Romans 8:18-39

In Romans chapter 5 and verse 1, we read these words,

Romans 5 · chapter mention

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.

And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Let us pray.

Our Father in heaven, we thank you for your word.

Your word which testifies that you are for us and not against us.

Your word that testifies that Jesus now is God with us,

and that the Holy Spirit has now come to dwell in us.

Our Father, we pray that we would hear your voice speaking to us,

that we would heed your voice, and that we would trust you and follow you wherever you go.

We thank you for the word of God.

We thank you for the people of God.

And we thank you for the work of the gospel,

that work that is taking place in each of the lives of your people,

and that work which is reaching people who are not yet trusting in Jesus.

So we bring our prayers before you.

We thank you for this access that brings us into your presence,

that we have through Jesus this peace with you, our God,

and this access through faith into the grace in which we now stand.

We pray for our church family.

We pray for everyone connected to it.

We pray for each individual member of that family and each of their individual families.

Lord, you know them each one and you love them.

It's our prayer that they would know your blessing and presence in their lives.

We pray for everyone involved in the work of ministry.

We thank you for the service that Kellen provides every week with the music.

We thank you for James' preaching and teaching ministry.

And we pray that he and Vicki would have a good break over the summer.

For Sebastian and Casper, that as a family, they might know your presence and encouragement.

And for each one of us, might we all have a time of rest and refreshment with our families, with friends,

and that you would comfort us and encourage us and strengthen us.

As we pray for our church and our church family, we pray too for our community.

We pray for the city of Edinburgh, the nation of Scotland, the peoples of this world.

As we realize the great blessing that it is that you are for us,

and that we have access to you through Jesus, that we are now at peace with you.

We ask, Lord, that your word would go forth, whether through the internet or person to person,

and that those who do not yet know would come to know.

That those who have not yet heard would come to hear.

And those who have not yet trusted would come to place their faith and trust in your Son, the Lord Jesus.

So we give you thanks that you are with us, that you are in us, and that you are for us.

And we ask, Lord, that you would remind us that in Jesus Christ,

we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

Because we pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Our reading today comes from Romans chapter 8,

Romans 8 · chapter mention

and we'll pick up reading at verse 18, and we'll read down to the end of the chapter.

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.

For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.

For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice,

but by the will of the one who subjected it.

In hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay

and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.

Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit,

groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.

For in this hope we were saved, but hope that is seen is no hope at all.

Who hopes for what they already have?

But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.

We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit,

because the Spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance with the will of God.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him,

who have been called according to his purpose.

For those God foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son,

that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

And those he predestined, he also called.

Those he called, he also justified.

Those he justified, he also glorified.

What then shall we say in response to these things?

If God is for us, who can be against us?

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all,

how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?

Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen?

It is God who justifies.

Who then is the one who condemns?

No one, Christ Jesus, who died, more than that, who was raised to life,

is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

Shall trouble, or hardship, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?

As it is written, for your sake we face death all day long.

We are considered a sheep to be slaughtered.

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,

neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,

neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation,

will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Amen.

And may God add his own blessing to this reading of his word.

Well, let's turn together to those words at the very end of Romans chapter 8,

Romans 8 · chapter mention

where Paul says these remarkable words.

He says,

What then shall we say in response to these things?

If God is for us, who can be against us?

We might be inclined to say,

it's not a particularly good time to be a Christian.

The church is numerically small and is divided.

There are cultural divisions.

There are theological divisions.

Some take the message of Jesus and add to it.

Others take the message of Jesus and take away from it.

Some try to make this message more palatable to the culture that surrounds it.

We can also say that the culture itself is not particularly sympathetic.

It's strangely tolerant of all things,

but it seems completely intolerant to the Christian message.

So politically, socially, economically,

Christians and the Christian church are finding the going tough.

They are not in the ascendancy.

They are not the powerful.

They are not the movers.

They are not the shakers.

And if we're honest,

it looks like things might get worse before they get better.

Now, if Walter Cronkite,

the famous CBS anchorman for CBS News,

were to say,

and that's the way it is.

City of Rome,

57 AD,

long time ago.

But that description sounds very contemporary.

It sounds very much like today.

It's not an easy time to be a Christian.

The culture in which we live professes to be tolerant,

but in practice is rarely tolerant.

