Introduction
In the last Bible study when we studied Romans 1:1-7, we
learned the typical way Paul began his letters to churches and Christians he visited
or aimed to visit. He began this letter to the Romans similarly. From the
beginning verses of the letter to the Romans, Paul stated to the readers and
hearers his authority for teaching and preaching. He told of Jesus making him
his apostle. Paul made sure his intended hearers and readers recognized his background
and authority for teaching and preaching so they would not doubt his
earnestness or the authenticity of the gospel of which he spoke. Besides this,
he ensured the people knew the basics of the gospel.
From the end of verse six, Paul told us to whom he wrote
this letter, the Roman Christians. He called them saints and used the word hagios, which means to be different as
in set apart from other things, holy unlike other things that are unholy. Paul
said God made them holy by cleansing them from their sins and setting them
apart to be His children through the death of His Son, Jesus Christ.
After identifying the addressees, Paul greeted the Roman
Christians with a prayer of blessing on them. He asked for God’s grace, His
favor, to be on them. He asked for God’s peace to be on them, too. This peace
for which Paul prayed is greater than the legendary peace of Rome, pax Romana. He understood two types of
grace and peace exist-that from God and that found in the world that is not
everlasting, but fades.
In this Bible study, we will consider Romans 1:8-17. In
these few verses, Paul gave thanks for the Roman Christians, thanks for who
they are and what they did, and thanks for what God would do for and to him because
of being with them. He told in detail about what he was thankful regarding the
Roman Christians. Paul then proclaimed his great desire to be with them and
teach them so they would be established and encouraged. Along with his
thankfulness for the Romans, he expressed his obligation because of Jesus making
him an apostle to preach and teach Greeks and barbarians, and wise and foolish.
The Roman Christians would have understood Paul’s heart of care for the
salvation of every person no matter their background.
The final element of any Pauline letter was the
incorporation of a summary of the main theme of his writing. Paul made sure
people understood the purpose of his writing. He more than alluded to it in his
opening statements. For the Romans, Paul stated the theme of this letter is the
righteousness of God. Let’s now study verses eight through seventeen of Romans
chapter one.
Thanksgiving
Another of Paul’s typical inclusions in the opening of his
letters to other churches and here in Romans was thanksgiving to God. For what
did he thank God regarding the Romans? Let’s consider what he said in verses
eight through ten. Paul said,
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all,
because your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world. For God,
whom I serve in my spirit in the preaching of the gospel of His Son, is my
witness as to how unceasingly I make mention of you, always in my prayers
making request, if perhaps now at last by the will of God I may succeed in
coming to you. (NASB)
Paul told the Romans two things for which he prayed to God
in these three verses. He said he thanked God for the Romans. Why would Paul
thank God for them? He said people around the whole world proclaimed their
faith (vs. 8). Paul said he thanked God for the faith of the Roman Christians. Remember
the history of Jews and Christians in Rome was one of persecution. (See the
Bible study titled Romans, the Background.)
The Roman Christians began by worshiping with the Jews, God-worshipers, in
their synagogues in Rome. They identified with the Jews because they worshiped
Yahweh, too. Since the Christians of Rome were a small group, they worshiped
alongside the Jews. The leaders of Rome, therefore, considered the Christians
of Rome an offshoot of Jews, not a separate faith. When the Emperors of Rome
expelled the Jews, the Jewish-background believers in Jesus also had to leave
Rome. That left the Gentile-background believers in Rome with no one else with
whom to worship Yahweh and nowhere to worship so they began small house
churches. When the Emperors who expelled the Jews died or repealed their
expulsion, the Jewish-background believers returned to find established
Christian churches in Rome. Through the series of these Emperors, the
Christians of Rome kept the faith. Their conviction of the truth about Jesus
Christ remained firm, and they continued to worship the Lord despite the
upheaval. For this, Paul thanked God for the Roman Christians. These
Christians, though faced with loss of worship place, home, leadership, and expulsion
from Rome, stood strong in their faith in Jesus Christ.
