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2 Corinthians 8-9 (ESV) by Wordle*

Today’s reading is 2 Corinthians 8:1-9:15.

“For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints–” (2 Corinthians 8:3-4).

What a powerful example. Outward compliance is one thing. This shows inward motivation.

This is what I need to have and instill in others. The Macedonians did not give because Paul convinced them it was a rule to give. They begged for the opportunity to take part in this. They saw obedience and sacrifice as an opportunity, a favor. They saw it as grace itself.

Too often I spend trying to figure out what the rules are to decide what I’m going to do or to manipulate others into doing what I think they should. But then what is accomplished? Simply a controlled compliance that is useless to our souls. I’m not saying there are no rules, but if we are only doing something because it is the rule, then our hearts are not right with God.

I need to thank God today for the favor of getting to serve and sacrifice for Him. He is the great and loving God who saved my soul, why would I want to do anything else?

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

PS. What struck you in today’s reading? You can add your input by clicking the following link: Post a Comment

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*Today’s illustration was generated by the creative tool at Wordle.net. You can find all my wordles here.

Today’s reading is 1 Corinthians 16:1-24; 2 Corinthians 1:1-24.

“For I do not want to see you now just in passing. I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord permits” (1 Corinthians 16:7).

How often I forget the Lord in my plans. How often I want to figure out how my future is going to work out, what I’m going to do, what plans will be in place without taking the Lord into consideration. When I act like that, my plans fall flat. My life goes exceedingly better when I live by the Lord’s permission. When I recognize that I can go here and there, accomplish this and that only if the Lord wills, my life runs smoother, if only because I recognize a stronger and better hand is leading it. When I remember in my praying to seek His will above mine, to ask not simply for what I want but that God will give me the strength to accept and respond appropriately when He gives me what He wants, my life is more peaceful, if only because I have prepared the way to accept what comes from God’s hand instead of expecting God’s gifts to be what I want.

If the Lord permits. That will be my motto today. And if the Lord permits, we’ll read and comment on more of His word on Monday.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

PS. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Galatians 5:1-6:18.

Paul said, “For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh. But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Galatians 6:13-14).

I think I’ve often viewed this passage as talking about how hypocritical all the Jews must have been. They wanted the Christians to be circumcised, but they didn’t actually want to keep the law themselves. I’m not sure that is the case. I think there were plenty of sincere Jews who wanted the Christians to be circumcised. I think plenty of them tried to keep the law. The issue was not that they didn’t care about the law. The issue was that everyone sins and falls short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23). All those who claimed they could be justified by the law had simply proven over and over again that they would fall short of the law no matter how much they attempted to follow it. That is why those who try to be justified by the law only end up under a curse (Galatians 3:10). Really, anyone who tries to boast in keeping the law is eventually going to have to get around to admitting, “But I messed up here, and here, and here…” Of course, that is why those who boast in the law eventually get to the point of boasting that they are better at law keeping than someone else. Can anyone say “Pharisee and Publican?” 

Instead of boasting in law-keeping, Paul would boast in Christ and not simply in Christ but in the cross of Christ. All those sins Paul had committed while striving to keep the law were taken out of the way by the cross. That was where his righteousness came. It wasn’t his own, it was a gift from God through the death of Jesus Christ because of Paul’s faith.

Here is my fear for me. In what do I boast? Do I boast in how often I “go to church”? Do I boast in how much money I give in the contribution? Do I boast in how many sins I haven’t committed? Do I boast in how many acts of righteousness I have done? Do I boast in how well I hold to the pattern of sound words? Or do I boast in the cross of Christ? Sadly, some hear this and think I’m saying how I live doesn’t matter. That is not the case at all. If I live by faith (Galatians 2:20), I’ll live by the pattern of sound words. I’ll assemble with the saints, contribute to the work of the church, strive to overcome sin, strive to live by righteousness, etc. The question is in what do I boast? Do I look at all the great things I do under the New Covenant and boast in that? Or do I look at the cross of Christ and boast in that?

