January 14, 2024
Included | Romans 1:18-2:1
Dark Minds, Dark Lives
Paul wrote to the small church in Rome even though he’d never met them. They were one church he hadn’t planted. In some ways the letter is him making friends. Good friends make us feel included; they let us know that we belong. It wasn’t something that Paul did that included the believers in Rome; it was what Jesus had done and was doing in them through his Spirit that allowed them to belong. The letter begins with Paul telling them just how ‘included’ they were!
Songs for this week: Spotify
Sermon Questions:
- Tell the story of when you saw something in creation and were overwhelmed with its beauty and majesty.
- v. 21 says that even though people know God, they neither “glorify him” nor “give thanks to him.” Explain what kind of glory and gratitude humans rightly owe to God. What has that looked like in your life recently?
- Sex is often a favourite target for Satan; why do you think that’s the case?
- “God gave them over” appears 3x in the passage. What exactly does that include? Was there a time when God gave you over to some sin? How did that play out?
- There’s a possibility of reading a passage like this and only feeling rotten about yourself. How might you see yourself and the Lord Jesus differently than that? Could this passage be an example of Proverbs 27:6?
Share with a friend
Recent Sermons
Exodus 33:12-23 - The book of Exodus unfolds the growing friendship between God and Moses, one conversation at a time. Moses’ honest exchange with God is a picture of how we can talk with God, too.
Exodus 19:3-8 -God is seeking a community to join Him in His mission to bless and save the world. Israel was out of Egypt, where their purpose had been clear: make bricks! What was their purpose now? At the foot of Mount Sinai, before they take another step, God has a proposal.
Exodus 16:2-16 - The story of our roots continues. As the drama fades into daily routine, the real questions begin—Can we trust God for what we need each day? How much control do we really have?
Exodus 14:5-13 -The story of God’s rescue is not without drama! God’s people left Egypt only to come against a new opponent, the Red Sea! They were trapped between an angry Pharaoh and, at least as bad, an angry Sea. They cried out, expressed their terror, and God made a way. Of course, it did involve them moving their
Exodus 12:1-14 - The story of Exodus is the story of Jesus. The God we get to know in Exodus is the God who comes to us in the person of Jesus: a God who judges, who saves, and who renews.
Exodus 3:1-14 - The rescue begins. God looks for a person to lead the way—not someone perfect, but someone willing. In Exodus, God calls Moses through a burning bush and rekindles a relationship that had been years in the making.