The Christian church is not strong or numerous.

And there are divisions,

we have to be honest.

So it seems like the going is tough,

and it's going to get tougher

in this process,

or in this life of following Jesus.

But what we're told here,

as we begin with these words,

God being for us,

what shall we say if God is for us?

Who can be against us?

And this passage continues by telling us

that we are more than conquerors

through Christ who loved us.

Now, we find this very difficult to accept.

We can find it easy to accept

that the Christian faith is marginalized.

We can find it easy to accept

that the society is not sympathetic,

and that the Christian church is not vibrant,

and that individual Christians

are not particularly strong.

But sometimes we find it very difficult

to accept when something positive is said.

I was listening to Radio 4 a few weeks ago,

and a psychiatrist was on,

and they said that

for every one negative thing

we hear about ourselves,

it takes at least five positives

to balance that out.

Now, you might be inclined

to discount Radio 4.

I encourage you not to.

It's one of my favorite sources of news.

You might be inclined

to discount modern psychiatry

and your liberty to do so.

But just to give you

an interesting perspective,

the secular psychiatrist

said about five to one,

whereas Christian counselors

suggest that that number

is much higher,

that the Christian needs to hear

at least seven positives

for every one negative.

So as followers of Jesus,

we're far more likely

to believe negative things

about ourselves,

negative things that others might say.

We might believe the negative rhetoric

that the culture or the society

has to say about us.

But Paul has something positive to say.

And because we believe

that the Bible is God's word,

God has something positive to say.

He wants us to hear it.

He wants us to believe it.

And he wants us to live

in the light of this truth.

Because if we live

as those who are more than conquerors,

if we live as those

for whom God is for them,

not against them,

our lives will be transformed.

Our church will be transformed.

Our testimony,

the words that we say

and the life that we live,

will be transformed.

Because the alternative is,

we hear the negative

and we live accordingly.

We hear those words of failure.

And strangely enough,

we find ourselves living as failures.

We find ourselves

not living as conquerors,

but living as those who are conquered.

Not living as victors,

but living as those

who are vanquished.

So whatever you might think

this morning,

or whatever you might feel,

now your thoughts are important

and your feelings are important,

but I want to say this,

that what God has to say

about you

is more important

than what the society

has to say about you,

than what the culture

has to say about you,

and even what you have to say

about you.

So when we look at the Bible,

particularly the New Testament,

there are two great redemptive events.

The first is the incarnation,

that great word Emmanuel,

God is with us.

The second great redemptive event

is the Pentecost event,

the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

And that means that God is in us.

We are temples of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus comes to dwell among us.

The Spirit is poured out at Pentecost,

and now the Spirit takes up

residence in the human heart.

Now John Wesley put this together

so helpfully.

He said,

if any doctrines within the whole compass

of Christianity

may be properly termed fundamental,

they are doubtless these two.

The doctrine of justification

and that of the new birth.

The former,

relating to that great work

which God does for us,

and in forgiving our sins,

the latter,

to the great work

which God does in us.

In renewing our character,

renewing our lives.

So now we turn to Paul,

and he wants to focus on these words,

God for us.

Remember the incarnation?

God with us.

The Holy Spirit?

God in us.

Now the atoning work of Jesus.

The work of Jesus on the cross,

God for us.

What shall we say?

How can we respond?

God?

In many ways,

I teach theology,

and theology is an attempt

to say something,

to say something in response

to these things,

to say something in response

to what God has said,

and to say something in response

to what God has done.

Whatever we say is inadequate,

but God has something to say to us.

He wants us to hear it.

He wants us to believe it,

and he wants us to live

in the light of these truths.

God is for us.

If God is for us,

who can be against us?

Who is this us?

This us is that great numberless

group of people

from the past,

the present,

and even into the future.

From all different places,

all different cultures.

They're Jews.

They're Gentiles.

They're poor.

They're rich.

They're northern.

They're southern.

They're eastern.

They're western.

They are all different kinds of people

from all different kinds of places.

They're young,

and they're old,

and they're rich,

and they're educated.

They're illiterate.

Whatever it might be.

But what I want you to see

is as we read this passage,

the Apostle Paul is using

an illustration.

He's using a courtroom illustration

to illustrate this point.

And he asks us three questions.

