WWW Be Right (15)

In one paragraph

Deborah taught through Romans 10, picking up where Carolyn's lesson on Romans 9 left off. The chapter presses on the question of what went wrong with Israel, and why that question matters for every person in the room. The heart of the message was that being right with God has never been about zeal, ritual, or religious culture, but about trusting Christ completely. Paul opens Romans 10 with...

Read together

1. Romans 9 previous week's lesson by Carolyn on Jewish objections to the gospel
2. Romans 10 the main passage being taught
3. Romans 10:1 Paul's heart's desire and prayer for Israel to be saved
4. Romans 10:4 Christ is the culmination of the law for righteousness to all who believe
5. Romans 10:5 Moses writes about righteousness by the law
6. Romans 10:6-8 Paul quoting Deuteronomy on righteousness by faith, not human effort
7. Deuteronomy 30:11-14 the Old Testament passage Paul quotes in Romans 10:6-8
8. Romans 10:9 confessing Jesus as Lord and believing in the resurrection leads to salvation
9. Romans 10:11 everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame
10. Romans 10:14 how can they hear without someone preaching to them
11. Romans 10:16 not all Israel accepted the good news, quoting Isaiah
12. Luke 6:45 out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks
13. Luke 4 demon confessed Jesus as the holy one of God when cast out
14. Luke 4:41 demon said you are the Son of God
15. Luke 8:28 demon said what have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High
16. Acts 13:46-48 Paul and Barnabas turning to the Gentiles who rejoiced at the word of God
17. Jeremiah 15:16 I discovered your word and devoured it because it was so delicious
18. Leviticus 17:11 the life of a creature is in the blood, given to make atonement
19. Hebrews 9:22 without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness
20. Romans 3:23 all sin and fall short of the glory of God
21. Daniel 9 four prophecies about the Messiah coming, atoning, being cut off, and Jerusalem being destroyed
22. Deuteronomy 4:29 if I search God I will find him
23. Deuteronomy 4:7 God is near when I pray to him
24. Psalm 121 God promised protection, being the vigilant watchman
25. Psalm 1:1-3 God promised blessings for all who delight in his word
26. Romans 8:28 God is working things out for good
27. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 God promises to comfort us in our trials
28. 2 Corinthians 5:17 God promises a new life
29. Philippians 1:6 God promises to finish the work he started in us
30. Philippians 4:6-7 God promises peace when I pray
31. Matthew 6:33 God promises to supply every need
32. John 14:2-3 Jesus promises his return to get us

Talk about it

1. Pastor Deborah said that Paul's main charge against his fellow Jews was that their zeal was not based on divine knowledge but on their own sense of what is right before God. Where do you see that same tendency showing up in your own life or in the church today?
2. Paul quotes Deuteronomy to make the point that no one can climb to heaven or descend to the grave to make things right with God, and that God alone did both of those things in Christ. What does it change for you personally to sit with the fact that righteousness before God is entirely out of your hands?
3. Pastor Deborah drew a line between knowing doctrine and having genuine faith, and she used the story of the man who said he would never speak to his family member again as an example of the gap between the two. Can you think of an area in your own life where what you know and what you trust God with do not yet match up?
4. She shared that confessing with your mouth starts in a safe place, like baptism among brothers and sisters, and then grows outward into everyday life. What has made it easy or hard for you to talk openly about your faith outside of a church setting?
5. Pastor Deborah listed several of God's promises from Scripture that have carried her through a very hard year and said that God being 'for you' is at the heart of what the resurrection means. Which of those promises landed most with you today, and why?