Romans 3 | Jerry Harris

How about that Crossing Church? That's pretty awesome watching.

That, isn't it boy? God is not done.

He keeps doing incredible work. So, thankful to see what he is

doing well Crossing Church. How are you doing today?

Want to welcome everyone, that's joining, all of our locations,

all across this area inside and online.

So thankful for each and every one of you.

And I'm excited to be able to be here with you and to break the

bread of life with you. It's always great to be in the

house of the Lord, with the people of the Lord, learning the

word of the Lord together changes us.

It incredible incredible ways. Happy Father's Day, Happy

Father's Day Grandfather's Day. Great grandfather's day.

Nobody gets to Bark or complain at you today, right?

And you get to eat where you want to, that's right.

Should at least be, at least be that So I got a call, a couple

of weeks ago from a friend of mine in Kansas city named

Brandon Mims. It's a pastor there and been a

friend for a long time. Haven't talked to him for a

while for quite a while and so he kind of calls me out of the

blue and goes, I don't know why I'm supposed to call you, but I

just felt led by God to call you about.

Somebody that is on my heart and I Thought maybe you might be

able to do something. I don't know what it might be.

And he was telling me the story of a man named Martin Thomas who

had been a pastor at, in the Kansas City area friend of

Brandon was incarcerated broke. The law was incarcerated came

out and then God laid it on his heart to do these halfway houses

for men as they come out of incarceration, back into the

world and how they could be discipled and built up.

And as he was telling me this, I said you know we do that we have

we partner with two Ministries the well house and Fishers of

Men and we have different houses that accomplish that as well.

He goes thatís. That's amazing that he had no

idea that we that we did that and that we connected with that.

And he gave me the fellas name and I gave him a call and just

just incredible guy and doing incredible work both in

Indianapolis. Indiana.

And also, in Fort Wayne, and he has Ministry, is called

Nazareth, man House ministries, which is like, oh, that's kind

of a, that's kind of a mouthful, it's an interesting and I was

asking him about that and he said, well, you know, there's a

scripture in the bible where jesus is questioned kind of

rhetorically and the question that was delivered to him.

Is there anything good that can come out of Nazareth?

And he goes, that just fits us. Because so many people, they

think. Well if you've been

incarcerated, if you have this in your past, well then you're

kind of damaged goods and maybe God can't use you or anything

like that. And that's what they were kind

of saying about Nazareth. And look what came out of

Nazareth changed, the whole world changed my life, change

your life, and what God can do is he can change lives and I was

just excited to hear his testimony and so Went to the

admissions committee, went to Clayton.

I said, hey what do you think? Could we help them out?

So we send them six thousand dollars to keep them going and

hooked him up with some other Ministry.

People who might be able to keep him going after that because

some of their support had run dry.

So I don't think anybody likes it.

When they get labeled or they get discounted in some way like

can anything good? Like if you're from Nazareth

like what are you? I think we're actually the

opposite of that. Each one of us wants to feel

special in some place. Some way we want to, we want to

be noticed, we wanted to stand out and we try to make life

choices to do that, right? It may be a group that we

identify with, maybe it's something in our appearance,

like the color, we dye, our hair, how many colors we dye our

hair and The language, we might use the music, we listen to the

clothes, we wear the car, we drive a sport, we like, and we

can do that individually and we can do that in groups and we can

even do that as a nation, right? We all want to be exceptional.

We all want to stand out. I don't think anybody is saying,

I would just like to be a C- kind of a person.

I think everybody wants to excel in some way and stand out in

some way, and I'm no different. I like to see that the crossing

is the best church ever. I would love to hear you say

that John and bassist John this great, right?

I want to be exceptional. Some I want to say we're the

ones that this are we the ones that that is not to say that I'm

casting judgment on others. I just want us to be the best

that we can be. I want that for my kids.

I want my kids to excel. I want them to be the best that

they can be, right? I want to stand out.

I want my grandkids to really stand out.

You know, I want to make up for all the failings I did with my

kids, right with my grandchildren.

Imagine you connect with some of this, some of you are real

Sports Enthusiast. You want your team to stand out?

