Epistle for February 25, 2024

 

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Romans 4:13-25
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

OBSERVE:

Here Paul addresses the vital doctrine of justification by faith.  He points out that this doctrine is not a new one — that it is rooted and grounded in the story of the great Patriarch of the Hebrews, Abraham himself.

Paul dismisses the notion that obedience to the law brings righteousness or true relationship with God.  He will elsewhere clarify the role of the law as the source of conviction that drives sinners to Christ, but here he simply states that the law is insufficient to fulfill the promises of God.  Faith is the means that God has ordained to satisfy the requirements of righteousness.

Paul points out that because faith is the means by which we inherit the promises of God, then it is those who are believers who are truly Abraham’s descendants and heirs of the promises of God in Genesis 17:5. He calls Abraham:

the father of us all.  As it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations.”

In other words, not only the Jews but also Gentiles may be included as children of Abraham because of their faith, not because of the Law.

Paul points out that Abraham’s faith was lived out against improbable odds — that he and Sarah would be parents despite their advanced years.

The central words here are these:

Therefore it also was “credited to him for righteousness.”

Righteousness, or justification, was given to him as a gift not because of his works, or because of the Law (which hadn’t been given yet!), but because of his faith.  Salvation was truly by grace.  A gift of God.

Then Paul makes the connection to his Christian readers:

Now it was not written that it was accounted to him for his sake alone, but for our sake also, to whom it will be accounted, who believe in him who raised Jesus, our Lord, from the dead.

The method by which the Christian receives the promises of God is the same that enabled Abraham to receive God’s promises — faith.

And finally, Paul illustrates the saving work of Jesus in one elegant sentence. It was Jesus:

who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification.

The life, death and resurrection of Jesus is the central plan of salvation that makes our forgiveness and new life possible.

APPLY:  

If we ever wonder about the Old Testament patriarchs and prophets, and how they fit into the plan of salvation, the answer is provided here in Romans 4.  The same criteria that applies to our salvation applies to theirs — we are all saved by faith, not by works of the law.

Abraham becomes our role model for faith.  When he was old and as good as dead (Hebrews 11:12) and had yet to see even one of God’s promises fulfilled, he still believed God.

He hadn’t yet come into ownership of the land of Canaan, he had no heirs through Sarah, he didn’t have a multitude of descendants.  Yet he believed.  And it was credited to him as righteousness.

We do well to remember this example when it looks like everything around us is failing, and we wonder what to make of our circumstances.  Abraham believed despite his age; and Jesus conquered death despite the cruelty of the cross!

RESPOND: 

There have been so many times in my life that I have embarked on a new path, and I was filled with anxiety — going off to college and then seminary, getting married, taking my first church — and then all the other churches subsequent to that.

This passage is a word of comfort for me every time I embark on a new path with God.

Faith is at the heart of the Christian life.  Back in the 1880’s, when the famous evangelist Dwight L. Moody invited testimonies from members of the audience during one of his revivals, a young man stood up.  He acknowledged his uncertainties about the future, but then he said:

I am not quite sure-—-but I am going to trust, and I am going to obey.

This became the inspiration for a song that was co-written by Daniel Towner and John Sammis.  In my opinion, the hymn captures the essence of following Christ:

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

The answer to my anxieties lies in faith.  Trust God’s promises and obey his word.

Lord, I confess I am prone to doubt and fear.  But my very salvation depends not on my accomplishments, but on what you have done for me in Christ!  Why not trust you for all the rest of your promises? Amen.

PHOTOS:

"Living by Faith" by victoria louise Slade is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

Epistle for December 31, 2023

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Galatians 4:4-7
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

OBSERVE:

These verses from the letter to the Galatians might be called Paul’s Nativity Story. Unlike the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, Paul doesn’t offer dramatic stories of stars and angels and Magi and shepherds.  However, like John’s prologue, Paul offers a profound theological interpretation of the birth of Jesus.

He begins with the intersection of time and eternity, and the intersection of the divine and human:

But when the fullness of the time came, God sent out his Son, born to a woman…

The phrase that catches our attention is the fullness of the time.  The Greek phrase is pleroma tou chronou.  Pleroma — meaning fullness — has a rich philosophical and thelogical meaning.  It denotes perfect fullness, or completion.  And the word chronos — time — may have been understood by Paul as a span of time or even an epoch, or an age. In other words, there is more here than the mere fairy tale meaning “Once upon a time.”  Time has reached a preordained goal.

Paul recognizes that the birth of Jesus is the culmination of God’s plan for history.  No doubt he implies a connection between the Messianic prophecies of his own people’s Scriptures and the coming of Jesus.  In his letter to the Ephesians, he elaborates on this plan, exploring similar concepts. He says that God has:

predestined us for adoption as children through Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his desire,  to the praise of the glory of his grace, by which he freely gave us favor in the Beloved, in whom we have our redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,  which he made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him  to an administration of the fullness of the times, to sum up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens, and the things on the earth, in him (Ephesians 1:5-10).

Paul also hints at the unique nature of Jesus as fully human and fully divine.  He is God’s Son, who is born of a woman. Once again, this theology of the incarnation is made clear elsewhere, not only in the Gospels but also in Paul’s epistles.  In John’s Gospel, Jesus is the eternal Word who is God, through whom all things were made, who also became flesh (John 1:1-2, 14).  And Paul tells us that Jesus is equal with God, but takes upon himself the form of human flesh (Philippians 2:5-7).

Paul then makes clear that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Hebrew covenant.  Jesus is:

born under the law, that he might redeem those who were under the law…

Jesus is not only Son of God and Son of Mary, he is clearly the Jewish Messiah who has come to redeem not only the people of Israel but all who believe.

