Romans: All Have Turned Away

"What advantage then is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God. What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness? Not al all! Let God be true, and every man a liar. As it is written: "So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge." But if our unrighteousness brings out God's righteousness more clearly, what shall we say, That God is unjust in bringing His wrath on us? (I am using a human argument.) Certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world? Someone might argue, "If my falsehood enhances God's truthfulness and so increases His glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner?" Why not say – as we are being slanderously reported as saying, as some claim that we say "Let us do evil that good may result?" Their condemnation is deserved. What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit. The poison of vipers is on their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know. There is no fear of God before their eyes." (Romans 3:1-18)

In Paul's persuading the Christian Jews at Rome of their unrighteousness before God, he references many scriptures, which is evident to us by his words "as it is written":

Psalm 51:4 "Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge." (Speaking of God's truthfulness and justice when He speaks and judges us.)

Psalm 14:1-3 "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.' They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good. The Lord looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one."

Psalm 53:1-3 [This is word for word identical to what Psalm 14:1-3 says]

Ecclesiastes 7:20 "There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins."

Psalm 5:9 "Not a word from their mouth can be trusted; their heart is filled with destruction. Their throat is an open grave; with their tongue they speak deceit."

Psalm 140:3 "They make their tongues as sharp as a serpent's; the poison of vipers is on their lips."

Psalm 10:7 "[The wicked man's] mouth is full of curses and lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue."

Isaiah 59:7-8 "Their feet rush into sin; they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are evil thoughts; ruin and destruction mark their ways."

Psalm 36:1 "An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: there is no fear of God before his eyes."

Paul does all of this to confirm this one statement: "Jews and Gentiles alike are ALL under sin." In other words, we are equals in sin. We have a common starting point in SIN. Neither of us has an advantage in righteousness, even though the Jews DO have the benefit of having been those to whom God entrusted His law and His Word (through the holy scriptures), singling them out from all the peoples on the earth, to be the witnesses and bearers of His goodness, mercy, AND justice. Yet that signified God's goodness towards THEM, not THEIR goodness towards God…for NONE are good, NONE are righteous, ALL have turned away from God.

Fortunately, God recognized this in man, before man recognized it in himself. Thus, God sent His Son…to BE man's righteousness when man could not do so himself. All man has to do now is admit his sin. Oh…but "there's the rub!" as Shakespeare would say. Pride keeps man from being humble enough to admit his failure to be righteous before God; intellect keeps him above the foolishness of the simple choice of trusting in Jesus Christ to be his righteousness instead.

It's that simple.

Romans: Rebuke to the Christian Jews

"Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and brag about your relationship to God; if you know His will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth – you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who brag about the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? As it is written: "God's name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you." Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised. If those who are not circumcised keep the law's requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker. A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from me, but from God." (Romans 2:17-29)

As he did with the Christian Gentiles, Paul is very severe to the Christian Jews in the church at Rome in reminding them of their past error: "God's name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you."

Obviously, Paul is determined that both sets of Christians, the Gentiles and the Jews, should remember from whence they came, the sin from which they have all been delivered. In order to do that, sometimes you have to recall the sin as well.

Regarding these Christian Jews, there seems to have been an air of superiority being demonstrated by them toward the Gentiles. Truly, after centuries of the Jews being told not to associate with the Gentiles, being told to become separate from anything having to do with the Gentiles, and being punished severely when they associated to closely with the Gentiles, learning how to associate without superiority would be a difficult thing for the flesh. It could only be accomplished as they walked in the Spirit, which Paul will go on to show them in his writing of this letter to the church at Rome.

But just as Paul demonstrated to the Christian Gentiles the importance of what is in one's heart, here also, he demonstrates for the Christian Jews that it is not the exterior that recommends you as a Jew, or as a Christian at all. It is all in the interior: it is all about obedience.

So that the inward circumcision of the heart of obedient Gentile Christians is actually far superior to the physical circumcision of their Christian Jewish brothers, if those brothers are sinning against the Lord by their superior attitudes and exclusionary practices. In fact, Paul says: "the one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you, who even though you have the written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker."

Still today it is difficult for us Christians to keep from judging by exterior things: how often someone shows up at bible study, and church meetings, and at church on Sunday; or how many or few "hats" they wear in terms of Christian "service." Where the law has been abolished, we want to create new laws (legalism), rather than remain in the freedom by which Christ has set us ALL free who have believed in Him.

In all of these things, we want to compare others to ourselves, and as we find them falling behind in the number of things they are doing or are involved in, we raise ourselves up a notch or two in our own estimation. Such judgment is so faulty, for we are measuring by externals rather than internals.

We cannot see how much time a person spends in prayer at home, or in study of the Word, or in ministering to others outside of our church circle, yet, if they are not "conforming" to our measurement standards within the church, we judge them as lacking spirituality, while we judge ourselves to be much higher on the spiritual ladder. In fact, the opposite is true as long as we continue to judge externals while also forgetting from whence we came.

Sin is an equalizer. None of us is superior in any way to another. We have all sinned. We will still sin from time to time as we grow; there should not be deliberate sins, but there will be sins of ignorance as we learn to walk in the light which we each have been given, which varies from one to another.

But if we forget what the Lord has delivered us from, it becomes easy to judge one another, seeing ourselves as whitewashed, but others as still spotty with dirt. When the reality is that apart from Jesus Christ ALL our own righteousness is comparable only to nasty menstrual rags before a holy God:

"But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." (Isaiah 64:6)

I hope the church at Rome heeded Paul's words, repented of their superiority – on both sides of the ethnic divide – and joined together in brotherly love; for these dividing issues would soon be seen to be nothing in light of the terrible persecution and sufferings that they would share equally in under the horrific reign of the Roman Emperor known as Nero.

Romans: The Covenant of Laws Written on Hearts

[Welcome, Lilliana Zoe, born January 26, 2012. This posting is dedicated to you and to your great-grandfather who would have loved you greatly. May you always know how much Jesus loves you, for with that confidence in your heart, you will walk unfailingly in His righteousness.]

"For God does not show favoritism. When the Gentiles sin, they will be destroyed, even though they never had God's written law. And the Jews, who do have God's law, will be judged by that law when they fail to obey it. For merely listening to the law doesn't make us right with God. It is obeying the law that makes us right in His sight. Even Gentiles, who do not have God's written law, show that they know His law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. They demonstrate that God's law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right. And this is the message I proclaim – that the day is coming when God, through Christ Jesus, will judge everyone's secret life." (Romans 2:12-16 NLT)

"This is the new covenant I will make with my people on that day, says the LORD: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds. Then He says, I will never again remember their sins and lawless deeds." (Hebrews 10:16-17 NLT)

I knew a man once who all his life had been guided to always do what was right by fear of disappointing his mother if he didn't. He was a man loved by all who knew him. He was a humble man filled with kindness and great regard for others, willing to help others in any way he possibly could with no thought for himself. He had a marvelous sense of humor. He worked very hard to support his rather large family. He loved and honored his wife as much as he did his own mother. And to his children, he was the best man they had ever known.