You don't want them to have a, have an even season where they

have as many wins as losses. Do you?

You want him to go all the way to the end.

You want to win the big trophy? And sometimes it's hard there's

a lot of competition when it comes to standing out right

Brands once sales social media, once clicks networks want

ratings, they're all saying standout Stand Out stand out.

We're in Romans chapter 3. Now, the book of Romans is the

Romans 3 · chapter mention

Apostle Paul writing to both Jewish and Gentile, Romans

Jewish being the nation of Israel and Gentiles literally,

everybody else in the church in Rome, trying to help them

understand these basics of what it means to be a Christ

follower. And when you think about Israel

and we're in Romans 3, we're going to be talking about

Israel. It was, it had a hard time

standing Out Among the Nations. It was just a tiny little Nation

compared to these huge massive Empires.

And last week we learned a little bit about how the nation

of Israel viewed itself and how it viewed its value and how it

kind of came into its own understanding of identity.

Now, the Glory Days of Israel were about 1000 BC about 3,000

years ago and it began with King David.

The, you know, the king who was a Shepherd who became a king and

then his son Solomon, And the Pinnacle of Israel is a nation

as you buy the rest of the world was during the reign of Solomon.

And then it was downhill from there after that they became a

more and more oppressed people until they were entirely.

Oppressed 732 BC, 586 BC, they were literally deported out of

the country. And they were enslaved.

So they've had they had, they had that Pinnacle and then these

lower times. But what they did through, all

of that was they held onto their identity.

It's what brought them through those difficult times and it

came in the form of a religiously rooted culture.

This Old Testament culture, that came from Moses on the mountain

came from the patriarchy. Abraham, all of that it came

from, this language is ancient language, you know, Hebrew is

still spoken daily in Israel and it's one of the most ancient

languages in the world and it came from their set of laws and

customs and rituals that they held onto through all of that

time. The biggest part though, of this

Identity or this feeling that they had, was that they were

understood. They understood themselves and

the Bible talked about them as God's chosen people.

Like God didn't choose anybody else.

You didn't choose any of those other nations?

He chose us. He chose Israel.

He named it Israel. After Jacob's name, when he was

changed his name, change from Jacob to Israel.

That was something that God did, it was a privileged position and

so they kind of felt like they had a Golden Ticket, a golden

ticket to the one true God. Like everybody else.

You can do whatever you want to do to try to approach God, but

we are his chosen ones. We are his chosen people and

you. See that resonating in these

early chapters in Romans if you've been doing the study, the

devotional guide, you know that you see how that's coming along.

Now it is true that God did choose a people and that people

was Israel and the Apostle Paul was one of those chosen people,

he was Jewish and God did have a special relationship with them.

He had a covenant relationship with them.

This is something a lot of us, may not understand but like you

go back into the Old Testament, the book of Exodus chapter 20.

Exodus 20 · chapter mention

It's a famous chapter because that's the chapter that has the

Ten Commandments. That God wrote with his finger

on Stone and gave it to Moses, who brought it down to the

people. And a lot of people would say

today, what we all want to live by the Ten Commandments, and

that's not bad because the Ten Commandments do reveal the heart

of God, the justice of God, But did you know that?

That that decalogue that Ten Commandments was a covenant law.

It means it was between the Jews and God, it wasn't between us

and God. It was between the Jews and God,

and when you read about it, there's actually a whole

process. They go go through where the

people adopt those laws has their own.

And God says, on that basis. I will be your God and you will

be my people. It was a covenant law with the

nation of Israel. Some of us might get that a

little mixed up but did that make them better than you?

No spiritually speaking, everything that was good came

from God. It wasn't because of them and

they actually have less excuse before God, then those who were

not in the special relationship because they had all the

covenants in the promises and the rest of the Nations did not.

Now, how do you relate to that? And how do I relate to that?

Because we're going to spend time here in Romans chapter 3.

Romans 3 · chapter mention

And we're going well, he's talking to A lot about Israel

and I don't know how we really connect with that.

Well, some of us have been Christians longer than others.

