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Preaching the Living WORD through the Written WORD - 2 Tim 4:2 - |
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PUTTING ON CHRIST (Romans
13:11-14) 11/16/08 Pastor Daryl Hilbert I. FULFILLING THE LAW
THROUGH LOVE (8-10) A. The Believer Has An
Obligation To Love (8a) 1. Though
freedom from debt is a biblical principle, Paul’s intent for this passage was
to promote love. (Paul uses an exception, eí
mę́ – if not, except, phrase) 2. Believers have an obligation (Present
active imperative fr. opheílō
– owe, bound, or obligated. Lit. “You must not owe
anything to anyone except love; note a continuous action) to love one
another. A true believer must have a sense of indebtedness to God, who is
love (1Jo 4:16), and to love one another. B. The Believer Fulfills The
Law When He Loves (8b-10) 1. Paul
reiterates teaching that has been spoken by Jesus
and other apostles. It is the teaching that love is a fulfillment of the Law. 2. In Mt 22:35-40, Jesus was challenged by a
lawyer on the question of which was the great commandment of the Law. 3. Paul quotes four of the Ten Commandments
in the context that love fulfills the Law and the Prophets. II. FULFILLING THE LAW BY
PUTTING ON CHRIST (11-14) A. The Believer Must Realize
the Imminent Return of Christ (11) 1. When
Paul refers to salvation, he is not referring to the believer’s
justification, but the finality of redemption. 2. In Rom 8, Paul taught that creation and
believers groan and eagerly wait for the redemption of the “sons of God” (Ro
8:19-25). The return of Christ is the believer’s
“blessed hope” (Ti 2:11-13) and the beginning of the end of all things. 3. Furthermore, Paul uses this theme to
awaken (egeírō – to raise up from sleep or death) and motivate vibrant and
holy living. He describes it as “nearer to us than [when] we [first]
believed.” 4. Numerous references are
given in the NT for the imminent return of Christ. The imminent return
of Christ means that the Lord could come at any time and there
are no events that need to take place before His return. a) Paul
described the spiritual experience of the Thessalonians by saying they have
turned to God from idols and were “to keep on waiting” (present infinitive
– anaménō – wait expectantly)
for Christ’s return (1Th 1:9-10). b) The Corinthians were instructed to keep on
eagerly waiting (present particple of apekdéchomai – eagerly await)
for the return of Christ (1Co 1:7). c) Paul himself eagerly awaited the return
of Christ (Phil 3:20-21; 1Th 4:13-18). d) What is it that believers are to be
eagerly expecting? Believers are to be eagerly expecting the Rapture
(Christ’s return for His church) (1Th 4:13-18). e) The imminent return of Christ was often
used to appeal to believers to live godly lives (Ro 8:23; 13:12; 1Ti 6:13-15;
Ti 2:11-13; Ja 5:7-8; 1Jo 2:28-3:3; Jude 1:21). The appeal would be without
power unless the imminent return of Christ was factual rather than
figurative. f) Furthermore, the early church fathers,
such as Clement, Tertullian, and the Didache,
understood the return of Christ as imminent. 5. It is
time for believers to make sure their testimonies are blameless so that the
gospel is unhindered by hypocrisy. For the Lord may return at anytime. B. The Believer Must Put Off
the Deeds of Darkness (12-13) 1. Paul
uses the metaphor of night fully advanced to describe the urgency to live for
the Lord. In fact, it is almost the point of morning twilight. Therefore,
believers must now lay aside (apotíthemi
– Lit. place away from, or take off as in clothing) the deeds of
darkness. Believers are no longer in the darkness but are children of the
light (Ep 5:8). Therefore, they are to put off the deeds of darkness and put
on the armor of light. The “armor of light” is the protection the Lord gives
to those who walk in practical righteousness (cp. Ro 8:4). 2. Verse 13, explains proper behavior (peripatéō – walk, lit. or fig.)
for the children of light by what they are not to do. 3. Believers are not to behave with: a) carousing
(kōmos – festive procession in honor
of the wine god, reveling, excessive partying) b) drunkenness (méthę
– strong drink, intoxication, and
drunkenness) c) sexual promiscuity (koítę
– sexual impurity, promiscuity) d) sensuality (asélgeia
– living without moral restraint, uninhibited sexual behavior) e) strife (éris
– selfish rivalry, fighting) f) jealousy (zę́los
– envious, intense jealousy toward another) C. The Believer Must Put On
the Lord Jesus Christ (14) 1. We must
take off the deeds of the flesh but must put on the Lord Jesus Christ. To put
on the Lord Jesus Christ is to put on the deeds that emulate the Lord Jesus
Christ. 2. For the believer, this is the process of
sanctification. It is a combination of yielding to the Holy Spirit and
obeying the principles of Scripture. The goal of sanctification is to conform
the believer to the image of Christ (Ro 8:28-29; 2Co 3:18; Ga 4:19; Phil
3:13, 14; 3. There is some level of cooperation on the
believer’s part because the Scripture commands (imperative mood) him to put
on Christ for himself (middle voice) (cp. Phil 2:13). 4. Furthermore, the believer is to
constantly be on guard in regard to the flesh. He
must continually attempt to make no provision for the flesh. This means that
even though the believer has victory over sin, he must not expose himself to
things that lure the flesh. III. APPLICATION A. We are obliged to love by
sharing the gospel B. Live in light of the imminent return of
Christ C. Put on Christ |
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