And his redeeming work creates a new relationship between God and those who are redeemed.  The legal covenant is replaced with a familial relationship:

that we might receive the adoption of children.

To be clear — only Jesus has a real, organic relationship with God the Father as God the Son.  He is, as the King James Version eloquently expresses it, the only begotten Son of the Father (John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18).  Those who are adopted as children of God are adopted for the sake of Jesus the Son of God.

And Paul further explores the Trinitarian nature of God.  Believers in Jesus are adopted as children of God for his sake, and they can know that they are children of God through the witness of the Holy Spirit.  Note that the Spirit here is called the Spirit of his Son. 

The Spirit bears witness in the heart of the believer in a vivid manner:

crying, “Abba, Father!”

Because the believer has been adopted as a child of God, he/she knows in their spirit through the inner voice of the Spirit of God that they belong to God.  They are made heirs of God through Christ, and have the privilege of calling the Sovereign Lord of the Universe Father!

There have been various interpretations of the Aramaic word Abba in Biblical scholarship.  Some have said that it is the affectionate term that a child might have called a father in ancient Judaism — like an American child saying “Daddy!” Others say it simply means father and nothing more.  But the intimacy of Paul’s description here, where the Spirit speaks in the heart of the believer, leads me to believe that something more intimate is meant.

The fact is, the believer has been transferred in status from a detached relationship as a bondservant to the intimate relationship of a child and heir of God.

APPLY:  

Through these brief verses from Paul’s unique Nativity Story, we receive a glimpse of many dimensions of Biblical doctrine.  There is an allusion to God’s plan for history, revealed in the fullness of time through the birth of Jesus. There is the work that God does in the heart of the believer through his Son and through his Spirit.  And there is a hint about the character and interrelation of God as Trinity — Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Paul clearly believes in God’s plan for history.  His references to the prophets throughout his letters make this faith clear.  History has a beginning, a middle, and an end.  History is not, as Shakespeare’s Macbeth might say “a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”  This is comforting when so much in our world seems to make no sense. God has a purpose for his creation, and for us.

An enormous part of that plan is worked out in our lives.  The Son of God has been sent at the right time, born of a woman, to redeem those who are condemned by the rigorous standards of the law — which means all of us. Jesus fulfills the law on our behalf so that his righteousness becomes our righteousness (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21).  And because of the redemption of Jesus, we may be adopted as children of God.  Even more, we can know that we are adopted as children of God, because like children excited to see their Father, we can cry out Abba, Father!  The Spirit of God’s Son bears witness in our very hearts that we are his children!  As Paul writes in a passage that closely parallels Galatians 4:4-7:

The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God; and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ (Romans 8:16-17).

Perhaps the most astounding claim that we have is that we are co-heirs with Christ. This implies that whatever Christ inherits from the Father, we inherit — a glorified resurrection body, eternal life, and heaven itself!

And, finally, we gain an insight into the inner working of the Trinity.  God the Father sends his Son, who is God incarnate, to redeem us and provide the means of our adoption as his children. And God’s own Spirit testifies to us that God is our Abba, Father.  The work of salvation, redemption, and adoption, are the work of the Triune God from inception to consummation.

RESPOND: 

This passage seems appropriate for this season, as the calendar year comes to an end.  Paul’s poignant phrase — the fullness of the time — reminds us of the convergence of important dates in our season.  We have only very recently celebrated Christmas Day, the remembrance of the only begotten Son of the Father, born of a woman at Bethlehem.

And as the New Year begins, we look forward to the “great unknown” — the future.  The future is like a frontier which we will not understand until we experience it — when the future becomes the present with each passing day.  We have no idea what the weather will really be like this coming winter; or who will be elected in the coming year; or what loved ones we might lose.

And yet, we receive a forecast of the future in this passage from Paul — through Christ, and confirmed through the Spirit, we can know now that we have been adopted as children of God, and that we will one day inherit all that Christ has inherited.

Our Lord, in the fullness of time you came for us; and through your Holy Spirit you continue to come into our lives so that we are able to cry out, like excited children “Abba, Father!”  Thank you for adopting us as your children and making us a part of your family.  Amen.

PHOTOS:
“Fullness of Time” uses the following photo:
“Hourglass” by Nick Olejniczak is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic license.

Epistle for December 24, 2023

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Romans 16:25-27
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM
Most versions of the Bible place Romans 14:24-26 at the end of Romans instead of at the end of chapter 14, and numbers these verses 16:25-27.  However, the World English Bible version (WEB) keeps these verses as chapter 14, verses 24-26. I use the WEB in my blog because it is in the Public Domain. So, if you click on the links above, it will take you to Romans 14:24-26 WEB.

OBSERVE:

This is the very lovely conclusion of the Epistle to the Romans.  It is a kind of benediction and hymn of praise to God. (Some ancient authorities place these verses at the end of Romans 14 as verses 24-26.  However, their placement at the conclusion of Paul’s letter seem more fitting to other ancient textual authorities.)

On the one hand this is a prayer of supplication for the church at Rome:

Now to him who is able to establish you…

Paul prays for the church to be kept in accordance with the Gospel he has laid out for them in the previous 16 chapters of the Letter to the Romans.

Paul makes it quite clear that the revelation of Jesus as the Christ (Messiah), though a mystery hidden in the past and now revealed, is nonetheless consistent with the witness of the Hebrew prophets.

His premise is that the inclusion of the Gentiles in the promises of God is part of the original plan.  It is not merely something that Paul has invented. As with the Jews, the Gentiles (translated here as nations) come to salvation in the same way:

according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret through long ages, but now is revealed, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, is made known for obedience of faith to all the nations.

