Happy Thanksgiving

Thank you, Lord, my Father God, for these first 50 of my many countless blessings:

 

Giving Your Son to pay for my sins;

Loving me first;

Planning good things for my life;

My husband;

My children;

My cats;

My parents;

My in-laws;

More in-laws;

My aunts and uncles;

My sister;

My brother-in-law;

My brother;

My nephews;

My sisters-in-law;

My other brother-in-law;

My church;

My friends at church;

My friends at work;

My job;

My van;

My house;

My clothes;

My computer;

My old church;

My old church friends;

My old job;

My neighbors next door;

My neighbors across the street;

My neighbors down the street;

My friend's new baby;

My other friend's new baby;

My friends' children;

My cousins;

My cousin's boys;

The 2 years I had with my pug dog;

The 3 years I had with my Sherman;

The few months I had with my Thuder-pup;

The things I've learned about cock-roaches;

The things I've learned to cook;

The things I've learned about house-keeping;

The things I learned in college;

The things I learned in graduate school;

The opportunity to attend graduate school;

My bachelor's degree;

The things I learned through a liberal arts education;

The truth;

Physical safety;

Good eyesight;

and so much more!!!

 

If I had many hours I could go on and on!  I hope your Thanksgiving has been a blessing for you and your families!

 

Signed, Sealed, and Delivered

Rewind and Fast Forward:  In Romans Chapter 2 we saw that God is going to judge each one of us according to the way we lived our lives...did we pursue the things of God, or were we self-seeking and disobedient?  We also discovered that as a matter of spiritual fact there is none who will escape this judgement, and then (Hallelujah!!) because of His longsuffering and goodness, God Himself leads us to repentance!

Chapter 3 could be called the great equalizer!  Just in case you were thinking, OK, so everyone will be judged by God according to his own deeds...I am a Jew holder of the oracles of God...Paul explains that the law is the knowledge of sin given to those who are under the law, and therefore there is none righteous, no not one...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God!  Praise God that He is God of all of us, and that we are justified not by what we do, but by faith in the one who justifies, therefore we establish the law!

 

Now, in Romans Chapter 4 we are privileged to squarely face the simple fact that our justification is a matter of grace through faith.  This thought is a very common theme in Paul's writing, and a very comforting truth of our salvation experience.  The fact that we are saved by grace through faith is established by Paul's examination of the evidence of Abraham's faith.  There is no such thing as grace being given as a payment for good works...by definition, if that were the case, it could no longer be called grace...it would be called debt, and it is a fact that God does not owe anybody anything!  It seems evident, however, that if you want to be paid now for the work that you do, God will not withhold your wages from you, but in so demanding of God, you have cut off your opportunity for Him to pour His grace into your life.

 

Why was the sign of the circumcision given?  The Bible says it was a seal...a mark that let everyone know I am an heir to the promise...I belong to God!  The sign was a seal of the faith that Abraham held before the sign was given.  We have been given the Holy Spirit as our seal...identifying us as one of God's own...however, in order to receive this seal, we had to have faith before the seal was given that God was God and that whatever God said He would do would be done.  Therefore, by faith, Abraham is the father of us all!  Signed and sealed...

 

So, what exactly is this promise that we are able to trust God to bring to fruition?  Verse 13 says it is that Abraham would be heir of the world, and the faith that he had in God's promise did not waver due to unbelief because Abraham was fully convinced that God would deliver on His promise! 

 

Awesome, but it gets better still - I have really good news for you and me!  This promise has been imputed to us who believe that Jesus was delivered up because of our offenses and raised up from the dead because of our justification!  We are truly saved by grace through faith!  Thanks to the incredible work of Christ, we have been signed, sealed, and delivered!

 

Here Comes the Judge...

There is something to be said here about reading and studying the Bible.  It is always necessary to bear in mind that the chapter and verse delineations are extraneous to the text of the scripture.  These divisions have been added for the purpose of study and cross-reference, so even though we are looking at Chapter 2 this week, it is impossible to understand Chapter 2 without taking Chapters 1 and 3 into account also.

 

Chapter 1 gave a detailed description of a variety of acts of unrighteousness...sin.  Chapter 2 continues this discussion of sin and the judging of sin by warning the readers not to get too excited at the end of Chapter 1 because they will be held to the same standard by which they would judge another, particularly judging those actions in which they also are active participants.  Chapter 3 expands this theme even further to make it abundantly clear to the reader that there is none righteous, and that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

 

What I want to make sure we understand in all of this, however, is not necessarily who we are...sinners all the way around...but who God is, and what all this business of righteousness and circumcision has to do with who He is and why He alone is qualified to be the Judge.

 

He is a God who painted His heart into the creation that He established for our enjoyment and sustenance...Jew and Gentile alike.  He is a God who wove His heart into the hearts and minds of  man...Jew and Gentile alike.  He is a God who provided a means of escape for all those who would believe in His Son...Jew and Gentile alike.  He is a God who had it all planned out and all worked out from the foundations of the world...for the Jew and Gentile alike.  There are no surprises with God.

