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New Testament

Abraham: Father of Faith

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Today we are studying from Romans 4:1-12.   

Does doing good works justify us?   NO! 
We are told this clearly.  Abraham believed God and IT (his belief) was counted as righteousness.  It was his FAITH that mattered. 

 What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.”

Does that mean that doing good works is meaningless?  Of course not.  It’s part of what is due to God.   He made a way for us to be righteous.  Should we not then live according to the law that he has painted on our hearts?

 4 Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due.

What matters is the belief in the saving work of Jesus Christ.  God provided the way for us. All we have to do is believe it!  That faith makes us righteous.   Pretty cool eh?
5 And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, 6 just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works:

7 “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
    and whose sins are covered;
8 blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.”

Again Paul raises the question.  Is this determination only for the circumcised (ie… only for the Jewish people).   Abrahman’s faith was counted BEFORE he was circumcised.   His circumcision was only the sign of his faith. 

9 Is this blessing then only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness. 10 How then was it counted to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. 11 He
received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that
he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised.

Circumcision’s point with Abraham was a seal of his faith.  His faith, was counted as righteouness before he was circumcised, making Abraham then the father of those who believe without circumcision, AND the circumcision made him the father of the believers who are circumcised. 
 The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, 12 and
to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely
circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our
father Abraham had before he was circumcised.

Abraham, father of faith for all.  Circumcised or not, as long as you have faith, Abraham is our father in the faith.   

I have to admit I’ve not really thought about this before.   Like it’s not that I don’t KNOW that Abraham is a father in the faith.  But it’s more that I’ve never really sat and pondered what that means for me personally.  Abraham is MY father in the faith.  He’s part of the line that leads all the way back to the first covenant God made with his people.  Of Jewish origin or not, he is out father of faith. 

To follow along with the rest of this devotional series in Romans Click Here. 

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Righteousness, faith and the law

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Do you remember the sadness of yesterday?
Of no one being righteous?  Not a single one. 

But listen to this:
21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.

Righteousness doesn’t come based on the law.  Righteousness come through FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST!!

 For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. 

See, we know from the previous verses the depravity of mankind.  How we all turned away from him.   That horrible picture of what sin is. 

But now there is hope for us right?   Hope  because God’s righteousness is now found in our faith in his SON.  It doesn’t matter if you are Jew or Greek.  There is no distinction between people.    All have sinned.  All fall short of God’s glory.  ALL.  No exceptions to this fact.   But just as all have fallen, so all CAN come to faith in Christ Jesus.  All can receive the gift of God’s grace in his son.Christ is our redemption.  Christ paid for our sin.  God put him forward as an atonement.  Christ, to be received by faith.
 
This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It
was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be
just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Why did God do this?   To show his righteousness.  God is ever so patient with us but he can’t keep letting us sin and not giving us a way through it.   He needs to be just you know?
 
27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith.
This gift is received in faith.  So Paul is clear.  There is not boasting.  How can you boast about faith?  Either you have it or you don’t.  Works you can point at and say SEE.. See what I did?  But faith is faith.  
 
28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law. 29 Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, 30 since God is one—who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. 31 Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.

So having faith doesn’t negate the law right?    Remember.. it’s written on our hearts.  Having faith causes us to want to follow the law, to uphold it, to not turn aside from it. Paul affirms how God is God to everyone, doesn’t matter if Jew or Greek.  The offer is the same, our faith is the same, It’s all about our faith in the saving work of Jesus Christ, God’s gift of Grace offered to us.   So our faith will naturally cause us to want to stick to the law of God written on our hearts.   (and yes I know.. the old sinful nature will cause us to want to fight that…but that’s another lesson).  🙂

To follow along with the rest of this devotional series in Romans Click Here. 

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©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

No One is Righteous

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Hello, welcome to another day of learning from the book of Romans.   For the rest of the series go here.  Today we’ll be learning from Romans 3:9-20.

9 What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, 
ALL are sinners.  No one is any better than anyone else.  Jew or Greek…all under sin.  All already charged.
 
 10 as it is written:

“None is righteous, no, not one;
11     no one understands;
    no one seeks for God.
12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
    no one does good,
    not even one.”
I read these words, and I see the condemnation.  No one, not a single person can be righteous.  EVERYONE has turned aside. So you see it.. TOGETHER the people have become worthless.   It’s like this whole group mentality thing.  Making choices to turn aside from God.  So that not even one person does good. Not a single one.
 
