The Normal Christian Life: A Journey Through Romans
Friday, January 27, 2006
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, thank You for another day of life in You! I praise You for the gifts of life, of love, of faith in You, and of sharing Your gospel with others. I pray for a filling of Your Holy Spirit right now that I may role model Your life, joy, and righteousness to others. I confess that apart from You I am nothing, and that there is no goodness in me at all. Every good thing I have, and every good thing I say or do is a result of your life in me. Praise You, God for living in me and for guiding me to grow in Your ways. Thank You again for Your written word, which gives me the opportunity both to know what You want, and what it means to be a follower of Your Son, Jesus. I pray that as I meet others today that You will lead me in the paths of righteousness with them for Your name’s sake, and so that Your righteousness will pass from me to them. All these things I pray in the strong name of Jesus Christ, my risen Lord, 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
Look up Habakkuk 2:4, which is the verse Paul quotes at the end of Romans 1:17 when he writes, “The righteous will live by faith.” What is the significance of this verse and why do you suppose that Paul quoted it here in Romans 1?
A Deeper Exploration of God’s Word
Look at Romans 1:17 in the NIV. What differences are there between this translation and those of the NLT & MOT? What difference does it make (if any) in the meaning of the text?
What difference does it make that our righteousness comes from faith in God rather than our own goodness?
Understanding God’s Purpose for Us
Given that God is constantly pouring His righteousness into us through faith, what do we learn about God’s purpose for us through this reality?
Applying God’s Word to Our Purpose
Once again turn to your list of folks who need to hear the Good News of Jesus. Pray for those on the list, and also ask God for opportunities to share the Good News with one or more of them. Are there others who need to be added to the list. (Note: This list is more important than just about any list you can compile---IF you use it to pray for lost friends and to remind yourself to let God use you to bring the gospel to them!
What one thing will you do today as a result of reading this Scripture?
Thoughts - ... by Faith! (continued from yesterday's study)
The major difference is that when we do good deeds out of our own desire to be good or righteous, those deeds will always be tainted with sin: our motivation will be wrong, or we will not act fully in goodness. But when we do our deeds of righteousness from faith in God, God’s goodness is imputed to us through Jesus, and our deeds are accepted by God. You may remember that during Jesus’ earthly ministry a rich young man came up to Him asking what he had to do to obtain eternal life. The man referred to Jesus as “Good Teacher.” Jesus replied to the man, “Why do you call me good? There are none good except for God alone.” In asking the question and making the statement, Jesus was pointing out two things: He was the Son of God—because only God is good, and the young man recognized the goodness; and He was pointing out that no one else is good by nature. All goodness in our lives comes from God. I emphasize this issue because so many folks think that going to heaven is about us being “good” people. So many times over the years people have said to me, “A loving God couldn’t send good people to hell.” I always agree. Then I say, “The problem is there aren’t any good people.” Thus, ALL of us are destined for hell apart from the saving work of God in Jesus Christ. Paul recognized this reality, and thus his emphasis on the righteousness that comes BY FAITH. If you have struggled with doing the right thing in one or more areas of life, ask God to increase your faith. Ask God to FILL you with the Holy Spirit, because one of the components of the fruit of the Spirit is FAITHFULNESS. Obedience comes by faith as we saw two weeks ago in Romans 1:5; and now we see that righteousness also comes by faith. In fact, EVERYTHING we gain in the spiritual realm comes by faith in Jesus Christ. Pause right now and ask God to increase your faith, and remember that obedience and righteousness are the “fruit” of that increased faith!
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