Hey everybody. Welcome back to another edition of the daily Bible podcast. Let me go again. Hey pastor. Rosback. I am. Yup. How does it get started? It was good. It was great. It was awesome. Good. I was glad to get some time off with the family, spent a lot of time locally with the fam, which was. A great use of the time. I'm glad to be back. But I'm also glad to have spent some time with the fam as well. That's always a really good time to connect and plug plug in for. Several days. It was fun. That's good, man. That's good. December 8th is Sunday. It is our Christmas series officially launches next week, but you're kind of in the middle of Christmas season, Christmas coffee was yesterday season was like, yeah, three weeks ago. I feel like. So. Well in Texas Christmas season begins in October. So we're actually quite behind. But yeah, formally, I guess we're kicking off tomorrow. Or today. Today. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's today, right? Yeah. It's Sunday. Well, yeah, no, it's next week. You're right. You just said it. So catching up, although the title of this week's sermon, it is wartime Christmas. Okay. So that's, that's that's Christmas themed. Yeah. I'd say that's a, that's definitely a hat tip in the right direction. It is. It is, are we singing some Christmas songs? You always awesome. Last week, even though it wasn't technically Christmas music, it was intentionally chosen with Christmas in mind. Yeah. So, if you were paying attention to the worship set, I always plan pretty, pretty carefully. I'm always thinking about what we're doing and how we're going to do it. Um, there's one way or another a tie into what we're doing or the season. This is not always exactly tied to your sermon. If I can do it, I obviously type, try to do that, but sometimes it's a little more subtle what I'm doing, but it's, it's on purpose. No mistake. Well, I'm excited. I don't know what it's gonna be because we're recording this at a time, but I'm excited. It's going to be great. I think it's going to be great Sunday. I have confidence. Uh, let's jump into Romans 4, 3, 7. That's a lot of territory. It's all that man. It's been a lot of territory. Yeah, it has been. And I'm a little. I'm not upset at it. I just. It feels hard because you're reading through sections that are so it's like taking a, you go to a steakhouse and you get the big juicy steak that you pay $400 for. Right. You're not going to bite into half of the steak at one time. Right. You're going to take small pieces to chew it and carefully enjoy it. Uh, I feel like this Bible reading program as awesome as it is. You're you're taking basically the whole steak. And shoving as much of it in your mouth as you can. Yeah. And just hoping that you don't choke. I haven't joked, but I can imagine other people choking. Yeah. It is a lot for sure. For sure. Yeah. Well, if you remember from yesterday's episode, Romans chapter one through three. So much of it is meant to get us to the end of ourselves. Uh, to indict everybody as saying all of y'all are in trouble. Um, specifically, if you're looking to be justified in the set of God when it comes to the law. So chapter four, he's going to pivot and begin to turn towards the good news. And he's going to do so by introducing, uh, Abraham and Abraham is going to come in as the representative of not only the Jews, but also the Gentiles. And Paul is going to do this quite a bit. Even in Galatians, he's going to do something similar to this. And the reason being is that the phrase that he quotes here, that Abraham believed God and was justified by faith, that it was counted to him as righteousness. Uh, that's Genesis 15, six. And then he goes on to use that, to appeal to the fact that our faith is the foundation for the basis for our justification, our righteousness. And he does this by asking some questions there. He says was Abraham counted as righteous? Was he declared righteous before or after his circumcision? And the answer is before. And pulses. This was so that nobody could say, well, yeah, but that's only after he stepped into the, the Kevin into the law only after he stepped into circumcision as an act there. But Paul saying he was justified beforehand so that he could be the father of all of those who believe. Even whether you're a Jew or Gentile alike. Uh, Abraham's your guy. He's the, the, the paradigm force because he believed and was declared righteous. After this, uh, verses 13 and following, he continues to build upon this idea of the laws, futility to save, but the power of faith to save. And he does. So by saying that the law is really there just to simply condemn us even more. He says in verse 15, the law brings wrath, but where there is no law, there is no transgression. This is why it depends on faith. And whether the promised me rest on grace. And be guaranteed all his offspring, faith or belief shows up so many times in this section, I circled it. It's five or six times here in this handful of verses. And, uh, and he, he goes on to talk about the promise there and in the fact that that faith is really faith in the promises of God. And so you may say, well, in what way was Abraham justified by faith? What was he believing in. And Paul answers this. He was believing