Teaching, Endurance, Encouragement, Hope, and Unity (Romans Sermon 109)

Well, it’s delightful to be back with you. It’s been a couple of weeks since I’ve had the privilege of preaching here and absence truly makes the heart grow fonder. It’s a joy to be with brothers and sisters in Christ in other places, and to see the unity that we have in the spirit. Isn’t it? But it’s sure good to come home. So I praise God for that. When I was a child and through my growing up years, one of the big events in my home town of Framingham, Massachusetts, was in April we would go down and watch the Boston Marathon. It would come right through our town a world-class event coming right to us and very quickly through us. Alright, right by they went. And some of the world’s best runners and some who were not the world’s best runners would come right on through our town six miles from the start.

So they all looked pretty fresh. They’re feeling good about themselves. But anybody who’s run long distance races or read about it, there’s something that hits a long distance runner called the “Wall.” And generally in a marathon it’s somewhere around 20 miles and they say that physically and psychologically, the marathon, 26 miles, the marathon is half over at the 20 mile mark and it just so happens in the Boston Marathon that there’s a series of steep hills right at that point. Three hills one after the other, right at the 20 mile mark.

And they’re dropping like flies, it’s called Heartbreak Hill and it’s tough and there are people, some of the best running fans in the world and some of the most sadistic and masochistic people in the world, just line the streets right up Heartbreak Hill and just enjoy encouraging these folks on or just watching them not make it, one or the other, I’m not sure. Not everyone there has the same motive, but there are some that are there who’s express purpose is to give those runners everything they need to get to the top of the hill and to urge them that it really is downhill from the crest. That hill right up there, from then on it’s downhill and you’ll make it.

Is there a brother or sister in Christ here today that doesn’t need that in the Christian life? Do you not need the encouragement of the Holy Spirit today? Did you not come in here needing to be cheered on, in your Christian faith? And I don’t care if things have gone well for you this week or not. You need the encouragement that Scripture gives. That’s what today is all about. That’s why I love Sunday, that’s why I love to be here because I get weak in my faith, I need to be encouraged, I need the ministry of the Body of Christ, I need the ministry of the Word of God, don’t you? And in the spiritual realm, Satan and his demons are lining the road and discouraging us. You’ll never make it. Why don’t you give up. Sin owns you, you’ll never change. Constantly discouraging and so is vital for us that we receive today the ministry of encouragement through the word of God and that is the topic of Romans 15 4-6, it is the power of the Scripture to give to us everything we need to finish the race, that’s what it’s about.

The Lord wants us fully and amply supplied right to the end of our Christian race. He doesn’t want us just to start or to proceed for a while, he wants every one of his chosen children to finish the race. Of all that the Father has given me I will lose none but raise them up at the last day. We have to finish this race and He is going to give to us everything we need to finish, and He does it through scripture. And from scripture comes instruction and from instruction comes endurance and encouragement, and from all of these come hope. And all of this produces a unity in the body of Christ, that is essential to the completion of God’s work in the world, and without these regenerating supplies, I tell you, the church will not be able to finish its infinite journey, from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth.

And without these regenerating supplies you will not be able to finish your personal race either, for you are commanded to be perfect as the Heavenly Father is perfect. To be just like Christ. And that’s a long journey. And so for both the internal journey of Christ-like maturity, the external journey of worldwide evangelization, we need the regenerating supply of encouragement that the scripture is here to give us. Now, last time, a number of weeks ago, we looked at Romans 15 1-3, and you can look there now, we saw the obligation that strong Christians have to bear the failings of the weak. Verse 1 says We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves, each of us should please his neighbor for his good to build him up, for even Christ did not please himself, but as it is written, the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me. So that’s what we looked at last time. Now, remember the context, maybe some of you haven’t been here with us, through chapter 14 and 15, but the context is the church at Rome, Rome is the capital of the Roman empire, the most important city in the Gentile world.

And that church that Roman Church was a mixed church of Jew and Gentile, and they struggled with debatable issues, they struggled with, with what kinds of foods they could eat and what the role of the law of Moses would play in the church life, and it’s amazing how the apostle Paul gives a chapter and a half, about, to the issue of the church getting along through these debatable issues. And the reason for this incredible focus verse after verse after verse as the apostle Paul tries to keep the Roman Church united, the reason is that a united spirit-filled, gospel believing gospel preaching church, is the chosen instrument of Almighty God for the destruction of Satan’s empire and for the advancement of his name and his glory in the world.

That’s what he’s chosen. And so therefore, the church must be united, the church must understand the gospel of liberty, the church must be pure from sin. We have to help one another because this is the way that God has chosen to destroy the devil and his empire. So Paul desires for the strong Christians, the mature ones to help the weak, he desires them to stay together to not fracture and fragment into a bunch of groups that fall apart and drop down into the dust. There they are in Rome surrounded by Imperial pomp and paganism, and worldly success and temptations of plenty, and it would have been so easy for that fragile coalition of Jew and Gentile believers in Christ, to fragment and for pieces to be lost. And Paul did not want that to happen, and so he wanted to minister here, encouragement, he wanted to minister the body of Christ, to hold it together by the power of the Spirit.

I. Ancient Scripture’s Immediate Purpose

And so he’s zeroing in on those supplies that will keep the Church united. And he begins in verse four by talking about the role and the purpose of scripture. “For everything that was written in the past, was written to teach us…” So he’s talking about the ancient writings, the scriptures, what we call the Old Testament. Now, we have to ask in context, why this parentheses, why does Paul stop and talk about scripture at this point, what’s his purpose? Well, the immediate purpose, verse three had just gotten done quoting scripture, as it is written, the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me at Psalm 69, he’s quoting the Old Testament. And frankly it’s a bit obscure the quotation, it’s a little hard to follow, how it fits in if you read Psalm 69, you might have a hard time seeing the point that Paul was making, but he makes his point. But then he wants to stop and say I want you to know something about Scripture. I want you to understand the ongoing role of the Old Testament.