Haven't we? How many of you have been a

Christian longer than 10 years? Yeah, a lot of you have, but

some of you haven't and so, some might think, well, if I've been

a Christian longer, you know, I'm a little bit more seasoned

in my faith. I know a little bit more, you

should kind of understand that about me.

Some of us have Christian parents, so like maybe we're not

a dynasty yet, but but we were kind of brought up to this, you

know, we're second generation third, maybe fourth generation,

because we've had Christian parents and Christian influence.

That way some of us maybe come from a long line of professed

Christians. Some of us may have actually

been major players in the church, you know, maybe even

held an office maybe even had a title.

You know, how they put, they put up pictures on the screens, and

then there's like, Chiron below. It like, like worship leader or

Pastor or a teacher or yeah, elder or leader in some way.

Maybe we get a title or held an office.

Maybe we come from an influential church family, maybe

it was a financially powerful family.

Maybe we were well networked in the community.

And so the church see us is really vital or important

because of all of our connections and networks.

Maybe we were even on staff or are on staff maybe we've been

professionally trained, maybe we have a degree from a college

that specializes in biblical knowledge.

Wow. Maybe we think that makes us

stand out. And we might get a little

prideful believing our own press.

We might think we're better than everybody else.

We may think that God favors us that we're in some sort of

privileged position. So we can relate.

To what we're going to read here in a minute.

From Romans Chapter 3, The Apostle Paul could certainly

Romans 3 · chapter mention

relate to that because he understood it all too.

Well not only did he understand it?

He actually lived it, he was a Pharisee, he was like the the

rising star of Judaism. I mean, he not only lived it, he

literally killed for it, he put people in prison and had them

put to death that were Christians because he was so

committed. To these beliefs of God's chosen

people. But like a person who's overcome

an addictive behavior, he's become so sensitized to it.

He has no tolerance for it anymore and that's why he one of

the main reasons. He's writing Romans chapter 3.

Romans 3 · chapter mention

So let's begin together. Okay, verses 1 to 4 What

advantage then is there to being a Jew or what value is there in

circumcision, which is the sign of the Covenant law that God had

with them? Much in every way.

First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of

God. That's true.

What if some Jews were unfaithful?

And there were plenty of them. You read about them all the time

in the Old Testament will their unfaithfulness nullify, God's

faithfulness, not at all. Let God be true.

And every human being a liar. I mean, it's like he's setting

these. He's sitting up there his

readers right now as it is written, so that you may be

proved right when you speak and Prevail when you judge.

So the Jewish readers right now in the Book of Romans are going.

Yeah, preach it. Paul, let him have it.

Paul. We're those people.

Just because we made some mistakes, doesn't mean we're any

less of God's chosen people. Yeah.

But Paul also knows there's an argument, that's going to start

in their heads, when he does the next part of the passage

starting in verse 5. But if our unrighteousness

brings out God's righteousness more clearly.

What shall we say? So right when we're, when we're

bad, it just shows how good God is.

Because you see the contrast that God is unjust and bringing

his wrath on us. I'm using a human argument.

Certainly not. I mean, does God have the right

to judge us? When we do things wrong?

Does he have the right to punish us?

Because there are these laws, particularly the Covenant laws

of the Old Testament. If that were so how could God

judge the world, someone might argue if my falsehood enhances

God's truthfulness. And so increases his glory, why

am I still condemned as a sinner?

Why not say as some slanderously claim we say let us do evil that

good may result like the worse. I am it just shows how much

better God is. And so when the Apostle Paul was

talking about Grace, the unmerited favor of God, and how

you could have forgiveness of sins, and it wasn't based on

your Works. Some people were interpreting

that as well. I can just be as bad as I want

because all that does is show how great God is.

He goes. Their condemnation is just Hmm.

Alright, so he's setting this up right now.

Now, I want to see verse 9 because verse 9 is summing up.

Those first eight verses kind of in a single sentence.

Let's look at it. What shall we conclude then do

we have any advantage being juice?

Not at all. For we have already made the

charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are under the power of

sin. So Paul is saying that doesn't

matter if you're Jewish, doesn't matter.

