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Isaiah 50:4- “The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary…”
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    • Without Excuse!

      Posted at 6:59 pm by wonderfuljesus8, on April 14, 2021

      Romans 2: 1- “Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.” NKJV

      Photo by Olya Kobruseva on Pexels.com

      This chapter begins with Paul setting a tone. He’s not telling his readers how wonderful they are anymore. As a matter of fact, just the opposite. He’s probably inciting their anger towards him because he is pointing out a truth they either don’t recognize or don’t want to recognize!

      All of us know good people and people who we don’t consider to be so good. They are in our families, at our jobs, in our churches, our next door neighbors. Mr. Smith down the block has been married to the same woman for 20 years, keeps up with his lawn, and offers to cut the lawns of the older people on the block. We judge him as being good. The lady in the office with the tight clothes, stiletto heels, and too much make up who is too loud, we judge as sinful. The tither and Sunday School teacher, good! The person who is always on the prayer list for one thing or another, not so good! We’ve all done it at some point in our life, and Paul is saying, who are we to judge when we are guilty of wrong doing ourselves?

      Paul addressed all of those terrible sins associated with the worldly Gentiles, and now he is addressing the Jewish population who were trained in religious protocol. We looked at the Gentiles, Paul implies, but now let’s look at you! Paul states that those who believe themselves to be morally upright are without excuse before God, for as they have judged the Gentiles, they are also guilty for practicing the same things. Paul was letting them know that having morality didn’t give them a leg up on the Gentiles or with God. Those little foxes spoil the vine every time!

      Paul reminds the Jews that God judges according to truth! Not our truth, His truth!

      For He is coming, for He is coming to judge the earth.

      He shall judge the world with righteousness,

      And the peoples with His truth.

      Psalm 96:13 NKJV

      Everything that God calls unrighteous is unrighteous; and all that He declares to be holy, is holy! As the Righteous One, He can never be wrong!

      For some reason, commentators of the book of Romans agree that when Paul was writing this portion of the letter he was probably thinking of some of his secular contemporaries in Rome. Each of them mention a philosopher named Seneca, so I thought I would see why. Seneca was the younger brother of Gallio. Remember Gallio in the book of Acts? In Acts 18, the Jews take Paul to the judgment seat where Gallio is presiding. They accuse Paul of persuading men to worship God contrary to the law. Before Paul can say anything, Gallio basically tells them that he doesn’t care and tells them to leave. At the time of this letter, Seneca, a Spanish born philosopher, had risen to a place of prominence in Rome. He tutored Nero, the Roman emperor when he was a young man. Prior to this, he had been expelled from Rome, but Nero’s mom had him brought back to Rome and made him a tutor. Although he was responsible for doing some good things, he also stood by, without question, as Nero murdered his own mother.

      With this scenario in mind, we can well see why Paul would say that they were without excuse. Judging others as being wicked, while ignoring the wickedness of those who have honored us or placed us in a position of power is wrong! It’s equally wicked! Didn’t we hear a politician say that he could shoot someone in Central Park and his supporters wouldn’t care? Unfortunately, he’s proving that could be so true!

      I mentioned before, how I received an email from a very well known Christian leader. In that email there was an urgent message to pray for the presidential election of 2016. Within the email was a statement referring to the Democrats as evil Democrats. I was shocked! Since then, there have been many many more who have made similar comments, even to the point of saying that those who didn’t vote for a particular candidate was in danger of the wrath of God, or that they were going to hell. It seems to me that Paul was speaking prophetically of the times in which we live. Voting is not theocratic, it is part of a democracy. One vote for every citizen. We have the right to vote as we please. All Republicans are not Christians, nor are they all godly, or evil. All Democrats are not evil, nor do they all agree with abortion or gay rights. And they are certainly not all evil! Paul warns us about being so judgmental, when many of the things we are judging, we are guilty of doing ourselves. So after bringing this point out, Paul asks the question:

      And do you think this, O man, you who judge those practicing such things, and doing the same, that you will escape the judgment of God?

      Romans 2:3 NKJV

      When I mention the judgment of God, what exactly am I referring to? In the Vine’s dictionary, the Greek word for judgment is “krima” and it conveys the thought of “the sentence pronounced, a verdict, a condemnation, specifically God’s judgment upon man”. Peter wrote in another letter these words about the judgment of God:

      For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?

