Mercy

The Surrendered Life

Romans 12 - The Surrendered Life
Dave Riddle - 09/15/19

Key Passage: Romans 12:1-2

“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you:” - Romans 12:1 (Message)

An Impassioned Plea

  • I urge you (Romans 12:1)

    • parakaleō (Greek: παρακαλέω) - to admonish, exhort. to beg, entreat, beseech...

To whom? All the family of God.

  • Romans 12:1 - “therefore brothers and sisters...”

On what grounds? God’s mercies.

  • Mercies plural

  • Not because of anything we’ve done, but because the mercy he shows us again and again.

This call has two facets

  • A Living Sacrifice (12:1)

    • Our bodies

      • A shocking statement for Paul’s Roman audience who saw the body as a grave.

    • Our worship

      • Our body is not a tomb, but a tool to worship God in everything we do!

      • Our physical bodies become a spiritual act of worship.

  • Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (12:2)

    • Don’t just be like everyone else. (Conformity)

    • Allow yourself to be transformed.

      • Daily and continually, not a one time event.

      • metamorphoō (Greek: μεταμορφόω) - to change into another form, to transform, to transfigure.

    • The world’s standards and God’s will are so far apart that you cannot just take a little bit of each.


A Redemption Mystery

Romans 11 - A Redemption Mystery

Dave Riddle - 05/19/19

Key Passage: Romans 11:25-32

“This mystery” 

  • Romans 11:25

  • Greek word mysterion (μυστήριον); a secret hidden in the past but now revealed.

Three Connected Truths 

  1. Israel

    • Romans 11:25

      • “A partial hardening has come upon Israel...”

  2. Gentiles

    • Romans 11:25

      • “...until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.”

      • Fullness = plērōma (πλήρωμα)

  3. Israel

    • Romans 11:26

      • “...all Israel will be saved,”

      • “Israel” - who is Paul referring to?

        • The church?

        • The ethnic/national Israel (The descendants of Abraham)?

        • Not Israel as a whole, but Israel as a community?

        • Those who put their faith in the Christ.

The Redeemer

  • Romans 11:26b-27

  • A salvation from sin through faith in Jesus.

Two Concluding Statements

  1. God’s election remains

    • Romans 11:28-29

    • They are still God’s chosen people.

    • He keeps his covenant with the patriarchs.

  2. God shows Mercy to the disobedient

    • Romans 11:30-32

    • A universal act of disobedience is met with divine mercy!

    • All of us are candidates for the lavish love of God.