And he,

in so doing,

he mirrors

what is happening

in a criminal case.

Because in a criminal case,

someone is in the dock.

And the case will begin

with some form of accusation,

some form of charge.

He has done that.

She has done that.

Then the course,

the case will take its course,

and either the person

is acquitted

and found innocent

and dismissed,

or the person

is found guilty,

in which case

they are judged

or condemned.

So you see,

a charge moves,

if accurate,

to condemnation.

And then condemnation

would then move

to some form

of separation.

So if a guilty person

is fined,

that means

some of their money

is separated from them.

If a person

is in prison,

I work as a prison chaplain,

so I encounter

prisoners all the time.

If somebody is in prison,

they are separated

from their home.

They are separated

from their loved ones.

And in a capital case,

where capital punishment

is allowed,

the guilty party,

the condemned party,

could be separated

from life itself.

So with you,

very briefly,

I want to look at

this magnificent passage

that may be precious

to many

whom I'm speaking to,

but I'm aware

that some

may never have read it before,

or may have never

considered it before.

But I want you

to hear

what God has to say

concerning those

for whom

he

has done

this great work.

Those for whom

he is on their side.

Because the first question,

we see this,

that if God is for us,

who can be against us?

He who did not

spare his own son,

but gave him up

for us all,

how will he not also

along with him

graciously give us

all things?

So you see,

the Apostle Paul

is saying that

in Jesus Christ,

God has given us

the most precious

gift he could give.

And if he has given us

this gift,

the life of his son,

the death of his son,

the resurrection

of his son,

there is no limit

to what he will do.

There is no limit

to what he will give.

Because if he gives

that which is greatest,

and if he gives that

which is most precious,

he will be not likely

to give any other gift

or provide any other need.

So the first question

we see is in verse 33,

who will bring any charge

against those

whom God has chosen?

So Paul is the great preacher,

and he uses these

rhetorical devices,

question and answer.

So you hear a question,

and you're brought

into the talk.

Who's going to bring

a charge?

Who's going to bring

a charge against

God's people,

God's elect?

And he goes on

to answer, he says,

it is God who justifies.

So you might say

there are many charges,

and there might be

many charges that are true.

There are many things

that I've done,

said, or thought

that are wrong

and are culpable.

But if God has justified,

Paul is saying

there's no charge.

No charge can be made.

No charge can stand.

No charge can be prosecuted.

Why?

Because another has been

prosecuted in our place.

Another has been charged

in our place.

And another,

ultimately, we see,

has been punished

in our place.

So if you're tuning in today

and you're not yet a Christian,

you might know very little

about the Christian faith,

the message of the Bible

is predominantly a message

concerning God

and his son.

That God sent his son

into this world

to live, to die,

to rise again

so that you and I

could have life.

Jesus describes this

as life that is abundant

in John chapter 10,

John 10:10

verse 10,

and life that is eternal

in John chapter 10,

John 10:28

verse 28.

So life is on offer.

But the reality of life

is this,

that we are guilty.

We do things that are wrong.

We see things that are wrong.

We think things that are wrong.

So therefore,

this idea of being charged

connects.

And we think,

well, there's much

that I can be charged with.

But Paul says,

who will bring any charge

against those

whom God has chosen?

Who can do it?

The answer, of course,

is no one.

No one can bring that charge.

Why?

Because Jesus

has taken the charge.

Jesus has stood

in our place.

He has been declared guilty.

Remember those two charges

that he was convicted

of treason

and he claimed to be a king

and he was accused of blasphemy

because he claimed to be God.

So he was accused

of the most serious of crimes

and he was punished

and condemned

and was separated

from the land of the living.

So God is for us.

So this charge,

charge number one,

who will bring any charge?

The answer is no one.

The second question,

who is he that condemns?

We see this in verse 30.

Who is then the one

who condemns verse 34?

No one.

Christ Jesus who died

more than that

who was raised to life

is at the right hand of God

and is also interceding for us.

So you move from a charge

to a condemnation.

And the same problem exists

because we are by nature guilty.

So not only does the charge stick,

but then the charge brings

some form of condemnation.

But Paul says,

no, no charge will stand

and no condemnation will happen.

And why?

Why will no condemnation?

Because Jesus Christ,

Christ Jesus died

and he was raised.

