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Sermon #5506

Declared with Power

A Sermon on Romans 1:1-4

Originally preached April 22, 1962

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Scripture

Romans 1:1-4 ESV KJV
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God …

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Sermon Description

As the West continues to turn its back on Christianity, Christians wonder what their response should be. What is the church’s answer to the powerful forces of unbelief? In this Easter sermon on Romans 1:1­–4 titled “Declared with Power,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones reminds Christians of the Son of God in power. How did the Son of God attain such power? If the incarnation is characterized by Christ’s humiliation, the resurrection of the Son of God is characterized by His power. But Dr. Lloyd-Jones warns that there is no power if one denies the literal bodily resurrection. As liberal Christianity reduces the resurrection to a “spiritual” resurrection by asserting His followers experienced Christ in a dream, vision or trance, Dr. Lloyd-Jones corrects such skepticism by pointing to the apostolic preaching in the early church. The apostles preached the fact of the resurrection. The resurrection, according to Paul, was an event where the Son of God was openly appointed in power. Without the fact of the resurrection, the story of Jesus Christ does not make sense. Without the fact of the resurrection, Christ’s death on the cross does not make sense. Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones proclaims God’s good news of salvation and warns of the Son of God who will come again in power.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. Paul introduces himself as a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the Gospel of God.
  2. The Gospel of God is the good news of salvation and deliverance provided by God. It is not a message of good cheer or vague optimism.
  3. The essence of the Christian message is what God has done through Jesus Christ. Christianity is Christ - his person and work.
  4. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is essential to the Gospel. Without it, there is no Christian message.
  5. The resurrection proves who Jesus is - the Son of God. It was a public proclamation of this fact.
  6. The resurrection explains Jesus' life, death, and present position. He came in weakness but was raised in power.
  7. Jesus is now seated at the right hand of God, ever living to intercede for us, and with all power and authority.
  8. Jesus will return as judge of all the earth. The resurrection assures us of this.
  9. We must trust in Jesus to be blessed and escape judgment. We must "kiss the Son."

The Book of Romans

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.