Tag Archive - Romans

HOPE

March 18, 2010 in Challenges with 0 Comments

In what do we put our hope?

Do we put it in our abilities to perform something, in our talents or in our jobs?

Do we put our hope for something better in a promised promotion, or maybe that new job that you will be starting at next month?

Maybe you put your hope for a better marriage in the birth of your coming baby?

For as long as we put our hope in our own abilities or in worldly things, we must be ready to be disappointed.

As long as your hope is not in God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, we will always be disappointed.

It is not always easy, and we tend to sometimes fall back into our human/worldly tendencies to rely on our own strength.

22We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? 25But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.26In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.

Romans 8:22-27 (NIV)

Help

November 19, 2009 in Challenges with 0 Comments

help

So, we are nearing the end of the journey through Romans, and today’s sections from Romans 15 ties in extremely well with the Hillsongs movie we went to see last night. Even though we only saw the first half due to problems with the projector, the theme of all people being created equally and how we can help those around us already sinked in deeply into my heart.

Romans 15:1-2 (The Message)

Those of us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, “How can I help?”

Reading these verses I am again challenged to really go out and make a difference to people’s lives out there that need to see that Jesus still cares. For the people that have nothing to eat and have no clean water, and are at the brink of giving up.

If we read the next section from Romans 15 it tells us what Jesus did. We tend to forget that Jesus worked in the slums of the times. He would seldom be in a position to be lavished with riches. He really got in the trenches and cared for the people that needed it.

Romans 15:3

That’s exactly what Jesus did. He didn’t make it easy for himself by avoiding people’s troubles, but waded right in and helped out. “I took on the troubles of the troubled,” is the way Scripture puts it.

Now, why would we as Christ followers avoid doing exactly this? We tend to look the other way, when a homeless person asks for something at a traffic light. We try do get something to do so we do not have to look at them.

Yes, I am guilty of it as well…

Why don’t we rather just at the very least give the person a smile, and a polite sorry, I don’t have anything to give you today. Or give them a bottle of water, or a word of encouragement?

Getting along

November 18, 2009 in Challenges with 12 Comments

RelationshipHow often do we as Christians feel we are superior to other people. That we have the answer (which we have), but we need to impose it on others around us? That we have to tell people how to live, and rebuke them for doing or not doing something?

It also comes back to a previous post I made about how hard it was for me to go back to my previous church, and then to sit there and openly judge them…

Here is what Paul says about it…

Romans 14:1 (The Message)

Welcome with open arms fellow believers who don’t see things the way you do. And don’t jump all over them every time they do or say something you don’t agree with—even when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. Remember, they have their own history to deal with. Treat them gently.

I don’t know about you, but this is quite a challenge for me sometimes, as I will sit in conversation with some of our friends or old school friends, and I will sit there and think to myself, “hypocrites”. Um, buddy, you are the hypocrite if you are going to treat people that way.

Here is another passage from Romans 14 on where it will and might leave you for thinking/doing this

Romans 14:10-12

So where does that leave you when you criticize a brother? And where does that leave you when you condescend to a sister? I’d say it leaves you looking pretty silly—or worse. Eventually, we’re all going to end up kneeling side by side in the place of judgment, facing God. Your critical and condescending ways aren’t going to improve your position there one bit. Read it for yourself in Scripture:

“As I live and breathe,” God says,
“every knee will bow before me;
Every tongue will tell the honest truth
that I and only I am God.”
So tend to your knitting. You’ve got your hands full just taking care of your own life before God.

Now, a question that comes up in my mind while reading this is, that at what stage must you then start to share the Good News with these people? For me, it is living your life as holy as possible, and let the other people see it. If what I am doing, is correct and in line with my beliefs, then they will inevitably see the difference in my life to theirs, and maybe, just maybe come and speak with me on the matter.

I have been living as a two faced hypocrite for very long in my life, and the last couple of years has been a big eye opening time for me as far as this specific matter goes, and I only praise the Lord for saving me from myself and my worldly ways.

