1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:02,800 It’s really good to be beginning a new series. 2 00:00:02,800 –> 00:00:05,600 One of the responsibilities of a pastor 3 00:00:05,600 –> 00:00:10,600 is to make sure that God’s people have a balanced diet 4 00:00:10,640 –> 00:00:12,940 in relation to God’s words. 5 00:00:12,940 –> 00:00:16,860 Just think about our diet in terms of what we eat. 6 00:00:16,860 –> 00:00:18,580 Five basic food groups. 7 00:00:18,580 –> 00:00:20,840 You know you have your vegetables, your fruits, 8 00:00:20,840 –> 00:00:23,920 your grains, your dairy, your protein, and so forth. 9 00:00:23,920 –> 00:00:27,219 And a balanced diet is basically one in which you absorb 10 00:00:27,260 –> 00:00:31,660 in proper proportion the distinct value and contribution 11 00:00:31,660 –> 00:00:34,060 that comes to health from each 12 00:00:34,060 –> 00:00:36,820 of these different food groups. 13 00:00:36,820 –> 00:00:41,419 Now what is true in relation to the nourishing of the body 14 00:00:41,419 –> 00:00:46,180 is also true in relation to the nourishing of the soul. 15 00:00:46,180 –> 00:00:48,180 Remember Jesus used this analogy. 16 00:00:48,180 –> 00:00:51,340 He said man shall not live by bread alone, 17 00:00:51,340 –> 00:00:56,340 but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. 18 00:00:56,919 –> 00:00:59,560 So all that we are seeking to learn together 19 00:00:59,560 –> 00:01:01,779 comes from the word of God, 20 00:01:01,779 –> 00:01:05,220 but clearly the word of God itself has different parts 21 00:01:05,220 –> 00:01:08,419 and just as the different food groups each contribute 22 00:01:08,419 –> 00:01:12,099 in a distinct way to the overall health of the body, 23 00:01:12,099 –> 00:01:15,900 so the different parts of Scripture contribute 24 00:01:15,900 –> 00:01:19,379 to the health of our own spiritual life. 25 00:01:19,379 –> 00:01:20,540 Now earlier this year, 26 00:01:20,540 –> 00:01:23,059 we did a series on contentment. 27 00:01:23,059 –> 00:01:26,080 That was a series about Christian character. 28 00:01:26,120 –> 00:01:31,120 It was a series about what Christians experience. 29 00:01:31,519 –> 00:01:33,000 This series is quite different. 30 00:01:33,000 –> 00:01:36,599 This is a series on Christian doctrine. 31 00:01:36,599 –> 00:01:40,360 It is about what Christians believe 32 00:01:40,360 –> 00:01:43,440 and especially we’re going to focus in 33 00:01:43,440 –> 00:01:46,379 on what Christians believe about the law, 34 00:01:46,379 –> 00:01:50,440 about grace and about the Christian life. 35 00:01:50,440 –> 00:01:53,040 So I invite you to turn with me 36 00:01:53,900 –> 00:01:56,800 to Romans and chapter 7. 37 00:01:56,800 –> 00:01:59,919 Over these three weeks that we have together here, 38 00:01:59,919 –> 00:02:01,839 we’re going to read through the whole 39 00:02:01,839 –> 00:02:05,320 of this very important chapter, Romans chapter 7 40 00:02:05,320 –> 00:02:07,879 but the messages themselves will focus 41 00:02:07,879 –> 00:02:10,559 just on the first six verses 42 00:02:10,559 –> 00:02:15,000 and particularly verses 4, 5, and 6. 43 00:02:15,000 –> 00:02:16,440 Now, a good place to begin, 44 00:02:16,440 –> 00:02:20,360 I think, with any series is to have a clear sense 45 00:02:20,360 –> 00:02:22,119 of what our objectives are, 46 00:02:22,119 –> 00:02:25,119 what we’re seeking to gain from this particular part 47 00:02:25,119 –> 00:02:29,039 of the word of God, and how we hope to grow through it. 48 00:02:29,039 –> 00:02:31,759 So let me set out for you three objectives. 49 00:02:31,759 –> 00:02:35,039 I hope to encourage your interest and your engagement 50 00:02:35,039 –> 00:02:37,800 and these three objectives more or less correspond 51 00:02:37,800 –> 00:02:41,000 with the three weeks that we have together. 52 00:02:41,000 –> 00:02:43,460 The first of these is that through this series, 53 00:02:43,460 –> 00:02:48,460 we should better grasp the doctrine of union with Christ 54 00:02:48,500 –> 00:02:53,380 which is central to the whole of the Christian life. 55 00:02:53,380 –> 00:02:56,600 I think this is one of the least well understood 56 00:02:56,600 –> 00:03:00,059 of the most important doctrines of the Christian faith 57 00:03:00,059 –> 00:03:03,440 that is the doctrine of union with Jesus Christ. 58 00:03:03,440 –> 00:03:05,800 What does it mean for you to be one with Christ, 59 00:03:05,800 –> 00:03:09,860 for Christ to be in you and for you to be in him, 60 00:03:09,860 –> 00:03:12,419 and that’s why we’ll look today particularly 61 00:03:12,419 –> 00:03:14,820 at Romans chapter seven and verse four 62 00:03:14,820 –> 00:03:17,179 where we have this wonderful statement 63 00:03:17,220 –> 00:03:22,220 that we belong to him who has been raised from the dead 64 00:03:22,500 –> 00:03:26,940 in order that we may bear fruit for God. 65 00:03:26,940 –> 00:03:31,240 So question, how can I bear fruit for God? 66 00:03:31,240 –> 00:03:34,820 Answer, by union with Jesus Christ 67 00:03:34,820 –> 00:03:36,839 because of belonging to him, 68 00:03:36,839 –> 00:03:39,740 it’s the fruit of this living relationship 69 00:03:39,740 –> 00:03:44,740 of being in Christ that’s going to produce fruit from God. 70 00:03:44,740 –> 00:03:47,419 That’s Romans chapter seven and verse four. 71 00:03:47,419 –> 00:03:51,660 Second objective that we would better understand 72 00:03:51,660 –> 00:03:55,860 why Christianity is more 73 00:03:55,860 –> 00:03:59,119 than a sustained effort at living a moral life. 74 00:04:00,179 –> 00:04:02,660 See, there are many folks in our congregation 75 00:04:02,660 –> 00:04:05,960 who are up for a sustained effort at living a moral life. 76 00:04:05,960 –> 00:04:08,020 That’s why you come to church. 