The fact is, whether old law or new, if I’m going to boast in my law-keeping, I’m only going to be able to admit that I’m a sinner and really have nothing in which to boast. I need to put my faith in Christ. When I put it in me, I fail. 

So, today, I’ll boast in Christ and not me or my law-keeping. Certainly, I’ll strive to obey Christ, but I won’t stand before Christ and try to act like He should forgive me because look at how awesome I am. That just won’t work.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Galatians 3:1-4:31.

As if to correspond with Nathan’s comment from Friday’s post, Paul steps up in Galatians 3:25-29 to explain that while we are justified by faith and not works of the law, if we don’t have some works then we cannot claim we have saving faith.

So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.

Did you see what that said about baptism and faith? It said we are sons of God through faith. We are not sons of God through works of the law, but through faith. However, how do we know we are sons of God through faith? “For” or because when we were baptized into Christ we put on Christ. I know this is not commonly accepted among most religious circles these days. But in the same way that I cannot help but see we are justified by faith and not by works of any law, I can’t help but see that I’m only a son of God through faith if I’ve put Christ on in baptism. I may believe in Jesus. I may think Jesus is great. I might even assent to all the facts about Jesus’ life. However, if my faith doesn’t carry me to surrender to Him in that first step of baptism, then my faith hasn’t saved me. I haven’t put on Christ, I’m still only an outside observer who thinks very highly of Him.

Please notice very carefully what Paul did not say. He did not say that we put on Christ through a prayer. He did not say we put on Christ through speaking in tongues. He did not say we put on Christ through an overwhelming spiritual experience. He did not say we put on Christ by being good enough. He did, however, say that we put on Christ in baptism and that we were baptized into Christ. 

That is only the beginning of a life surrendered to Jesus by faith (cf. Galatians 2:20). However, it is the beginning.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Romans 9:1-10:21.

Once again, the reading of scripture throws my own personal concepts on their head. I so want to prove I’m good enough by figuring out how to dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s. I want to know the ins and outs of every potential rule God has established in this new covenant law and show that I can keep them all. I want to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant, you out of all my disciples kept my laws.” But Romans 9:30-33 gives me pause.

What shall we say, then? That gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained it, that is a righteousness that is by faith; but that Israel who pursued a law that would lead to righteousness did not succeed in reaching that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were based on works. They have stumbled over the stumbling stone, as it is written, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

The Jews seemed to have the advantage. To them belonged “the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises” (Romans 9:4). When Jesus came on the scene, they should have been on top of things, ready to surrender their lives to Him. Instead, they killed Him. Paul says of them in Romans 10:1-4, that they have a zeal for God but they are ignorant. They are ignorant of the righteousness of God and therefore are trying to establish their own righteousness by keeping the law. 

Here is what concerns me about me. Am I doing the same thing at times? Instead of allowing the New Covenant to be a system of faith in Christ by which I gain righteousness through His strength as I believe Him and turn my life over to Him, am I turning it into another system of law. Am I pursuing righteousness by pursuing a law that I think will lead to righteousness? Didn’t the Jews prove that wouldn’t work under the Old Covenant? Doesn’t trying to simply keep a law always end for me in learning that I don’t succeed in reaching that law? Instead of pursuing it by faith, I’m pursuing it by works. I’m sure that I’m saved because of the things I have gotten right and done properly instead of my faith in Jesus.

Am I ignorant of God’s righteousness that comes through faith in Jesus? Have I stumbled at the stone of stumbling, all the while thinking I’m relying on that cornerstone? 

I am certain that this doesn’t mean I get to live how I want. I’m certain this doesn’t mean that serving Christ means giving mental assent to Him and then just sincerely doing whatever feels right to me. I’m certain that if I truly surrender to Christ, I’ll follow the pattern He has established. I’m simply afraid that I get it backwards most of the time. I want to prove I’m good enough by keeping the New Law instead of admitting that I will never attain righteousness by keeping any law and can only have righteousness by increasingly casting myself onto Jesus, believing in Him and living by faith in Him (Galatians 2:20).

