Today’s reading: Romans 7:14-25, 8:1-8

“If your sinful nature controls your mind, there is death. But if the Holy Spirit controls your mind, there is life and peace.” - Romans 8:6

There is a lie running through the entire world today. It says that with enough discipline and effort, we can “take back” our lives.

Paul seems to adamantly disagree with this idea. He paints a picture that our minds can either be controlled by our “sinful nature” or by the Holy Spirit.

Our world today doesn’t want to hear that we aren’t independently good enough.

Jesus doesn’t want to simply step around our sin (that which controls us), he wants to step through it with his blood — and thereby obliterating it from derailing our minds from the truth.

C.K. Barrett drives this home by writing, “To be determined by that which is God and not oneself means life and peace, not only as subjective experiences but as objective relationship with God.”

Do you desire true life and peace in this life? The answer is Jesus, recognizing his Lordship over all.

Today’s reading: Romans 7:1-13

“Sin used what was good to bring about my condemnation.” - Romans 7:13

This first section in Romans 7 is one that our present culture needs to take in. Paul shares what role the Old Testament law played in the lives of the earliest Christians. It was (and is) a revealer of our state.

This is how the cycle has played as we take a glance at history:

Desires >> Deeds >> Death

A realization of sin is what it is going to help us start seeing our deep need for the forgiveness that only Jesus can give.

The law is a revealer, and Jesus is the redeemer.

Verse 14 shows us the method our enemy (the Devil) has been using against us since he first deceived Adam and Eve in Eden. Sin always twists the good for its evil purposes.

H.D.M. Spence said it well, “...its awakening of the sense of sin, and of a craving for redemption from it, was the necessary preparation for such redemption.”

God, would you use us to carry your redemption to those you’ve placed in our paths? May we not shrink back!

Today’s reading: Romans 6

 “For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.” - Romans 6:4 NLT

Some in the Roman church were viewing God’s grace as a license to sin. “Since God is doing the heavy lifting, I can go back to my way of doing things!”

Paul pulls them into the reality of becoming a Christian. When you decide to follow Jesus, you cross over from an admiration of Jesus’ death and resurrection to a participation. We were not saved to sit in the stands. Instead, Jesus pulls us into the game, empowering us by his death and resurrection.

We weren't created by God to let sin control us. We were created to let righteousness captivate and command every move of our bodies.

Jack Cottrell brilliantly says, “...we must conclude that “into death” means something else, namely, our own death to sin.”

It seems like at first we’ve lost everything, but we have, in fact, just started to truly live.

Today’s reading: Romans 5:6-21

“When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.” - Romans‬ ‭5:6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Timing has always been something that has baffled humans from the very beginning. In our pride, we would like to think we have complete control over time—a little allocating here and a little manipulating there. Yet the overarching timeline is square in the control of our Almighty God.

As Daniel said in 2:21 of his book, “He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others.”

Jesus’ coming wasn’t early, and it wasn’t late. It was right on time — and funny enough, Jesus’ birth is how we even measure time today.

It was no mistake that Jesus was born and died during Roman rule. The Pax Romana (27 BC to AD 187) gave Jews the freedom to worship and maintain their culture. Roman roads were conducive to travel. Time was given for Jewish prophecy to pile up about Jesus’ coming.

God also has you in his hand today, in this time, to experience the love of Jesus.

Today’s reading: Romans 4:16-25, 5:1-5

“...we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” - Romans‬ ‭5:3-5‬ ‭NASB‬‬

Why does God allow us to face “problems and trials”? Does he take great delight in seeing us struggle and suffer through them? It can seem confusing when we match it up with the world’s definition of love.

Yet when we realize that we are living in a broken and fallen world, even as one of its participants, we know we need this process that leads to hope.

True love enables us to grow, to develop into someone who sees further, embracing hope.

H.C.G Moule drives home this thought by saying, “For now the Apostle takes up that word, “the Love of God” and holds it to our sight, and we see in its pure glory no vague abstraction, but the face, and the work, of Jesus Christ.”

Today’s reading: Romans 4:1-12

“But people are declared righteous because of their faith, not because of their work.” - Romans 4:5

This may disappoint some of us who work very hard to please God (and others) on a daily basis. We strive and strive to be good enough for God to accept us and show favor that we need.

