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Romans 12
This post was supposed to go up yesterday, but forgive me for getting to it today. This post will be on Romans 12 and all that Paul writes within this chapter.

Paul starts off by telling us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice which is our reasonable service. Now why is this our reasonable service to Him? Well, first we must remember that we are a royal priesthood as Peter would describe us in 1 Peter 2:9, and one of the roles of the priests was to offer sacrifices. We must not think that we offer ourselves as a sacrifice and therefore work for our salvation, but it is our reasonable service because of the sacrifice that Jesus already offered. In Romans 11:33 Paul says, “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out?” This verse lays the context of why we worship God by sacrificing our bodies and our lives to Him. I have heard it said before, if we knew everything about God and understood everything about Him, then He would not be a God worth worshipping. A sacrifice as substantial as our own bodies is reasonable because of God’s holy, just, righteous, merciful, and gracious character (to name a few of His attributes). 
Paul then adds that we should “…not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Now, as we sacrifice our bodies to God, submitting to Him, and as we renew our minds with things above (Phil. 4:8), there should be results. We should notice that the gifts given to us by God’s grace are used for the sake of other people. We should notice a unity within our Christian community with Jesus as the head. We should notice that we are carrying out vv. 9-21. Lastly, we should be people who love the Lord their God with all their heart, soul and mind; and people who love their neighbor as themselves. It all starts with humility.

Today’s Readings: Romans 10

Attempting to digest Romans is challenging.  There are so many different ideas that Paul is attempting to convey to the Romans with the history of the Jewish faith and this new concept of Christ atonement for every one.  One of the best ways that I can think of how to describe the theme of Chapter 10 is directions from a father for a project.  

The Law would be similar to a father giving instructions to the child about a project.  When directing the child about the project the father gives specific instructions to the child.  You can give simple or very specific examples and illustrations for the project.  The directions can even have step by step pictures that show all of the intricacies of how to complete the project.  Then the father leaves the child to complete the project.  The Father will come and check in with the child, but the child is attempting to complete the project independently.  This child is not a youth, but an adult.  The child has the ability to complete the project independently.  

With the Blood of Christ, the project is more like the father and the child working on the project together.  They both have the instructions and illustrations, but they are working together.  The relationship of this couple is different from the previous.  The Father is connected with the child and both are able to see the progress of the project.  With this situation,  the Father can give in the moment direction and encouragement.  The Blood of Christ allows the relationship to be reconnected with the father and the child. 

When the Law was given,  it was instructions to the people of Israel.  The people of Israel were given multiple commandments and were given helpers, in the prophets, to help them to get to heaven and absolve their sins.  But God understood that they were not able to help themselves and sent Christ to reconnect the people, the people of Israel and all the of the world, back to Himself.  

My prayer is that we continue to remember that we are in relationship with God and able to have him with us daily. We don’t have to attempt to complete the project with only the instructions, the Law or the book, but we have the ability to access our Father to help and continual support and instructions daily to be more like him.  Be blessed. 

Romans 9

Imagine you’re standing by a railroad track. In the distance, you see five people tied to the rails. A train is coming, and death is certain.

This well-known psychological and ethical thought experiment challenges us to make a terrible choice. In its classic form, you can pull a lever to divert the train, sacrificing one person to save five.

But today, the scenario gets more personal. Instead of pulling a lever, imagine the only way to stop the train is by throwing yourself on the tracks. Great suffering—and likely death—awaits. Would you do it?

Before you answer, consider the Apostle Paul in Romans 9. He is confronting a heartbreaking reality: many of his fellow Jews will not accept Jesus. Their spiritual death and separation from God is certain.

“My heart is filled with bitter sorrow and unending grief,” he writes.
“For I would be willing to be forever cursed—cut off from Christ!—if that would save them.” (Romans 9:2–3, NLT)

Paul isn’t presenting a hypothetical. He is expressing genuine anguish and a willingness to suffer eternal separation from Christ if it meant salvation for others. He is volunteering to throw himself on the tracks.

My heart aches when I consider the depth of Paul’s pain. He offers to embrace a life void of hope, peace, and love, if only his people might be saved. That’s a love that mirrors the sacrifice of Christ Himself.

Today, we face a similar choice—not necessarily to die, but to give of ourselves for the sake of others. Will we cling tightly to the promise that Christ is for me, or will we surrender that comfort to share Him with a world that desperately needs Him?

What will you choose?

Romans 7

There are chapters in the bible sometimes that make me feel like I don’t know how to read good.  Romans chapter 7 did that to me today.  It is one of those that requires multiple re-reads and some dissecting for me to follow the teaching that is inside of it.  Sure, we can all get the point once over, but it feels like in this chapter the point is made several times over in different ways.  Maybe that IS the point?!