Now, this is by my count, the 65th time that the apostle Paul has quoted the Old Testament in the book of Romans. 65 times up to this point and he’ll quote it six more times in this chapter And so he wants to stop and just talk about the ancient writings, the ancient scriptures. He wants to commend the purpose of scripture. Now, I believe that the devil’s ancient work may be one of the oldest works of the Devil on Earth is to get human beings to doubt the Scripture, to doubt the Word of God specifically. You look at Genesis 3, and what does the devil say to Eve “Did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the garden?” Injecting the seed of doubt.

Oh how much trouble has come from that seed of doubt over the word of God. But injecting that seed of doubt. Now how does it fit into the context of the church at Rome? Well it’s a mixed church, you’ve got Jews who are well-acquainted with the Old Testament, and Gentiles who probably weren’t as well-acquainted with the law of Moses and with all of these regulations and all that. They haven’t been living them, they maybe were familiar with them. They’re coming together now in a whole new era of redemptive history. It’s the New Covenant now, it’s a different time. And so I think the Gentiles in particular are going to be tempted to want to just jettison the Old Testament or least sections of it, to say we don’t need this anymore, it’s obsolete. Why do we even have to read the law of Moses? We don’t have to circumcise our sons anymore, we can eat any kind of meat we want. Why do we even need it?

And so Paul wants to stop and to espouse, to establish the ongoing role of the ancient scriptures for both Jew and Gentile believer. So that they don’t throw out the Bible. Furthermore, you know it was those Old Testament regulations that excluded the Gentiles anyway, that was that wall of separation that kept them on the outside. So if you’re a Gentile believer, you might be tempted to just want to throw it out and get rid of it. He says No. “Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us.” He says. He’s talking about the Old Testament.

Now, what’s amazing for me as a church historian somebody interested in church history is that within one century there was a heretic in Rome named Marcian who did the very thing that Paul’s protecting against. Marcian in 144 AD started his own church, in Rome. I guess that would be second Baptist in Rome, something like that. But it was the second, it was a schismatic group, and at the root of Marcian’s heretical church was that the Old Testament was written by an evil God, what he called a demiurge. A wicked and evil God and therefore its teachings are wrong. We just need the letters of Paul, we need some or parts of the Gospel etcetera. He considered himself to be the successor to the Apostle Paul in his battle against Jewish legalism, he really wanted to strip the church of all of its Jewish roots that was a heresy that he started in Rome. Now, there are modern attacks on the old Testament. Ever hear it? There’s the God of the Old Testament and then there’s the of God of the New Testament, the God of the Old Testament is the God of wrath, and arbitrary rules that we don’t need to follow anymore. The God of the New Testament is the God of love and mercy and grace, we see it in Jesus, in His inclusivity, and in his love for people. But then the Old Testament, this God reigns down fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah and so there’s a split there.

So you see people like Thomas Jefferson or Mahatma Gandhi or Albert Einstein making disparaging comments about the Old Testament, and even somewhat attracted to Jesus even Einstein as a Jewish man. Many modern people attack the concept of the Old Testament and any thought of reconciling the message of the Old Testament and the New.

But Paul here, I believe, is defending all of scripture, and saying, all of scripture is helpful and beneficial to Christians in an ongoing way. The scripture was given for a purpose. Look at verse 4, it says, “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us so that through endurance and the encouragement of the scriptures, we might have hope.” That is a purpose statement. It’s why the Bible was given to us, God had a reason for writing it down. So many attackers of The Bible, critics of the Bible make it a human book. The Bible is ultimately God’s book and God had a reason for giving it to us, he had a purpose in writing it down. Look at the purpose statements, everything that was written in the past was written to teach us. That’s an infinitive of purpose.

So that that’s a purpose statement. That we might have hope, that is the purpose that he’s giving us. This is a very purposeful statement here, and he’s saying that all of scripture is a gift, it’s all that way. “Everything that was written in the past,” he says, reminds me of 2nd Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is God-breathed, and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” And that means everything, that means the history books, all the Old Testament history, that means the genealogies are there for a reason. That means the Law of Moses still has something to say to us even though it’s been fulfilled in the new covenant. That means that the prophecies are there for us to read. Everything that was written in the past, etcetera.

And what is God’s intended audience? Well, it’s us, his people, his chosen people, through every generation century after century. God was thinking about you when he spoke to Abraham and he said, “So shall your offspring be.” And Abraham heard that promise concerning the stars, he heard that promise, and he believed God, and the scripture says, “Abraham believed God and it was credited him as righteousness,” Romans chapter 4. The apostle Paul says this, “The words, ‘it was credited to him’ were written not for him alone, but also for us to whom God will credit righteousness – for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.” Those words were written down for us so that we could read them. All of those prophecies. You look at what David wrote, “They have pierced my hands and my feet,” Psalm 22. Did David know what He was writing? He didn’t understand it was written for us.

First Peter 1, said they didn’t understand they searched trying to understand it, but “it was revealed to them, that they were not serving themselves,” but us. Jesus himself in the debates with the Sadducees, he talked about the account of the burning bush and he said, “But concerning the resurrection of the dead, haven’t tou read what God said to you. I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” God is speaking to you through Scripture. When you take up the Bible in the morning for your quiet time, you should say, God speak to me, say something to me, this is a biblical concept. So everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that we might have certain things happening in our soul.

Some time ago. I read a book by Graeme Goldsworthy called “Gospel and Kingdom” and he’s troubled by some of those glib applications, you know David and Goliath. There was a chapter somewhat humorously, entitled “Killed any good giants lately?” And basically the problem he has with the application of scripture is that it goes too quickly from the text right over to immediate modern day application. So what are the giants in your life? Boy it’d be easy for me as a preacher to just do that. Alright? What are the giants in your life? And whatever problems financial. I could even do a three-point sermon. You probably might like it occasionally. Alright, giant number one, giant number two, giant number three. I looked at that and I said that isn’t right, but you know something, I must tell you, I’ve kind of come, not full circle, but come to a different place.

