Every Christian needs to be pessimistic about how bad we really are, and at the same time, optimistic about how grace changes us! We once were dead, but now by God’s grace, we have been saved

The Jesus plan is to see the good news go to the ends of the earth in the power of God’s Spirit

There are really only two types of people in the world - those who belong to Adam, and those who belong to Jesus. 

Romans 5 outlines how we have peace with God, how we stand in God’s grace and the certain hope we have in Jesus. This is a hope that stands up in the face of suffering and is based on what God’s already done

After telling us how we can be justified by faith, Romans 4 outlines how this amazing free gift is received - by faith.

Romans 3 contains what Leon Morris calls, ‘possibly the most important single paragraph ever written’. In this talk, we see why that’s the case. 

To mark the occasion of the reveal of our new church name, we see how Jesus alone brings the renewal we all need to make us his renewed people.

To the Jew who thinks that simply being a Jew, or simply having the law or circumcision means they will be spared from God’s wrath on the day of judgment, Paul points out that God’s standard is not having the law but keeping the law. God is not impressed by the merely outward appearance of external religion. Jews and Gentiles alike will be found without excuse and guilty on the day of God’s wrath.

So often we try to excuse ourselves from God’s judgment by playing the comparison game saying to ourselves: “At least I’m not as bad as …..”. Romans 2 exposes that heart and says all humanity falls under God’s judgment. 

The world we inhabit will remain mysterious to us if we don’t reckon with the reality of God’s wrath. But we also need to know why God’s wrath is a reality, and the result of God’s wrath in our experience of life. This is what Romans 1:18-32 is all about.