This man had some upbringing in the Catholic church, but he did not go about speaking to others about Jesus Christ, leading me to wonder whether he knew Jesus Christ. So one day, I asked him if he believed that Jesus died for his sins on the cross and that Jesus was the Son of God. To which he simply replied, "I do."

I have often thought that God's laws were written on his heart from an early age. And while he was never an evangelist, and to my knowledge had never even opened a bible to read (for the Catholic church did not encourage that as he was growing up), still when I remember this man to whom many people were drawn by his sincere and selfless love for them, I remember Jesus.

Yet, when this man was nearing the end of his life, I had to question him once more regarding his understanding of the Lord, to which he replied, "I know and God knows that my conscience is clear. I know the relationship I have with Him is good, and no one can convince me otherwise."

My point here is that I never got the "pat" answers from this man (my own father) that we Christians want to hear. And yet, this man led a much more godly life than I can lay claim to. He demonstrated the love of God to others in ways that many Christians have not been able to do.

And I believe this is what Paul is referring to in this passage from Romans above: that there are going to be some folks who never heard the law, never even heard about God, and yet because God gave us all the conscience that He did, these folks know when they are doing right and they know when they are doing wrong; and every day of their lives they choose to do right. That is an amazing thing!

So that those who did not have the law given to them (which is revelation from God) still are able to "demonstrate that God's law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thought either accuse them or tell them they are doing right" and "God, through Christ Jesus, will judge everyone's secret life."

"Secret life" is the key. Many who call themselves Christians have the "appearance" of godliness; while their hearts are far away from the Lord.

"This people draweth night unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me." (Matthew 15:8)

The Roman Christians were judging each other by their words and by their keeping or not keeping of the external law, but the judgment of God will be of internal things for He will judge our hearts. And in that day it won't matter if we spoke all the "correct" words; what will matter is whether His law of love was written on our hearts:

"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." (John 13:34)

Romans: Man’s Inability to Judge

"Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest does the same things. But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? Or despises thou the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; who will render to every man according to his deeds: to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life. But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath. Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; but glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile. For God does not show favoritism." (Romans 2:1-11)

The more we study the Word, the more we recognize God's holiness; and the more we recognize God's holiness, the more wretched a sinner we appear to be before His holiness. The Word convicts us, and the Word keeps us humble and compassionate towards one another; IF we surrender ourselves to the scrutiny of the Word that is.

If, however, we do not dwell in the Word (meaning to both read it and do it), we are like the man in James 1:23-25:

"Anyone who listens to the Word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in the mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it – he will be blessed in what he does."

Both the Gentiles and the Jews in the Roman church had lost their compassion for one another, because they had not become doers of the Word, but judges of their fellow man. It is an amazing thing that a group of Christians who were well known abroad for their great works in the name of Jesus Christ, had lost their love for one another because they were not letting the Word keep them humble.

Instead, there was a contest of superiority going on. There was a judging and finding fault with one another. And the judgments were based on comparison to one another, rather than comparison to God Himself Who is the only true standard or measure of righteousness.

That is why Paul says we are not to judge one another; for the very words with which we condemn another are words which can be applied as well to ourselves.

The day will come when we will be judged by every word that proceeds out of our mouth. Thus, the judgment we have pronounced on our fellow man who is no more sinful than we ourselves are, this same judgment will be our judge as well….condemning us.

Do your words about others line up with those of the Pharisee or the tax collector?

"The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: God, I thank you that I am not like other men – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get." (Luke 18:11-12)

"But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner." (Luke 18:13)

 

Romans: Gentile Unrighteousness, Part 2

"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - His eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles." (Romans 1:20-23 NIV)

There is the condemnation of the Gentiles. Paul says they "knew" God. How is it that the pagan Gentiles could know God? The answer is the inherent ability to know right from wrong or what we call conscience. Additionally, creation itself provides testimony to the reality of a supreme will higher than that of man's own will….and man has had this knowledge ever "since the creation of the world" Paul says….since the very creation of man himself whose being testifies of the presence of the Supreme Maker.

And yet, even having that knowledge of God inherent in man, and having that "something" that tells man when he is doing wrong, still man chose not to acknowledge God, nor to be thankful to God. Man chose instead to let his own will guide him and to ignore the will of his Maker. And very simply put, to choose our own will over God's will is SIN. Sin that man KNEW he was participating in even as he did it. And nothing has change to this day.

Plus, in order to support man's own will and ideas of what God should be, he created his own false gods to take the true God's place; all the while thinking that they themselves were so superior in intelligence that they had every right to form "god" into their own image – the complete and utter opposite of God's will which is to transform man into His own image.

Thus, what follows next is the judgment for the sinful "wisdom" of the Gentiles:

"Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator – who is forever praised. Amen. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion." (Romans 1:24-27)

How wise just is our God! If we choose sin, God will give us more of the very thing that we have chosen and desired above our relationship with God…and that becomes our punishment….victims of a mastery that we ourselves have conjured up from the deepest pits of hell. So that the thing with which we have indulged ourselves, soon becomes a thing that we cannot escape, even as it leads us to our own destruction. For the things that God commands us to avoid, are the things that in His wisdom, He knows WILL destroy us in the end. But we choose to go our own way; we choose time and time again, OUR will over HIS! Until eventually we become depraved, arriving at a place that we never ever thought we could arrive at, and by the time we recognize it we are in such bondage that we are completely incapable of removing ourselves from its clasp.

"Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, He gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful: they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them." (Romans 1:28-32)

Eventually, after a very long period of sustaining the sin without repentance, the evil that has us bound begins to take on the appearance of normality. And what once would have seem deplorable to man, becomes something that he expects ALL to be doing, as it now appears to be normal. This is utter depravity, utter godlessness.

Such is God's wrath towards those who will not heed Him. Such is His willingness to GIVE us ALL that we desire, only MORE of it than we WANT! And while we have all that we want, we do not have the only thing that can satisfy: God Himself.

Yet, the Roman Gentiles to whom Paul is exposing sin in its most naked and bare state for the sake of awakening sleeping consciences, are the same unrighteous Gentiles of whom Paul speaks, except that NOW they are Gentiles who have experienced the MERCY and GRACE of God which led them to repentance and salvation. So, that we understand that while we are unrighteous, while we are sinners, while we are hopeless to deliver ourselves from the bondage of sin, even while we are experiencing God's wrath towards us….it is GOD who draws us to Himself through the sacrifice of His own Son, Jesus Christ.

"For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God." (Ephesians 2:8)

God yet has compassion on us to deliver us, WHEN we are ready to turn to Him.

We can only hope that we DO turn to Him… prior to breathing our last breath….and missing that chance for eternity!

