Know What Time It Is!
Note from Jesus Dear Follower, Wake up. It’s nearly dawn. Put on your clothes. It’s time for living in the daylight. Paul chose powerful images for today’s passage from his letter to the Roman Christians. It’s as if someone is trying to rouse a sleeping friend who can’t quite “come awake” at the beginning of the day. But it’s time to wake up, get up, and get dressed because the new day is starting. Paul’s message was written about My return and the sense of urgency needed by the Christians in Rome. This verse captures Paul’s sentiment well: The darkness of night is dissolving as dawn’s light draws near, so walk out on your old dark life and put on the armor of light. Also, notice this glorious promise in another truth Paul wrote for those early Christians: [S]alvation is nearer to us than when we first believed. Here’s the point: if you are truly My disciple, you must live like it. Walk your talk. Practice what you preach. Reach for what you pray. Remember that life is fragile and transient. Expect that I could return at any moment. My return will be joyous for those who are Mine and already living in eager expectation of My return. For those who are not, this passage is a wake-up call, a sounding alarm clock, and a powerful reminder that I AM coming. You want to be ready when I arrive. Be a living sacrifice offering yourself to God (Romans 12:1-2). Live as a person whose heart and mind have been remade by your conversion. Live as a person whose heart is captured by the amazing grace of the Father. Stay away from “dark living” and do not fuel your “sinful imagination” with thoughts of depraved rebellion. Wrap yourself in Me! Verses to Live In the section in his Roman letter on practical Christian living, Paul used various metaphors. He began this last section of his letter urging the Roman Christians and you to live as sacrifices and to be transformed (Romans 12:1-2). He then talked about you Christians being My body (Romans 12:4-5; 1 Corinthians 12:27). In today’s verses, he used the familiar images of darkness representing evil while light represents things that are good and holy. The call is to wake up and live in the light. And now consider this. You know well the times you are living in. It is time for you to wake up and see what is right before your eyes: for salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The darkness of night is dissolving as dawn’s light draws near, so walk out on your old dark life and put on the armor of light. May we all act as good and respectable people, living today the same way as we will in the day of His coming. Do not fall into patterns of dark living: wild partying, drunkenness, sexual depravity, decadent gratification, quarreling, and jealousy. Instead, wrap yourselves in the Lord Jesus, God’s Anointed, and do not fuel your sinful imagination by indulging your self-seeking desire for the pleasures of the flesh. (Romans 13:11-14) Response in Prayer Almighty God, forgive me for piddling around with my life of faith and procrastinating about living with holy devotion. I commit to living with urgency and anticipation of Jesus’ return and pray for Your forgiveness for the times when I have not done so. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen. ‘A Year with Jesus’ is written by Phil Ware. © 1998-2024, Heartlight, Inc. ‘A Year with Jesus‘ is part of the Heartlight Network.All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
My Disciples Are Good Citizens
Note from Jesus Dear Beloved, You are reading from a letter the apostle Paul wrote to believers in Rome. They lived in the seat of the Roman Empire’s government and power. A period of about two hundred years became known as the Pax Romana. It was relatively peaceful and included the early New Testament times. The Roman government offered great blessings: a stable legal system, relatively safe travel on highways and the seas, mail service, oversight of regional and city governments, and stability for commerce to thrive. The Father had worked in history to bring about this time so that history was ready for My coming (Galatians 4:4-7). The things that Paul wrote in today’s passage about honoring the government spoke to their political situation in a time of a relatively stable government. As you read the New Testament, you will also find very good teaching about how to live as My disciple when the government is growing more hostile. (Both the early chapters of Acts and the whole letter of 1 Peter reflect this kind of situation.) You will also learn how to live faithfully when the government becomes aggressively hostile to your faith (the Revelation to John). During the last years of Paul’s life and ministry, he used all the legal tools available to him to protect himself and his ministry from an increasingly hostile government that would eventually execute him (Philippians 1:19-23; 2 Timothy 4:6-8; In addition, don’t forget the Old Testament resources of Daniel and Esther as examples of faith when faced with hostile government officials!). I promised My disciples the Holy Spirit as their Comforter, Advocate, and Helper. Chapters 14-16 of the gospel of John record this extended conversation with My closest disciples. The Holy Spirit was sent both to them and to you to help “guide you in all truth” (John 16:13). As Paul told the Corinthians, the Holy Spirit will help you understand both the times and My will for you in these times (1 Corinthians 2:6-16). I share this with you so that you will understand that the things Paul said here are principles of how My disciples are to live in submission to government. The context was a government that was not openly hostile to the Roman Christians, but this context would soon change. Even as a government grows more hostile, I want you to realize that there are other resources in the Scriptures to help you know how to live faithfully. And by living faithfully, you will be able to honor your commitments to love the Father with all that you are and to love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:36-40). The specifics of honoring the government for each changing circumstance addressed in scripture can be a little different. However, basic underlying themes are found throughout the New Testament such as: Be a good citizen. Do not be a person of violence. Make sure any suffering you face is not because