Romans 1: 1-5a (NIV) “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God; the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. Through him we received grace …”.
Here is Paul, the Jew who hated Christians; who had them tortured and killed. Paul who met Christ on the Damascus Road and had an epiphany. The realization of Who Christ truly was had been revealed to him. God had a purpose and plan for Paul. He was to bring the Good News of the Gospel of Christ to, of all people, the Gentiles. Here in the beginning of his letter to the Romans, he sums up the entirety of Christ’s mission, sans redemption. Obviously, redemption is at the core of a Christian’s belief system, but here Paul mentions Christ’s earthly existence, implies His death, explains what raised Him and reveals what we received as a result of all this … unmerited and unconditional favor.
Do you understand the significance of the word unconditional? Unmerited is one thing. Undeserved. Once we accept the fact that we are sinners in need of saving, we realize we are undeserving of the gift God has for all who believe and receive. But to receive love, grace and mercy without any conditions hanging over your head is almost incomprehensible. We make the mistake of looking at things with the finite mind. Understanding that we are incapable of anything without placing some conditions on it or them, we balk at the thought of such a thing directed toward us.
The last phrase reveals something important to the believer: to receive something, we must first accept it, as when someone extends something to you for the purpose of you taking it from them. How many of us, knowing all too well the condition of our own heart and the thought patterns that haunt us daily, struggle with the concept and even more so with the reality, of such a gift. The unmerited, admittedly undeserved love and favor of God is, in fact, the essence of Who God is. He IS love. He IS grace. Every positive emotion, thought and attribute in existence IS what God is.
Take these thoughts with you today and embrace the truth in them. Also, commemorate the death, burial and resurrection of Christ this weekend, more than any other time of the year, for He died with a purpose. He died for you. He died for me. He died to eradicate sin in the lives of those who would believe in Him.
Matthew 28 (NIV) “After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”
Rejoice, for He is risen!
WALK WITH THE RISEN KING AND BE A BLESSING!!
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