Paul is writing here in Romans that the law is holy and good because it reveals to us just how sinful we really are.  Everyone struggles with sin every day, sometimes many times throughout the day, and those that say they don’t are fooling themselves.

Verse 20, “Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.”  It is remarkable how often I catch myself committing a sin and soon after thinking, “You know that wasn’t the right thing to say/do”.  And if it was a ‘small’ sin we kind of forget about it and move on with our day.  Maybe if it was a ‘bigger’ sin we take a few extra seconds to think about it and try to tell ourselves to not do that one again.  Paul is saying that sin is in all of us.  Sometimes we sin not because we want to or mean to, but because it lives in us and it is our own responsibility to understand that and be able to ask for God’s help to stay on the right path.  Also remember that we are never ‘annoying’ Him if we need to repeatedly keep asking for said help.  He is way more disappointed in us when we don’t ask than how many times we do.

This chapter also reminded me of a show I binged over this past weekend.  ‘The Bondsman’ starring Kevin Bacon.  It is at best 4/5 stars where Bacon is a bondsman that is given a second chance but must send back demons who are trying to escape hell.  It is vulgar and gory at times, BUT here is how it reminds me of sin and what I mentioned above.  Every time a demon(sin) was present, it showed its face in the mirror.  Just like sin, sometimes you can see it plain as day and a lot of times you can’t, but it is always lingering around.  It is on us to keep it at bay and we can easily do this by praying to God for a little help…..as often as we need to.

Verse 24-25, “What a wretched man I am!  Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God – through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

An essential part of the Christian life must be to change. We cannot be who we once were, we must turn from that which we once sought, and we must put on Christ in everything that we do. This is the message given to us in Romans 6, Paul is telling us that our death with Christ must create a change, we must become new. 

“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?” (Romans 6:1). Of course, the answer is no. We are told that we must not continue, we are told that there is a need for change in our lives filled with sin. We have died with Christ in our baptism, and we are to be raised back into life with him as well. “…Just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4). 

This is an act that we on our own have no ability to follow. We are of broken flesh, falling to our carnal desires and deserving the worst of punishment for it. Change is an impossibility. Or it was until Christ. “For if we have been united in death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.” (Romans 6:5). It is powerful to be united with Christ, a once failing nature can now be sanctified through him, and only him. Romans 6:7 tells us that one who has died has been set free from sin. It no longer has dominion over us, only Christ can reign over us. 

Now that we are set free from sin, a new purpose is stamped onto our souls. “For the death he died he died to sin, once and for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 6:10-11). The old purposes we had for ourselves, including our desires to sin, have died with our old self and we are to instead live our new lives with the Lord. 

What does this mean for you and your life? How are you alive in Christ? How has he changed you to put away your old, sinful self and to put on a new self that lives for the Lord? I hope that all of us who have been baptized into Christ can see how much he has allowed us to change for him, and that we may change even more as we grow in our faiths and become more like the one who created us. 

Romans 5 is a powerful chapter where Paul unpacks the results of being justified by faith and draws a deep contrast between Adam and Christ. Here’s a summary and breakdown of the key themes:

Summary of Romans 5:

Verses 1–11:
Paul begins by explaining the benefits of justification by faith. Because believers are justified (declared righteous) through faith in Jesus, they now have:

• Peace with God (v.1)
• Access to grace (v.2)
• Hope of the glory of God (v.2)
• Joy even in suffering, knowing it produces endurance, character, and hope (vv.3–4)
• God’s love poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (v.5)
• Certainty of salvation, because Christ died for us while we were still sinners (vv.6–8)
• Reconciliation with God through Jesus’ death and life (vv.9–11)

Verses 12–21:
Paul then moves into a comparison between Adam and Christ, often called the “two humanities” section:

• Through Adam’s sin, death entered the world and spread to all humanity (v.12)
• But through Christ’s obedience, grace and life are offered to all (v.15)
• Adam’s sin brought condemnation, but Christ’s righteousness brings justification (v.18)
• Where sin increased, grace increased even more (v.20)

Key Themes:

1. Justification by Faith:
   Believers are declared righteous not by works, but through faith in Jesus Christ.
2. Peace and Reconciliation with God:
   Because of justification, believers enjoy a new relationship with God marked by peace, access to grace, and reconciliation.
3. Hope in Suffering:
   Suffering is not meaningless. It refines character and anchors hope in God’s love and promises.
4. God’s Love and Grace:
   The cross is the ultimate demonstration of God’s love—Christ died for the ungodly at just the right time.
5. The Contrast Between Adam and Christ:
   • Adam represents humanity’s fall into sin and death.
   • Christ represents redemption and the gift of righteousness and life. Paul emphasizes that God’s grace far outweighs sin.

Written with the assistance of ChatGPT