of your own bad behavior. Be a person of peace. Live at peace with all people. Be a peacemaker. Be a blessing to others. In addition to these themes, the Holy Spirit within you, My example lived before you, and your brothers and sisters of faith around you can help you know the best way to follow Me faithfully through all kinds of different political climates. Paul’s words today focus on honoring a political government. Your Father in heaven is the God of order and peace, not chaos and lawlessness. So governments are put into place with the divine intention to help and to bless people. When the governments become ruthless and tyrannical, the Father will work behind the scenes of history to bring them down (Psalm 2:1-12; the Revelation to John), although there is no way for you to know the Father’s timing. You must honor the government and obey its laws as a good citizen when these laws do not contradict My calling to you. “Do the right thing” and “live with a clear conscience.” “Pay your taxes” and don’t “owe anyone anything” as you show “love to one another.” Once again, what Paul wrote the Romans brings you back to My second great love command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” This principle will make you a good citizen, because when you live this principle, “love achieves everything the law requires.” Verses to Live In the last third of Romans (chapters 12-16), Paul repeatedly gives practical applications on how to love your neighbor as you love yourself and especially how to love your brothers and sisters in faith. Today’s verses focus on this responsibility as a good citizen. It is important that all of us submit to the authorities who have charge over us because God establishes all authority in heaven and on the earth. Therefore, a person who rebels against authority rebels against the order He established, and people like that can expect to face certain judgment. You see, if you do the right thing, you have nothing to be worried about from the rulers; but if you do what you know is wrong, the rulers will make sure you pay a price. Would you not rather live with a clear conscience than always have to be looking over your shoulder? Then keep doing what you know to be good and right, and they will publicly honor you. Look at it this way: The ruler is a servant of God called to serve and benefit you. But he is also a servant of God executing wrath upon those who practice evil. If you do what is wrong, then you’d better be afraid because he wields the power of the sword and doesn’t make empty threats. So submission is not optional; it’s required. But don’t just submit for the sake of avoiding punishment; submit and abide by the laws because your conscience leads you to do the right thing. Pay your taxes for the same reason because the authorities are servants of God, giving their full
What Love Looks Like!
Note from Jesus Dear Disciple, In the first part of Paul’s letter to the Roman believers, he gave his great explanation of how all people have sinned and fallen short of the Father’s standards for holy character (Romans chapters 1-3). Next, he explained how all people, both Jews and non-Jews, are invited into the Father’s family by grace that they receive through faith in My death, burial, and resurrection (Romans chapters 4-6). He then explained that will-power and works of the law cannot make anyone, or keep anyone, righteous. Everyone needs the power of the Holy Spirit living in them to be the kind of people they want to be as the Father’s children (Romans chapters 7-8). Paul finished his great explanation of grace by writing about the place of both Jews and Gentiles in God’s plan of salvation (Romans chapters 9-11). Yesterday’s note focused on Paul’s great outburst of praise (Romans 11:33-36). This burst of praise finished the first section of Romans (chapters 1-11). Paul then began his challenging call for holy behavior. In My family of faith, all disciples need to offer themselves as living sacrifices to the Father (Romans 12:1-2) because of all He has done for them to bring them grace. Today’s verses focus upon some of the principles for living this kind of life to bless others. If you recall, I have told you that loving your neighbor as you love yourself is second only to loving God. These two love principles form the foundation for all of God’s demands for right living in relationship with Him and with others (Matthew 22:36-40). In today’s verses, Paul laid down principle after principle, all of which find their foundation in loving your neighbor as yourself. If you want to know what loving your neighbor looks like, read these verses very carefully. These are not laws to be obeyed but principles that must be adopted and which show what the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) looks like in everyday living. Not only is this behavior your goal in loving others, but this behavior is also “Spirit-natural;” it is the expected result of the Spirit’s work to transform you into having the character and compassion of Christ. When you make the effort to live this way, the Holy Spirit will furnish the power to produce this holy fruit as the Father pours His love into your heart through the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). Verses to Live The phrase that best summarizes Paul’s principles in the verses below is “Live in true devotion to one another…” This dedication is the kind of behavior and the kind of love that I am calling you to incorporate into your life as My disciple! Love others well, and don’t hide behind a mask; love authentically. Despise evil; pursue what is good as if your life depends on it. Live in true devotion to one another, loving each other as sisters and brothers. Be first to honor others by putting them first. Do not slack in your faithfulness and hard work. Let your spirit be on fire, bubbling up and boiling over, as you serve the Lord. Do not forget to rejoice, for hope is always just around the corner. Hold up through the hard times that are coming, and devote yourselves to prayer. Share what you have with the saints, so they lack nothing; take every opportunity to open your life and home to others. If people mistreat or malign you, bless them. Always speak blessings, not curses. If some have cause to celebrate, join in the celebration. And if others are weeping, join in that as well. Work toward unity, and live in harmony with one another. Avoid thinking you are better than others or wiser than the rest; instead, embrace common people and ordinary tasks. Do not retaliate with evil, regardless of the evil brought against you. Try to do what is good and right and honorable as agreed upon by all people. If it is within your power, make peace with all people. Again, my loved ones, do not seek revenge; instead, allow God’s wrath to make sure justice is served. Turn it over to Him. For the Scriptures say, “Revenge is Mine. I will settle all scores.” But consider this bit of wisdom: “If your enemy is hungry, give him something to eat. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink; because if you treat him kindly, it will be like heaping hot coals on top of his head.” Never let evil get the best of you; instead, overpower evil with the good. (Romans 12:9-21) Response in Prayer O Father, I so desperately want my life to be full of the character, conduct, and compassion that Paul calls on these early Roman disciples to have in their lives. Empower me by the power of Your Holy Spirit to be transformed to be ever more like Christ in all these qualities as I live in relationship with those around me as Your child. Please help me to hold onto the passion I feel right now as I long to love others in Jesus’ name and follow His example. Amen. ‘A Year with Jesus’ is written by Phil Ware. © 1998-2024, Heartlight, Inc. ‘A Year with Jesus‘ is part of the Heartlight Network.All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Be a Living and Holy Sacrifice
Note from Jesus Dear Beloved, Paul spent the first two-thirds of his letter to the Roman Christians explaining the principle of salvation by grace through faith. In Romans chapters 9-11, he explained how the Jewish people and the promises of the Father to Abraham fit into that plan for salvation. This explanation was important since many Jews in Paul’s time rejected the Father’s message of grace through Me and many Gentiles accepted this message. As Paul came to the end of this powerful teaching at the end of chapter 11, he finished with a burst of praise. Then in the first verses of chapter 12, he began the next part of his letter with a call to these Roman Christians to offer themselves to God as living sacrifices and to live for Him. Today’s Scripture is one of the most beautiful and cherished passages in your New Testament. First, Paul acknowledged that the Father’s plan is challenging and not easy to understand. It is both glorious and challenging. Paul’s words are an admission in praise that you cannot begin to understand all of the Father’s ways. The finite human mind cannot begin to imagine the plans of mercy and grace of the infinite and almighty Holy One of heaven (1 Corinthians 13:12). Your mortal brain cannot plumb the depths of meaning and heights of grace in the mind of YAHWEH, the Immortal One. So when you reach the point that your ability to understand the Father’s goodness is exhausted, praise Him! When your mind is confused about the ways of the Father and His plan of salvation, but astounded at His grace, then praise Him! No matter what you may not understand completely, know this: your Father in heaven loves you completely and sacrificially! In the last paragraph in the verses below, Paul gave a concise but challenging summary of the response that should be made to the Father’s love and grace. This choice that the Roman Christians were challenged to make is also the choice you need to make today — and each day. My beloved disciple, you — like these first-century believers in Rome — were redeemed at great cost. I did not, and I still do not regret that high price. However, the love behind this sacrifice that brought you mercy should capture your heart. It should convict you not to live like the rest of the world that does not know My love and the Father’s grace and mercy. Offer all that you are to the Father. That is what it means to love Us — Father, Son, and Spirit — with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:28-30). Please notice that Paul pointed out that We will assist you in your efforts to know the Father’s will and to be transformed as you live for Us. Most of the remainder of this letter to the Romans was devoted to helping them and you love the Father with your all and love each other as the Father’s children (Mark 12:31). Verses to Live While the words speak for themselves, I want to ask you to do three things with today’s Scripture. First read the first set of verses down to “Amen“ several times. Read these verses slowly. Read them out loud. Let the beauty of these words wash over you. Next, take a few minutes and pray a prayer of praise. Don’t ask for anything in this prayer. Instead, offer the Father praise for Who He is and what He has done as declared in Scripture to redeem you and adopt you into Our family. Finally, I want to encourage you to memorize the last paragraph. Even if you know it in another translation, put these words to memory and recite them each morning and each evening over the next week. Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways! For who can know the Lord’s thoughts? Who knows enough to give him advice? And who has given him so much that he needs to pay it back? For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever! Amen. And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice — the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (Romans 11:33-36 NLT; Romans 12:1-2 NLT) Response in Prayer O Father, You are “the highest God above, Who is and always will be, the only One Who is holy”! I am thankful that even though You “live in a high and holy place” You also have chosen to live with people like me — “the low, the weak, and the humble” to “renew [our] vitality and revive [our] strength.” I thank You for both Your awesome ways and Your gracious and merciful love. I offer myself to You because You alone are worth all that my life can be. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen. Note: Today’s prayer is a response both to Isaiah’s words in Isaiah 57:15 and also to Paul’s words in the Scripture above. ‘A Year with Jesus’ is written by Phil Ware. © 1998-2024, Heartlight, Inc. ‘A Year with Jesus‘ is part of the Heartlight Network.All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
So All Can Be Saved!