And more than that,

he is at the right hand of God

and is interceding for us.

You see,

it's all about Jesus.

If we are united to Jesus,

if we are trusting in Jesus,

then all that pertains to him

pertains to us.

His innocence,

his righteousness,

his goodness,

his obedience

becomes our innocence,

our righteousness,

our justification,

our obedience.

And all that pertains to us

goes to him.

Our guilt,

our shame,

our failures,

all those negative things

that we are inclined

to believe about ourselves

go to his account.

He pays the price.

So who will make a charge?

No one.

Who will condemn?

No one.

No charge can stand

and no condemnation can stick.

Jesus died.

He rose.

He's seated at the right hand of God

and right now

he is praying for us.

Sometimes we don't pray for ourselves,

but he is praying for us.

And the third question

that is asked

is in verse 35,

who shall separate us

from the love of Christ?

So that's the third question.

The charge.

Who can charge?

No one.

Who will accuse you?

No one.

Who can condemn?

No one.

Who will separate?

No one.

And nothing.

And the whole list here

is just quite a remarkable list.

Because the apostle tells us,

he says,

shall trouble or hardship

or persecution

or famine

or nakedness

or danger or sword.

All these external

and internal problems.

All these challenges

and difficulties.

And he says,

will they separate you?

And you might be inclined

to say,

yes, they will.

There are many hardships

and many trials

and many troubles

and they are far greater

than I am.

And they are far greater

than we are.

They are far more powerful

and far stronger

than we could possibly be.

So our inclination

is to agree

that these enemies

are many and varied.

But,

if Christ has died

and if Christ has risen

and if he is praying,

then the answer

to this third question

is the same as the answer

to the first two questions.

No one will charge,

no one will condemn,

and no one

and nothing

will separate us

from the love of God

that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

No, in all these things

we are more than conquerors

through him who loved us.

The apostle Paul

made up words

in the Greek language

to capture concepts

that the language itself

just couldn't capture.

Now, the idea of a conqueror

was an idea

that the Romans had.

The Latin,

the Roman,

and the Greek language

captured this idea

of one who was victorious.

Alexander the Great,

Augustus Caesar.

These were conquerors.

But Paul says,

no, no,

that's an inadequate word

to describe you

as a Christian

because you are more

than a conqueror.

So Jerome,

one of the early translators

of the Bible

into Latin,

he used a phrase,

he said,

what Paul is saying here

is that we are

over-overcomers.

You know,

a conqueror

is one who overcomes.

But more than conquerors

is one who over-overcomes.

You see,

it's difficult to express

in language

because it's such a big idea.

And you think of

all the dangers,

all the persecutions,

all the difficulties,

and then Paul goes on

to say in verses 38 and 39,

he said,

let me list out some more

if you want convincing here.

He said,

what about death

or life?

What about angels

or demons?

What about the present

or the future

or any powers,

height or depth

or anything else

in all creation

will be able to separate us

from the love of Christ Jesus?

So what he's saying

is here's everything.

You want angels

and demons.

You want height,

you want depth.

You want the present,

you want the future.

So he's saying,

let me tell you everything.

Let me put into words

all the possible challenges,

all the possible difficulties,

all the potential pitfalls.

Let me bring before you

all the enemies,

real or imagined,

all the dangers.

Let me bring them

all together,

Paul says.

And let me ask this question,

can any one of these

or all of them together

separate you,

separate me

from the love of God

that is in Christ Jesus,

our Lord?

And the answer is

absolutely nothing

and absolutely no one.

In the ancient world,

in the Roman Empire,

there was what was called

a Roman triumph,

a great general

or the emperor himself.

The Senate would pass

a resolution

that for a day

or sometimes three days,

there would be

a huge procession

through the city of Rome.

And this procession

was closely choreographed.

So you would have

the prisoners of war

and those captured

in battle,

the slaves.

You would have

the spoils of war.

You would have

the conquering soldiers.

You would have

the officers

and the generals.

And then at the end

of this great triumph,

this great parade,

you would have

the conquering general.

And he would receive

the acclamation

of the whole city.

the triumph

would wind its way

through the streets

of Rome

so that everyone

could see

what a conqueror

really looks like.

So if you were

a Roman Christian

in 57 AD

and Paul talked

about a conqueror,

you would have

an image in your mind

and you say,

I know what that

looks like.