With verse nine, Paul told these believers how big his heart
was for them. He said he prayed unceasingly to God, whom he served, for the
Roman Christians. Paul noted he served God. He willingly submitted himself as a
bondservant for God’s service as an apostle to proclaim the gospel of Jesus
Christ, God’s Son. Paul, as God’s servant, claimed in verse nine God was his
witness how often he prayed for the Romans. Claiming God as his witness was like
taking an oath. God witnessed Paul’s unceasing care and prayer for the Roman
Christians. No one higher exists and Paul attested to that with this oath emphatically
letting the readers and hearers know if he lied, God would judge him. With this
statement, the Roman Christians would realize without doubt Paul’s love for
them since he prayed for them unceasingly. Paul loved the Roman Christians
enough that he prayed for them ceaselessly and thanked God for them.
·
Do you
pray unceasingly for anyone? Why or why not?
·
When you
pray for someone regularly, do you find your heart grows closer to that person?
·
Why did
Paul pray unceasingly for the Roman Christians? Is this why you pray
unceasingly?
·
Do you
suppress godly love for others and keep yourself from praying unceasingly for other
people?
·
Could it
be that you have not willingly submitted to God, and that keeps you from
praying ceaselessly for other people?
Paul’s Heart
Strengthening Believers
Paul’s love for the Roman Christians went beyond praying for
them when he remembered them. He desired to be with them. In Acts 19:21, Paul
said, “I must also see Rome.” This “must” comes from the word dei and means what is imperative. Paul
said he must absolutely appear in Rome. “See” comes from the Greek word horao and means to see, look upon, and
experience; to see with the mind. Paul prayed for the Roman Christians because of what they
experienced and their continued faith. He prayed for them to continue to be a
testimony to God through their faith to the world. Paul desired to be with the
Roman Christians to see them and experience their life with them because of his
love for them. He trusted and prayed to God that he would “succeed” in going to
the Romans (vs. 10). “Succeed” comes from the Greek word euodoo and means to grant prosperous and expeditious journey. Paul
prayed God would grant him permission to go to Rome to see and be with them,
and to be His apostle to them proclaiming the gospel there. He wanted to go at once,
but he waited for God to make a way for him and send him. Though Paul’s desire
was to be in Rome immediately, God’s timing for his visit there was for later.
The latter was truly Paul’s heart. He said in verses eleven
and twelve,
For I long to see you that I may impart some spiritual gift
to you, that you may be established, that is that I may be encouraged together
while among you, each of us by the other’s faith, both yours and mine. (NASB)
Paul desired with his whole being to be with the Roman
Christians and to be in Rome. Why he did it comes in the succeeding verses. He
wanted to become acquainted with them by experience, not just by hearing about
them. Paul wanted to impart something to them. “Impart” comes from the Greek
word metadidomi and means to impart,
share, or give over. Paul said he wanted to impart a spiritual gift. If we
conclude his thought there instead of going through the end of the verse and
going through verse twelve, we will make a mistake in understanding. Paul did
not mean he wanted to lay hands on the people so they would receive spiritual
gifts. This impartation of gifts is tied to the purpose of Paul’s letter. The
purpose of Paul’s letter, he said, was to establish them and make them strong,
and to encourage them. Verse eleven is emphasized and given its purpose with
verse twelve. Paul did not emphasize his laying on of hands to pass supernatural
spiritual gifts to people. His passing on of a gift came through his preaching
of the gospel. The Romans probably had not received the preaching before by an
apostle of Christ. Paul desired to be there to teach them the full truth of the
Gospel so they would have a firm foundation and stand strong in their belief as
they faced persecution then and in their future, especially since Jews had
faced persecution by Emperors in the recent past already.
The “being established” Paul spoke of at the end of verse
eleven means to place firmly, fix, strengthen, and make constant. Paul’s gift
of teaching and preaching the gospel in Rome would help the Christians there to
hear the whole truth of the gospel so they would stand firm and constantly fixed
in their faith with the hope God gives through their salvation by Jesus Christ.