If your Gentile doesn't matter. If you have these Covenant laws

or God's promises or if you're a person, like most of us that are

still listening to me. Now a gentile which means you

didn't have that growing up. Are you don't have that Covenant

law. Like they did.

We're all the same boat. It's full of holes and it's

sinking. It's sinking in a sea of sin.

Sin, because we are all sinners, and we're all in danger of

drowning. Really drowning.

Yeah, drowning drowning. If you understand how God views

sin. So what I want you to do right

now is forget about how you view sin, because the way you view

sin, often times is is like you rationalize it.

You make excuses for it, you do comparative thinking, well, I'm

I've done this but I'm not done that.

Let's see how God views sin. So what Paul does here is he

does a mash-up of basically three Bible books quotes, The

Book of Psalms primarily and also Ecclesiastes and Isaiah and

he says this in verses 10 through 18, listen as it is

written, there is no one righteous not even one, there is

no one who understands. There is no one who seeks.

God all have turned away. They have together become

worthless, how you feeling so far?

Well, I'm great. I came to church and you called

me worthless Jerry. No, I didn't.

God did. Right there verse 12.

There is no one who does good. Not even one.

Did you brush this morning? Their throats are open Graves,

their tongues practice, deceit. The poison of vipers is on their

lips. Their mouths are full of cursing

and bitterness. Wow, change your socks.

Their feet are Swift to shed blood ruin and misery mark their

ways and the way of peace. They do not know.

There is no fear of God before their eyes and some of you are

going. Yeah.

Get those people. You notice the pronouns in that

passage all the pronouns? Are they them in there?

It's so nice to be able to pronounce judgment on everybody

else like they do on social media.

Isn't it? But what we understand, when we

read Romans 3 is, this is really not.

They them in there. This is, I me and mine.

This is me. This is who you are.

This is who I am. That's the hard truth.

Now I know we live in a post truth culture where there's your

truth and there's my truth and you do you and I'll do me.

But the truth is that there is the truth and that's God's

truth. And the truth about Sin is the

truth about you. Because we are sinners.

It's the truth about us. And the truth is that you

haven't just failed. Hear me now.

You fail enough and that label becomes the definition of who

you are. You haven't?

You're not to someone who's failed.

You are a failure. Thanks Gerry.

It's been great coming here this morning, feeling the

encouragement. That is emanating from your

words. Yeah.

You're going to, I'm a failure. Yes, you are.

And I am, I'm the guy standing up here telling you how to live

your life, and I'm a complete total abject failure.

We have all failed God's standard of righteousness and

like verse 9 says, we are all under the power of sin.

It has power over you. It has power over us all and

just like 9 verse 19, says, we are all accountable to God and

we have no defense before. God great.

All those excuses, all those rationalizations zero.

Well, let's admit it Romans. Chapter 3 is ominous.

Romans 3 · chapter mention

It defines a stark truth of who we are and what we've done and

what we're presently doing. Just a failure, in a sea of a

world full of failures. and then, I'm so glad you stayed

here till now. Because there are two little

words, not Bible words. Not four syllable words.

Not even what you might consider spiritual words.

But these two little words. Change everything.

And those words are these. but now, But now everybody say that

with me ready but now claim it as your own but now, yeah, oh

and then everything is scripture just turns on a dime.

These two little words, they speak hope and change and

victory into the darkness. But now Verse 21.

But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been

made known to which the law and the prophets testify.

This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ.

To all, who believe there is no difference between Jew and

Gentile for all, have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

and all are Justified freely by his grace through the Redemption

that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ, as a

sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood to be

received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his

righteousness because in his forbearance he had left the sins

committed beforehand unpunished. He did it to demonstrate his

righteousness at the present time.

So, as to be just in the one who justifies Those Who Have Faith

In Jesus, praise God. What does it say?

As dark as the sin is? So, bright is the light that

dispels it. It was the whole plan from the

beginning. Since I was and am presently

powerless against sin, I can have access to a righteousness

that is greater than my sin. I don't deserve it, I didn't

earn it but now I have it and it all became available to me and

to you from Jesus and through Jesus Christ.

