Each year on Great Commission Sunday we consider the importance of the mission of the church. In this lesson, we look to Paul's letter to the Romans (1:1-7) to see not only how important the Gospel was to Paul but we also make the important connection that shows us how important the Gospel is to God and how that impacts us.
In a time of uncertainty, how do we live in hope of God’s promises here and now? In Romans, Paul explains God’s original vision for his creation; in spite of the present state of creation, the Gospel announces God’s program of restoration through the person of the Spirit.
Pushing back against our tendency to complicate our mission, Paul reminds us of the beauty and the simplicity of the Gospel in Romans 10:1-15.
At the heart of missions is the nature of God. God first loved us. God first gave to us. When we follow him by faith we want to give what is pleasing to him. In this lesson, Lenin Munguia offers us encouragement for giving toward our annual Great Commission Sunday with a reminder of these principles from 2 Samuel 24:18-25, Phil. 2:5-11 and Rom. 15:16.
It is clear that God deems preaching important. In Rom. 10:14, scripture states that preaching is needed for people to hear and believe the word. In this lesson, we examine the first sermon ever preached in the setting of the new church God would establish on the day of Pentecost after Jesus' death, burial and resurrection. An examination of this sermon in Acts 2 helps us understand "Why We Preach."
While we tend to overthink many of our worries in life, there are some legitimate concerns we should have. We believe the most important concerns are answered in the Gospel of Jesus. In this lesson, we focus on the impact of the resurrection that is raised in Rom. 4 and discussed in Rom. 5:1-4. The resurrection really changes everything!
Sundays have always been important for those who are Christians. Yet, there is a problem if Christianity is only a Sunday experience. God desires we take our faith beyond the Sunday worship experience and allow it to impact those around us all week long. Romans 12 gives us a great reminder of how this may look in our lives today.
Ever heard someone say "That's a Romans 14 issue?" What did they mean? Unfortunately, sometimes Romans 14 is misused to sweep doctrinal disagreements under the rug in order to promote unity in diversity. Is this how God wants us to use Romans 14? In this lesson we discuss what Romans 14 means and show some ways it's often misused.
Romans 12:1-2 is a message that is special to Christians. Understanding its placement in the book of Romans as Paul transitions from matters of doctrine to duty is why this passage has been compared to a halftime speech. The message is simple in these two verses. Paul tells us one thing to do and two ways to do it.
Some people have a view of God that believes he could never be mad. Yet, in both the Old Testament and the New there are many passages which detail the anger and wrath of God upon sinners. God never gets mad without a cause and he never is unjust in his anger. Romans 1:18-32 documents a number of things that reveal the wrath of God from heaven. We should carefully consider these things and if we are practicing them we should immediately repent.