You still need to read the story of David and Goliath, saying what are you saying to me, Lord? What are you trying to teach me here? Yes, David is more like Jesus, than he is like us, We are not called to be heroic and go save the people of God, by facing such a ferocious giant. We’re more like the Israelites cowering in the holes wanting someone else to save us. That is all true but you still need to learn something, you need to be fed by the scripture, you must be. That’s why it was given. And so I’ve kind of come full circle. My yearning today is that you who are sitting and listening to me today will get what you need for this week to be holy and fruitful for Christ. That’s my yearning, apart from that I’ve wasted my time and yours. Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us. Now, there’s a lot of immediate purposes, here. Look at it, you see, everything that was written in the past was written to teach us.

So, that’s instruction so that through endurance and encouragement, we might have hope. Those are immediate goals of the scripture. There are others that come in, not right here, but they’re there. As you read the Bible, warnings against sin, and their enticements, through promises. Joy and celebration, wonder and awe, insight and understanding. All kinds of good things come to us when we read the Scripture. But let me tell you something, the ultimate purpose of scripture, the ultimate purpose of scripture is that God may be glorified by your salvation. That’s the purpose. Because it says in Second Timothy 3-15. Paul speaking to Timothy, how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. That is why the scripture was given and you know that salvation is a lifetime work, and so through faith in Christ Jesus, that you would be given the wisdom you need to believe.

And the ultimate goal of Verse 6, “So that with one heart and mouth, you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” That’s why the Bible was given, so that we wretched sinners would be cleansed of our wretched sin. And that we would be brought into the very presence of God and that we would be eternally glorifying God for His mercy in Christ. That’s the purpose of scripture.

II. Scripture’s Glorious Chain Reaction

Now, look at the glorious chain reaction we have here. Look again at verse 4, “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the scriptures, we might have hope.” First, Paul starts with instruction.

The Bible was given to teach us. Have you ever heard people speak about head knowledge? They almost always say, it negatively. Well, I’m not sure what part of my body I’m supposed to use to have knowledge. Okay, is it okay for us to have head knowledge? What do you think? I don’t think it’s just Okay, I think it’s absolutely essential to the Christian life. The problem is if it just stays in your head and it’s not transforming your heart, that’s what they say, and we agree about that.

But my goodness, there can be no heart knowledge without first there being some head knowledge. Would you all agree? Just nod at me, I know it’s hot in here friends. I know I’m hot too, but yes, we must have the head knowledge before we can have the heart knowledge. And so the scripture was given to teach us, to teach us things that we would not know any other way. Facts about God, His attributes, what he’s like, his decrees in eternity, his actions in history, facts about God, facts also about Christ, His person, His miracles, His teachings, His death on the cross, His resurrection, His ascension, His future reign. His coming in glory, judgment He will sit and all the nations, gather before him. I need to know these facts and I can’t know them any other way, except from the Bible.

Facts also about the people of God, about the Jews in the Old Testament, about the church in the New Testament trying to understand what happened to people when they obeyed, what happened to people when they disobeyed. I need to know these things. And scripture was given to teach me. And frankly, without this knowledge we cannot have faith and without faith our character cannot be transformed and without our character being transformed we cannot act differently. And so knowledge that the Scripture gives primes the pump for the entire Christian journey. We must have this knowledge, we must know what the Bible teaches. I think this is the essence of Romans 12:2 were it says, “Do not be conformed any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind and then you’ll be able to test and approve what God’s will is, his good, pleasing and perfect will.

And so the scripture was given to teach us. Don’t despise a teaching ministry. Thank God for it. I’m not here just to move your emotions. I think there are other speakers that can do that better than I can. But I want you to know what Romans 15, 4 through 6 teachers. That’s my goal today because I trust that this scripture will help you in your Christian life. And I have a sense I may never preach on it again. And so my desire is that you would understand as fully as possible within the hour and a half that we have together that you would understand. See, some of you are laughing, others are visitors and you’re worried now. Okay? We are not going to be here an hour and a half, but in the brief time we have I want you to understand this text. That’s my goal, every week. So teaching.

Secondly, endurance. Notice that Paul gives two character traits that are closely related, endurance and encouragement. Endurance is the ability to persevere through trials and temptations without giving up. Endurance means you don’t give up, you keep going, you’re in a 26 mile race and at the 20 mile mark when you are exhausted and you think there is no way you can make it through those last six miles that now are feeling like 60 and your legs are heavy and you burned all of the resources you have and you just don’t have any idea how you’ll make it another step, you must have endurance. That’s what endurance is. Endurance is essential to your salvation. Think about Luke 8:15, The Parable of the Seed and the Soils.

The seed on good soils stands for those with a noble and good heart who hear the word, retain it and by endurance produce a crop. You gotta stick with it in the Christian life. You can’t give up. Again, in Romans 2:7, it says, “To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality He will give to them eternal life.” That is not salvation by works, friends. He’s just describing the life that ends up in heaven. Persistence in doing good, seeking glory, honor and immortality. That’s the Christian life. Romans 8:25, it says, “But if we hope for what we do not yet see, we wait for it with endurance, we wait for it patiently.” And again in Hebrews 10:36, you need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised.

Perseverance, endurance is essential to the Christian life. Now, the Christian life can become easily very discouraging, isn’t that true? Are you ever tempted to be discouraged in your Christian life? Look inward, you say you know you need to be like Christ, but you keep seeing the sin crop up. You thought you were done with it. Irritability, lust, pride, selfishness, materialism, idolatry. And you thought you were done and you’re not. And it’s so discouraging as you fight sin, so discouraging. You yearn to see more godliness in your family life, in your marriage, in your parenting, in your relationship, in your family. And their sin is active as well.