He recognized a difference between standing firm through one’s own strength and
personal fortitude and that given by God through salvation and the Holy Spirit.
Paul loved the Roman Christians because God put His own love for them in his
heart. Because Paul loved them, he wanted to make sure they understood well so
they could stay strong through their faith in God and the empowering of the
Holy Spirit.
Paul continued his thought from verse eleven. The first thought
was he longed to be with the Roman Christians so he could impart a gift for
their establishment. The second thought is he longed to be with them so he would
be encouraged with them by their mutual faith. The word “encouraged” comes from
the Greek word sumparakaleo and means
to call upon, invite, or exhort at the same time together or to strengthen with
others. Paul wanted to be together with other believers to strengthen them and
gain strength from them. Remember, the Roman Christians knew about persecution or
knew it from firsthand experience. Paul experienced persecution, too,
throughout his ministry as an apostle of Jesus. He mentioned it often in his
writings and spoke of his “thorn in the flesh.” Paul did not want to go to Rome
just to give encouragement. He wanted to receive it, too. Christians who gather
together find this happens as they associate, teach, strengthen, and pray for
each other. These are some of the reasons God calls His children to worship Him
in His temples, synagogues, and churches. Each Christian can bless others
through the blessings with which God blessed him or her. They reciprocally and mutually
encourage each other by their faith.
·
Do you
attend church regularly? Why or why not?
·
What does
Paul’s spoken need for encouragement make you feel or think?
·
Consider
finding an evangelical Christian church near you, attending, interacting with
the people there, and praying for God to bless you and the people there with
whom you meet.
Proclaiming the Gospel
Paul’s first love was God. Circumcised on the eighth day, and
trained as most Jewish boys in the Talmud, Paul studied under Rabbi Gamaliel strictly
according to the law of the fathers of Israel. He was zealous for God and
persecuted the Way, Jesus-followers (Acts 22:3-4) (NASB). Even while Paul was a
Pharisee, he loved God, though some might say he loved the law more. While on
his way to Damascus to persecute and take Jewish Jesus-followers from there to
Jerusalem for punishment (Acts 22:5), Jesus met him in a very bright light.
From that day, Paul loved Jesus and the God of salvation more than he did the
law. At the moment Jesus met him, he became blind. Jesus told Paul to go to
Damascus where He would reveal His appointed purpose for him. Paul entered
Damascus and the priest, Ananias, told Paul, “The God of our fathers has
appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One, and to hear an
utterance from His mouth. For you will be a witness for Him to all men of what
you have seen and heard.” [Acts 22:14-15 (NASB)]. From that moment, his heart
for God leaped to its greatest height. Paul’s love for the unsaved grew because
of God’s heart within him.
This heart of God within Paul compelled him to preach and
teach the gospel. It gave him the desire to go to Rome. In Romans 1:13-15, Paul
said,
And I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I
have planned to come to you, and have been prevented thus far, in order that I
might obtain some fruit among you also, even among the rest of the Gentiles. I
am under obligation both to the Greeks and to the barbarians, both to the wise
and to the foolish. Thus, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also
who are in Rome. (NASB)
As he said in Romans 1:13, he “often planned” to go to them
and God prevented it so far. Before we sail past this point to understand why
Paul said he planned to go to Rome, let’s consider what he meant when he said
he “had been prevented” from going earlier. The word “prevented” comes from the
Greek word koluo and means to hinder,
prevent, or forbid. During Paul’s three first missionary journeys, God forbade
him to go to Rome. He gave Paul the task to preach to the unsaved in the east
(Greece, Turkey, Cyprus, Syria, and Israel) and to encourage and strengthen
them. Once churches started and Paul trained and left men behind to help them
grow, God opened the door for Paul to go to Rome.