How did that happen? Because when he shed his blood

on the cross, He covered my sin. When he shed his blood on the

cross, he purchased me with his power.

He raised me up the same power that raised Jesus from the dead

raises me up and freely which means I can turn it or purchase

it he gave me and he gave you his grace.

Powerful. My preaching teacher and Bible

College used to say Jerry before you ever get a person saved, you

have to get them lost. And that's exactly what the

Apostle Paul is doing here. He wants you to understand the

weight, the gravity of your sin because that helps you to

understand the value and the beauty of your deliverance

through Christ and what he did for you.

And for me, I want you to go back to Romans 3:23.

Romans 3:23

Powerful verse often-quoted. For all have sinned and fall

short of the glory of God. It's also probably one of the

most misquoted scriptures in the Bible.

Because people tend to want to quote it this way for all have

sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

And that is not what it says because both of those verbs are

not in past tense or past perfect tense.

It says for all have sinned and fall present active indicative.

Fall short of the glory of God. That means this all of us are

sinners. All of us, have sinned.

But even right now at this very moment, where you sit or where I

stand at this very moment, you are in the process of falling

short of God's glory right now. You think you're good, you think

you're doing something good? You think you've earned

something. You think you have some Divine

privilege? Nope, you fall, short, right

now, you fall short and I fall short.

Of the glory of God. This is not something that's

just in the past. Listen, I have to believe that

that's true. I have to own it.

I believe it. I accept it.

That's me. But that's not all because I

have verse 24. Do you have it?

I have it. Do you have verse 24 or do you

just have 23 verse? 24 says this.

It says, and all are Justified freely by his grace through the

Redemption that came by Jesus Christ.

Wow. Hey, that's true.

That's true through faith. And the grace, that comes from

Jesus Christ. I have something even more

powerful than the weight of my sin.

That's true. I receive it.

I believe it. I accept it.

That's me. Only, that's me now, Now.

That's me standing in Grace. That's me.

Receiving that by faith. that is the but now me We all have.

The me who I was or who I am. But do you have the bat?

But now you Have you accepted that?

Have you come to Christ for that?

And 1779. A poem was written.

Very well-known poem. It was set to music 61 years

later. In 1830.

But it was often quoted before it was ever set to music.

Written by a man who kept in the ship.

That trafficked in slaves. He wrote Amazing Grace.

How Sweet? The Sound?

It's saved. A Wretch like Me.

Oh, he's reading. Romans 3.

When he was writing this with me.

He saved a Wretch. Like Me.

I, once was lost. Everybody say it, but now.

Oh, you see it? But now, I'm found was blind.

But now I see. Oh, he saw it.

He figured it out. It's different now.

I'm a failure. Oh yes, I'm a failure.

But now I have faith. I'm at a dead end but now I have

purpose and a destination. I'm powerless.

But now I have the power that raised Jesus from the dead.

I'm broken. But now I have someone to put me

back together. I'm guilty.

But now I'm pardon, I'm dirty. But now I've been washed in the

blood of the Lamb. I'm worthless.

But now, I am the Pearl that he paid the great price for For I'm

defeated. But now I have a champion.

I'm isolated and alone but now I have someone who will never

leave me or forsake me I'm ashamed but now I have a

testimony. I'm dead inside.

But now he lives within me there, just two little words

Just two little words. But they make all the

difference. They make all the difference.

And all of the things. That are holding you back and

holding me back. All of the things that scream,

you're not worthy of this. You don't deserve this.

All of the self justification and rationalization and

comparative thinking all is blown away, like dust.

In those two little words. Because they make all the

difference. We're moving to a time of

decision. What about you?

Because it really all boils down to this.

Is whether or not you've had a but now moment, see there's a

lot of you all of our locations you right now here.

You're still thinking that God has some sort of a Santa Claus

God. You know, I mean by that, making

a list checking it twice going to find out who's naughty and

nice. Like he's making a list of you.

Like I just hope I have more good things on my list and bad.

