Join us as we dive into a thought-provoking discussion from Romans 10, uncovering the barriers we often place between ourselves and Christ. Whether it’s church attendance, Bible reading, overcoming sin, or aligning our lives perfectly, these perceived obstacles can actually become impediments. Discover how the simplicity of faith opens a direct line to Christ, challenging the notion of effort and embracing the nearness of the word in our hearts.
00:00:05 Understanding Romans 10 and the Righteousness of Faith
SPEAKER 01 :
So, we’re looking at this, what at first may seem a sort of peculiar passage in Romans 10, where it says, where Paul says, “…the righteousness of faith speaks in this way. Do not say in your heart who will ascend into heaven, that is, to bring Christ down from above, or who will descend into the abyss, that is, to bring Christ up from the dead.” But what does it say? The word is near you in your mouth and in your heart. That is the word of faith which we preach, that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus Christ and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. What’s this meaning? Well, we talked about it, of course, yesterday, but let’s put some more flesh on it, shall we? The idea behind these verses is, don’t think of Christ as far away and difficult to get at, in heaven to bring Christ down, that phrase you see, or in the grave still, and how can I get him up out of the grave so that he’s my resurrection life? There are oodles of Christians and non-Christians, of course, who think of Christ as far away in that regard. So let me explain, let me give examples of this. There are people, Christians, who say, or non-Christians, well, I’ve got to go to church. And when I start going to church again like I used to years ago, or if I never did when I first start, then I’ll be a Christian. Well, that’s putting Christ, you see, far away. I’ve got to step out of my house, get into my car, put my good best clothes on, get into my car and get to the church at all and walk in, even though I may feel a stranger among the rest, and have the courage to sit in the pew and listen to the sermon and so on. And there are those who say, well, I can’t be a Christian yet until I start reading my Bible again. I used to read my Bible years ago, and I haven’t opened its covers for decades, and I need to read my Bible. And so they put the Bible between them and Christ. They put the church between them and Christ. I’m not saying you shouldn’t go to church. I’m not saying you shouldn’t read the Bible. But once you put anything between you and Christ… Then you have made those things an obstacle. How ironic, how tragic that the church should be an obstacle between you and Christ, or the Bible should be an obstacle between you and Christ. And another excuse, another putting Christ far away up in heaven or down in the grave so we can’t reach him, is I’ve got to overcome this or that sin. I can’t be a hypocrite. I can’t pretend. I’ve got to get this thing out of my life first so I can become a Christian. And that again is putting this thing, this sin, between you and Christ. so that Christ is far away in heaven, and he’s unreachable until you can get this thing out of the way. I’ve got to break this addiction, the same thing. People, many a Christian, many a person feels that he’d like to be a Christian, but this addiction is still in the way, and if only he could get rid of it, he would make a fine Christian. No, you’ve made the addiction an idol in that case, a stumbling stone, a block between you and the kingdom of heaven. If addiction is between you and Christ, then Christ is still far away in heaven and you’re down here on earth, or he’s still in the grave and you’re still in your death. Well, I’ve got to repent of everything first. Oh dear, all the excuses. You know, if you think that you must repent of everything before you come to Christ, then you have automatically created a catch-22. Because there is no power in the human will to overcome things, to repent of things without Christ in the first place. You must come as you are. You can place repentance in front of you and turn it into an idol. Can you imagine that? You can place repentance in front of you as the one obstacle between you and Christ. How ironic. Well, I’ve got to start living the Christian life. There you go again. People put off their fellowship with Christ by looking to something in the future that must change, or something in the present must change so that the future is different. Then I can become a Christian. Well, I’ve got to become more obedient. I’m not obedient, I’m not willing, I’m resisting. Look, do not say who will bring Christ up from the grave or who will bring him down from the kingdom of heaven. The word is in your heart. What we’re looking at is what goes on in your heart. For you to say, Father, I’m a sinner. I’ve still got my struggles with habits or addictions. I’m still not inclined to read my Bible. I still don’t feel like going to church. It seems so boring and hypocritical. But Father, I’m a sinner, and I acknowledge my sin, and I ask you to receive me in your Son, Jesus Christ, that he might be my righteousness. that he might be my access to you, dear God, for I can only come to you through him and through his righteousness, not mine. You see, this is a conversation of the heart. Well, you say, I’ve got to devote more time for the needy. I’m so busy working, and I know Christians are supposed to give to the poor and be kind and helpful, and I know I should do all that, and I need to devote time to it. But I don’t have time at the present because I’m so busy with my job and my family. No, that is putting your service to the needy. before receiving Christ. You see, this is what the Jewish people did. They