77 00:04:08,020 –> 00:04:11,100 I want you to know, and to see from the Bible, 78 00:04:11,100 –> 00:04:13,699 that Christianity is a whole lot more 79 00:04:13,699 –> 00:04:17,940 than a sustained effort at living a moral life. 80 00:04:17,940 –> 00:04:18,859 Now, if you’re a believer, 81 00:04:18,859 –> 00:04:20,339 I challenge you with this question, 82 00:04:20,339 –> 00:04:23,200 can you explain clearly and compellingly 83 00:04:23,200 –> 00:04:25,100 to someone who didn’t know the difference 84 00:04:25,100 –> 00:04:27,179 what that difference is? 85 00:04:27,179 –> 00:04:29,579 Because it is a vast difference 86 00:04:29,579 –> 00:04:32,100 that we need to understand ourselves 87 00:04:32,100 –> 00:04:36,920 and that we need to be able to communicate to others. 88 00:04:36,920 –> 00:04:40,940 Please understand that an atheist 89 00:04:40,940 –> 00:04:44,920 can make a sustained attempt to live a moral life. 90 00:04:45,980 –> 00:04:48,100 By definition, to attempt a moral life, 91 00:04:48,100 –> 00:04:51,940 you do not need Jesus Christ to make that attempt. 92 00:04:51,940 –> 00:04:56,519 Christians, for sure, are committed to a moral life 93 00:04:56,519 –> 00:04:57,820 and to the pursuit of it. 94 00:04:57,820 –> 00:04:59,019 But what I want you to see 95 00:04:59,019 –> 00:05:02,260 is that there’s nothing uniquely Christian 96 00:05:02,260 –> 00:05:05,299 about attempting a moral life. 97 00:05:05,299 –> 00:05:09,279 So if all you have is a sustained effort 98 00:05:09,279 –> 00:05:11,100 to pursue a moral life 99 00:05:11,100 –> 00:05:14,119 and you’ve just attached the tag Christian to that, 100 00:05:14,119 –> 00:05:17,880 what you’ve missed out on is all of the joy, 101 00:05:17,880 –> 00:05:19,980 all of the love, all of the peace, 102 00:05:19,980 –> 00:05:22,119 the power, the motivation, the energy 103 00:05:22,119 –> 00:05:25,940 that comes from union with Jesus Christ. 104 00:05:25,940 –> 00:05:29,279 That’s what I want us to get hold of in this series. 105 00:05:29,279 –> 00:05:30,640 And that leads to the third thing 106 00:05:30,640 –> 00:05:33,519 which is to taste and to savor 107 00:05:33,519 –> 00:05:36,239 the freedom and the joy 108 00:05:36,880 –> 00:05:40,519 of an authentic Christian life. 109 00:05:40,519 –> 00:05:43,359 And I think that Romans chapter seven 110 00:05:43,359 –> 00:05:45,519 that brings us into this 111 00:05:45,519 –> 00:05:47,040 is one of the most important 112 00:05:47,040 –> 00:05:49,579 and also one of the least well understood 113 00:05:49,579 –> 00:05:51,459 chapters of the bible. 114 00:05:52,500 –> 00:05:54,859 In fact growing up, 115 00:05:54,859 –> 00:05:58,279 I heard on a number of occasions 116 00:05:58,279 –> 00:06:01,179 teaching that said this. 117 00:06:01,179 –> 00:06:05,119 What you need to do as a Christian 118 00:06:05,119 –> 00:06:09,220 is to get out of Romans chapter seven 119 00:06:09,220 –> 00:06:11,820 and get into Romans and chapter eight. 120 00:06:11,820 –> 00:06:14,679 I’m curious to know how many people have heard that line. 121 00:06:16,200 –> 00:06:17,160 Oh thank goodness 122 00:06:17,160 –> 00:06:19,720 that America’s been preserved from such things. 123 00:06:19,720 –> 00:06:20,559 Well 124 00:06:25,140 –> 00:06:27,359 for the sake of the one who has heard it. 125 00:06:31,119 –> 00:06:32,760 I want just to dispense with that 126 00:06:32,760 –> 00:06:34,459 because otherwise you and I might be saying 127 00:06:34,579 –> 00:06:36,119 why in the world are we spending 128 00:06:36,119 –> 00:06:37,739 three weeks in Romans chapter seven 129 00:06:37,739 –> 00:06:39,239 if the objective is to get out of it 130 00:06:39,239 –> 00:06:41,480 and get into chapter eight? 131 00:06:41,480 –> 00:06:44,000 I want us to taste and to savor 132 00:06:44,000 –> 00:06:46,899 the joy of the Christian life 133 00:06:46,899 –> 00:06:50,739 right here in Romans in chapter seven. 134 00:06:50,739 –> 00:06:52,179 And for all of the rest of you 135 00:06:52,179 –> 00:06:53,480 who’ve never heard that line before 136 00:06:53,480 –> 00:06:55,100 let me just tell you this. 137 00:06:55,100 –> 00:06:58,179 There are scores of books 138 00:06:58,179 –> 00:07:00,299 that talk about the carnal Christian 139 00:07:00,299 –> 00:07:02,420 and then a higher spiritual life 140 00:07:02,420 –> 00:07:04,980 that are awash in Christian bookshops 141 00:07:04,980 –> 00:07:07,019 that are full of that theology 142 00:07:07,019 –> 00:07:09,739 that basically says you have to get out of Romans seven 143 00:07:09,739 –> 00:07:12,100 to get into Romans in chapter eight. 144 00:07:12,100 –> 00:07:15,279 And I want your eyes to be open to the errors of that 145 00:07:15,279 –> 00:07:18,220 because you’ve seen the riches of the gospel 146 00:07:18,220 –> 00:07:22,980 in this chapter that is before us today. 147 00:07:22,980 –> 00:07:26,279 I hope then that that helps you to open your mind 148 00:07:26,279 –> 00:07:28,640 and to open your heart 149 00:07:28,640 –> 00:07:31,540 and also I hope now to open your Bible 150 00:07:31,559 –> 00:07:34,339 at Romans and chapter seven. 151 00:07:34,339 –> 00:07:37,100 Now just a word about the title of the series, 152 00:07:37,100 –> 00:07:38,880 A Second Marriage. 153 00:07:38,880 –> 00:07:43,239 It comes, of course, from the analogy or the illustration 154 00:07:43,239 –> 00:07:46,000 that Paul uses here in these first six verses. 155 00:07:46,000 –> 00:07:48,519 Let me draw your attention to verse one. 156 00:07:48,519 –> 00:07:50,540 “‘Do you not know, brothers! 157 00:07:50,540 –> 00:07:53,600 For I am speaking to those who know the law, 158 00:07:53,600 –> 00:07:58,600 that the law is binding on a person only as long as he lives 159 00:07:58,679 –> 00:08:02,899 for a married woman is bound by law 160 00:08:02,899 –> 00:08:07,299 to her husband while he lives. 161 00:08:07,299 –> 00:08:09,940 But if her husband dies, 162 00:08:09,940 –> 00:08:14,940 she is released from the law of marriage.’ 163 00:08:15,100 –> 00:08:18,640 Now Paul is using here an illustration 164 00:08:18,640 –> 00:08:23,279 and, obviously, any illustration has its limitations. 165 00:08:23,279 –> 00:08:27,559 And if an illustration is pressed too far, 166 00:08:27,579 –> 00:08:29,000 then it becomes confusing. 