord

and believe

in your heart

that God

raised him

from the dead,

you will be saved.

I love

this explanation

by Paul

of the gospel.

It is this

wonderful little

summary of

everything in the

gospel in these

two phrases.

To say that

Jesus is Lord

is such a

significant claim.

The word

for Lord

here,

it's

Kyrios.

You know,

think all

of our

favorite

tennis player,

Nick Kyrios.

Nick Kyrios

sees himself

as a Lord.

That's what

his name means.

Kyrios means

Lord.

But it's not

just someone

who's good

at something

or who's

got authority.

This word

for Lord

is supreme

being.

This is

the Lord

of all things.

This has

power over

everything.

And while

Nick Kyrios

might think

that of himself,

that is not

him.

But to say

that Jesus

is Lord,

that declaration

means I

believe Jesus

is the one

who sits

on the throne

above every

throne.

He is the

one who has

supreme claim

over the

world and

my life.

And then the

second part of

this phrase,

to believe that

he was raised

from the dead,

is to believe

that he died.

His death

was purposeful.

And that death

couldn't hold him

and so he was

raised.

And so to

believe in these

two little

phrases,

is that

Jesus,

that person,

is God

who has

control over

all things.

And that

God died

for me

in my

place.

And he

has taken

my sin.

Now we

might balk at

this a little

bit when Paul

says all we

need to do

is say some

words.

We might

recoil slightly

as if Paul

is saying we

need to do a

magic formula,

as if we

could walk

down the street

with a piece of

paper that

says Jesus

is Lord

and say,

say this

for me.

And if people

say it,

yes,

you're a

Christian and

you're in.

It's not

quite that.

In the

ancient world,

these are two

sides of the

same coin,

speaking and

believing.

Confessing with

the mouth and

believing with

the heart are

not two different

things.

Anyone who

does one

will do the

other.

And so Paul

is not adding

a work as if

we have to say

this particular

phrase to get

in.

But it's a

picture of the

Christian who

hands over their

hopes into the

hands of Jesus.

No longer like

the Jews trying

to seek their

own righteousness

apart from God,

but handing that

over to Jesus,

trusting that he

is the Lord and

his death is

sufficient.

This is a

wonderful picture

and it goes out

to everyone.

Verse 13,

everyone who

calls on the

name of the

Lord will be

saved.

The Jews'

life, their

life was shaped

by their

belief.

They believed

that to be

saved, to be

righteousness, they

had to pursue it

with zeal and

energy and

everything they

had every

moment.

But for the

Christian, well,

what is the

Christian's life to

look like?

If we believe

that our

righteousness is

not found in

our striving but

in what Jesus

has done, what

is our life to

look like?

What does it

look like then

to be a

zealous

Christian?

To be a

Christian with

energy and

enthusiasm?

It looks like

one responding

to the call,

seeking to

call others.

Have a look at

verse 14 and

15 here with

me, where Paul

pushes the

absolute necessity

of evangelism.

Seeing the

call go from

those who are

saved out to

other people.

We're going to

read it forwards

as it's written

and then I'm

going to read it

backwards for us.

How then can

they call on

the one they

have not

believed in?

How can they

believe in the

one whom they

have not heard

and how can

they hear without

someone preaching

to them?

How can anyone

preach unless

they are sent?

Let me take that

backwards.

We send people

to go and

preach so that

people would

hear so they

would understand

and believe in

Jesus.

I think for

many of us

evangelism seems

like this really

difficult, scary,

big thing that

is really

difficult.

And Paul just

pulls it all the

way back down and

makes it quite

straightforward.

Go, speak,

explain things,

and people will

believe.

believe.

This is what

happens when we

believe that God

is sovereign and

in control of all

things.

God invites us

into his work to

speak his word and

people will be

saved.

I find there's

this fascinating

little irony.

We don't do any

work to save

ourselves, but God

invites us into

his work to see

other people saved.

people will not

hear about Jesus

unless someone

does the work of

calling.

Now this might

sound daunting.

