Sermon Cloud

        Think back to when you were a kid.  Think back to when there was an exhilaration in doing something that you knew you weren’t supposed to do.  Not that it was right to disobey, but think about the temptation or the possibility of doing something fun or dangerous and try to remember the thought  process that went on in you head. 

o       For some of you, there wasn’t much of a thought process.  You just did what you wanted and accepted the consequences as they came.

o       But at some point and time, even if you wantonly disobeyed, I imagine you still thought through the consequences.

·        Now, practically every human being will say they are sorry when they are caught doing something wrong.  Even if you know what you are doing is wrong, you will still weep, cry, and offer repentance for things you do wrong.

o       I remember when I was a kid.  My dad had a moped.  Now, nobody laugh because we had a moped, they are pretty trendy now.  Well my dad did not want me to drive his moped because he said I would wreck it.

o       I don’t why he thought that.  I had only hurt myself biking….and skating…and riding a go-kart…come to think of it, my dad’s wisdom was pretty spot on.

o       Well, my sweet mother convinced my dad to let me give it a shot.  So I slowly took it out in the yard and carefully drove it around…until of course my parents quit looking.

o       As they went in the house, I started gunning it and trying to pretend that I was Evel Kneviel.

o       That was exactly what my dad had feared.

o       I came around the corner with this moped at top speed, and all of a sudden, I hit a patch of soft dirt, the bike slid out from under me, and I crashed into this low lying brick wall.

o       I hurt my ankle and ripped a pedal off the moped.

o       Now, when my dad came out of the house, he was furious and had every right to be.  How as I?  Oh, I was crying and apologizing and asking dad not to be mad at me.

·        Now, did I learn my lesson?  No, I knew I was never going to ride the moped again, but I wasn’t repentant.  I knew that if I had a chance again, I just wouldn’t wreck.

·        So much of our “repentance” with God and each other is just that.  We just get caught or we feel guilty.  We either think we won’t ever make the same mistake again or we can’t wait to fall into that mistake again. 

·        That is not repentance.  Repentance is confession of wrongdoing coupled with genuine remorse that leads to a change of thinking, speaking, and believing.

·        Now, typically, when you want to get someone to repent, what do you do?  You threaten them with what is going to happen if they don’t.

o       At work the boss says, “Straighten up, fly right, or get fired.

o       To our children, we say, “If you do that again, I’m going to spank you.”

o       To someone who does not believe in Jesus, we say, “Turn or burn.  If you don’t believe in Jesus, you going to bust the doors of hell wide open.

·        Those things make sense, right?

o       If you don’t straighten up at work, you will get fired. 

o       If you disobey, you will get spanked. 

o       If you don’t believe in Jesus, you will go to hell. 

·        But, believe it or not, God does not motivate us to repentance in that way.

o       What we are going to see in the book of Romans this week is that God motivates and encourages repentance by…His kindness. 

·        Understanding that is going to take a lifetime, but this week, we are going to ask this big picture question. 

Big Picture Question:  Why is God kind to this world at all, and how does He intend for us to live in light of His kindness?

2:1 Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. 2 We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. 3 Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God?

·        Last week, we spent a great deal of time discussing the slightly uncomfortable topic of God’s wrath.  In it, we saw that God presently pours out His wrath in 3 ways.

o       Human death

o       Frustrations and struggles of this world

o       The continual degradation of sin.

·        We also talked about how the Gospel, the application of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection for the forgiveness of sin transforms those three:

o       Human death is now the gateway to an eternity with God in Heaven.

o       The frustrations and struggles of this world become pathways towards holiness.

o       The continual degradation of sin opens our minds and hearts to a love of righteousness. 

·        Paul picks up here on another theme he emphasized in the first chapter which was to proclaim that no person has an excuse before God.  Creation itself declares that there is one true God and therefore anyone who does not worship Him as such is guilty. 

·        Paul speaks about how God pours out His wrath on those people as God reserves special judgment for those who give their stamp of approval on sin.

·        You hear that in Paul’s declaration in verse 1.  He says that people have no excuse before God if they pass judgment on others while not walking in repentance of the things to which they pass judgment.

o       Now Paul might have been speaking to the Jewish people in that day who had not yet accepted Jesus Christ or he might have been speaking to hypocritical believers or even non-believers who cast judgment.

·        His point is that without genuine repentance, not only are you guilty of hypocrisy when you speak against people’s sins, you are actually taking the place of God who alone has the right to judge.

o       How is it that these verses are so clear in their teaching, yet the number one description of the church in America is not merciful or graceful but judgmental? 

o       If we are to live our lives as a reflection of who God is, why isn’t this true of us?

·        Now I imagine we have all been in that position before, in fact, I’m sure we have been in both positions.

o       We have had someone judge us while they are actively doing the same thing we were doing. 

§         When that happens, we are like, “Mr. Pot, meet Mr. Kettle.”

o       We have actively judged someone when we do the same thing.