167 00:08:29,000 –> 00:08:32,440 You can’t work it out in regards to everywhere 168 00:08:32,440 –> 00:08:35,080 that someone might want to go with it. 169 00:08:35,080 –> 00:08:36,659 But the point of an illustration, 170 00:08:36,659 –> 00:08:38,200 and surely, we all understand this, 171 00:08:38,200 –> 00:08:40,580 is that a good illustration really is like a window 172 00:08:40,580 –> 00:08:44,640 that lets light into the mind and into the heart. 173 00:08:44,640 –> 00:08:46,820 And this is a marvelous illustration 174 00:08:46,820 –> 00:08:49,919 that helps us to understand a really important truth 175 00:08:49,919 –> 00:08:52,900 that I hope we’re going to grasp together today. 176 00:08:52,900 –> 00:08:57,159 Now, the point that Paul is seeking to illustrate 177 00:08:57,200 –> 00:09:00,039 with this marriage analogy is in verse one. 178 00:09:00,039 –> 00:09:05,039 The point is, the law is binding on a person 179 00:09:05,580 –> 00:09:10,179 only as long as he lives. 180 00:09:10,179 –> 00:09:11,539 In other words, Paul is saying, 181 00:09:11,539 –> 00:09:13,380 for the sake of illustration, 182 00:09:13,380 –> 00:09:15,940 so that we can understand this, 183 00:09:15,940 –> 00:09:19,700 think of your relationship with the law 184 00:09:19,700 –> 00:09:23,020 as if it were a marriage. 185 00:09:23,020 –> 00:09:25,320 So, for the purpose of this illustration, 186 00:09:25,320 –> 00:09:27,780 Paul is speaking of the law 187 00:09:27,780 –> 00:09:30,599 as if the law was a person 188 00:09:30,599 –> 00:09:33,280 and you were married to that person. 189 00:09:33,280 –> 00:09:34,479 And so, for that reason, 190 00:09:34,479 –> 00:09:37,400 I’m going to give that person a name, 191 00:09:37,400 –> 00:09:39,400 will be a gender-neutral name 192 00:09:39,400 –> 00:09:43,200 so that both women and men can relate to it 193 00:09:43,200 –> 00:09:44,679 as we think of what it would be 194 00:09:44,679 –> 00:09:46,960 to be married to this person. 195 00:09:46,960 –> 00:09:50,140 I’m going to call this person nomos, 196 00:09:50,140 –> 00:09:53,580 which of course is the Greek word for law. 197 00:09:53,580 –> 00:09:56,679 Now, what is it like for you 198 00:09:57,580 –> 00:10:01,619 to be married to nomos? 199 00:10:01,619 –> 00:10:03,460 Or as Paul puts it here in verse one, 200 00:10:03,460 –> 00:10:07,739 to be bound to the law. 201 00:10:07,739 –> 00:10:09,700 What is that like? 202 00:10:10,619 –> 00:10:14,280 Well, the law makes demands. 203 00:10:14,280 –> 00:10:16,359 So if you are married to nomos, 204 00:10:16,359 –> 00:10:20,159 you are married to a very demanding person. 205 00:10:21,159 –> 00:10:23,619 However hard you try, 206 00:10:23,619 –> 00:10:26,559 you can never quite live up to nomos expectations of you. 207 00:10:30,299 –> 00:10:32,640 To be married to nomos, 208 00:10:32,640 –> 00:10:33,599 what would you say? 209 00:10:33,599 –> 00:10:37,880 I’m gonna say it is an unhappy marriage, right? 210 00:10:37,880 –> 00:10:38,719 You with me? 211 00:10:38,719 –> 00:10:42,140 Not gonna be easy to be married to nomos. 212 00:10:43,320 –> 00:10:44,679 Think about what this is like. 213 00:10:44,679 –> 00:10:47,039 You can never get to the place 214 00:10:47,320 –> 00:10:51,080 where nomos, your spouse, is pleased with you. 215 00:10:51,080 –> 00:10:53,020 Even when you have done your best 216 00:10:53,020 –> 00:10:55,719 in regards to one thing that nomos asks of you, 217 00:10:55,719 –> 00:10:59,320 nomos has something else that still is asked for you 218 00:10:59,320 –> 00:11:00,919 that you have not yet done. 219 00:11:00,919 –> 00:11:04,599 To be bound to the law is an unhappy marriage 220 00:11:04,599 –> 00:11:07,020 and actually it’s worse. 221 00:11:08,719 –> 00:11:13,719 It’s actually to be stuck in an abusive relationship. 222 00:11:17,799 –> 00:11:19,700 Now, another quick show of hands. 223 00:11:19,700 –> 00:11:22,479 How many of you have read Pilgrim’s Progress? 224 00:11:22,479 –> 00:11:23,900 Oh, that’s good. 225 00:11:23,900 –> 00:11:26,659 We’re reading the right things in this congregation. 226 00:11:26,659 –> 00:11:29,099 I’m so encouraged, Tom. 227 00:11:29,099 –> 00:11:31,080 For anyone who’s not read Pilgrim’s Progress, 228 00:11:31,080 –> 00:11:33,719 really got to read it, and here’s what it is. 229 00:11:33,719 –> 00:11:35,039 It is an allegory. 230 00:11:35,039 –> 00:11:38,380 In other words, it’s a presentation of the Christian life 231 00:11:38,380 –> 00:11:41,960 with illustrations, analogies, and pictures. 232 00:11:41,960 –> 00:11:45,359 So it’s really the story of a person called Christian 233 00:11:45,359 –> 00:11:49,520 who leaves his home, which is in the city of destruction, 234 00:11:49,520 –> 00:11:51,440 and begins a journey that’s going to take him 235 00:11:51,440 –> 00:11:53,760 all the way to the celestial city. 236 00:11:53,760 –> 00:11:58,020 So it is a picture, an analogy of the Christian life. 237 00:11:58,020 –> 00:12:00,820 Now, at one point in the journey, 238 00:12:00,820 –> 00:12:05,799 Christian meets another believer who’s name is Faithful, 239 00:12:06,080 –> 00:12:08,919 and the two of them begin to talk, as Christians do, 240 00:12:08,919 –> 00:12:11,359 about their battles with temptation 241 00:12:11,359 –> 00:12:14,159 and the various difficulties and challenges 242 00:12:14,159 –> 00:12:16,020 that they faced. 243 00:12:16,020 –> 00:12:21,020 And Faithful tells Christian about how he came to the house 244 00:12:22,039 –> 00:12:27,039 of an old man whose name was Adam I. 245 00:12:28,159 –> 00:12:32,260 He lived in a town that was called Deceit. 246 00:12:32,260 –> 00:12:36,020 And Adam I lived in a luxurious home. 247 00:12:36,020 –> 00:12:38,460 I mean, this place was absolutely fabulous, 248 00:12:38,460 –> 00:12:43,460 and he had three strikingly beautiful daughters. 249 00:12:45,159 –> 00:12:48,440 And he said to Faithful, 250 00:12:48,440 –> 00:12:52,260 if you will come and if you will work for me, 251 00:12:52,260 –> 00:12:55,320 you can marry any one of my daughters. 