This has been a central theme in Romans:

• That all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, both Jews and Gentiles.
• That no one is saved by works of the law but through the righteousness that comes by faith in Christ.
• And thus even Gentiles who believe are also children of Abraham by faith.

And he ends with a lovely ascription to God:

 to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever! Amen.

APPLY:  

Most of us who read these words from Paul are in the same boat as the Roman Christians.  We are most likely Gentiles.  We have no claim to be descendants of Abraham or Jacob by blood.  We have no rights or claims on God at all!

But the same prophets who spoke to the people of Israel have also guaranteed the promises of God to the “nations,” aka, the Gentiles. Us.

All of us come to salvation in the same way, whether we are Jews or Gentiles — by faith alone in Christ alone.

Note an important phrase in Paul’s letter:

…obedience of faith…

In other words, faith is not simply “easy believism” or a magic formula of believing a certain set of words.  Faith is grounded in an obedient relationship with God that results in a changed life, and has moral content.

Paul is no antinomian (one who believes that there is no validity to the law).  Rather, he understands that the law does not save us, Christ does.  And it is Christ who enables us through his grace to keep the law of love.  As he says in an epistle that lifts up many of the same themes found in Romans:

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision amounts to anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith working through love. (Galatians 5:6).

The good news for all of us is that this mystery has been revealed through the prophets, and now all who believe can experience the joy and glory that comes through faith in Christ.

RESPOND: 

I have access to the same salvation that the Gentiles in the early church did, as revealed in the same prophetic writings to which they had access.  I claim this gift of salvation through faith in Christ, and pray that I may have that:

obedience of faith.

Our Lord, you have unveiled your mysteries so that we might understand the great promises you have made for all who believe.  Establish me and my family and my church in accordance with your Gospel, and give us the obedience that comes through faith.  Amen.  

PHOTOS:
“Romans 16 verse 27” uses this image: “Saint Paul Writing His Epistles,” attributed to Valentin de Boulogne, is in the Public Domain.

Epistle for June 11, 2023

 

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Romans 4:13-25
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

OBSERVE:

Here Paul addresses the vital doctrine of justification by faith.  He points out that this doctrine is not a new one — that it is rooted and grounded in the story of the great Patriarch of the Hebrews, Abraham himself.

Paul dismisses the notion that obedience to the law brings righteousness or true relationship with God.  He will elsewhere clarify the role of the law as the source of conviction that drives sinners to Christ, but here he simply states that the law is insufficient to fulfill the promises of God.  Faith is the means that God has ordained to satisfy the requirements of righteousness.

Paul points out that because faith is the means by which we inherit the promises of God, then it is those who are believers who are truly Abraham’s descendants and heirs of the promises of God in Genesis 17:5. He calls Abraham:

the father of us all.  As it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations.”

In other words, not only the Jews but also Gentiles may be included as children of Abraham because of their faith, not because of the Law.

Paul points out that Abraham’s faith was lived out against improbable odds — that he and Sarah would be parents despite their advanced years.

The central words here are these:

Therefore it also was “credited to him for righteousness.”

Righteousness, or justification, was given to him as a gift not because of his works, or because of the Law (which hadn’t been given yet!), but because of his faith.  Salvation was truly by grace.  A gift of God.

Then Paul makes the connection to his Christian readers:

Now it was not written that it was accounted to him for his sake alone,  but for our sake also, to whom it will be accounted, who believe in him who raised Jesus, our Lord, from the dead.

The method by which the Christian receives the promises of God is the same that enabled Abraham to receive God’s promises — faith.

And finally, Paul illustrates the saving work of Jesus in one elegant sentence. It was Jesus:

who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification.

The life, death and resurrection of Jesus is the central plan of salvation that makes our forgiveness and new life possible.

APPLY:  

If we ever wonder about the Old Testament patriarchs and prophets, and how they fit into the plan of salvation, the answer is provided here in Romans 4.  The same criteria that applies to our salvation applies to theirs — we are all saved by faith, not by works of the law.

Abraham becomes our role model for faith.  When he was old and as good as dead (Hebrews 11:12),  and had yet to see even one of God’s promises fulfilled, he still believed God.

He hadn’t yet come into ownership of the land of Canaan, he had no heirs through Sarah, he didn’t have a multitude of descendants.  Yet he believed.  And it was credited to him as righteousness.

We do well to remember this example when it looks like everything around us is failing, and we wonder what to make of our circumstances.  Abraham believed despite his age; and Jesus conquered death despite the cruelty of the cross!

RESPOND: 

There have been so many times in my life that I have embarked on a new path, and I was filled with anxiety — going off to college and then seminary, getting married, taking my first church — and then all the other churches subsequent to that.

This passage is a word of comfort for me every time I embark on a new path with God.

Faith is at the heart of the Christian life.  Back in the 1880’s, when the famous evangelist Dwight L. Moody invited testimonies from members of the audience during one of his revivals, a young man stood up.  He acknowledged his uncertainties about the future, but then he said:

I am not quite sure-—-but I am going to trust, and I am going to obey.

This became the inspiration for a song that was co-written by Daniel Towner and John Sammis.  In my opinion, the hymn captures the essence of following Christ:

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

The answer to my anxieties lies in faith.  Trust God’s promises and obey his word.

Lord, I confess I am prone to doubt and fear.  But my very salvation depends not on my accomplishments, but on what you have done for me in Christ!  Why not trust you for all the rest of your promises? Amen.