Note from Jesus Dear Disciple, You are saved by grace. You received that grace through faith. There is no room for boasting about being saved. Neither is there any room for belittling Jews who have rejected the message of grace. This rejection by ethnic Jews opened the way for Gentiles to hear the message of grace, to become My disciples, and to become recipients of God’s promises to Abraham. However, this situation is no reason for non-Jewish believers to feel superior. They — including you, if you are not Jewish — have been grafted into the Father’s covenant people and promises. Salvation for non-Jews depends on the root and the history of Israel and on the promises of the Father to Abraham and to his Jewish descendants, specifically the promise of a Messiah (Me). In Paul’s day, there was a righteous remnant of Jewish people who had faith in Me, just as the prophets had prophesied. In addition, the hardening of Jewish hearts toward Me was part of the Father’s plan to redeem all people. Some Jewish believers had seen faith in Me among the Gentiles, and they became jealous that these Gentiles were being included as recipients of the promises to Abraham. Their jealousy led them to re-examine Me and come to faith in Me. In the future, after the “full number” of Gentiles has come to Me, those who are part of ethnic Israel will be brought to faith in Me. Through that faith, they will be received back into Abraham’s spiritual family and become recipients of the promises to Abraham. The Father will not forget His promises to His Jewish people. So since the hardening of Jewish hearts in Paul’s time meant salvation for the non-Jews, think of how much greater the joy of salvation will be when the descendants of Israel come to faith in Me as their Messiah. They will also be joined with all the non-Jewish people who have faith in Me! Verses to Live The Father’s wonderful and mighty plan is to reach all people of every nation with the message of grace. He wants all who truly trust in Me as their Lord and Savior to be saved, both Jews and non-Jews alike. There is no room for arrogance if you have been saved; you have been saved by grace and you received this salvation by faith. Instead, there should be a deep appreciation for the Jewish heritage on which you stand. Be joyous as you anticipate the celebration when all of My family, both Jews and non-Jews, are in the presence of the Father celebrating My victory (Revelation 7:9-12). Read carefully, as Paul explains this truth to the Christians in Rome. So I ask: did God’s people [the Israelites] stumble and fall off the deep end? Absolutely not! They are not lost forever; but through their misconduct, the door has been opened for salvation to extend even to the outsiders. This has been part of God’s plan all along, and so is the jealousy that comes when they realize the outsiders have been welcomed into God’s new covenant. So if their misconduct leads ultimately to God’s riches coming to the world and if their failure turns into the blessing of salvation to all people, then how much greater will be the riches and blessing when they are included fully? But I have this to say to all of you who are not ethnic Jews: I am God’s emissary to you, and I honor this call by focusing on what God is doing with and through you. I do this so that somehow my own blood brothers and sisters will be made jealous; and that, I trust, will bring some to salvation. If the fact that they are currently set aside resolves the hostility between God and the rest of the world, what will their acceptance bring if not life from the dead? If the first and best of the dough you offer is sacred, the entire loaf will be as well. If the root of the tree is sacred, the branches will be also. Imagine some branches are cut off of the cultivated olive tree and other branches of a wild olive (which represents all of you outsiders) are grafted in their place. You are nourished by the root of the cultivated olive tree. It doesn’t give you license to become proud and self-righteous about the fact that you’ve been grafted in. If you do boast, remember that the branches do not sustain the root — it is the system of roots that nourishes and supports you. I can almost hear some of you saying, “Branches had to be pruned to make room for me.” Yes, they were. They were removed because they did not believe; and you will stay attached, be strong, and be productive only through faith. So don’t think too highly of yourselves; instead, stand in awe of God’s mercy. Besides we know that God did not spare the natural branches, so there is no reason to think He will spare you. Witness the simultaneous balance of the kindness and severity of our God. Severity is directed at the fallen branches withering without faith. Yet kindness is directed at you. So live in the kindness of God or else prepare to be cut off yourselves. If those branches that have been cut from the tree do not stay in unbelief, then God will carefully graft them back onto the tree because He has the power to do that. So if it is possible for you to be taken from a wild olive tree and become part of a cultivated olive tree, imagine how much easier it would be to reconnect branches that originally grew on that olive tree. My brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be in the dark about this mystery — I am going to let you in on the plan so that you will not think too highly of yourselves. A
All Who Call on My Name
Note from Jesus Dear Follower, Paul was My apostle with a special commission to the Gentiles, but he deeply loved and was deeply concerned about his fellow Israelites who had not come to faith in Me. In Romans chapter 9, Paul powerfully and emotionally said these gut-wrenching words: Now let me speak the truth as plainly as I know it in the Anointed One. I am not lying when I say that my conscience and the Holy Spirit are witnesses to my state of constant grief. It may sound extreme; but I wish that I were lost, cursed, and totally separated from the Anointed — if that would change the eternal destination of my brothers and sisters, my flesh and countrymen. (Romans 9:1-3) What Paul wrote was a display of overwhelming love — he was willing to be lost eternally if that would lead his fellow Jewish people to be saved. This commitment makes his words in this section of Romans (chapters 9-11) all the more poignant. He did not write out of anger or hostility, but out of love. He wrote these truths to heal the racial divide between Jew and Gentile in the church in Rome. He wanted to help the Christians there understand the message of salvation. That message was clear: All can be saved, both Jew and non-Jew. However, salvation comes only through the Father’s grace received through faith in My death, burial, and resurrection as God’s Anointed, the Messiah of Israel and Lord of all peoples. While there were Jews in Paul’s time who accepted this message — “God has