Romans 4
Romans 4:20-22
20) He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
21) And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
22) And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.
Abraham was a man full of faith. God said he would be father to a nation, and he therefore lived according to that promise. Okay, so he got a little side tracked with the whole Ishmael business, but even when he had his son Isaac he was then willing to sacrifice him in the certain knowledge that God would provide a better way to fulfil his promises.
One night a house caught fire and a young boy was forced to flee to the roof. The father stood on the ground below with outstretched arms, calling to his son, "Jump! I'll catch you." He knew the boy had to jump to save his life. All the boy could see, however, was flame, smoke, and blackness. As can be imagined, he was afraid to leave the roof. His father kept yelling: "Jump! I will catch you." But the boy protested, "Daddy, I can't see you." The father replied, "But I can see you and that's all that matters."
Faith has nothing to do with what you can see, and everything to do with what God sees. Through the power of God who can see the promise he has given us, we have assurance that he will carry it out and so we then can do our part. What is it that persuades us that God will fulfil his promises? Well, he has performed the greatest thing of all for us in giving Jesus to pay the price for our sins, and just read the bible, look how many promises lead to Jesus. Over 400 prophesies in the Old Testament were fulfilled in him. If he can keep all those then certainly he can keep his promises to us.
Introducing Paul, how will you live your life? Listen Now
Romans 3
Romans 3:23-26
23) For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
24) Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
25) Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
26) To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
The first verse here is one of the more well known verse of scripture, but how many have read the verses before and after? Hopefully you just read them, if not then go find a bible. Full of phrases like, “their throat is an open sepulchre”. Vivid imagery!
Okay, so all have sinned, and none can match God’s standard, but the whole gospel is given to us in four verses, don’t miss it.
- All have sinned
- Salvation is free, given by grace
- Christ paid the price (redemption)
- Salvation comes through faith in his blood sacrifice (the cross)
- In him we are forgiven
- God did this to make known his righteousness (to witness)
So, repent - believe - receive - witness. This is the gospel in a nutshell, now wherever you are today on that four step path, move on to the next step. Know the author of your salvation and go tell others.
Romans 2
Romans 2:12-15
12) For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law;
13) (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.
14) For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:
15) Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)
Many people use this passage to excuse ignoring the law of God, that is the bible as known to the Jews. Others use it to say that even those that do not believe the bible will still be judged, they have their own standard in their conscience which they still can’t live up to. Both these things are of course false. It is self evident in that many murders of the worst kind have done so without any problems with their conscience, and being judged by their own standards would set them free!
Lets get this the right way round. “as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law”. Anyone and everyone who have not known the law, and by extension have not heard God’s word, are going to die not knowing God’s word. They will end up in Hell, because they have not heard the word of God to correct them and guide them to Christ. What does this mean to us? Get out there and tell them! Do you really want your friends to burn for eternity? Show them the truth of God’s word so that they can come to salvation.
On the other hand, “as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law”. If you are living by rules and not by faith, you will fail the judgement to.
Romans 1
Romans 1:24-27
24) Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
25) Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
26) For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
27) And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
In today’s permissive society anyone questioning the rights of two or more consenting adults to do whatever they want together, no matter who they are, is seen as homophobic, closed minded, conservative, and not respecting the human rights of others. So called, “human rights” law has a lot to answer for! As far as God is concerned man is born in sin and so the only human right is a destiny of suffering, an eternity in hell. Anything, and everything that is going wrong in the world today is a direct result of mankind’s desire to put himself higher than God. The start of mankind was God saying, “let us make man in our own image”. Unfortunately mankind has since then repeatedly made their own God in their own image.
God loved the world so much he gave his own son, for everyone who will repent and believe, regardless of their current sinful state. We are to express that same love to everyone in order to bring them to salvation. At the same time remember that anyone deviating from God’s intended one man, one woman marriage relationship has remade God to fit their desires. Until they realise the one true God they will not repent and change to follow him.
2 Corinthians 13
2 Corinthians 13:11-14
11) Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.
12) Greet one another with an holy kiss.
13) All the saints salute you.
14) The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.
When in Italy I got very used to greeting people with a kiss. There is an etiquette to it however. For starters, it depends how well you know someone. For men kissing men this means only do it inside the family, inside the Christian family (the church), and sometimes with very close friends. For non-believers it would basically be family, and very close friends. this really emphasises at a cultural level that the body of Christ is a big family.
Here in the UK men would never kiss men, though it is becoming more common as a greeting between women. Sadly the growing acceptance of homosexuallity in society has had the effect of suppressing a close family greeting for fear it is misunderstood. Yet another case of distortion of the truth by sin.
Being of good comfort, of one mind, and living in peace are all more symptoms of us growing together as a wider family. Many physical families struggle with these same issues of course, but in both senses families are to be united, and we, as the body of Christ are to be united. How close are you to your brothers in Christ? Do you care for one another as if you were family? If not, then you are not living as God has instructed. Live a life of unity with each other, and live as one with God. It is a tall order, but it is to be our aim.
2 Corinthians 12
2 Corinthians 12:8-10
8) For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
9) And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
10) Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.
Strong men and women do not need help. The weak need all the help they can get. Paradoxically, the stronger you are, the less you are willing to ask for help, and when you can no longer manage on your own, still you try. The weak, on the other hand, know they cannot do it and so ask for help at the start. The truth is that in comparison to God we are all as feeble as mice, it is just that most of the time we don’t realise it. Therefore it is best when we realise we need his help. This only happens when we are weak. How many people do you know who say they do not need God, they as fine on their own, have no problems, and Christians are just needy people seeking an emotional crutch? They are deluding themselves. We all need help, but we don’t all see it.
How many times have you prayed and had no answer? Paul prayed three times that this problem would leave him, and it wasn’t until the third time that he heard an answer, which was “No”. I believe God answered him even on the first time, but he did not listen to the reply. After so many years of seeing miracles and healing happen instantly Paul just didn’t expect a negative answer. He did not listen to God, but just assumed swift healing would follow. Does that sound familiar? Finally of course Paul listened and understood.
Seek God earnestly and listen for the answer. Recognise your weakness and expect God to give you the strength to do his will.
