RADICAL HOPE: Perseverance Produces Character - Romans 5:1-4 Sermon Outline (a blog post for a video sermon for Kenwood Church in Livonia, MI, from March 29, 2020)

RADICAL HOPE:  Perseverance Produces Character (Romans 5:1-4) - March 29, 2020

INTRODUCTION

Radical Hope is not the run of the mill hope. It is not something between a wish and a certainty. Hope that is worth having and worth holding onto is neither cheap nor easy. It is not simple, nor is it immediate. It is developed from suffering and perseverance.

Lou Ferrigno, Franco Columba, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson didn’t get the physiques they have by accident, easily, or immediately. If I told you that you could look like them and didn’t help you understand the work, effort, commitment, and hardship that it takes to become like one of them, my omission would really be a lie. They don’t do this to punish themselves. They have a goal in mind.

Anyone who wants hope must press on, work hard, be committed, and never give up. There is no other way.

“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭5:1-11‬ ‭NIV‬

I. WE SHOULD BE THRILLED TO ENDURE SUFFERING

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.”

‭‭James‬ ‭1:2-8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

temptation

From peirazo; a putting to proof (by experiment (of good), experience (of evil), solicitation, discipline or provocation); by implication, adversity -- temptation, try.

A. The testing of your faith produces perseverance.

B. Perseverance allows us to become what we are supposed to become.

II. PERSEVERANCE IS NOT THE END IN ITSELF

Testing from James 1:3

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 1383: δοκίμιον

δοκίμιον, δοκιμιου, τό (dokimee];

1. equivalent to τό δοκιμάζειν, the proving: τῆς πίστεως, James 1:3.

James and Paul use the same word for perseverance (hypomonan)

By perseverance the snail reached the Ark. - Charles Spurgeon

“Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”

‭‭ Hebrews‬ ‭12:7-11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you.” The goal is growth which can hurt.

Vincent’s Word Studies

Perfect and entire (τέλειοι καὶ ὁλόκληροι)

The two words express different shades of thought. Τέλειοι, perfect, from τέλος, fulfilment or completion (perfect, from perfectus, per factus, made throughout), denotes that which, has reached its maturity or fulfilled the end contemplated. Ολόκληροι, from ὅλος, entire, and κλῆρος, a lot or allotment; that which has all which properly belongs to it; its entire allotment, and is, therefore, intact in all its parts.

A. “So that” you may be MATURE.

1. Reached its maturity.

2. Fulfilled the end contemplated.

B. “So that” you may be COMPLETE.

1. The entire allotment

2. Intact in all its part

Thus Peter (Acts 3:16) says of the restored cripple, "faith has given him this perfect soundness (ὁλοκληρίαν). Compare the familiar phrase, an accomplished man. Note, also, James' repetition of the key-words of his discourse, rejoice, joy, patience, perfect.

C. “So that” you may not be LACKING ANYTHING.

Vincent’s Word Studies

Wanting nothing (ἐν μηδενὶ λειπόμενοι)

Rev., more literally, lacking in nothing. Note James' characteristic corroboration of a positive statement by a negative clause: entire, lacking in nothing ; God that giveth and upbraideth not; in faith, nothing doubting. The conditional negative μηδενὶ, nothing, is used, rather than the absolute negative οὐδενὶ, as implying nothing which may be supposed ; no possible thing.

III. PERSEVERANCE PRODUCES CHARACTER

HELPS Word-studies for “character”

Cognate: 1382 dokimḗ (a feminine noun derived from 1384 /dókimos) – proof of genuineness ("approval, through testing"), a brand of what is "tested and true." See 1381 (dokimazō).

Character is what does not change when it can.

A. There is a purpose.

B. There is a result.

C. There is a hope.

CHALLENGE

Memorize and/or meditate upon James 1:2 & 3. Write down 3 times when you gave up (did not persevere). Write 3 better strategies you could have utilized in those situations. On a scale from 1-5 (1 little chance and 5 overwhelmingly likely) how close are you to quitting on God, on your spouse, your job, your kids, right now? You cannot make it to hope without going through perseverance. To get there you must get there.  You must keep on keeping on,

Pray for one another often. Encourage one another with texts, emails, calls, IM’s, and any other means necessary.