PHOTOS:

"Living by Faith" by victoria louise Slade is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

Epistle for March 5, 2023

Note from Celeste:

Before we look at today’s lectionary reading, I’d like to draw your attention to my Holy Week Bible Study book.

Go and Find a Donkey is the latest installment of the Choose This Day Multiple Choice Bible Studies series.

The daily devotionals take 10-15 minutes and include:

• Scripture passage (World English Bible)
• Fun, entertaining multiple choice questions focused directly on the Scripture passage
• Short meditation that can be used as a discussion starter.

Use them on the suggested dates, or skip around.  Designed to be used during Holy Week, this nine-day Bible study takes you from Palm Sunday through Easter Monday.

Use this book personally during a coffee break or with the family in the car or at the breakfast table.

Order Go and Find a Donkey  today to prepare your family for this year’s Easter season!
CLICK HERE for Amazon’s Kindle book of Go and Find a Donkey.
CLICK HERE for Amazon’s Paperback of Go and Find a Donkey.

AND NOW, BACK TO TODAY’S LECTIONARY READING:

Abraham believed God

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Romans 4:1-5, 13-17
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

OBSERVE:

Here Paul addresses the vital doctrine of justification by faith.  He points out that this doctrine is not a new one. It is rooted and grounded in the story of the great Patriarch of the Hebrews — Abraham himself.

At first glance it would seem that Abraham had plenty of grounds for boasting — the father of many nations, the fountainhead of the people of Israel, and on and on.  But it is not for his accomplishments that Abraham has grounds for hope at all.  He has no grounds for boasting in his own works, because a right relationship with God cannot be earned, it is a gift of God.

The central words here are these:

For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Righteousness, or justification, was given to Abraham as a gift, not something he had earned by his works or because of obedience to the Law (which hadn’t been given yet!) but because of his faith.  It was truly grace.  A gift of God.

Paul dismisses the notion that obedience to the law brings righteousness or true relationship with God.  He will elsewhere clarify the role of the Law as the source of conviction that drives sinners to Christ, but here he simply states that the law is insufficient to fulfill the promises of God.  Though the law reveals the holy character of God, humans are incapable of fulfilling it perfectly in their own strength. Therefore, faith is the means that God has ordained to satisfy the requirements of righteousness.

Paul points out that because faith is the means by which we inherit the promises of God, then it is those who are believers who are truly Abraham’s descendants and heirs of the promises of God:

For this cause it is of faith, that it may be according to grace, to the end that the promise may be sure to all the offspring, not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.  As it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations.”

In other words, not only the Jews but also Gentiles may be included as children of Abraham because of their faith, not because of the Law.

APPLY:  

The Apostle Paul demonstrates that the great doctrine of justification by faith is not something that he or the early church invented — it is grounded in the experience of Abraham revealed in the ancient texts of his people.

Abraham wasn’t justified or made right with God because of what Abraham did, but because of what God has done.  It is through faith that Abraham appropriates the gift of God’s righteousness.

This great doctrine of faith was at the heart of the Reformation, taught by Martin Luther, John Calvin, and later by John Wesley.  For those who have been burdened by guilt and driven by futile self-help efforts to please God, this is great news!  Our right relationship with God begins with God and ends with God.

Our inheritance from Abraham doesn’t come because of genetics — we don’t have to be Israelites or Ishmaelites — but because we have followed his example in placing our trust in God.  All who share in his faith in God are offspring of Abraham!

Paul ends his description of Abraham’s faith by reminding us of the one who is the focus of our faith — Jesus.  The promise that it was “credited to him for righteousness” doesn’t only apply to Abraham:

Now it was not written that it was accounted to him for his sake alone, but for our sake also, to whom it will be accounted, who believe in him who raised Jesus, our Lord, from the dead, who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification (Romans 4:22-25).

RESPOND: 

Paul makes it clear that we have no grounds for boasting or pride because of our relationship with God. We haven’t earned anything from God.  Our relationship with God, and our salvation, is a free gift of God, received by trusting in the Giver.

So I just have to ask, do our works mean anything at all to God?  We know that works cannot earn God’s favor; but after we have been justified, we still have work to do.  Ephesians 2:8-10 says it very well:

by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, that no one would boast.  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before that we would walk in them.

We are saved by God’s grace, and we are created by God to do his works.  They are not our works, but God’s works in us!

Here is an analogy.  Years ago I was on the playground with my children.  I noticed a piece of paper underneath the swing set.  When I picked it up I saw it was a report card.  A very good report card.  All “A’s.”  But I didn’t know the kid who had earned the grades.  I didn’t want to leave the scrap of paper littering the church playground, so I threw it away.

Now, even though they were good grades, they meant nothing to me because I didn’t know the kid.  But if they had been my own kids’ grades, I know my feelings would have been very different.  I would have shown the card to my wife, I would have put the report card on the refrigerator, I would have rewarded my kids with a pizza!

What was the difference? Relationship.  The truth is, even if the grades had all been “F’s” on my own kids’ report card, I would still have loved them, because they were my kids.  I might have spent more time helping them with their homework, or finding a tutor, and I would have done so because of our relationship.

Justification by faith means that we have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ — that we are accepted and loved.  He has work for us to do, but the works don’t make him love us any more or less.  And they are the works that he has tailor-made for each of us to do.

Lord, thank you for the gift of grace, and for the faith to receive that gift.  I’m relieved to know that my salvation depends entirely on you, and not on how good I am. Help me to live as your child, and to do the works that you have designed just for me!  Amen. 

PHOTOS:
“Abraham believed God” by Ted is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic license.