in the promises of God. He was not believing in Jesus Christ, per se, but in God's ability to bring the blessing to all nations through one of his offspring and he trusted God, he said, God, I'm going to trust you that you're going to be able to do that. And so faith is, is trust in God's promises in the same remains true for us today. That's ultimately what we're trusting. And when we put our trust in Jesus, we're trusting in God's promise that if we repent from our sins and believe in Jesus, he's going to forgive our sins. Yeah. It was said that the old Testament saints had their faith in God and he applied. Clyde their faith. Uh, He applied their faith to his righteousness. On credit. So he knew what he was going to do through Christ. We, we appealed to him by faith, same mechanism, but we're not appealing to the credit as in something that's going to be repaid later, but something that's already been paid. So we appealed to him based on the riches of Christ. They appealed to him based on his credit, which would eventually result in the riches of Christ. Yeah, chapter five. Uh, verses one through 11, he gets into talking about the love of God and in what that promise contained in that promise of, of the love of God was shown in that God came after us. And this is where we get that, that saying that this is in this love of God is shown that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. In fact, He paints a pretty, uh, Pretty bleak picture of us in the fact that he calls us a week on godly sinful enemies of God, that that's, those are the characteristics that we find of ourselves starting in verse six, down through verse 10. And yet in spite of that, We see that, that got it out of his love made a way for us to have peace with him. And we have peace through Christ. We are justified by faith verse of one. We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. And we needed that because of where he goes after this. And that is because of our sin nature. And he gets into this with the idea of total depravity or original sin, pastor out a little bit on that concept. As we see it unfold in the second half of chapter five, there there's so much here. Let's just say, and let's keep it simple here. Let's just say that everyone born in Adam, that is those who are born into the human race apart from Christ. Are in the state of sin. This is their position you're naturally in this. So when Johnny comes out of the womb or whoever Suzy. They're going to be a center, not by choice, but by birth, it's kind of like having an ethnicity. You don't choose your ethnicity. You just are those things. And in the same way, As humans, we are naturally born into sin and that means all of us. In Adam, that is from the, from the. Genealogy, the lineage of Adam are under the bond of sin and under the curse of sin as well. Which means that if, unless some kind of intervention happens that happens. We're going to suffer the same fate death, physically death spiritually. But of course the upside to that is that for those in Christ, this doesn't have to end that way. Why don't you tell us about that part? Yeah. If you want to throw the flag and say, well, I don't think that's fair that Adam represented all of us. Then we also have to apply the same thing to Jesus. We also also have to say, well, then it's not fair for Christ to represent all of us. And if Christ doesn't represent all of us, then all of us are in trouble because we're still in our sins. So to your point. The good news is. Yeah. As an Adam all died. So in Christ all will be made alive. Right? That's the union with Christ, which is where he goes in chapter six, because how do I have union with Christ? Well, we are, he goes on here to say baptized into Christ Jesus that that's talking about, not just our water baptism, but more specifically our spiritual baptism, which happens at the moment of conversion. We are placed into Christ. We are United with Christ by faith. And so because of that, there's a participation in his death and also in his resurrection. And so in chapter six, he talks about the fact that now we have died to sin. How can we continue to go on to live in it? Because this union with Christ is, is great. That sounds like a S. Super deal. It's like, okay. So all my sinfulness, he took it on him and now I'm forgiven and now I've got his righteousness. Great. So now I can just go on and live. However I want to live. And that's where Paul says at the very beginning of chapter six, he says by no means no way, Megan. Gonna wait to it may never be. The strongest. Emphatic, no, that he can give there in Greek. And then he goes on and he says, This is what it means. It means we've been United with him in, in dying to sin with him means we've been set free. And that's why he goes on in verse 12 and says, let not sin reign in your mortal body to make you a bait as passions. But instead present yourself as instruments of righteousness to God. So there is, this is the reality for Christians that any time you sin. You are willingly choosing to sin. You are no longer enslaved by sin. You can't say. I had to send them. Devil made me, right. I had no choice, but to do this, an unbeliever that is their default, that the unbeliever is still culpable and