preserved a remnant, elected by grace” (Romans 11:5) — most rejected it. For these Jews, I was a “stumbling stone” (Romans 9:32-33). In fact, if you go back and re-read about Peter’s sermon and the events on Pentecost in the book of Acts (Acts 2:17-41), you will find the message of salvation Peter preached that day to Jews was the same basic message as what Paul wrote the Roman’s in today’s verses (Romans 10:9-13). That basic message from Peter and from Paul was: Believe in your heart the Father raised Me from the dead. Commit to living a life that’s right with God. Confess Me as your Lord. Call on My name as your Savior in baptism. Be saved. Paul had experienced this same kind of conversion himself. If you read the accounts in Acts of his conversion, you will find these same things were emphasized (Acts 9:15-18; Acts 22:8-16). Paul wanted believers in Rome to realize three truths that are so important for those who love Me and believe in Me. These are important for every generation of believers! First, as I mentioned in My Sermon on the Mount, I AM the fulfillment of the law (Matthew 5:17). Paul said it this way: You see, God’s purpose for the law reaches its climax when the Anointed One arrives; now all who trust in Him can have their lives made right with God. Second, no one is going to be saved based on law-keeping. All who are saved, both Jew and non-Jew, are saved because they have been called by the Father’s grace that they received through faith in my crucifixion and resurrection (Romans 10:3-4; Romans 9:30-32). Third, those who send others and those who share My good news with others are very important because people cannot be saved unless they believe. They cannot believe unless they hear about the Father’s love demonstrated by My incarnation, death, burial, and resurrection. People cannot go and share this message unless someone sends them. As Paul did so frequently throughout chapters 9-11 in Romans, he quoted the (Old Testament) Scriptures and wrote: Because what Isaiah said was true: “The one who trusts in Him will not be disgraced.” Remember that the Lord draws no distinction between Jew and non-Jew — He is Lord over all things, and He pours out His treasures on all who invoke His name because as Scripture says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” So send those who will proclaim this message. Share this message yourself when you meet people who are open to receiving it. Know that the Father wants all peoples — Jew and Gentile, rich and poor, politically conservative and liberal, male and female, young and old — to hear His call to grace and to receive that message with faith! Verses to Live Paul wanted all people saved. He made clear in these verses how that salvation comes to people. I hope you will read these verses and not only be heartened, but also be motivated to send and share the message of the Father’s love demonstrated by My life, death, and resurrection. My brothers and sisters, I pray constantly to God for the salvation of my people [the Israelites]; it is the deep desire of my heart. What I can say about them is that they are enthusiastic about God, but that won’t lead them to Him because their zeal is not based on true knowledge. In their ignorance about how God is working to make things right, they have been trying to establish their own right standing with God through the law. But they are not operating under God’s saving, restorative justice. You see, God’s purpose for the law reaches its climax when the Anointed One arrives; now all who trust in Him can have their lives made right with God. Moses made this clear long ago when he wrote about what it takes to have a right relationship with God based on the law: “The person devoted to the law’s commands will live by them.” But a right relationship based on faith sounds like this: “Do not say to yourselves, ‘Who will go up into heaven?’” (that is, to bring down the Anointed One), “or, ‘Who will go down into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring the Anointed One up from the dead). But what does it actually say? “The
Receiving God’s Promises Through Faith
Note from Jesus Dear Child of Grace, Many people in your fallen world accept or reject others based on race. They exclude those who are not of their race. The Christians in Rome, and really all over the world during the time Paul wrote his letter to the Roman Christians, struggled with the issue of race. The separation between Jew and Gentile was a hard one for many of the early Christians to overcome. As I look at your time, My heart breaks at both the physical violence done in the name of race and also the more subtle forms of exclusivity, prejudice, bigotry, and racial arrogance. Sometimes this racial prejudice is acted out publicly. Other times it goes on in people’s hearts as they fake racial acceptance to get along in culture. Please understand something that Paul made very clear to My disciples. I came to tear down racial divisions and bring about a new humanity not based on race (Ephesians 2:11-22). I came to establish “one new humanity” based on faith. I came to create peace between different peoples through My sacrifice on the cross (Ephesians 2:14-16). The future I will bring has all nations, races, languages, and peoples joined together in joyous worship, praise, and fellowship (Revelation 7:9-12). My human racial identity was Jewish. I came as the answer to the Father’s promise to Abraham and David. I came as the Anointed One, the Messiah of Israel. The Father chose Israel to be His people. He did not choose them because they were better, wiser, more numerous, or more powerful. The Father chose Israel because of His love and faithfulness to His promises to the great Israelite patriarchs — Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and later King David. John the Baptizer, My cousin and forerunner, had warned people that being Jewish descendants of Abraham didn’t guarantee their righteousness. John reminded the people that the Father “is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham” (Matthew 3:7-9 ESV). Both John and I warned that if a person claims to be a descendant of Abraham, he or she must live a life of faith like Abraham (Romans 4:13; Galatians 3:6-9). So what Paul said in chapters 9-11 of Romans about the relationship of Jews to the Father shouldn’t be a complete surprise. We will be looking at Paul’s message in these chapters for a few days. Paul wanted everyone to know that just as all have sinned, both Jew and Gentile, all can be children of God through faith in My sacrificial death and triumphant resurrection. Race is not what makes a person a part of God’s Israel, his chosen people. Faith is what makes one a child of Abraham (Galatians 3:26-29). The Father, in His Sovereignty, chose Israel and gave Israel the great benefits of “the glory, the covenants, the gift of the law, the temple service, and God’s promises” as “their