      1 Peter 4:16 NKJV

      Christians have become pretty self-righteous and a little arrogant. (Aren’t those sins?) I was working in a restaurant while going to school. Every Sunday night, a group of students from a Christian college would come to the place to eat and hang out. They were pretty obnoxious, to say the least, acting as if they had come into this worldly environment to dominate and exercise their Christian rights. Things were getting out of hand. My manager felt that if I worked that shift, being a Christian, I could probably make them happier. I was a little embarrassed for my fellow Christians, as they were being rude and were developing a bad reputation before unsaved people. I ended up having to really have a talk with them. I explained to them that I was embarrassed that they called themselves Christians with their type of behavior. I mentioned that they were hurting my evangelistic efforts amongst my co-workers. And then I said something about starting the night over and acting like they were really Christians. Well, their leader apologized and had the group apologize. We never had another problem!

      I see this same spirit operating in the church today! And it is sad! I understand that the world runs over us at every opportunity. I understand they have no respect for us or our Jesus! I understand policies are often not made in our favor and often place us in uncomfortable positions. But when we act like they act, (especially in the Name of Jesus), I believe we place ourselves in the position of judge and jury. It is as if we have decided that God is too weak to take care of this situation and therefore we need to do it! Or maybe we think He forgot how to deal with sinners, or He’s just too merciful and no mercy will be extended any longer! Or maybe we really think that we have become God because we have a lot of followers, a mega church, several mega churches, hundreds of books and money we no longer need to check on. Whatever we are thinking, it’s stinking thinking!

      Do we really think that God needs us to burn down abortion clinics because He can’t seem to stop people from getting an abortion? Do we really think that we are better than others because we go to church and say that we are saved? Does God really need us to storm the capital and then pray in the room to show how Christian-like we are? I refuse to say Christ-like! And in the words of Paul, do we really think that we are going to escape the judgement of God when it starts in the house of God? I’m just agreeing with Paul! This is inexcusable and we need to do a reality check, or spiritual check, or Jesus check, or something! Wonderful Jesus!

      Posted in righteousness, Study of Romans, Wrong Thinking | 2 Comments | Tagged church issues, critical spirit, early church, judgment of God, judgmental, Paul, Peter, politics, righteousness, Rome, Study of Romans, the church and politics, Wrong Thinking
    • The Center of It All!

      Posted at 10:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on April 7, 2021

      Romans 1:2-4 “God promised this Good News long ago through his prophets in the holy Scriptures. The Good News is about His Son. In His earthly life He was born into King David’s family line, and He was shown to be the Son of God when He was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord.” NLT

      Photo by Katerina Holmes on Pexels.com

      I was in Science class today when I had a thought. As our students were learning about the importance of cells, and tissues, and organs I was thinking about Jesus. A fact that resonated with my spirit is that the nucleus is the control center of the cell and it regulates all the activities of the cell. So I looked it up and discovered that the nucleus also carries the genes where our hereditary information is contained. My thought was this: that sounds like Jesus! I got so excited! And isn’t it something that science can reveal the Father, just as Paul wrote in the beginning of his letter to the Romans?

      Paul introduced himself to the saints in Rome, a congregation he hadn’t fellowshipped with, but one he had heard all about. As Paul traveled and evangelized the Greek provinces he often ran into other believers, and this is how he heard of the church in Rome. When he wrote:

       First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world,

      Romans 1:8 NKJV

      it was because of all the people he had met who originated from that church, or had passed through that church. Those things caused his heart to desire to go to Rome that he might part some spiritual gift to them, that they may be established, and for mutual encouragement (verse 12).

      It is believed that Andronicus and Junias were from the congregation in Rome, and since Paul sends them a greeting, they are in Rome at the time of his writing. Priscilla and Aquila were also from Rome, and had been amongst the Jews who were expelled from Rome before they met Paul (Acts 18:2). At this writing, they had a church in their house (16:5). Other people to whom Paul sent greetings at the end of his letter were believed to be people he had met during his evangelistic efforts who had either moved to Rome or had returned to Rome. It is easy to surmise that this church, made of Jews and later Gentiles, impressed Paul, because of the testimony of these individuals, that he wanted to fellowship with them for himself!

      After he introduces himself, he then speaks of Jesus. However, it is believed that his characterization of Jesus is intentional and with purpose and that’s why he doesn’t use His name until the end of his description. Let’s look closer at what Paul said about Jesus and why.

