Introduction: How do you see the Great Commission being fulfilled? Some think that it is not our job but it was the job of the original apostles, this cannot be the case because the command to preach to all nations lasts as long as the promise of Christ’s presence does, till the end of the age.  Some have a picture of mass evangelism in their minds where Billy Graham style crusades are done all over the world until millions of Christians are saved.  Some see every Christian being a missionary and if each one reaches one then the world can be reached that way.  Today as we continue to look at the ministry of Paul, I want to argue that Paul’s view of fulfilling the Great Commission is this: to plant local churches all over the world in strategic locations.  You see in order to make disciples you need a whole church.  We are not merely called to make converts, but disciples who obey all the commands of Christ which include getting baptised, observing the Lord’s Supper, submitting to elders, practicing church discipline, meeting together, sitting under the word, praying with one another and loving one another, among other things. One on one evangelism, campus ministry, even mentoring does not do all of this only getting someone saved and into a church does.  Secondly, we will see by Paul’s method that instead of making sure every single person in an area hears the gospel, if there is a church in a strategic location which will act as leaven and finally affect the area around it, one can be content with planting a church and moving on. The text that points us to Paul’s method is Romans 15:19, ‘by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God—so...

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Introduction: What is the nature of the ministry of the church? For what purpose does the church primarily exist?  Paul will help us answer these questions as he reflects on the nature of his own ministry in Romans 15:17-19. V17-19a, ‘In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to be proud of my work for God.18 For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to bring the Gentiles to obedience—by word and deed,19 by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God….’ What is the mission of the church?  50 years ago if you spoke about mission everyone knew that you were talking about cross cultural evangelsim.  Through the influence of the Liberation movement that has emphasized political liberation as the good news and a bias towards the poor and economically oppressed; as well as through Liberal theology which has taken away hell and the need for personal salvation, mission has become confused.  These past trends have created a modern climate where there is mud in the water when it comes to missions, and so many questions are put forward in an attempt to define the mission of the church.  Is our mission evangelism or deeds?  Is the mission of the church social justice?  Is the mission of the church transforming social structures and renovating culture?  What does it mean to continue Jesus mission, or to build the kingdom? Today as we look at these verses we will see two things about Paul’s ministry.  We will see the power that enables him to produce and be effective.  Then we will see the use of word, deed and sign as his method.

Introduction: The best of man is man at best is a very helpful saying when thinking about the peak of Solomon reign. We are in the chapter that is marking the high point of Solomon’s wealth and influence. The text details for us the staggering wealth of Solomon’s kingdom and his effect on the surrounding nations. There is much here that is good and gives glory to God. However, chapter 11 is just around the corner, the chapter that describes Solomon’s turning from the Lord. A man does not suddenly become a backslider, it is a gradual thing and often there are signs that betray that course. This chapter which is one that highlights the best of Solomon’s reign has some of these signs. This portion has two sections the first looks at the gold and gifts Solomon received v14-25; the second looks at the horses and chariots Solomon accumulated and traded in v26-29.

Introduction: You might think now that we have finished the doctrinal part of the letter to the Romans the last chapter and a half are unimportant and will be a let-down. You could not be more wrong. This last section of Romans gives us a tremendous window into the nature of Paul’s ministry helping us to think about our own ministry as a church. As well as a window into the life of the early church. In this closing section of the letter Paul reverts to personal comments as he did in the introduction of this letter. And just as Romans has the longest introduction to any of Paul’s letters so it also has the longest conclusion in all his letters. Paul has never met the Roman church yet he is wanting to include them in his plans as he goes to preach in places where Christ has not yet been preached. So Paul includes in this final part a deeper look into his ministry so the Romans would be willing partners with him. Paul describes himself as a minister to the Gentiles, as an apostle, as a church planter, as a missionary, as a church ambassador and a persecuted Christian in v14-33. All of this information is because Paul wants to make a stop in Rome to be helped on his way by them, v24. ‘I myself am satisfied about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able to instruct one another.15 But on some points I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder, because of the grace given me by God16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles...

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Introduction: How do we understand the visit of the queen of Sheba to King Solomon? Jesus Christ gives us the lens to see the relevance of this OT character, Luke 11:29-32, ‘When the crowds were increasing, he began to say, “This generation is an evil generation. It seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.30 For as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.31 The queen of the South will rise up at the judgement with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.32 The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgement with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.’ She is held up as an example of believing. Her visit is held up as one of the highlights of Solomon’s reign, it shows us how God sought to bring the nations to Israel to see His glory, fulfilling His mission through Israel. There are four aspects of this queen which we want to note in this section. She was a seeker, became a worshipper, then a giver and then became a receiver.