rightful heritage”. So the Jewish people should be loved and respected because they provided the story, the heritage, the Scriptures, the promises, and the Messiah (Me) that make salvation available to all people. However, Paul reminded Jewish Christians: The truth is that not everyone descended from Israel is truly Israel. Just because people can claim Abraham as their father does not make them his true children. For a time, all but a small group of Jews had stumbled because of the truth that is found in Me, the Anointed, the “rock”. But just as many Gentiles have been brought into My family through faith, a time is coming, and indeed has already begun, when My fellow Israelites will find themselves a part of the Father’s promises by faith. Verses to Live Today and the next several days, you will be reading from Romans chapters 9-11. Paul’s discussion can appear confusing at times because he was using the way of teaching he learned as a young rabbi. But the basis of his reasoning is fairly clear. The Father is sovereign. He works in the way He does to fulfill His promises and to fulfill His desire to bring salvation to all people who will receive His grace. Rather than race, ethnicity, law-keeping, or heritage being the guarantee of this salvation, the Father accepts people based on their faith in Me. In this way, salvation can come to all people, and all people can be accepted into My family without prejudice or racial division or any other distinction. Spiritual Israel, the people of God, is made up of those who receive the promises of God by faith and choose to share this grace with the nations. Now let me speak the truth as plainly as I know it in the Anointed One [Christ Jesus]. I am not lying when I say that my conscience and the Holy Spirit are witnesses to my state of constant grief. It may sound extreme; but I wish that I were lost, cursed, and totally separated from the Anointed — if that would change the eternal destination of my [Jewish] brothers and sisters, my flesh and countrymen. They are, after all, Israelites who have been adopted into God’s family; the glory, the covenants, the gift of the law, the temple service, and God’s promises are their rightful heritage. The patriarchs are theirs, too; and from their bloodline comes the Anointed One, the Liberating King, Who reigns supreme over all things, God blessed forever. Amen. Clearly it is not that God’s word has failed. The truth is that not everyone descended from Israel is truly Israel. Just because people can claim Abraham as their father does not make them his true children. But in the Scriptures, it says, “Through Isaac your covenant children will be named.” The proper interpretation is this: Abraham’s children by natural descent are not necessarily God’s covenant people; what matters is that His children receive and live the promise. (Romans 9:1-8) So what does all of this mean? Did the non-Jews stumble into a right standing with God without
Blessed Assurance!
Note from Jesus Dear Child of the Father, All creation waits on tiptoe for the day I return and bring you home to the Father. On that day, you will experience “the total redemption of [y]our bodies that comes when [y]our adoption as children of God is complete.” However, I want you to realize that not only is the Holy Spirit your “guarantee, a down payment of the things to come,” but He is also My sustaining power and presence in your life and will help you in many ways. Here are three truths you will find in the verses today: The Spirit intercedes for you when you pray and even “steps in and articulates [your] prayers… with groaning too profound for words” when you can’t find the words to pray. The Spirit’s presence is a constant reminder that, because of My presence at the Father’s side, nothing can ever separate you from the His love. The Spirit Whose power raised Me from the dead is your assurance of ultimate victory just as I was victorious over sin, death, and hell. Treasure these assurances. Trust in the Spirit’s presence. Glory awaits! Verses to Live There are so many good things that await you. And I know that, even though you cannot see them now, you yearn for them. That is why I promised that I would not leave you alone, but that I would send the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, to be with you and to help you until I come back for you (Acts 2:32-33; Titus 3:3-7; John 14:18-26). So today, the verses come from things that Paul wrote to the Romans about blessings that the Spirit brings to Christians, including you; I want you to read these verses several times. Find a few especially meaningful sentences to memorize. Then when times are tough, let the Holy Spirit remind you of these truths and fill your heart with the assurance that you are the Father’s child, My beloved co-heir of the kingdom of God, and a person in whom the Spirit of the almighty God lives. Now I’m sure of this: the sufferings we endure now are not even worth comparing to the glory that is coming and will be revealed in us. For all of creation is waiting, yearning for the time when the children of God will be revealed. You see, all of creation has collapsed into emptiness, not by its own choosing, but by God’s. Still He placed within it a deep and abiding hope that creation would one day be liberated from its slavery to corruption and experience the glorious freedom of the children of God. For we know that all creation groans in unison with birthing pains up until now. And there is more; it’s not just creation — all of us are groaning together too. Though we have already tasted the firstfruits of the Spirit, we are longing for the total redemption of our bodies that comes when our adoption as children of God is complete — for we have been saved in this hope and for this future. But hope does not involve what we already have or see. For who goes around hoping for what he already has? But if we wait expectantly for things we have never seen, then we hope with true perseverance and eager anticipation. A similar thing happens when we pray. We are weak and do not know how to pray, so the Spirit steps in and articulates prayers for us with groaning too profound for words. Don’t you know that He Who pursues and explores the human heart intimately knows the Spirit’s mind because He pleads to God for His saints to align their lives with the will of God? We are confident that God is able to orchestrate everything to work toward something good and beautiful when we love Him and accept His invitation to live according to His plan. From the distant past, His eternal love reached into the future. You see, He knew those who would be His one day, and He chose them beforehand to be conformed to the image of His Son so that Jesus would be the firstborn of a new family of believers, all brothers and sisters. As for those He chose beforehand, He called them to a different destiny so that they would experience what it