Sermons of Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

What is faith? Is it simply belief in some divine power? Is it merely confidence in belief itself? In this sermon on Romans 4:22–25 titled “Raised for Our Justification,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones seeks to answer the question of what true faith is. Biblical faith is not a generic faith in an idea of God or even salvation, but it an absolute trust in the person and work of Jesus Christ. It is a faith in the message that Jesus has died and risen from the dead. It is a faith that revolves around what Jesus has done for sinners by dying on the cross. It is the death and resurrection of Jesus that saves and makes the Christian right before God. It is Jesus’s work on the cross that brings the believer to a true knowledge of God the Father. The only thing left to do is to believe in Jesus, to come before God in need of His grace and mercy. Just as Abraham believed in the promises of God and it was accounted to him as righteousness, so too all that believe in the promise of God in Jesus Christ will justified before God. This sermon is a message of hope and peace in the salvation that Jesus’s brings.

Evangelicals rightly value truth. Sometimes, however, their reputation for truth is understood as the desire to merely be right. The former leads to freedom, assurance, and grace. The latter leads to a morbid cynicism. Among the problems in the church of Rome was the concern about whether they were right about eating and drinking. In this sermon on the Holy Spirit from Roman 14:17 titled “Peace in the Holy Spirit,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones suggests they were constantly worried about being right on an issue, which led to fearful, anxious, and censorious conditions. The church was a place that contradicted what the kingdom of God is about: peace. The church today is likewise preoccupied with the matter of being right. The result is constantly looking for some defect in one another – being “spiritual detectives” towards each other instead of the family of God. But where is peace in all this? Have Christians forgotten that the purpose of salvation itself is to have peace with God? This gospel of peace spreads, says Dr. Lloyd-Jones, to having peace with ourselves and one another. The kingdom of God is about peace. Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones points to the Prince of Peace in order that Christians may have peace.

The church at Rome was guilty of making the kingdom of God small. Walking into their church, one would have thought the kingdom was about eating and drinking. The apostle Paul forcefully corrects this misunderstanding. But if the kingdom is not of meat and drink, what is it about? In this sermon on Romans 14:17 titled “The Kingdom of God,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones enters into a great debate among commentators on this passage. While some preeminent theologians say righteousness refers to the righteousness written about earlier in Romans 1–3, others suggest Paul has changed the meaning to an ethical righteousness. Dr. Lloyd-Jones seeks to adjudicate the alternative positions and ultimately comes to a mediating position. He follows the immediate context, noting Paul’s deliberate challenge to the Romans preoccupation with minutiae and attitudes towards conduct. Paul’s argument, says Dr. Lloyd-Jones, has been that the kingdom of God is much bigger than moral conduct. Righteousness is clearly much more than ethics in Romans. It refers to our standing before God. Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that Paul is interested in holiness, not morality. Holiness affects the whole person as they are declared righteous by faith. The truly righteous person is no longer preoccupied with minutiae as the Romans were, but is far more concerned with a life pleasing to God. Follow Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones as he wrestles through this passage in Paul’s letter to the Romans.

Lopsided Christianity is an unappealing religion. Divisions and fracturing over minutia have severely harmed evangelism and the church’s witness to the world. The apostle Paul’s battle cry in Romans 14:17 is that the kingdom of God is not about minutia such as meat and drink. Following Paul’s teaching in this sermon on Romans 14:17 titled “A Sense of Balance (1),” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones applies this point to the contemporary church. Today’s Christians are just as guilty of making the kingdom of God about minutia – subsidiary doctrines, church government, particular church leaders. It is vitally important, says Dr. Lloyd-Jones, to preserve a sense of balance in all areas of the Christian life. While not advocating unity at all cost, Dr. Lloyd-Jones does challenge the contemporary church over unnecessary denominational divisions. He is not merely concerned in this message of affirming church unity, but seeks a diagnosis of church division instead. Beyond denominations, Dr. Lloyd-Jones scrutinizes the usefulness of “movements” within evangelical Christianity which isolate a particular part of the faith (i.e. evangelism) from the whole. This can equally lead Christians to lose their sense of balance. Finally, Dr. Lloyd-Jones remarks about the nature and character of theological education and the propensity of institutions to isolate the study of Scripture away from its intended context of worship. In all this, trouble arises when Christians forget what the kingdom of God is about.