252 00:12:55,320 –> 00:12:57,719 And then he said, or you can marry all three of them 253 00:12:57,719 –> 00:12:59,119 if you’d like to. 254 00:12:59,119 –> 00:13:00,080 That’s what he said. 255 00:13:01,080 –> 00:13:04,559 And what’s more, because you work for me 256 00:13:04,559 –> 00:13:07,039 and marry into my family, 257 00:13:07,039 –> 00:13:09,440 you will inherit this great mansion 258 00:13:09,440 –> 00:13:10,739 and everything that I have, 259 00:13:10,739 –> 00:13:13,440 everything that I have, said Adam I, 260 00:13:13,440 –> 00:13:15,340 will be yours if you will come 261 00:13:15,340 –> 00:13:16,460 and if you will work for me 262 00:13:16,460 –> 00:13:19,239 and if you will marry into my family. 263 00:13:20,760 –> 00:13:24,940 And Faithful said, when he heard this enticing offer, 264 00:13:26,219 –> 00:13:31,219 he said, at first, I was inclined to accept his offer. 265 00:13:34,460 –> 00:13:38,140 My first instinct was, I’d like to do that. 266 00:13:39,739 –> 00:13:42,859 But then he says, the thought came to me 267 00:13:42,859 –> 00:13:45,799 that the old man actually wanted to make me a slave. 268 00:13:47,119 –> 00:13:50,159 And so Faithful said no 269 00:13:50,159 –> 00:13:53,659 to what at first had attracted him. 270 00:13:54,719 –> 00:13:56,119 And when he did that, of course, 271 00:13:56,119 –> 00:13:59,000 the old man suddenly changed and became very angry indeed, 272 00:13:59,000 –> 00:14:02,679 and he said, I’m gonna send someone after you 273 00:14:02,679 –> 00:14:05,299 who’s gonna make your life miserable. 274 00:14:06,520 –> 00:14:09,159 While Faithful rightly realized I got to get out of here, 275 00:14:09,159 –> 00:14:11,880 so he leaves the town that was called Deceit. 276 00:14:11,880 –> 00:14:14,080 And as he gets out onto the road again, 277 00:14:14,080 –> 00:14:16,559 sure enough, someone he has not seen before 278 00:14:16,559 –> 00:14:19,059 comes running up behind him. 279 00:14:19,059 –> 00:14:22,200 And when this man caught up with Faithful 280 00:14:22,200 –> 00:14:25,359 without any warning, he took such a swipe at him, 281 00:14:25,359 –> 00:14:26,799 hit him right in the stomach, 282 00:14:26,799 –> 00:14:29,119 taking his breath away, doubling him up. 283 00:14:29,119 –> 00:14:31,820 When Faithful catches his breath, 284 00:14:31,820 –> 00:14:35,900 he says to the man, why did you do that? 285 00:14:36,859 –> 00:14:40,179 Your first inclination 286 00:14:41,820 –> 00:14:44,900 was to go with Adam the first. 287 00:14:46,260 –> 00:14:48,140 Then he hit Faithful again. 288 00:14:48,140 –> 00:14:49,419 This time right across the head, 289 00:14:49,419 –> 00:14:51,080 knocking him to the ground. 290 00:14:52,619 –> 00:14:55,140 Faithful begged for mercy. 291 00:14:56,320 –> 00:14:58,619 But the man said, 292 00:14:58,619 –> 00:15:02,460 The law knows no mercy. 293 00:15:03,299 –> 00:15:06,359 And then the man kicked him on the ground. 294 00:15:07,659 –> 00:15:10,619 Now at this point Faithful realized 295 00:15:10,619 –> 00:15:12,200 he was really in trouble. 296 00:15:12,200 –> 00:15:14,239 This guy’s gonna kill me 297 00:15:14,239 –> 00:15:16,580 and here I am lying on the ground. 298 00:15:16,580 –> 00:15:19,299 And as he’s telling his story to Christian, 299 00:15:19,299 –> 00:15:22,619 he says, At that point there was a man, 300 00:15:22,619 –> 00:15:26,580 another man, a second man, who came along 301 00:15:26,580 –> 00:15:30,679 and he commanded this first man to stop. 302 00:15:30,679 –> 00:15:31,520 And he did. 303 00:15:33,340 –> 00:15:35,359 Well Christian said to Faithful, 304 00:15:35,359 –> 00:15:37,520 Do you know who that second man was? 305 00:15:37,520 –> 00:15:42,080 The man who saved you by commanding the first one to stop? 306 00:15:43,400 –> 00:15:46,020 He said, Well, I didn’t know at the time, 307 00:15:47,119 –> 00:15:50,820 but when he moved on, I saw that the second man 308 00:15:50,820 –> 00:15:55,580 had scars in his hands and in his feet. 309 00:15:56,760 –> 00:15:59,020 And Christian said to Faithful, 310 00:15:59,020 –> 00:16:01,059 Do you know then who the first man was? 311 00:16:01,059 –> 00:16:05,940 I’ll tell you, his name was Moses. 312 00:16:07,000 –> 00:16:12,000 The law spares no one, and it never shows mercy. 313 00:16:15,820 –> 00:16:17,359 Now, I tell you that story, 314 00:16:17,359 –> 00:16:19,099 because when you reflect on it, 315 00:16:19,099 –> 00:16:20,799 I think that this is a story 316 00:16:20,799 –> 00:16:23,320 that every Christian can relate to. 317 00:16:24,500 –> 00:16:29,500 The inclination toward sin is in us all. 318 00:16:29,619 –> 00:16:33,359 And even if, as faithful did, 319 00:16:33,359 –> 00:16:37,640 we get to the point of saying no to a particular temptation 320 00:16:37,640 –> 00:16:40,280 and moving away from it, 321 00:16:40,280 –> 00:16:43,280 the law still sneaks up on us 322 00:16:43,280 –> 00:16:45,359 and condemns us for the very fact 323 00:16:45,359 –> 00:16:47,940 that our first inclination was to be drawn to it 324 00:16:47,940 –> 00:16:49,719 in the first place. 325 00:16:51,039 –> 00:16:54,840 The law is always beating up on us. 326 00:16:55,460 –> 00:16:58,140 And if it were not for the man 327 00:16:58,140 –> 00:17:01,559 with the scars in his hands and on his feet, 328 00:17:01,559 –> 00:17:04,939 the law would surely leave us all for dead. 329 00:17:06,579 –> 00:17:08,920 And so, coming back to Paul’s illustration, 330 00:17:08,920 –> 00:17:12,859 do you see the terrible position 331 00:17:12,859 –> 00:17:16,040 that, by nature, all of us were born into 332 00:17:16,040 –> 00:17:18,680 being married to Nomos, 333 00:17:19,579 –> 00:17:21,900 married to Nomos, 334 00:17:21,900 –> 00:17:26,020 bound to this law. 335 00:17:26,920 –> 00:17:29,959 Constant demands, impossible to please, 336 00:17:29,959 –> 00:17:31,520 often beating up on you. 337 00:17:31,520 –> 00:17:34,000 As long as you are married to Nomos, 338 00:17:34,000 –> 00:17:36,119 you can never be at peace. 339 00:17:37,560 –> 00:17:39,920 And you can never be at rest. 340 00:17:41,739 –> 00:17:43,199 So then, we ask the question, 341 00:17:43,199 –> 00:17:48,199 well, for how long must we be bound to Nomos? 