The Word of Faith (Romans 10:1-13)
Have you ever heard the term, “Roman’s Road”?
It is a “formula” helpful in sharing the gospel by taking key verses from the book of Romans. It’s not really a road, but a few bricks removed and shown to a potential believer hoping he or she will come to a saving faith.
The formula breaks down because that’s not the way the Lord does things. The best way to discover the life-changing power of God’s Word, especially Romans, is to engage in it to learn little by little and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us.
We’re walking the real Roman’s Road, here and there stopping to discover wisdom, understanding, and knowledge like villages along the path. We learn by staying for a while.
Today is no different. The lesson here has echoed down the annals of history and preached by absolutely every preacher ever since Paul wrote it: Confess with your mouth that Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that He was raised from the dead, and you will be saved.
But what about faith?
Faith
Faith is what you bring to the Sacred Place and faith, ever sweeter, is what you take with you when you leave. Only the fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
God refuses to leave us ignorant and uninformed when we come to Him in faith.
… The message is near you, in your mouth and in your heart. This is the message of faith that we proclaim. If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.
Romans 10:8b-10
Paul was addressing this chapter to his fellow Jews. He was talking about a zeal, not faith, for God—a zeal without knowledge. No matter how zealous we are, it is never enough to know God.
To know God intimately is to trust Him. The Holy Spirit ushers us into His presence by faith. We are drawn into His loving presence by faith.
Sweet fellowship with Jesus comes in the footsteps of faith.
Without a doubt, His salvation is near for those who revere Him… Unfailing love and truth have met on their way; righteousness and peace have kissed one another. Truth will spring from the earth like a plant, and justice will look down from the sky… Justice will come before Him, marking out a path, setting a way for His feet.
Psalm 85:9a,10-11 and 13 The Voice.
The just will live by faith—to know God is to breathe the breath of God.
Trustworthy is first-hand knowledge. I suppose, if you could gather all kinds of information about God in a day, you would come away with some knowledge of Him. But information is merely skin deep and shallow. We must taste and see that the Lord is good, first-hand. In our hearts, He is our most precious Salvation.
By faith, we enter His Presence and by faith He keeps us there.
Faith is extending an empty hand to God to receive His gift of grace.
A.W. Pink
The Word is near you?
… The message is near you, in your mouth and in your heart…
Romans 10:8b
and
This command that I give you today is certainly not too difficult or beyond your reach. It is not in heaven so that you have to ask, “who will go to heaven, get it for us, and proclaim it to us, so we may follow it?” And it is not across the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea, get it for us, and proclaim it to us so that we may follow?”
But the message is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, so that you may follow it.
See, today I have set before you life and prosperity, death and adversity. For I am commanding you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commands, statutes and ordinances so that you may live and multiply, and the LORD may bless you…
Deuteronomy 30:11-16a
The Word is near to us, and these verses speak volumes of God’s changelessness.
They are the words we need to be faithful to God, and we should talk about them in a way that the power of His Word etched on our heart and engraved in our mind. Life and death were always a part of God’s Word then and even now, He calls us to choose. It is a message of love, for He does not want us to decide death.
God’s timeless word refuses to leave us ignorant or begging for knowledge.
The message, Sacred Scripture, is in your hand. Read it out loud and at the sound of your voice the message will be on your tongue and in your heart. What God has breathed out is now residing in your soul.
As we read His Word, we are walking in the Spirit. It is impossible to walk daily with Him and not know Him. We know God in a relationship, and that knowledge comes from His Word and daily fellowship.
The message is clear and plain, not concealed in mysteries. We do have to climb the highest mountain or cross the deepest sea to find it. The Holy Spirit comes and words whispered with God are true and right. Our soul becomes perfectly prepared soil for the seed of God’s Word. Our hearts burn within us.
The Word is a trustworthy compass to the heart of God.
Like manna from heaven, we are given our daily share—bread from the mouth of God… He speaks comprehensibly into our soul, calling us to come to heart fellowship, so we may know Him. He speaks, so let us tremble at His Word.
He speaks, so we will listen, and His desire is cultivating a love relationship with us. Father God is eager to teach, guide, correct, and train us in right living.
Knowledge of God comes gently to the receptive soul—the yielded heart. Precept upon precept, line by line—a little here and a little there—is life changing.
We discover God in His Word. You can no more separate God from His Word than separate a man from his heart and still expect him to live.
“The Word is the face, the countenance, the representation of God, in whom He is brought to light and made known.”
Clement of Alexandria.
Live by Faith
Romans is a powerful letter to the Church. As I read Chapter 10, I asked myself some important questions:
- What is the correct and vital knowledge of God?
- Where is His revealed will?
By faith, I believe Sacred Scripture is the answer.
I accept that my human nature sabotages every effort I make to stand in right standing with God. If perfectly following the law didn’t work for the Jews, then why do I think it will work for me?
The zeal for perfection is worthless in the sight of God.
Don’t get me wrong. There is no doubt in my soul that God’s law is perfect. The law is not empty, worthless, or obsolete. It leads us to Christ. The law is fulfilled in Christ.
Christ is the perfect sacrifice to save and secure our loving relationship with God. Christ Jesus gently grants us righteousness—right standing with God.
Free, we enter His presence. He’s as close as the breath on your lips and as near as the beating of your heart. My faith is secure in Him.
Saving Faith
Faith is not something we conjure up. It is a gift from God, and saving faith will not fail. Faith is not a mere intellectual agreement—it is a matter of the will. Saving faith walks with God in spirit, soul, and body. At the core of our soul, that deep inward trust in Christ, is that abiding saving faith.
We need only acknowledge and confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord—recognizing His power, authority, and majesty. We believe with our whole hearts because He who inclines His ear to hear also knows us intimately “by heart”.
The Lord of hosts accepts our humble and believing hearts. At His touch, we are free from guilt and shame. We are at liberty to fellowship with Him in a state of reconciliation and faith.
Faith! This is our with God life.
With God Life
To enter the with God Life, we must call Him Lord and believe it. This is the word of faith: confess with your mouth and believe in your heart. He is the Lord, abounding in love and mercy. His blessings are rich and unlimited.
He loves you with an everlasting love. Let no shadow of changing cross your path. We aren’t here to earn His favor, but enter His fellowship with grace, mercy, and love.
- To call Him “Lord” is to give Him the supreme place in your life and pledge to Him an absolute obedience in reverent worship—a living, breathing, and acceptable worship.
- To call Him “Lord” is to see Him, with your soul, as you literally relinquish all rights to self.
- To call Him “Lord” is to keep ourselves in companionable fellowship. Jesus is not a figure in history, but a living Presence—a victorious Presence.
The lesson we learn today is simply this: Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
The Eternal your God is standing right here among you, and He is the champion who will rescue you. He will joyfully celebrate over you; he will rest in His love for you; He will joyfully sing because of you like a new husband.
Zephaniah 3:16 The Voice