Teaching on the conscience is relatively sparse in Scripture. The topic occurs in only a few passages in Paul’s letters so many Christians are either uninformed about the conscience or perhaps confused. How vital is it to the Christian life and what is Scripture’s teaching on it? In a sermon dedicated entirely to key questions regarding the conscience, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones posits that the apostle Paul’s teaching on the conscience is one of the most important subjects for the family of God. In his sermon on Romans 14:14–16 titled “Conscience,” Dr. Lloyd-Jones brings related passages on the conscience together in order to evaluate key terms and answer basic questions on the conscience. Drawing from Romans 14 and 1 Corinthians 10, Dr. Lloyd-Jones analyzes the context of strong and weak Christians on matters of opinion. With regards to these indifferent matters, the conscience is ultimate. Christians are not to exercise their liberty in such a way that it comes under the condemnation of another believer’s conscience. Disregarding another’s conscience or one’s own can have devastating results. As such, Dr. Lloyd-Jones looks in-depth at Scriptural teaching on a defiled and seared conscience. Finally, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones provides listeners with the two main functions of the conscience in the Christian life.

How does one approach difficult problems and issues in the church? Do they see how each part relates to the whole or simply attack the problem directly? In his sermon on Romans 14:13–15 titled “Clean or Unclean?” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones calls for paying attention to the apostle Paul’s method in dealing with one of the premier problems in the early church. After one pays attention to the apostle’s method, they also need to follow his teaching. Dr. Lloyd-Jones brings out the Lord’s teaching on loving one another and combines it with Paul’s words found in Romans. As the church disagrees on matters indifferent – like whether a Christian should eat meat – the love commandment becomes all the more appropriate. One’s opinions, says Dr. Lloyd-Jones, may be right but if they have forgotten love for their fellow Christian then the right opinion may be a cause of serious trouble. But what is the apostle Paul’s teaching on clean and unclean food? Are Christians prohibited from eating certain foods? Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones navigates the intricacies of the Mosaic Law and the tension of the early church between Jew and Gentile.

The fear of death grips humanity. Humanity is death’s servant but people in the West live each day suppressing the reality that death is imminent. How does the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ speak to this terror? In this sermon on Romans 14:6–12 titled “Lord of the Dead,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones expounds on Paul’s teaching that Christ is the Lord over death. Salvation, in other words, is not merely forgiveness of sins, but also deliverance from the last enemy – death. While the Christian experiences freedom from the condemnation of the law through the cross and resurrection of Christ, they also experience victory over the devil, who holds unregenerate humanity under the fear of death. Remarkably, says Dr. Lloyd-Jones, Christians are no longer servants of death, but death is actually the servant of the Christian. Death is an entrance to glory and eternal life with God. Through the victory of the resurrection, all fear of death vanishes. Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones encourages with the wonderful truth of Christ’s lordship over death and the victory Christians share because of Him.

What is the future of the Christian? In this sermon on Romans 13:11–14 titled “The Christian’s Future,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preaches about what is awaiting the Christian. All over Scripture, the answer is clear— Christians are waiting for the coming day of the Lord. Contrary to what some people say, Scripture tells that this coming is a visible and physical coming of the Lord. At this time Jesus will be coming to complete His work. After passing judgment, He will set up His eternal kingdom. What are the consequences of this? First, Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that time will be no more. One of the main effects this will have is on the condition of the world. It will undo the results of the fall. All things will be restored to their original, perfect condition that existed before humanity sinned. Additionally, there will be a judgment and for believers, a judgment about rewards— the righteous are promised in Scripture that they will receive rewards corresponding to their acts on earth. Judgment for the wicked involves both the body and the spirit. However, the righteous are promised eternal life in the presence of the Lord. Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones helps the reader grasp the vision for what the future holds if one has repented and believed in Jesus for forgiveness from their sins and is a child of God.