Romans 1 Faith That Reaches the World

 

Romans 1

Faith That Reaches the World

 

Visible Christianity in Rome was dangerous, yet the Christians in Rome lived out their faith in such a way the world was reporting on their works of Faith

Let us be the type of people whose faith is being reported of in our community

That our neighbors are talking about us to other neighbors about our faith and good works

Let’s be involve in the local church in ways that will reach the world, sending and supporting missionaries

Let us be a part of the church in healing the land both locally and abroad

May our faith be a faith that reveals Jesus Christ by meeting the needs of others

 

 

Faith That Reaches the World

 

Five times in Romans 1 Paul uses the word Faith.

 

And forty times in the Book of Romans.

 

The first time Paul says…

 

 Obedience comes from Faith.

 Romans 1:5

 

The second time Paul says to the Romans…

 

…because your faith is being reported all over the world.

 

The word “because” refers to Paul’s gratitude.

 

Paul’s gratitude is the first thing he shares

 as a personal address to the Romans.

 

First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you.

 

We find later in the Book,

 Paul addresses division between the

Gentile Christians and the Jewish Christians.

 

There were problems with the Romans

that he was not grateful for,

 but Paul chose to address them on a positive note first.

 

I have lived by a principle of putting people on a pedestal.

 

To let people know what I admire about them.

 

To do this I need to make my first thoughts positive.

 

There are times when this is not easy.

 

 I turn my attention not on the characteristics

 I do not like, but on positive characteristics.

 

When I do this, I find people like it.

 

They like the fact that someone sees good in them

even if they do not feel they deserve it.

 

 What is interesting, is the pedestal you

put them on, they want to stay on.

 

They want to live up to your expectations.

 

When I was ordained…

 

 My mentor and teacher in the faith said,

 “Bill Self is a man of no guile”.

 

I never saw myself as perfect,

 but since that day I have wanted,

and done my best to stay on that pedestal.

 

Those words have profoundly affected every day of my life.

 

There were times when he brought

correction to my life, and I received it,

 because I knew he was looking out for my best interest.

 

Paul was not naïve about the problems of the Roman believers.

 

Yet, Paul put imperfect Romans on a pedestal when he said…

 

Your faith is being reported all over the world.

 

This is an amazing statement.

 

The whole world was watching. 

 

What the world saw in the Christian

believers they were talking about.

 

The world was proclaiming, declaring, and speaking

of the things the believers in Rome were doing.

 

Visible, tangible evidence of their faith was

being talked about throughout the world.

 

James says, “Faith with out works is dead”

James 2:26

 

The Roman believer’s faith was alive, it was in action.

 

They were going about doing “Good Works”.

Ephesians 2:10 

 

Their faith in Jesus had affected their lives in a visible way.

 

This is quite amazing as Jesus Christ

was crucified by the Romans.

 

The Romans had many gods.

 

 They took pride in having good relationships with all the deities.

 

Where Christianity believes there is only One God.

 

In 64AD Rome was burned and Nero blamed the Christians.

 

Visible Christianity in Rome was dangerous yet,

the Christians in Rome lived out their faith in such

a way the world was reporting on their works of Faith.

 

Let us be the type of people whose faith

is being reported of in our community.

 

That our neighbors are talking about us

to other neighbors about our faith and good works.

 

Let’s be involve in the local church in ways that

will reach the world, sending and supporting missionaries.

 

Let us be a part of the church in healing

the land both locally and abroad.

 

May our faith be a faith that reveals Jesus

Christ by meeting the needs of others.

 

       

Scripture Reading

 

Romans 1:5 NIV

 5 Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.

 

Romans 1:8 NIV

8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.

 

Romans 1:11-13 NIV

11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— 12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith.

 

Romans 1:16-17 NIV

 17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."