Category Archives: Romans

Political awareness, Romans

Next Stop

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I opened Romans 12 just for the pleasure of reading, and for listening.

My first stop was verse 1 – living sacrifice; not a dead one, a living one. JESUS loves life. He wants us to do the same. It’s only reasonable.  :)

Romans 12 (TLV) 12:1 I urge you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice—holy, acceptable to God—which is your spiritual service.   source 

Next stop. Verse 2 and we may hang out here till the end of this post.

Romans 12 (TLV) 12: 2 Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect. source

Accepting the call of verse 1 makes verse 2 imperative.  Do NOT be conformed to this world.

How is the world? It won’t take prolonged exposure to media sources to answer that question with many adjectives.  So I’ll pick one.

Sameness.

Actually sameness is a noun but it seems descriptive enough here for my purposes.

The world is clamoring, rioting and when it deems expedient, subliminally training us that we are all the same; even attempting to blur the lines of rudimentary sexuality.  Another push is the demand that we must laud all the world’s belief systems, all the world’s values (or lack thereof) with equal dignity and respect.

If all this is too convoluted for you; here’s my summary: if the world is insisting it is right, in all probability it’s wrong. We have one safe place to go to gauge everything.  The Word of GOD interrupted by the HOLY SPIRIT of GOD.

Continuing with verse 2. Do NOT be conformed BUT be TRANSFORMED.
How? By the renewing of your mind with the MIND OF CHRIST not the thinkers of this world.  Click HERE for Text.

Matthew 24:24 (NKJV) 24 For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.  source

Let me be blunt, the growing trend I see in Christendom is I would rather see you go to hell than for me to hurt your feelings.  This violates verse 1 and verse 2.

Verse 3 – Haven’t gotten there yet.  :)

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Extra Reading: HERE and HERE

Christian Living, Romans

Barometers

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Romans 15:13 (CJB)

13 May God, the source of hope, fill you completely with joy and shalom as you continue trusting, so that by the power of the Ruach HaKodesh you may overflow with hope.

Just a brief thought this morning, I think.

The first twelve verses of Romans 15 utilize passages from the Tanakh to lay a foundation for faith for we Gentiles.  Paul’s earnest desire for these Gentiles, for this Gentile, for all peoples of the earth, was (is) that we live in hope through trusting.

Read the verse again, please. May God, THE source of hope. Not a source of hope but THE source of hope. And what does this God of hope want for us? He wants us to be FILLED with joy and peace.

How can that be for us in this volatile chaotic 21st Century? How was it for them in their hostile, threatening martyrdom reality?

Trust.

Trusting that Yeshua, Jesus the Christ, was/is the Messiah, the Savior of mankind. Trusting that He is GOD and that He is not just a good God but that He is THE GOOD GOD. Trusting that when death came quickly or slowly that He was still good. Trusting that when beatings and hunger and want were the day’s fare that He was still good. Trusting that when respite came He was still just as good.

Trust. And the more we trust the more filled we are with His joy and His peace. How? The precious Holy Spirit. He is our promise. He is our earnest. He is the One who delivers, instills, and seals that joy and peace in us, as long as we keep trusting. When the trust wanes, so do the joy and the peace.

Joy and peace: great barometers! They let us know with complete accuracy what is our trust level at any given moment of the day.

Nope! Don’t go there!  No condemnation, just encouragement to keep on trusting and keep on experiencing those fillings of joy and peace. When we do, being filled will become more of the norm than not — that’s my hope. More of the norm than not. :)

Until then ~ ~ ~ Kathie 
The Blood of Jesus is Enough