means to be made right with God and share in His glory. So what should we say about all of this? If God is on our side, then tell me: whom should we fear? If He did not spare His own Son, but handed Him over on our account, then don’t you think that He will graciously give us all things with Him? Can anyone be so bold as to level a charge against God’s chosen? Especially since God’s “not guilty” verdict is already declared. Who has the authority to condemn? Jesus the Anointed Who died, but more importantly, conquered death when He was raised to sit at the right hand of God where He pleads on our behalf. So who can separate us? What can come between us and the love of God’s Anointed? Can troubles, hardships, persecution, hunger, poverty, danger, or even death? The answer is, absolutely nothing. As the psalm says, On Your behalf, our lives are endangered constantly; we are like sheep awaiting slaughter. But no matter what comes, we will always taste victory through Him Who loved us. For I have every confidence that nothing — not death, life, heavenly messengers, dark spirits, the present, the future, spiritual powers, height, depth, nor any created thing — can come between us and the love of God revealed in the Anointed, Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:18-39) Response in Prayer O Father, thank You for the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. Thank You for the Spirit’s ministry of intercession for me, His work in me to transform me, and His presence in me to be my Comforter. I
Animated by the Spirit
Note from Jesus Dear Precious One, Live animated by the power of the Father’s “indwelling presence,” the Holy Spirit within you! Your flesh — “your fallen, corrupt nature” — cannot overcome the power and pull of sin unless you live led by the Spirit. As yesterday’s note emphasized, trying to be righteous by law-keeping awakens the power of sin to use your fleshly nature to corrupt the righteous demands of the law and lead you to become enslaved to sin. Your power to overcome your fleshly nature is found when you partner with the Holy Spirit and allow Him to work in you. Today and tomorrow, I want to use Paul’s teaching in Romans chapter 8 to help you recognize what a great gift of grace the Spirit is for you. When you live “animated” — led, empowered, and guided by the Spirit — you are freed from law-keeping that is weakened by your flesh. The Spirit, on the other hand, helps you “live up to the justice demanded by the law” by helping you with “life-giving power” and giving you the assurance that you are the Father’s child. As “you have invited the Spirit to destroy these selfish desires [of your flesh], you will experience life.” You will be transformed and liberated to become more and more like Me with ever-increasing glory (2 Corinthians 3:17-18) and begin to more fully display the fruit of the Spirit’s presence in your life (Galatians 5:22-23). Today, begin to ask the Holy Spirit to take a more forceful lead in your life. Specifically ask the Spirit to transform you to become more like Me each day and to help you display the Holy Spirit’s fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. When you pray, address the Father as “‘Abba! Father!’ as [you] would address a loving daddy,” reminding yourself of the precious and tender relationship the Father wants to have with you. When you struggle with doubts about your worthiness or My presence in your life, ask the Holy Spirit to give you comfort. Pray for the Holy Spirit to minister to your spirit continually, even as you sleep. Ask the Spirit to give you discerning eyes to distinguish between God’s truth and the world’s lies and to give you the power to live according to God’s truth. Verses to Live Today’s verses are the beginning of an extended teaching from Paul on the power and presence of the Holy Spirit within those who are My disciples. Tomorrow we will cover the remainder of his teaching in this chapter of Romans. However, I encourage you to get a notepad or use your computer or mobile device and note the things that are promised about the Holy Spirit in both today’s and tomorrow’s messages. Living by the Spirit liberates you from law-keeping and the power of the flesh to control you. So seek for all that Paul teaches that the Spirit longs to bring you! Therefore, now no condemnation awaits those who are living in Jesus the Anointed, the Liberating King, because when you live in the Anointed One, Jesus, a new law takes effect. The law of the Spirit of life breathes into you and liberates you from the law of sin and death. God did something the law could never do. You see, human flesh took its toll on God’s law. In and of itself, the law is not weak; but the flesh weakens it. So to condemn the sin that was ruling in the flesh, God sent His own Son, bearing the likeness of sinful flesh, as a sin offering. Now we are able to live up to the justice demanded by the law. But that ability has not come from living by our fallen human nature; it has come because we walk according to the movement of the Spirit in our lives. If you live your life animated by the flesh — namely, your fallen, corrupt nature — then your mind is focused on the matters of the flesh. But if you live your life animated by the Spirit — namely, God’s indwelling presence — then your focus is on the work of the Spirit. A mind focused on the flesh is doomed to death, but a mind focused on the Spirit will find full life and complete peace. You see, a mind focused on the flesh is declaring war against God; it defies the authority of God’s law and is incapable of following His path. So it is clear that God takes no pleasure in those who live oriented to the flesh. But you do not live in the flesh. You live in the Spirit, assuming, of course, that the Spirit of God lives inside of you. The truth is that anyone who does not have the Spirit of the Anointed living within does not belong to God. If the Anointed One lives within you, even though the body is as good as dead because of the effects of sin, the Spirit is infusing you with life now that you are right with God. If the Spirit of the One Who resurrected Jesus from the dead lives inside of you, then you can be sure that He Who raised Him will cast the light of life into your mortal bodies through the life-giving power of the Spirit residing in you. So, my brothers and sisters, you owe the flesh nothing! You do not need to live according to its ways, so abandon its oppressive regime. For if your life is just about satisfying the impulses of your sinful nature, then prepare to die. But if you have invited the Spirit to destroy these selfish desires, you will experience life. If the Spirit of God is leading you, then take comfort in knowing you are His children. You see, you have not received a spirit that returns you to slavery, so you have nothing to fear. The Spirit you have received adopts you and
Miserable or Relieved?
