What is the Goal of the Gospel? • 11.26.23
What is the Goal of the Gospel?
Romans 16:25-27
Helping us see how God is glorified through the gospel of Jesus Christ
- The Nations shown
- The Church grown
- The wisdom of God eternally made known
Good morning! My name is Jack Flaherty and I serve as one of the Pastors here at Harvest. It’s a joy and privilege to have the stewardship of opening God’s Word with you all this morning. As we wrap up this Stewardship of the Gospel series I hope you have had time to slow down and think on what you’ve been learning. We’ve learned much as we’ve answered the questions of what is the gospel, who needs the gospel, and how do we spread the gospel. If this is the first time you’re with us or if caught bits a pieces just a reminder and encouragement to check out what you’ve missed. I pray that our learning moves from our head to our hearts and flows out into our lives. Also, I pray we continue that learning and changing and mobilizing today we end this series looking at “what is the goal of the gospel”.
Lets open up our Bibles to the main text at hand today, Romans 16:25-27. Ushers. Bibles. Dismiss 4th-5th graders. As you turn there, its worth mentioning again that rather than our usual verse by verse approach of teaching through a whole book in this series we have been seeking to expose a variety of texts to help us answer questions in a more topical manner. You may have noticed that each week we have been in Romans at some point in the sermon, and that continues today.
Before we read I text, I want to ask you a question. Have you ever heard someone give a Sunday school answer? Here are some examples. Who created the world? God. Who saves you from your sins? Jesus. Who loves you more than anyone? Jesus. While it sometimes is a frustratingly simply answer it is also often the right answer! Yet, there is more to be said. That is the story for our question today which has a bit of a Sunday school answer And I am going to give it to you right away! What is the goal of the gospel? To glorify God! Yes, that is the argument I hope to make today. And just like a Sunday school answer, it is also comes with much to be discussed. In fact, I asked this question to several people this week and it was like a trick question! Lots of really good answers though I would say most were either secondary to glorifying God or were means of glorifying God. But today I want us all to see that the goal of the gospel is to glorify God and by looking at our text I hope to unpack this answer in some more depth. Read Romans 16:25-27.
This is known as a doxology. Doxology is literally ‘glory saying’! There are 21 in the NT, over half from Paul’s letters and four of them in Romans. The idea is Paul really reiterating what he has been saying in the whole letter and what is the message of the whole Bible. Scholars and Sunday schoolers alike say the Bible is about the glory of God! If you’re ever at Harvest Students on Wednesday OR listening to parenting our kiddos at home you can bet ultimately the answer to “why do we do ____” is to glorify God! This is even church mission statement: To glorify God through the fulfillment of the Great Commission in the spirit of the Great Commandment.
But what does all this mean? If you’re new to church this sounds like some insider lingo. And if you’re old to church you’ve probably not taken the time needed to really slow down and reflect on the answer. So lets get our brains a bit more warped around this glory stuff. Then as we go we will also hit the two GCs.
First, what is glory? Specifical the glory of God? A lot of smart people have answered this more articulately. For our sake today let’s just quickly mention that the term for glory in the Hebrew means “weight” or “heavy” and really speaks to the idea of being unmatched. In the Greek the terms more have to do with a bright light or magnificent presence. So you might say in the OT glory come across more like massive overflowing of God’s riches, power, position, greatness, goodness and in the NT glory looks like a supremely bright demonstration of God’s power, position, greatness, goodness. I’ve heard it helpfully said before that God’s glory is really the summary of who he is in all his attributes or perfections—YHWH the one true God is glorious.
And what does it mean to glorify God? One of my seminary professors Andy Naselli says “Glorifying God is a way of feeling and thinking and acting that makes much of God. It shows that God is supremely great and good. It demonstrates that God is all-wise and all-satisfying. We most glorify God when he most satisfies us.” Wayne Grudem says to glorify God is “to honor God with praise and worship in all we do.”