You want to see yourself lead more people to Christ, but nobody ever seems to come to Christ or the ones that show some indications they end up being the other seeds in the soil. The sun comes up or whatever and then a year later they’re not around. And that’s so discouraging. You want to see your church be a glorifying spirit filled fruitful Church and it’s less than you think it should be. And all of us see it. And it’s discouraging, it can be very discouraging. Let me tell you something. I said recently, we’re meeting with a group of men and I said, “Satan is eager to sell you discouragement at every corner of the road.”

I remember I was on a mission trip to Haiti. I’ll never forget this. And we were going through the streets of Port-au-Prince and we were in the poorest area of the city, Cite Soleil. And we saw kids coming with containers and getting muddy ditch water out of the ditch and then going into the tent city there. And I thought, “What in the world are they going to use that water for?” Well, about a mile of the road there were these cute little Haitian kids coming right up to our bus, we weren’t moving very fast, we were going… We were just stop and go. And they’re coming right to the windows and they’re trying to sell us refreshing looking drinks of blue and red and orange color. They didn’t look new. The bottles looked mostly clean.

And I looked at that and I said, “No way am I buying that and drinking it, even though I’m very thirsty.” And it did have condensation on the outside, it looked refreshing. But I said, there’s poison in that bottle. There’s no way my system can handle it. But they were persistent in selling it, they really wanted to sell it to us. And I think that’s a picture of what the devil tries to do with discouragement. So, “Here, have this, drink this.” All of the time, “Be discouraged, feel down.” And we’ve got to say, “No sale.” I can’t be discouraged just because my story has a happy ending, has a glorious ending. How can I be discouraged? And the whole Church’s story is a glorious story with a happy ending. Discouragement is unfit for the Christian life. We have to fight it at every turn.

So how does scripture resupply our endurance? Well, it gives us examples of endurance in the Bible. Look at Abraham waiting 25 years to get Isaac. Look at Joseph who unjustly is sold into slavery by his brothers, unjustly imprisoned by Potiphar, unjustly left there when some others of servants of Pharaoh said they would get him out, but they didn’t. But through all of that he maintains, Jacob said, “Limber arms in the service of God.” He’s ready to go and when his time came he wasn’t bitter, he wasn’t angry, he just stepped forward. Endurance. Or you’ve heard of the patience or endurance of Job, how he went through all of these trials and never cursed God or sinned. So examples. Hannah, who prayed for a child and God granted her prayer. Or the Apostle Paul as he city after city is persecuted. Endurance. Scripture also re-supplies our endurance by giving us promises connected to our endurance. How about this one, in Matthew 10:22, “All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.”

Well, that’s an encouragement. Isn’t it? To endurance. Or by dire warnings of what happens to people who don’t persevere. Look at Samson. Samson made it through three tests with Delilah, right? “Tell me the secret of your great strength.” I just want to know.  He was not a discerning guy. Why do you want to know the secret of my strength? This is making me suspicious. Alright? And then even worse to test whether he told the truth, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you.” This is not a good relationship. And he should’ve known, but he didn’t. And finally through the nagging on and on, he gave up, he just gave up. It’s a picture of us and temptation, isn’t it? We just get tired and we give in. It’s an example. Look what happened to him, his eyes were put out and he lost his strength.

Or by stimulations to prayer through to strengthen perseverance. Jesus said in Luke 18:1, He “told His disciples a parable to show them they should always pray and never give up.” So He gets you praying, Jesus tells you this parable about the persistent widow and all that. And that you should never give up, keep praying. Or just commands in Hebrews 10:36. “You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will see what He has promised. You must persevere. These five different ways, He strengthens your endurance.

The next word that Paul talks about here is encouragement. We’ve been talking about it the whole time. This is a weighty word, it’s related to the word “paraclete” which is the Holy Spirit, the counselor, it is that encouragement that the Holy Spirit gives, the scripture was given for that purpose. You read of the sweetness of heaven and you’re encouraged.

You read of the power of God, the immutable, the unshakable power of God to finish your salvation and you are encouraged. You read of the mighty power of Christ resurrection from the dead and he is a pattern of what you will do someday. And you’re encouraged. You read of the ultimate defeat of Satan, we’ll get to it in Romans 16, the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. And you’re encouraged. You read of the promises of God to help you day after day and you are encouraged. Strengthen yourself by the Word of God, don’t yield to that weakness that discouragement brings. The scripture was meant to give you encouragement.

And the ultimate result of this glorious chain is hope. Hope is a certainty of delightful future things based on the promise of God.

Absolutely delightful and absolutely certain. That’s what hope’s all about. And you know something, without hope you will not fight the good fight of faith. You just won’t. You’ll give in to temptation. You’ll stop doing your ministry, you’ll give up, you’ll give up on this church, you’ll give up in your family, you’ll give up in your marriage, you’ll give up in your fight against sin, you just will give up. You must have hope because if you don’t have hope you will not fight. And if you don’t fight you will not make any progress. You’ve got to have hope. So you see the glorious chain. Scripture instructs us, through the instruction we get endurance and encouragement. The result of that is hope and we keep moving in the Christian life.

III. God’s Wonderful Gifts: Endurance, Encouragement, Unity

And praise God for it. That’s what he’s giving us. Now, all of these wonderful things are from God. Isn’t that wonderful? Look at verse five and six, “May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus. So that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This is the benediction. It’s not a prayer. Because you’re not talking to God, but he’s talking almost like a prayer. It’s like a benediction. May the Lord be gracious to you and bless you, may He make his face shine upon you and give you rest. That kind of benediction. May the God who gives endurance and encouragement. But the point of the benediction is that all of the good things you need to see the race through to the end, they come from God. Now, many of you saw a number of years ago that film about Eric Little, Chariots of Fire. And I don’t know if you remember, but there’s this very dramatic point earlier in the movie in which he, who’s usually just a sprinter, 100 meter runner, runs the 400 meters. And he gets knocked down to the ground.