§         How many times have you yelled at your child to tell them not to yell at their sibling?

o       The church loves to speak out against the sexual sin in our communities.  The church goes on and on about the evils of homosexuality and pre-marital sex.  Yet the divorce rate within the church is now higher than outside the church while adultery and online pornography rage out of control.

·        Paul is aware of these contradictions, and we see that in verse 3 which is a killer.  Paul asks, 3 Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God?

o       Now what does this mean?  Does this mean that no one can ever tell anyone else that something they are doing is wrong because everyone is sinful?

o       If you took that thinking to its logical conclusion that would mean that the Father who has been an alcoholic his whole life can’t tell his son, “Son, this has nearly killed me.  Don’t be like your dad”?

o       I mean, when you look at the list of sins to which God pours out his wrath from Romans 1, we are all guilty sinners deserving God’s wrath, so what do we do here?

·        Well, there must be a distinction between judging and calling people towards righteousness and unfortunately, very few people know the distinction.  In fact, so few know the distinction most people assume that THEY are the one being judged against.  But it takes two to tango or two to judge if you will.

·        Some folks just say, “Well whatever other folks do, it is none of my business.”

o       But this is murky territory because The Bible says, "Do not rebuke a fool according to his folly or you will be like him yourself."

o       And the Bible also says, "Rebuke a fool according to his folly or he will be wise in his own eyes."

·        Someway we have to figure out how with God’s help, we are to lovingly encourage towards righteousness instead of judging.

o       Proverbs 27:6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy.

o       We have to figure how to be a friend and not an enemy.

·        So what is Paul’s point here in Romans?  Well, judging has the purpose of…judging and condemning while rebuking or gentile encouragement must have the goal of calling someone to repentance, right?

·        Let me give you an example of how to do it and how not to do it.  I’ll share two quick stories.

o       When I was in college, I roomed with my Intervarsity Christian Fellowship Staff worker my last year.  Over the course of that year, he and I obviously upset this one student terribly.  He called and left an “anonymous” message on our answering machine criticizing everything from what we wore, to what we drove, to my guitar playing and finally just got around to telling us we weren’t very much like Jesus.  Not the best of ways to try encourage someone towards Christ.

o       But I have been rebuked correctly in love.  You know, Amy, is a wonderful example of someone who speaks gently, biblically, and lovingly in correction.  She doesn’t come to me yelling.  She always seeks me out in humility.  She speaks to the action or the speech but doesn’t condemn in the doing of it.  She has seen lose my temper with the girls, and has lovingly called to repentance.

·        Learning how to call people to repentance and righteousness is best seen in the example of God Himself.

·        So, if you are going to call people to righteousness and repentance correctly, you should do it as God does it?  We don’t want to do it incorrectly and thus incur the wrath of God, so, how does God do it?  Look at verses 4-5

4 Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? 5 But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed.

·        Take a moment and consider your relationship with God. 

o       Is love and affection the first thought that comes to mind?

o       Or is guilt and fear the emotions that first springs to your heart?

·        Ask yourself why you believe?

o       Yes, we are rational creatures and you might say, “Well the one day the truth just became…truth to me.”

o       You might say, “The only reason I believe is because God caused me to believe.  I fought it for years and the one day I couldn’t fight it anymore.”

·        Whichever the case, ask yourself this, “Why do you confess your sins to God and why do you repent?”  What is it that motivates you to stop doing one thing and start doing another?” 

·        Repentance is life changing.  It means not only do you stop doing unrighteous sinful things; it means you start doing righteous good things.  When you think about it that way, you may not be too familiar with repentance.

o       Yes, you should confess sin and repent because God is your creator and has ever right to demand obedience from you.

o       Yes, you should confess sin and repent because God promises judgment and wrath to those that don’t.

·        But God’s intention is for you relish, bathe, and live within the luxuios grace and kindness that extends from Jesus Christ to you, and God wants you grow in repentance and obedience from that kindness.

o       That Kindness extends to us and motivates because of what we talked about last week.  If you have faith in Jesus Christ, the wrath of God that is justly due for your sins has been poured on Jesus.  The wrath of God has been removed from your life.  God is not actively pouring out on you anymore.  Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection were sufficient to not only take God’s wrath from you, but also they were sufficient to usher you into God’s pleasure.

o       That is the Gospel.  That is your motivation for growing in repentance and obedience.

·        That’s why God doesn’t want us judging one another.  Our repentance comes from God’s kindness and when you judge someone you are presuming on God’s kindness and patience.  In fact, you are taking the place of God when you judge.  And ultiimatley, people hwo do not understand this, prove this themselves to be as much of a sinner deserving God’s wrath as the people that they judge.

