Sermon: "Two Standards: Romans Part 20." - Pastor Brian Fuller

All right, showy, get back in Romans.

But welcome to the Sermon podcast of First Baptist Church

in Illinois. I'm senior Pastor Brian Dad and it is

our desire to impact the world with the Gospel of Jesus.

We do so through small group ministry, personal testimony, as

well as corporate gathering.

You can find us on Facebook.

YouTube, and our website FBC Woodlawn dot org. But join

us now as we hear from God's word one slaves

of sin have become obedient from the heart to the

standard of teaching to which you were committed. I thought,

right there, there's so much that one verse the whole

book could.

Be written on that one verse. Right there, We'll continue

verse eighteen. And having.

Have become slaves of righteousness n verse nineteen, I am

speeding in human terms because.

Your natural limitations.

For just that you want to present remembers as slaves

to impurity and to lawlessness, leading to more lawlessness. So

now I presenting remembers as slaves to righteousness.

Leading to sanctification. And your word is life. And I'm

so thankful Lord that you give us your word. You

can get into the words to understand it.

To to dig into it, to be hungry for it.

And I pray that Lord at the reading.

And preaching of your word today, Jesus, and the Lord

that reading would be changed as a result of hearing

your word today in Jesus, Amen.

No matter what you do in life, there are standards, right.

I remember growing up in and in school and then

we took Sander tests.

But I remember I hated it, those things, little standardized tests.

Some people will test well, some people don't test very well.

I was not a little guided that really tested very

very well, you know, But I'd never liked those The

same test was given too, uh to each student in

a in a gray level to see where where they

fell among the established expectations or the standards.

Of that grade. Right do they They don't. They don't

do the same way, and then they used to. It's

still like fill in.

The the The little whole thing is a little that way,

is it?

Okay?

Computer computer courses, and when we need to work for

a company.

For a company, there.

Should be established standards in place. To wish you would

align yourself so that there is across the board in

a vision and in operation and conduct.

In most I would call a higher level of sports.

Teams also have an established standard for for excellence. For

if it's the schools team academics, it's sportsmanship, and the

players are expected.

To to meet or exceed those standards. And you know

what standard is the mold or it is it's a

form that is used.

To pour molten metal into or children like to play

with plato, right or video you're rolling out and then

you have the forms that you place over the dough,

and it takes the form of that form. Right, we too,

as as it's born again, and the followers of Jesus

we have have the standard.

We have the form of.

Jesus that we have been pouring into and we are

being molded more and more every day if if we

are willing, and then we are obedient to take the

shape of.

His for his standard, and his standard is righteousness. And

just like getting in our our attitude towards the standard. Right,

there a lot of a lot.

Of rebellion out there towards the standard, even in the workplace.

So our attitude towards the standard dictates our attainments. Let's

say that there are too many people in society today

who simply don't want to work.

They don't want to conform to a.

Standard, and their attitude towards work in general.

Sink, I don't know, you've seen it. And we can

say the.

Same thing about those who reject Christ and the principles

of righteousness. They will team the standards of righteousness. They

will be molded in because they are not willingly submitted

themselves to the form or to the standard of the

righteousness of Jesus.

We're talking about the standard the standards is the Gospel,

the Gospel of Jesus. And when we come face to

face with the Gospel and in obedience.

And the submission, when we say yes, Lord, your way

on mind your will be the no on, we are

poured into the form.

Of what was the standard of Jesus. The world like

the Hookio left and then the form of.

Jesus it is fresh into us and we take his

warm getting righteousness. And there's nothing more satisfying to a pastor.

There's something more satisfying to.

A teacher or to a coach who who leads from

mentaurs than when those who are.

Being taught finally get it right.

That moment when the light turns on and there's this,

this is ah moments, it's.

A wonderful thing. And again it doesn't really matter what

it is.

There's there's just learning going on in that light goes on,

of of having to be more effective or how going

to be better, whatever the case, maybe it's.

A wonderful moment. Illumination is taken.

Your hard work as a leader and their willingness to

listen and then to work as a participant has finally

bring his fruit results.

And once that initial light to click on, I say,

the sky is the limit.

Because understanding opens of the words to more understanding. And

I love that average students like myself can it become

good are great students although that never happened in a math,

although this has never happened, never happened.

Good athletes can become growing athletes.

And when deeper understanding of the principles of God's word

are are illuminated in the heart and in mind.