And in a race that short it’s still longer, it’s longer than 100 meters. But race that short, that’s a kiss of death. There’s no way you’re going to be able to get up off the ground and win a 400 meter race. Except that Eric Little just wouldn’t give up. So he gets up and he digs deep and he fights as hard as he can. And at the tape, he wins the race. After that he gives somewhat of a gospel presentation. And he’s talking about the Christian race, he likens the Christian faith to the running of a race. And he says, “Where then does the strength come from to see the race through to the end?” And what does he say? “It comes from within.”

No it doesn’t. I’m sorry, I know it’s a good Christian movie and all that kind of thing, but that’s just wrong. Let me ask you a question, how long would you have lasted in your Christian life if all of your resources had to come from yourself? Would you not have given up a long, long time ago. Let me ask the question again because it is a good question. We just need the right answer. Where then does the strength come from to see the race through to the end? He actually corrects it later in the movie by quoting Isaiah 40. You remember? He’s in Paris he’s at the Church of Scotland and it’s so powerful, this montage of success and failure, athletic, whatever. And you’re listening to Isaiah 40 and this is what it says, “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the Earth, He will not grow tired or weary. His understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary, he increases the power of the faint. Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall. But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

So where then does the strength come from to see the race through the end? It comes from God. How do you keep getting up in the morning and having your quiet time, how is it after a day in which you have yielded to temptation and you feel disgusting and you feel totally unfit to be a Christian, the next day there’s an internal strength to get up, repent, confess and try it again. Where does that strength come from? It comes from God who will not let you go. And praise God for it. He’s got hold of you and He will never let you go until you are finished being saved.

Where then does the strength come from to see the race through to the end? It comes from the one who began the race in you and that is God. And God wants to give us, this church and all Christian churches around the world, one final gift. He wants to give us a spirit of unity among ourselves. He wants us to love each other and care about how the race is going for each other and to notice when somebody is stumbling and falling and to help them to be a minister of encouragement to them strengthening them by means of the scripture, that’s what he wants, he wants to give us a spirit of unity among ourselves so that we don’t give up. None of us give up.

Brother and sister, does it matter to you if your brothers and sisters finish this race? Did you care? Does it matter to you? You should. We will watch over one another in brotherly love. That’s what we say we’re going to do for each other. And what is God’s ultimate purpose in all of this? Well, may the God who gives endurance and encouragement, give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ, literally, according to Christ Jesus so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

IV. God’s Ultimate Purpose: Perfect Unity in Glorifying Him

Friends, the purpose of everything is right there, the glory of God. He does it all for his own glory, he’s saving you so that you can with one heart and mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Where are we heading? Where are we going? Well, in Christ, we’re going to heaven and what are we going to see when we get there? Well, we’re going to see a throne and someone sitting on it? And if we look around, we’re going to see people from every tribe and language and people and nation. And they will be with one heart and mouth focused on one thing, the throne and the One sitting on it. And they will be honoring and glorifying the Lamb of God. Who shed his blood that they could be there. Who paid the price so that we could be there. And there will be no divisions by race. There will be no divisions socio-economically, no division by talent or intelligence or gender or what era of church history we lived in. We’ll all be one. That’s where we’re heading.

Now, I think it’s good for us to act like it in the meantime. So that when people walk into this Church they sense and feel strongly a sense of unity among ourselves. We need to see it in our corporate worship. We’re shifting out application. Every Sunday, will you please get yourself ready to worship and glorify God? Will you please do it in this way? Go to the Scriptures and say, “Lord, who am I in Christ? Please tell me how much you love me.” If you have to confess sin then do it. Repent and bring forth fruit in keeping with repentance. Get yourself ready to be with the brothers and sisters in Christ. Strengthen yourself in the spirit. And listen, if this upcoming week you’re discouraged, don’t just lay there and be discouraged. Fight it, open up the Word of God and say, “Lord encouraged me. Please feed me, sustain me and strengthen me through the word of God. Give me a message today so that I could be filled with joy.” You know something? We’re of no use if we don’t really believe how much God has loved us.

We have no use if we’re not happy in Jesus. So you need to labor on yourself every day in the Scripture to be encouraged. And then finally, ultimately, you need to trust in Christ as your personal Savior. I have no idea, I look out at faces and I don’t know where each of you are at. Some of me I know very well, but others I don’t know well. The Scripture gives the central endurance and encouragement in this way, come to Christ, come to the cross, believe in Jesus as your Lord and Savior, trust in him for the forgiveness of your sins. Close with me in prayer.

Introduction: Fully Equipped
In order to go on a lengthy journey of any sort, it is imperative that you be fully equipped.

Every well-planned expedition has had to give careful thought to its equipment, to the supply for its people. They had to consider every possibility

Christopher Columbus: had a hold in which we stored what he felt was needed for the voyage to the far side of the globe

The ships carried enough provisions for a year, at a time when two weeks at sea was a long voyage. Supplies on board included foodstuffs, such as water, dried fish, salt meat, live pigs and hens (to be killed aboard ship), rice, cheese, and figs; navigational instruments, including nautical almanacs, charts, compasses, magnets, hourglasses, and rulers; and trade items, such as glass beads, brass rings, knitted caps, gold, silver, pearls, and spices

Lewis & Clark: their combined supplied included

Once he was named by President Thomas Jefferson to head the Corps of Discovery, Meriwether Lewis began preparations for the long trip ahead. Much of that preparation involved education; in the months prior to his departure, Lewis would learn astronomy, botany, navigation, medicine and biology, among other scientific disciplines. BUT ALSO…Lewis spent his time accumulating all the supplies that the expedition was going to need. He wrote list after list of provisions, which included guns, ammunition, medical supplies and scientific instruments. While still on the East Coast, Lewis accumulated almost two tons of goods using the $2,500 Congress had allocated for the expedition

Space Shuttle: One mission is resupply of International Space Station; one resupply mission in 2004 involved 3,042 pounds of dry supplies and hardware; 1,521 pounds of propellant for the station’s thrusters; about 926 pounds of potable water and 110 pounds of oxygen and air

So… for any important mission, careful thought needs to be given to the full supplies needed in order to complete that mission

In our passage today, we find some of the resources God has given to supply the church of Jesus Christ for its long journey through the world and through history

First, Scripture… from Scripture comes instruction… from instruction comes endurance and encouragement…. From these comes hope

From the same God also comes unity… one mind, one heart, praising and glorifying God with one mouth

Without these regenerating supplies, the church will not be able to make its astonishing journey from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth, and from the first century to the end of time

Without these regenerating supplies, none of you will complete your own personal Christian journeys through the world

So many Christians suffer from spiritual discouragement So many Christian churches suffer from disunity

This text provides the solution to both problems… and Scripture is the key to everything

Last week: we saw the obligation the strong Christians have to bear the failings of the weak:

Romans 15:1-3 We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. 2 Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. 3 For even Christ did not please himself but, as it is written: “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.”