accountable for their sin, but the unbeliever possesses, no ability inherent within them, not to sin. In other words, to choose righteousness, truly defined by God, they might do something that we would say, well, that's a good deed. But it's tainted by their sin nature. Still. It's not done for the glory of God. You Christian being set free from sin. You have the ability to do that. Now you can choose not to sin. And so anytime you fall into sin, it's not because. Seen made you do it. The devil made you do it is because you chose that over choosing obedience to God. Yeah, that might violate some of your experience with sin. Um, but that's the beauty of the Christian religion that there is, there is vestiges of sin, which is who's going to get to in chapter seven, I think, depending on what side of the aisle you land. Uh, but verse 17 says one of the benefits of being a Christian is that you can now obey from the heart. You're no longer a slave of sin. You're now a slave of righteousness, which is such a cool analogy. Uh, slavery, obviously a bad situation if you're not slave to the right master, but when you're a slave to the, to the correct benevolent master, well, that becomes a joy. And that's exactly what the Christian faith is. Sometimes we think about Christianity only in terms of salvation from hell. But we're saved not only from hell, but to righteousness, which is going to look very different for the true Christian. If you're truly converted, righteousness is not a burden. It is a joy and we're, we're joyful to obey from the heart verse 17 says and what a cool thing that is for us. Yeah. And that's again, just to confirm and reconfirm. Christianity is. Uh, it's not a workspace religion, but it's a religion that works. It's a relationship with cars that produces fruit in our lives. Anything else? Yeah, exactly. And that's what James is, is going to say. When we get to James, that's what policying here in Romans chapter six, this idea that somehow I can be a Christian because I walked an aisle. I prayed a prayer. I went to a Billy Graham. You know, Conference or whatever when I was younger, but then I, I had no fruit in my life after that. I never went to church, but I'm good because I did that. It just, it doesn't. Add up with the rest of what we see in scripture. Okay. Two things. Number one. Who's going to a Billy Graham crusade. I mean. Is he still touring? I don't think so. I think Greg Laurie does stuff. So let's use. Uh, number two, we've already covered James, just so you, I mean, remember he was the Jerusalem council, so we catch. We did we're beyond that. Thank you. I'm glad to be back. Thank you. I'm a gatekeeper here, man. I'm just afraid of all the areas that were in the last. Just don't go back and listen. Hey, can I encourage you to do something while I'm I'm noticing here? Yes. It's been something that I've noticed in the past, but I'm doing it in my Bible. This, this time. As I'm going through it, circle the preposition for anytime you see it. Uh, in here because Paul is a very logical writer. And it's amazing. You will notice how many times you use the preposition for it. And here's what the, what that's going to do for you. It's going to show you how, what you're reading builds upon what's come before it, that this is part of a chain. He's making an argument here. He's not just throwing a bunch of stuff, scattershot on the page and walking away from it. These are all logical conclusions for this, for that, for this, for that. And he just employs that preposition. It's Gar in the Greek there, he, he does it all over the place. It's gotta be one of the most common words in the entire book of Romans. That's one of the other reasons I love Paul period is that he's, he's such a clear thinker and an often his, his chain of argument can be challenging to follow, but it's well worth it. Putting in the sweat equity to understand them. Yeah. Yeah. All right. Let's tackle chapter seven. Chapter seven. He opens up with this analogy of a husband and a wife and a marriage. And he says, listen, as long as though the wife is alive, the husband is bound to the wife or the husband is alive, that the wife is bound to the husband. And if they leave, they're going to be. Called an adulterous or an adulterer. Uh, but if they die and this is verse three, if there her husband dies, she is free from that. And she marries another man. She's not an adulterous. So he says in verse four, likewise, my brothers, you have also died to the law, through the body of Christ. So now you are freed from the law and the sense of what it initially held over you. Uh, and, and so he's getting into now our relationship to the law and that's what chapter seven is all about. And there's, there's two, there's two ways to look at this and I'll just, I'll be honest. I. I go back and forth. I struggle with this because it's, it's difficult. Um, Th th the first way to look at it is this, this is Paul writing as a believer saying, look, uh, when I write things like I don't do the thing I want to do, I do the very thing I hate. Right. Okay. I get how you would read that and say, that sounds like a believer because an unbeliever doesn't want to do the things of the Lord. They want to do whatever they want to do. And so they're