Christian Liberty #14

The point: Focus on living to make it evident you are no longer a slave of sin, having died to sin and risen to newness of life.

Martin likens the letter to the Romans to a 16-page letter to emphasize that Paul would not contradict earlier teachings in chapters 14-15, ensuring consistency in the Holy Spirit's message.

at the tail end of the entire letter to the Romans. And if we liken the entire letter to a 16-page letter, we must credit the appointment of the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, with enough intelligence and integrity to believe that he would neither forget nor contradict in Romans 14 and 15 anything he had taught in Romans 1 to 13 about the nature of the Christian life. And in those earlier chapters, he has clearly taught us that if we are real Christians, we have, in union with ...

10:09 - 10:48 Read in full sermon

The point: Be willing to forego the practical assertion or display of your liberty for the sake of others.

Martin mentions that good teachers spend a third of their time reviewing, justifying his extensive review of previous sermons for the benefit of visitors and to reinforce key points.

However, many a consideration should induce us to forego the practical assertion or display of our liberty. And that's a vital principle. Well, so much for that brief overview. And if any of you get weary with my reviews, remember that those who are experts in teaching say that a good teaching is a good teaching. And that's a good teaching. And that's a good teaching. And that's a good teaching. And that's a good teaching.

17:00 - 17:23 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The first tragic result of forced conformity is that it cuts the nerve of a believer's direct accountability to the Lord and God. Paul's repeated references to the Lord and God in…

He describes a weak brother who, out of conscience, keeps a special day and thanks the Lord for it, illustrating how even in weakness, actions can be 'unto the Lord.'

And what's he do? He gets on his knees in the morning and he says, Lord Jesus, thank you for the privilege of this special feast day. Thank you that on this day I can look back and remember what all of those things in the old covenant pointed to and I now have them in Christ. Lord Jesus, thank you.

33:13 - 33:34 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The first tragic result of forced conformity is that it cuts the nerve of a believer's direct accountability to the Lord and God. Paul's repeated references to the Lord and God in…

He describes a strong brother with no hang-ups who eats certain food and gives God thanks, illustrating how liberty is exercised 'unto the Lord.'

he that regards the day regards it to the Lord. He that eats, eats unto the Lord. Here's a man who's got no hang-ups. No hang-ups.

33:53 - 34:01 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The first tragic result of forced conformity is that it cuts the nerve of a believer's direct accountability to the Lord and God. Paul's repeated references to the Lord and God in…

He describes a weak brother who cannot eat certain food but bows over his vegetables and thanks God, illustrating how abstaining can also be 'unto the Lord.'

He can't eat that food with a good conscience. He believes that it's off-limits. His conscience won't allow him to eat it either for the reason of thinking there's still some pressure from the dietary laws of the old covenant or it might be tainted by association with idol, temple, idol worship. But he bows over his veggies and he says, Oh God, thank you for my veggies.

34:11 - 34:36 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Forced conformity cultivates a Pharisaic checklist mentality.

Martin uses Jesus' grotesque metaphor of straining out gnats while swallowing camels to illustrate the Pharisaic checklist mentality, where minor rules are meticulously observed while weightier matters are ignored.

You've got it all sorted out. But while you're all occupied with ticking off your checklist, you overlook the weightier matters. Then he uses one of the most grotesque humorous metaphors in all of the Bible. He says, you blind guides that strain out the gnat and swallow the camel.

42:43 - 43:04 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not go beyond the Word of God with respect to issues concerning which the Bible gives no clear definition or direction.

He recounts seeing preachers who condemned alcohol but were addicted to soft drinks, harming their bodies more than moderate wine use, illustrating the hypocrisy and blindness of a checklist mentality.

Well, all the while, you keep your little checklist. And my brothers and sisters, I have seen that with my own eyes in those circles that I came out of. They felt they had a right to legislate on non-moral issues. I can remember being in circles where they said, no Christian would ever take to his lips anything with alcohol in it.

44:39 - 44:59 Read in full sermon

Driving home: There must be no forced conformity but there must be God-wrought unity within the church in the midst of legitimate diversity of conscience and practice in this matter of Christian liberty.

He uses Islam as an example of a religious system built on extensive forced conformity, contrasting it with the God-wrought unity of Christianity that embraces diversity.

people would lose their sense of cohesion and unity this is why men can concoct religious systems with enforced conformity and do very well and Islam is the great witness to that five times a day dressed a certain way eat certain foods don't eat certain foods don't touch certain beverages all forced conformity a conformity that the consistent Muslim wants to enforce upon the world and will not be content until Sharia law governs the world for the glory of Allah Allah is only glorified when there is this strict extensive

50:14 - 50:57 Read in full sermon