Context: Rome

Roman church; mixed with Jew and Gentile Struggling over “debatable issues”

Amazing: Paul gives almost a chapter and a half to this issue of strong and weak Christians, struggling over debatable issues

Reason: A Spirit-filled church that is happy in the gospel of grace, holy in resisting sin, and united in helping each other is the most powerful weapon on the face of the earth for the advancement of the gospel and the crushing of Satan’s Evil Empire

Church at Rome:

Mixed church; Jews and Gentiles trying to make it together;

Paul desires the strong Christians to help the weak, and not allow anyone of Christ’s precious ones to slip through the cracks

There they were in Rome… surrounded by all the pagan pomp and power of the Imperial City, surrounded by the old way of life in paganism, surrounded by everything the world had to offer

It would have been so easy for the fragile coalition of Jew and Gentile church to fragment and for pieces of the crumbling structure to fall away… for people to slip through the cracks and be lost to the church

Basic idea: Christian journey is a toilsome and difficult one; a very dangerous journey in which we can easily become discouraged and beaten down

One of the most vital ministries the Holy Spirit has for us is that of ENCOURAGEMENT… it is the power of the Holy Spirit to renew our souls, to refresh us and enable us to keep making progress in the internal and external journeys

Without encouragement, we will soon give up in the Christian journey

I.   Ancient Scripture’s Immediate Purpose

A.  Doubting Ancient Scripture

1.  Context: Why This Parenthesis?

a.  Paul has just quoted Psalm 69

b.  It is the 65th time Paul has quoted the Old Testament in Romans… he’ll quote it six more times in Romans 15

c.  The allusion to Psalm 69 is a bit difficult, a bit obscure

d.  So it causes Paul to pause and comment on the purpose of Scripture… by that he means Old Testament Scripture

2.  Satan’s Ancient Work: Promoting Doubt in God’s Word

Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

3.  Mixed Church at Rome: Gentiles Might Question Old Testament

a.  Perhaps the Gentiles would be tempted to minimize the Old Testament

b.  After all, it was the OT that gave us these now obsolete rules and regulations anyway

c.  It was the OT rules and regulations that excluded Gentiles

d.  So Paul addresses the lasting purpose of the OT: “Everything that was written in the past…”

e.  He says the OT was written for US, for we who would come later

4.  Marcion

a.  Amazingly: within a century after Paul wrote these words, a heretic named Marcion started his own church in Rome!!

b.  Began his church in A.D. 144

c.  He held that the OT was the product of an evil, false god called a demiurge

d.  Especially despised the obsolete ceremonial laws… eating restrictions, etc.

e.  The very thing Paul was trying to stave off in the church of Rome happened! Gentiles despising the Old Testament

f.  The God of the NT was a God of light and of love

g.  The OT was to be rejected altogether… Christianity was to be cleansed of it Jewish connections

h.  He considered himself the successor to the Apostle Paul in his battle against the Judaizers and Jewish legalists… but he went way beyond Paul and rejected the OT scriptures themselves

5.  Modern Attacks

a.  Many modern people have attacked the Old Testament as contradictory to the God of Jesus Christ

b.  People like Thomas Jefferson, Voltaire, Charles Darwin, Mahatma Gandhi, and Albert Einstein have expressed distaste for the God of the Old Testament and approval for the person of Christ as they conceive of Him

c.  Many modern people attack the possibility of reconciling these diverse views of God: His overwhelming wrath at Sodom and Gomorrah and His gentleness in Christ; His establishment of Old Covenant Judaism, and His planned obsolescence of it in the New Covenant

Paul here is defending ALL of Scripture as helpful to ALL CHRISTIANS

B.  All Scripture Given for a Purpose

Romans 15:4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

1.  God had a reason for writing it down

a.  Scripture is no accident

b.  Rather, Scripture plays an essential role in our salvation

2.  Series of purpose statements

a.  “to teach us”

b.  “so that…”

c.  “we might have hope”

3.  Universally a gift

a.  “whatever was written”

b.  Universal statement of the purpose of Scripture

c.  Similar to 2 Timothy 3:16

d.  Inerrancy essential!!!

e.  “Many times and various ways”

f.  Genres

i)  History

ii)  Poetry

iii)  Law

iv)  Prophecy

C.  God’s Intended Audience: all the elect throughout all time

1.  God’s Promises to Abraham were not for him alone

Romans 4:23-24 The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, 24 but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness– for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.

2.  God’s prophecies through David, Isaiah and Daniel were not for them alone

1 Peter 1:10-12 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, 11 trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.

3.  The writing is for US… so that we will be warned and encouraged, that we might have faith and obey

Matthew 22:31-32 But about the resurrection of the dead– have you not read what God said to you, 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”

4.  Application must be done carefully, in context… BUT IT MUST BE DONE!!!

a.  Not “what are the giants in your life?”

Some time ago, I became suspicious of the way most preachers handled texts of Scripture… reading a small portion, finding something that was relevant to everyday life and going directly to that application without consideration of context in any way

Graeme Goldsworthy, Gospel and Kingdom: had a chapter entitled “Killed Any Good Giants Lately?”

In it he opposes the shortcut that some Bible teachers and pastors do with Old Testament historical stories… David and Goliath, for example

It’s just too glib to say, “David killed Goliath. What are the giants in your life?”

