City Life Starter

I. The Word: Romans 1:16-17

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

II. Study Questions

1. Why study Romans?

2. Why does Christian doctrine matters?

3. What are some benefits of studying the whole book of the Bible?

Unashamed

We are excited to begin our series called Unashamed, covering Paul’s letter to the Romans.  As I reflect upon preparing for the series, there are three aspects of studying Romans that are important to us.  We believe that: 1. Paul’s letter to Romans is relevant to today’s readers, 2. The importance of doctrine and theology, and 3. The privilege to study the whole book.

Relevant to today’s readers

You might be wondering, how can a letter written 2,000 years ago be relevant to today’s readers?  Much so in every way, if we are willing to understand the context of the Scripture.  Romans is relevant in a wide span of topics and addresses how to approach important issues, such as doctrinal and societal issues, that are crucial to even today’s readers.

Doctrine & Theology matters.

Perhaps what separates Romans from other books of the New Testament, is that this book deals heavily with doctrinal and theological issues.  Scholars and theologians throughout history recognized this book to be the Apostle Paul’s finest work, in that he expounds on many doctrinal issues such as, the doctrine of sin, justification, substitutionary atonement, faith, sanctification, redemption, church, and Israel.  All throughout church history, the church constantly confronted false teachers and their teachings, and there was no difference in Paul’s time.  His intention were for the Church of Rome, which would be the center of Christianity and where many would lose their life for their belief, including Paul himself.  Having a concrete and solid doctrine would be vital for their faithfulness to the Lord, even if it would cost them their life.  Today, we might not be facing death for our belief in Jesus Christ, but we do have inaccurate and misguided teachings that can be a danger to our faith, such as the prosperity gospel, hyper-grace and supernatural. This misguidance over emphasizes certain topics, rather than being a gospel lead  and Christ-centered.  What you believe does matter, especially in this day and age, whether dealing with atheists or fellow Christians, what you ultimately believe must be grounded in solid doctrine.

Privilege of studying whole book.

There are two types of approaches in delivering a sermon: topical and exegetical.  A topical study covers a single topic of the Bible, choosing from a wide range of Scriptural references.  Exegetical study focuses on a single book or passage of the Bible, with detailed studies on the assigned book or passages.  There are pros and cons to both if not careful.  For example, one of the biggest drawbacks of topical studies is that it may omit the detailed study of that particular portion or passage in the Bible, and may encourage readers to jump back and forth from one Scripture to another. Also, scripture or passages chosen to fit a topic many times can lead to taking verses out of context.  There is also drawbacks from exegetical sermons.  Have you ever heard of a church going through one book of the Bible for years?  Though there is nothing wrong with years of covering one book of the Bible, you simply miss other books or topics.  I have always believed there is a much needed balance in these type of preaching styles, whether it is topical or exegetical.  At City Life Church, we try our best to stay balanced in our approach to our sermons and teachings.  It truly is privilege to study this entire book together as a church and that we will reap benefits of knowing God’s Word in detail individually but also grow together as church as a whole.  JY