      Paul first mentions that Jesus is fully man. He speaks of Jesus’ heritage which would definitely be important to the Jews, and would be a strong testament of His messiahship. He was from the seed of David, and as such, was in the lineage of royalty. Also, as He walked on this earth, He did so in the capacity of a human being, which would later bear witness to man being able to live free from the bondage of sin — a topic he later discusses.

      Then he speaks of Jesus being the Son of God. A truth that surely they already knew as believers, but a truth he wanted them to know that he also preached and agreed with. Instead of focusing on how Jesus was born, although that is a powerful truth, he focused on how He was raised from the dead. This was proof to Paul that Jesus was who He said that He was, more than anything else. Remember that he met the resurrected Jesus and his life was forever changed! As a matter of fact, encountering that Jesus, changed all of the disciples, and it truly is the crux of the gospel message!

      We’ve just celebrated Resurrection Sunday because the resurrection of the Lord is the most important part of the gospel. I like what John Lake said about the resurrection:

      “The reason for the resurrection is that the kingdom of Christ is not to be in heaven entirely. It is to be in this world. And the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is to rule in this world. Consequently, while we live in this world we will need a body like our Lord’s—capable of existence here, and capable of existence over there.”

      ― John G. Lake, Spiritual Hunger, The God-men and Other Sermons

      Have you ever really given that any thought? Currently, in our new created state, we are capable of living in this earthly realm, as we are seated in heavenly places in Christ! And when we pray or give Him praise, we are able to transcend this earthly realm and move in the heavenlies. This relationship is truly supernatural!

      Paul mentions that it is through Jesus that we receive grace and our calling. As an apostle, he acknowledges that the role he has in the kingdom of God is because of the grace extended to him by Jesus. He didn’t do anything to earn it, and neither can we, but it was extended to him. And all of this that he has mentioned in his introduction, the seed of David, the Son of God, the resurrection from the dead, and grace is in Jesus our Lord!

      Now, back to my thought this morning. Just as the nucleus is the center of the cell, Jesus is the nucleus, or center of the gospel. As such, He is the control center not only for the church, but every believer. Paul wrote that He was made to be the head over the church, His body! As we walk in this new life, Jesus regulates our activities as our hearts and minds are transformed by His word. His Spirit on the inside of us, is available to assist us when we yield to Him. In the book of Roman, Paul goes into details about how this is possible. And lastly, in Jesus, is our DNA. All that we are, all that we can ever hope to be, is because of Him living on the inside of us. Jesus, the Christ! (See my blog or listen to my podcast on the DNA of God).

      I’m not really a scientific individual and may not have really touched the essence of this truth, but I saw it just as clearly as I see the page in front of me. This verse:

      For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,

      Romans 1:20 NKJV

      spoke to me like never before. This has been radiating in my heart all day long, and I just had to share it. What a powerful testament of the plan of God. As the nucleus is the center of life and function for the cell, so is Jesus to the gospel, our salvation! Then, of course, I kept hearing the song, “Jesus, You’re the Center of My Joy”. It’s been that kind of day!

      I googled what happens to the cell if the nucleus is removed from it? I found this truth on several sites:

      If the nucleus is removed from the cell then the cell will not be able to function properly, it will not be able to grow. … Gradually, the cell may die.

      https://www.jagranjosh.com

      Look at that spiritual truth!!! Remove Jesus, remove life! Dead churches have removed Him as supreme, preeminent, Lord of all! And then they looked up and realized that they had died a slow death! And if we were to remove Him from our lives, we would be the walking dead. This is why the sinner is not considered alive until they are born again and given life. They are without their spiritual nucleus, Jesus! He is truly the Center of it all! As we move into the letter that Paul wrote to the believers in Rome, Paul wants us to truly understand this truth. No Jesus, no life! Know Jesus, know life! Yes, I’ve used it before, but it bears repeating! I’m so excited about this study! Wonderful Jesus!

      Posted in Christianity, Jesus, Study of Romans | 0 Comments | Tagged cells, Christianity, early church, gospel message, Grace, Jesus, new life, nucleus, Paul, resurrection, Romans, Rome, spiritual life
    • It’s Not a New Message!

      Posted at 10:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on April 5, 2021

      Romans 1: 16-17- “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.” NKJV

      Photo by Oladimeji Ajegbile on Pexels.com

      Paul wrote the book of Romans as a letter to the church in Rome. It is said that the epistle was written to the believers in Rome before Paul had ever visited with them. He is not associated with the planting of the church in Rome, but sent this letter as an encouragement to those who were already fellowshipping together.

