“I am Not Ashamed…” Romans 1:16

1. “I am Not Ashamed…” Romans 1:16 Sermon #6 “Living for Jesus”

2. Rejoice: To Feel Great Joy or Delight. What brings you joy? What fills you and energizes you? How do you celebrate?

3. The Definition of “Joy” From Kay Warren April 2nd 2012 Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright, and the determined choice to praise God in every situation.

4. No Rejoicing!! The 2010 NIV does not have the word “rejoice” in any of these verses. It uses the terms 5:2 boast, 5:3 glory, and 5:11 boast. So why is that? Back to the Greek! In all three verses it is the same Greek word. 2744kauxáomai – (kow-khah'-om-ahee) properly, living with "head up high," i.e. boasting from a particular vantage point by having the right base of operation to deal successfully with a matter ( 2 Cor 5:12). [2744 (kauxáomai) likely comes from the root, auχēn ("neck"), i.e. what holds the head up high (upright); figuratively, it refers to living with God-given confidence. The high level of personal (self) interest motivating this boasting (kauχ-) accounts for why it is always in the Greek middle voice.]

5. No Rejoicing!! Summary – If the word is seen that God is lifting our chin up it can have the idea of rejoicing, if we are the ones lifting our chin it can be boasting. And boasting can be calling attention to God’s work more like proclaiming so either way of translating makes sense. Paul uses the same word when he speaks of boasting in 1 Corinthians 1:31 “Therefore, as it is written: "Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord."” And other passages about boasting.

6. Living For Jesus How are you living for Jesus? How does the relationship that you have with Jesus impact you day to day, and long term choices? If Jesus had control over your body for one day, one week, one month, or a one year, what would stay the same and what would he do differently?

7. Romans Chapter 6 Romans chapter six begins by speaking about our connection to grace, sin, death, resurrection, and righteousness.

8. Romans 6:1-4 Page 1754 RO 6:1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

9. Living for Jesus Living for Jesus means That we appreciate but not abuse God’s grace. We connect to Jesus death through baptism. We are raised from immersion to live a new life.

10. Romans 6:5-7 RO 6:5 If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. 6 For we know that our old self wascrucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin-- 7 because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.

11. Romans 6:8-14 Dying with Christ is needed to live with Christ eternally. We need to die to sin and live for God. We need to choose to live for Jesus and actively reject sin. Our lives are instruments that can be offered to sin or offered to God. Jesus’ death, and his grace, allows us to die to sin to be free from it.

12. Romans 6:15-23 RO 6:15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! 16 Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey--whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. 18 You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

13. Freedom? No matter what our society says – there is no “freedom.” We are either slaves to sin or slaves to righteousness – either way we are taking orders and following directions. The question is “Who is a better Master? Satan or Jesus?”

14. Romans 6:19 RO 6:19 I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness.

15. Romans 6:20-22 20 When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. 21 What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.

16. Romans 6:23

17. Wages or Gift? You work for wages and you receive a gift. The good news that we carry without shame is that we can have freedom from Satan’s control here and now and eternal life with Jesus if and when we receive his gift by dying to ourselves, being buried in water, and rising to a new life directed by Jesus.

18. Have you received Jesus’ gift of salvation and have you shared his gift with others. How are you living for Jesus? How and when do you report for duty and receive your orders? Make effort to offer Jesus control of your life this week and follow his lead by asking yourself “What Would Jesus Do?”

19. Next Week: Romans Chapter 7 “Half Dead.”