 

Paul is setting us up for some very good news, but if we are not careful, we can get lost in these first two chapters and come away feeling very separated from God and a total stranger to righteousness.  However, the same admonitions that were given for judging others still apply when it comes to judging ourselves:  God is our Judge and He will judge each one according to his own deeds. 

 

I think the very first deed that God is going to consider is this:  "What did you do with my Son?"  This is where we can confidently judge ourselves.  Beyond this we need to beware for the Bible says that my thoughts are not your thoughts and My ways are not your ways.  Our righteousness hinges on the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and our primary responsibility is to receive Him as our Savior and then tell others the good news! 

 

Hebrews Chapter 2 reminds us to not neglect our salvation, and therefore we must acknowledge that it is difficult to judge even ourselves by a true and righteous standard.  Best to leave the judgments to the Judge!

 

 

Who Am I to Judge?

One of the things that I wish I did better is memorizing scripture.  I can memorize the words, but I have some kind of handicap when it comes to learning the references.  I compensate for this short-coming by trying to learn "chunks" of the Bible, so when it comes to Romans Chapter 2, I know that as the "Do Not Judge" chapter.

 

I think it is pretty safe to say that we all understand the challenge that Paul issues us:  As much as we judge others, we condemn ourselves, because there is none righteous...no, not one, except God who will judge each of us according to our own deeds.  I guess it comes down to the simple analogy that if you point a finger at somebody else, there are three fingers pointing back at you!

 

But what about this?  God is so amazing, so righteous, so holy, so PERFECT that He really does leave us with no excuses for our behavior.  He demonstrates His glory in Creation.  He weaves His righteousness into our instincts and our consciences.  How much more are we responsible for doing good when we have the blood of Jesus, the Bible and the freedom to read and study, and the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, than someone who does good just because it is good to do good?  He knows us so well...He thought of every excuse we would concoct, and eliminated them before we could even attempt to use them! 

 

All of you who know me know that I have no problem saying the things that I know are true.  In fact, I am often accused of being too harsh or beating people over the head with the Truth.  I just want to point out that at the end of this chapter, Paul is anything but sweet when he writes that the circumcision without the law is worse than not ever having been circumcised, particularly if the uncircumcised person is living as righteously as he or she can and bringing glory and honor to God.  Ouch, now that had to be harsh if you used to belong to God via the old covenant!  Praise be to God for giving us a new covenant, and bringing us all into His family through the life, death, and resurrection of His Son, our Lord, Jesus!!

 

Why I Need a Savior...

Last Thursday we read and discussed Romans Chapter 1.  I began by commenting that there is a certain amount of pain and discomfort that comes simply by reading the last several verses and I was loathe to stop reading because I didn't want to end on such a somber note. 

 

Then, amazingly, someone pointed out that this isn't necessarily depressing...it is merely a reminder of exactly how holy our God is!  In fact, previously we had learned that the gospel of Christ is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes...for in it (the gospel of Christ) the righteousness of God is revealed.  And not only that...we also discovered that He has revealed Himself to us also through His creation so that even if we happen to go through this life never hearing mention of the name Jesus, we still are left without excuse before this one, true, HOLY God!  Praise God for loving us so much and allowing us the privilege of working out our salvation with fear and trembling.

 

There is one thing that terrifies me.  It is the fact that my will had chosen to depart from God's ways and pursue all manner of evil in His sight and He could have let me go in my own ways and left me with a hard heart and a reprobate mind - not because He wanted to exclude me from His salvation plan, but because of the way my own actions and attitudes made it impossible for Him to include me!

 

The sins that are named in this passage are terrifying.  For example, I find it exceedingly interesting that murder and sexual immorality are on the same list as disobeying your parents and being unmerciful.  I believe that Paul is demonstrating here that only God is holy.  It is true that every time we sin, our hearts get a little bit harder.  I pray for immediate consequences to my sins simply because I know that if I perceive that nothing bad happened to me (like lightning striking me or something) I am likely to repeat that sin until my heart becomes rock-hard and  I have damaged my life and the lives of all those around me.

 

It is impossible to read this chapter without coming face to face with the knowledge that homosexuality is a very dangerous game to play.  In fact, it is no game at all.  It is not a right of an individual...it is an abomination to the Lord, and you will suffer if you indulge these lusts of the flesh.  These are not the words of intolerant Christian-folk.  These are the words of God. 

 

I believe that God moves us through these lists to remind us how depraved and wicked we are, but even more so to remind us how glorious, marvelous, magnificent, beautiful, and holy He is...maybe compared to you I am not so bad...maybe if I consider this as a checklist, I come out with a 70% or better sin avoidance factor...however, every time, in every circumstance, next to God, I am a worm!  Psalm 130 says that if You count our sins against us, who could stand?

 

So, I am terrified of my sin and I am terrified of the bondage of a reprobate mind and I am terrified by the prospect of being left to myself and I am terrified by the punishment that is required for such violations.  I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, though, because it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes!  I believe Jesus died to save me...a sinner!

 

 

To You, From God!

When Paul offers an introduction and a greeting in each of his letters, he always takes a moment to describe himself and his God, normally in an exquisitely triune manner, and then, as in Romans 1:7, he says something along these lines:  "Grace to you and Peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ."  Wow!  I love it when the LORD simply takes my breath away!

 

Grace to you and peace from God...grace and peace to you from God...to you, from God...grace and peace...to you, from God...

 

Take a few moments to slow down and really concentrate on hearing the words of God delivered through Paul's greeting.  What does it take to really deliver that word to someone else?  Do I have it in me to greet someone, even one of my own family, with such a greeting? 

 

Grace and peace are an awesome package to carry.  Remember in Pet Detective when Jim Carey was working for the delivery company and kicked, tossed, bounced, rolled and dropped his package repeatedly before the delivery was actually made?  Even if you haven't seen the movie, you can imagine the condition of the item being delivered.  Whatever it had been, it was now broken into a thousand tiny pieces!

 

Grace and peace...to you, from God...

 

Can you imagine what would have happened if Paul had taken this Grace and Peace that God asked him to deliver to the believers in Rome, and simply put it on his own shelf in his own house?  Sure, he would have enjoyed it every day.  Certainly as people dropped in for a visit they too would take in the beauty of this Grace and Peace.  However, eventually it would become just another interesting conversation piece, and it would lose its power and its ability to impact the world for Christ!

 

Can you imagine being Paul and being trusted with Grace and Peace from God for the express purpose of delivering it to someone else?  Paul never says, "I bring you peace," or, "I offer you peace," or, "I want to give you some of the grace I have received."  Paul, in all humility and with tremendous awe and respect for the Christ who saved him from eternal damnation, delivers Grace and Peace from God to the Christians in Rome.  Grace and Peace were not given for Paul...they were given for Paul to deliver.

 

Lord, help us to always be willing to be used by You.  Thank you for giving us your Grace and Peace.  Thank you for giving us a model in Paul for what to do with such an awesome gift!  We stand in awe that you would trust us with what is yours...precious and cherished...and we ask that you would continually strengthen us so we can deliver what is yours to those for whom it has been given.

 

 

PLEASE READ THIS FIRST!!

Welcome to Caleb's Giants!

 

You are welcome to stop in to read, to add your insights and impressions, and even to ask or answer any questions that may be posted.  We are going to have an incredible adventure diving deep into the Word of God and allowing Him to develop in us the discipline of reading and meditating on the scriptures while He stirs up an unsatiable hunger and unquenchable thirst for even more of this same Word!

 

We will meet on Thursday evenings and touch on the highlights of the prior week's studying, but this is to be a deliberate, proactive effort on each of our parts.  Thursday evening will be a time to plan our next move in ministry, bring our praise and petitions to our King, and enjoy fellowship with one another.

 

So, let's get started.  As we discussed where we wanted to begin opening the Word, one thought was toward practical application and one thought was toward the teachings of Jesus.  Praise God for anticipating this and giving Paul the Book of Romans!  Since Paul was writing this letter to believers, we can apply his teaching to our situations today with relative ease.  Since he had never seen these people (nor has he seen us), he took the time to skillfully and masterfully reveal our Christ to us by outlining His life and ministry as well as His death and Resurrection.  The thing I love about this Book, however, is the way Paul ices the cake for us by delineating exactly what this faith in this Savior looks like in our everyday lives.

 

One thing I love to consider when I read the epistles, especially Paul's writing, is what our Christianity would be like if we didn't have this recorded account of how people applied all that they had seen and experienced while Jesus was ministering to His people on the earth.

 

Praise the Lord for His loving kindness in giving us the Bible and the ability to read and study it in relationships with other believers!!!

 

 

 

No Weapons Shall Prosper

Isaiah 54:17

...No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn.  This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is from Me, " says the LORD.

 

Many years ago a friend of mine named Sandy told me that Satan doesn't need to hang out at the bars with drunks and prostitutes; his commitment is to stop those who are attempting to make changes for the sake of the Kingdom of God.  Every day I seem to become more fully engaged in my Christian walk.  Every day I seem to be more delighted at my ever-increasing dependence on my Savior God.  Every day I seem to be an increasingly visible target for the powers and principalities that would seek to destroy my life and separate me from my God.  Thus my claim on the promises from Isaiah 54 has become my constant prayer.

 

Early this morning I realized with exceeding joy that this prayer has been answered faithfully, as my Father always hears the cries of His children.  Let me try to brief you as to what God has done, and how I have had the great privilege of learning from the Holy Spirit and being a witness to my Lord using my life to bring glory to Himself!  No weapons formed against us have prospered.  Not one of them has prospered, and there has been a continuous onslaught directed toward me, my husband, our children, and our home.

 

My heart broke for my children this week as my boys faced their own sinful natures.  However, in spite of their sin, God protected them from many of the potential consequences of their sin, and provided a clear way out of the temptation into which they had fallen.  As the Bible tells us, While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us!  All I can say about that is Hallelujah!!!