I’m concerned that perhaps I too am ignorant of the righteousness of God and therefore am seeking to establish my own righteousness most of the time. I have to remind myself today that won’t work. I can’t establish my own righteousness. Today, instead of seeking God’s law so I can establish my own righteousness, I want to seek Christ, draw near to Him and simply do what He has said to me. Through that means I will attain the righteousness of God. I know it seems counterintuitive, but I’m certain that will work even when my own strength and works would fail.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Romans 7:1-8:39.

I hadn’t read 5 verses before I was given some direction for today. Paul said, “Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God” (Romans 7:4).

Why did Jesus redeem me? Why did Jesus die for me? Why did Jesus save me? Not so I could carry on with life as usual. Not so I could sit on my thumbs in His name. Not so I could go to church every week. Not so I could keep on sinning but get forgiveness with a prayer every night. Jesus did all this so I could bear fruit for God. While living in the flesh, my sinful passions worked in my members to bear fruit for death (Romans 7:5). I must not continue in that.

I have two options today, submit myself to the slavery of sin again or submit myself to slavery to God. Today, I need to bear fruit for Him, not just sit on my thumbs thinking I’m saved just so I can lounge about.

I’ll put a question to you, what can I do to bear fruit for God today?

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is 1 Corinthians 8:1-9:27.

1 Corinthians 9:18 caught my attention today. “What then is my reward? That in my preaching I may preesnt the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.”

Wait a minute. That is no reward. That is the action that ought to be rewarded. Or at least so it seems to me. Yet, that demonstrates the great difference between me and Paul. Too often, I’m doing special things because I expect some greater reward. “God, I’ll do this great work because I want to get this great reward.” But Paul thought differently, he so wanted to be part of God’s plan that his reward was getting to be part of God’s plan.

I need to learn to want to do God’s will so badly that just getting to do it is a reward in and of itself.

***Question: What do you enjoy about getting to do God’s will?

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

Today’s reading is I Peter 3:1-4:19.

I Peter 4:2 hit me today because it goes right along with some thoughts I’ve had over the past few weeks based on a book I’m reading (get ready for it, here it comes, look out it’s an associate link), The Practice of the Presence of God by Nicholas Herman, more commonly known as Brother Lawrence.  

My family and I have a running joke based on Marita’s recent experience teaching 4th-7th graders in our congregation’s Bible class program. One of her great frustrations was trying to ask “why” discussion questions and receiving the most common answer, “So we can go to heaven.” It has become our running joke to ask questions in our family devotion time or in conversation and respond, “So we can go to heaven.” Of course, for most of us, that is likely the ultimate answer for all of those why questions we ask. Why do we do what we do? So we can go to heaven.

Now please don’t misunderstand what I’m about to say. I hope we all have the goal of going to heaven. However, can we consider a better motivation for our daily actions? I Peter 4:2 doesn’t say, “So as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but so we can go to heaven.” Instead it says, “So as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God.” 

Nicholas Herman (“Brother Lawrence”) suggested we not do things in order to go to heaven, receive blessings, or get some other reward. Rather, perhaps our motivation ought simply be to do what we do because we love God and it is His will. Certainly, God welcomes those who surrender their lives to Him into heaven. I Peter 1:3-5 demonstrates that an inheritance is waiting for us who are protected by God through our faith. However, if that is our motivation, I think we lose sight of what is important. In fact, when that is our motivation I think we will naturally get into a checklist mindset that says, “Alright, what must I do to go to heaven? How far do I have to go? Do I really have to do that?”

On the other hand, if my mindset is simply that I love God and I want to do everything I do because I love Him and it is His will, there are no limits on what I will do for Him. Further, I’m not trying to earn anything from Him by doing it. I’m simply trying to draw closer to Him. Isn’t that what He deserves? He is the Creator. He is the Savior. 

Again, there is nothing wrong with the goal of heaven. I think we can see Paul demonstrate that goal in Philippians 3:7-11. I just want us to consider another great motivation that needs to be part of our spiritual journey with God.

***Question: What do you do on a regular basis to draw closer to God?

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC