Home Worship Planning Preaching Resources Book of Romans, Sermon Starters — Week 1

Book of Romans, Sermon Starters — Week 1

Evangelistic Preaching Helps for Proper 4 (not observed in 2017)

Lectionary Readings

Evangelistic Preaching Tips

Key Questions: How would you use these texts to revive and renew existing church members? What texts would you use when preaching to pre-Christians and de-churched (church dropouts, inactive church members) people?

Romans Preaching Sermon Series Notes

Reading: Romans 1:16-17, 3:22b-28, (29-31) [An Evangelistic Approach]

Romans 1:17: For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, "The one who is righteous will live by faith."

  • Would you consider yourself righteous? Explore the futility of a "works righteousness" approach to life. How much is enough for one to be considered righteous? Compare that to the righteousness available to us through faith in Jesus Christ.

Romans 3:23-24: Since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

  • Not Quite Enough — Explode the fallacy of being a "good person" without God. Highlight grace as God's free gift to anyone who believes in Jesus Christ.

Reading: Romans 1:16-17, 3:22b-28, (29-31) [A Renewal Approach]

Romans 1:16: For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

  • Don't Blush -- Explore the virtues of living publicly and privately under the power of God's salvation.
  • Undercover Christians? When others observe our lives, how will they know we're Christians? [Have we gone undercover because we're ashamed of the gospel?]
  • Got Faith? The "Got Milk?" ads showed evidence that a person had just drunk milk. What evidence do we have that demonstrates that we have faith?

Evangelistic Preaching Points

  1. Salvation comes through faith in Jesus Christ, yet many people believe that salvation can be "earned" through good deeds. Address this fallacy. Consider sharing a brief recap of Wesley's conversion experience on Aldersgate Street.
  2. Expound on the transformation that must occur within people who live by faith in Jesus Christ. What habits, beliefs, and behaviors change when people live by faith?
  3. The non-Christian population does not respond to the rhetoric of faith. They respond to the action of faith. How do individuals and your collective congregation effectively "walk your talk"?

Provide Opportunities for Faith Response

  1. Provide an opportunity for people to explore what it means to live by faith through a small group experience, such as a Covenant Disciple group. (Please see the Covenant Discipleship website at https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/leadership-resources/covenant-discipleship.)
  2. Consider starting a sermon-based small group. A sermon-based small group is a lecture/lab small-group model that takes the sermon and digs deeper into its main points and application.
  3. Invite people into a short-term mission ministry. Consider practical ways in which your church can put faith into action within your church constituency and community.

Provide Opportunities for Follow Up

  1. Encourage those who participate in the short-term mission ministry to pray about and discern future short-term mission ministries in which they would be willing to participate.
  2. Mobilize ongoing one-time opportunities to share faith in everyday situations. Read and try ideas suggested in resources such as Irresistible Evangelism and Becoming a Contagious Christian.

Online Resources

Helpful Print Resources

Resources for Romans

Follow Up Resource Available in pdf
Small Groups & Accountability: The Wesleyan Way of Christian Formation, by Steven W. Manskar, Director of Accountable Discipleship, Discipleship Ministries

General Evangelism Resources

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