It might sound

like it's a call

into full-time

ministry.

You've got to

become a preacher.

And for my

father, who is a

minister, this is

the passage that

God used to call

him into full-time

ministry.

He heard this and

went, yes, you're

right.

If people aren't

trained to preach

and then there's no

preaching, well, how

are people going to

hear?

And so this part of

the Bible, God used

wonderfully to call

him into ministry, and

I'm thankful for

that.

But that's not

exactly what it's

describing here.

It is that, but it's

not only that.

It's not just for

full-time ministers of

the gospel, but the

word for preaching

here is done by

heralds.

Think the ancient

world, how

announcement and

news would go

out.

You would send a

herald, a news

person to go to a

town.

And so, you know,

think there's news

that needs to get

out to the empire.

You would send a

herald.

And they'd run to

the town and they

would say, the

emperor is dead.

There's a new

emperor.

And then they'd run

to the next town and

do the same thing.

This is the role of

preaching.

This is the word, to

be a herald, to go

out and spread the

news.

And so it's kind

of like a living

newspaper.

They had the news and

they would go to a

town with the news for

everybody and they

would stand on the

street corner and they

would shout it for

everyone to hear.

But we don't even

really have newspapers

anymore.

Does anybody still get

newspapers?

Does anybody still

read newspapers?

It's all online these

days.

So for us, it's a

little bit more like

being a living version

of Twitter or

Instagram.

I don't know where

people to go to get

news if you get

news anymore.

This is a really

normal picture of

news.

So we are to be the

thing that people are

scrolling.

Instead of people being

influenced by the

latest fitness

influencer or Instagram

chef, people are to

go to the Christian to

be influenced.

And the messengers

must be sent.

And so from this

church, a number of

years ago we sent

Sam and Sally Lowe.

They were sent from

us.

They went to the Gold

Coast and they have

been going out,

preaching the word and

growing a church.

But tomorrow, this

church is also sending

all of us.

I wish it was to the

Gold Coast.

It sounds much warmer

up there at the

moment.

But we're all going.

We're all being sent

tomorrow.

We're all going to our

families, to our

friends, to the front

lines in particular that

we have.

We're going to

universities.

We're going to school.

We're going to our

places of work.

Now we're not going to

go and get a soapbox

like the Herald and

stand and say,

Jesus has died for your

sins and he was raised.

If you'd like to do

that, I've got a

soapbox for you.

That's still a good

and valid thing.

But we're going to

talk about this Jesus

who is the Lord.

About this Jesus who

has died in our place.

Because we believe that

he is the Lord.

And if he is the Lord,

well he's got sovereignty

over my life and

everybody that we know

and their life.

And there's this

wonderful picture of

the impact of those

who share the gospel.

Verse 15, as it is

written, how beautiful

are the feet of those

who bring good news.

Now that sounds

really nice, doesn't

it?

How beautiful are the

feet of those who

bring good news.

Until you remember

the first century

heralds going from

town to town.

With cobblestone

paths and dusty

roads and horses and

camels and everything

that they bring.

Their feet would have

been anything but

beautiful.

They were most likely

some of the grossest,

cracked heels,

smelliest feet you've

ever seen.

And yet, can you

imagine receiving the

very best news from

them?

You've been set free.

War is over.

There is peace.

You'd fall at their

feet and grab them

out of joy.

The news is so good

that it makes

something disgusting

amazing.

The hard part of the

remaining verses of

chapter 10 is what

happens when this

beautiful message goes

out and it goes

unheard.

Verse 21, Paul talks

about what's happened

with the Jews.

From God's perspective,

he says,

all day long, I've

held out my hands to

a disobedient and

obstinate people.

Not all of Israel

will accept the

news.

Not all of those

who hear the gospel

will understand.

Not all will

believe.

And that's the

heartbreaking reality

of the gospel.

We know from the

outset that all are

responsible for

rebelling against God

and God is

responsible for

bringing in who

he chooses.

But we never know

who is going to

come in when we

share the gospel.