I'm a Christian just looking out.

Because when when the follower of Jesus gains understanding is

to the deeper.

Thing of God, that's that's power. How many even is

in here say there's so much I don't know. I

feel like I'm just so dumb. Sometimes all the colong.

But when debra understanding come in that much, you know

just as much deeper understanding leads to that much, that much,

to that much.

Because of the power of God in them has.

Gone from being hand knowledge and know about God.

To life alternating application and empower, and we can walk

in ass it's not thing just to know, it's not

something to experience. I've had this, this.

This saying or this motto that I've thought about using

for the church, and I haven't.

I haven't yet will those things. Don't want to just

change things. We change things, you know.

But but the Gospel of Jesus, love it, live it,

share it. When you grab hold of the Gospel and

the Gospel grabs a wold of you, there's so.

Much more than just having a head of knowledge. I

think it was.

I won't say Adrian Rodgers. You probably know who Adrian

Rodgers is.

Preachers has been around for many years.

He passed away and you and I think it of

him that that said, you will not get to know

God more intively his word. And I hadn't really thinking

about that for a second, Like that's true, you won't.

Get to know God intimately. Just why you're reading his word,

because it is ten knowledge.

When you read, it's ten knowledge, but when you experience

the elimination, the relation and the power of God and

his presence, it becomes more than.

That's what I want myself. I want that for you.

I want your life was born to follow Jesus. Being

more than there is somebody who comes. It makes me

happy President interview every week. You know, I mean thank you,

but no thank you.

All right, this is the place that we become, not

just to to feel the sea, but to learn not

only more about the God, but to experience Him in

in praising worship, and to enter into his presence and to.

Be changed because of that. That's what I want. I

want that for myself. Romans one sixteen. Paul says, I'm

not shamed of the gospel, for it is.

The power of God for navigation to everyone who believes.

Paul started off our our passage this morning. He says,

thanks be to God. Could you say thanks leaving God?

I'm not who it was? I can thanks to God

because who you are now is not who you were.

So who were you before Jesus? You ever taken stock?

You ever taking an inventory of who you were? And

where you were before Jesus.

Well, I'm here.

To say that you and I have both slaves or

servant to end.

Before Jesus, we served our sin in the nature the

gospels of no concern to us.

We were blind to us, we had no regard for

the principles of the righteousness.

But thanks be to the God that who he wants.

Were servants to the sin that we have become obedient

from the heart, Paul says, to the standard of teaching

to which you were committed.

We've had the stamp of God put in our eyves.

We've been pouring into the molding of the righteousness of Jesus.

Obedient from the heart to the standard.

And the choice to obey and believe the gospel, to

obey and believe.

In the godspell bringing permanent fruits.

Obedience is ahead decision, right, we need to We need

to decide. We make decisions with our head, and the

belief is a heart decision. So what we have to

do is we have to get our heart and our

head aligned. Right, they have to become aligned as one

to the Word of God, because that to develops in

us christ likeness, and that had to development of the

prist likeness in us is it's called santification.

That that process, that process from.

Time I got saved over forty five years ago, began

the process of sanctification in me.

And it's still going. And I sometimes feel.

That it's that it's it's going more now than other

half we stop growing in our faith, we never stop

growing into the likeness of Jesus. We never stop the

process of Him building righteousness in us.

In the Roman tim.

Paul verses eight in the first to the Old Testament,

which he had a lot because what does it say

the Old Testament? What does it say is the word

is near you and in your mouth and in your heart.

That is the word of faith that we claim. And

then he says, because if you confess with your mouth that.

Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart raised him

the dead, you will be saved for with a heart

when we leave, and it is justified.

And within the mouth on one can confess this and

is saved. So it's the.

Heart and then of the mind agreeing together, but leading

and obey and every recalivation. And then you know, that's

only what a flip of the part fifteen apart, you

know from here here that can be the longest in the world.

You know, trusted heart, you know home.

Channel and tell you to do that, and uh, friends

will tell you to do that.

Ah, just go over your heart, trust your God to

do that. Don't do that because the heart is exceptive.

The heart and end of the mind need to come

in into alignments. They have to come in into submission

to the word of God, to the principles of the rightious.

That's we had to be molded in right be poured

into the hold. And I can get excited when I

heard the reports of people responding to the gospel all

around the world.

If you, if you, if you try to find it

at you see it, if you just way through all

the garbage that is in there, you can see that

God is working in the lives of the people all

around the world. And I especially young people.

