Separated from God? Impossible!

Separated from God? Impossible!

“Separated from God?  Impossible!”

(Romans 8:31-39)

Series: Not Guilty!

Rev. Todd A. Linn, PhD

First Baptist Henderson, KY

(8-31-09) (AM)

 

  • Take God’s Word and open to Romans, chapter 8.

 

While you’re finding that, let me talk for a quick moment about Saturday’s Walk-for-Life event at Marsha’s Place.  I’ll mention details at the end of the service but for now I want you to consider something about helping parents choose life for their unborn child.

 

Last week our president took part in a conference call with scores of liberal faith leaders on the religious left.  The meeting was a political move to get them to go back to their congregations and promote his universal healthcare plan.  He called it a “moral obligation” and said we are “our brother’s keeper,” and so forth.  I have many, many concerns about the universal healthcare bill. One of the biggest concerns I have is whether it actually promotes the sanctity of life among the elderly, the infirm, and the unborn.  And with all due respect, I recall our president during a debate at Saddleback Church, when asked when life began, say that he could not answer because it was “above his pay grade.”  Well, while I cannot promote the president’s healthcare plan, I can promote life.  I can’t think of a better way to show that I am “my brother’s keeper” and “my sister’s keeper” than by promoting life.  And I’m inviting you to do that with me this Saturday at Marsha’s Place, saving the lives of unborn children for the glory of God.

 

Now let’s turn our attention to Romans, chapter 8, as we continue our verse-by-verse study of the Book of Romans.  If you’re visiting with us, we preach through books of the Bible, believing this to be the best way to study, to learn, to teach the Word of God.  We left off last time at verse 30 and so we pick up this morning at verse 31.  Paul is writing about God’s love for Christians and how they may be assured that His love for them—including His saving them from sin and ultimately glorifying them in heaven—is a sure thing that will last forever.

 

  • Stand in honor of the reading of God’s Word.

 

31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?

33 Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.

34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

36 As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”

37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,

39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

  • Pray.

 

Introduction:

 

I love the way this passage begins there in verse 31.  Paul is summing up everything he has been saying about the security of the Christian’s salvation.  He has been teaching, since chapter 5, about how our justification—our being declared righteous by God—is something that lasts forever.  So having taught now for four chapters on the security of the Christian’s salvation, he says in verse 31:

 

31 What then shall we say to these things (the whole of chapters 5-8)? If God is for us, who can be against us?

 

What shall we conclude about these matters related to the Christian’s being declared “Not Guilty” before God?  Then Paul says let me give you the essence of the Christian’s position in Christ: “If God is for us, who can be against us?”  If God casts His vote for us, if God sets His affection for us, if God freely chooses us to be the recipients of His great love, who on earth can stand against us?

 

The beauty of Romans 8 is that God chooses us.  He is “for us.”  And so Paul asks, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”  And the implied answer is, “No one and no thing” and that’s exactly what Paul concludes in the remaining verses of the chapter.

 

And so I want to share three benefits to Christians that arise from our being chosen by God to receive the blessing of His lovingly setting His affection upon us.  This passage gives us three words that result from God’s love for Christians.  First, God’s love for Christians means:

 

I.  No Deprivation (31-32)

 

That is, the Christian lacks nothing whatsoever necessary to complete the purpose for which God created him.  We studied last week verse 28 that says, “and we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose,” verse 29, “for whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.”

 

God lovingly set His affection upon the Christian for that purpose.  God chose the Christian that he or she would be conformed to the image of His Son.  God wants us to be like Jesus that we might ultimately reign with Jesus in the future state of glorification.  So what Paul is saying here in verse 32 now is that God will see to it that we receive whatever is necessary to become like Jesus.  Look at verse 32:

 

32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?

 

Paul is arguing from the greater to the lesser.  A paraphrase of this might be something like, “God did the far greater thing of giving His Son to die for you.  Now if God did that—provided for your greatest need by giving His only begotten Son to die for your sins and to be raised from the dead for your justification—if God did that don’t you think God can also see to it that He provides for everything else you need as you live for Him?  Don’t you think God will give you whatever is necessary to persevere in your faith and be conformed into the image of His Son?”