Paul says that

is an inadequate image

to describe yourself.

Now a Christian

would never naturally

think of themselves

as a conqueror.

They would more likely

think of themselves

as one who is conquered,

one who is vanquished,

one who is not

at the end of the procession

receiving the honor,

but one who is

at the front of the possession

a slave

or a prisoner of war.

But the Apostle Paul says

to you and to me,

if you're a follower of Jesus,

this is who you are.

This is what God says about you.

Now if you have anything else

to say about you,

you have to accept

that if God says something

and you say something else,

there's somebody wrong here

and God's never wrong.

So if this is God's

estimation of you

that you are more

than conquerors,

we are more than conquerors,

then his verdict

is the correct verdict.

It doesn't matter

what other people say.

It doesn't matter

what we think about ourselves.

It doesn't matter

what society,

how society judges us

or grades us.

But if we are

following Jesus,

the one who died,

the one who rose,

the one who's seated,

and the one who right now

is praying,

imagine that,

right now he's praying

for his people,

all of his people.

He's praying for those

who are weak

that they'd be strengthened,

for those who are discouraged

that they'd be heartened.

He's praying for those

who feel like giving up

to persevere.

This is not about

what you are doing

for Jesus,

but let me tell you

what Jesus is doing for you,

has done for you,

and one day

will bring into completion.

God is for us.

God is with us.

God is in us.

Nothing and no one

can stand against us.

No charge can stand.

No condemnation can be made.

And no separation will occur.

So if you're today

struggling,

maybe the way of following

Jesus is a tough way,

carry on.

Carry on because there's

no better way,

no better choice.

Turn to him

and ask for the help

and strength

because if he's sent his son,

he will send everything.

He will provide

all that you need.

And if you're not yet

following Jesus,

these are the terms

and conditions.

This is what he offers.

This is what he provides.

This is what he promises.

These are his guarantees.

Because without Jesus,

every charge that is true

will stand.

And every true charge

will ultimately bring

some condemnation

and ultimately separation.

So you need this Jesus

to stand for you.

You need this Jesus

to satisfy

God's righteous requirements.

And you need this Jesus

to stand with you,

to encourage you,

to strengthen you,

to equip you,

and to enable you

to stand.

And to know that

this image of a conqueror

is an inadequate way

to describe you and me.

We are far more

than a conqueror.

We are far greater,

far more powerful,

far more secure.

All those great conquerors

of the past

have been forgotten.

All their great victories

have long been forgotten.

But every follower of Jesus

is guaranteed a place

in his kingdom,

in his family,

and in his house.

And I'm telling you today,

not one of us

will be separated from him.

That's why we trust him.

That's why we love him.

That's why we follow him.

And that's why we believe in him.

Let me give you

one final illustration.

One of my great heroes,

I'll call him a hero,

D.L. Moody,

evangelist at the end

of the 19th century.

He said this.

He said,

doctrines are all right

in their places.

But when you put them

in the place of faith

or salvation,

they become sin.

So you see,

we cherish the doctrines

of justification.

We cherish the doctrines

of adoption

or of reconciliation.

He says,

if a man should ask me

to his house

to dinner tomorrow,

the street would be

a very good thing

to take me to his house.

But if I didn't get

into the house,

I wouldn't get any dinner.

Now,

a creed

is a road

or a street.

It is very good

as far as it goes.

But if it doesn't

take us to Christ,

it is worthless.

There is plenty

of theology.

There is plenty

of truths

about Jesus.

But if those truths

and that theology

and if these scriptures

do not take you

to him,

they will be

of no benefit

to you.

It is not enough

to know about him.

It is not enough

to admire him.

It is not enough

to gaze

at a distance.

But the scriptures

are intended

to bring you

to Jesus.

The gospel

is the power

of God

unto salvation

for all

who believe.

And for those

of us

who have believed,

the scriptures

are given

to strengthen us,

to encourage us,

and to equip us.

Because I guarantee you,

this week,

if you remind yourself

every day,

I am more

than a conqueror

through Christ Jesus

who loved me,

your life

will be transformed

by the grace

of God,

by the power

of God,

by the presence

of God,

and by the indwelling

spirit of Jesus Christ.

So may God

bless you

and may his word

dwell richly

in your heart.

Amen.