The Five Levels of Discipleship

NOTES ON ROMANS 6 – JOHN STOTT

NOTES ON ROMANS 6 – JOHN STOTT United to Christ and enslaved to God (6:1–23) The apostle has been painting an idyllic picture of the people of God. Having been justified by faith, they are standing in grace and rejoicing in glory. Having formerly belonged to Adam, the author of sin and death, they now belong to Christ, the author of salvation and life. Although at one point in the history of Israel the law was added to increase sin (5:20a), yet ‘grace increased all the more’ (5:20b), so that ‘grace might reign’ (5:21). It is a splendid vision of the triumph of grace. Against the grim background of human guilt, Paul depicts grace increasing and grace reigning. What was their criticism? It was not just that Paul’s gospel of justification by grace through faith without works seemed to make the doing of good works otiose. Worse than that, it seemed to stimulate people to sin more than ever. For if, in his understanding of Israel’s story, the law led to an increase of sin, and s...

The Point of Christmas (Ryan Whitaker Smith)

When the angel visits Joseph to tell him that the unborn child carried by Mary is not the product of an illicit romance but rather the miraculous work of the Holy Spirit, one crucial detail of this revelation is in the stated purpose of this miracle. The angel even tells Joseph what the baby’s name should be! The child will be called Jesus, a derivation of Joshua, which means “God saves.” This is why the Son of God becomes incarnate—to save sinners. This is the whole point of Christianity, and thus the whole point of Christmas. Jesus did not come primarily to set a good example, though he certainly did that. And he did not come to give us solid ethics teaching, though he did that too. He didn’t even come primarily to perform signs and wonders, though he undoubtedly did many. The primary reason for the incarnation was that God might justify sinners through Christ’s sinless life, sacrificial death, and glorious resurrection.

NLT N.T. CHRONOLOGICAL READING PLAN (SEPT-OCT)

SEPTEMBER  September 24 Mark 1:1a, Luke 1:1-4, John 1:1-18, Matthew 1:1-17, Luke 3:23b-38, Luke 1:5-38  September 25 Luke 1:39-80, Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 2:1-40  September 26 Matthew 2:1-23, Luke 2:41-52, Mark 1:1b-8, Matthew 3:1-12, Luke 3:1-18, Mark 1:9-11, Matthew 3:13-17, Luke 3:21-22  September 27 Mark 1:12-13, Matthew 4:1-11, Luke 4:1-15, John 1:19–2:25  September 28 John 3:1–4:45, Luke 3:19-20  September 29 Mark 1:14-15, Matthew 4:12-17, Luke 3:23a, John 4:46-54, Luke 4:16-30, Mark 1:16-20, Matthew 4:18-22, Mark 1:21-28, Luke 4:31-37, Mark 1:29-34, Matthew 8:14-17, Luke 4:38-41, Mark 1:35-39, Luke 4:42-44, Matthew 4:23-25  September 30 Luke 5:1-11, Mark 1:40-45, Matthew 8:1-4, Luke 5:12-16, Mark 2:1-12, Matthew 9:1-8, Luke 5:17-26, Mark 2:13-17, Matthew 9:9-13, Luke 5:27-32, Mark 2:18-22, Matthew 9:14-17, Luke 5:33-39 October  October 1 John 5:1-47, Mark 2:23-28, Matthew 12:1-8, Luke 6:1-5, Mark 3:...

Intentional Discipleship

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