Essentials Of The Faith / Sunday Morning Sermon Series / Romans

Romans 10:14-21

INTRO:  In 1993, the Foreign Missions Board of the Southern Baptist Convention  researched the following.  The world's population was 5.3 billion, about 1/3 or 1.7 billion are people who would call themselves 'Christian'. Among the other 1.3 billion have never heard the Gospel while 2.6 billion have heard it but are not saved.

     The 1.7 billion who would call themselves Christian,  account for about 62 % of the worlds  wealth. That same group spends 97% of their earned income on themselves. The remaining 3% is divided between secular charities which get 1% and Christian charities which get the other 2%.

     Of that 2% allotted for Christian charities, 99.9 % is spent in our own countries to provide for our own churches and Christian institutions. Of the remaining .1% spent for Christian work abroad,  .09% is spent on those who already have heard the Gospel but are not saved.

     Only .01% of the money allotted for Christian work abroad is spent on the 1.3 billion who have never heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

EXP: The questions raised in verses 14-16 are quite chilling when you consider these staggering statistics. And by the way, I don't believe the percentages have improved since 1993.

     In verses 9-10 Paul told us that obtaining righteousness and salvation is really quite simple. It's a matter of believing in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead and confessing with your mouth Jesus as Lord. And in 11-13 he tells us that anyone can do it. There is no difference between Jew or Gentile, for 'whoever will call upon the name of the Lord, will be saved.' God has opened the gates of heaven to all tribes and nations, Jew and Gentile alike.

Trans: Turn in your Bibles to Rom. 10:14-21. Here we will find Paul giving us the application to verse 13.
Read: Romans 10:13-15

B. Salvation by Faith: PREACHED (Rom. 10:14-15)
     Paul uses basic logic as he explain our responsibility to verse 13. He says, it is essential to preach the Gospel to all because vs. 13 implies that  if you don't call upon the name of the Lord, you can't be saved.

First point of logic: How can anyone call on Jesus when   they don't believe in Him?

Second point of logic: How can anyone believe in Jesus   if they haven't heard about Him?

Third point of logic: How can anyone hear about Jesus   unless someone tells them?

Final point of logic: How can someone tell others about   Jesus unless they are sent?

     The answer to all 4 points of logic is: They Can't.

Paul ends this thought encouraging us by saying the one who spreads the Gospel is blessed and is a welcome sight to the lost.

APP:  Paul made things pretty clear to Ethnic Israel didn't he? For anyone to be brought into the Kingdom of God they have to call upon the name of the Lord...to do that they have to hear. It's logical, it's simple and it makes sense.

     Well, Paul was not just writing to the Romans, was he? He was writing to us as well, the church in America, the church in Oceanport. And this text is one of the reasons the Church today is to  have as a top priority a desire and means to spread the Gospel to every tribe and nation, both near and far.

     WHY? Because if the lost are going to get saved, they have to call upon the name of the Lord. To do that they have to believe, to believe they have to hear about Jesus, to hear about Jesus someone has to tell them. Simple enough? O really?

     Who is that someone?   YOU! The great commission to go and make disciples of all nations in Matt. 28:19-20 was given to YOU!  In Acts 1:8 YOU! shall be My witnesses to all the world. YOU! And those specifically gifted and trained  that we send to the lost in the world.

    Romans 10:14-15 is a strong and challenging plea for missions. The force of this great passage is found in vs. 13 'Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.' This is a statement of the universal application to the Gospel. It is for all to hear. But in order for all to hear, all must be told.

     Therefore, as followers of Jesus Christ, WE MUST GO, WE MUST SEND, WE MUST PREACH.
 For the lost MUST CALL upon the name of the Lord to be saved.

     When it comes to evangelism and missions, it doesn't get any easier than that. It is not confusing, nor is it complicated. Where there are people who have not heard the Gospel of JC, we must go and tell them.

     With the statistics being what they are, we need to rethink where we are concentrating our efforts in  World Missions. That doesn't mean we forget about those who have heard but who haven't responded yet. But it does mean we need to discover new ways to reach those who have never heard.