It forgets the redemptive historical context, the fact that David was the Lord’s Anointed and that Goliath was a Philistine who was trying to take the Promised Land from the Chosen People.

We tend to identify immediately with the hero David, seeking to be as courageous as he was. Goldsworthy says more likely we should find ourselves among the cowardly Israelites who were too afraid to face Goliath. Thus David is much more like Jesus, our champion, our hero, who goes out to fight in our place and wins the victory over Satan, hell, and death single-handedly.

b.  But DO apply David and Goliath

Well, I absolutely believe that is true… and a right way to handle Scripture

But yet, we do have immense struggles in our lives, things that make us afraid, things that make us quail and we must find courage somewhere

Romans 15:4 seems to say that the place we find endurance and encouragement is the Scripture

Scripture was written for our application, for our life transformation… That is its purpose, and we are its intended audience

D.  Many Immediate Purposes, One Ultimate Purpose

1.  Scripture accomplishes countless things in our souls

2.  Here a series of them are mentioned:

a.  Instruction

b.  Endurance

c.  Encouragement

d.  Hope

3.  Many others also come

a.  Warnings against sin

b.  Enticements through promises

c.  Joy and celebration

d.  Wonder and awe

e.  Insight and understanding

4.  Ultimate purpose: Salvation through Christ to the Glory of God

2 Timothy 3:15 … from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

Romans 15:6 so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Scripture’s purpose is to make God’s elect “wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus”

Salvation’s purpose is that former sinners may be perfectly united in eternity and may glorify Him for His infinite mercy in Christ Jesus

PURPOSE: WE ARE SAVED ETERNALLY, GOD IS GLORIFIED ETERNALLY

II.   Scripture’s Glorious Chain Reaction

Romans 15:4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

There is a glorious chain of effects of Scripture here…

Scripture gives instruction… the instruction produces endurance and encouragement… these result in hope

A.  Instruction

1.  First, the ancient Scriptures are given to TEACH us

2.  Scripture trains the mind to understand spiritual truth

3.  Facts of God: His attributes, His nature, His purposes and plans… what He loves and what He hates

4.  Facts of Christ: His person, His miracles, His sayings, His character, His death, His resurrection, His reign, His return

5.  Facts of the People of God: The Jews in the Old Covenant, the Church in the New… what happened to those who obeyed, what happened to those who disobeyed

6.  Spiritual insights flow from the pages of Scripture

7.  TEACHING means that Spiritual Knowledge starts the entire process

a.  You can’t gain spiritual endurance and encouragement without first KNOWING some things from Scripture

b.  Knowledge feeds faith, faith produces character changes, character changes result in actions

8.  This is the essence of Romans 12:2

Romans 12:2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is– his good, pleasing and perfect will.

B.  Endurance

1.  Next Paul gives two character traits that are closely related

2.  Endurance and encouragement go hand in hand

3.  Endurance is the ability to persevere through trials and temptations without giving up

4.  The essence of the two infinite journeys is that they require endurance in order to finish; without endurance we cannot long continue as Christians

Luke 8:15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.

Romans 2:7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life.

NASB Romans 8:25 But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.

Hebrews 10:36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

5.  Hebrews 12 uses the image of a distance runner

Hebrews 12:1-3 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

6.  Christian life can easily become very discouraging

a.  We yearn to see more Christlikeness in ourselves, but sin is so powerful, besetting sins so discouraging

b.  We yearn to see more godliness in our families, to see our marriages sweet and Christlike, to see our children become strong Christian leaders… but sin attacks there too

c.  We yearn to lead people to Christ, we try to witness, but it seems people don’t respond the way we would like

d.  We yearn to see the church grow and flourish and be powerfully alive with fruit and with the evidence of God’s blessing… but it always seems less than it could be

e.  Satan is eager to sell us great discouragement and depression any time

Church History is full of Christian leaders who struggled mightily with discouragement

Martin Luther was so discouraged with the disappointing effects of preaching the true gospel in Wittenberg that he quit preaching for almost a year and a half

Often through Charles Spurgeon’s ministry, the devil tried to defeat him with discouragement, as he does with every saint of God. He was attacked and slandered as books and articles were printed about him. Some questioned whether he was really born- again or not, or whether his ministry was honoring to God. He was called an actor, a comet that would appear and be gone. His enemies criticized his preaching, his pulpit manner, and even his character. His critics labeled him as vulgar and profane. One critic said, “He has gone up like a rocket, and ere long will come down like a stick.”

7.  All Christians MUST come back daily, again and again, to the Scriptures as the source of renewed endurance or we will certainly GIVE UP

8.  How does Scripture resupply our endurance??

a.  By examples of endurance in the Bible

i)  Abraham… who waited for over 25 years to see the fulfillment of his promise in the birth of Isaac

ii)  Joseph… who suffered being sold as a slave by his own brothers, falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife, left in prison for years… all of it to fulfill God’s plan of deliverance… and he never complained

iii)  Job… who persevered through much suffering without cursing God

iv)  Hannah… was waited on the Lord for the birth of Samuel

v)  Paul… who through incredible opposition and persecution continued to serve the Lord in city after city

b.  By Promises of reward for any who persevere

Matthew 10:22 All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.

In Revelation 2-3, the “Letters to the Seven Churches”, Jesus promises lavish rewards to those who persevere… who are faithful even to death:

Revelation 2:7 To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

Revelation 2:11 He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death.

Revelation 2:17 To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.

Revelation 2:26-28 To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations– 28 I will also give him the morning star.