Romans: Gentile Unrighteousness, Part 1

Paul begins his letter to the church at Rome by giving glory to the Lord, by greeting ALL who are "the called of Jesus Christ: to all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints" (1:6-7), and by expressing his hope that he will be able to visit them soon so that he might "impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established." (1:11) The "spiritual gift" of which Paul speaks is not to be understood as being "gifts of the Spirit" for in the very next sentence he defines exactly what it is he means: "that is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me." (1:12) What Paul is saying is that he hopes to add to what spiritual knowledge they already have and thereby assure himself that the doctrine of faith by which the Christians at Rome live is the same doctrine of faith by which Paul himself lives and has taught for these many years to all the churches: the gospel according to Jesus Christ.

"So as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth: to the Jew first and also to the Greek [Gentile]. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH." (1:15-17)

There is a LOT packed into that statement of Paul's. Crucifixion was a death filled with shame. To the world, spreading a message relayed by one who died such a shameful death would also be shameful; the stigma of shame would also attach itself to any messenger of one who died so shameful a death. Whereas in our modern times the world uses shame to promote themselves…the more shameful the activity, the bigger the publicity and the more the world loves them; in Paul's day, shame carried a lot of weight.

But regardless of what the world around him thought, Paul refused to acknowledge shame in regards to the gospel for he KNEW it to be something much, much more. He knew it to be God's POWER. Through Jesus Christ the ARM of God was revealed in both the miracles of healing and by the miracle of salvation itself: the power of God carried by the Holy Spirit to the hearts of men who were able to receive it (who believed) revealing God's righteousness, thereby unmasking man's unrighteousness and bringing them to repentance and salvation. To those who could not receive it, to those who would not believe it, the gospel became only an interesting story; such it is today also to those who will not believe.

Both the receiving of the Good News (the gospel) and the living out of the Good News can be done only by faith, by believing.

"But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, AND that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him." (Hebrews 11:6)

FAITH believes that GOD IS. FAITH believes that God rewards those WHO DILIGENTLY SEEK HIM (versus those who are NOT diligent to seek Him…does that include AFTER they get saved?) THE JUST (those who have been declared righteous by God through Jesus Christ) SHALL LIVE BY FAITH (conviction of the TRUTH). What truth is that? That GOD IS (that HE EXISTS AND IS GOD) and that HE IS A REWARDER OF THOSE WHO DILIGENTLY SEEK HIM.

The Good News of Jesus Christ is that Jesus is "GOD WITH US" as demonstrated by the power of God that Jesus walked in. Faith believes that JESUS EXISTS AND IS GOD. Faith believes that JESUS IS A REWARDER OF THOSE WHO DILIGENTLY SEEK HIM.

"Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me, or else believe me for the very works' sake." (John 14:11)

It takes faith to receive the gift of righteousness from God through Jesus Christ; it takes faith to walk like we BELIEVE we have it, too! No longer condemned, but saved from condemnation!

After that tremendous and powerful statement, Paul then directs his letter specifically to the Gentiles, explaining to them in simple terms their own unrighteousness. Remember, one of the purposes for this letter is the strife that has developed between Jews and Gentiles in the church at Rome…a result of judging each other according to their own judgment rather than God's. So he will remind the Gentiles of their unrighteousness, then remind the Jews as well…and hope to bring them back to the common ground of their own unrighteousness before God from which they have no right to judge one another…before he then leads them to the righteousness they didn't deserve but which was imputed to them by Christ. [The term "imputed" which is often used by Paul and elsewhere in Scripture means: to credit to a person. In other words, Jesus credits His righteousness to us by faith when we repent and receive Him into our hearts and lives.]

The reason why the Gentiles are counted as unrighteous begins in verse 18:

"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;"

The word "hold" in the Greek is defined as "to hold back, to detain, to restrain, to hinder". So, Paul is talking about men whose unrighteousness hinders or holds back the truth; unrighteousness that does not allow the truth of God (His EXISTENCE, His RIGHTEOUSNESS, His LOVE FOR US) to show forth through man whom God created for that specific purpose.

But Paul is talking to Gentiles…they didn't even know God, right? They didn't have holy scriptures handed down to them for centuries like the Jews did. So why is God against those who never heard about Him? How could they have walked in righteousness when they didn't know God in the first place?

"Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse." (Romans 1:19-20)

The Gentiles did not have the Holy Scriptures at their disposal; they were not raised up in those scriptures as the Jews were. But Paul says they still are not excused from being unrighteous. Paul says that God showed them who He was; that "invisible" things are clearly seen being understood by things that are made. Sounds a little complicated?

We will explore that in the next posting.

Romans: God’s Righteousness

The Book of Romans is Paul's letter to the Christian church in Rome. The church in Rome at that time was comprised mostly of Gentiles, but Paul's letter also indicates that there were Jews there as well. That blending of Jew and Gentile was one of the reasons for writing this letter. The Jewish Christians (which today are known as Messianic Jews) were not being received well by their Gentile brothers because the Jewish believers still followed the dietary customs they had always followed and still honored the Sabbath, leading the Gentiles to believe they were following the law instead of grace which caused some contention; hence, Paul's discourse in Chapter 14 concerning "meats" and "days."

Paul had additional reasons for writing this letter to the church in Rome. He wanted them to know he was coming to visit them in Rome on his way to his next mission field – Spain.

He wanted the Roman Christians to receive a clear understanding of salvation, as this church had not been planted by one of the apostles, but had grown out of the gathering of believers alone; he wanted to assure himself that they were keeping the same doctrine as the other new churches: the teachings of the apostles. And, of course, he needed to help them understand the roles that both Jew and Gentile fulfill in God's plan of redemption so that their relationships would flourish in brotherly love.

But if there is one phrase that best describes Paul's theme in this letter, it would be "the righteousness of God."

According to my Bible and other sources, we can easily define the "righteousness of God" reflected in the 16 chapters of Romans by three main headings: a) "The Revelation of the Righteousness of God"; b) "The Vindication of the Righteousness of God"; c) "The Application of the Righteousness of God" (or its "Practical Application by Believers").

The Revelation of the Righteousness of God:

Verses 1:1 – 3:20 lay out the unrighteousness of ALL people: both Jews and Gentiles.

Verses 3:21 – 5:21 speak of the imputation of righteousness to believers through justification, received by faith through Jesus Christ; contrasting our unrighteousness with God's gift of righteousness to us through Jesus.

Chapters 6 through 8 teach that righteousness is imparted to us, known as "sanctification" – delivering us from the bondage of sin, freeing us from the condemnation of the law, and empowering us by the Holy Spirit to walk out our "new life" in Christ.

The Vindication of the Righteousness of God:

In chapters 9 through 11, Paul demonstrates how God's righteousness is vindicated, showing the "justice" of His dealings with a rebellious and idolatrous Israel and yet reminding us that because of His mercy this rejection is neither complete nor final as their remains even now a "remnant" that are walking in His righteousness.

The Application of the Righteousness of God:

Verses 12:1 through 15:13 give practical application of the righteousness we have received from God through His Son, Jesus; displaying what it looks like in the church, to the world, and among both weak and strong Christians.