There's still some of you that are still trying to buy your way

into heaven, trying to earn your way into heaven and you just

can't reminds me of the very old story course.

A lot of old preacher stories have something to do with the

Pearly Gates and st. Peter and I don't know.

He became the hall monitor. But he kind of did. and the guy

that died the Christian man who died and Standing at the front

of that gate, and there's a sign over the gate that says entrance

requires 100 points and he didn't understand what that

means. Talk to Simon Peter about it and

he said, well, just tell me. Tell me what would you do?

What you do down there? So he begins.

And he starts talking about all these things that he did way.

He raised his family and relationship he had with his

spouse. No way that he worked loved

Jesus at home. Peter goes, man, you're making

my day. I mean, I've had a lot of people

up here today, but wow, that was awesome.

That's worth a point. Well, that was a little

disconcerting. So then he started in saying all

the things he'd done in the church and the offices, he held

in the money he gave and people that he encouraged in the people

that he witnessed during the conference, is he went to and

Simon. Peter is blown away and he goes.

Wow. You are a smoking-hot Christian

man. That is another point.

Eventually, this man is reduced To the point where he has

nothing left to say and you know where this is going.

To when he is completely humbled and all that's left.

Is to say when I was a little boy, my Sunday school teacher.

Talk to me about Jesus. And I told her that I wanted him

to be my savior and my Lord. I didn't know much.

But I knew I wanted that. And Simon Peter said, 98 points.

Because nothing else matters. The only thing that matters is

what you do with Jesus. And right now you have an

opportunity. If you've been kicking the

tires, it's time to start lighting.

The fires Top Gun reference by that would There's going to be

somebody right over there by that baptistery.

That would be more than happy to talk to you about next steps

because you don't need the Holy Spirit trying to influence you

on the outside anymore. You need to be living on the

inside and he wants to come and live in your heart.

And there's nobody stand in your way, but you today.

You go over there and talk to somebody.

Some of you. Well, you've made that decision

for Christ. Oh, but that doesn't mean that

you're not struggling in the lower story, it doesn't mean

that the Daily Grind of this life isn't getting you down.

And you're starting to wonder if God's even real or if he's real

in your life and you're at a crisis of belief.

That's what these steps are for. These steps are for you to come

up here. Humble yourself before God.

And remember that God isn't surprised by anything.

That he's every bit as much now in control as he was yesterday

and 1,000 years ago. some of you may not be carrying your own

burden, maybe you're carrying someone else's and it's breaking

you down. And you don't know what to do.

You don't have the answer. maybe you come up here, because Jesus,

give me an answer. When a clue you in, Jesus isn't

going to give you the answer. He is the answer.

He's the answer to every question. and when, when Jesus

comes in regardless of the storm outside, it's peace be still in

your heart. Because that's what he can do

and only he can do. so, if you've had enough, Of the weight

and the pressure of this world. And you're willing to come up

here and just get down on your knees before God, nobody will

bother you. Just take some time with him.

Turn the burden over. If you don't know Jesus yet,

intimately and personally, why don't you let him put the smile

on your face? Said he put on all those other

faces. You saw this little while ago.

I don't know if I could keep it up.

It's not about that. You'll be with you.

Told this last service. My kids were little and I would,

they were learning to walk. I remember when they would take

a like a step, let's pluck one step and then they fall down.

And I used to pick him up by their back collar and smack him.

Real hard on the rear end, get in their face and say, you walk.

No, I didn't. I did the same thing.

The rest of you did. They got that one step in front

of them and I got down in front of them so they could I was on

their love and I started clapping my hands and I said,

you're so great. There's nobody as good as you

because eventually One Step became two and two became four

before long. They were walking and then

running and then getting into all kinds of other trouble.

And we are his children. He who began a good work in, you

will be faithful to complete it. Let him do it.

Would you stand with me in Jesus name?

Heavenly Father. We come to you.

And we ask do what only you can do.

Help us to stay out of your way and just yield just surrender to

the truth. Yes, this is who we are but now

because of Jesus, everything can change, everything has changed.

Father, I pray that we would Embrace that.

Now, In Jesus name. Amen.

Amen.