Romans 2:5-8 (NIV)
5 But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God's wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.
6 God "will give to each person according to what he has done."
7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life.
8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.
Well is there anything in these verses that is troubling to you? What about, "To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life."
What in the world is Paul saying in this verse? There are some who say "deeds not creeds." What they are saying is that for years people have honored a set of beliefs by saying them but those creeds had nothing to do with how those people lived. So a younger generation comes along and exclaims, "deeds not creeds." The problem is what informs the deeds that they would go off to do. It is not either or but both and. This verse is certainly emphasizing the truth that judgment is based on works for everyone. The disciple of Christ and the non-believer will all have to give an account of their lives. However salvation is based on faith not on works. The disciple of Christ will be at the bema seat of Christ where Jesus will examine our lives. Remember these verses.Revelation 22:15 (NIV)
15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
Galatians 5:19-21 (NIV)
19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery;
20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions
21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Notice in the verses above that the word practice is used and then the words ,"...that those who live like this..." will not be getting judged for how they behaved as a disciple but they will be outside all together. Here is a thought the word Christian is only used in God's word 3 times. The word discple is used around 278 times. I will get the exact number, but the point is that the weight of Scripture is on the word disciple not Christian. Can you be a Christian and not a disciple? You all have a great weekend.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Romans 2:1-4 (NIV)
1 You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.
2 Now we know that God's judgment against those who do such things is based on truth.
3 So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God's judgment?
4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?
Who is Paul addressing here in this section? There is legitimate disagreement as to whom Paul was addressing in Romans 2:1-16. It would seem fair to see verse 17 of chapter 2 as the real point of this section. In verse 17 Paul does start addressing the Jews. The section reads better with the Jews in mind throughout the whole section. Let's say it is not the Jews that Paul is writing too, at least it is those who hold themselves up as moral people. They are moral enough in their own eyes to pass judgment. The point of these verses is to help anyone realize that truth is the basis for God's judgment. In verse 3 Paul says, "So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things..." this is something that God would never do for God is truth not just a direction to truth. People, we, have this proclivity to not see ourselves as we really are in God's sight. No one escapes the judgment of God, that is why the just will live by faith.
While we pass judgment and do the things we condemn, God is being kind to not cut us off at the knees. It does not matter if it is a person in the bush in New Guinea, a judge in New York, a minister in Montana, or whoever it is, God is always showing us mercy and that is to draw us to Him. For many it is a stamp of approval of their lifestyle. People rationalize that nothing bad has happened to them as yet, therefore they must be okay. Everyday that God does not strike this planet with His overwhelming wrath, we all should be on our knees thanking Him for His kindness, tolerance, and patience. It is a message that Paul will relate again to us when he reminds us not to keep on sinning because we have been saved by grace. We should be eternally grateful that God sent His Son instead of His judgment. Don't worry, be happy--yes if you know Jesus.
1 You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.
2 Now we know that God's judgment against those who do such things is based on truth.
3 So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God's judgment?
4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?
Who is Paul addressing here in this section? There is legitimate disagreement as to whom Paul was addressing in Romans 2:1-16. It would seem fair to see verse 17 of chapter 2 as the real point of this section. In verse 17 Paul does start addressing the Jews. The section reads better with the Jews in mind throughout the whole section. Let's say it is not the Jews that Paul is writing too, at least it is those who hold themselves up as moral people. They are moral enough in their own eyes to pass judgment. The point of these verses is to help anyone realize that truth is the basis for God's judgment. In verse 3 Paul says, "So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things..." this is something that God would never do for God is truth not just a direction to truth. People, we, have this proclivity to not see ourselves as we really are in God's sight. No one escapes the judgment of God, that is why the just will live by faith.
While we pass judgment and do the things we condemn, God is being kind to not cut us off at the knees. It does not matter if it is a person in the bush in New Guinea, a judge in New York, a minister in Montana, or whoever it is, God is always showing us mercy and that is to draw us to Him. For many it is a stamp of approval of their lifestyle. People rationalize that nothing bad has happened to them as yet, therefore they must be okay. Everyday that God does not strike this planet with His overwhelming wrath, we all should be on our knees thanking Him for His kindness, tolerance, and patience. It is a message that Paul will relate again to us when he reminds us not to keep on sinning because we have been saved by grace. We should be eternally grateful that God sent His Son instead of His judgment. Don't worry, be happy--yes if you know Jesus.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Romans 1:29-32 (NIV)
29 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,
30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents;
31 they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless.
32 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.
You should be a little taken back by the list of sins that Paul puts together. Paul places greed in between evil and depravity and then list gossip with slanderer and God-haters. One time I was preaching and I put my own list together as I was talking about dealing with sin in our lives. A man let me know that his sin should not be listed with the ones had I listed, since his wasn't really a sin like those sins. Never before then or after this incident has anyone been so honest to confront me about their being offended with such sin lists. All sin is sin, some sin brings more of a dire consequence, but all sin separates us form the fellowship of God.
In verse 32 we discover just how knowledgeable they really are with God's decree. They know it and then flaunt it. It is bad enough that they know it and disobey it, but they go around giving approval of those who practice such things. In the Message is said, "they hand out prizes for those who do such things." What can stop these things? It is the Gospel of God. It is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes. Do you believe it? Do you believe that the answer to the ills of mankind is the Gospel or is it the Gospel and something else? We need to really wrestle with this question? Your answer may surprise you. Your practice may surprise you more.
29 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,
30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents;
31 they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless.
32 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.
You should be a little taken back by the list of sins that Paul puts together. Paul places greed in between evil and depravity and then list gossip with slanderer and God-haters. One time I was preaching and I put my own list together as I was talking about dealing with sin in our lives. A man let me know that his sin should not be listed with the ones had I listed, since his wasn't really a sin like those sins. Never before then or after this incident has anyone been so honest to confront me about their being offended with such sin lists. All sin is sin, some sin brings more of a dire consequence, but all sin separates us form the fellowship of God.
In verse 32 we discover just how knowledgeable they really are with God's decree. They know it and then flaunt it. It is bad enough that they know it and disobey it, but they go around giving approval of those who practice such things. In the Message is said, "they hand out prizes for those who do such things." What can stop these things? It is the Gospel of God. It is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes. Do you believe it? Do you believe that the answer to the ills of mankind is the Gospel or is it the Gospel and something else? We need to really wrestle with this question? Your answer may surprise you. Your practice may surprise you more.
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