·        Think about how you share Jesus with others.  Does it involve long-winded, heated arguments? 

o       Why are you doing that?  Does mean-spirited arguing usher people into the Kingdom of God?  No, more often than not, heated arguments display an arrogant self-righteusness which is the root of all judging.

o       If you get into a debate about Jesus Christ, you know what the result should be?  Even if that person does not change their about Jesus Christ, they should walk away and say, “Well I don’t believe what that guy said, but all I know is that what he believes has given a humility like I’ve never with anyone else.”

·        Listen I’ve heard say the worst things in the name of Jesus.  Walking around proclaiming that their message from God and relishing the name-calling and judging that they pour out on people who do not know Jesus.  I’ve heard so badly, its made me ashamed to called myself a Christian at times.

o       If you understand that God’s kindness has led you to repentance, then you will share Jesus humbly and you will be kind yourself.

o       Otherwise, if you are not humble, you just become an arroagant bastard to the rest of the world.

·        Folks, this truth of God’s kindness should fan the flames of your passion for Jesus.  This is the Gospel.  Your entire life could be transformed in this instant if you would embrace God’s kindness as a motivation for your life.

o       Unfortunately for many of us, it is guilt and condemnation that motivate us.  And though guilt and condemnation might motivate to stop doing some sins, it does not bring about a lasting, joyful repentance and will forever leave your heart cold to God and harsh to others.

·        There is a fear that if you emphasize God’s kindness then it will be a gateway towards immoral and lewd living.  But the thing to rmember is this.  God’s kindness is His gift to you that spares you from His wrath.  The wrath of God torwards sin is not diminished.  It is upheld, and as you understand His wrath, in Jesus Christ you realize that God kindly has poured that wrath on Jesus and spared you.

·        Acts 5:31 tells us that Jesus’ died to sin, rose to new life, and now is seated at the right hand of God for what purpose?  To give the gift of repentance.  At the right hand of God, where God wields His power for all things, He in His kindness through Jesus Christ, gives the gift of repentance. 

·        You see repentance is a guarantee of the Christian life.  It is not a gurantee of perfection.  No.  But it is a gurantee that those who have faith in Jesus Christ will grow in repentance and obedience and be transformed into the image of Jesus. 

·        That’s why Paul makes the declaration he does in verse 6.

6 He will render to each one according to his works: 7 to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; 8 but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. 9 There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, 10 but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. 11 For God shows no partiality.

·        Now if salvation is completely your choice, if growing in obedience is completely your effort, if repentance is up to you, then read verse 6 and quake in fear.

o       God is the one who alone has the right to judge…not us.  And He will.

o       Ultimately, He will judge every human being for what they do.

·        Looks like we have two options:

o       For those who patient seek to give glory and honor to God and see to live with Him in eternity in Heaven, God will grant that.

o       For those seek only to glorify themselves and do not obey scripture but instead slavishly obey sinful desires God is going to pour out His wrath and fury.

·        Now, when you hear that, you should purposefully and deservedly get a little nervous.  If patient well-doing seeking the glory and honor of God is necessary for eternal life, you should be quaking in your boots.  We are all in trouble.  However there is hope.  Let me fast forward in time just a bit and address your fears from Romans 5:6

o       6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

·        Your hope is this.  In God’s kindness He spared you from His wrath.  He did this by Christ dying for you when you were an unrepentant sinner…in fact the enemy of God.  But it was not only Jesus’ death that saves you.  Romans 5 tells us that we are reconciled to God and saved by Jesus’ life.  Jesus’ righteous life is given to you by faith.

o       Theologians calls this imputed righteousness.  You have all of Jesus’ righteousness as you stand before God.

·        So your response to God’s kindness should be two fold.

o       You should joyfully walk in repentance of sin because you know that God has spared His wrath for you by pouring it out on His son.  If God would do that for you, you can boldly repent and grow in obedience.

§         When you think that you can never

·        Quit yelling at your children or spouse, the kindness of God is to motivate you to stop.

·        Quit looking at pornography online, the kindness of god is to motivate you to stop.

·        Quit being a judgment blowhard, the kindness of God is to motivate you to stop.

·        Quit thinking you always right, the kindness of God is to motivate you to stop.         

§         Bottom line:  if want to grow in repenting, obeying, and changing our character, it will only come if your motivated by the fact that God has been kind to you.

§         Take a break this week and list all the ways that God has been kind to you. 

·        Thank God for your loved ones.

·        Thank God for your health.

·        Thank God for your clothing, your car, and on and on.

§         Keep a thankful heart for God’s kindness and learn to walk in repentance and obedience.

o       Now the second thing that God’s kindness should do is teach you go graciously share the Gospel with others.

§         You see the Gospel takes that which is ugly and even antagonistic and makes it beautiful

§         Jesus took you who were sinful and the enemy of God and His make you beautiful.  How?  By clothing in His goodness.

§         In the Gospel, Jesus makes that which is not ugly beautiful.

o       We make beautiful that which is not beautiful when we share the kindness of God with others.