The remainder of Romans through chapter 16 concludes Paul's apostolic teachings, commending them ["for your obedience is come abroad unto all men." 16:19], sending them greetings from those with whom he was staying in Greece at the time, and ending with a blessing:

"May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you. Amen. Now to Him that is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey Him, to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen." (16:25-27)

Tomorrow we will begin digging for treasure in the Book of Romans.

 

 

Paul and the Roman Christians, Part 2

After Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus, the bible tells us, Paul spent the next 30 to 31 years teaching and preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ to the lost, as well as to believers in various churches throughout the Middle East, Europe and Asia. He took four missionary journeys during his "born-again" ministry years. But just prior to the first of those trips, he tells us in his letter to the Galatians, that he spent some portion of time receiving instruction from the Lord alone, in Arabia, before he returned to Damascus where there were a group of believers of whom Ananias was one (the man who healed Paul's blindness):

"For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it. And profited in the Jews' religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the tradition of my fathers. But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by His grace, to reveal His son to me, that I might preach Him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus. Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter; and abode with him fifteen days." (Galatians 1:13-18)

After meeting Peter in Jerusalem, approximately in the year 36 or 37 A.D., Paul fled to avoid capture:

"And he spake boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus, and disputed against the Grecians [in Jerusalem]: but they went about to slay him. Which when the brethren knew they brought him down to Caesarea, and sent him forth to Tarsus." (Acts 9:30)

Paul sailed from Caesarea north to Syria and Cilicia ["afterwards I came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia." (Galatians 1:21)] where he remained for sometime between 8 and 14 years, after which he traveled to Antioch with Barnabas, remaining there for 1 year.

It was shortly after Antioch that Paul made his first missionary journey: one that lasted 6 to 9 months, returning by the fall of 48 A.D. It was in approximately 49 A.D. that Paul began his second missionary journey. The third missionary journey began in the spring of 52 A.D. This was the trip, near the end of which, Paul would arrive in Rome (approx. spring of 58 A.D.), but it was wrought with obstacles all along the way:

-Paul was arrested in Jerusalem in 55 A.D. and taken to Caesarea where he was imprisoned for 2 years (Acts 24:27)

-When freed, Paul took a very "slow" boat to Rome (Acts27:7) which shipwrecked at Malta, causing Paul to remain there for 3 months;

- And when he finally arrived in Rome he was placed under house arrest for 2 more years - until 60 A.D. (Acts 28:30)

The letter to the Romans was actually written from Corinth, Greece, during a three month stay there in the year 54 A.D. (Acts 20:3).

It appears that Paul's fourth (and final) missionary trip happened right around 60 A.D., when Paul was released from his Roman imprisonment; but we know more of this from the early church father Clement of Rome than we do from scripture. In Paul's letter to the Roman Christians, Paul spoke of his proposed missionary trip to Spain (Romans 15:28). Clement indicates that Paul did make it as far west as he could possibly go at that time, which would have been Spain: "having reached the farthest bounds of the West" 1 Clement 5:6. And since we know of his other missionary journeys from the bible, then this fourth journey would have had to have been the one where he made it to Spain, but we have only Clement to tell us that.

Shortly after that last journey, Paul returned again to Rome, where he was martyred in 64 A.D. during the reign of Nero who used all Christians as scapegoats for his own insanities. Tradition holds that Paul was beheaded; because he was a citizen of Rome, his execution was most likely a privately held event, unlike the more public execution in which Peter was crucified upside down.

"For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His appearing." (2 Timothy 4:6-8)

The righteousness of which Paul speaks "and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His appearing" is the primary subject of his letter to the Romans Christians, as we will see when we begin our study in the Book of Romans tomorrow.

Paul and the Roman Christians, Part 1

The Book of Romans is my favorite among Paul's letters. For many years after becoming a new Christian, in my spiritual immaturity, its treasures remained hidden from me. But in more recent years, having braved the book time after time, slowly but surely chipping away at the buried treasure, I finally have a better understanding of its depths (at least in some measure) and it has become a huge source of encouragement to me. Thus, I would like to spend a little blog time on Paul and his letter to the Christians at Rome.

But first, we will want to get to know Paul himself. For this we will have to spend some time in the book of Acts where Paul's first appearance is seen. He is among those who are gathered together outside the city at the stoning of the first Christian martyr: Stephen. Stephen was:

• "full of faith and power" and "did great wonders and miracles among the people." (Acts 6:8)
  
• "Certain of the synagogue…disputing with Stephen…were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spake." (Acts 6:10)
  
• "And all that sat in the council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel." (Acts 6:15)
  

But when those in the synagogue heard the things Stephen spoke "they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, and said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, and cast him out of the city, and stoned him; and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul." (Acts 7:54-58)

We are not told whether or not Saul was in the synagogue and heard all that Stephen had to say; perhaps he just saw a crowd pushing a man outside the city walls and decided to follow them. But he certainly heard Stephen's last words:

"And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep." (Acts 7:59-60)

But the Bible does go on to tell us more about Saul at that time:

"and Saul was consenting unto his death. And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles. And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him. As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering into every house, and haling men and women, committed them to prison. Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word." (Acts 8:1-4)

Saul, then, was a catalyst in spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ far beyond the confines of Jerusalem; consenter to Stephen's stoning, persecutor of those who professed Christianity, a terror among the new believers, Saul, in his ungodly state, did much to further the very thing he sought to destroy. That fact might cause you, as it does me, to be amazed and wonder at God's sovereignty and His orchestration of things that happen here on earth. Everything, including evil which does not originate with God, is subject to Him and to His purposes for good. I don't believe Satan, the initiator of Saul's reign of terror, intended to spread the gospel with his tactics. But God is sovereign and ultimately His will alone shall prevail.

Saul later described some of the things he did against his fellow Jews, traitors to the law of the fathers, who had become followers of Christ, also known as followers of "the way":

"I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city [Jerusalem] at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day. And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women. As also the high priest doth bear me witness, and all the estate of the elders: from whom also I received letters unto the brethren, and went to Damascus, to bring them which were there bound unto Jerusalem, for to be punished…." (Acts 22:3-5)

"Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on thee, and when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him." (Acts 22:19-20)

"I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. Which thing I also did in Jerusalem: and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice against them. And I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities." (Acts 26:9-11)

It is in Acts 9 that we see the amazing transformation that Jesus performed in the heart of Saul on his way to Damascus to round up more offenders [Saul became known as Paul beginning in Acts 13:9, and while we are not told why his name changed it is interesting to note that Saul means "desired" and Paul means "small or little."] I hope you will read Acts 9 before you continue on. But there is additional information about that day given to us in Acts 26 which should also be read.

I want to direct us to Paul's own words about that event in Acts 26 as he relays the details of that day to King Agrippa who is holding Paul prisoner:

"Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, at midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me. And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And I said, Who art thou Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee. To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision, but shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God and do works meet for repentance." (Acts 26:12-20)

More about Paul and the Roman Christians tomorrow.

