Friday, July 10, 2009

Intended

Yesterday, Paul provided the foundation to his letter and the answer to our problem. Today, Paul explains the problem ... we will be judged/punished for our sins. Paul explains that everyone will be judged ... those who only know about God through His creation or what is called “general revelation” (Romans 1:18-32) and those who have received a “special revelation” (Romans 2:1-3:8). In this case, Paul is referring to the specific laws God laid out for the Jews in Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy. In the midst of this section, I found four verses that were very relevant to my life ...


Romans 2
1 You may think you can condemn such people, but you are just as bad, and you have no excuse! When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge others do these very same things.
2 And we know that God, in his justice, will punish anyone who does such things.
3 Since you judge others for doing these things, why do you think you can avoid God’s judgment when you do the same things?
4 Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?


Intended. As Jesus followers, we sometimes get focused on the mistakes that everyone else make. Okay, that may not be the reality; but that is definitely the perception. The “kindness” Paul is referring to is the “Good News” we read about yesterday. That kindness, that forgiveness from the judgment/punishment we deserve, was intended to encourage us to make wiser, more God-honoring decisions ... to encourage others to experience that same kindness, that same forgiveness. It was never intended to be transformed into a weapon used to bully people into following Jesus.

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Faith

Today, we begin our journey through Paul’s letter to the Jesus followers in Rome. Remember, he is writing this letter to a group that he has never met. He is laying out the foundation of what he believes and teaches in preparation for when he gets to visit them.


Romans 1
8 Let me say first that I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith in him is being talked about all over the world.
9 God knows how often I pray for you. Day and night I bring you and your needs in prayer to God, whom I serve with all my heart by spreading the Good News about his Son.
10 One of the things I always pray for is the opportunity, God willing, to come at last to see you. 11 For I long to visit you so I can bring you some spiritual gift that will help you grow strong in the Lord.
12 When we get together, I want to encourage you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours.
13 I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, that I planned many times to visit you, but I was prevented until now. I want to work among you and see spiritual fruit, just as I have seen among other Gentiles.
14 For I have a great sense of obligation to people in both the civilized world and the rest of the world, to the educated and uneducated alike.
15 So I am eager to come to you in Rome, too, to preach the Good News.
16 For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes - the Jew first and also the Gentile.
17 This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”


Faith. For me, the most important phrase/thought comes in verse 17 ... “This is accomplished from start to finish by faith”. The reason it is so important is because it is counterintuitive to our nature, our innate desire to earn things in this life. You can’t earn a right relationship with God. You have to accept it by faith. Faith that Jesus is the Savior God had promised. Faith that what Jesus did on the cross for us was enough. Surprisingly, it is a lot harder than it sounds; but we can never be reminded of it enough because it is the heart of our salvation ... our hope.

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Different

Every Wednesday, we review the previous weekend’s message. This past weekend, Jonathan talked about the fact that Jesus came to bring a revolution ... a revolution driven by love and compassion and generosity. Here are a couple of verses he referenced ...


Matthew 5
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.
14 “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.
15 No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.
16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.


Mark 10
42 So Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them.
43 But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant,
44 and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else.
45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Luke 7
37 “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven.


Different. Jesus’ words were truly revolutionary. What could happen if we, as Jesus followers, lived out these words ... if our lives acted as a preservative in this world, if we served instead of demanding service, if we stopped playing Pong in our relationships? Can it be different among us? Can we continue the revolution and help change the world?

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Romans

This week, we are going to begin working through another letter written by Paul, one of the early church leaders. Before we jump into the letter (on Thursday), I wanted to offer you a review of Paul’s journey(s), and a timetable for the letters we have already read, written by Dr. Thomas Constable ...


“Following (Paul’s) conversion on the Damascus Road (A.D. 34), Paul preached in Damascus, spent some time in Arabia, and then returned to Damascus. Next he traveled to Jerusalem where he met briefly with Peter and James. He then moved on to Tarsus, which was evidently his base of operations and from which he ministered for about six years (A.D. 37-43). In response to an invitation from Barnabas he moved to Antioch of Syria where he served for about five years (A.D. 43-48). He and Barnabas then set out on their so called first missionary journey into Asia Minor (A.D. 48-49). Returning to Antioch, Paul wrote ... “Galatians” to strengthen the churches that he and Barnabas had just planted in Asia Minor (A.D. 49). After the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15), Paul took Silas and began his second missionary journey (A.D. 50-52) through Asia Minor and on westward into the Roman provinces of Macedonia and Achaia. From Corinth, Paul wrote 1 and 2 Thessalonians (A.D. 51). He proceeded to Ephesus by ship and then on to Syrian Antioch. From there he set out on his third missionary journey (A.D. 53-57). Passing through Asia Minor he arrived in Ephesus where he labored for three years (A.D. 53-56). During this time he wrote 1 Corinthians (A.D. 56). Finally Paul left Ephesus and traveled by land to Macedonia where he wrote 2 Corinthians (A.D. 56). He continued south and spent the winter of A.D. 56-57 in Corinth. There he wrote ... “Romans” and sent it by Phoebe (16:1-2) to the Roman church.”


You can check out more of Dr. Constable’s notes on Paul’s letter to the Roman church by using the following link...
http://soniclight.com/constable/notes/pdf/romans.pdf

You can also find a map of these trips by using this link...
http://www.ccel.org/bible/phillips/CN092MAPS1.htm