13 “Their throat is an open grave;
    they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
14     “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16     in their paths are ruin and misery,
17 and the way of peace they have not known.” 
This is how God sees sin you know? At least that’s my reading of this passage.  How everyone has turned aside, no one is able to do good.. so we get this horrid picture of what sin looks like… all that bitterness and venom and misery.   So much deception and ruin.   This is what sin is.   A people who know no peace. A people who not NOT known the way of peace… but how could they?  They are a people full of bitterness, venom and deception.
It’s a sad place to be in.
 
18     “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Not only that.. there is NO fear of God.  None.  They simply don’t get the thought of being in awe of God.  Of knowing the fear of him as the Triune Lord.
 

19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.

So the law of God is written on the hearts of all. We know this from previous verses.  People who are under the law are people under sin.  People who are accountable to God.  We are.  We are accountable to God, and when we are under the law we cannot be justified.  The law brings knowledge of sin.    

No justification through the law.
The law shows us sin.
Sin means no peace.
Sin means no knowing God, a turning from the truth written on our hearts.

So this leaves me here… is there no hope then?  
If we are all under the law and the law means sin… then how can we be justified?

This is where today’s passage leaves us… asking the question.  
How can we then be justified?

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©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

God’s Righteousness Despite our Lack

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Hello, continuing my study in the Book of Romans. Glad to have you here. Click here for the rest of the series   Today the first 8 verses of chapter 3. 

 Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? 2 Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God. 3 What if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? 4 By no means! Let God be true though every one were a liar, as it is written,

“That you may be justified in your words,
    and prevail when you are judged.”

5 But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a human way.) 6 By no means! For then how could God judge the world? 7 But if through my lie God’s truth abounds to his glory, why am I still being condemned as a sinner? 8 And why not do evil that good may come?—as some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just.

I can’t say this is the easiest section to understand.  I really can’t. 
If circumcision is of the heart, if we are to be Spirit-led, then is there any advantage to being Jewish.  That’s the question right?
Paul says the advantage is in that they were the first people to received God’s word.

Now.. does it matter that some of the Jewish people were unfaithful?
Not really.
It doesn’t really say anything about God’s faithfulness.  He remains faithful and righteous.

God is true.  EVEN IT everyone involved with him turns out to be a liar.  It doesn’t change God’s character one whit.  He is faithful and fully righteous. 

In fact… our lack of being faithful and righteous shows off just how faithful and righteous God himself is.

So….Does that mean God shouldn’t judge us for being what we are?
Seriously DUDE?

Imagine a child does something wrong, despite his folks telling him how to do things correctly.   Does that mean the parents have done wrong OR that they would be wrong to say HEY.. son..you did that incorrectly?   Of course not.

God needs to be able to call sin what it is.. Sin.  It’s a choosing to do something against God’s written law.  (written on our hearts remember?)  If our sin shows God off for being better.. that’s a good thing…but doesn’t mean we should want to sin, or that God can’t call us on our action.   Just means more glory to God.

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©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

Choices Have Consequences

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Hello, continuing
my study in the Book of Romans. Glad to have you here. Click here for
the rest of the series.    Today Romans 1:1-11. 

 Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. 2 We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. 3 Do
you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet
do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? 4 Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? 5 But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.
6 He will render to each one according to his works: 7 to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; 8 but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. 9 There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, 10 but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. 11 For God shows no partiality.

 After reading Romans 1, and seeing God’s wrath on those who choose not to follow him, this section has me stepping cautiously.

To not judge those who chose to not follow God, to not heed the truth that they know, who choose to follow a lie.  DO NOT JUDGE THEM.   That’s God’s job right?   The judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things.   NOTE: GOD’s judgement.  Not mine or yours. Because you know what?   If we judge others, we need to be mindful of our own hard and impenitent hearts.   Think on that?

It’s a hard one I find.
I have found myself getting angry with the LGBTQ folks, for how they twist things, and push people around to achieve their own ends.   Some of the things some of the folks do.. it’s hurtful.  And that deliberate hurtfulness makes me angry.

But God warns against that here.  I need to be bigger than that hurt.  It reminds me of that passage in the parenting book… about how the more secure we are in God’s love, in his embrace, the less likely we are to be hurt by what others do. 

Also if I remember that God is the one who renders judgement, that it is HIS gig, not mine, then this truth gives rest.   He will render to each one according to his works.  God’s judgement based on our choices.   Those who follow after him, patient in well-doing, seeking God’s glory and honor, who seek for immortality…those God will gift with eternal life.  The self-seeking, followers after lies well.. God’s wrath and fury await them.    Evil-doers will find tribulation and distress, the righteous will find glory, honour and peace awaits.