He can do the same for you, if you would just let Him!

Taxes

November 17, 2009 in Challenges with 38 Comments

money

I know I have posted about this before, but today I fell we need to revisit this, due to the fact that it is tax season in South Africa, and the cut off date is in fact this coming Friday 20 November.

I know plenty of people that feel that they do not want to pay taxed due to corruption within the government and lack of services. Another reason that I have heard over the years is, that only 3% of people pay taxes in any case, why should I.

God is pretty straight forward on this topic, and reading Romans 13 this morning, again brought this topic to the fore.

Romans 13:3-7 (The Message)

Do you want to be on good terms with the government? Be a responsible citizen and you’ll get on just fine, the government working to your advantage. But if you’re breaking the rules right and left, watch out. The police aren’t there just to be admired in their uniforms. God also has an interest in keeping order, and he uses them to do it. That’s why you must live responsibly—not just to avoid punishment but also because it’s the right way to live.That’s also why you pay taxes—so that an orderly way of life can be maintained. Fulfill your obligations as a citizen. Pay your taxes, pay your bills, respect your leaders.

Without having to say anything further, I want you to go think about your stance on this, and if it is not in line with God’s stance on this, I pray that you will see your way to aligning yourself with the will of God.

Don’t hit back

November 9, 2009 in Challenges with 4 Comments

This morning during Bible study I was working my way through Romans 12, and these verses jumped out at me.

Romans 12:17-19

Don’t hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody. Don’t insist on getting even; that’s not for you to do. “I’ll do the judging,” says God. “I’ll take care of it.”

These verses hit me particularly hard after the last couple of days, of really to put it simply, judging people.

Acting in such a way as to justify my actions to myself, and trying to make me feel better about it.

The biggest one for me was going to our previous church yesterday morning for a Christening, and walking out of there judging the whole thing, and saying thanks for not having to be there any more, etc.

Who the heck am I to judge a corporate worship service like that? Yes, it may not be the place for me in the current season of my life, or for that matter ever again, but that was the place that I had the priviledge of  meeting my wife, or rather to realise that the two of us will spend eternity together, and where I discovered my calling to worship through music.

Yes I have moved on since we left there, and I have grown immensely in faith, which caused me yesterday to look down at everything going on in that place.

I thank God today for opening my eyes to my wicked ways in judging people and places that does not do things exactly the way I want them to be done, and I praise Him for His grace in forgiving me for these stupid things that I do sometimes.

Actions in Christ

November 5, 2009 in Challenges with 1 Comment

guidance

Romans 12:6-8 (The Message)

If you preach, just preach God’s Message, nothing else; if you help, just help, don’t take over; if you teach, stick to your teaching; if you give encouraging guidance, be careful that you don’t get bossy; if you’re put in charge, don’t manipulate; if you’re called to give aid to people in distress, keep your eyes open and be quick to respond; if you work with the disadvantaged, don’t let yourself get irritated with them or depressed by them. Keep a smile on your face.

Romans 12 is probably one of the best known chapters in the Bible, due to verse 1-2, but today, I would like to have a look at verse 6-8.

Paul gives us some great tips here on how to do what we do, and how to do it well.

I love the section that tells us not to get bossy when we give encouraging guidance. I think I love this though, due to the fact that I have a very dominating personality, and I can get bossy very quickly. There is only two ways to do something, right and wrong, and do not dare to take option 2. :P

Now, during the last couple of years, I have had to learn to overcome a lot of my mannerisms such as this, due to the fact that I had to realise that I am not the only person in the world, and I hurt people close to me quite easily with being this way.

I have definitely not mastered this, but with the grace of God, and His guidance, I have been able to assess a situation much better, and I truly believe that I am getting there as far as this goes.

I also like the section in this scripture, that if you teach, stick to your teaching. So many people these days, have learned the slogan of do what I say, and not what I do, but if you look at children, you will notice that they do what you do. Having a little girl of 19 months opens ones’ eyes to this fact very easily, as she is starting to speak now and you have to be extremely careful at what you say around her. I love this fact, strangely enough, just because it keeps you on your toes.