High school kansases, is in college kansases all around the

country especially they're they're they're they're catching fire with the

Gospel of Jesus.

That's why I say to you guys.

A couple of weeks ago, don't waste this this year,

don't live beyond this year.

Just get out of town and finally can get to college.

Most seems to do that.

I don't know, can you, guys, But that's where all

of us were when we were scenes in high school.

We couldn't.

We couldn't get out of here if we could off.

But look those opportunities here at home.

Godless to use you in a powerful way as as

leaders and the mentors as an examples of his righteousness.

Because he wants to. He wants to use you right

where you live.

Large public to the slaves of of the worship and

the ministry. Are happening the other day that the members

of the Ohio State University football team. This is not.

Football players of what it's not you that in Miami.

What the but I mean, they're they're the the Ohio.

The university, like the three and the most prominent players

on the football team, led this gospel rally on the campus,

laid at Nice and they were over sixty. They got

saved and the baptized that night as we all these

these guys that that took upon and then and then asked,

why did you do this?

Because God told us to do this. It's nothing that

we can compelled to do. We want to shine in

the light.

Of Jesus in this in this world, and it was

powerful of worship and in testimony.

And if it will look for a little opportunities, that

will happen.

But if we just try to look at the world,

if we just trying to see what's next and will.

Miss, we'll miss something before us. And I want to

see that wood. I want to see that in the woodwn.

I want to see that in the I wanted to

see that in cardale. I want to see that and

saying look hugo Washington, d C. And it'll happen.

So don't be surprising and to death because God is moving.

And then, as we heard last week, that has sin

and increases in the world, what happens that His grace

abounds all the more we're sinning a bounds grace, we're

sing about even more about sin will never out abound

God grace. So thanks be to God that those who

want servants to sin are being transformed by the standard

of a teaching that leads to righteousness, the standard of

a teaching that it leads to righteousness.

So what does that? What does that mean to you?

The standard of teaching that it leads to righteousness.

Well, you need to be sitting under a standard of

a teaching that it leads to righteousness. You need to

for yourself be be exposed to and diving into the

standard of a teaching that it leads to righteousness.

Verse eighteen.

All this, and having been that free from sin, have

you become slaves the righteous? In Christ?

You are just said that free. That's just the way

it is. And in Christ you're free.

You're free from sin. So our lives He even reflected

it our live Do you even reflected it by into

the teaching the standard that leads righteousness? Because you can't

serve the masters right, you can't serve the sin laure

and then the righteousness of the God at the same time.

You can't miss oil and the water.

You you can't fit in a swear pey, a round hole,

you can't be a garden, and then you can't serve

the moles in.

The laser and then the new nature of Christ in

you at the same time.

You can't do it in Christ. The old laure has

been put to death's been been.

Put to death by the overcoming death barrel in the

direction of Jesus. In Roman six, chapter six, Paul says,

we know that our old self was crucified with him. Yeah,

in order that the body of sin might be brought

to nothing, so that we would no longer begain enslaved

to the sin. And then if you jump down the

verse alive, and he says, so, you also much consider

yourself dead to the sin and alive to God.

In Christ Jesus.

So this morning, if if you're in this place anymore,

but you've not yet been set up free in Christ,

you can't be deserving the righteousness if you're still lost it.

And then you.

Can't you can't serve Christ and righteousness, oil and water.

But something that we.

Remember about this letter that Paul is writing, that he's

writing to those who.

Are born and again in Rome. Right. Historians would say.

That that at that that those who who started in

his church and in Rome, chances are they were they

were Jews who came to pecost and they were born

and again, some of the very first ones, some of

the three thousands that were born and again that very

first day as a result of Peter's sermon, and then

they went back to their at homes.

Many of them then started in churches. And they say

that that at those who started in.

The church and in Rome were at the very beginning

of the Church on that first day.

So Paul's I need to those who are born again.

Trying to figure things out, just like us.

And so he's talking to them as though they.

Are in Christ, as young Christ. Anything that might be

as weak in Christ, as everything might be, as wish

everything might be, trying to square, pegging around hole, anything

might be. He's still talking to them as though they

are born again in Christ.

So if you're here this.

Morning and you're still lost in sin that slaves, but

mostude this morning, those who know are beyond the majority

here are born again. I say this to you haven't

even free from sin, and in Christ you are now

a service diffrighteousness. And you should consider yourself dead to

sin and all live to God.