Epistle for February 28, 2021

 

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Romans 4:13-25
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

OBSERVE:

Here Paul addresses the vital doctrine of justification by faith.  He points out that this doctrine is not a new one — that it is rooted and grounded in the story of the great Patriarch of the Hebrews, Abraham himself.

Paul dismisses the notion that obedience to the law brings righteousness or true relationship with God.  He will elsewhere clarify the role of the law as the source of conviction that drives sinners to Christ, but here he simply states that the law is insufficient to fulfill the promises of God.  Faith is the means that God has ordained to satisfy the requirements of righteousness.

Paul points out that because faith is the means by which we inherit the promises of God, then it is those who are believers who are truly Abraham’s descendants and heirs of the promises of God in Genesis 17:5. He calls Abraham:

the father of us all.  As it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations.”

In other words, not only the Jews but also Gentiles may be included as children of Abraham because of their faith, not because of the Law.

Paul points out that Abraham’s faith was lived out against improbable odds — that he and Sarah would be parents despite their advanced years.

The central words here are these:

Therefore it also was “credited to him for righteousness.”

Righteousness, or justification, was given to him as a gift not because of his works, or because of the Law (which hadn’t been given yet!), but because of his faith.  Salvation was truly by grace.  A gift of God.

Then Paul makes the connection to his Christian readers:

Now it was not written that it was accounted to him for his sake alone,  but for our sake also, to whom it will be accounted, who believe in him who raised Jesus, our Lord, from the dead.

The method by which the Christian receives the promises of God is the same that enabled Abraham to receive God’s promises — faith.

And finally, Paul illustrates the saving work of Jesus in one elegant sentence. It was Jesus:

who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification.

The life, death and resurrection of Jesus is the central plan of salvation that makes our forgiveness and new life possible.

APPLY:  

If we ever wonder about the Old Testament patriarchs and prophets, and how they fit into the plan of salvation, the answer is provided here in Romans 4.  The same criteria that applies to our salvation applies to theirs — we are all saved by faith, not by works of the law.

Abraham becomes our role model for faith.  When he was old and as good as dead (Hebrews 11:12),  and had yet to see even one of God’s promises fulfilled, he still believed God.

He hadn’t yet come into ownership of the land of Canaan, he had no heirs through Sarah, he didn’t have a multitude of descendants.  Yet he believed.  And it was credited to him as righteousness.

We do well to remember this example when it looks like everything around us is failing, and we wonder what to make of our circumstances.  Abraham believed despite his age; and Jesus conquered death despite the cruelty of the cross!

RESPOND: 

There have been so many times in my life that I have embarked on a new path, and I was filled with anxiety — going off to college and then seminary, getting married, taking my first church — and then all the other churches subsequent to that.

This passage is a word of comfort for me every time I embark on a new path with God.

Faith is at the heart of the Christian life.  Back in the 1880’s, when the famous evangelist Dwight L. Moody invited testimonies from members of the audience during one of his revivals, a young man stood up.  He acknowledged his uncertainties about the future, but then he said:

I am not quite sure-—-but I am going to trust, and I am going to obey.

This became the inspiration for a song that was co-written by Daniel Towner and John Sammis.  In my opinion, the hymn captures the essence of following Christ:

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

The answer to my anxieties lies in faith.  Trust God’s promises and obey his word.

Lord, I confess I am prone to doubt and fear.  But my very salvation depends not on my accomplishments, but on what you have done for me in Christ!  Why not trust you for all the rest of your promises? Amen.

PHOTOS:

"Living by Faith" by victoria louise Slade is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

Epistle for December 27, 2020

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Galatians 4:4-7
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

OBSERVE:

These verses from the letter to the Galatians might be called Paul’s Nativity Story. Unlike the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, Paul doesn’t offer dramatic stories of stars and angels and Magi and shepherds.  However, like John’s prologue, Paul offers a profound theological interpretation of the birth of Jesus.

He begins with the intersection of time and eternity, and the intersection of the divine and human:

But when the fullness of the time came, God sent out his Son, born to a woman…

The phrase that catches our attention is the fullness of the time.  The Greek phrase is pleroma tou chronou.  Pleroma — meaning fullness — has a rich philosophical and thelogical meaning.  It denotes perfect fullness, or completion.  And the word chronos — time — may have been understood by Paul as a span of time or even an epoch, or an age. In other words, there is more here than the mere fairy tale meaning “Once upon a time.”  Time has reached a preordained goal.

Paul recognizes that the birth of Jesus is the culmination of God’s plan for history.  No doubt he implies a connection between the Messianic prophecies of his own people’s Scriptures and the coming of Jesus.  In his letter to the Ephesians, he elaborates on this plan, exploring similar concepts. He says that God has:

predestined us for adoption as children through Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his desire,  to the praise of the glory of his grace, by which he freely gave us favor in the Beloved, in whom we have our redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,  which he made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him  to an administration of the fullness of the times, to sum up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens, and the things on the earth, in him (Ephesians 1:5-10).

Paul also hints at the unique nature of Jesus as fully human and fully divine.  He is God’s Son, who is  born of a woman. Once again, this theology of the incarnation is made clear elsewhere, not only in the Gospels but also in Paul’s epistles.  In John’s Gospel, Jesus is the eternal Word who is God, through whom all things were made, who also became flesh (John 1:1-2, 14).  And Paul tells us that Jesus is equal with God, but takes upon himself the form of human flesh (Philippians 2:5-7).

Paul then makes clear that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Hebrew covenant.  Jesus is:

born under the law, that he might redeem those who were under the law…

Jesus is not only Son of God and Son of Mary, he is clearly the Jewish Messiah who has come to redeem not only the people of Israel but all who believe.

