If you would, please remain standing and turn your Bibles to Romans chapter 16. I will warn you that this is going to be a little bit of a long reading, so if you feel that you cannot stand up the entire time, please don't be embarrassed. Feel free to sit down. That is totally okay. So we are going to turn to Romans 16, and we are going to read the entire chapter as we close out our study in Romans. beginning in verse one. I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church in Sancreo, that you may welcome her in the Lord in a way that is worthy of the saints and help her in whatever she may need from you. For she has been a patron of many and of myself as well. Greep Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks as well. Greet also the church in their house. Greet, my beloved, Appanatus, who was the first convert to Christ in Asia. Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you. Greet Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners. They are well known to the apostles, and they were in Christ before me. Greet Ampletus, my beloved in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys. Greet Apellas, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the family of Astrobolus. Greet my kinsman Herodian. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus. Greet those workers in the Lord, Traphania and Traphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord. Also his mother, who has been a mother to me as well. Greet Asencretus, Phlegon, Hermes, Petrobus, Hermanus, and the brothers who are with them. Greet Phologus, Julia, Nursus, and his sister, and Olympus, and all the saints who are with them. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you. I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause division and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught. Avoid them, for such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you. But I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent to what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Timothy, my fellow worker, greets you. So do Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my kinsman. I, Tertius, who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord. Gaius, who is the host to me and to the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the city treasurer, and our brother, Quartus, greets you. Now to him who was able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages, but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith. To the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ. Amen. Please be seated. I was really excited when Casey said, hey, why don't you handle the last chapter of Romans, until I remembered that there's about 30 Greek and Hebrew names that had to be pronounced. I have no idea if I pronounced them correctly, but I said it with gusto. So for more than a year now, we've been walking verse by verse through the book of Romans. And as we said at the very beginning when we started this book, we could spend a lifetime in the study, in the preaching, in the teaching, in the meditation of just the book of Romans alone. So our year has been a relatively quick trip through Romans that was never intended to teach you every little thing there is to know in Romans. To put it in perspective, John Piper, when he preached through the book of Romans, took eight years. It took over 255 sermons, some of which consisted of diving deep into just one single word for multiple weeks. So as we wrap up Romans today, it's my prayer that what this last year has achieved for us is to have a love for God's word. A love that will push us to continue to study, to go learn those deep little truths that we may not have got to said every single one of them from the pulpit. I hope it increases our personal study. I hope it gives us a desire to grow in our knowledge of the Lord and to fall more deeply in love with Kant's word. I pray that it makes us seek after sanctification, to not let sanctification be a bad word and something that we try and fight, but rather something that God is doing with us and that we desire more and more of it every day. So in our final week in Romans, as you heard all those names and you heard a lot of greetings, I don't want us to slack off here because of the content of this chapter. It could be easy for us to want to skip over the things like personal greetings and just say, well, yeah, that was common at the end of a letter, so it's there. Same thing with genealogies when you come across them in both the Old Testament and the New Testament. But we need to remember that these words are just as inspired as the rest of scripture. They are here for a reason. What we have in these greetings is a beautiful thing. We get a small window into the life of the author of the text. We get to see how Paul dealt with personal relationships within the church. We get to view how the early church spread across great distances, functioned, working together. We get to see how the gospel was being spread throughout the entire world during this time. Swiss theologian Emil Brunner wrote that Romans 16 is one of the most instructive chapters of all of the New Testament because it encourages personal relationships and it encourages a love of the church. John Stott said that even in the genealogies of both the Old and New Testaments and in Paul's list of those who he sends and receives greetings, there are truths to ponder and lessons to learn. So I hope that's what we do today as we look in this. So we're gonna jump right into the final chapter. He starts off with, greeting Phoebe, saying, I commend you, our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church of Sancreia, that you may welcome her in the Lord in a way that is worthy of the saints and help her in whatever she may need from you. For she is a patron of many and of myself as well. So we begin with Phoebe. She's listed as a servant of the church in Sancreia. If you don't know where that is, it's a port city neighboring Corinth. And