We saw last week in Romans 1 that Paul was not ashamed of the gospel, but was eager to preach it in Rome, the capital city, because the gospel is the power of God for salvation for all who believe. This week we will see that another reason for his eagerness is that the wrath of God is being revealed in the lives of people who don’t believe in Christ. All people, across all ethnicities and cultural backgrounds, are caught up in twisted worship that has dulled our hearts to the One True God. The result is that we are twisted, and it shows up in our lives through twisted sex, twisted minds, and twisted religion. This section will frame up the next three weeks in our study together. This week we will focus on Romans 1:18-23, which lays the foundation for understanding God’s wrath and the impact of idolatry in our souls.
Without Excuse
Romans 1:18-23
January 27, 2020 • Pastor Bill Riedel
Hope Against Hope
March 15, 2020 • Pastor Bill Riedel
This Sunday we stay in our series in Romans and close the chapter with Romans 4:16-25. It is an incredibly timely text for us. This passage takes us into a further exploration of Abraham and Sarah’s life and shows us how to respond when we are living in the gap between the hopes we have and the reality we experience. How do we respond when the promises of God feel distant? What does it mean to have faith when things are uncertain and scary? How can we have hope when we get knocked down over and over again?
Faith Counted as Righteousness
March 8, 2020 • Pastor Bill Riedel
As we begin a new chapter in the letter to the Romans, the argument turns to the Hebrew Bible to support the idea that it is God's grace alone through faith alone that we are declared righteous in God's sight. Over the next two Sundays, we will explore the story of Abraham and see how it points ahead to what was accomplished through Christ.
Redemption in Christ Jesus
March 1, 2020 • Pastor Bill Riedel
Some have said that the first paragraph of this section is the most important paragraph ever written, and Luther called it the center of the whole Bible. After spending 2 1/2 chapters setting the stage with the intense need we have for a Savior, the text takes an abrupt turn to show us that there is great hope!