Revelation 3:21 To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.

c.  By dire warnings of what happens to people who don’t persevere

Samson bore up under temptation with Delilah once, then twice, then three times… but finally he gave in to her constant prodding and told her the secret of his strength. He was captured by the Philistines, his eyes put out, and enslaved

d.  By stimulations to prayer to strengthen perseverance

Luke 18:1 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.

e.  By simple commands to endure

Hebrews 10:36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

C.  Encouragement

1.  Again this is a weighty word

2.  It has a variety of translations: comfort, consolation, counsel, help

3.  The Holy Spirit is called the “paraklete”, the transliteration of the Greek word “counselor”… that is in the same word group here

4.  The Holy Spirit delights to use the teachings of Scripture to produce encouragement more than any other way

5.  Scripture gives you earnest counsel, sound advice, reliable assistance, sweet consolation when you’re weary and down

a.  You read of the sweetness of heaven

b.  You read of the power of God to finish your salvation

c.  You read of the mighty power of Christ’s resurrection

d.  You read of the defeat of Satan

e.  You read of the promises of God to help accomplish your victory

6.  All of that tends toward your encouragement

a.  Lit. “put courage into”

b.  So you don’t lay home debilitated, listless, lacking all zeal for the journey

D.  Hope

1.  The final stage of this glorious chain: HOPE

2.  Hope is a certainty of delightful future things based on the promises of God

3.  Hope is closely related to faith, therefore

4.  Hope gives a joyful energy to your daily walk with God

5.  God gave to Abraham the covenant so that future generations would have an unshakeable HOPE

Hebrews 6:13-19 When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, 14 saying, “I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.” 15 And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised. 16 Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. 17 Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. 18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. 19 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.

So, when Abraham’s descendents were spending their whole lives in Egypt, making bricks for Pharaoh, they could maintain a sweet hopefulness based on God’s promise

This hope is the ANCHOR for our souls that keeps them from drifting away from Christ

III.   God’s Wonderful Gifts: Endurance, Encouragement, Unity

Romans 15:5-6 May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

A.  Paul’s Benediction

1.  A spoken blessing… not really a prayer, but almost

2.  Similar to the Priestly Blessing of Numbers

Numbers 6:24-26 “‘”The LORD bless you and keep you; 25 the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; 26 the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.”‘

B.  Key Concept: Every Good Gift Comes from God

1.  God gave the Scripture

2.  Scripture gives instruction, endurance and encouragement, resulting in hope

3.  God is the source of all these things

4.  Notice: Endurance is from God

a.  “God of endurance” = “the God who gives endurance”

b.  The strength to see the race through to the end comes from God

“Chariots of Fire”: Eric Liddell, great runner who was known as a 100m sprinter; after his most challenging race, a 400m race in which he was knocked to the ground, got up and digging deep sprinted to the finish line, just barely winning; preached a gospel message in which he likened the Christian life to a race

“Where then does the power come from to see the race to the end? It comes from within?”

However, the clear indication of this text and many others is that the resources to see the Christian race through to the end do not ultimately come from us… they must be resupplied by God day after day after day, or we WILL give up

So, the film corrected the message later when Eric Liddell read from Isaiah 40. In this comes the true secret of renewing strength in the race:

Isaiah 40:28-31 Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. 29 He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. 30 Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 31 but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

C.  God’s Further Gift: A Spirit of Unity

1.  Paul’s Purpose in Romans 14-15

a.  This has been Paul’s deepest desire all along… this is the whole reason he’s been writing

b.  He doesn’t want the strong and weak dividing; he doesn’t want the Gentiles and Jews fracturing into separate groups

c.  So He speaks a benediction, a blessing of unity on what might become a faction-ridden group

d.  It’s not just instruction, endurance, encouragement and hope these folks need

e.  They also need to be one as the Father and the Son are one… they need a church fellowship in which the sweet spirit of unity pervades

2.  Unity “according to Christ Jesus”

a.  Greek implies there is a unity that Christ alone can give

b.  The unity of His Spirit

c.  Idea: as we follow Christ and understand His mind and heart, we will become more and more one

3.  This also a gift of God

“May God give you a spirit of unity among yourselves”

a.  God has the power to make divided minds be one

b.  God has the power to make divided hearts one as well

c.  He will do this perfectly in heaven

d.  To do it more and more on earth is of great value for the advance of the gospel

e.  Divided and bickering Christians should drop their weapons of conflict (their backbiting, gossip, slander, anger, divisiveness) and get on their knees; they should study Scripture and seek God’s face in prayer until the division ends

IV.   God’s Ultimate Purpose: Perfect Unity in Glorifying Him

Romans 15:5-6 May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

A.  The Purpose of Everything: The Glory of God

1.    The end result here: a congregation of redeemed people glorifying God with one heart and mouth

2.  This is God’s ultimate purpose in everything He did or is doing

B.  God’s Purpose in Creation and in Redemption

C.  A Foretaste of Heaven

1.  Corporate worship should be a foretaste of heaven

2.  There disparate people from every tribe, nation, people, and language will with one heart and mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ

3.  There will be no divisions by race, nor by gender, nor by age, nor by era in which we lived, nor by language, nor by intelligence, nor by gifting

4.  Rather, all of us will be perfectly united in heart and mind, and we will fall down on our faces and glorify God

Revelation 7:9-12 After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” 11 All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying: “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”

5.  Therefore, since that is our future, it is good for us as much as possible to experience it HERE and NOW, on earth

6.  We should prepare our hearts for worship with deep meditations on Scripture, with reconciliation between brothers and sisters where needed, with prayer and confession of sin and bringing forth fruit in keeping with repentance… so that when we assemble here to worship on Sundays we will as much as possible give a picture of the heavenly worship to which we are going

V.   Application

A.  Draw Constantly From Scripture

1.  As the trees roots sink deep into the fertile soil and draw out nutrients and moisture constantly, so must we be with the Bible

2.  If you are feeling discouraged and weak in your Christian journey, go again to the nourishing soil of the word of God

3.  Take in its promises, its commands, its warnings and prohibitions, its consolations and examples… do this with an eye to giving yourself what you need to be instructed, encouraged, consoled… so that your HOPE will soar

B.  Maintain Unity in the Body

C.  Prepare Weekly for Corporate Worship

D.  Come to Christ… that is Scripture’s True and Final Purpose