And his redeeming work creates a new relationship between God and those who are redeemed.  The legal covenant is replaced with a familial relationship:

that we might receive the adoption of children.

To be clear — only Jesus has a real, organic relationship with God the Father as God the Son.  He is, as the King James Version eloquently expresses it, the only begotten Son of the Father (John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18).  Those who are adopted as children of God are adopted for the sake of Jesus the Son of God.

And Paul further explores the Trinitarian nature of God.  Believers in Jesus are adopted as children of God for his sake, and they can know that they are children of God through the witness of the Holy Spirit.  Note that the Spirit here is called the Spirit of his Son. 

The Spirit bears witness in the heart of the believer in a vivid manner:

crying, “Abba,  Father!”

**Because the believer has been adopted as a child of God, he/she knows in their spirit through the inner voice of the Spirit of God that they belong to God.  They are made heirs of God through Christ, and have the privilege of calling the Sovereign Lord of the Universe Father!

There have been various interpretations of the Aramaic word Abba in Biblical scholarship.  Some have said that it is the affectionate term that a child might have called a father in ancient Judaism — like an American child saying “Daddy!”.  Others say it simply means father and nothing more.  But the intimacy of Paul’s description here, where the Spirit speaks in the heart of the believer, leads me to believe that something more intimate is meant.

The fact is, the believer has been transferred in status from a detached relationship as a bondservant to the intimate relationship of a child and heir of God.

APPLY:  

Through these brief verses from Paul’s unique Nativity Story, we receive a glimpse of many dimensions of Biblical doctrine.  There is an allusion to God’s plan for history, revealed in the fullness of time  through the birth of Jesus. There is the work that God does in the heart of the believer through his Son and through his Spirit.  And there is a hint about the character and interrelation of God as Trinity  — Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Paul clearly believes in God’s plan for history.  His references to the prophets throughout his letters makes this faith clear.  History has a beginning, a middle, and an end.  History is not, as Shakespeare’s Macbeth might say “a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”  This is comforting when so much in our world seems to make no sense. God has a purpose for his creation, and for us.

An enormous part of that plan is worked out in our lives.  The Son of God has been sent at the right time, born of a woman, to redeem those who are condemned by the rigorous standards of the law — which means all of us. Jesus fulfills the law on our behalf so that his righteousness becomes our righteousness (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21).  And because of the redemption of Jesus, we may be adopted as children of God.  Even more, we can know that we are adopted as children of God, because like children excited to see their Father, we can cry out Abba, Father!  The Spirit of God’s Son bears witness in our very hearts that we are his children!  As Paul writes in a passage that closely parallels Galatians 4:4-7:

The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God;  and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ (Romans 8:16-17).

Perhaps the most astounding claim that we have is that we are co-heirs with Christ. This implies that whatever Christ inherits from the Father, we inherit — a glorified resurrection body, eternal life, and heaven itself!

And, finally, we gain an insight into the inner working of the Trinity.  God the Father sends his Son, who is God incarnate, to redeem us and provide the means of our adoption as his children. And God’s own Spirit testifies to us that God is our Abba, Father.  The work of salvation, redemption, and adoption, are the work of the Triune God from inception to consummation.

RESPOND: 

This passage seems appropriate for this season, as the calendar year comes to an end.  Paul’s poignant phrase — the fullness of the time — reminds us of the convergence of important dates in our season.  We have only very recently celebrated Christmas Day, the remembrance of the only begotten Son of the Father, born of a woman at Bethlehem.

And as the New Year begins, we look forward to the “great unknown” — the future.  The future is like a frontier which we will not understand until we experience it — when the future becomes the present with each passing day.  We have no idea what the weather will really be like this coming winter; or who will be elected in the coming year; or what loved ones we might lose.

And yet, we receive a forecast of the future in this passage from Paul — through Christ, and confirmed through the Spirit, we can know now that we have been adopted as children of God, and that we will one day inherit all that Christ has inherited.

Our Lord, in the fullness of time you came for us; and through your Holy Spirit you continue to come into our lives so that we are able to cry out, like excited children “Abba, Father!”  Thank you for adopting us as your children and making us a part of your family.  Amen.

PHOTOS:
“Fullness of Time” uses the following photo:
“Hourglass” by Nick Olejniczak is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic license.

Epistle for December 20, 2020

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Romans 16:25-27
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

[Most versions of the Bible place Romans 14:24-26 at the end of Romans instead of at the end of chapter 14, and numbers these verses 16:25-27.  However, the World English Bible version (WEB) keeps these verses as chapter 14, verses 24-26. I use the WEB in my blog because it is in the Public Domain.]

OBSERVE:

This is the very lovely conclusion of the Epistle to the Romans.  It is a kind of benediction and hymn of praise to God. (Some ancient authorities place these verses at the end of Romans 14 as verses 24-26.  However, their placement at the conclusion of Paul’s letter seem more fitting to other ancient textual authorities.)

On the one hand this is a prayer of supplication for the church at Rome:

Now to him who is able to establish you….

Paul prays for the church to be kept in accordance with the Gospel he has laid out for them in the previous 16 chapters of the Letter to the Romans.

Paul makes it quite clear that the revelation of Jesus as the Christ (Messiah), though a mystery hidden in the past and now revealed, is nonetheless consistent with the witness of the Hebrew prophets.

His premise is that the inclusion of the Gentiles in the promises of God is part of the original plan.  It is not merely something that Paul has invented. As with the Jews,the Gentiles (translated here as nations) come to salvation in the same way:

according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret through long ages, but now is revealed, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, is made known for obedience of faith to all the nations.

