The Book of Romans: To God Be The Glory

 The Book of Romans 

Welcome:

Well good morning Eastern Shore Baptist Church. It is so incredibly good to be back with all of you. Man, I have to thank my friend, my brother, our Associate Pastor Josh Raybon for filling in for me the last two weeks. I know that all of you love to hear Josh speak and I am so grateful to him that on the rare occasion that I am not able to be here on a Sunday morning that I can trust him with preaching, teaching and proclaiming God’s Word. Josh, thank you.

Welcome to all the rest of you this morning. If you are a visitor, we are all very excited to see you this morning. I pray that you were warmly greeted in the parking lot, spoken to when you walked in this place, and that our membership took time to welcome you. If you are a member of our family, I sure did miss you. I want to thank you for allowing me, Bryant Thompson, and 14 other friends to travel to Anchorage, Alaska. We were working with Graceworks Ministries and we were able to fellowship with our partner church Echo Church. 

In fact, last Sunday I had the opportunity to preach at Echo Church. So, I was able to send greetings from all of you to our brothers and sisters in that church community. I will tell you right now, our mission team saw Christ work in huge ways. We saw three children come to Christ and planted lots of seeds while we were there. 

Thank you for your prayers. 

Speaking of prayers, thank you for your prayers for the Baker family. This has been a hard dark season for them. Please continue to pray for them. 

Again, speaking of prayers. Did you know that this week we had a funeral, we had members on the receiving ends of major surgeries. We had hip replacements and triple bypass surgeries. 

What about you friend?

Do you have a prayer request? Let me give you the number to our prayer line. The number is 251-222-8977. You can text a prayer request to that number 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Maybe you are battling an illness. Maybe you are looking at a surgery. I got a prayer request this week asking me to pray for this brother as he was praying through a big job change. I received a prayer request in Anchorage from a sweet sister who has been battling illness. She was looking for some strength. 

Let us know how we can pray for you.

Introduction To “Today’s Message”:

(Chris Starts Singing)

To God Be The Glory

To God be the glory, great things He hath done,

so loved He the world that He gave us His Son,

who yielded His life an atonement for sin,

and opened the life-gate that all may go in.

Refrain:

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,

let the earth hear His voice!

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,

let the people rejoice!

O come to the Father through Jesus the Son,

and give Him the glory, great things He hath done.

“To God Be The Glory”. One of the most famous and familiar traditional hymns of Christianity. I can remember singing that song as a child. I grew up singing it. You probably did too. Written by Fanny Crosby and set to music by William Howard Doane. 

That song written by those to men, written in the United States but sadly for many years was ignored. Overlooked. By God’s providence, the hymn traveled across the Atlantic and became popular in Great Britain through the evangelistic ministries of Dwight L. Moody and Ira Sankey. 

Then, like a tennis ball, the song bounced back across the pond back to the United States and hit its stride in 1954. Cliff Barrows introduced it to massive crowds during a Billy Graham crusade in Nashville. 

People sang it. 

Churches began using it. 

The song found its way into Baptist’s hymnal. 

Before to long, it became one of the most recognized and recognizable hymns in America. 

Think about that for a moment. A hymn written in America had to travel to another nation before coming home and being embraced by the American church.

The most important part of the story is not where the hymn traveled. The most important part is where the hymn points.

It does not point to Fanny Crosby.

It does not point to William Doane.

It does not point to Dwight Moody, Ira Sankey, Cliff Barrows, or even Billy Graham.

It points to God.

“To God be the glory, great things He has done.”

Think about it folks, that is the testimony who has been saved by Jesus Christ. We did not save ourselves. We didn’t have the ability to forgive our own sins. Eternal life is not something that we offer ourselves. 

Its all about God. God did it. Jesus is the Savior. 

Jesus paid the price. Salvation was purchased by Christ and Christ alone. Death was defeated by Christ. Jesus and Jesus alone. It was the Holy Spirit that called us! We were not looking for God. We were not requesting salvation. It was the call of the Spirit that woke our dead hearts, turning us from rebellion to adopted sons and daughters of the King. 

It is not us. It is not me. It is not you. It is all Him. All the glory, all the praise, all the honor…to Him. To God be the glory for the great things He has done! 

All we can do is give God the glory!

Today we are closing the book of Romans. After 16 chapters explaining the Gospel, Paul doesn’t wrap this letter up by praising himself. He is not self congratulating the church. He is not self celebratory! He is not pointing anyone or anything to his personal ministry. 

Paul wants everyone to see Christ. 

Friends that brings me to the title of my message this morning. 

Today’s Message:

“To God Be The Glory”

Introduction To Today’s Thought:

Now, let me point you to the thought for the day. For those of you who are visiting with us or maybe youre first time visitors, this little section is sort of the thesis statement for the sermon. You can fill in these blanks if you would like. 

Today’s Thought:

Christ is Proclaimed so People Are Pardoned And God Is Praised! 

Let me say that again. 

“Christ is proclaimed so people are pardoned and God is praised.”

Church, do you see that progression there?

Christ is proclaimed. 

People are pardoned. 

God be praised.

We proclaim Christ because there is no other Savior. Certainly others have claimed “Savior” status or importance. 

Muhammad. 

Joseph Smith.

What about Jim Jones? 

Murdering nearly 1000 of his followers by having them drink poison. Promising them eternal life, instead delivering them death and destruction. 

I grew up watching David Koresh destroy himself and his followers in the standoff in Waco, Texas.

Thats just a few in a long line of false teachers, false prophets, and false Saviors. 

It’s easy to take shots at those false teachers. What about me and you? 

We don’t proclaim ourselves. 

As people who hold Scripture as our ultimate authority, may we follow preachers, teachers, denominational leaders. After all, they are just men. 

We don’t serve a programs, events, movements, fads, or  denominational directions. 

No friends, we proclaim Jesus Christ. Jesus crucified for our sins and raised from the dead. Jesus whose story is contained within Scripture. Holy. Beloved. Perfect.

Why?

Well friends, we proclaim Jesus Christ because sinful people need to be forgiven…shown grace, given mercy. 

We sinners need more than encouragement or better habits.

We need forgiveness. 

We need salvation. 

We need Jesus.

When sinners are pardoned, God is praised. We cannot say, “Look what I have done.” 

We can only say, “Look what God has done!”

That friends is the Gospel: Christ is proclaimed, people pardoned, Christ praised.

To God be the glory!

Introduction to Today’s Quote:

While traveling in Alaska, I was studying for this very message. I was doing some research and ran across an article written by Burk Parsons. Dr. Parson is serving as a pastor in Florida. He works as a publisher within Ligonier Ministries and he is prolific author. I came across his article entitled “Evangelism For God’s Glory”. Just by the title, Im sure that you can see what drew me to his article. 

Dr. Parsons is reminding us that evangelism is not about growing a church or building a ministry. The ultimate goal of the Gospel is the glory of God. Every time someone repents of their sin and trusts in Jesus Christ, God receives another worshiper. His Kingdom is expanded. One day, evangelism will come to an end because there will be no more lost people to reach. Still, one thing that will never end is worship. Worship of God is and forever will be everlasting. Proclaiming Christ matters. It leads people to salvation. It brings glory to God.

Listen to what he writes...

Today’s Quote:

“When we proclaim the gospel, we are calling people from every nation to repent of their sins, place their faith in Jesus Christ, and join the redeemed people of God. God is gathering worshipers for Himself through the preaching of Christ. Evangelism is a ‘temporary necessity’ because it belongs to this present age. In heaven, there will be no lost people to evangelize, no missionaries to send, and no unreached nations. Evangelism will end, but worship will continue forever.”

Burk Parson’s article “Evangelism for God’s Glory” 

published by Ligonier Ministries

Introduction To Today’s Scripture:

Church, these are the final three verses of the book of Romans. After sixteen chapters of explaining the Gospel, Paul comes to the end of his letter. He has taught about sin, salvation, grace, faith, the Holy Spirit, God's sovereignty, and the Christian life.

Then, instead of simply saying, "Goodbye," Paul breaks into praise.

These verses are what theologians call a doxology, a song of praise and glory to God. 

