Making Sense of Suffering
Read: Romans 8:18-30 All things work together for good . . . (v. 28) The question “How can a good God allow so much suffering?” prevents many from receiving Jesus. In my pastoral experience, however, the biblical view of suffering is the only explanation because it offers an origin, an end, and a cure. Suffering […]
Dearest Dad!
Read: Romans 8:12-17 But you have received the Spirit of adoption . . . (v. 15) British royalty provides endless fascination for many with its pomp, formality, and tabloid stories. I find their titles of nobility intriguing. Prince Charles has 20! If you or I addressed him, we’d use words like His Royal Highness, Prince […]
Mount Everest
Read: Romans 8:1-11 No condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (v. 1) The book of Romans is sometimes described as the Himalayas of the Bible and Romans 8 as Mount Everest. I agree! Once while flying from India to Nepal, my eyes grew wide as the 29,031-foot mountain came into view. The sky […]
Wretched No More
Read: Romans 7 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! (v. 25) When I received Jesus at age 13, I mistakenly believed sin would no longer be tempting to me. Wrong! Maybe when I joined my local church at 18? Wrong again! And it has not ceased waging war (v. 23) on me […]
Know Your Freedom
Read: Romans 6:15-23 You have been set free . . . (v. 22) On the first Saturday of every month, hundreds of people gather in Mukono, Uganda, for an eight-hour experience called “Know Your Freedom in Christ.” There are new and old believers, seekers, and strugglers of all sorts. Throughout the day the throng praises […]
Life, Not License
Read: Romans 6:1-14 In order that . . . we too might walk in newness of life. (v. 4) One misunderstanding of the abundant grace in Romans 5 and 6 is that, because God’s grace is greater than our sin, we can go on sinning. I have actually heard a person say, “I’ve professed my […]
Uberabundance
Read: Romans 5:12-21 Grace abounded all the more. (v. 20) If reading about the spread of Adam’s sin feels a bit like a bad virus circling the globe, you’re not far off. It’s actually worse. No mask or any amount of handwashing can prevent you from getting it. Sin does not enter us from the […]
Paid in Full
Read: Romans 5:1-11 At the right time Christ died for the ungodly. (v. 6) After eating in a restaurant with our four preschool children, I was surprised to learn that our bill was paid in full. The waitress shared that someone blessed us because they were impressed by how well our kids behaved. I was, […]
What Comes First?
Read: Romans 4:1-25 In hope he believed against hope . . . (v. 18) What came first, the chicken or the egg? This is the issue of Romans 4. What comes first, our faith in God’s promise or our obedience to God’s law? Romans 3:24 emphatically declares we are “justified by his grace as a […]