You should consider yourself that dead and in alive, alive

to God.

Is that easy?

It's not easy. What's the process sanctification?

We become stronger, eiche as we as we committed ourselves

to the standard that leads to righteousness.

It's every day I grow. Every day, I get a

little stronger. Every day I do stupid things. Back then

I get back on the horse and I and I

and I'm sorry again. But God a meets me grace.

He loves me, and I love Paul nineteen.

This he says that I'm speaking in human terms because

of your natural limitations. He should Brian, I'm feeding to

you because of the naturalations. Some sometimes deep spiritual conversation

can be.

Not just pick up this point in the.

Deep spiritual conversations sometimes that we have can be very eliminating,

especially when the conversation with others.

Who are also hungry for God. It's a wonderful thing.

Sunday Night Bible studies are a ready example of this.

Golf is the great students of the Lord of God.

He studies more than anyone know. If you need to

study a god anymore, I can tell you that He's

a tremendous asset to me and to our church.

And our our Sunday Night go deep in a very

powerful way. They can go deep. And many times, many

times we had to pull that rain so down.

We needed we needed a camp out here at this

one verse for a while. Sometimes we needed to camp

out on one word for a while. And when we

do it, and some of you even afraid to come

and we're to come back because it is God over

my head. Well, I'm telling you all, you're missing out

on an opportunity to say the standard that it leads

to righteousness because it's not just it's not it's not

just reading crimature getting.

Come on the opinion. What matter mean to me? Why

is this the matter? What's God's heart? What's God thinking that?

And I love that process. It's a wonnerful process. Two

and a half years we've been in the bulk of John.

We're in chapter fourteen, two and a half years.

It's awesome.

I mean, sometimes they're canna be frustrating, you know. I mean,

he's the word I interviews, you know.

But that's what Paul sam now because of the natural limitations.

I love that. I love that he's aware of the

fact that, you know, he's not as they're not as deep.

As he is, and he has to slow down to

distract the meat and the depth of what God is saying.

So all words are the Romans natural limitations. Well, of

the Romans understood certain terminology. The terminology that they that

they naturally understood was that of slavery and bondage. They

were conquerors, that's what they understood. And so when Paul uses.

Words like slaves.

This is in slaves, righteous bondage, and lawlessness. They understood the.

Deeper truth.

Sometimes you needs to be illustrated in more relatable terms.

To become tangible and understood. Paul was he was so

good at death.

Jesus did it with a peril to make it, to

make the deeper spiritual truths or reason.

Before Christ, your existence.

Served to satisfy your own desires, the impurity that it

was in your life, but the wawsses that it was

in your life, and that led.

To more impurity and lawlessness. But now, but now you're

in Christ.

And you are existence and served to honor God your

existence and serves.

To do the things that it leads to the sanctification.

I get that process of becoming more like Jesus. And

there's nothing more satisfying to the heart of God, the Father,

that's who is God, the Father. Nothing more satisfying than

to see his children forsake their self pleasing life child

to be transformed. And now that's what it is.

If there's a transformation into a God.

Pleasing life child, we're seeing a bounds grace, abounds, even

more grace to cover.

Thank God, grace to.

Forgive, than God to correct, to realign in his great

love for humanity. And that's what is in his great

love for human be he force.

His goodness to bring this out of the slaver reads

a sin.

And an end to freedom, freedom and in forgiveness of

sin and an eternal life. Aren't you glad?

Aren't you glad?

Pray Heaven Father, thank you once again we have we

have your word.

We have your word to convinct us, we have your

word to construct us. We have your word Lord, that

we could even crave more.

In our hunger.

Lord, I pray that you would have making it more

hungry still to know you more. So, Lord, thank you

for each one that it's here this morning, that half

ears here. And I pray Lord, that that you would

illuminate your deep truth, that we would walk and the

freedom of forgiveness of the Lord, that we would.

Walk as a servant of your righteousness. We would walk

those who have molded into your likeness, so others well

know you. Thank you have your way, Thank your Jesus An.

Thank you for tuning in to today's broadcast. We hope

you are encouraged and challenged by the preaching of God's word.

You can reach us by phone at six two one

eight three nine zero ten forty six, contact us via

Facebook or our website FBC Woodlawn dot org. It's our

prayer that you answer the call of God on your

life to follow him and share your faith story with others.

Goodbye for now, and God bless you.