      I was reading the book of Romans this weekend, and had the thought that I would like to go through the book with you as a look at the life we are called to live in Christ Jesus!

      If you have a hard copy of a good Bible, that has a chapter introduction, it is easy to see the history of the book of Romans and how it fits in the narrative of the gospel message. For example, our text is considered to be the key scripture of the book of Romans. The theme of the book is the righteousness of God; and the presentation of Jesus Christ is as the second Adam. The book of Romans is considered to be the most important, concise, and detailed information in the word about Christian doctrine.

      Some of the most well-known theologians of Church history had an encounter with God through the book of Romans. I came across this testimony of St. Augustine’s conversion:

      Some time in the year 386, Augustine and his friend Alypius were spending time in Milan. While outdoors, Augustine heard the voice of a child singing a song, the words of which were, “Pick it up and read it. Pick it up and read it.” He thought at first that the song was related to some kind of children’s game, but could not remember ever having heard such a song before.

      Then, realizing that this song might be a command from God to open and read the Scriptures, he located a Bible, picked it up, opened it and read the first passage he saw. It was from the Letter of Paul to the Romans. Augustine read:

      Not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual excess and lust, not in quarreling and jealousy. Rather, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh. –Romans 13: 13-14

      Reading this scripture, Augustine felt as if his heart were flooded with light. He turned totally from his life of sin. He was Baptized by Ambrose during the Easter Vigil April 24, 387. His friend Alypius and his son Adeodatus were Baptized at the same time.

      https://www.midwestaugustinians.org/conversion-of-st-augustine

      In the church of today, it is presumed that this generation isn’t interested in the gospel of Jesus Christ. I have heard it said by many church leaders and pastors that we are losing this generation and have to rethink how we share the gospel. There is truth in that statement!

      However, what Paul wrote is a greater truth: the gospel of Jesus Christ doesn’t have power, it is power of God to salvation! And the criteria remains the same: you must believe! The same power that was in the gospel when Jesus saved Augustine is still present in the gospel today! The same gospel that saved me, is available today, to save this generation.

      What we may be missing, is that they are not looking for religion any more than we were looking for religion when we came to Jesus! The stale churches, with its lists of dos and don’ts that turned us off, is a turn off to them. The church that finds faults with them and every thing they do is just as unappealing to them, as it was with us. The problem could be that the church we ran from, is the church we have become!

      Now! Having said that, I want to also point out, the gospel doesn’t change for any of us! And it won’t change for them. What needs to change is how we view them and how we get the message out to them. As we have experienced this year long, world-wide pandemic, we have had to make some changes in how we deliver the gospel message. In the beginning, things seemed bleak for the church, but after a year, things are actually looking better in many of our churches. Still Jesus’ words remain in affect: “the gates of hell will not prevail against the church”.

      When Paul wrote to the church at Rome, he knew some things about the people he was addressing this letter for. He knew that the make up of the congregation consisted of both Jews and Gentiles. With this being the case, he understood that there were things that needed to be addressed in regards to their position in Christ Jesus. He also understood that they came from different backgrounds, with different understandings of the law, and he wanted to address those things to encourage them in their walk as believers. But mostly, he understood that they needed a solid understanding of the righteousness of God.

      Paul begins his letter by introducing himself to the Romans. He tells them that he is first and foremost a servant of Jesus Christ. Then he tells them that he is an apostle. Today, we introduce ourselves first with our titles, and then with all that we have accomplished. While this may be church protocol, maybe we can learn from Paul! In both roles, he lets them know that he has been separated to the gospel of God. (God is addressed repeatedly in the book of Romans). Paul explains this gospel message in this manner:

      God promised this Good News long ago through his prophets in the holy Scriptures. The Good News is about His Son. In His earthly life He was born into King David’s family line, and He was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord. 

      Romans 1:2-4, NLT

      Romans is written in a question and answer format. In order to not to belabor the point, I will seek to point these questions out and discuss the answers. As we move forward in reading and studying this amazing book of Christian theology, I trust that we will grow bolder in our faith, stronger in our convictions, and unashamedly sure of the gospel of Jesus Christ! I’m looking forward to getting into the book of Romans and hope you will join me in my study. Wonderful Jesus!

      Posted in Believers, God, gospel of Jesus, Study of Romans | 3 Comments | Tagged God, gospel of Jesus, Jesus, Paul, righteousness, Romans, Rome, Son of God, Son of man
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