It's as if Paul steps back, looks at everything God has accomplished through Jesus Christ, and says, "To God be the glory."

Friends, that's exactly what good theology should produce. The more we know about God, the more we should worship Him.

Amen?

Amen indeed. 

Statement of Belief:

“We are opening the living and powerful Word of God…truth without error, breathed out by Him, and fully sufficient for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness. It is our authority, our guide, and our hope. In honor of the God who gave us His perfect Word, I invite you to stand with me as we read it together.”

Today’s Scripture:

Romans 16:25-27 CSB

Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation about Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept silent for long ages [26] but now revealed and made known through the prophetic Scriptures, according to the command of the eternal God to advance the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles- [27] to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ-to him be the glory forever! Amen.

Pastor: “This is the Word of the Lord.”

Congregation: “Praise His name. Praise His Holy name!”

Paul Closing Remarks To The Romans…

I. The Proclamation of Jesus Christ vs. 25

Well friends, we have made it to the first point of today’s message. Paul is closing his letter to the Roman church. He is saying “farewell” but not forever. He believes in the church. In his heart he believes that the church has a great future, that they will not only reach but change and transform their culture all to the glory of God. 

Do me a favor and fill in the blanks under Roman numeral one. 

The proclamation of Jesus Christ. We see this point illustrated in verse 25. 

Romans 16:25 CSB

“Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation about Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept silent for long ages…”

Friends, Ill give you a short explanation of this first point. 

“God gives power to His people when they faithfully proclaim the Gospel to their neighbors all the way to the nations.” 

As many of you know, baseball is little “k” king in my family. We play a lot of baseball. When we are not playing baseball, we are talking about baseball. When we are not talking about baseball, we are watching baseball. My boys told me the other day about this kid from Oxford, Alabama. 17 years old. Short stop. That is what I like to call the “money position”. Scouts and coaches love short stops. Short stops are sort of the divas of baseball. They command the most adulation and teams are always wanting to lock down their infield by locking down their short stop. Well this 17 year old kid is really something special. He is skills are are far beyond his age. He has a canon for an arm. His fielding is smooth. He is fast and he hits with power. He is unusually gifted. 

My son Jack was playing in a tournament in Birmingham several months ago. When we walked into the complex we noticed a huge crowd of men gathered around a bull pen. These men were professional scouts and college coaches. They had their charts, their radar guns, their stop watches. They were filming. 

Who were these men watching? They were watching an 18 year old kid from South Walton Beach. This kid was 6’8 and weighed 250 pounds. He was a lefty throwing nearly 100 miles per hour. 

When reading about the kid from Oxford or watching the kid from South Walton Beach High, I said the same thing. God knew to never ever give me that sort of gift. He knew to never bestow upon me such rare physical gifts. Now don’t get me wrong, I am not trying to put myself down, but those young me are incredibly uncommon talent. 

God knew, and I am self aware enough to know this is true, God knew to not give me these gifts because you would not be able to get my head through those double doors back there in the back. If I had those sorts of gifts, especially in my youth, I would have become the most egotistical, the most blind, the most cocky, arrogant person alive. 

Everything would be about me. We have a name for someone who is constantly talking about themselves. They always have a story that tops your story. You tell them you got a new puppy, and five seconds later you're hearing about the seven dogs they've owned since kindergarten. 

You tell them you had surgery, and suddenly they're comparing scars. 

You tell them you ran a 5K, and they've apparently run six marathons... uphill... in the snow... carrying another runner on their back! 

Every conversation somehow circles back to... me, me, me, me, me.

If anyone had the opportunity to be or become a me monster, it it was the Apostle Paul. Still, Paul decides to go a different way. Instead of pointing to himself, glorifying himself, praising himself, he points the Romans to God. 

He doesn’t congratulate the church on everything that they have accomplished. 

He doesn’t hand out ministry awards. 

He begins by pointing everyone’s attention to God. “Now to Him” Paul says. 

Paul says that it is God who is able to strengthen them. Not him. Not some potion. Not some new ministry tool. Not some current church concept that is sweeping the nation. You won’t find the strength that Paul is talking about in a pill or at the bottom of gin or in a can of beer. 

