A SLAVE NO MORE

“For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.” 1 Peter 1:18-19 New Living Translation

     The Apostle Peter uses terminology that references our slavery to sin. Paul wrote of this in his letter to the Romans believers. He mentions it in Romans 6:18 “Now you are free from your slavery to sin and you have become slaves to righteous living” and again in Romans 7:14 “So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin.” So if we were slaves to sin, it is necessary for someone to pay a ransom to free us from our slavery. This was not a monetary exchange to purchase us, but rather a blood sacrifice that removed our sin and our desire to do so.

     Although we no longer have a desire to sin, sin is constantly calling to us in the form of temptation. It takes a firm believer with unwavering faith and trust in God to ward off temptation. At times it is our constant companion. As we rebuke the devil and his demonic minions in the name of Jesus, we are then free to walk in the spirit again. It can be a treacherous walk because the enemy of our soul is always looking for a soft spot in our armor to plunge a dagger, thus weakening us.   

     Know whose you are and who you are in him. That knowledge can free you from any tentacles temptations may attempt to ensnare you in. We are children of the one true King and shall never be put to shame if we walk the path he has laid before us. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource: The Life Application Study Bible.

CREATION CRIES OUT

“For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.” Romans 1:20 New Living Translation

     What type of God do we serve? Since he created all things according to scripture, what does his creation tell us about him? We can see, if we have a mind to, that he is mighty, intelligent and precisely detailed in what he creates. What he does he does in secret, revealing his true power and that of the Godhead as well. The things that were allegedly made by God could not make themselves. By faith we believe in a creator God.

     The church in Rome was made up largely of converted Jews, but also had a large number of Gentiles or non-Jews. Paul writes this letter prior to his first visit to Rome as a means of introduction for himself and his teachings. The nature of God is written about along with the special revelation that came from scripture and the coming of Jesus Christ. This revelation shined a light on God’s love and forgiveness along with his promise of eternal life with him.

     The gospel message is injected throughout the letter revealing the sinful nature of all mankind in Romans 3:23, the penalty of that sin, which is death in Romans 6:23, the fact that Jesus died in our place to pay for that sin in Romans 5:8 and our need to believe and confess our need of forgiveness, noting that salvation comes thru Christ alone in Romans 10:8-10. Everything one needs to believe and receive is there in this one letter to the Romans, but you must receive the message with an open heart and act on it. Man has no excuse. God revealed himself in great detail if you are able to put aside preconceived ideas and look all around you. His creation declares his glory. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resources: The Life Application Study Bible; The Matthew Henry Commentary on the Bible.

DEAD & BURIED WITH CHRIST

“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 New Living Translation

      In Paul’s day the church baptized by immersion, being completely ‘buried’ in the water. That is symbolism showing us dying to our old self, our old nature and rising up to new life in Christ. Although it says in many places in scripture that we only need to believe in Christ and that God raised him from the dead and we shall be saved, there is to be a change in our behavior. From the point of our conversion we are to make a conscious choice to follow Jesus. It is incumbent upon us to allow the Spirit of God to make the necessary changes in that behavior.

     Sin is a driving force in the world and in our lives if we allow it to be. It is something believers must resist. Going thru life armed only with your belief in God is like facing the enemy alone with nothing more than a pocketknife. It doesn’t have to be that way.

     We mustn’t cherry pick verses from scripture that we can accept and live by. We must take scripture in its entirety so that we have the complete picture. To not do that is like considering a partially done puzzle complete without any intention of finishing it.  That is the lazy man’s religion. True believers in God are not religious at all, but rather have entered into a personal relationship with the Lord. It behooves us to not let the relationship grow cold or become one sided. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resources: The Life Application Study Bible; The Reformation Study Bible.

1 Corinthians 15:35-44

   “But someone may ask, ‘How will the dead be raised? What kind of bodies will they have?’ What a foolish question! When you put a seed into the ground, it doesn’t grow into a plant unless it dies first. And what you put in the ground is not the plant that will grow, but only a bare seed of wheat or whatever you are planting. Then God gives it the new body he wants it to have. A different plant grows from each kind of seed. Similarly there are different kinds of flesh—one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish.

     There are also bodies in the heavens and bodies on the earth. The glory of the heavenly bodies is different from the glory of the earthly bodies. The sun has one kind of glory, while the moon and stars each have another kind. And even the stars differ from each other in their glory.

     It is the same way with the resurrection of the dead. Our earthly bodies are planted in the ground when we die, but they will be raised to live forever. Our bodies are buried in brokenness, but they will be raised in glory. They are buried in weakness, but they will be raised in strength. They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies."

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Bloggers Note: Whenever you see a portion of scripture without an accompanying devotional you will know I have had a shortage of time. I do not wish to slap together a makeshift devotional just to have one to publish. I respect God, his Word and the spiritual growth of my readers too much to do that. Have a blessed day! rlk   

OUR NEW LIVES

"Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? 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 6:1-4 New Living Translation

THE WEAKNESS OF HUMAN WISDOM

“Since God in all his wisdom saw to it the world would never know him thru human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe.” 1 Corinthians 1:21 New Living Translation

     It is incredibly ironic that this world’s wisdom is in fact inept, being incapable of sorting out truth from fiction. It would seem that what one does not understand becomes a falsehood or foolish tale. That is actually not the case at all. The missing piece of life’s puzzle is faith. Oh worldly religious leaders and philosophers have faith, but it is misplaced, having faith in their own ability to dissect and make sense out of the dilemma that is the Holy Bible. Is it God’s actual word or not? Is it part truth and part legend or myth? Rather than place their faith and trust in what the Bible says about itself, God and Jesus Christ, they would rather tinker with it, making it easier for them to understand and thus accept.

     Paul, the author of this first letter to the church in Corinth, goes on to say in verse 25, “This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.” He then states in verse 27, “… God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful.” One cannot figure out God thru mind power, for our minds are remarkably dumbed down compared to the creator of all things. The world mocks those of us who have placed our faith and trust in something we cannot experience with our senses. In a way it’s like a blind man relying on his sense of smell, touch and hearing to successfully navigate thru life.

     For those who have placed their complete and unwavering faith and trust in Christ, know that you are blessed of God for nothing on this earth taught you to believe this. You responded to the woo of the Holy Spirit and embraced God’s word as the truth. Serving God is completely voluntary. The only compulsion you receive is from your inner core as you reach out for the gift God has extended to you. Let the world think you foolish. They will one day know who the truly foolish have been.  Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resources: The Life Application Study Bible; The Reformation Study Bible.

THE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS

“The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:18 New Living Translation

     There is nothing about Christianity that by worldly standards seems normal. For a man of flesh and blood to willingly take on the sin of all mankind for all time is mind-boggling. It defies all logic and comprehension. Why would someone do such a thing? The answer is simple. He did it for love. What is love? It is defined exquisitely in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. The love the world speaks of tends to be cheap and tawdry. It reeks of sex and infidelity and that isn’t what God intended at all.

     Those outside the family of God don’t know the first thing about him or his standard for living. It is easier to disbelieve than to believe and so they scoff at the assumed ‘rules and regulations’ that God supposedly enforces. They try anything and everything to numb the pain of reality, yet would never consider embarking on the journey of a lifetime to find eternal peace and contentment.

     The cross is an iconic symbol of love, mercy and the grace of God. With all its blood and gore it conveys a strong message of unconditional love meant for those who in many cases do not even know Christ in a personal way. That’s incredible. Knowing the human heart and its propensity to do that which is ungodly at times makes it seem even more incredible. It seems like utter foolishness to those who do not make the effort to understand. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resource: The Life Application Study Bible.