Note from Jesus Dear Faithful Follower, Today’s verses are different selections from chapter 7 of Paul’s letter to Christians in Rome. In previous parts of the letter, he had written about grace being made available through: My sin-offering on the cross (Romans 3). Your faith in My sacrifice for your sins being credited to you as righteousness (Romans 4)., My sacrifice given for you out of the Father’s loving grace, not because you deserved it (Romans 5). My saving death, burial, and resurrection where you died to sin through your baptism into My death because of your faith (Romans 6). Paul wanted you to know that as a baptized believer saved by grace you are dead to sin and alive to live for God as His righteous child. But how? How will you live for God righteously? How will you live up to the Father’s demands to be righteous as His child? Will you use law-keeping to try to be considered righteous? That was the easy answer for those who grew up living under the Mosaic law. So in today’s verses, Paul explained that any attempt to be considered righteous by living under a law — any law, but especially the Mosaic law — is ineffective to obtain righteousness before God. While the Law was a precious gift and it points out the righteousness the Father demands, it has no power to change you and make you holy without My sacrifice. Paul wanted to help you understand that law-keeping cannot make you righteous. The problem is not the law — it is holy and just; the problem is the deceptive power of sin that takes the law and uses it to lead you to sin. Your fleshly nature — “living in the flesh,” also called “the fallen human realm, owned by sin” — “awakened [y]our lust for more” sin. While My sacrifice saves you from sin and death, if you try to be righteous by law-keeping, you end up “absolutely miserable” and in bondage to sin once again! You do what you do not want to do — you fall back into sin again and again. Sin “owns you” and “has taken up residence in” you. The only relief is to remember that you died to sin and to the whole law-keeping way of trying to be righteous and that you can rely on the Holy Spirit to lead you to righteous living. Paul said it this way: But now that we have died to those chains that imprisoned us, we have been released from the law to serve in a new Spirit-empowered life, not the old written code. (The Spirit’s power will be the focus in tomorrow’s verses.) The Father’s grace brings you salvation and righteousness by providing the sin offering (My death on the cross) that atoned for your sin and by giving you the Holy Spirit to empower you to righteous living. Everything about your salvation is a gift, so don’t try to earn your salvation or think yourself superior because you obey the law, any law. Recognize that the Father’s grace is the only way you stand before Him as His righteous child! Verses to Live Pay attention as you read these verses. They remind you that you are dead to the whole law-keeping principle because obeying the law cannot save you. Your fleshly nature and sin’s deceptive power to use the law to trip you up lead you back to the principles of sin and death. Your faith in My sacrifice for your sins and the indwelling Spirit’s power to help you become the person you want to be, provide your only way to live righteously as the Father’s child. My brothers and sisters who are well versed in the law, don’t you realize that a person is subject to the law only as long as he is alive? So, for example, a wife is obligated by the law to her husband until his death; if the husband dies, she is freed from the parts of the law that relate to her marriage. … My brothers and sisters, in the same way, you have died when it comes to the law because of your connection with the body of the Anointed One. His death — and your death with Him — frees you to belong to the One Who was raised from the dead so we can bear fruit for God. As we were living in the flesh, the law could not solve the problem of sin; it only awakened our lust for more and cultivated the fruit of death in our bodily members. But now that we have died to those chains that imprisoned us, we have been released from the law to serve in a new Spirit-empowered life, not the old written code. So what is the story? Is the law itself sin? Absolutely not! It is the exact opposite. I would never have known what sin is if it were not for the law. … There was a time when I was living without the law, but the commandment came and changed everything: sin came to life, and I died. This commandment was supposed to bring life; but in my experience, it brought death. Sin took advantage of the commandment, tricked me, and exploited it in order to kill me. So hear me out: the law is holy; and its commandments are holy, right, and good. … This is what we know: the law comes from the spiritual realm. My problem is that I am of the fallen human realm, owned by sin, which tries to keep me in its service. … I know that in me, that is, in my fallen human nature, there is nothing good. I can will myself to do something good, but that does not help me carry it out. I can determine that I am going to do good, but I don’t do it; instead, I end up living out the evil that I decided