While Mary sang her “Magnificat,” Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, sings his “Benedictus.” The birth of John causes Zechariah to bless God for the birth of Jesus. Why? Because John’s birth was a sign of the Messiah’s advent. In other words, even in his birth, John was pointing to the Lamb of God. […]
To conclude our sermon series, Pastor Matt recites the Paul’s letter to the Romans in its entirety. There are several reasons why we concluded our series this way: This enables our congregation to hear Paul’s whole argument in one sitting just like his original audience did in Rome almost 2000 years ago. While it’s true […]
After all Paul has said to the saints in Rome about the good news of God’s Son he can’t help but erupt once more in joyful praise to God. He concludes with a doxology, ascribing to the Lord the glory that is due his name, reminding the Roman church once more to behold their God. […]
Having explained his reasons for gospel ministry and laid out his plans for future travel, Paul now sends his greetings to the chuch as he prepares to visit them and work with them to take the gospel to Spain. But this long list of greetings doesn’t make for the most exciting reading, and can make […]
While Paul’s travel plans might be easy to understand on the surface, there’s much we can learn about his love for the church. His travel plans reveal what Paul desired to see in the churches: the blessing of refreshment, fellowship, and prayer. In this passage, pastor Matt explains that the church is where the blessing […]
Paul beings the conclusion to his letter to the Romans much like he began, providing the church with further details about himself and his calling, his ministry and his plans for future mission, as well as his needs and many personal greetings. We learn why Paul preached Christ (his authority); how Paul preached Christ (his […]
When it comes to those matters on which believers can legitimately disagree, Romans 14 reminds us that true Christian liberty means the freedom to lay our freedoms aside in loving service to our Lord and his church. In this sermon, pastor Matt continues to teach how Christians are to enjoy their gospel freedoms in a […]
In chapter 14, Paul is addressing issues that were causing divisions in the church at Rome and how to handle matters of conscience—those matters about which Christians can legitimately differ. He began by calling out the sinful attitudes of both the strong and weak in vv. 1-12. Gentiles who were convinced they could eat all […]
As we began to look at Romans 14 we saw that there were certain opinions dividing the church at Rome along ethnic lines. Both Jewish and Gentile believers were quarrelling over disputable matters, such as food and observing special days. The strong-in-faith were tempted to look down on the weak for their apparent “legalism;” and […]
