Romans - The Heart of the Gospel

The journey on the road to Emmaus serves as a profound narrative of realisation and spiritual awakening, wherein two disciples, initially shrouded in grief and confusion, ultimately discern the identity of their traveling companion as the risen Lord Jesus. This sermon profoundly explores the significance of recognising Christ not merely as a historical figure but as our ever-present Saviour in our...

The resurrection of Jesus Christ constitutes the fulcrum of the Christian faith, as it signifies His triumph over death and the assurance of eternal life for believers. This sermon delves into the profound journey undertaken by the women who approached the tomb on that momentous Easter Sunday, initially burdened by the weight of their grief and expectation. As they arrived at the tomb, the unexpec...

Good Friday is deemed "good" due to the profound significance of what Jesus accomplished on Calvary's cross. This sermon from the Good Friday service at Kilhorne Parish Church delves into the weighty and remarkable nature of this day, reflecting on its implications for humanity's relationship with God. The sermon explores the events surrounding Christ's crucifixion, emphasising the tearing of the...

The triumphal entry into Jerusalem is often the only event people think of on Palm Sunday. The gospel of Luke records for us other events of the day. The first is Jesus weeping over Jerusalem, telling us of his heart for the lost. Jesus knew that he was going to be rejected by the people, just as the prophets foretold. They had rejected his ministry and in a matter of days they will reject him aga...

As we begin our journey to Easter from Palm Sunday to Resurrection Day we begin, not in Jerusalem, but 500 years before Jesus sat on the donkey as we hear from the prophet Zechariah who foretold of the events of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Zechariah tells us that the Messiah would come and would be unlike any other king the people had known before or like the kings around them. He would...

As Paul concludes his letter to the church in Rome, he is keen to impression them the importance of unity in the fellowship. Paul is writing here to the leaders of the church to give them some final instructions. He wants them to be discerning about those who will influence God's people through their teaching and preaching. He doesn't want them pulled away by various winds of doctrine. His letter...

We have seen before that Paul has a deep heart for this church in Rome. Even though he hasn't visited Rome he knows some of its members. Chapter 16 details for us these people and their names tell us more about them. Long lists of names aren't simply in the Bible to fill space; they communicate important details of how God works through his people to build his church. The church in Rome was a dive...

There is one more aspects of the church's maturity that Paul wants to address and it is to do with mission. In the second half of chapter 15 Paul affirms once again his calling to be a missionary to the Gentiles. So far this has been in the east of the Roman Empire, but now he knows his calling to the western part of the Empire and to places where the gospel has never been preached. Paul is writin...

Paul is approaching his final conclusion and in chapter 15 he wants to address what it means for the church to be a welcoming place.  If it is to welcome new converts into the faith then it must be a welcoming place for each other.  The believers are to be of one accord in Jesus Christ. Paul continues to use Scripture to show us the enteral plan of God in ingrafting Gentiles into his cov...

As Paul continues the practical outworking of our Christian faith he address an issue that is not just fixed to the first century church, but a problem that has seen damage in the church in every generation. Paul addresses the human problem of judging. In the context of chapter 14 of Romans, Paul is telling the church then and now that there is no place for judging in the fellowship of believers....

Continuing his great application of his rich theology, Paul presents a logical progression of how we are to live as followers of Jesus.  Having looked in chapter 12 at how worship through our service and love our brothers and sisters in Christ.  In chapter 13 he continues this theme of love, but this time Paul wants to tell us how love lives well in society. Beginning with looking at the...

We have reached a key moment in our studies in the letter to the Romans. Paul has spent 11 chapters detailing his great theology on what the gospel is. But it has to be more than head knowledge and so in these closing chapters, chapters 12 to 16, Paul tells us how we apply this gospel in our daily lives. He begins by detailing what our response is to God. Knowing the gospel means we respond in lov...

Verses 25 to 36 draw Paul's great theology of the gospel to a close. He has been directing us in the first 11 chapters to the heart of God's love towards us. As he concludes he speaks of a future time when the Jews (ethnic Israel) will come to know the fullness of the gospel through Jesus Christ. For now they have been partially hardened towards the good news, but when the fullness of Gentiles has...