342 00:17:48,260 –> 00:17:53,260 Nomos, how long is this miserable marriage going to last? 343 00:17:53,260 –> 00:17:54,699 Look at verse one. 344 00:17:54,699 –> 00:17:59,339 The law is binding on a person 345 00:18:00,239 –> 00:18:02,339 only as long as he lives, 346 00:18:03,579 –> 00:18:06,619 and that’s all, just your whole life, 347 00:18:06,619 –> 00:18:09,540 only your whole life. 348 00:18:10,540 –> 00:18:12,180 This marriage to Nomos, 349 00:18:12,180 –> 00:18:16,520 this miserable marriage, is till death do us part. 350 00:18:17,479 –> 00:18:21,280 No getting out of this obligation 351 00:18:21,280 –> 00:18:24,619 to the law of God for as long as you live, 352 00:18:24,619 –> 00:18:27,920 you are bound by nature to all of the requirements, 353 00:18:27,920 –> 00:18:30,959 all of the demands and all of the penalties 354 00:18:32,119 –> 00:18:33,680 of the law of God. 355 00:18:33,680 –> 00:18:35,319 There is no way out of this. 356 00:18:35,319 –> 00:18:38,439 There is no way to divorce Nomos. 357 00:18:40,020 –> 00:18:44,719 The only way that this marriage ever ends 358 00:18:44,800 –> 00:18:46,099 is through death. 359 00:18:47,119 –> 00:18:48,819 And Nomos never dies. 360 00:18:49,880 –> 00:18:51,380 You know, you might think I’m married 361 00:18:51,380 –> 00:18:52,859 to this miserable beggar. 362 00:18:54,020 –> 00:18:57,079 Let’s hope that there’s something wrong with his health 363 00:18:57,079 –> 00:18:57,920 or her health. 364 00:18:57,920 –> 00:18:58,880 Die soon. 365 00:19:00,020 –> 00:19:01,880 But Nomos is in very good health, 366 00:19:01,880 –> 00:19:03,400 was here long before you were born, 367 00:19:03,400 –> 00:19:05,800 actually we’ll be living long after you’re gone. 368 00:19:07,479 –> 00:19:09,079 And so, 369 00:19:09,079 –> 00:19:11,680 since Nomos aint gonna die, 370 00:19:12,619 –> 00:19:14,699 the law will never pass away. 371 00:19:15,780 –> 00:19:20,359 The only way out of this miserable marriage 372 00:19:20,359 –> 00:19:23,479 is therefore that 373 00:19:23,479 –> 00:19:25,599 you should 374 00:19:26,640 –> 00:19:27,959 die, 375 00:19:27,959 –> 00:19:29,060 it’s the only way out. 376 00:19:30,459 –> 00:19:31,599 And 377 00:19:31,599 –> 00:19:36,099 that is where we come to these marvelous words 378 00:19:36,099 –> 00:19:38,260 of Romans chapter seven and verse four. 379 00:19:38,260 –> 00:19:40,420 Let’s take it phrase by phrase. 380 00:19:40,479 –> 00:19:43,640 Likewise, my brothers, verse four. 381 00:19:43,640 –> 00:19:47,119 So here now the Apostle is talking to Christians, 382 00:19:47,119 –> 00:19:51,459 he’s telling us what we need to know about ourselves. 383 00:19:51,459 –> 00:19:52,780 And here it is, 384 00:19:52,780 –> 00:19:54,500 likewise my brothers, 385 00:19:54,500 –> 00:19:57,219 you also have 386 00:19:57,219 –> 00:19:58,380 died 387 00:19:58,380 –> 00:19:59,420 to 388 00:19:59,420 –> 00:20:00,540 the law, 389 00:20:00,540 –> 00:20:02,839 you are no longer bound to the law, 390 00:20:02,839 –> 00:20:07,400 you are no longer locked into this abusive relationship, 391 00:20:07,420 –> 00:20:11,920 you are no longer married to Naumos. 392 00:20:11,920 –> 00:20:13,939 Now that’s an amen moment, isn’t it? 393 00:20:13,939 –> 00:20:16,420 That was marvelous good news. 394 00:20:17,979 –> 00:20:20,439 And the reason that you’re no longer bound to Naumos 395 00:20:20,439 –> 00:20:22,040 is not that the law has died, 396 00:20:22,040 –> 00:20:23,780 the commandments of God stand for ever, 397 00:20:23,780 –> 00:20:26,599 Jesus said not one dot of an I or cross of a T ever 398 00:20:26,599 –> 00:20:28,439 is going to pass away from all of the law of God 399 00:20:28,439 –> 00:20:29,680 from all of the commandments. 400 00:20:29,680 –> 00:20:31,800 The reason that you are not bound to the law 401 00:20:31,800 –> 00:20:33,280 is not that the law has died. 402 00:20:33,280 –> 00:20:35,319 It is that you have died, 403 00:20:36,239 –> 00:20:37,180 you have 404 00:20:38,119 –> 00:20:39,479 now you say wait a minute, 405 00:20:39,479 –> 00:20:41,079 here we are, we’re all sitting here 406 00:20:41,079 –> 00:20:44,119 healthy and breathing and smiling and reading our bibles. 407 00:20:44,119 –> 00:20:46,119 How can it be said that we have died? 408 00:20:46,119 –> 00:20:47,400 Look at how he explains it. 409 00:20:47,400 –> 00:20:52,400 Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law, 410 00:20:52,520 –> 00:20:57,119 here’s how, through the body 411 00:20:57,119 –> 00:20:58,479 of Christ. 412 00:20:59,439 –> 00:21:03,640 Now here we come to this marvelous central truth 413 00:21:03,640 –> 00:21:07,479 of the believer’s union with Jesus Christ 414 00:21:07,479 –> 00:21:11,739 in his death and in his resurrection. 415 00:21:11,739 –> 00:21:14,420 That we are made one with him 416 00:21:14,420 –> 00:21:16,560 through the bond of faith 417 00:21:16,560 –> 00:21:19,359 so that all that happened to him 418 00:21:19,359 –> 00:21:21,859 in his death and in his resurrection 419 00:21:21,859 –> 00:21:25,479 actually brings a complete and a radical change 420 00:21:25,479 –> 00:21:28,760 in regards to all who are in him 421 00:21:28,760 –> 00:21:31,680 through this bond of faith. 422 00:21:31,680 –> 00:21:34,199 This is what Paul says in Galatians 2.20 423 00:21:34,199 –> 00:21:35,920 a verse that many of you know well, 424 00:21:35,920 –> 00:21:40,660 I have been crucified with Christ. 425 00:21:40,660 –> 00:21:44,180 In other words, when Jesus died, 426 00:21:44,180 –> 00:21:46,979 all who are made one with him through faith 427 00:21:46,979 –> 00:21:49,300 died with him. 428 00:21:49,300 –> 00:21:53,500 We died to sin and that’s explained further 429 00:21:53,500 –> 00:21:55,660 in Romans chapter 6 430 00:21:55,660 –> 00:21:58,780 and we died to the law, to nomos 431 00:21:58,780 –> 00:22:01,359 and that’s what’s explained in this marvelous chapter 432 00:22:01,359 –> 00:22:03,599 Romans chapter 7. 