The Power Of The Gospel
The gospel of Jesus has the power to save us by granting us eternal life. The gospel also has power for us to live this new life. In this 5-week series, Dr. John Neufeld explores Romans 5-8 and focuses on the powerful grace of God which enables us to live with victory, joy and peace. To those who feel defeated in their Christian walk, these truths offer hope and help.
The Power of the Gospel
A box of tools is of little use to us unless we know how to employ the tools. In the first of 5 messages on Romans 5-8, Dr. John teaches on the power of the gospel to not only save us, but to change us. We are powerless to achieve godliness on our own. In place of our own efforts, God responds to our faith. We trusted Jesus to save us. Trust Him as you live this new life.
The Assurance of God’s Love
The grace of our God is His eternal heart to do good for us, regardless of our merit. That sounds too good to be true – so we often doubt it. Dr. John speaks to all who struggle with God’s love poured out to us in Jesus Christ. If you think God is mad at you, that there are unresolved issues with Him or that a failure on your part endangers His love for you, take heart from this message on Romans 5:1-4.
The Full Extent of Christ’s Love
How much does God love us? How would we quantify that? We could point to creation and the abundance of daily grace. We could list answered prayers and unique provisions. But Paul points to another measure. Today, Dr. John teaches from Romans 5:6-11 and unpacks Paul’s demonstration of God’s love for us. If God loved us at our worst, enough to die for us, how can He love us less as His child? Today, tomorrow and forever, you are loved by God through Jesus Christ.
Original Sin
Sin is the common denominator for humanity. Our sins may vary in scope and kind, but everyone, everywhere sins. Why is that? Dr. John explains from Romans 5:12-14 that we all are held to account for Adam’s sin. We share his condemnation of death. We share his attitude of rebellion. Common humanity makes it so. That bond explains our common failure. It will also point to our common hope.
The New Head of the Human Race
If a baseball player hits a winning home run, everyone on the team is attributed the win, even though only one player hit the ball out of the park. Being part of the team means the efforts of one extends victory to all. Dr. John teaches from Romans 5:15-21 that Jesus is the Victor for us all. In Adam, we share a common guilt. In Jesus, we share His goodness and life.
Dying to Live
We struggle with the grace of God. It is so beyond our defaults that we struggle to understand it. “Doesn’t too much grace invite us to sin recklessly?” That is the question Dr. John addresses as he continues teaching from Romans 6. We will find that grace not only leads to life, but to holiness.
Raised with Christ
When significant changes happen in life, we can’t live as if they didn’t. A bachelor shouldn’t live as a single after marriage. A house you sold isn’t yours to enter at will. Dr. John teaches of the changes made in us through Jesus Christ. We are no longer under sin’s power or authority. We’d be foolish to live as if we were.
You’ve Got to Serve Somebody
Our society talks a lot about freedom but is in servitude to things or situations. Entertainment, possessions, popularity, power, greed – any of these hold sway over many. Today Dr. John echoes Paul’s words from Rom.6, we are all slaves to either God or sin. Servitude isn’t the question; but the quality of our Master is.
Dead to the Law
Rules have their place. They regulate our streets to promote our safety. But rules of the road can’t make a good driver. You need more than rules for that. Today Dr. John explores the role of the Law for Christians. What is our relationship to the rules of the Old Testament? We’ll find that the Law is not a pathway for holiness; the Spirit is.