not going to feel this tension that Paul feels in Romans seven here. So the one side is to say, this is Paul writing as a believer. The other side is to say, no, this is Paul reflecting back, looking back on the, his identity as an unbeliever in his powerlessness. Uh, to, to justify himself, according to the law that he wanted to be justified according to the law and found that he was unable to do that. And that's why at the end of chapter seven, he cries out wretched, man, that I am, who will set me free from this body of death. And there's other things in here when he says that, that, uh, he talks about ownership by sin. Um, I'm sold under sin verse 14. But that's difficult to read that as a believer, but again, that the desire to do what is right. I get both sides. And so there's, there's two ways to look at it. Pastor rod, I know. I think last year, And we were on opposite sides of the aisle on this, but what are your thoughts on, on Roman seven? I'm curious to know what I said last year. I was tempted to go back and listen, because I obviously knew this was coming up. I don't remember what I said. I just know that like you often have my days where I'm confident. Oh, it's definitely this side. It's definitely that side. And I think because of the characterization of being sold, understand, I just feel like the most. Natural reading I'm going to feel led to believe is okay. I think he's talking about being an unbeliever. Because everything about the spirit and life by the spirit happens. And we have this natural break in our Bibles of chapter eight. But if you just think about it, like we were saying as a chain of thought, an argument of flow, it seems like he's building up this case of this is what it feels like to live life in the flesh. And as a good Jew. They want to obey the law. They're trying to do good. Um, and as a good Christian, I suppose, or at least someone who's in a Christian Church, they could resonate. So yeah, I want to do the right thing. I. I want to be truthful. I want to be a good husband, a good mom, a good whatever. Um, but there's, there's this barrier that keeps me from doing it. And then he begs for, for, for freedom from this. So I think. If you take out the big numbers in your Bible, chapter eight and chapter seven, and just kind of read it without that division there, it might be easier to say, okay, I think I see what happens here. This is like before Christ, this is life now in Christ by the power of the spirit, which gives us the ability to walk righteously. And there's no condemnation for, for all that sin that we've dealt with. We are now walking in the freedom of the spirit, according to the spirit. So I think he's building a contrast. I can't, I can't help it see that. And if I just take out the big number, I think it's easier for me. What do you think about this? Yeah, I would agree with you. I'm that's where I'm at too. And if you're out there going, okay, so then I've always been somewhat comforted comforted by this because I feel like this is Paul describing what I feel in my battle with the flesh. As far as, as part of my, my sanctification goes. Listen, I think there are other places where we see that. Um, when in, in Galatians we talk about walk by the spirit and you won't gratify the desires of the flesh. The spirit is set against the flesh of the flesh against the spirit. There. There's evidence of the battle that takes place within us. And so I think there are other polices that we see that there, but I would agree with you, I think here in Romans seven. He seems to be setting up the contrast with chapter eight, like you were just saying. Yeah, the most widely held view, according to the ESP. And I think this is correct, especially with Augustan and reaffirm to the reformation is that Paul is primary references to believers. So we're in the minority, uh, admittedly, but I think it's, it's, it's, it's a safe position. It feels like a really natural reading of the text. Yeah, I would agree. I would agree. All right. Well, that was a fire hose. Of Romans four through seven. Um, and it's not going to get any easier because we got more coming at you tomorrow much. More and a, and that, and yet it's all good. So keep, keep, bring your Bibles, but let me pray for us and then we'll be done. You've got to pray that you would make us. Uh, Christians that are, uh, aware of our identity in Christ in that it leads to our slavery to righteousness. We want to be a church that is obedient from the heart to you. That is defined as those that, that present ourselves to you for. Uh, righteousness sake and not to sin for unrighteousness. And so guard us against sinfulness. God, keep us walking on the straight and narrow, help us to walk as we can even talk about tomorrow. Uh, by the spirit and, and to understand what that looks like and what that means. And we are grateful along with the apostle Paul, as he says, who can set us free from this body of death? We are grateful that Christ has done that for us. And so we just pray that we would live in light of that reality in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Aren't y'all keeping your Bibles and tune in again tomorrow for another edition of the daily Bible podcast. Please do. We'll see you then. Bye.