433 00:22:03,599 –> 00:22:06,000 And then when Jesus rose, 434 00:22:06,000 –> 00:22:08,359 all who are made one with him through 435 00:22:08,359 –> 00:22:11,800 this living union that’s forged with a bond of faith, 436 00:22:11,800 –> 00:22:13,920 we rose with him, we really did, 437 00:22:13,920 –> 00:22:17,760 we rose to a new life, we’re not the people that we were. 438 00:22:17,760 –> 00:22:20,660 You are a new creation in Jesus Christ. 439 00:22:20,660 –> 00:22:23,079 You are now indwelt by the presence 440 00:22:23,079 –> 00:22:26,959 and by the power of the Holy Spirit. 441 00:22:26,959 –> 00:22:30,319 So Jesus died 442 00:22:30,319 –> 00:22:35,319 so that through his death we might also die in him, 443 00:22:37,239 –> 00:22:39,359 so that we might be released, 444 00:22:39,359 –> 00:22:41,140 it was the only way we could be released 445 00:22:41,140 –> 00:22:44,859 from this miserable marriage to nomos. 446 00:22:44,859 –> 00:22:46,699 Our death was the only way out 447 00:22:46,699 –> 00:22:50,800 and our death was died in him. 448 00:22:50,800 –> 00:22:55,160 If it had not been for the man with the scars in his hand 449 00:22:55,160 –> 00:22:57,060 and the scars in his feet, 450 00:22:57,060 –> 00:22:59,739 nomos would have been the end of us. 451 00:22:59,739 –> 00:23:01,819 We would have been bound to him for life 452 00:23:01,819 –> 00:23:04,880 and his condemnation would have been bound to us forever 453 00:23:06,459 –> 00:23:08,239 but notice what comes next. 454 00:23:09,420 –> 00:23:13,939 God’s purpose for you is more than saving you 455 00:23:13,939 –> 00:23:16,359 from getting beaten up by nomos, 456 00:23:16,359 –> 00:23:19,380 it is that you should enter a second very different 457 00:23:19,380 –> 00:23:22,260 and wonderful marriage. 458 00:23:22,260 –> 00:23:24,760 Likewise, my brothers, verse four, 459 00:23:24,760 –> 00:23:29,319 you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, 460 00:23:29,319 –> 00:23:31,300 that’s how it happened, but why? 461 00:23:31,300 –> 00:23:36,040 So that you may belong to another 462 00:23:37,199 –> 00:23:42,199 who, him, who has been raised from the dead. 463 00:23:43,459 –> 00:23:44,300 Do you see this? 464 00:23:44,300 –> 00:23:45,560 You see why it’s called the second marriage? 465 00:23:45,560 –> 00:23:49,880 God’s purpose for you in Jesus Christ 466 00:23:49,880 –> 00:23:53,119 is not only to deliver you 467 00:23:53,119 –> 00:23:56,619 from this miserable marriage to nomos 468 00:23:56,640 –> 00:24:00,300 but thereby to free you to enter into 469 00:24:00,300 –> 00:24:03,099 this marvelous new second marriage, 470 00:24:03,099 –> 00:24:04,859 to use Paul’s analogy, 471 00:24:04,859 –> 00:24:09,859 this new and wonderful union with Jesus Christ, 472 00:24:10,439 –> 00:24:13,140 that you may belong to another, 473 00:24:13,140 –> 00:24:14,939 that you may belong to him 474 00:24:14,939 –> 00:24:18,839 who has been raised from the dead. 475 00:24:19,900 –> 00:24:21,260 Now, going back just for a moment 476 00:24:21,260 –> 00:24:22,319 to our objectives. 477 00:24:22,319 –> 00:24:25,439 Do you see now in clearer focus 478 00:24:25,819 –> 00:24:29,439 what is the difference between being a Christian, 479 00:24:29,439 –> 00:24:32,800 union with Jesus Christ in this new and wonderful 480 00:24:32,800 –> 00:24:35,599 second marriage, to use Paul’s analogy? 481 00:24:36,520 –> 00:24:38,040 Do you see the difference between that 482 00:24:38,040 –> 00:24:40,719 and a sustained effort to live a moral life? 483 00:24:41,560 –> 00:24:42,719 Because if you think about it, 484 00:24:42,719 –> 00:24:47,719 by definition, a sustained effort to live a moral life 485 00:24:48,819 –> 00:24:53,300 is, by definition, an attempt to please nomos. 486 00:24:53,380 –> 00:24:55,420 Nomos, that’s what it is, 487 00:24:55,420 –> 00:24:57,540 a sustained attempt to live a moral life. 488 00:24:57,540 –> 00:24:58,380 What’s that? 489 00:24:58,380 –> 00:25:00,719 It’s an attempt to please nomos. 490 00:25:00,719 –> 00:25:05,300 And however hard you try, that’s never gonna work. 491 00:25:06,180 –> 00:25:09,339 You cannot succeed with it because nomos 492 00:25:09,339 –> 00:25:13,439 is never satisfied, to be a Christian 493 00:25:13,439 –> 00:25:17,500 is to be delivered from that miserable marriage. 494 00:25:17,500 –> 00:25:19,579 It is to be brought into this new 495 00:25:19,579 –> 00:25:22,900 and this entirely different relationship 496 00:25:22,900 –> 00:25:24,719 with a Savior who loves you 497 00:25:24,719 –> 00:25:27,420 in which you are able to flourish. 498 00:25:30,359 –> 00:25:32,479 Karin and I are very close 499 00:25:33,979 –> 00:25:37,599 to someone who made a really bad choice 500 00:25:38,560 –> 00:25:40,140 earlier in her life 501 00:25:41,239 –> 00:25:45,739 and found herself in an abusive relationship. 502 00:25:48,060 –> 00:25:50,459 It was a miserable marriage 503 00:25:51,319 –> 00:25:53,640 and it lasted for some years 504 00:25:55,160 –> 00:25:58,239 and then finally, the marriage ended 505 00:25:58,239 –> 00:25:59,479 and when it did, 506 00:26:01,520 –> 00:26:03,520 we were all so relieved. 507 00:26:05,800 –> 00:26:08,560 But then something else happened. 508 00:26:10,339 –> 00:26:11,680 Some years later 509 00:26:13,040 –> 00:26:14,959 she met and she married 510 00:26:16,260 –> 00:26:18,420 a man who really loved her 511 00:26:19,400 –> 00:26:21,900 and since then her entire life 512 00:26:23,459 –> 00:26:27,099 has been completely and utterly different. 513 00:26:27,099 –> 00:26:29,640 There’s a light, there’s a joy, 514 00:26:31,260 –> 00:26:34,260 there’s a peace and there’s a contentment about her. 515 00:26:34,260 –> 00:26:36,260 She’s a different person 516 00:26:37,920 –> 00:26:41,599 and she’s living an entirely different life. 517 00:26:43,060 –> 00:26:45,599 Now do you see that that’s the illustration 518 00:26:45,880 –> 00:26:48,640 that the Apostle Paul is using here 519 00:26:48,640 –> 00:26:51,119 and it really gets to the heart 520 00:26:52,079 –> 00:26:54,400 of what it means to be a Christian. 521 00:26:54,400 –> 00:26:58,000 It is a transformation of life 522 00:26:58,000 –> 00:27:03,000 that comes from a living union with Jesus Christ 523 00:27:03,439 –> 00:27:05,239 and this is how it works. 