Introduction: We come to the end of the teaching part of the book of Romans as Paul pronounces the first of three benedictions, Romans 15:13, ‘May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.’ These words may be familiar to you because you often hear a benediction at the end of a service. Why do we do that? If you go to older denominations that have liturgy you would also find benedictions, is this simply a return to ‘dead religion’? Absolutely not! Our whole worship service is put together in such a way that God the Spirit serves us by the word. The word calls and commands us to worship in the call to worship. We then sing the truth of the word to one another. We give to support the ministry of the Word. We pray in accordance with what the word reveals pleading the promises of the word. We observe the visible word of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We sit under the word in the preaching. And when it comes to the end of our time together the benediction plays a very important role. It is a prayer, a pronouncement and a promise. The word of God sending us out with the blessings of the gospel. As Paul prays that these blessings would belong to those in Rome so we pray it ourselves. But more than pray it we are also pronouncing for this not something is in fact our because of what God has done for us in His Son. We are announcing what is ours in Christ. And for this reason it is a promise to every person who is in Christ. The benediction does not...

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Introduction: When you woke up this morning, or every morning this week, did you consecrate yourselves to God? Did you remember that God has bought you at a price, that He is your Father and Lord, that you are here to fulfil His purposes? Did you remember that you are a sinner that battles a sinful heart, and look to God for the strength He provides so that you can do your duty? On our good days we recommit ourselves as living sacrifices to God. On a bad day we just drift into out duties out of habit and without deliberation, on our worst days we sin big. When we are starting off on the Christian journey we are keen and energetic. When we come to the end of the Christian road we are expectant, contemplative and aware. It is the middle part, with the regular passing of miles beneath us that there is a danger of falling asleep at the wheel. Solomon is in the middle of his reign, He has just finished a major accomplishment in building the temple. God mercifully comes to him after this victory when he might be tempted to rest on his laurels and live in the glow of past accomplishments and reminds him of his duties. This chapter has two parts to it, the first part is God appearing to Solomon calling him to faithfulness and warning him of the consequences of unfaithfulness. And the second part is a summary of events in Solomon’s reign, some of the lessor highlights. This chapter is very useful to us because it presents a busy life full of activity, but the emphasis is on our walk with the Lord. In the middle parts busyness can often be mistaken for faithfulness. This chapter points out that Solomon...

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Introduction: Many Christians without trying have a divided God, the God of the OT, and a second and different God of the NT. This functional Bitheism is a contradiction to the unity of the Scriptures and a seedbed for atheism. Some see the God of the OT as a God of law and wrath and the God of the NT as a God of salvation and love. Maybe you don’t have that extreme division in your minds but there are others who think that the God of the NT is a God of all nations, and in the OT He is only a God of one. So missions is a NT phenomena and not an OT one. This is a very wrong headed way to think about God. Our text today is proof of this. Today we are looking at Rom. 15:9-12, ‘As it is written, “Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.” And again it is said, “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people.” And again, “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples extol him.” And again Isaiah says, “The root of Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the Gentiles; in him will the Gentiles hope.”’ Paul has been speaking about unity in the church in Rome, and a never before heard of unifying of Jew and Greek in the Church. Both Jews and Gentiles have prejudices that need to be overcome. So here we see Paul quoting the word of God from the OT to prove that this new united body was always God’s plan from the beginning. By proving that God is a missionary God Paul is laying a foundation for true racial reconciliation, united worship and God being glorified. We will look at these...

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Introduction: Most good Christian events happen around food. And the dedication of the temple is another example of this. We are approaching the end of Solomon’s prayer where he gives a final benediction of praise, some final requests and an exhortation to Israel. And then there is a huge nationwide feast. Solomon’s prayer has been very rich theologically as it has spoken to us about the God we are approaching and how to pray about our sins. The last part of this prayer is no less rich. Three things dominate this closing prayer. Firstly, in v56 Solomon blesses God for fulfilling His promises. Secondly, Solomon requests God’s presence and prayer hearing in v57-60. And finally, Solomon exhort the people in v61. And then there is the feast v62-66.

Introduction: The Supreme reason why everything exists is the glory of God. The greatest motive to which all others must submit is not human happiness or sustaining this creation, but the glory of God. All endeavours are judged for their rightness or wrongness by whether they work towards the glory of God. Is. 48:9-11, ‘”For my name’s sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off. Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.’ God elects a people for the glory of His grace, Eph. 1:4-6; God rescued Israel from Egypt for His glory, Ps. 106:7-8; God raised up Pharaoh to show His power in him, Rom. 9:17; God spared Israel in the wilderness, gave them victory in Canaan; saved Jerusalem from attack restored Israel from exile because He was seeking His own glory.1 God seeks His own glory and we seek the glory of God as our highest goal because it is right and to do otherwise would be a lie. He is supremely worthy of all praise and obedience; He is worthy of the adoring gaze of all the worshipping creation for all time, and more. This is not a case of vanity or egotism. No, we find our greatest happiness in God’s glory. His glory and our greatest good are not at odds. All things exist for the glory of God. This is what Paul believes when he states in Rom. 11:36, ‘For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be...

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