Love Never Fails

"It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." (1 Corinthians 13:8-9)

Let's start with protection. Parents protect their small children from harm all the time. They make sure they have sufficient and proper nourishment so that they don't die of starvation and so that they grow strong and healthy. They watch to make sure their children don't get into dangerous situations that can harm them or even kill them. Even teaching them good work ethics and responsibilities is a form of protection that safeguards that they will be able to survive on their own when they become adults. All of that is a good thing. Parents who protect their children in these ways, show that they love their children with a proper love.

But the love of a parent can become a dangerous thing when it protects children from the consequences of bad behavior or bad choices. It is the difficult parts of life that teach us the most. We learn very little when all is well. This is true in relationships, economics, and especially in terms of faith. When parents circumvent the consequences of their children's inappropriate or unhealthy behavior, they think they do it because they "love" their children. But anything that does not benefit another individual is not love. Preventing young adults from developing in areas of moral and legal responsibility, and of learning how to trust in God rather than become dependent on others or the government for sustenance, is NOT beneficial. Children learn the most about God from parents who don't avoid difficult circumstances themselves; who don't shy away from hardships, but turn completely to God in the midst of those hardships. How else can they see first hand what it means to trust God as they see God protecting and caring for their parents who have put their trust in God alone. Unfortunately, we live in a world today where if there is any discomfort at all, we want to move from that place and find a different place that is more comfortable; whether it is to a new job, a new neighborhood, a new marriage or even a new church. Many of us have not yet received the revelation of Paul's statement that says:

"I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." (Philippians 4:11)

When parents get that revelation, as Paul had, the discipleship they are able to pass on to their children through their own ability to "be content" no matter how tough things get, is invaluable to their children.

So proper Godly love must be beneficial, and it is in its beneficence that is truly protective.

God allowed the Assyrians to invade Israel in the year 728 B.C. There was much devastation from that attack. But if Israel had heeded God, and learned from the consequences of their own bad choices (idolatry, turning from God, etc.) they would not have suffered the even greater devastation that was to come next which was: complete destruction of the temple and Jerusalem (up to that point the greatest devastation they had ever experienced) and slavery for 70 years for every man, woman and child. Instead, they continued doing their own thing; they did not heed God who, because He loved them, wanted to spare them the complete devastation that would come if they continued in their sin. In their case, it took a loss of everything and 70 years of captivity for Israel to finally return to God.

Sometimes that has to happen with rebellious children as well who will not heed their parents. But without facing that first devastation, they will face even worse to come…things that no parent would ever want to witness their children experiencing. How much worse if the parent realizes too late that it was their "love" that put that child in that place, "love" that was not beneficial, "love" that did not protect from the even worse evil to come.

Then there is trust. Trust does not have a suspicious mind. Trust is what a child has in a parent. Trust believes, and will stretch that belief as far as is possible, until circumstances proves the object of our trust is not trustworthy. Experience might have shown us that most folks cannot be trusted; but love does not color ALL to be untrustworthy because of some previously bad experiences. Love still continues to trust, until proven otherwise. This love does not throw all caution to the wind, it does not ignore wisdom. But void of any definitive proofs to the contrary, it will choose to trust.

We are more easily able to trust others, when our trust is first and foremost in God. We trust in God that the ones we are praying for will receive salvation. We trust that God is able to transform the lives of those who have been born again, even when they are taking a wrong turn in the road. We trust that God is able to "keep" those whom we entrust to Him (especially rebellious children or unsaved family members). We trust that, just as we once were so oppressed by sin but were delivered by Jesus Christ, so also will our loved ones one day be delivered from sin's oppression. We love them, even while they are unlovable; and we love them in ways that will protect and not harm. And sometimes, we love them by trusting them, even if it goes bad for us. We consider the loss to ourselves as nothing in comparison to the "hope" that one day the trust we put in them will be realized. We never speak distrust, we speak that which is good and honorable.

Our hope for them all is in God. We do not ever, in proper love, determine that they are hopeless. We do not speak hopelessness to them. When we do that we are telling God that we do not believe He can bring them to the place He once brought us who also appeared to be "hopeless." We do not allow the enemy to place hatred in our hearts in any form, other than hatred of the sin itself; never hatred or dislike of the sinner. We hope without failing for them. We await the change that we know will come because we know in WHOM our hope really lies.

And in doing so, in always protecting, always trusting, always hoping, we persevere in love. Our loved ones and all of those on our prayer lists know how much we love them because our love never fails to pray for them, our love always perseveres, it never ceases, it never forgets them. Love perseveres or endures. It continues even when it has been ill-used, it will not seek revenge. And it does so because it hopes! It desires the BEST for the one for whom it hopes. It never wants to see them come to ruin, no matter how they have mis-used us. It continues to love and it perseveres in this love. Certainly, no one has ever been more ill-used than the Lord has been by us…the ones He created….even at times those He gave His life for. And yet the Word is filled with page after page of His desire that we would "repent and return" to Him.

That is great love. That is God's love. As Matthew Henry put it: "[Love] is a permanent and perpetual grace, lasting as eternity…"

That is love that never fails. And with God in us, that is the love we are to spread to others.

"A new commandment give I unto you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another." (John 13:34-35)

Rejoicing in Truth

"Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth." (1 Corinthians 13:6 NIV)

"This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth…" (2 Timothy 3:1-8)

The second verse seems to give us more understanding of the first verse in its oppositeness. You will note the words boasters and proud in the second verse, traits already discussed that are not of God's Love, nor should they be of our love for God and others.

Versions other than the King James use either "injustice" or "unrighteousness" or "wrong" in place of "evil" in 1 Corinthians 13:6. Thus, one who loves unrighteousness, or who delights in things that are wrong or unjust, cannot be one who "rejoices with the truth."

Many Christians today have compromised the truth in exchange for what they call "love." In fact, they even call it "God's love" yet we know that it is not from God because it does not HATE unrighteousness. Instead it glosses over sin, and declares that "love" will win people to the Lord and therefore it is not necessary to discuss the sin at all.

But that just is not true.

It is when the "truth" of God's love is revealed to us in the very fact that Jesus Christ died on the cross for us even though we were sinners and undeserving of this great sacrifice of His own life, that we then are able to understand God's love. Without that component, however, we cannot truly grasp His love for us.

It is knowing that our sin has marked us for an eternal existence in the pain and agony of hell, and that Jesus has redeemed us from that which is "due" us because of our own love of sin, that we then can begin to understand how great is His love for us.

And within these statement is the "truth" that God HATES SIN; and it is because sin DESTROYS: beginning with our relationship with God from whom, without Jesus Christ, we are separated and will remain separated for eternity.

Evil seduces us, lies to us, and hides the truth from us. When we Christians want to gloss over sin, we aid evil in hiding it, rather than exposing it and bringing the knowledge of God's love and His gift of salvation to the sinner. Without sin being revealed or exposed, it retains its power to destroy us. We, then, become false teachers similar to the false prophets of old.