     Many of those who have never heard are found in what are called 'restricted access countries.' In these countries, missionaries are restricted or are not allowed to publicly preach the Good News. It is essential that in these countries we must be especially creative in how Christ is proclaimed.

     This is true where Andrew is. It is a restricted access country, no missionaries. Yet how will the lost there call upon the name of the Lord if they don't believe...how will they believe if they have not heard, how will they hear without someone telling them, and how will someone tell them unless we send someone?

     I believe God honors the church who makes it a priority to share Jesus Christ with the lost both locally and abroad. And that is one reason I believe God is blessing Calvary Baptist Church. We are a church with a heart for missions, a heart to share the Good News of Jesus Christ to the lost, to those near and far who have heard but who have yet not responded, as well as to those who have never heard.

TRANS: But, Paul reminds us that just because we go, we send and we preach, it doesn't mean everyone will respond by asking Jesus into their lives.

READ: Romans 10:16-20

C. Salvation by Faith: PRACTICED (Rom. 10:16-20)
     Paul equates BELIEVING with OBEYING, that's what 'heed' means in vs. 16 means. Ethnic Israel, and the Gentiles for that matter can't claim they have never heard or that they didn't understand the way of salvation. Paul said it was made very clear to them. They choose not to call upon the name of the Lord, they choose not to act upon what they heard.

     The Gospel is given not only to be known and believed, but to be acted upon and obeyed. Christianity is not a system of thoughts, or ideals. It a rule of practice, a life of obedience in relationship with Jesus Christ and His Word. True faith will always touch the will and result in a changed life.

     Paul in Phil. 4:9 said 'The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, (that's the witness of the Word) practice these things; (that's the action, the obedience) and the God of peace shall be with you.' (that's the reward)

TRANS: But, we must always remember were it not for the Holy Spirit making clear the Gospel to the lost sinner, that sinner would remain forever lost. Salvation is foremost and always a work of God.

Read: Romans 10:21

D. Salvation by Faith: PROVIDED (Rom. 10:21)
     Ethnic Israel, no all mankind has been given ample opportunity to know, believe and call upon the Lord, but they have not, most will not. God has stretched out His hands as Christ stretched out His on the cross of Calvary, to disobedient and obstinate people.  God desires than no one perish (2 Peter 3:9) He has been faithful to reveal the Righteousness of God in Jesus Christ...we, however, have been both ungrateful and disobedient.

CONCLUSION:
 There is so much to say in closing. I could speak of our commitment to Missions but I will save that for June 13th when we commission Becky for her mission's trip. We have been studying Salvation by Faith in Romans 10:1-21 these past three weeks. I want to end with three steps necessary in faith to be saved, drawn from the text.

1. Hearing
     One must be willing to hear the Gospel of JC. All of you this morning fit into this category... (Along with the over 4 billion others world wide) You are here and you have heard the Good News of JC. But, that is not enough to save you.

2. Believing
     One  hearing the Gospel must believe the message is true. That Jesus is God and He died for their sins. Most of you here this morning also fit into this category. (As well as the 1.7 billion who would cal themselves Christian world wide) You have said yes, I know that Jesus in God and that He died for my sins. But this too is not enough to save you.

3. Committing
     Faith and action go hand in hand. An individual hears the Gospel, believes it is the truth and then does something about it. The truth becomes a part of their very being and their behavior shows it. This is the calling upon the name of the Lord. It means heeding the Gospel, obeying the Lordship of Christ over your life in your thoughts, words and deeds.

     Unfortunately #2 (Believing) is where many who say they are a Christian  reside.  But it is in #3 (Committing) that you will see eternal life. It is in #3 that you become a disciple of Jesus Christ...without #3 you are not saved. I bet the number is a lot less than the 1.7 billion who call themselves Christian.

 I know this is strong, but it is the truth of God's Word. There is no such thing as a Christian who:

    Believes the Gospel but is not obedient to JC.

          Believes the Gospel and continues to live like the world.

                Believes the Gospel and refuses to tell others about it.

                      Believes the Gospel and is not missions minded.

                                    Which category are you in this morning?
                                                    Which category do you want to be in?

                                                                    My suggestion...#3.