Now, through the grace of God, may we all be challenged by this scripture today, and really go out and apply it in our daily lives.

By His Power

November 4, 2009 in Challenges with 0 Comments

Reading this passage this morning during Bible study, it just again hit me between the eyes at how stupid we humans tend to be, by trying to control our lives.

Romans 11:7-8 (The Message)

And then what happened? Well, when Israel tried to be right with God on her own, pursuing her own self-interest, she didn’t succeed. The chosen ones of God were those who let God pursue his interest in them, and as a result received his stamp of legitimacy. The “self-interest Israel” became thick-skinned toward God.

In this passage it is clear that no matter what we as humans try to do in order to be right with God, it is not possible. Once we have made the decision to believe and walk in faith, we need to let go of our own will and let God take control of where we are going, and what we are doing.

I know this is difficult, and I am sure it will always be, as to really let go means we need to walk purely in faith. We tend to diminish faith by saying we believe, but it is SO much more than that. Faith means that if we receive a word from God to do something, that we actually do it, and not try to argue about it, or ask for more signs.

In the word there are different things that will give you clues about how to know if it is the Word of God, and once the word fits in with the the Bible says, we should stop wondering, and do.

Abraham and Paul is probably the best examples of people that listened and did when God spoke, and my prayer for myself and for all of you today is that we can get to that place where we will hear the Word clearly, and then have the courage and wisdom to act on it.

Doing Nothing

November 2, 2009 in Challenges with 1 Comment

Romans 10 (The Message)

It’s the word of faith that welcomes God to go to work and set things right for us. This is the core of our preaching. Say the welcoming word to God—”Jesus is my Master”—embracing, body and soul, God’s work of doing in us what he did in raising Jesus from the dead. That’s it. You’re not “doing” anything; you’re simply calling out to God, trusting him to do it for you.

This weekend we had our church’s congregation camp. The message that was shared during the weekend was Love, and how do we as humans love.

Last night, during the final service, back at church, I probably cried about 3 time during it all, as all the emotions within me got the best of me. Listening to stories of people that loses their children, and finding that peace once somebody shows them true love just really got to me.

I was spending a lot of time last night thinking about how can I sow that kind of love to people and really communicate the love of God through the love that I show people.

Reading this scripture this morning it just became abundantly clear that nothing I can do will make me be able to do this, but only through the grace of God, He will fill me with this love in such a way that I will not be able to contain it within me any more, and the anointing will be on me, and flowing out of me.

Expectancy

October 28, 2009 in Challenges with 2 Comments

adventure

This morning, after a very long night with my baby girl not being able to sleep due to mosquitoes, I decided to do some Bible study, a little bit earlier than usual. Now, I am busy reading Wild Goose Chase by Mark Batterson and this book is challenging me so much, to jump into this adventure God has planned for me and my life. And just to rub it in, I had to read this passage this morning:

Romans 8:15 (The Message)

This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?”

Now, I think I have been expectant for quite some time now, and I also think I have received many opportunities in the last year to embark on this adventure, but due to my cautious nature, I have never taken the chance.

After reading this passage this morning, I only asked God to give me the courage to jump as well as to make clear His adventure He has in store for me.

Lengthening the rope

October 27, 2009 in Challenges with 1 Comment

end of your rope

Romans 7:24-25 (The Message)

I’ve tried everything and nothing helps. I’m at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn’t that the real question?The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different.

How many times in life we try to overcome sin on our own? We realise we are falling back into the well of sin, but starting to turn back to those old habits, that through grace we were saved from.

I you are anything like me, you tend to try and get yourself, out of your own power, to turn away from those old sins.

Reading this passage this morning, I just realised again what amazing thing Jesus did for us on the cross. We have been saved from all sin, through His blood on the cross, and we need to say thank you a lot more than we do. And we also need to turn to Him first, when we realise that the temptations are there and we need to show resolve not to do it.

Page 1 of 212»

Switch to our mobile site