"The visions of your prophets were false and worthless; they did not expose your sin to ward off your captivity. The oracles they gave you were false and misleading." (Lamentations 4:22)

"But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you,, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction." (2 Peter 2:1)

"Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them." (Ephesians 5:11)

Those who are held captive by sin are in deception, they are blind, they cannot see their sin. They require someone to reveal it to them. Much as Nathan, the prophet of God, did for David whose lust for Bathsheba blinded him to the reality (the truth) of his actions, which were pure evil. His lust held him captive. Nathan came to expose his sin and release him from the bondage of that sin. There were consequences of his sin, still to be faced, but God spared him death because David, once he saw the truth of his actions, repented before God. Thus David was saved.

Thus will the lost be saved….when they can see their sin, because it has been exposed to them by the truth of the Word of God, either heard or spoken through our lips…and thus will we "rejoice with the truth" on that day when they are set free to receive their salvation. 

Love Doesn’t Keep Score

"…it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs." (1 Corinthians 13:5)

These two might be my favorites of the characteristics of God's great love for us….keeping no record of wrong and not being quick to act in anger.

I have, in the not so distant past, been quite hard on myself…on my sins, past and present….and the fact that I still struggle with sin. But I have been hardest of all regarding those sins of the past that I committed AFTER I knew about Jesus. If you are like that, then you understand how this can take you right off track altogether. You can be sideswiped by guilt and remorse so badly that your entire life remains unproductive and unfruitful.

OR…you can trust God when He says His love keeps no record of wrongs. Once they've been confessed and given up, no matter how bad they were, the blood of Jesus erases the record of it. It is only WE who have trouble putting it behind us, and looking forward.

And I can get very easily angered…not usually at someone else…but very quickly so at myself. I don't seem to want to cut myself any slack…not that I think God wants to cut us slack either…He's shaping us into the image of His Son. But He doesn't want to just wipe us out and start all over…at least not right away. It takes A LOT for Him to get to the point of wanting to wipe us out and start over. He did that once with the inhabitants of the earth, but they had over 100 years to repent….but still they would not.

Well, I am a slow learner, of that there is no doubt. But I think even I might get it before my 100 years is up, or even my allotted 70. So, why do I get angry at myself, when God is so patient? Am I smarter than God? Am I more just? I don't think so.

Turns out, too, that if I am hard on myself, I will have a tendency to be hard on others. I measure them with the same measuring stick that I measure myself by. And that's wrong. I eventually realized that both of those things were wrong…to beat myself up and to be just as hard on others as I was on myself.

Better to measure with God's measuring stick. Better to measure with His love…both for myself and for others. After all, we are told to love others as we love ourselves. The problem is…many of us don't really love ourselves. And sometimes, even if we do love ourselves, it's still another thing altogether to say we like ourselves.

I'm not talking about a self-centered sort of love here. I'm talking about loving ourselves because God saw fit to love us. I'm talking about walking in agreement with God concerning His love for us. And I'm talking about then loving others, because we are able to understand God's love for us. It really has little to do with us, and everything to do with God.

Sometimes we don't think we deserve God's love. The truth is…WE DON'T! But the truth also is…that HE DOES LOVE US, no matter what. Even if we choose to ignore God, even when we choose an eternity in hell over a lifetime with Him in heaven, just so that we can do our own thing and not be bothered with God…still He loves us. Jesus died on the cross knowing full well that some of us would never believe in His love for us that put Him on that cross. Still, He went to the cross for each and every one of us, expecting nothing in return, but hoping for us nevertheless, because that's what love does. We'll get to that one.

Meanwhile, I thank God that He keeps no record of my wrongs. How about you? Do you keep records of wrongs done to you? Do you have the memory of an elephant when it comes to keeping score on who do what to whom last? Let's see, is it my turn to get back at him or did I already do that and now I'm waiting for him to get back at me?

""Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord. On the contrary: if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." (Romans 12:17-21)

Love is Neither Rude Nor Self-Centered

1 Corinthians 13:5a:

"It is not rude, it is not self-seeking…" (NIV)

"Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own…" (KJV)

Strong's Concordance says "unseemly" means to "unbecomingly"…or, in other words, not in a manner that is unbecoming to a follower of Jesus Christ. Love is not rude; and love is not self-centered, seeking only things that can benefit one's self.

I once knew a woman, who while a very upright and moral person in every regard, was known for saying whatever she felt like saying. There was no effort put forth on restraining her tongue. If someone's feelings got hurt by what she said, she chalked it up to them being "too sensitive" rather than, perhaps, that she was overly critical, truly harsh, and downright rude.

The thing is that people like this seldom spend a lot of time considering others. That isn't to say that they don't consider them ever….but what takes precedence is themselves over others. In other words, if it is beneficial to them to think of others, then they will. If, for example, they can get a "public pat on the back" or display that they are "good" people by being generous or kind here and there, then it becomes worthwhile for them to do so. But it is not the norm. And the motivation is always what is best for themselves, because it is themselves that they care about most. If the ship is sinking, they will shove people out of the way to get to the life boat. It just never seems to fail that if someone is rude, they are often rude because they are selfish. So the two go hand in hand quite often, if not always.

As followers of Christ, having experienced perfect love, this should not be what is seen in us. Our grateful heart that has experienced the deep undeserving love of Jesus Christ, never forgets, and wants to share that same self-less love with others. Because Jesus is who we seek to please, rather than ourselves, then He directs us towards outward actions that demonstrate His love for mankind, whether mankind appears to be deserving or especially when mankind appears to be undeserving of His love…and of our attentions.

Our motivation has nothing to do with what feels good to us. Often, we can get weary in following Christ towards the many people He would direct us to in one day or one week. Yet we persevere, for weariness or discomforts cannot quench what He has done for us and how much we want to do for Him in return….not as a debt, for what He did for us was a free gift…and yet still as a debtor always for what He did for us...and all with a grateful heart. The actions we take for the benefit of others then, becomes joy for us, that we have so blessed the Lord by showing others His love through our self-LESS-ness; models of HIS self-LESS-ness on OUR behalves. We love Him because He FIRST loved US!

So can we then say that we Christians are NEVER rude, NEVER self-focused and self-seeking? I am afraid we cannot say that.

I can say, however, that the more we remember His love for us, the more grateful we remain during every possible moment for all that he has done for us, the less likely we will be to act unbecomingly towards others.

The moral but rude woman described above, did not know the Lord. She had no joy in her life. She turned to "things" to try to ease her misery, rather than the Lord; but she remained unhappy and miserable. And it showed.

We are lit from within with JOY. That joy does not come from what we have attained whether in terms of material goods or in fame and popularity. It comes from knowing the Lord and His great unfailing love for us.