This has been a central theme in Romans:

• That all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, both Jews and Gentiles.
• That no one is saved by works of the law but through the righteousness that comes by faith in Christ.
• And thus even Gentiles who believe are also children of Abraham by faith.

And he ends with a lovely ascription to God:

 to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever! Amen.

APPLY:  

Most of us who read these words from Paul are in the same boat as the Roman Christians.  We are most likely Gentiles.  We have no claim to be descendants of Abraham or Jacob by blood.  We have no rights or claims on God at all!

But the same prophets who spoke to the people of Israel have also guaranteed the promises of God to the “nations,” aka, the Gentiles.  Us.

All of us come to salvation in the same way, whether we are Jews or Gentiles — by faith alone in Christ alone.

Note an important phrase in Paul’s letter:

…obedience of faith…

In other words, faith is not simply “easy believism” or a magic formula of believing a certain set of words.  Faith is grounded in an obedient relationship with God that results in a changed life, and has moral content.

Paul is no antinomian (one who believes that there is no validity to the law).  Rather, he understands that the law does not save us, Christ does.  And it is Christ who enables us through his grace to keep the law of love.  As he says in an epistle that lifts up many of the same themes found in Romans:

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision amounts to anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith working through love. (Galatians 5:6).

The good news for all of us is that this mystery has been revealed through the prophets, and now all who believe can experience the joy and glory that comes through faith in Christ.

RESPOND: 

I have access to the same salvation that the Gentiles in the early church did, as revealed in the same prophetic writings to which they had access.  I claim this gift of salvation through faith in Christ, and pray that I may have that:

obedience of faith.

Our Lord, you have unveiled your mysteries so that we might understand the great promises you have made for all who believe.  Establish me and my family and my church in accordance with your Gospel, and give us the obedience that comes through faith.  Amen.  

PHOTOS:
“Saint Paul Writing His Epistles,” attributed to Valentin de Boulogne, is in the Public Domain.

Epistle for March 8, 2020

Note from Celeste:

Before we look at today’s lectionary reading, I’d like to draw your attention to my Holy Week Bible Study book.

Go and Find a Donkey is the latest installment of the Choose This Day Multiple Choice Bible Studies series.

The daily devotionals take 10-15 minutes and include:

• Scripture passage (World English Bible)
• Fun, entertaining multiple choice questions focused directly on the Scripture passage
• Short meditation that can be used as a discussion starter.

Use them on the suggested dates, or skip around.  Designed to be used during Holy Week, this nine-day Bible study takes you from Palm Sunday through Easter Monday.

Use this book personally during a coffee break or with the family in the car or at the breakfast table.

Order Go and Find a Donkey  today to prepare your family for this year’s Easter season!
CLICK HERE for Amazon’s Kindle book of Go and Find a Donkey.
CLICK HERE for Amazon’s Paperback of Go and Find a Donkey.

AND NOW, BACK TO TODAY’S LECTIONARY READING:

Abraham believed God

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Romans 4:1-5, 13-17
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

OBSERVE:

Here Paul addresses the vital doctrine of justification by faith.  He points out that this doctrine is not a new one. It is rooted and grounded in the story of the great Patriarch of the Hebrews — Abraham himself.

At first glance it would seem that Abraham had plenty of grounds for boasting — the father of many nations, the fountainhead of the people of Israel, and on and on.  But it is not for his accomplishments that Abraham has grounds for hope at all.  He has no grounds for boasting in his own works, because a right relationship with God cannot be earned, it is a gift of God.

The central words here are these:

For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Righteousness, or justification, was given to Abraham as a gift,  not something he had earned by his works or because of  obedience to the Law (which hadn’t been given yet!) but because of his faith.  It was truly grace.  A gift of God.

Paul dismisses the notion that obedience to the law brings righteousness or true relationship with God.  He will elsewhere clarify the role of the Law as the source of conviction that drives sinners to Christ, but here he simply states that the law is insufficient to fulfill the promises of God.  Though the law reveals the holy character of God, humans are incapable of fulfilling it perfectly in their own strength. Therefore, faith is the means that God has ordained to satisfy the requirements of righteousness.

Paul points out that because faith is the means by which we inherit the promises of God, then it is those who are believers who are truly Abraham’s descendants and heirs of the promises of God:

For this cause it is of faith, that it may be according to grace, to the end that the promise may be sure to all the offspring, not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.  As it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations.”

In other words, not only the Jews but also Gentiles may be included as children of Abraham because of their faith, not because of the Law.

APPLY:  

The Apostle Paul demonstrates that the great doctrine of justification by faith is not something that he or the early church invented — it is grounded in the experience of Abraham revealed in the ancient texts of his people.

Abraham wasn’t  justified or made right with God because of what Abraham did, but because of what God has done.  It is through faith that Abraham appropriates the gift of God’s righteousness.

This great doctrine of faith was at the heart of the Reformation, taught by Martin Luther, John Calvin, and later by John Wesley.  For those who have been burdened by guilt and driven by futile self-help efforts to please God, this is great news!  Our right relationship with God begins with God and ends with God.

Our inheritance from Abraham doesn’t come because of  genetics — we don’t have to be Israelites or Ishmaelites — but because we have followed his example in placing our trust in God.  All who share in his faith in God are offspring of Abraham!

Paul ends his description of Abraham’s faith by reminding us of the one who is the focus of our faith — Jesus.  The promise that it was  “credited to him for righteousness” doesn’t only apply to Abraham:

Now it was not written that it was accounted to him for his sake alone,  but for our sake also, to whom it will be accounted, who believe in him who raised Jesus, our Lord, from the dead,  who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification (Romans 4:22-25).