it is actually where Paul is writing the book of Romans from. She's listed as a servant or a dikonos in Greek. And I'm sure I mispronounced that too, but tell me later. It's the same word from where we get deacon, but we don't want to confuse this with the office of deacon because when we see the office of deacon in scripture, we see very strict qualifications here, but this is a very strong word used for servant. During the first century, this term was used for those who serve and those who serve well. Jesus used this term when he spoke of the servants that drew the water that Jesus turned to wine. So it's not clear if Phoebe held any official title, but it is clear that Paul held her in incredibly high regard. This is the first person that he greets at the end of his letter. This term, especially when applied to women in the first century, talked about women who cared for believers who were sick, women that cared for the poor, women that cared for strangers that were passing through their cities, women that would go to prisoners and take care of them, they would disciple female converts, they would even assist in baptisms at times. Paul instructs the Church of Rome to welcome this woman in a way that is worthy of the saints. and not just welcome her, but to help her in whatever it is that she may need while she's there. We also see that she has been some personal help to many, including Paul himself in his ministry. So this is no small greeting from Paul, because it's believed that Phoebe is actually the person that took the Book of Romans, the letter to Rome, and went to Rome to deliver it. That this text is actually somewhat of a letter of commendation. And this is a dangerous task at the time, traveling many, many miles, many, many days, many weeks, both by land and by sea. So this is a considerable greeting that we have here. Paul is ensuring that wherever she goes, believers will see her, and she will be welcomed, respected, and trusted among the church. So next, Paul goes to Prisca and Aquila, saying, greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Jesus Christ, who risk their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but all of the churches of Gentiles give thanks as well. Greet also the church that is in their house. Unlike Phoebe, we have a little bit more information because we hear these names in other places in the New Testament. You might see it sometimes as Priscilla. It's the same name with a diminutive at the end of it, but it's the same person. So we see that In Acts chapter 18, we see these mentioned. It says, after this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth, and he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, recently come from Italy with his wife, Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. And he went to see them, and because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and worked, for they were tent makers by trade. Priscilla and Aquila are actually mentioned six times in the New Testament. from different locations. We see them mentioned two more times in Acts. We see them mentioned three more times by Paul in 1 Corinthians, as well as 2 Timothy, and obviously in Romans. So we're talking about a married couple that was expelled from Rome because Aquila was a Jew. From Rome, they seemed to make their way to Corinth, and then to Ephesus, and then back to Rome, housing churches every time along the way, working diligently in ministry, no matter where they were or where they were first forced out of. What's interesting here is that in most instances, and this is pretty uncommon for the time, Prisca is actually mentioned first ahead of her husband. There's not A real explanation of why, although some that believe that it's actually Prisca that was more heavily involved in ministry than her husband. Paul writes that this couple has risked their lives in support of Paul's ministry. Not only is he thankful, but all Gentile churches should be thankful for this amazing couple. We continue on, we have Eponidas, a dear friend of Paul, and apparently the first convert to Asia. We have Mary, and we know there's many Marys in scripture, so we don't know exactly which Mary he's greeting, or if it's completely a different Mary that has previously been unknown. But we can gather from Paul's comments that Mary worked hard in the church in Rome. The language that's used here goes beyond just our idea of works. it's probably better translated literally as Mary toiled for the church. Andronicus and Junia, Paul calls them his kinsmen. Now this could mean that they were related to Paul, but it's much more likely that he used this term to say that they were Jewish converts. They had been in prison with Paul. They were well-known and well-regarded among the apostles, and they were actually brought into Christ before Paul. We have Amplitus, a beloved friend, Urbanus, a fellow worker in Christ, Stachys, a beloved friend, Apellas, tested and approved in Christ. We have two households listed of Aristobulus and Narcissus. Herodian was a fellow Jew in Christ. Trephania and Trephosa, fellow workers in the Lord. Persus, who had not only labored, not only toiled, not only worked, but it says that he labored hard in the Lord. Rufus and his mother, this one is actually very interesting to me because they're most likely very well-known believers. In Mark's gospel, when he describes the arrest of Jesus, the trial of Jesus, the crucifixion of Jesus, he has a story in there of Simon of Cyrene that was compelled to carry the cross for Christ. Mark didn't often just add extra names to his writing, but here he does. When Mark mentions that Simon of Cyrene had two sons, Alexander and Rufus. So it's most likely that this is Rufus and it's his mother. It's the same Rufus that was the son of Simon of Cyrene. Phlegon, Hermes, Petrobus, Hermas, and the brothers who are with them, Phologus, Julia, Nerses, and his sister, and Olympus, all saints who are with him. Now we may look at this and say, that's kind of boring. but