Yet when we do this we have turned the Gospel around into something we can earn.

The two examples that Paul uses are interesting in these twelve verses.

First, he speaks of Abraham, who blatantly lied on more than one occasion because of fear (see Genesis 12:12-20). He also slept with his wife’s servant, Hagar.

Second, he speaks, and quotes a song, of David. A murderer, an adulterer, and a mess of a family man — David was not saved by his works. It was obvious that he was saved by his faith.

When we apply this to our lives, it is humbling. We want to be known as those who have their lives together. Yet there wouldn’t be a human on earth who could relate, those we desire to reach with Jesus’ love.

Today’s reading: Romans 3:9-31

“We are made right in God’s sight when we trust in Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we all can be saved in this same way, no matter who we are or what we have done.” - Romans 3:22

As soon as we step into this section of Romans, we see that Paul has been preparing us for these moments. Unless we realize our need for Jesus, we cannot be saved by Jesus.

Martin Luther, commenting on this section in 1552, wrote:

“There is no greater arrogance than not to desire to be justified by faith in Christ.”

What is it that you need more than anything else? Food? Clothing? Shelter? Of course, we need these to survive, but they cannot save. What we need more than anything else is for someone to save us from...us. Our consistent poor choices present themselves as an act of defiance against God.

What we need most: a Savior.

Someone worth trusting. Someone who refused to spare their own life so that we could be set free. Someone whose blood is activated by our belief.

We.

Need.

Jesus.

Today’s reading: Romans 2:25-29, 3:1-8

 Though everyone else in the world is a liar, God is true. As the Scriptures say, “He will be proved right in what he says, and he will won his case in court.” - Romans 3:4

It seems it is becoming increasingly harder to determine who in our country is telling the truth. People choose sides, and the truth is buried in various agendas of individuals and groups. Can lasting change come out of such confusion? So far, it looks like it cannot.

Paul gives us a message of encouragement that we need today. Even if everyone in the world is working their version of their agendas, we know that God remains the ultimate source of truth.

The quote Paul uses here is from Psalm 51:4, the Psalm of confession that David wrote after committing adultery with Bathsheba — and having her husband killed.

This is what we are really like when left alone to our agendas apart from Jesus. We become adulterers and murderers.

Jesus, you always win when we accuse you. May we get onto your agenda today. 🙏

Today’s reading: Romans 2:1-24

“They demonstrate God’s law is written within them...” - Romans 2:15

Romans chapter two isn’t the most talked-about chapter in the book, but it is one of the most fascinating. Paul is giving the Jews in Rome a firm rebuke for relying on their heritage and knowledge of God for salvation. Their lives remained unaffected by their understanding of God’s standards when it came to morality.

Yet the Gentiles were living proof of Ecclesiastes 3:11: “He has planted eternity in the human heart.” Even the individual tucked deep within an indigenous tribe — unaffected by the outside world — can know God and obey him in a primitive way that would put these Jews to shame.

So the question isn’t, “What do I know?”

The question should be, “How am I responding to what I do know?

The day is coming when Jesus “will judge everyone’s secret life” — May we be prepared for that day by faithfully (and obediently) responding to the invitation God has given us through Jesus.

All of us matter to God.

Today’s reading: Romans 1:18-32

“So God let them go ahead...” - Romans 1:24

This passage in Romans lays out in 14 verses what sin actually looks like, and what God’s disposition is toward those who commit such sins. Paul is actually way ahead of his time. He recognizes the lesbian lifestyle at a time when most didn’t. It wasn’t just the men who had exchanged the truth for a lie, the women were guilty as well.

Every sin is an exchange. It exchanges the truth for a lie. It exchanges the creator for a copy. Copies may seem like the real thing, but in the end they are unable to help the way our Almighty God can.

Yet here we also see another important attribute of God. Though his wrath comes against all those who refuse Jesus, refuse repentance — he will never force us to obey. God will “give us over” to whatever we are wanting to worship in place of him.

As we come to the close of chapter one, we see that idolatry takes many forms. There is no ranking system. We have all sinned (see 3:23).

All of us need Jesus’ love (see John 3:16).