'First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you. I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles. I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” '
Romans 1:8-17
Just as Paul thanked God for His fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, we are the follow his example. Lord, I thank You for my godly family in Jesus’ Name…even those I have never met!! We are all connected spiritually and as a natural effect of that, we are mutually encouraged for it is God’s design. We give and receive encouragement from one another because that is how the Spirit works. It is a spiritual exchange. We are automatically encouraged by one another’s faith and by knowing that we are not the only Christians out there. We are connected in a way that we cannot see nor explain. This is why when we meet other believers, we automatically feel a connection. We are family!! Our spirits agree with one another. When we put our faith together and agree on a thing, it becomes powerful!!! A church on its knees is more powerful than an army on its feet. Sometimes we do not even know that there are others out there agreeing with us in the Spirit because it is the LORD making it happen. He puts things in our hearts and minds and while we are not aware of it, we are actually agreeing with others in prayer. Wow!!! That is why when people around us are disagreeing with us or not supporting us, God is raising up others to agree with and support us in the Spirit without our knowing. He can even cause the rocks to cry out!!
Paul explains in his letter that he had tried to go to them many times but was kept from doing so until now that he might have a harvest among them. This is sticking out to me as it has me thinking about His perfect timing. He delays things for a reason because His timing is perfect. When we are waiting on God, it is because of a harvest that is coming. We are waiting for the right time for the harvest. If we are still waiting, that is because there is still work to be done for that harvest. That is why it is important not to get ahead of God nor lag behind. We must wait for Him. Amen!
Paul explains that he is not ashamed of the Gospel for it is the power of God bringing salvation to all who believe. We may be tempted at times to be embarrassed when we share the Gospel because to those who do not believe, it sounds like foolishness to them, but we should not be embarrassed or ashamed because it is salvation to those who believe. One has to accept His Righteousness by faith. We cannot intellectualize it or do it on our own. It is our surrender to God and accepting His Righteousness by faith that truly saves us and breaks our chains. We experience freedom and change through our surrender, not through our control and striving. Righteousness by FAITH. Amen!! That is where true freedom is found!!
'The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 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 people 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 a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles. 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 about 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 sexual 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 shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error. Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they 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 have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 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 1:18-32
What I am seeing here is that everyone is without excuse. God has made it clear through His creation that He is undeniably real. Every person has a choice whether they want to accept this Truth or not. Many have traded it for a lie and in so doing, God has given them over to a depraved mind and that is a means to an end as far as His wrath is concerned. Basically, a person destroys oneself just by choosing not to acknowledge Him and by accepting a lie. That may even suggest that every person knows deep down in their consciences and hearts that the way they have chosen is wrong. It is through faith in Jesus Christ that we are cleansed from a guilty conscience. I think that is why before we are saved, we know in our hearts that something is wrong even though the world says that it is not. God gives each person a conscience.
Not only are we to reject those practices that go against the Word of God on a personal level, but we are also not to accept any part of that way of thinking. There is not “my truth vs your truth”. There is only one Truth and that is Jesus. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Jesus!! Amen!!
Romans 1:8-17
Romans 1:8-17 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how | New International Version (NIV) |
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how
www.bible.com
Just as Paul thanked God for His fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, we are the follow his example. Lord, I thank You for my godly family in Jesus’ Name…even those I have never met!! We are all connected spiritually and as a natural effect of that, we are mutually encouraged for it is God’s design. We give and receive encouragement from one another because that is how the Spirit works. It is a spiritual exchange. We are automatically encouraged by one another’s faith and by knowing that we are not the only Christians out there. We are connected in a way that we cannot see nor explain. This is why when we meet other believers, we automatically feel a connection. We are family!! Our spirits agree with one another. When we put our faith together and agree on a thing, it becomes powerful!!! A church on its knees is more powerful than an army on its feet. Sometimes we do not even know that there are others out there agreeing with us in the Spirit because it is the LORD making it happen. He puts things in our hearts and minds and while we are not aware of it, we are actually agreeing with others in prayer. Wow!!! That is why when people around us are disagreeing with us or not supporting us, God is raising up others to agree with and support us in the Spirit without our knowing. He can even cause the rocks to cry out!!
Paul explains in his letter that he had tried to go to them many times but was kept from doing so until now that he might have a harvest among them. This is sticking out to me as it has me thinking about His perfect timing. He delays things for a reason because His timing is perfect. When we are waiting on God, it is because of a harvest that is coming. We are waiting for the right time for the harvest. If we are still waiting, that is because there is still work to be done for that harvest. That is why it is important not to get ahead of God nor lag behind. We must wait for Him. Amen!
Paul explains that he is not ashamed of the Gospel for it is the power of God bringing salvation to all who believe. We may be tempted at times to be embarrassed when we share the Gospel because to those who do not believe, it sounds like foolishness to them, but we should not be embarrassed or ashamed because it is salvation to those who believe. One has to accept His Righteousness by faith. We cannot intellectualize it or do it on our own. It is our surrender to God and accepting His Righteousness by faith that truly saves us and breaks our chains. We experience freedom and change through our surrender, not through our control and striving. Righteousness by FAITH. Amen!! That is where true freedom is found!!
'The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 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 people 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 a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles. 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 about 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 sexual 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 shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error. Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they 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 have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 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 1:18-32
Romans 1:18-32 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, bec | New International Version (NIV)
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, bec
www.bible.com
What I am seeing here is that everyone is without excuse. God has made it clear through His creation that He is undeniably real. Every person has a choice whether they want to accept this Truth or not. Many have traded it for a lie and in so doing, God has given them over to a depraved mind and that is a means to an end as far as His wrath is concerned. Basically, a person destroys oneself just by choosing not to acknowledge Him and by accepting a lie. That may even suggest that every person knows deep down in their consciences and hearts that the way they have chosen is wrong. It is through faith in Jesus Christ that we are cleansed from a guilty conscience. I think that is why before we are saved, we know in our hearts that something is wrong even though the world says that it is not. God gives each person a conscience.
Not only are we to reject those practices that go against the Word of God on a personal level, but we are also not to accept any part of that way of thinking. There is not “my truth vs your truth”. There is only one Truth and that is Jesus. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Jesus!! Amen!!