actually it's an incredible view into Paul's relationships at the time. James Montgomery Boyce wrote regarding this long list of greetings. He said, when we look back over this chapter, we begin to get a sense of how close these people were to Paul. Though they were hundreds of miles away, we see how much that Paul loved them. For he calls them beloved and he praises them for their fruitful service, not only to him and to one another, but their fruitful service in laboring for the Lord. Boyce goes on to ask the question, how did Paul come to know and actually love so many Christians? How could he even remember them all as he is traveling and preaching and teaching and loving people? And the answer is really, really simple. Because what we know of Paul is he was constantly thinking of the church rather than himself. We see this all throughout Paul's ministry. I believe one of the best places we can see it is in 1 Corinthians chapter 3, when Paul is writing to Corinth addressing many, many issues among the church in Corinth, but in this text is specifically addressing divisions within the church. He writes, for when one says, I follow Paul and another I follow Apollos, are you not being merely human? What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives growth. Paul did not see himself as this great celebrity going from town to town, needing an entourage and the best lodging. Paul went around and proclaimed what God has done for those who believe. So not only do we see Paul's selflessness and his love for the church, but we also get this view into how the church functioned. We get to see the church working and laboring together and loving one another. We see a beautiful unity. that can only be accomplished through Christ. As Paul wrote in Galatians, he says, for as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ, there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there's no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise. This is still true today. We have true unity in Christ. But it's not just for those in this building. It is for every believer that's ever been, ever will be, no matter what language or creed, We have unity in Christ. Each one of us has different gifts. We have different roles. We do different things within the church. We have different callings, but we are united in the completed work of Jesus Christ. Another thing that is so clear in these greetings is how much Paul valued women in church. There have been many that would falsely accuse Paul of being a misogynist. They would handpick just a few verses out of context most of the time, claiming that he believed that women serve no purpose in the early church besides remaining silent and submitting to their husbands. People that argue this use these arguments to support things like egalitarianism in the church. It's a slippery slope that leads many churches to completely disregard the clear teachings of scripture regarding two things, and these are two very important things. The first is our equality in value between men and women. We are all created in God's image. We have the same value. We have an innate value, not because of anything that we do or anything that we are, but because God created us in his own image. Now, egalitarians would agree with that statement, but where they would start to disagree is the clear teachings in scripture that talk about complementary roles, that men and women do have different roles, and that is not to belittle the value of women in the church and we see this with Paul. Out of 25 some odd greetings that we've had so far in this chapter, nine of them that are mentioned are women. The very longest and the very first we already talked about which was Phoebe. Paul entrusted this letter to Phoebe to be delivered. He entrusted her to make this dangerous trip because she was a servant of the church. He ensured that she would be welcomed in a way worthy of the saints and assisted in any way that she needed. Nine women that Paul greets, and what does he say about them? Does he say, oh, look how submissive they are. Look how they sit silently in church. He says, no, they're co-laborers in Christ. They're beloved friends. They're hard workers in the church. They're invaluable to the work of the church. R.C. Sproul, in his commentary on this text, wrote that we see through Paul's greetings his profound appreciation for the assistance he received from women who were serving the cause of Christ and the church in very significant ways. A little further, he writes, we must not underestimate the very important role that women have in the life of the church. Men, we need to be appreciative of the women of the church, especially in this church, because I could point out women I'm not going to, but there are amazing women that labor hard in ministry for the cause of Christ. Let us never take for granted the women in our lives that serve right alongside us every single day. If we continue on in verse 17 of our text, we see Paul's final instructions as he closes out this letter. This is kind of Paul's so what moment. We have 15 chapters, 15 and a half chapters before we get here. And this is the last instructions he is going to leave to the Church of Rome in this letter. He writes, I appeal to you brothers to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you've been taught. Avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites and by smooth talk and flattery, they deceive the hearts of the naive. For your obedience is well known to all so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to know But I want you to be wise to what is good and innocent to what is evil. Because the Lord God, the God of peace, will soon crush Satan under your feet. So in this so what moment, we see that we've had 11 chapters. 