“FAMOUS FOR THE FAITH” 

TEXT:  Romans 1:8-12
 
THESIS:  To reveal the heart of Paul for the Roman believers and to take note of Paul’s commendation to them for their public stand for the faith.
 
INTRO.:   
     A.  Paul did not know most of the believers in Rome.  He does not address the pastor of the church suggesting that there was no organized body of believers, only house assemblies.  (A group of Christians can still be a church without the person of the pastor, but they must have the office of the pastor.)  These believers nevertheless had a strong testimony, & Paul commends them for that.  Why would he write to those he did not know?  As we shall see it was because he cared!
     
     ​B.  People have various motives for service. 

​💥Some serve to earn the approval of others,
💥because of peer pressure, fear of losing their salvation,
💥prestige, money, to curry favor, for appearance,
💥because of intimidation,
💥out of habit or duty, and
💥even because they have an ego problem. 

💥Paul served because he cared.  He had the zeal of a  prophet, the mind of a teacher, the credentials & gifts of an apostle, but the heart of a pastor.  (The opposite of the hypocritical Pharisees with whom he had served.)
 
I.  POSITIVE TESTIMONY:  v.8  

ILLUS.:  Emperor Claudius had banished all Jewish believers from Rome, but that edict had waned and they had now returned, apparently leaving a positive testimony and a powerful witness behind.  Paul commends them here for this.  Wherever they had gone in the world, they had had an impact for the Lord & the Gospel.  In so doing we not only learn something about these believers, but also about the great apostle.
 
     A.  A Thankful Spirit:
 
       1.  Paul says “first” i.e. before I begin to teach and admonish you, I want to express my praise for your testimony.
       2.  Paul didn’t want to puff them up, but he did want them to know that he was grateful to the Lord for giving them boldness.
 
     B.  A Magnanimous Spirit:
 
       1.  Paul was as generous with praise as he was with rebuke when needed.
       2.  Paul was never petty nor self-centered;  even his stubbornness was motivated by a desire to see His brethren, the Jews, saved.
       3.  It was Paul who wrote that we should render “honor to whom honor” is due;  this is what he was doing here.
 
ILLUS.:  I wonder if Paul was writing about this church or about you or me that he would be able to praise the Lord for our powerful witness and positive testimony?  Or would he be embarrassed for us?
 
II.  POWERFUL PRAYERS:  v.9
 
ILLUS.:  How would you like to have this powerhouse for God, this prayer warrior, praying for you?!
💨In one chapter of the Bible alone we have a testimony to the power of Paul’s prayers.  In Acts 16 ✨Paul shows up at a prayer meeting and an influential lady named Lydia gets saved.  ✨Another lady gave up witchcraft and became a great Christian.  It began when Paul & Silas prayed.  ✨Paul prayed again & a jailer got saved!  Again & again this great saint laid his burdens & petitions at the feet of our Savior with powerful results.  O. Greene said:  “…WITH A SAD HEART, NOT A GLAD HEART, MANY CHURCHES HAVE 10 TIMES MORE SINGING IN A SERVICE THAN THEY DO PRAYING…✨Paul & Silas prayed when they were in jail at Philippi – then they sang.  God answered their prayer, sent an earthquake that almost shook the jail down – and a jailor got saved!”
 
     A.  A Conquered Spirit:  “God…whom I serve in my spirit…”  v.9a
 
       1.  Paul thought he was serving God when he was a religious Pharisee.
       2.  But the Lord conquered him on the road to Damascus one day, and from that day on he truly served the Lord and not religion.
 
     B.  A Concerned Spirit:  “…without ceasing…my prayers…”  v.9b
 
       1.  Paul practiced what he preached even before he preached it.  “pray without ceasing…”
       2.  As the fire on Israel’s altar was never to go out, so Paul’s heart continued to burn for lost souls and for the maturity of the saints.
        