524 00:27:05,239 –> 00:27:08,880 All that happens to us 525 00:27:08,880 –> 00:27:13,060 is because of all that happened to Him. 526 00:27:13,060 –> 00:27:15,119 The reason that we are able to flourish 527 00:27:15,199 –> 00:27:17,939 and to know peace and joy and hope 528 00:27:17,939 –> 00:27:20,380 and contentment and all these good things 529 00:27:20,380 –> 00:27:21,680 in the Christian life 530 00:27:21,680 –> 00:27:24,239 is because of our union with Jesus Christ 531 00:27:24,239 –> 00:27:25,939 and therefore it is our union 532 00:27:25,939 –> 00:27:28,380 with what happened to Him that brings this change. 533 00:27:28,380 –> 00:27:31,000 It’s our participation in His death 534 00:27:31,000 –> 00:27:32,959 and in His resurrection. 535 00:27:32,959 –> 00:27:35,859 Think of it, all that has happened to us. 536 00:27:37,020 –> 00:27:39,260 That means we’ve been forgiven. 537 00:27:40,579 –> 00:27:41,579 We’ve died to sin. 538 00:27:41,579 –> 00:27:45,060 It’s always our enemy but it’s no longer our master. 539 00:27:45,079 –> 00:27:46,380 We got free, finally, 540 00:27:46,380 –> 00:27:48,579 from this miserable marriage to Nommos. 541 00:27:48,579 –> 00:27:51,040 How did all these things happen to us? 542 00:27:51,040 –> 00:27:52,560 They happened to us 543 00:27:52,560 –> 00:27:54,819 because of what happened to Him. 544 00:27:54,819 –> 00:27:55,920 He died. 545 00:27:55,920 –> 00:27:58,180 If He didn’t die none of this is ours. 546 00:27:58,180 –> 00:28:00,660 We’re married to Nommos forever. 547 00:28:00,660 –> 00:28:02,380 But He died. 548 00:28:02,380 –> 00:28:04,260 And what happened to Him 549 00:28:04,260 –> 00:28:07,180 is the reason for all the good that has happened to us. 550 00:28:08,000 –> 00:28:09,199 Then what else has happened to us? 551 00:28:09,199 –> 00:28:12,099 We have new life in Jesus Christ. 552 00:28:12,099 –> 00:28:13,420 We have the Holy Spirit, 553 00:28:13,640 –> 00:28:15,599 we have His presence and His power with us always. 554 00:28:15,599 –> 00:28:16,839 We have new hope, 555 00:28:16,839 –> 00:28:20,459 we have the hope of a future of unclouded joy 556 00:28:20,459 –> 00:28:21,839 in the presence of God. 557 00:28:21,839 –> 00:28:23,699 How did these things happen to us? 558 00:28:23,699 –> 00:28:25,979 They happened to us because of what appened to Him. 559 00:28:25,979 –> 00:28:26,859 What happened to Him? 560 00:28:26,859 –> 00:28:28,579 He rose. 561 00:28:28,579 –> 00:28:31,199 If Jesus didn’t arise none of these things are ours. 562 00:28:31,199 –> 00:28:32,140 But He did. 563 00:28:32,140 –> 00:28:33,760 He died and He rose. 564 00:28:33,760 –> 00:28:36,979 And we died in Him and we rose in Him. 565 00:28:36,979 –> 00:28:40,339 Union with Christ is the very heart 566 00:28:40,339 –> 00:28:44,479 of all the good that comes to us in the Christian life. 567 00:28:44,479 –> 00:28:47,020 Martin Lloyd-Jones says this wonderfully well. 568 00:28:47,020 –> 00:28:48,780 Let me just quote him here. 569 00:28:48,780 –> 00:28:52,400 We are not saved he says by teaching. 570 00:28:52,400 –> 00:28:56,260 We are not saved by ideas. 571 00:28:56,260 –> 00:28:59,500 Beware of, Oh you know this is a wonderful idea. 572 00:28:59,500 –> 00:29:02,079 This is something that happened. 573 00:29:02,079 –> 00:29:04,239 So to resume the quote Lloyd-Jones says 574 00:29:05,219 –> 00:29:08,380 we are saved by the fact 575 00:29:08,380 –> 00:29:13,099 that the eternal son of God came into this world. 576 00:29:13,099 –> 00:29:16,219 That he was born of the Virgin Mary, 577 00:29:16,219 –> 00:29:18,900 that he died on that cross, 578 00:29:18,900 –> 00:29:20,540 that he was buried in the grave 579 00:29:20,540 –> 00:29:24,260 and he conquered death and he ascended to the Father 580 00:29:24,260 –> 00:29:27,420 and is now seated at God’s right hand. 581 00:29:27,420 –> 00:29:29,540 All that has happened to us, 582 00:29:29,540 –> 00:29:31,420 everything that is ours in Christ 583 00:29:31,420 –> 00:29:34,219 is because of what happened to him 584 00:29:34,219 –> 00:29:36,979 in his coming and in his dying, 585 00:29:36,979 –> 00:29:38,939 in his rising and his ascending, 586 00:29:38,939 –> 00:29:42,140 it’s all ours in Jesus Christ 587 00:29:42,140 –> 00:29:45,300 because of this new union with Christ, 588 00:29:45,300 –> 00:29:46,739 to use Paul’s picture, 589 00:29:46,739 –> 00:29:51,420 a new and wonderful second marriage. 590 00:29:52,380 –> 00:29:55,739 And then just notice how our verse ends here. 591 00:29:55,739 –> 00:29:57,680 Likewise, my brothers, 592 00:29:58,619 –> 00:30:02,380 you also have died to the law. 593 00:30:02,380 –> 00:30:04,660 So this is what is true of you in Christ. 594 00:30:04,660 –> 00:30:05,540 Brothers, sisters, 595 00:30:05,540 –> 00:30:06,900 you have died to the law. 596 00:30:07,719 –> 00:30:08,540 Thank God for that. 597 00:30:08,540 –> 00:30:11,099 Here’s how it happened through the body of Christ, 598 00:30:11,099 –> 00:30:12,939 through his death, 599 00:30:12,939 –> 00:30:16,420 so that you may belong to another 600 00:30:16,420 –> 00:30:18,180 new and wonderful relationship 601 00:30:18,180 –> 00:30:19,439 in which you can flourish, 602 00:30:19,439 –> 00:30:21,660 Him who has been raised from the dead, 603 00:30:21,660 –> 00:30:23,180 and what’s gonna be the result of that? 604 00:30:23,180 –> 00:30:28,180 In order that we may bear fruit for God. 605 00:30:31,819 –> 00:30:35,020 Here’s a very strange thought for parents. 606 00:30:35,680 –> 00:30:39,540 If you had married a different person, 607 00:30:41,060 –> 00:30:45,319 you would have had different children. 608 00:30:45,319 –> 00:30:47,920 Isn’t that a very strange thought? 609 00:30:47,920 –> 00:30:51,540 It’s a really weird thought for children as well. 610 00:30:51,540 –> 00:30:54,339 But it’s true. 611 00:30:56,599 –> 00:30:58,959 Now, remember Paul is using an illustration here, 612 00:30:58,959 –> 00:31:00,339 so we mustn’t press it too far, 613 00:31:00,339 –> 00:31:02,719 but I think the general point here is clear 614 00:31:02,760 –> 00:31:05,180 where he talks about the fruit of the marriage. 