The Normal Christian Life: A Journey Through Romans
Sunday, January 22, 2006
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, Thank You for a new day of life and for a new week in which to serve You! I praise You for the opportunity to know You personally through Your Son, Jesus Christ, who came to bring salvation to all who would receive it in His name. I pray on this Lord’s Day that You will bless believers everywhere who gather to worship and praise You. Fill me and fill all of us with Your Holy Spirit that we may live in Your boldness and power, and that we may exhibit the fruit of Your Spirit in all that we think, say and do. I pray that as I turn to study Your word that You will open its truth to me and that You will show me exactly what it is that You want me to know and do. This I pray in Jesus’ name, and for the sake of His coming Kingdom! Amen.
God’s Word Today—Romans 1:16-17
Romans 1:16-17 NLT
16For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—Jews first and also Gentiles. 17This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”
Romans 1:16-17 NIV*
16I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
*Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. The "NIV" and "New International Version" trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society.
Romans 1:16-17 MOT**
16For I am not ashamed of the Gospel; for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and to the Greek. 12For a righteousness of God is revealed in it from faith to faith, as it has been written: Now the righteous shall live by faith.
**MOT is a literal translation of the Greek New Testament by Dr. Chris E. Marshall
Reflecting on God’s Word
This week’s Scripture is rather brief—only two verses. We will examine it in three different translations so that we can see the nuances of translation and gain a fuller understanding than if we simply looked at one translation. As you reflect on God’s word as it is found in Romans 1:16-17 consider the passage as a whole and ask yourself, “What is it about the Gospel that makes the Apostle Paul so bold to proclaim it?
A Deeper Exploration of God’s Word
Look at all three translations of Romans 1:16-17 and respond to these questions:
What words or phrases are common to ALL three of the translations?
What is the general meaning of this Scripture in your own words
Understanding God’s Purpose for Us
By taking a general overview approach to today’s reading, what does it tell us about God’s purpose for our lives?
Applying God’s Word to Our Purpose
What is one thing you would do differently today if you truly were not ashamed of the Good News of Jesus Christ?
Will you do it? Why or why not?
Thoughts - No Shame!
For those who participate in the worship of New Life, today’s message during morning worship was titled “No Shame!” The general point of the message is that we live in a “shame-based” world, and have ever since the fall of Adam and Eve. The only antidote to sin and the shame that goes with it is the Good News of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul tells us that he is not ashamed of the Good News (gospel), because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. For the remainder of the week, we are going to emphasize the “no shame” model of Paul’s life when it came to telling others the Good News of Jesus and of modeling it through his actions, but for today, let’s reflect a little more on the reality that because of the Good News we no longer need to live in shame. All our lives we have lived with shame, because we were born in sin, because of our heritage (being born of human parents who are fallen in sin), because of peers with whom we associate (all of whom are fallen in sin), and because of circumstances. We humans try many solutions to the emotional pain of shame. We try alcohol and other drugs. We try therapy. We try various medicines (another form of drug use!). We invest ourselves in our work, our children, even our church. But none of these “solutions” take away our sense of shame. Only Jesus Christ can do that! The Apostle Paul recognized that even though he had invested his whole life in learning and living the Law of Moses, he was still caught up on sin and shame. In fact, after his call to follow Jesus and His response to become a “preacher to the Gentiles” Paul said that he had been the “chief of sinners.” Paul found that only through Jesus, and Jesus’ salvation through His death on the cross, could he become whole, could shame be eliminated from his life. In that transformation, that being born again, as Jesus called it, Paul found that the shame was gone-replaced by a “no-shame” attitude toward sharing the gospel and living it in His daily life. Jesus offers us the same deal—every day, so let’s live that no shame life TODAY!
This Week’s Memory Verse:
For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work. Romans 1:16a