Everything starts with God and ends with God. Everything in between belongs to God. 

Paul says that God is "able to strengthen you."

That Greek word for “strengthen” that Paul is using is stērizō (stay-RID-zoh).  Stay-RID-zoh literally means to establish, to make firm, to make stable. It paints the picture of something that is solid and unmovable.

The only thing that I could think about was a lighthouse. Think I can imagine a lighthouse standing against hurricane-force winds. The waves are crashing, rain falling, wind howling. Nevertheless, that lighthouse remains planted. 

Firm. 

Protected. 

Unmovable. 

The lighthouse’s foundation is secure.

Church, Christian life is not built upon positive thinking. It doesn’t matter how self confident you are. The Christian life is not built on emotional experiences. No sir. It is built solidly on the Gospel message. 

That is why Paul says God strengthens us "according to my gospel and the proclamation about Jesus Christ."

Notice he says "my gospel." Paul isn't claiming that he himself owns the Gospel. Obviously he didn’t invent it.  He is saying this is the Gospel he faithfully preached everywhere he went.

The word "proclamation" means a public announcement.

It was used of a herald representing a king. The herald had one responsibility. Deliver the King's message.

The herlad didn't rewrite it, soften it, apologize for it. He simply proclaimed it.

Friends, that's our assignment.

We are not called to improve the Gospel, to modernize the Gospel. We are not called to make the Gospel more acceptable to a corrupt culture. We are called to proclaim Jesus Christ.

I love what Paul states in I Thessalonians 1:8. Read that with me on your outline. 

1 Thessalonians 1:8 GW

“From you the Lord's word has spread out not only through the province of Macedonia and Greece but also to people everywhere who have heard about your faith in God.”

Paul Closing Remarks To The Romans…

I. The Proclamation of Jesus Christ vs. 25

II. The Revelation of God’s Saving Plan vs. 25-26

Well friends, we have arrived at our second point. We have learned about the proclamation of Jesus Christ. Let’s fill in the blanks under Roman numeral two. 

The revelation of God’s saving plan. Go back to verse 25-26. 

“Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation about Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept silent for long ages but now revealed and made known through the prophetic Scriptures, according to the command of the eternal God to advance the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles…”

Friends, I want you to know that…

“God reveals humanity’s rescue plan so that people from all over the world may obediently respond with saving faith.”

The word "mystery" can be a little confusing. When we hear the word mystery, we tend to think about Sherlock Holmes, crime novels, or some puzzle that no one can solve. 

That isn't what Paul is talking about. 

In the New Testament, a mystery is a truth that God once concealed but has now has revealed.

God's plan of salvation wasn't something He came up with in the Gospel of Matthew. It didn't begin in Bethlehem. It reaches all the way back to Genesis. 

Every sacrifice pointed to Jesus. Every prophet of old, every promise in Scripture found its fulfillment in Jesus Christ. For thousands of years, God was painting a beautiful picture. This picture that God was created with pain, suffering, failure, flawed men and women. It was made through betrayal, coated in love, and displayed through a loving God who would refuse to give up. It all came together on one ordinary night in Bethlehem, the picture stepped out of heaven. This mastery that Paul is talking about had a name. His name was Jesus Christ.

Paul says that this mystery has now been made known to all the nations. The mystery has been revealed to everyone. A mystery no more. That statement would have shocked many of his first readers. The Gospel wasn't just for the Jews. It wasn't just for the Romans. It wasn't just for the educated, the wealthy, or the religious. 

The gospel is for every tribe, every tongue, every people, and every nation.

Church, don't miss the end of verse 26. Paul says this mystery has been revealed "to bring about the obedience of faith."

Genuine faith is more than agreeing with a few Biblical facts. Genuine faith changes a person's life. Saving faith produces obedience, not because obedience earns salvation, but because salvation transforms the heart.

Our mission team experienced that truth firsthand when we were in Alaska. We met children from many different backgrounds. They came from different families, different circumstances, and different stories. Yet every one of them needed exactly the same Savior. 

The Gospel doesn't change from person to person. There is one Lord, one faith, one Savior, one cross, one empty tomb, and one invitation: "Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved."