ILLUS.:  🙏Paul made mention in his prayers of many of the saints at Rome whom he had never met.
🙏He prayed for their growth, their maturity, their spiritual depth, and 🙏no doubt for leadership for the prospective church at Rome. 
                 🎈No doubt we will be surprised and even shocked at what God had done in our lives, 🎈when we get to heaven, and find that those things were answered prayers sent to God’s throne by people we did not know were praying for us.  🎈His watch-care, 🎈His protection, our service for Him, souls we have led to Christ…all may have been directly attributable to the prayers of others.
                 🔎Paul is presented here as the pray-er more than the preacher.  He offers unceasing prayer.
                 💡How many “good” modern inventions, radio, TV, newspapers, magazines, books, computers palm pilots, etc. eat up the time we should be spending in prayer?  💥When I was recently in Jamaica I marveled at how little time the very poor people there had for these things in their lives & how little they were concerned about world events, etc. as opposed to simply trying to exist.   💥I wonder how much time we could spend in prayer without all these distractions in our “civilized” gadget-crazed world?
 
     C.  A Committed Spirit:  v.10  “…by any means…”
 
       1.  Paul is committed to go to Rome, and by this request he was giving God a “blank check” to somehow get him there.
       2.  God answers this request, but of course he will go to Rome in chains as a prisoner.’
 
ILLUS.:  We need to be careful how we pray & what we pray for – unless we really mean it!  We might just get it!   Some of you young people who are so concerned about getting a mate – be careful - you may get what you are praying for, but it might become a spiritual disaster for your future life & ministry.
 
III.  PERSONAL DESIRE:  v.11,12  
           
     A.  A Loving Spirit:  v.11a   “…for I long to see you”
 
       1.  He doesn’t say “I long to see Rome…the Coliseum…the Forum…” but “you.”

       2.  No doubt Paul marveled at the great Temple in Jerusalem, the religious center of the world;  the great Acropolis in Greece, the intellectual center of the world; and would be awed by Caesar’s Palace in Rome, the political center of the world – but his primary concern was the maturity of believers.
 
ILLUS.:  Paul had spiritual myopia, i.e., he saw his world thru the eyes of the Savior.  🧡He was more concerned with the men who built the architectural wonders of his world than the buildings;  🧡his heart was more broken over the painters of the masterpieces of his day than their paintings;  🧡his soul yearned over the sinners of his day more than focusing on the sin itself.  🧡And as a missionary-pastor he longed to see the believers in Rome more than the buildings in Rome;  🧡he yearned for their spiritual maturity not their worldly sophistication.   “…to the end ye may be established”  v.11c
 
     B.  A Giving Spirit:  v.11b   “that I may impart some spiritual gift…”
 
       1.  I don’t believe he was speaking of literally bestowing upon them some of the “charismata” or sign gifts of 1 Cor.12, nor even the service gifts of Romans 12.
       2.  I believe he is speaking of teaching them about spiritual activity and a deeper spiritual walk with the Lord.
       3.  The “spiritual gifts” he had in mind were not only spiritual in the sense of being in the spiritual realm, but in the sense that their source would be in the Holy Spirit.
 
     C.  An Unselfish Spirit:  v.12  “…the mutual faith of you and me”
 
       1.  Though Paul was a gifted apostle, he sincerely & humbly sought a blessing from other believers.
       2.  Paul was ready and willing to receive blessings as well as impart blessings to these who were “FAMOUS FOR THE FAITH.”
 
CONCL.:  Paul is getting ready for Rome.  He doesn’t know yet how he will get there, but it is the desire of his heart.  He has heard good reports of these who have become “FAMOUS FOR THE FAITH” and wants to share in their blessings & learn from their boldness.  His spirit was one with theirs.  His faith is one with theirs.  Wouldn’t it be wonderful if all of us had Paul’s humility, unselfishness, and willingness to be used of the Lord in whatever service He designated?!   Wouldn’t it also be wonderful if we too became “FAMOUS FOR THE FAITH?!”                 

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