 

Won’t God “freely give us all things,” whatever grace is necessary to live out this Christian life as we grow and become more and more like Jesus until we are ultimately glorified?  God deprives us of no grace necessary.  He gives us every grace we need to live out this life and to persevere to the end.

 

The verse is similar to Philippians 4:19, “and my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Also, 2 Corinthians 9:8: “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.”  Or, 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”

 

God will give the Christian everything needful to run the race called the Christian life.  You may face hurdles and hardships, dangers and difficulties, trials and temptations, troubles in your marriage, in your job, in your health, at your school, but God is at work.  God’s ultimate goal is to make us like His Son Jesus that we may reign with Him in the future state of glorification.  So, verse 32, “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things,” all things necessary, depriving us of nothing needful to live for Him?  No deprivation.  Here’s number two.

 

II.  No Condemnation (33-34)

 

Watch Paul paint this scene from the courtroom.  He imagines Christians standing in a court of law, standing before God’s judgment seat, fearing they may be found guilty of some offense that will overturn their previously received verdict of “not guilty.”  Verse 33:

 

33 Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.

 

Who in all creation can bring a charge against the very one God has set free?  God is the creator of the universe.  He is in control of all things.  He determines to “justify” the sinner.  He lovingly sets His affection upon the Christian, declaring him “not guilty” by His faith in Christ.  If God is the one who justifies, who then remains who can succeed in bringing some kind of charge against the Christian, against God’s elect?

 

That word “elect” is the word from which we get the doctrine of election, God’s setting His affection upon a person to save that person from everlasting destruction.  We spoke a bit on this last time as we studied the word “foreknew” or “foreknowledge.”  We’re going to talk more about these terms tonight in our “Digging Deeper” sermon from Romans 8.   We’ll be studying more closely these terms, “foreknowledge, predestination, the called, and the elect.”  I encourage you to come back this evening for this deeper study.  For now, simply know that God’s elect are those whom God “foreknew,” those persons He decided from eternity past to love in a special way, those who are the recipients of His free gift of grace.  Paul’s point is that no one can bring a charge of any kind against God’s elect.  No one can bring a charge that will “stick” to the Christian.  Verse 34:

 

34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.

 

I’m telling you Paul really wants Christians to be free!  He imagines that someone might stand in court and speak against our case.  Someone stands and says, “I object!  I know this so-called Christian!  I’ve seen the way he lives.  He has many faults.  He cannot be forgiven.”  Paul says, “Who will succeed in bringing a charge against God’s elect?  Who is worthy to condemn the Christian?”

 

Paul knows our fearful hearts.  Paul knows how the devil works against us to try to defeat us.  Paul knows that.  That’s why he wrote this.  See, you feel secure in your faith.  You’ve trusted Christ and all is well.  But then, you stumble and fall.  You do something you know is wrong.  In fact, you find yourself struggling with this particular thing.  You hate it.  It is a sin and you hate it.  And you find yourself battling it all the time.  So Paul imagines that you are standing before God at the judgment.  You are a Christian, but there is this problem, you see.  And Paul knows our hearts, our tendency to somehow think that the blessings of forgiveness apply to everyone else except us!  And so there we stand before God and the devil stands up behind us in the courtroom and he says, “This person cannot be one of yours!  I have seen the way he lives.  I have watched the way she behaves.  I charge this so-called Christian with hypocrisy.  I condemn this person for being the hypocrite they are!”  Verse 34:

 

34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.

 

Do you see what Paul is doing here?  He is reminding the Christian that no matter how hard the devil or anyone else may work at trying to condemn you, you have this wonderful Advocate that stands at the right hand of the Judge.  He stands there forever, always “making intercession” for you.  This does not mean that He must speak continually in your defense, giving a counter-argument to the devil’s charges.  Christ’s just being there is the counter-argument!  Christ is always and forever standing there.  He need say nothing.  God the Father forever looks at Christ His Son, and on the basis of what His Son did for the Christian on Calvary’s cross, God then looks at the Christian and says, “Not guilty,” every single time.  All sin is forgiven, all sin past forgiven, all sin present forgiven, and all sin future forgiven.