615 00:31:06,260 –> 00:31:08,800 Being married to the law, 616 00:31:08,800 –> 00:31:11,140 and we’ll see this more next week, 617 00:31:11,140 –> 00:31:13,819 brings out the worst in us, it always does. 618 00:31:15,219 –> 00:31:19,760 Marriage to nomos never produces good fruit. 619 00:31:21,060 –> 00:31:22,900 But Paul says you’ve died to the law 620 00:31:24,020 –> 00:31:26,479 so that you may belong to Christ in order 621 00:31:26,479 –> 00:31:28,319 that we may bear good fruit for God. 622 00:31:28,319 –> 00:31:30,979 You see the good fruit that comes 623 00:31:31,040 –> 00:31:33,380 from the union of a believer in Jesus Christ, 624 00:31:33,380 –> 00:31:34,819 this is what Jesus is talking about 625 00:31:34,819 –> 00:31:37,359 when he says, I am the vine and you are the branches. 626 00:31:37,359 –> 00:31:40,040 You see, the fruit comes because the life 627 00:31:40,040 –> 00:31:42,000 of Christ really is in you. 628 00:31:42,000 –> 00:31:45,959 That’s so different from simply a sustained effort 629 00:31:45,959 –> 00:31:47,000 at living a moral life. 630 00:31:47,000 –> 00:31:49,060 All the difference in the world. 631 00:31:50,479 –> 00:31:52,280 The life of Jesus Christ, actually, 632 00:31:52,280 –> 00:31:54,319 by his Holy Spirit within you, 633 00:31:54,319 –> 00:31:59,319 that’s the very heart of what it means to be a Christian. 634 00:31:59,359 –> 00:32:01,859 So I want to end here today. 635 00:32:01,859 –> 00:32:04,780 What do you know of this in your life? 636 00:32:04,780 –> 00:32:07,079 Here we are today. 637 00:32:07,079 –> 00:32:08,439 We’re gonna end this service by coming 638 00:32:08,439 –> 00:32:10,319 around the Lord’s table in just a moment. 639 00:32:10,319 –> 00:32:13,060 And there may be some of us here 640 00:32:13,060 –> 00:32:14,739 who feel that we, you know, 641 00:32:14,739 –> 00:32:16,439 I’m not sure if I should take the bread 642 00:32:16,439 –> 00:32:18,400 or the wine, because I’m not sure 643 00:32:18,400 –> 00:32:20,000 if I’m really fit to come, 644 00:32:20,000 –> 00:32:21,839 and you know your own sin, 645 00:32:21,839 –> 00:32:24,760 you feel your weakness in regards 646 00:32:24,760 –> 00:32:26,479 to even your own faith, 647 00:32:26,479 –> 00:32:28,719 and you often feel condemned. 648 00:32:28,760 –> 00:32:29,599 Listen. 649 00:32:30,719 –> 00:32:32,640 The voice that condemns you 650 00:32:33,819 –> 00:32:35,900 is the voice of nommas, 651 00:32:36,880 –> 00:32:38,979 and today the man with the scars 652 00:32:38,979 –> 00:32:40,439 in his hands and in his feet 653 00:32:40,439 –> 00:32:43,079 commands nommas to stop. 654 00:32:44,119 –> 00:32:45,880 When you are in Christ, 655 00:32:45,880 –> 00:32:49,880 you are no longer married to nommas. 656 00:32:49,880 –> 00:32:52,719 There is no condemnation 657 00:32:52,719 –> 00:32:55,880 for those who are in Christ Jesus. 658 00:32:55,880 –> 00:32:57,540 And we don’t come to the table 659 00:32:57,540 –> 00:32:59,739 because we think we’ve lived a good enough life 660 00:32:59,739 –> 00:33:02,300 to merit the privilege of coming. 661 00:33:02,300 –> 00:33:04,420 We come to the Lord’s table 662 00:33:04,420 –> 00:33:07,739 because we know our need of a savior 663 00:33:08,699 –> 00:33:11,660 and we find all that we need in him 664 00:33:11,660 –> 00:33:15,500 who died and who rose for us 665 00:33:15,500 –> 00:33:19,680 and that we died and rose to new life in him. 666 00:33:19,680 –> 00:33:21,400 So, believe that today, 667 00:33:21,400 –> 00:33:23,219 and with joy and with humility, 668 00:33:23,219 –> 00:33:26,540 you come to the Lord’s table 669 00:33:26,540 –> 00:33:29,439 trusting in Jesus Christ. 670 00:33:29,439 –> 00:33:31,380 And think of it this way, 671 00:33:32,619 –> 00:33:34,459 2000 years ago, 672 00:33:35,280 –> 00:33:38,939 the son of God was asked this question, 673 00:33:39,819 –> 00:33:44,239 will you take sinners 674 00:33:45,300 –> 00:33:47,060 and be their savior? 675 00:33:48,579 –> 00:33:51,239 And on the cross, as it were, 676 00:33:51,239 –> 00:33:54,540 Jesus answered that question, I will, I will. 677 00:33:55,540 –> 00:33:58,459 And today I really have the privilege 678 00:33:58,459 –> 00:34:01,239 of saying to each and every one of us, 679 00:34:01,239 –> 00:34:03,619 will you take Jesus Christ, 680 00:34:04,660 –> 00:34:07,199 will you forsake all others 681 00:34:07,199 –> 00:34:10,379 and keep only to him as long as you shall live? 682 00:34:10,379 –> 00:34:14,179 Will you give yourself to Jesus Christ, 683 00:34:14,179 –> 00:34:15,820 will you bind yourself to him 684 00:34:15,820 –> 00:34:18,699 in the bond of a living union 685 00:34:18,699 –> 00:34:21,379 that is forged by faith in the son of God 686 00:34:21,379 –> 00:34:24,540 who loved you and who gave himself for you? 687 00:34:24,540 –> 00:34:27,840 And I tell you, if you will have Jesus, 688 00:34:29,020 –> 00:34:32,919 then your sins though they be many will be forgiven. 689 00:34:34,040 –> 00:34:36,500 If you will have Jesus, 690 00:34:36,500 –> 00:34:39,179 you will be released from the oppression 691 00:34:39,179 –> 00:34:43,520 and the condemnation and the miserable marriage to nomos. 692 00:34:44,939 –> 00:34:46,419 And if you will have Jesus, 693 00:34:47,419 –> 00:34:50,479 you will be brought into the freedom and the joy 694 00:34:51,139 –> 00:34:52,979 of this new and second marriage 695 00:34:52,979 –> 00:34:57,060 in which the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ himself 696 00:34:57,060 –> 00:35:01,780 takes up residence and lives in you. 697 00:35:01,780 –> 00:35:06,780 Father, we bless you for all that is ours in Jesus Christ. 698 00:35:09,620 –> 00:35:11,719 And we see today that without him 699 00:35:11,719 –> 00:35:14,879 we are in the most miserable position of all. 700 00:35:15,679 –> 00:35:20,399 And with him we are blessed beyond words. 701 00:35:20,399 –> 00:35:22,699 And so we lift our hearts in thanksgiving 702 00:35:22,699 –> 00:35:26,219 and praise in Jesus’ name. 703 00:35:26,219 –> 00:35:27,060 Amen.