THE CHRISTIAN DEBTOR

ROMANS 1:1

A. HUMANITY AT THE POINT OF COMPLETE BREAKDOWN
  1. Moral debt:
    1. As it was in the days of Noah; and in the days of Lot - Matt. 24:37-39; Luke 17:26
    2. The earth literally groans under the ever increasing weight of sin - Compare Isa. 24:1-20 with 2 Tim. 3:1-9
    3. Effect upon the human race is very evident - Rev. 6:15-17
  2. Financial debt is beyond calculation:
    1. The U.S.A., the richest country in the world, has over $300,000,000,000.
    2. It would take five generations to pay the interest alone, much less the principle.
B. THE CHRISTIAN DEBTOR
  1. "I am a debtor, both to the Greeks and to the Barbarians; both to the wise and to the unwise."
    1. Paul has many names, none of them lofty, all of them lowly; the highest of them is ""I am an apostle". He calls himself "a prisoner"; "least of the saints"; "chief of sinners"; here he calls himself "a debtor".
    2. To whom is he a debtor?
      1. Not to the flesh - Rom. 8:12
      2. But to God; to Christ; to the world!
  2. How he became a debtor:
    1. He became a debtor when Christ died for him - Gal. 2:20, 21
    2. When he became in possession of the priceless gift of salvation which must be shared with all for whom Christ died - Rom. 9:23; 11:33; Eph. 2:7; 3:8, 16
    3. When he was commissioned to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord - 1 Cor. 9:16
    4. When he experienced in his own life the transforming grace of Jesus Christ!
    5. This experience alone made him a debtor to others - 1 Cor. 15:10; Eph. 3:7
    6. When the Spirit of God moved him to share his faith with others - 2 Cor. 5:13, 14
    7. He became a debtor when he realized the infinite price heaven paid to redeem men from sin!
C. HOW HE PAYS HIS DEBTS
  1. By sharing God's blessings with others:
    1. Jonah learned his lesson - Jonah 1:3; 2:1-9
  2. By living the truth day by day:
  3. By withholding nothing from the service of the gospel of Christ: Acts 21:13
  4. By laying down his own life in the defense of the gospel of Christ:
D. WE, TOO, ARE DEBTORS
  1. Not to the flesh to fulfill the lust thereof but we are debtors:
    1. To God and to Jesus Christ our Lord for the priceless salvation offered to us.
    2. To the great second advent movement for the light it has brought to us about the truths for the last days.
    3. It is in deep humility that I say that no other people have ever been blessed with more knowledge of the Bible than this people.
    4. It is this knowledge of the truth that obligates us to the world to make known the mystery of Jesus Christ as unfolded in Bible prophecy.
  2. The nearness of the coming of our Lord makes us special debtors to warn the world and prepare a people for His coming!
    1. How could we be guiltless if we failed to proclaim the blessed hope of the coming of our Lord!
    2. What excuse would we give for failing to faithfully witness to the Three Angels' Messages?
    3. But, we, like Paul, are debtors to God for His love so undeservedly bestowed upon us in making us willing to leave all and embrace Present Truth.
    4. Personally, I feel that I, of all people am a debtor to God and His dear Son in sparing my life and letting me share the blessings of the gospel with others!


Design © John Bryant 2011