So glory is all of who God is. And to glorify God means we are to make whatever we are thinking, saying or doing–our whole lives–all about God. The Westminster Catechism says “the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.” This is a Biblical idea echoed in Romans 12:1 and 1 Corinthians 10:31 and Colossians 3:23.
God’s glory is not fully comprehensible. So we would be foolish to think we could hit it all in one sermon today. Even as we zoom in specifically on God’s glory as the goal of the gospel, we won’t discover the depths of every intricacy on the gem that is the gospel of Jesus Christ in our time together. Nonetheless, I hope that we will be helped in our understanding of the goal of the gospel. So that’s why our subtitle is Helping us see how God is glorified through the gospel of Jesus Christ. We won’t knock it out of the park, but if we are helped, edified, and pointed rightly to the gospel of Christ through which God is glorified we’ll have used our time well today.
Today we will look at three ways this passage shows how, through the gospel, the end goal of glorifying God is achieved. And because I hate waiting to open all my Christmas presents and I am sure you do too, I want to give these three helps as a gift to you up front and then we will unpack them as we go. First God is glorified as the nations are shown the gospel, second God is glorified as the Church is grown according to the gospel, and finally God is glorified as the wisdom of God is made know through the gospel known for all eternity. Let’s dive into our first means of glorifying God through the gospel of Jesus Christ.
- The Nations Shown
The gospel glorifies God through its message being shown the nations. This is the Great Commission piece–to go and make disciples of Jesus by sharing the gospel and teaching of Jesus knowing he is with us. Again, as evidenced by the conversations this week, many people rightly communicate that the gospel is to God’s name to be made known amongst the nations. Consider what we just read in Romans 16:25-26. This gospel was mystery and secret but is now revealed and disclosed to the nations.
First, what is this business with Paul calling it “my gospel”? Further, how does the preaching of Jesus Christ fit in? They are one and the same for Paul. ‘His good news’ is preaching Jesus Christ! Though Paul did get the gospel directly revealed to him by Jesus as we read in Galatians 1 & 2 this is not a different gospel. It accords with the message of Jesus Christ. Indeed, it IS the message of Jesus, as recorded in the gospels and rest of the NT like we heard in 1 Corinthians 1 & 2 last week. The reality that God is holy, we’ve sinned against him, and we need an act of God to save us. It’s the message of the cross which is that very act of God through the atoning death of Jesus for our sin and his victorious resurrection declaring defeat of the grave.
Beyond that, Paul’s gospel is not a departure from the OT either. Paul shows this in the whole book of Romans as well as his other letters through repeated quotations, references, allusions and here in the ending doxology. Even v26 acknowledges the role of the OT prophetic writings in bearing witness to the Good News of Jesus for all nations.
And this is how Paul started the letter. Romans 1:1-5 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations. The desire is for faith in God’s name to occur in all the nations through the proclamation of the gospel which was promised through the prophets and in the holy Scriptures.
God’s desire form Genesis to Revelation is that the nations would know he is God! Have you ever taken time to see this thread? If you ever read the Bible and just look for phrases related to “nations” or “making his name known” or “for the sake of the name” this it is mind blowing! I thought about listing passages like the stories of Abraham, the Exodus, Rahab, Ruth, David, Solomon, OR the prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Zechariah, Malachi…and that’s just the OT! There’s too many to choose and would take a lot of our time. Instead, I’d encourage you to look for yourself as homework assignment this week.
The idea is that form the beginning that nations will know God! Also you may object and say its says “has been made known to all nations” in the past tense. But this doesn’t mean everyone has the gospel yet. Instead, what was once mysterious and is now clear through Jesus. This mystery is like walking through a mansion and then all of a sudden the lights get turned on! Jesus is the light that gives clarity to the whole magnificent place. Jesus told us to go in Matthew 28. And it’s what Paul’s heart was set on in this letter. He in Romans 15:8-9, 8 For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God’s truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, 9 and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, “Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.”