If you find yourself speaking rudely before you can even stop the words coming out of your mouth; if you find that people are not enjoying being around you quite as much as they once did….check your JOY…check your GRATEFUL heart. Return fully to the remembrance of what Christ has done for you who deserved death, but have now received life everlasting instead.

[NOTE FROM JAGS: Have a very important and serious new book to recommend called "The Harbinger" by Jonathan Cahn.  Available right now only in digital version, but don't wait for the printed version, get it now!  I read it in one sitting...full of biblical discernment by one who studies deeply the Word of God.   I believe "The Harbinger" is a God-inspired message to America: a message of warning of judgment to come, and a message of hope and redemption if we will only heed what God is showing us through scripture!  It is a MUST read for every believer and non-believer alike!]

Proud Braggarts Lack Love

"It does not boast, it is not proud." (1 Corinthians 13:4b)

Hollywood is great at depicting "proud braggarts." So we all have an idea what the extreme version looks like.

But there are more subtle versions that we might not catch as quickly, especially if those characteristics are in us. So let me see if I can help identify what it would look like on a much milder scale than that of Hollywood. Here are some things a more subtle proud braggart might speak:

"Well, I guess I raised my kids differently than you, because mine have never given me any problems." -or- "My kids would never do something like that. I taught them better."

"I'm the only one in this place that really works, the rest of you are useless."

"I just don't know why you don't get even the simplest of things like this."

"Of course, I'm not perfect…." (this sentence does not end in a period, leaving room for "but I'm pretty close." And it always follows a criticism of someone else.)

"I don't run through my paycheck the way you do."

I'm sure there are better example of what I am getting at here, but I hope you get the general idea.

There are some common denominators in the above statements:

1. The use of the word "I"
   
2. The use of the word "you" (either spoken or implied)
   
3. The sin of comparison
   
4. The person on the receiving end (the "you"), leaves feeling like something less, and lower in spirit, which is the goal of pride…to elevate oneself above another.
   

These sentences above can take place between unbelievers or believers; we believers are not exempt, if we are not "walking" in the Spirit as we are commanded to do.

"But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another. This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh." (Galatians 5:15-16)

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance…" (Galatians 5-22-23)

Gentleness, meekness…two qualities that do NOT shine in us when we are being proud and boastful.

"Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud." (Proverbs 16:19)

"The Lord lifteth up the meek: He casteth the wicked down to the ground." (Psalm 147:6)

In the extreme, proud braggarts leave devastation in their wake. Those who abuse are almost always proud braggarts. Proud people are oppressors, holding others in contempt.

"Be surety for thy servant for good: let not the proud oppress me." (Psalm 119:122) This was David's cry to the Lord.

"Our soul is exceedingly filled with the scorning of those that are at ease, and with the contempt of the proud." (Psalm 123:4)

Another sign of proud braggarts is that control is important to them. In their minds, control keeps them elevated "above" others.

But meekness and gentleness don't need to be in control or "above" others; they will come along second, instead of first. Just as Jesus "followed" the Father and did all that He saw the Father doing. He was not "above" the Father, but the Father did elevate Him and continues to do so until His purposes are complete.

The point is that Jesus did not elevate Himself. In fact, He allowed Himself to be beaten, and crucified by proud braggarts, in order to "follow" where the Father was leading Him….the goal being to save us…the proud braggarts…and to deliver us from the punishment that we deserved. And to deliver us from the captivity of our sin of pride by which we only harm one another. What is there of eternal value in any of us that we can boast about? And if there is no eternal value, then it is of no value at all, for it will one day be burned up and become ashes

"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are HIS workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:8-9)

"Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing: knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it." (1 Peter 3:8-11)








 

Love Does Not Envy

"It does not envy…" (1 Corinthians 13:4b)

Love does not envy. That seems fairly easy to comprehend. To envy means to want what someone else has. We all know that envy is un-Christ-like. Yet envy happens even within the church, amongst Christians who would never think to be envious of worldly material possessions, but are envious instead of status or position or talent belonging to others in the church.

One person might be envious of another person's closeness to a pastor, or to a leader of some sort; making life rather more difficult than it already is for that pastor or leader.

Another person might be envious of someone's gift of teaching, for example, or of seeing the gift of evangelism displayed boldly in one person when they themselves feel too inferior to evangelize. (Feeling inferior is a sin by the way; God created each of us unique, we are not to be ashamed of who we are, especially in Christ.)

One person might envy another's ability as a prayer warrior, which can lead them to pray very lengthy but powerless prayers as they are prayed only for the purpose of showing themselves as mighty in prayer as another. Yet everyone who hears the prayers of a prayer warrior versus an insincere imitation can tell the difference.

But the envy that Christians are warned about most is envy of the world and its sinful inhabitants. Christians are envious at times of unbelievers simply because the lives of unbelievers seem so carefree and easy…while the road we Christians walk seems hard to bear at times. We are deceived, of course, in this; because while the lost might enjoy their sin for a short time, there is a never-ending eternity of suffering that awaits them…none of today's pleasures can compare to an eternity of suffering. Sometimes we Christians forget that in the moment.

I cannot say that I have never felt envy. And I believe there are many just like me. But what I can say, for me and for many others, is that we strive NOT to be that way. And many times even when tempted, we CAN overcome in this area even if there are other areas in our life in which are much more difficult to overcome. We are all made of the same flesh, that flesh that needs to be battled so often!

So, to encourage us the Word gives us examples of what will happen to those who are envious, and encourages us in the reward of NOT being that way. I think I will let the Word take it from here!

"Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away. Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun." (Psalm 37:1-6)

"A sound heart is life to the body, but envy is rottenness to the bones." (Proverbs 14:30)

"Do not let your heart envy sinners, but be zealous for the fear of the Lord all the day.." (Proverbs 23:17)

"Lord, when your hand is lifted up, they will not see. But they will see and be ashamed for their envy of people; Yes, the fire of Your enemies shall devour them." (Isaiah 26:11)

Did you know that it was envy that nailed Christ to the cross? Pontius Pilate knew:

"Therefore, when they had gathered together, Pilate said to them, 'Whom do you want me to release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?' For he knew that they had handed Him over because of envy." (Matthew 27:17-18)

"But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy; and contradicting and blaspheming, they opposed the things spoken by Paul." (Acts 13:45)

Now look at the company that "envy" keeps:

"And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them." (Romans 1:28-32)

Paul, however, warns us against envy and encourages us to make no place for it in our lives as time is short:

"The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts." (Romans 13:12-14)

It is expedient for this study to read again that passage in Romans 1:28-32, being careful to note two other unloving traits that we will discuss in the next posting: proud and boasters – companions of envy.

 

Love is Patient, Love is Kind

The NIV states 1 Corinthians 13:4(a) as: "Love is patient, love is kind."

The New KJV states it as: "Love suffers long and is kind."

In fact, in every other translation I could easily get my hands on, the words remain the same: love is patient or suffers long…and in every version love is kind.

Let's look at the word "kind" first.

The original Greek word is "chresteuomai" which means: to show one's self mild.