are no worse than we are. You see, Paul says, “…for they, being ignorant of God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.” They saw the law as their way to righteousness. And all the excuses you’re making, church, Bible, sin, addiction, repentance, living the Christian life, that’s you putting all of that stuff as a law before having a conversation of faith with God in your heart. But you say, Colin, this is too much. I’ve got to pay tithe. I can’t afford to pay tithe. And I know my church requires tithe paying, and I just don’t have it. I’m too poor at the moment, and I’ve got too many commitments to my family. You get the story once again. Well, I don’t feel good about myself. I’m so miserable. I feel depressed. I feel discouraged. If only I could overcome my depression and my discouragement, I could become a Christian and believe. Nope. You bring your discouragement, you bring your depression, you bring your not feeling good situation before God, and you say, Father, I just do not feel good about myself. I feel depressed all the time. I feel angry. That’s another thing. I’ve got to get rid of my anger. I’m so angry with the church. I’m so angry with people, Christians. They’ve done terrible things to me. You’ve got to bring all of that to God and say, Father, even though I’m angry, even though I’m depressed, even though I’m discouraged, I praise you, I give thanks to you, cold turkey faith, dear God, that Jesus is my righteousness, that Christ has given me access to you, dear Father, that I am justified, that is declared innocent, even while I’m an ungodly person. Lord God, this is what it means now. I understand it, that the Word is in my heart. It’s in my mouth. It’s not in my church. It’s not in the Bible. It’s not in sin or overcoming sin. It’s not in addiction or overcoming it. It’s not in repentance. It’s not in living a better Christian life. It’s not in being more obedient. It’s not in being more thoughtful to the needy. It’s not in paying tithe. It’s not in doing good and feeling good about myself and overcoming my depression and being discouraged. It’s about cold turkey faith. It’s about expressing thanks to you, dear Father, and belief in you in my darkness. This is what it means. Read the verse again. It’ll suddenly click, I’m sure. The righteousness of faith speaks in this way, Do not say in your heart who will ascend into heaven, that is to bring Christ down from above, or who will descend into the abyss, that is to bring Christ up from the dead. But what does it say? The word is near you, In your mouth and in your heart, that is the word of faith which we preach, that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus Christ and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Listen, I want to put this to you. You want to make it difficult. We all want to make it difficult. Why? Because if we make it difficult, we will have reasonable excuses for not accomplishing it, for not coming to God. If we can believe that things are extremely difficult, just as the Jews believed in the law of God and yet also acknowledged that it was very, very difficult—all those 613 laws— If we can make it difficult, then we have a reasonable excuse, it seems, for not coming to him. The fact is, it is simple. and we are afraid of simplicity, because it feels deceptive. It seems too good to be true. Grace is always too good to be true. Why is it too good to be true? Because you and I are used to sin, and sin always creates difficulties. It creates hardship, and we feel that we can’t come back to him because we’re stuck in the mud, and we are addicted to this or that, and we have developed a state of mind that cannot think straight, that is delusional, and that is a victim. And all of this makes coming to him very, very difficult. But it isn’t. Coming to God… is the easiest thing in the world. Because God has revealed himself to us as willing to receive. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anybody hears me and opens the door, I will come into him and we’ll have a meal together. God is willing to have a meal with you. And so we open our hearts to him and we say, Lord, the house is a mess. I’m sorry. I haven’t cleaned up. And he says, no matter. He says, no matter. I’m used to a mess. I’ve been in this world long enough to know what messes are. And he says, let me come in. And we let him in. And the very presence of Jesus in our house… somehow begins to make it look so much cleaner because it’s bright and the brightness sort of covers all the shady places. And in addition to that, the brightness gives us a new encouragement to want to clean things up anyway. So don’t put the cart before the horse. Don’t put the cart before the horse. Church, Bible, addiction, this or that sin, repentance, living a better Christian life, these are all the cart. But what comes first is the horse’s head. And that horse’s head is Jesus Christ. And he invites you to welcome him in. Thanks again for listening today. Colin Cook here, and you’ve been listening to my broadcast, How It Happens. And if you would care to consider a donation, it would be so very much appreciated. This is listener-supported radio now in its 27th year. Each program costs $39 for 15 minutes. Make your donation online at faithquestradio.com. Thanks so much. See you next time. Cheerio and God bless.
Join us as we dive into a thought-provoking discussion from Romans 10, uncovering the barriers we often place between ourselves and Christ. Whether it’s church attendance, Bible reading, overcoming sin, or aligning our lives perfectly, these perceived obstacles can actually become impediments. Discover how the simplicity of faith opens a direct line to Christ, challenging the notion of effort and embracing the nearness of the word in our hearts.