11 chapters of deep doctrine. After that, we had four chapters applying that doctrine to our daily lives. So what now? What now for the church? What now for us as we finish the book of Romans? Paul urges the church of Rome to watch out, to be wary, to be on the lookout for those that cause divisions, for those who create obstacles to the doctrine that Paul taught. Watch out for the troublemakers. Watch out for those who always have a complaint or a negative word. Watch out for those who would cause divisions. Watch out for those who would teach false doctrines. Watch out for those who would rather serve themselves than serve the Lord. Watch out for the smooth talkers and the flatterers. The doctrine of the church and the unity of the church is something to be valued and protected. It is not something to be put aside for the sake of friendly relationships. R.C. Sproul wrote about this saying, in the church today, doctrine is decried. Doctrine divides, some say, so we ought not to have much concern to it, but focus instead on loving and peaceful relationships. And this is the key part of this quote. The people that do that, they forget that we do not know what a loving relationship looks like apart from while it is described by the truth and doctrine of the Bible. So what Paul says here is not avoid doctrine. What he actually says is avoid heretics. This is so true. I've not always thought this. But thankfully, the Lord doesn't leave us in our ignorant states. It's true because theology and doctrine are actually beautiful things. Because without theology and doctrine, there's so much that we can't see, that we can't know. But with theology and doctrine, we get to see God's amazing love. We get to see that amazing grace that we sing about. We get to see the amazing mercy of the Lord. We're shown the complete and total depravity of man. We see the depth of love and the obedience shown by our Savior in His incarnation, in His life, in His death, in His resurrection. We see God powerfully and righteously display His divine attributes, not only His love and His grace and mercy, but we see it exercised in His justness and His power and His divine wrath against sinners. The doctrine that Paul teaches in this letter so clearly reminds us Reminds us of a lot, but I'm thinking of one thing. This life is not about us. It's just not. Salvation, while we are the beneficiaries of that, it's not about us. Remember the first question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism. What is the chief end of man? Someone say it. To glorify God and enjoy Him forever. And this is what Paul teaches. In 1 Corinthians 10, he says, So whatever you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all for the glory of God. So as we get to the tail end of Romans here, I don't want us to forget This is not a textbook. It's not like going into Casey's or mine office and pulling down a systematic theology and you just look up a chapter you want to read about. No, this is a letter to a church. We can and we should spend time delving deeper into the doctrines taught in Romans. That is a good thing. but it's not just a list of different doctrines and rules for our lives. It's meant to be read as a single letter. So, if you'll indulge me, I want to do a quick review of Romans in its entirety, so that we can see all the pieces fit together. Paul starts in his introduction and he sets the stage for the entire book, saying, for I'm not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also the Greek. For in it, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith. As it is written, the righteous shall live by faith. We see God's righteousness and man's utter sinfulness. We see that all are in need of a savior. Further down in Romans 1, Paul writes, "...for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For His invisible attributes, namely His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived ever since the creation of the world in all things that have been made. Who? Everyone. They're without excuse. In Romans 3, it says as it's written, none is righteous, no, not one. No one understands, no one seeks for God. All have turned aside. Together they have become worthless. No one does good, not even one. We remove the idea that man can do anything to justify himself before the Lord. Which leads Paul to the doctrine of justification by faith. where he writes, but now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law. Although the law and the prophets bear witness to it, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified by what? By his grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood to be received by faith, And what was this for? It was to show God's righteousness because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. We don't see another option there. We don't see that we can be good enough. We only see justification through faith. And through this justification, we have freedom in Christ. Freedom from law. Freedom from God's holy and righteous wrath. Freedom from condemnation and sin. Freedom from even death itself. In Romans 8, we have one of the most beautiful realizations of the result of justification, where he writes, There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin He condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be filled in us, who walk not according to flesh, but according to the Spirit. We see the freedom that comes through justification by faith alone. And we see that all of these things are the work of God, not the work of man. We see that it's God's sovereign choice to save believers. As the creator of all things, as the sustainer of all things, He is neither wrong or somehow unfair for choosing those whom He would be saved. Why? Because all of us deserve death. It's not because someone's of a different race, or someone speaks a certain language, or someone grew up in the church. God chooses of his own volition to save some. In Romans 9 we see, We see this. But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Well, what is molded say to its molder? Why have you made me like this? Has the potter no right over the clay to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use? What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath? prepared for destruction in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory. Not only do we see the freedom and God's sovereign choice in it, we are also shown the means by which God saves. Many people like to read Romans 10, 13 and stop there, but I think it's important to read the next few verses. Both are true, but one makes a whole lot less sense if you stop. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. If we stop there, beautiful thought. And I can agree with that. But it's explained so much better in the next few verses where it says, how then will they call on Him whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in Him who they have not heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent as it is written, how beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news? It would be a shame to sit and preach just verse 13. Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Because we can go elsewhere in the Bible and see not everyone that calls my name is of me. So we've had 11 chapters. Making known our need for a Savior, making known our sinful natures, making known our ability to produce righteousness through works doesn't exist. knowing that works of the law do not justify. Paul spends time making known the completed work of Christ, making known God's sovereign control and salvation, making known the means by which we can be justified before a holy God. 11 chapters. And what is it about? It is about what Christ has accomplished. And nowhere in these 11 chapters is it about us. It is all about what Christ has accomplished. And this is an exciting thing for believers. It's where we have hope. Because if salvation was about us, if it were up to us, then each and every one of us would fail to grasp it. Because God's standard of righteousness is perfection. And there is no one in the past, in the present, and the future that can achieve God's standard apart from Christ. But through the work of Christ, Jesus fully took our punishment. He took the fullness of the wrath of God that was meant for us, that we earned. And Christ's perfect righteousness can be imputed to those who the Father calls to saving faith. We are the beneficiaries of that work. But we must always remember that it's the work of Christ What's the purpose for God doing this? It's not solely so that we can be the beneficiaries of it. It is for one reason, one reason only. It is how He has sovereignly decided to make His glory known in His creation. Thank goodness that salvation is not up to me and you. is just what Paul said at the very beginning of this letter. 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, for in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith and for faith. As we move into chapter 12, Paul shifts from doctrine to godly living. But I want to be very clear here. This four chapter section, or three and a half chapter section on godly living, it's not a list of rules that we have to live by because God did something for us. It's not some kind of payment for being justified. Rather, what we find here, much like we find in the doctrine, is this is all about Christ. It's all about Christ, because what we find in this section on godly living is the natural result of Christ's completed work. We should not look at this as things that we must now do, but rather things that through Christ's work we now have the ability to do. Through saving faith and through sanctification, God's work of salvation changes a person. It changes the person. If you are exactly how you were like when you professed Christ, we may need to have a conversation. Not that we become perfect, not that we don't still struggle with sin, but salvation, the work of Christ changes the person. We're brought from spiritual death to spiritual life. Scripture talks of having hearts of stone, but God's work of salvation produces a heart of flesh. As Paul wrote in Galatians, I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." It's the same concept that Paul uses in Colossians, saying, for in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head and rule and authority. In him you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands by putting off the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you are also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God who raised him from the dead." And you who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross." Last week we saw two wonderful baptisms. And as we always tell anyone that we're going to take through a baptism class or baptize, baptism does not save. It is a picture of what Christ has accomplished. We see a picture of being buried with Christ in baptism, being raised to walk in a newness of life. It is the result of God's work. Paul reminds us to remember what Christ has accomplished, and he urges believers to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship, not to be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, and that by testing you may discern what is the will of God and what is good and acceptable. So what does godly living look like? Paul tells us in Romans chapter 12. Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil. Hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal. Be fervent in spirit. Serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope. Be patient in tribulation. Be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. Bless those who persecute you. Bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice. Weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peacefully with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for his written vengeance is mine. I will repay it, says the Lord. To the contrary, if your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink. For by so doing, you will heap burning coals on his head. He kind of sums it up. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. This is how the work of Christ should penetrate every area of our lives. We don't get to hold back. We don't get to hold back areas of our lives and say, God, you can have this area, but not this area. You can have my Sunday, but not my Monday through Friday. The hymn is, I surrender all, not I surrender some. It should penetrate every area of our life. How do we deal with believers? We talked about this, foregoing our Christian liberties for the sake of our brothers and ensuring that we do not cause brothers to stumble, encouraging each other, equipping each other, keeping each other accountable, calling out sin in people's life, lovingly with a thought towards repentance. Paul talks about how we deal with unbelievers in everyday life. Paul talks about how we deal with governing authorities. There is not an area of life that we are not to live godly in. So every area of our life should be impacted by God's act of salvation. A godly life is the outpouring of what God has done for you. It's not an option. It's not a list of rules that, oh man, you better live by them. If God has done the work of salvation in your life, your life will look different. It is the outpouring of what God has done for you. It's the outpouring of theology and doctrine. Knowing what Christ has accomplished, knowing who God is, knowing who man is, knowing the act of salvation that God alone performs, changes our lives. So this is why Paul warns us in our text to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you've been taught. Tells us to watch out for persons that do not serve the Lord Christ, but their own appetites by smooth talk and flattery. Paul says, I want you to be wise to what is good and innocent to what is evil. Why? Because the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. Yet again, this is about the work of God, not us. So let me be clear. What we believe matters. It is so important, just as important as why we believe it. It matters. We need to understand that a gospel that varies from the doctrine taught in Holy Scriptures is no gospel at all. It is a gospel that has no power to save. We don't get to make a God in our image. We don't get to say, my God wouldn't do that, or my God's nothing but love. No, that's not the God of the Bible. Theology and doctrine is important because it is how God has revealed himself through his holy word. So right doctrine and godly living are things that need to be valued, in our church, in our homes, in our everyday lives, but it's also a thing that we must guard and protect. It's the reason that we have statements of faith. It's the reason that we have teaching distinctives. It's the reason that Casey and I don't get to come up here and just do whatever we want. It's the reason that we choose books of the Bibles to preach through rather than topics that we then go try and find text to make work. Because doctrine and theology and godly living are things to be valued and things to be protected. We see a few more greetings in our text in verses 21 through 23, including, this is mainly people that are currently with Paul sending greetings to the Church of Rome. We see Timothy, Tertius, who, if you wanna go down a big rabbit hole, look at the people that believe Paul didn't write it, Tertius did, because Tertius said at the end he wrote it. Tertius penned the words that Paul dictated to him. He was his secretary in this matter. We also see their host where they're staying, Gaius. And then we come to the doxology at the very end of Romans. But before we get to that, I want you to know that it's my prayer that as we think about the book of Romans, as you read it in the future, as you study it in the future, as you meditate on it, that If needed, we look at Romans with a new set of eyes. One that says that Romans is not about us. One that says Romans is about what God has accomplished, what the completed work of Jesus Christ has accomplished. Not look at it as some textbook or some area to go defend our arguments online that we can pull from. It's a book that is all about what Christ accomplished. And it's something that we need to celebrate and revel in and meditate on. It's my prayer that we will glorify God constantly for all the things that he has accomplished. And it's something that will let us desire to have our lives be a reflection of what God has done. So we've spent over a year with Casey and I preaching through this text. So I figured that you've heard enough of us about Romans. So I figured that today I will let Paul have the last word on Romans, because I don't think I have anything better to add. And Paul ends his letter with this beautiful doxology proclaiming all that God has done. So we'll close with this in Romans 16, starting in verse 25. Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages, but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations according to the command of the eternal father to bring about the obedience of faith. to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ, amen. Please join me in prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the work that you have accomplished, for your wisdom, for your sovereignty, for your sovereign plan of salvation that has never changed throughout history. It has existed before the foundation of the world, Lord. Lord, we admit that all of us, each and every one of us are sinners. We believe what your word says, that without the work of Jesus Christ, without a Savior, without this propitiation, without imputed righteousness, Lord, that we don't seek after God. No one is good, not a single one of us, Lord. We thank you that we are the beneficiaries of how you show your glory, Lord. So let our lives be reflective of that. Give us a desire to seek after sanctification, Lord, to seek to live more like Christ, not because of what people will think of us, but to live more like Christ because of what Christ has done. Lord, as we continue worshiping in song this morning, I ask that we would meditate on your word, Lord, that we would examine our own lives, and that the remainder of this time of worship would be pleasing to you. It's in your holy and precious name we pray. Amen.