Just as the gospel came first to the Jews and then to the Greeks, so too judgement comes first to the Jews then to the Greeks.   God will show no partiality.  Judgement comes to all.  One way or the other… choices have consequences.

 
——-

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God’s Wrath, Choices Made, Natural Consequences

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Hello, continuing my study in the Book of Romans. Glad to have you here. Click here for the rest of the series.

Today Romans 1:18-31.

Today we’ll be closing off Chapter One, yesterday we saw how the righteous live by faith, today this section in the ESV is called God’s wrath on unrighteousness. 

18 For
the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and
unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For
his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature,
have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in
the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For
although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to
him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts
were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because
they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served
the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
26 For
this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women
exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and
the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed
with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men
and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They
were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness,
malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness.
They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though
they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things
deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who
practice them.

Remember yesterday?   How Faith carries one from one generation to the next?  Did you know there are people who work to suppress God’s truth? 
 For
the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and
unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 

These people KNOW about God.  They can see the truth plainly because God revealed it to them BUT They don’t honour God or thank him. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For
his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature,
have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in
the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For
although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to
him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts
were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.   Do you see how they have no excuse?  God is evident in the things we can see, and God made it clear to them.  They have no excuses, they just think to their own wisdom. Their foolish hearts, thinking to their own wisdom, have become darkened.
24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because
they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served
the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.   Amen means So Be It. These people made a choice.  They knew God’s truth, but they put it aside in order to believe a lie.  A choice. They turned aside from the Creator God to follow their own path.  THEREFORE God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women
exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and
the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed
with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men
and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
God let them live with the choices they made and compounded those choices.  They chose to ignore God as revealed in nature. Ergo, God let them be turned from nature to unnatural pleasures with each other. I honestly never even really thought of this before. How because of their choice to ignore God as revealed to them, God let them live with unnatural pleasures.  It’s like a natural consequence.
 
28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They
were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness,
malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness.
They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though
they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things
deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who
practice them.
And again, since they chose to turn away from God (who had revealed himself to them) God let them turn away from the things they knew to be right. So they have been filled with all manner of unrighteousness. 

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Faith Lives On, Be Not Ashamed.

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Hello, continuing my study in the Book of Romans. Glad to have you here. Click here for the rest of the series.    Today Romans 1:16-17. 

16 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. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”

What then do these verses say today?

For I am not ashamed of the gospel.  Honestly, sometimes I have to wonder about that. I remember telling a lady about a good Christian Mystery I read once, one that weaved the bible into the mystery in a good manner. She asked me why I liked it so much and I found myself stumbling all over the place not wanting her to think I’m weird and yet wanting to say why I liked the book so much. Even now sometimes I find myself not wanting to say “I’m being kind because that’s what God would have me do.”   I shouldn’t be like that.  I should have that boldness to say what’s really important…and the end of it is.. GOD.  Seriously, if God weren’t God working in my life I’d be such a lost soul.

But why shouldn’t we be ashamed?
for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes
God is our salvation, but not only ours. It’s for EVERYONE who believes.  Not just Joe Right or the jewish believers … but for EVERYONE.  

 to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
Admittedly… God came first to the Jewish nation.  The whole Old Testament is about that. He chose them.  His son was born within the Jewish nation.   His first friends and followers were Jewish people, he first was in the temple as a lad astounding the Jewish Teachers.  But from there the gospel spread.  Friends, families, neighbours, Roman Guards and more.  Seeing the power of God’s salvation at work.  WHY?   Because his people were not ashamed to proclaim the gospel of God.

So if I truly want to see God’s good news spread I MUST stop being ashamed of the gospel. It must be there and ready on my tongue when people ask me why I live as I do.  Why I teach my son as I do.   Why I’m kind or helpful or whatever.  It’s all God and I mustn’t be afraid to admit it..

For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
I read these words and I find myself compelled to think about those last words.  The righteous shall live by faith.  It’s true you know.   If it weren’t for God and his righteousness I wouldn’t be the person I am today.  The faith of my parents is revealed in me.  The faith of the righteous who have gone on before me is passed on through me.  My son’s faith will be influenced by the faith of those who have gone on before him. 

I wonder who else’s faith will be influenced by my generation, and who will be influenced by my son’s generation.  It moves on faith does… 

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©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time .