 

This is the glorious teaching that Paul has been giving us in chapters 5-8 and he now brings it all to this powerful conclusion.  No condemnation!

 

Before we move on, a careful word of caution.  This teaching does not mean that if you are a Christian you can just live “any old way you please.”  A true Christian will never desire to presume upon God’s grace.  No true believer will ever say anything like, “Well, once saved always saved.  I’ve got heaven taken care of.  I’ve made my decision for Christ and now I can live like the devil because I’ve got my insurance plan here through the church and I’m okay.  I’m forever forgiven so it doesn’t matter how I live.”  No, no, and a thousand times no.  If you think that way at all it is evidence that you are not one of His children.  When the Christian sins, he grieves for his sin.  He hates his sin.  He is saddened that he has grieved the Spirit of God within him.  This teaching of “no condemnation” is meant to encourage the grieving sinner who has trusted Christ.  This teaching is not for those who want to live for the world and also have some sort of insurance plan to take them to heaven in the end.  No, this teaching is for the one who loves God and hates his sin.

 

The encouragement is like as John writes in his first letter.  In 1John 2:1, “My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”

 

That’s the idea.  There is therefore now no condemnation to  those who are in Christ Jesus (v.1).  Who is he who condemns?  Christ died, is risen, and stands forever at the right hand of the Father in our defense.  No condemnation.

 

So we have no deprivation and no condemnation.  Number three:

 

III.  No Separation (35-39)

 

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

36 As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”

 

Paul imagines that something may succeed in separating us from the love of Christ.  He suggests all the great difficulties Christians were facing in his day: tribulation, distress, persecution, and so forth.  We have noted before that tribulation is the normal experience of the Christian living in a sinful, sin-cursed, fallen world.  He cites Psalm 44:22 to support this claim.  That’s where this phrase is from in verse 36, “As it is written: ‘For Your sake we are killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”

 

Far from promising a life of ease or guaranteeing, “Your Best Life Now!” the Bible teaches that suffering is the normal experience of the Christian.

 

Few of us have experienced the kind of Christian persecution the early Christians faced 2,000 years ago.  And there are many Christian brothers and sisters all over the world facing persecution daily.  Sometimes it hits us in the states.  Perhaps some of you read this week of the 17-year-old girl who fled to Florida, leaving her Moslem home in Ohio because she had become a Christian and feared her family would kill her for turning to Christ.  That’s a kind of persecution few of us have experienced.  Paul’s point here in these verses is that no matter what happens to us, we will never be separated from the love of God.  Verse 37:

 

37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

 

That’s a great phrase, “more than conquerors.”  It means something like, “Super Conquerors!”  In all these things, come what may, no matter what happens, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.  Nothing can separate us from the love of God.

 

But again, Paul knows the way we think.  We are an insecure bunch of people.  We feel that we are somehow the exception to the rule.  Somehow God’s loving forgiveness is for everyone else except us.  Surely there must be something, something in all creation that will separate us from God.  So Paul says, “Okay, then.  Let me spell-it-out for you.”  Verses 38-39:

 

38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,

39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

Nothing in all creation, he even stresses, “nor any other created thing,” nothing at all can separate us from the love of God.  No sin can finally succeed in pushing you beyond the limit of God’s forgiveness.  Why?  Because of God’s love.  It’s God’s love for you, not your love for God.

 

It’s the love the prodigal son received from his father.  Remember how he had run off in sin to the far country and spent his livelihood on sinful things?  He repents.  He turns from his sin and he heads home to his waiting father.  And what is the father doing?  Angrily tapping his foot waiting for his son’s excuse like, “Well, this had better be good!?”  No.  The Bible says the father he ran out to his son in love and fell upon him and kissed him.

 

Listen Christian: Nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,

39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

The hymn-writer captures that love of God for Christians in the great hymn where God says:

 

“The soul that on Jesus doth lean for repose,

I will not, I will not, desert to his foes;

That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,

I’ll never, no never, no never forsake.”

 

  • Stand for prayer.

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