He continues later in Romans 15 to say that he will bring the message of Christ to the Gentiles because his ambition is to preach the gospel where it has never been preached before! I’ve heard it said that Romans is the most incredible letter ever written regarding theological and practical truths of what is means to be a follow of Jesus Christ, AND that it is also the best missionary support letter ever written. The Great Commission is not finished yet. Paul’s goal is to make the gospel know to the nations and he is calling on the Roman church to be a part of fulfilling it. We too are to be a part of this effort.
So brothers and sisters in Christ in the room, do you agree that the goal of the gospel is for God to be glorified? And that glorifying in part occurs by the nations being shown the good news of Jesus Christ and given the full and free offer of Grace? I like how our Missions team puts it: Grow, Give, Go!
How can we glorify God through the gospel being shown to the nations? First, lets grow in being acquainted with what our Bibles say about reaching the nations and see the connections to Jesus. Its hard to get the first started without any wood. So get some fodder for the fire by reading the Bible, especially the OT. Love it and look for what it speaks to God glorified amongst the nations. We got Isaiah coming up in 2024 and some studies to go with it, we should get excited!
How about you consider growing by taking the Perspective course? The Missions team has mentioned it several times. Rene specifically spoke about it last Sunday at the Stewardship Celebration and Laurie spoke of it the Family Chat the week before. It was life changing for Emily and I during our freshman year in college. Besides it being a tool God used to draw us together (no guarantees single folks) even more than that it set our trajectory towards ministry and a heart to know God and make him know to all. This would be an incredible growing opportunity when it comes to understanding God glorified through the gospel shown to the nations.
When it comes to giving, did you know we have three missionaries we support as a church. Do you know their names and needs? We can invest time in prayer, physical effort in mobilizing, or financial effort in giving. Not to mention several ministry partners in our local community that serve in the name of Jesus for the sake of the gospel.
When it comes to going, we have folks going to reach the nations this summer, will you join? Also how about the next 5th Sunday. Literally the easiest way to get your feet wet.
Our church has been blessed even in a fairly homogenous, through growingly diverse community, to have members/regular attenders from Liberia, Nigeria, Ghana, Korea, the Philippines, Bulgaria, Russia, and Colombia. We have a small taste of what is to come. We ought to reflect the diversity in our community and not manufacture it. BUT there is a day coming where this goal glorifying God by showing the nations the gospel. Revelation 7:9-12 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”
God desires to and will be made known be known amongst the nations. God is glorified when his people get after the work of sharing the ancient mystery now revealed, the long kept secret now freely disclosed through Jesus Christ. Let’s be about this work of sharing to the glory of God!
- The Church Grown
Our second means of glorifying God through the gospel of Jesus Christ is by the growth of the church. We have seen that the gospel is indeed for sinners to be saved. We actually just spoke about that with the nations shown. So yes grown in terms of adding to the number of those who have repent of sin and trusted in Jesus Christ alone. But also we’ve talked about how the gospel is also for saints to be sanctified OR grown. You might say this is the Great Commandment piece of our mission statement. We are called to grow in loving God and loving others, which sums up all of the commandments, to the glory of God. That’s what I am talking about and that’s what I see here in the text. Two things: first, strengthening according to the gospel. Second, obedience of faith which is a result of the gospel. Lets take them as they show up in the next.
We see in Romans 16:25 that God is the one who is able to strengthen us and the means by which he does that is the gospel of Jesus Christ! That’s again back to the beginning in Romans 1:11-12 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine. There is a reality to God working that in us and us doing the work in one another’s lives! BUT whether it’s God or another that strength comes according to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Paul elsewhere speaks to this call for maturity in Christ in serval spots. One is Philippians 2 which talks about working out your salvation because God is at work in you. Another one of my favorites is the end of Colossians 1. Paul says the gospel was a hidden mystery which God has now revealed to the nations for God’s glory. It is this the proclaiming of the mystery now revealed in Jesus Christ, that brings maturity, or increased Christlikeness, or sanctification. The gospel strengthen’s Christians!