RESPOND: 

Paul makes it clear that we have no grounds for boasting or pride because of our relationship with God. We haven’t earned anything from God.  Our relationship with God, and our salvation, is a free gift of God, received by trusting in the Giver.

So I just have to ask, do our works mean anything at all to God?  We know that works cannot earn God’s favor; but after we have been justified, we still have work to do.  Ephesians 2:8-10 says it very well:

by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,  not of works, that no one would boast.  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before that we would walk in them.

We are saved by God’s grace, and we are created by God to do his works.  They are not our works, but God’s works in us!

Here is an analogy.  Years ago I was on the playground with my children.  I noticed a piece of paper underneath the swing set.  When I picked it up I saw it was a report card.  A very good report card.  All “A’s.”  But I didn’t know the kid who had earned the grades.  I didn’t want to leave the scrap of paper littering the church playground, so I threw it away.

Now, even though they were good grades, they meant nothing to me because I didn’t know the kid.  But if they had been my own kids’ grades, I know my feelings would have been very different.  I would have shown the card to my wife, I would have put the report card on the refrigerator, I would have rewarded my kids with a pizza!

What was the difference? Relationship.  The truth is, even if the grades had all been “F’s” on my own kids’ report card, I would still have loved them, because they were my kids.  I might have spent more time helping them with their homework, or finding a tutor, and I would have done so because of our relationship.

Justification by faith means that we have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ — that we are accepted and loved.  He has work for us to do, but the works don’t make him love us any more or less.  And they are the works that he has tailor-made for each of us to do.

Lord, thank you for the gift of grace, and for the faith to receive that gift.  I’m relieved to know that my salvation depends entirely on you, and not on how good I am. Help me to live as your child, and to do the works that you have designed just for me!  Amen. 

PHOTOS:
“Abraham believed God” by Ted is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic license.

Epistle for February 25, 2018

 

START WITH SCRIPTURE:
Romans 4:13-25
CLICK HERE TO READ SCRIPTURE ON BIBLEGATEWAY.COM

OBSERVE:

Here Paul addresses the vital doctrine of justification by faith.  He points out that this doctrine is not a new one – that it is rooted and grounded in the story of the great Patriarch of the Hebrews, Abraham himself.

Paul dismisses the notion that obedience to the law brings righteousness or true relationship with God.  He will elsewhere clarify the role of the law as the source of conviction that drives sinners to Christ, but here he simply states that the law is insufficient to fulfill the promises of God.  Faith is the means that God has ordained to satisfy the requirements of righteousness.

Paul points out that because faith is the means by which we inherit the promises of God, then it is those who are believers who are truly Abraham’s descendents and heirs of the promises of God in Genesis 17:5. He calls Abraham:

the father of us all.  As it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations.”

In other words, not only the Jews but also Gentiles may be included as children of Abraham because of their faith, not because of the Law.

Paul points out that Abraham’s faith was lived out against improbable odds — that he and Sarah would be parents despite their advanced years.

The central words here are these:

Therefore it also was “credited to him for righteousness.”

Righteousness, or justification, was given to him as a gift not because of his works, or because of the Law (which hadn’t been given yet!), but because of his faith.  Salvation was truly by grace.  A gift of God.

Then Paul makes the connection to his Christian readers:

Now it was not written that it was accounted to him for his sake alone,  but for our sake also, to whom it will be accounted, who believe in him who raised Jesus, our Lord, from the dead.

The method by which the Christian receives the promises of God is the same that enabled Abraham to receive God’s promises — faith.

And finally, Paul illustrates the saving work of Jesus in one elegant sentence. It was Jesus:

who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification.

The life, death and resurrection of Jesus is the central plan of salvation that makes our forgiveness and new life possible.

APPLY:  

If we ever wonder about the Old Testament patriarchs and prophets, and how they fit into the plan of salvation, the answer is provided here in Romans 4.  The same criteria that applies to our salvation applies to theirs — we are all saved by faith, not by works of the law.

Abraham becomes our role model for faith.  When he was old and as good as dead (Hebrews 11:12),  and had yet to see even one of God’s promises fulfilled, he still believed God.

He hadn’t yet come into ownership of the land of Canaan, he had no heirs through Sarah, he didn’t have a multitude of descendents.  Yet he believed.  And it was credited to him as righteousness.

We do well to remember this example when it looks like everything around us is failing, and we wonder what to make of our circumstances.  Abraham believed despite his age; and Jesus conquered death despite the cruelty of the cross!

RESPOND: 

There have been so many times in my life that I have embarked on a new path, and I was filled with anxiety — going off to college and then seminary, getting married, taking my first church — and then all the other churches subsequent to that.

This passage is a word of comfort for me every time I embark on a new path with God.

Faith is at the heart of the Christian life.  Back in the 1880’s, when the famous evangelist Dwight L. Moody invited testimonies from members of the audience during one of his revivals, a young man stood up.  He acknowledged his uncertainties about the future, but then he said:

I am not quite sure-—-but I am going to trust, and I am going to obey.

This became the inspiration for a song that was co-written by Daniel Towner and John Sammis.  In my opinion, the hymn captures the essence of following Christ:

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

The answer to my anxieties lies in faith.  Trust God’s promises and obey his word.

Lord, I confess I am prone to doubt and fear.  But my very salvation depends not on my accomplishments, but on what you have done for me in Christ!  Why not trust you for all the rest of your promises? Amen.

PHOTOS:

"Living by Faith" by victoria louise Slade is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.