I love what Paul tells the church in Ephesus. 

Ephesians 4:4-6 CEV

“All of you are part of the same body. There is only one Spirit of God, just as you were given one hope when you were chosen to be God's people. [5] We have only one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. [6] There is one God who is the Father of all people. Not only is God above all others, but he works by using all of us, and he lives in all of us.”

Friends, somebody once shared that message with you. Maybe it was your parents. Maybe it was a Sunday School teacher. Maybe it was a pastor. Maybe it was a buddy or friend. 

Whoever it was, God used them to bring the Gospel to your life. Now He has entrusted that same Gospel to you. The Gospel was never meant to stop with us. It was always meant to move through us.

Paul Closing Remarks To The Romans…

I. The Proclamation of Jesus Christ vs. 25

II. The Revelation of God’s Saving Plan vs. 25-26

III. The Adoration of The One True God. vs. 27

Ok friends, we have made it to our last point. 

Proclamation

Revelation 

Now, Roman numeral number three. The adoration of the one true God. 

The adoration of the one true living God. 

Think about this point like this…

“God receives glory from His people when they worship Him as the one true God…revealed in bodily form through Jesus Christ.”

After everything Paul has written over the course of sixteen chapters, he doesn't stop to congratulate himself. He doesn't celebrate his ministry. No. Paul pauses, he stops, he worships. 

Theology naturally becomes doxology. 

The more you know about God, the more you should worship God. 

Paul describes the Lord as "the only wise God." 

Think about that for just a moment. Only God could create the universe out of absolutely nothing. Only God could remain perfectly holy while loving rebellious sinners. Only God could satisfy justice without sacrificing mercy. Only God could send His own Son to bear our punishment so that guilty sinners could be declared righteous. That’s a wisdom no human mind could ever invent.

The James Webb Space Telescope has captured breathtaking images of galaxies billions of light years away. Every new image reminds scientists that the universe is even larger than they first imagined. The heavens truly declare the glory of God.

 Yet, as magnificent as creation is, it is not God's greatest display of wisdom. I just left one of the most beautiful places on earth. Tall mountains. Unbelievable sights. Still, it doesn’t compare to God’s greatest display. Do you know what it is?

It’s Calvery!

The cross is where God's holiness, justice, mercy, grace, and His love all meet together. The greatest display of God's wisdom wasn't speaking stars into existence. It was saving sinners through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

That is exactly why Jude closes his letter the same way Paul closes Romans. Listen to these beautiful words from Jude 1:24-25 (ERV):

"God is the one who is able to keep you from falling. He will bring you into his glory without any wrong in you and will give you great joy. He is the only God, the one who saves us. To him be glory, greatness, power, and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord for all time past, now, and forever. Amen."

Church, that's where every believer eventually ends up. We end up giving glory to God. That's why Paul concludes exactly where Fanny Crosby began: "To God be the glory." Not to Paul. Not to Peter. Not to the apostles. Not to the Roman church. Not to Eastern Shore Baptist Church.  

To God. Forever. Amen.

On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong stepped onto the surface of the moon. Millions of people around the world watched in amazement. Most people remember Neil Armstrong. Many remember Buzz Aldrin. Very few could name the thousands of engineers, mathematicians, welders, technicians, programmers, and flight controllers whose work made that historic moment possible. Yet those men and women weren't looking for personal recognition. They gladly gave themselves to something much bigger than themselves.

Church, if human beings can unite around a mission that puts a man on the moon, how much more should redeemed sinners unite around the mission of making Jesus Christ known? We didn't save ourselves. We didn't conquer death. We didn't pay for our sins. Jesus did. He and He alone deserves the glory.

I want to close with this. 

God could have written the Gospel across the clouds every morning. He could have sent angels to preach in every city around the world. Instead, He chose ordinary believers like you and me. Every time you share your testimony, teach a Sunday School class, invite someone to church, disciple a new believer, pray for a missionary, give, or tell someone about Jesus, you are participating in God's rescue mission. You are not the Savior. Jesus is. Still, by His grace, He has invited you to carry His life changing message to a world that desperately needs Him.

Church, You And I Are A Part of God's Rescue Plan!