Romans 11 is one of the hardest chapters of the Bible to understand. Looking at the first 24 verses we learn from Paul God's plan of salvation for both Jew and Gentile. Using the illustration of a grafted olive tree, the root and trunk are God's plan of salvation. Israel was the natural branches for the Lord's blessing of salvation, but due to their disobedience we now live in a time when their po...

Paul begins what are two difficult chapters with some great news. His message in chapter 10 is the truth that salvation is for all who will hear and respond. We need to be attentive to it. But we also must share it! We cannot keep the gospel to ourselves, hidden and locked away. It's to be shared in word and deed so that the world will know the truth of the risen Saviour. Our call as followers of...

As Paul concludes Romans 9 he still wants to challenge those who think the law can save them. He categorically states that the law is for our benefit, but not our salvation. He particularly challenges Israel for their lack of faith and stuck rigidly to the law. This has been their stumbling block. But Paul is a man who hopes in the gospel. He eagerly desires that Israel may be saved. But their sal...

The good news of the gospel is that we don't rely on ethnicity or culture for our salvation. The gospel is for everyone. Too often we can be too focused on a culture that appeals to us and so we think that to be a true believer then new converts must act and behave as we do in that culture. It is the gospel that frees us from these cultural pressures and makes us free in Christ. In Romans 9 Paul's...

The gospel is great assurance for the believer because in the gospel we know that nothing can take us, or separate us, from Christ. Although it is an uneasy theological concept, predestination gives us this assurance. In Romans 8 Paul speaks of our predestined assurance before the Father because of Jesus and what he accomplished on the cross and through the resurrection. It is truly wonderful to k...

Romans 8 is another change in the Paul's letter to the Romans. In chapters 6 and 7 Paul has been discussing the law and how it is of no benefit for our salvation. He went as far to say that depending on the law was sin! But things move on in chapter 8 as Paul give us great comfort in verse 1 by saying that when we are in Christ we are not condemned for our sin. He then goes on to list the great ad...

Continuing in Romans 7, Paul remains on his thought about the law and how it can be sin when we look to it for salvation. In this next section Paul opens his heart to us and gives us an insight into how he sees himself. Verse 13-25 show a man who recognises that he doesn't do the things he should, but rather continues in sin because that is how we are naturally inclined. The climax of this passage...

Paul shifts gear in Romans 7 as he tackles how we can escape the penalty of sin. In verses 1 to 12 Paul presents sin as a contract. This contract simply can't be broken because God's righteous demand is that the penalty of sin can only be paid with blood. But this is how we break the contract: either the blood of Christ that leads us to heaven, or our own blood that leads to hell. In the second ha...

Paul's heart is to see the believers in the Roman church love Christ deeply so that they won't lose their first love and fall away from faith. They are faced on every side with persecution and their only hope is the gospel in Jesus Christ. Paul wants them to know that they are slaves to Christ-and this is a good thing-rather than slaves to sin. This is the shocking message for us. We are salves to...

In Romans 6 Paul brings us back again to talk about the dangers of our sin if it goes unchecked. But he also gives us a solution for how to deal with this problem. Continuing his logical progression for why faith is justified, Paul challenges the believers to question why if they say they are Christ's and have been saved by him they keep on sinning? This is a relevant question for us and Paul conv...

We all love a free gift and in Romans 5 v 12 to 21 Paul tells us not only what the free gift is, but how to get it. Having spoken about peace with God that is unlike anything in this world at the start of the chapter, he moves on to the next logical step. This peace can only come through Jesus Christ, whom he describes as not only a free gift, but the greatest gift we can ever receive! In these 10...

In his letter to the Romans, Paul makes a logical argument for why we need faith in Christ alone. He begins by considering our need of a saviour, followed by introducing us to the Saviour. In our passage for this podcast, Romans 5 v 1-11, Paul presents to us the benefits of faith and he begins with the peace that it brings. Followers of Jesus are called to turn away from the superficial peace the...