If I say “getting swole” do you know what that means? Not an allergic reaction but a good workout. Upper body swole workout in college for anyone who hurt their legs. Literally it was to help them stay active while they couldn’t move other things. Well in a somewhat analogous what, church we are called to be strengthened by the weight room of the gospel! That is the instrument that makes us grown to the tune of the glory of God. Do we run back to the gospel as the thing which strengthens us when were are down? If our focus is on the gospel, we will grow in glorifying God by making much of him in all we do. Parenting, suffering, relationships, work, regrouping for Christmas with family, handling sporting events. All of these should be handled increasingly like Jesus if were by faith trusting in the gospel.
Which brings us to this idea of “obedience of faith” as spoken in Romans 16:26. This means that there are those who show their mark of faith by how they obey. You can’t call yourself a Christian in any clear conscience sense IF your life is marked by increasing disobedience and lack of care for holiness. God’s glory is displayed by broken people not being perfect but rather seeking to grow. Again this is how Paul started the letter in Romans 1:4b-5 Jesus Christ our Lord through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations. Obedience of faith is that obedience which flows from a state of continual trust and dependence on God. Disobedience comes when we place faith elsewhere. We ought to see growing, increasing, sanctified life of obedience of faith through the reality of the gospel in our lives.
How’s that going for you? For example, if you’re like me you’ve been convicted to share the gospel more this month. That’s awesome! If you’ve been convicted to meditate on the gospel more for yourself, that’s awesome! If you’ve come to repent and believe the gospel as Jesus urges in Mark 1:14-15, that’s incredible! But in all of that, this series has not been to make you feel bad. Indeed it rightly should challenge us. But this passage here tells us the gospel is the means by which God beats us down? Harms our feelings? Seeks to rip everything out of your control? Maybe true you feel that way but God’s intention in the gospel is first make you quit relying on yourself, recognize your weakness so that he can strengthen you. Because we are already week so we ought to come recognizing our weakness. AND then in our depending on the God who is able to strengthen, we will see the gospel brings strength to us.
How does the gospel strengthen us? Though the Word of God believed by faith! Is your life showing you are trusting in Jesus for salvation RIGHT NOW?! That’s not to say if you are in the moment of sin you aren’t saved. BUT it should put a right fear to say “am I finding the most satisfaction in Jesus right now?” That’s evidence of my faith in him. That’s the impact of the gospel. And that is a means by which the gospel brings glory to God.
God is glorified through the gospel of Jesus Christ as the gospel strengthens and matures the bride of Christ, his church. Yes, God will by glorified as the gospel results in growing the church by adding new heads to the church roll. But God is also glorified as the gospel accomplishes what only God is able to down, growing up those in the church to look the its head which is Jesus.
- Wisdom of God eternally made known
Our third and final means of glorifying God through the gospel of Jesus Christ is by the wisdom of the only wise God being made know. We see this most explicitly in Romans 16:27. One of the unique things about this passage is that the structure is a bit interesting to figure out. It was helpful for me to wrestle here a bit, but what we see as the key clause in the whole doxology is this last verse. He is the only wise God. God’s wisdom is knowing the greatest possible goal and the best way to achieve it. The greatest goal is that his glory would be maximized. God indeed has this best plan for accomplishing the greatest good and we are living in it right now!
This does mean we can’t know it all as evidenced by all this stuff about mystery and hidden stuff BUT also there are pieces of God’s wisdom which he graciously has revealed and made known to us as part of his wise plan. Specifically in view today is the gospel which he has made known to display his wisdom. It was both a mystery revealed, and prophecy fulfilled. We know there was some concealing of this reality of evidence by Hebrews 10:1 talk of shadows and substance or 1 Peter 1:10-12 talk of mystery of prophets not knowing fully yet still speak of the realities of the Christ. We see this concealing reversed in Luke 24 on the road to Emmaus.