That brings another scripture to mind: "Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves." (Matthew 10:16)

We are to be harmless as doves. I've never seen a dove attack anything. I've seen jays attack cats, and large birds attack small animals of all kinds; but when you think of a dove, you think of a quiet, calm, peaceful bird. Which is most likely why it is often used as a symbol of peace; that, and the fact, that the dove returning to the ark of Noah with a branch in its mouth, indicated that the time of God's wrath upon the perverse inhabitants of earth was finally at an end. The dove is a symbol of love as well, as seen in Solomon's Song of Songs, chapter 5 verse 2:

"I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove…"

How many people of your acquaintance would describe your temperament as that of a dove? How many people of your acquaintance feel that they can be around you at any moment and be completely safe as though they were in the presence of only a dove…rather than a screeching hawk eager for the kill?

Yet, wasn't the Holy Spirit which descended upon Jesus described by John the Baptist as: "descending from heaven like a dove"? (John 1:32)

Then again, when the Holy Spirit descended upon the 120 believers gathered together in the Upper Room on the Day of Pentecost, He arrived with the sound of a rushing wind, and appeared as tongues of fire above each person there
(Acts 2:2-3). But I believe that was because of the giftings imparted that day (and which are available still today to all believers), and the fire was indicative of the power of Holy Spirit that they were all filled with that day.

Still, the style of the Holy Spirit is most recognized as kind, and quiet, and not forcing itself upon anyone; graceful, merciful and filled with wisdom.

Such was the style of Jesus Christ as well…as was quoted in the last posting, He was "power wrapped in love." There never was anything to be feared from Jesus; other than the loss of man's own power and self-pride, of which the Pharisees had much at risk when Jesus was around.

So, how are we then to be to others? How are we to be to those who irritate us with their unbelief; or to those Christians who know what sin is and still find themselves trapped by it…saved, but not set free? How are we to love them?

What about the word "patient"?

The actual Greek word translated either as patient or as long-suffering is "makrothymeo." Here are the various definitions ascribed to that word:

1. To be of a long spirit, not to lose heart
   
   1. To persevere patiently and bravely in enduring misfortunes and troubles
      
   2. To be patient in bearing the offenses and injuries of others
      
      1. To be mild and slow in avenging
         
      2. To be longsuffering, slow to anger, slow to punish
         

Ok…so now for the test!

Think of someone in your life who irritates you greatly or has offended you or someone you love…it could be a spouse, a young child, a grown child, a brother or sister in the Lord, a biological brother or sister, a parent, a grand-parent, a friend, a co-worker, a neighbor.

Now ask yourself these questions: Have I lost heart with this person? Am I persevering patiently as I wait for the Lord to make His changes in them? Do I avenge myself with this person even when I speak biblically-correct words, yet speak those words, God's Word, in anger or frustration or hatred or unforgiveness? Do I long to see them get their come-uppance? After I have spent time in the presence of this person, do they walk away from me feeling that they have just experienced love and kindness from a mild-mannered and harmless friend, as though from a loving God? Or do they walk away, hurt and wounded, condemned by yet one more person who sees only that they are sinning, not why they are sinning, or how deeply they have been hurt in the past that might not be healed within them; but are anxious to see them get right with God at all costs…even if patience and kindness are abandoned in the process. Are we trusting God's hand in this person's life, or are we anxious to get things going whether it is in God's timing or not?

OR…

Do I pray for them unceasingly? Do I love them as much as I love myself? Am I treating them as well as I treat myself? Do I continue to hope that things will change in them rather than giving up on them? How do I bear the offenses, whether small or great, that come my way via this person while I continue to pray for them? When was the last time I did something kind for them with no motive other than to show kindness?

We ARE to speak the truth about God's Word, we must not compromise that, but it MUST be done in love, with all the attributes of love on display, with the proper motive of love, or we are abusing God's word and using it for our vengeance.

We all have someone, if not many someones, in our life that hasn't seen the "dove" side of us nearly as often as we would hope. In all opportunities where the hawk comes out instead of the dove, we have lost one more opportunity to point them towards Jesus.

But what a change they will see, if we can begin today to love them with patience and kindness. And what a change we might see in them as a result…once they get over their shock, that is!

 

 

 

 

When Good Does Not Profit

"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing." (1 Corinthians 13:1)

Sometimes we take the fact that we have gifts as a sign that we are right with God. Yet the scripture above indicates that we can have many gifts and still be lacking in one vital thing: LOVE.

Paul says that we have nothing to gain from all the gifts of the Holy Spirit if we don't first have love.

Gifts without love are the same as the words of the bible without the Holy Spirit who breathes light and life into them.

I know many people who can speak the word of God, but the delivery, lacking love, leaves a trail of spiritually wounded people behind them. Without love, the Word of God is perceived by those who do not know or trust God's love, as law that brings death, versus Spirit that brings life.

Dr. Charles H. Kraft, in his book, I Give You Authority, speaks of the love that Jesus showed mankind, which he calls "power wrapped in love":

"The model for us to imitate, as always, is Jesus...He used His power only in a context of love.  In fact, He used His power specifically to show His love. So the preeminent rule in exercising the authority God has given us is to operate in His authority lovingly.  Those with authority are tempted to behave harshly.  This is not God's way.  Jesus, while working in great authority, also recognized He was under authority, so HIs responsibility was to do His Father's works in His Father's way.  Our responsibility is likewise to exhibit the character of Jesus as we assert the authority He gives us.  We are to manifest the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) as we operate in the gifts of the Spirit and to wrap all authority in love."

I have seen a preacher stumble over words at times, and yet it is his love that wins the souls of many to Christ. And that love is not of himself, but of that which he has first experienced from God. He does not forget where he came from, where God found him and from which he was saved. And he sees others in that same light, lost and confused as he was, needing someone to tell them about the love of God.

No matter what the gifts are that God, being no respecter of persons, gives us; if they are not utilized in love, they will produce nothing for the kingdom. And make no mistake, we can take anything of God and with pride, instead of love, wreak havoc for ourselves and for others.

An excellent example of this is found in Acts 19:

"And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul: so that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them. Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth. And there were sevens sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? And the man in whom the evil spirit was, leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded." (Acts 19: 11-16)

In this scene, no one profited. Neither the ones who thought they could use the things of God in a prideful manner, nor the one whom they hoped to set free. The motive behind the works was not love.

It is critical that we check our motives at all times, and deal honestly with ourselves in this regard. If we find any anger or hatred or envy in us, then it is best to stop dead in our tracks, and not proceed with whatever the task is that we set for ourselves, until those things have been fully dealt with. Almost all works done for the Lord involve other people. When we act out of wrong or impure motives, we hurt not only ourselves, but others. Thus, even though the appearance of the work can be said to be "good", instead damage was done, and the work was one of evil instead of good.

"Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness." (James 3:13-18)

Pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere, peacemakers who sow in peace… this is what will accompany our works done for the Lord when the works are done in the proper Spirit of love.