And so there is a

wonderful beauty

that we share it

knowing that God

does work and he

does save.

But we also know

that some are

hardened, just like

the Jews.

No matter how

often the gospel

is held out to

them, some people

will never believe.

But it is

absolutely necessary

to share the

gospel.

Not for us to be

right with God.

Not out of

compulsion to be

forgiven by him.

But for their

sake.

Because just like

us, how will

people know God

unless they hear

the call?

How will they

hear the word

unless someone

takes it to them?

I read a story

about the former

US President

Jimmy Carter

recently.

I don't know if

you care at all

about American

politics.

But Jimmy Carter

is an

evangelical

Christian.

And as a

Christian, before

becoming the

president, he

shared one of

his issues when

he realised how

zealous he was

for himself and

not for God.

As a part of his

church, he would

visit a few people

on a Sunday

afternoon and he'd

read the Bible

with them and he'd

pray and have a

bit of a chat and

then he'd go on

with his day.

And he said he

was always so

proud of his

efforts and it

left him with a

clear conscience

throughout the

week as if he'd

been doing this

really good thing.

And he counted

up his visits one

day and figured

out that in 14

years he'd done

140 visits.

And he was quite

chuffed at that.

And then in

comparison he

reflected that when

he was running as

governor in 1966,

he spent 16 to

18 hours a day

trying to reach as

many voters as

possible.

In the end of his

campaign, he had

met with more than

300,000 people.

And he said, the

comparison struck

me.

300,000 visits for

myself in three

months and 140

visits for God in

14 years.

Now we can easily

start to think that

evangelism is going

to earn our place

into heaven as if

somehow it's the

deed that we need

to do to make us

righteous before God.

Don't hear that

from me.

But brothers and

sisters, where is

our zeal?

Where are we

placing our energy

and enthusiasm?

Is our zeal for

ourselves like Jimmy

Carter realized?

So we spend our

time and our

efforts making

ourselves look good.

Is it running to

a particular

finish line of

success?

Following God

gets put to one

side as we pursue

best marks at

school, best marks

at university, the

highest amount of

work we can do to

get the next

promotion.

Are we running

towards a finish

line of joy and

success in only

temporary things?

Maybe we see this

zealous Christian

life, you know,

this Christian life

who shares the

gospel with their

friends and family

in a world of you

believe what you

believe and I'll

believe what I

believe and don't

you talk about

them.

And we see some

Christians who are

zealous and think,

ah, they just look a

bit weird.

I don't want to be

like that person

standing on the

soapbox.

And we go, I'm not

going to be like

that.

So I'm just going to

have a bit more of a

mundane life.

Unaware of how

beautiful are the

feet of those who

bring good news.

Where are you

putting your energy

enthusiasm?

I've got a

challenge for you

this week.

Just a very small

taste of what it

would look like to

be zealous for God.

To pursue his

call to love other

people.

To see that call

go out.

A very small

challenge.

I'd like you to

reflect on one

aspect of God's

love for you this

week.

What is, how has

God been good to

you?

It could be that

you've been

reflecting on how

sinful you are and

how much you need

his love and how

good he is.

It could be that

you're so thankful

for this community

of Christians that

God has given you.

One aspect of how

God has been good to

you and to share

that with someone

else.

Someone who is not

a Christian.

God is calling

you to trust in

Jesus as the

Lord and to

call others to

this same Lord

because he is

good.

Let me pray.

Dear Heavenly

Father, we thank

you, Lord, that

you do indeed

call us who are

unrighteous.

we are all

responsible for

rebelling against

you, but God, we

thank you that you

call people and

God, we thank you

that you invite us

into your work.

Heavenly Father,

equip us, give us

words to speak, help

us take a moment to

reflect on how good

you have been.

And Lord, we ask

that this week you

would put one person

in our lives that we

get to share it.

Father, we know

that you are

preparing people to

come to know and

love you.

Help us to see

them for your

glory, Lord.

We pray this in

your son's name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.