Paul’s going to Rome, he said, was like going to Macedonia,
Ephesus, Corinth or any of the other places he visited. He wanted to preach the
gospel so people would come to saving faith in Jesus the Christ. Though Paul
had learned about Christians living in Rome, he realized there were many other
people among the masses who lived or visited the metropolitan trade center who
did not believe in Jesus and had not heard of Him. For these people, Paul desired to preach the
gospel so all people would receive salvation (1 Corinthians 9:19-23). Paul,
having freedom to travel easily within the Roman empire since he was a Roman
citizen, used that freedom to take the gospel farther than any other apostle.
He desired to go as far as Rome and Spain (Romans 15:24 & 28). He expressed
his desire for the people in Rome in Romans 1:13 when he said he planned to go
there so he “may obtain some fruit among you also even as among the rest of the
Gentile.” Paul heard about the Christians in Rome, but understood there were
thousands more who worshiped gods from the pantheon worshiped by Roman citizens
and people who visited there.
The love Paul felt for God and for other people compelled
him, obliged him, to preach to the people in Rome. He expressed this compelling
in verse fourteen when he said he was under obligation to the Greeks and
barbarians. This word “obligation” comes from the Greek word opheiletes and means one who owes
another or is bound by a duty. Paul, the man who persecuted and ordered the
deaths of Jesus-followers in Israel, felt obliged to God for saving him and for
calling him as an apostle. He felt compelled to declare God’s gospel so other
people, people like himself whom God created and loved, would know Jesus and
receive salvation and eternal life. That shows Paul’s love of God and
humankind. He did not decide Jesus could only save the Jews and so kept
himself within Israel. Likewise, Paul did not decide only wise and socially acceptable
people should hear the gospel. He determined each person he met, whether Greek
or barbarian, wise or foolish must hear the gospel of salvation and receive the
opportunity to accept Jesus as his or her Savior.
After making this point to the Roman Christians, Paul said
it was because of this, his love for God and every person, and God’s calling on
His life to preach and teach that he was ready to go to Rome. He said he was “eager”
to preach the gospel. For Paul and for us, this means he was ready and willing.
Often God asks a person do to something for Him, but that person is not
willing. He/she knows God made him/her ready to do what He called him/her to
do, but he/she is unwilling to do it. Paul stated in verse fifteen, he was
ready (prepared by God) and willing (personally accepting and doing) to do what
God asked of him. Eagerness implies God preparing you for a task and you being
willing, consenting, and then doing what God called you to do. Paul did not
preach grudgingly. He preached with a great desire to see all people come to know
Jesus, receive salvation from their sins and gain eternal life with Him in
heaven. To have this intense desire required him to love the Lord totally and
to love his fellow man and woman enough to go anywhere to reach them and preach
to them. Paul’s response to Jesus’ love for him, was love for God. God’s love
for Paul and each person pierced Paul’s heart so he had the heart of God. Paul
was ready. He expressed his willingness. Paul was eager.
·
God trains
each of us for His service. He uses accountants, nurses, presidents, teachers,
students, etc. to share the gospel and tell of His love.
·
You are
trained. If you have accepted the love of God shared through His gospel and are
a Christian, He made you ready.
·
Are you
willing to do what God tells you to do? Eagerness comes from being ready and
willing?
·
What will
it take for you to be willing? What stops you from willingly giving up mastery
of your life to the Master and Lord of all life?
Main Theme of Romans
Paul received God’s love for all people within himself,
recognized it and his love for God, and acted upon his debt to God by willingly
doing what God appointed him to do. God appointed him to preach the gospel.
Paul recognized this calling and eagerly acted upon it for the rest of his
life.
The main message of Paul’s preaching and teaching is what he
primarily addressed in the letter to the Romans. He proclaimed his testimony in
verses sixteen and seventeen. Paul said,
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of
God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the
Greek. For in it, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it
is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.” (NASB)
The righteousness of God was Paul’s main theme in this
letter and in other letters. First, though, Paul attested he was not ashamed of
the gospel. He was not embarrassed or afraid of his association with God and
His gospel that came through the death of Jesus Christ, His Son. Paul expressed
this conviction in 2 Timothy 1:12 when he said, “For this reason I also suffer
these things, but I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and I am
convinced He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.”
(NASB) His conviction of God’s mercy, love, and provision of salvation drove
him to tell as many people as he could about the gospel.
Paul expressed why the gospel was important and essential
for all to hear and accept. He said, “It is the power of God for salvation to
everyone who believes.” People have difficulty trusting in what they cannot
see. This regularly gave an excuse for denying this gift God gives. Paul
explained the gospel of God is not powerless and is real and vibrant. He said the
gospel is the power of God. This “power” comes from the Greek word dunamis. Dunamis is the word from which
we get our English words dynamite and dynamo. Dunamis is the power, strength, and ability inherent in God by virtue
of His nature. God is the One who created the universe-rocks, land, seas,
animals, plants, sun, stars, moon, wind, gravity, oxygen, and humankind-by His
will, hands, and breath. He created everything out of nothing-ex nihilo, meaning “creation from
nothing.” This powerful and creative God provided a way for people, people who
have sinned and are unholy, to return to a right relationship with Him, the
holy God. This way is the gospel Paul and all Christians proclaim. It came
through the birth of Jesus, His Son, in human form to live as people live, in a
sinful world, yet to be without sin. This Son then died though He did not sin,
so that by His death, we sinful people could receive salvation from the death
penalty of sin we deserve and wipe us clean from the stains of our sins. This
cleansing from sins makes a person who believes in Jesus holy so he or she can
be in God’s presence and have a relationship with Him. This gospel that
proclaims God’s love and mercy toward us came through His Son, Jesus Christ. It
is the power of God to save people if they repent and trust in Jesus Christ.
Paul meant this when he wrote verse sixteen. God made His righteousness
available to people through His power to save so each person who believes will
become righteous-made right with God-and
be in His presence from that day and forever. This gospel Paul preached is for
the Jews, Greeks and barbarians, as his heart told him. He said in verse
sixteen God’s powerful gospel of salvation is for everyone, “to the Jews first
and also to the Greeks.” God wants everyone to come to a saving knowledge of
Him.
With verse seventeen, Paul explained only by the
righteousness of God will His people live. From their first steps in the faith
through growth in their faith until the end of time, people will see God’s
righteousness and hear His people testify about Him. Righteousness is the
virtue of being right without tarnish of sin in thought, feeling, or action.
God’s character defines righteousness and rightness. He is the epitome and
definition of righteousness. The salvation
He gives people who repent and believe in Jesus makes them righteous by Jesus’
cleansing of their sins. Jesus Christ and the faith of believers reveal God’s
righteousness. From the first encounter of salvation through to the end of a
believer’s earthly life, God’s righteousness is revealed. From justification
through sanctification to glorification, the righteousness of God shows through
the person because of what God did through Jesus Christ.
Justification occurs when a person receives Christ as his or
her Savior and received the cleansing from sins His sacrificial death made
possible. Christ’s righteousness is credited to believers so they are made
right with God and can have a relationship with Him. Paul said in Romans
3:21-22, “But now apart from the Law, the righteousness of God has been
manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness
of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe.” (NASB)
“Sanctification” and “saint” come from the same root Greek
word, hagios. They each relate to
holiness. “Saint” means to be holy as set apart from something that is unholy.
To sanctify something is to set it apart for special use. So, to sanctify a
person, a saint/believer, is to make him or her holy for God’s use. Jesus spoke
about sanctifying His disciples in John 17:17. Sanctification is being made
separate for God’s use. All believers enter this state of sanctification when
they receive new life through Jesus Christ. Through Jesus, believers receive
sanctification (1 Corinthians 1:30). God is the One who sanctifies a person. We
cannot sanctify ourselves since we are not holy. Only one who is holy, who is
clean from sin, can make something clean, holy, that was full of sin and
separate it from the unholy. Sanctification is a progressive experience. As a
person becomes more obedient to God that person becomes more holy. We set aside
ourselves for God’s service, for His holy work, and grow in holiness through
our obedience to Him. Peter called this “growing in the Lord” when he said,
“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” [2
Peter 3:18 (NASB)] Paul spoke of it in Philippians 1:6 when he said, “For I am
confident of this very thing, that he who began a good work in you will perfect
it until the day of Christ Jesus.” (NASB) This progressive sanctification
carries the idea that God sets apart to do the His purposes in the world just
as Jesus set Himself apart for God’s purposes as John said in John 10:37. Jesus
acknowledged God intended His children to go into the world to tell about Him
in John 17:18-19. He said, “As Thou did send Me into the world, I also have
sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they
themselves also may be sanctified in truth.” Sanctification comes through
Christ, through a relationship with Him. Peter said believers were to seek
holiness. In 1 Peter 1:15, he said, “But like the Holy One who called you, be
holy yourselves also in your behavior.” (NASB) Finally, Hebrews 12:14 says,
“Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will
see the Lord.” (NASB)
Sanctification is a process from the point of justification
to the time when God’s kingdom comes on earth and He resurrects believers to
live with Him eternally. When Paul said in Romans 1:17, “The righteousness of
God is revealed from faith to faith,” he understood and taught that a
Christian’s faith grows from its first baby steps at profession of faith
through the person’s glorification. Going from faith to faith means following
God’s leading and growing closer to Him with daily prayer, Bible study, and
meditation. A believer reveals the righteousness of God more and more as his
or her faith grows from its first aspiration and spoken words of acceptance
throughout his or her life in love and obedience to God. Just as God is revealed
through creation, conscience, Christ, and the Bible, so He and His
righteousness is revealed through a believer’s life of faith. Paul meant this
when he wrote in Romans 1:17, “The righteousness of God is revealed from faith
to faith.” Paul’s faith revealed God’s righteousness so that he declared in
verse seventeen he is “not ashamed of the gospel.”
·
Do you
recognize the reality of God in His creation, in your conscience, in the lives of
your Christian friends, and/or the Bible, but still push His gift of
righteousness and salvation away? Why?
·
If you are
a Christian, do you take time with God each day so that your faith grows along
with your holiness? If not, why not?
·
Do you
deny the power of God in your life even though you believed in Jesus Christ and
received His salvation? Why do you refuse to grow with God and allow His Holy
Spirit to guide and guard you each day?
·
Now is the
time to consider each of these and decide if you will recognize God and accept
His forgiveness, salvation, and power.
Recap
What is important about these ten verses to our lives today?
Why should we pay attention and act upon them? First and foremost, the gospel
is important. As Paul and other Bible authors stated, God’s love for humanity
is paramount. Because of His love, He provided a way for each person to be in a
right relationship with Him. This right relationship requires righteousness on
both sides, but we humans do not have it because of the wrong things we have
done, said, or considered. Through the death of His Son, Jesus Christ, God wipes
away the sins of humankind when a person believes in Him as the Son of God and
repents of his or her sins. Because Jesus took the death penalty we each
deserve for our wrongdoings, we do not owe for our sins. When Jesus allowed the
Romans to crucify Him, He took the judgment for sinners. By His death, He gave
us righteousness, God’s righteousness. When we believe in Jesus Christ as the
Son of God who took our sins away, God makes us righteous and able to be in His
presence, in a relationship with Him. That is most important for us in
these verses.
Because of Paul’s encounter with Jesus on the road to
Damascus, Paul believed in Jesus as his Savior and has a love for God and
humanity deeper than he ever had. His desire is to go where God tells him and
to preach and teach the gospel. This desire, this love for the souls of other
people, comes from the heart of God He put in him when Jesus saved him. Paul’s
love for other people allows him to pray with thanks for them and to pray
ceaselessly. In praying ceaselessly, Paul gains a greater heart and love for
the people, comes to understand them better, and knows better how to pray for
them. This back and forth dynamic occurs anytime we pray to God. As we pray, we
know God more and we pray better. When we pray, we recognize God’s heart for
people more and know the people better so we love deeper and better.
Relevance and Conclusion
What is the “take away” for this lesson? How is this
relevant to us now? Paul’s love for God and submission to Him as a bondservant
is most important here. He went when God told him to go. Paul went where God
opened doors. God gave him a heart for Himself and the people, especially Gentiles.
Because of Paul’s love for God, he willingly submitted to God as His Lord and
Master. Paul said he was eager to preach the gospel. Using the Greek definition
of eager, he was ready and willing. God made Paul ready. He put His heart for
Himself and other people in Paul. God trained Paul in the Jewish laws for which
he had been fiercely protective. He instilled in him the need for intent of the
heart in worship, not mere ritual. God taught him how to preach when He had
Paul train with Gamaliel. He prepared him to defend the gospel when he trained
to be a Pharisee. God made Paul ready for the task to which He would call him. When
Paul received the love of God through his salvation and expressed his love back
to Him, it resulted in willingness to do the tasks to which God
called/appointed him.
Our love of God shows in our obedience to what He asks of us. Paul’s voluntary submission to the Lord’s appointing him an apostle showed
the depth of his love for Him. Our love for God shows in how we relate to other
people. Do we love them like God loves them? Paul loved the Roman Christians
enough that he prayed for God’s grace and peace on them and gave thanks to God
for them though he had never met them or visited their city.
Our challenge, our calling by God, is to love Him and to
love the people whom He loves. That would be all people. Both Moses and Jesus
taught what loving God means. It means loving Him with your whole being, heart,
soul, mind, and strength (Deuteronomy 6:5 and Mark 12:30). To get to this depth
of love, we must recognize, realize within ourselves, and choose to live out
the love God gives us through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus, for our
salvation just so we can have a right relationship with Him and live eternally with
Him. When we truly understand the magnitude of His gift of love through the
death of His Son, our whole being will compel us to express our great gratitude
and love to Him. We will reach deep within ourselves and give from the depths
of our being from all parts of ourselves to try to express the depths of our
gratitude and love back to Him. This means our love will show, will shine out,
in gratitude and obedience to Him to do willing whatever He asks of us. We will
scratch the depths of our being to find the last ounce of ourselves to express
our love to God. This depth of love is most likely from where Paul loved and
served God and from where His love of all people came.
If you are already a believer in Jesus Christ, you now must
decide if you love God to the very last ounce of your being and are giving Him
everything you are to serve Him willingly in the task for which he has made you
ready and to which He called you. Are you eager to do what God asks of you? If
not, what keeps you from loving God with absolute obedience? What keeps you
from loving people with the love God put in your heart for them? God waits for
you to love Him willingly and join Him in sharing the gospel of His
righteousness so each person will hear and receive salvation.
If you are not a believer, what in yourself keeps you from
accepting God’s gift of salvation from your sins, the power of sin, and the
power of death? What is keeping you from accepting the full degree of His love?
Today you heard the basics of the Gospel from Paul. The gospel of Jesus
Christ’s death and resurrection is the power of God for salvation to all who believe.
Right now, as an unbeliever, you live under the weight of your wrongdoings.
Those wrongdoings separate you from God. He won’t be in your presence because
He is holy and you are not. When you confess and believe in Jesus, He makes you
holy so you can be with God now and forever. Without His salvation, you live
powerless against temptation and death. The only strength you have is your own
fortitude, and that is feeble. Sometimes you fail yourself. We all do. But,
with the strength of God’s power, His dunamis,
you would no longer have to struggle. God would give you the power of Himself
through the indwelling of His Holy Spirit if you claim it, hold onto it, and
walk through life with it. As a Christian, you would have power over sin. He
gives you power over death. That means your soul would not die, be separated permanently
from God, but will be with Him in His presence for eternity.
We each must decide what we will do about and with God’s
love given through the sacrificial death of His Son, Jesus. Will you accept it?
Will you stand in the power He offers? Will you show your love and gratitude to
God by obeying His calling? Or, will you hold back and not accept His
righteousness or not accept His calling?
Are
you eager, ready and willing, to answer the call of God’s righteousness?
“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if
I am to live on in this flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me, and I do
not know which to choose.” [Philippians 1:21-22 (NASB)]