The gospel was mysterious until new hearts are given by God! More than that, this wise plan of God goes beyond what we can image. It does so I think in at least two specific ways. The first one is the plan is to graft in the nations. We talked some about the mystery of the nations from Colossians 1 or you could read more in Ephesians 3 and 6. But the wisdom of God is not just shown in Jew and Gentile being brough into one people of God. The second is in the reality of God’s glory in salvation through judgement. What was Nick’s definition of the gospel? Good news=Gods plan of salvation for sinful humans from his just wrath thru faith in His Son Jesus Christ all accomplished by Gods own grace and not the sinners merit.
Yes part of the mystery is Jew and Gentile made into one people of God. But part of the mystery was the Messiah suffering. This mystery as evidenced in the Messiahs suffering is that salvation only comes through judgement. Our righteous God either judges us or the judgment comes down on Jesus for the forgiveness of our sins. Like stokes of various colors in a painting or major and minor keys in a symphony part of the beauty and glory in God’s plan of salvation is the reality of salvation and judgement.
Book we read in seminary titled that which was really revealed. Even that’s the argument of Romans. We see in Romans 1:16-17 16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” That apparent revealing as explain in the next couple chapters in the judgment of God on sin! Only when that is clearly made seen does the Good News of Romans 3 truly make sense. “For all have sinned and fall short AND are justified by the propitiation offered through Jesus Christ on the cross! God’s power is communicated in the revelation of his righteousness in the gospel, and it is a power that condemns the sinner so that the sinner might recognize his need for a Savior, trust the Savior, and be saved by faith. In this gospel God’s righteousness is revealed by faith from start to finish and this is good news message that ought to make us marvel!
Romans 11:33-36 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
34 “For who has known the mind of the Lord,
or who has been his counselor?”
35 “Or who has given a gift to him
that he might be repaid?”
36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
We have a lot to wrap our minds around and can’t do it here, but start with humility and awe and worship. God’s wisdom is deeper than ours! We can’t even know it because it is so much heavier or glorious that it sinks beyond our comprehension. Indeed we cannot add anything richness of wisdom to him because it all has come from him! Therefore, he alone deserves the glory not jus time and not just in this life time but for eternity! Dr Tony Evans says of this passage that the weight of the wisdom of God results in spontaneous praise. This wisdom display in the gospel is powerful to reveal God’s righteousness. First in his wrath against sinners then in saving those on whom he has mercy. first behold the law and see just damnation. Second turn to Christ and see exceeding mercy of they most kind and loving father. Third remember that Christ made atonement so that you would not return but be a new creature with new life. Dr. Jim Hamilton says “through the judgment of Jesus on the cross, we know we they have been shown a just mercy.” God does not gain by our clarity on who he is, we do!
We couldn’t think it up. SO STOP TRYING! In order to actually worship we first have to stop trying to be God ourselves or worship other things we think will give us greater clarity than God has already given us. How many people, even sitting amongst us, even the man preaching to you, say “God should have, could have, would have, if I would tell him to change something…”? That’s doubting his wisdom. That’s proudly saying you would be a better God. Not only does that not glorify God the damns your soul.
In order to actually worship we also ought not be ashamed of the whole gospel, for it is the power of salvation for those who believe. Just because there are some that wont’ believe, doesn’t mean we are ashamed to share the whole thing, salvation and judgement. Rather we stand firm in what has been revealed to us from faith and for faith and we live by faith trusting the only wise God who deserves glory forever and ever! Though judgment happens once the results of the judgement are eternal. God’s plan for the gospel reveals His infinite wisdom! Our eternal destiny is to worship and glorify God throughout the ages, so we had best start now.
This is the call for Christians. To glorify God as we fulfill the Great Commission in the spirit of the Great Commandment trusting the plan of the only wise God until the end of time and beyond. God is glorified as the gospel in shown to the nations, as God uses it as the tool to grow the church in width and depth, and as it displays his wisdom eternally.
Pray