12-21-2011 Vol. 6 Part 7 Book of Romans (Romans 2:1-16)

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Book of Romans

12-21-2011 Vol. 6 Part 7

Psalms 54:1-7 NKJV To the Chief Musician. With Stringed Instruments. A Contemplation of David When the Ziphites Went and Said to Saul, "Is David Not Hiding with Us?" Save me, O God, by Your name, And vindicate me by Your strength. Hear my prayer, O God; Give ear to the words of my mouth. For strangers have risen up against me, And oppressors have sought after my life; They have not set God before them. Behold, God is my helper; The Lord is with those who uphold my life. He will repay my enemies for their evil. Cut them off in Your truth. I will freely sacrifice to You; I will praise Your name, O LORD, for it is good. For He has delivered me out of all trouble; And my eye has seen its desire upon my enemies. Father we praise you, we give you all the glory. Father I ask that you keep everyone safe this Christmas Season as they travel, and comfort those that have lost loved ones this past year. Father I pray that all keep you in sight this Christmas season and give you praise and thanks for sending your Son to us as our Saviour.  In the name of Jesus of we pray! Amen!

Romans 2:1-16

Romans 2:1-16 NKJV Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.  2 But we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things.  3 And do you think this, O man, you who judge those practicing such things, and doing the same, that you will escape the judgment of God?  4 Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?  5 But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God,  6 who "WILL RENDER TO EACH ONE ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS":  7 eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality;  8 but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath,  9 tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek;  10 but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.  11 For there is no partiality with God.  12 For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law  13 (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified;  14 for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves,  15 who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them)  16 in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.

Wow! Paul really laid it out for us in chapter one. He not only told us what sin is, but also told us we have no excuse for not knowing who God is and right from wrong. The knowledge of right and wrong is deep within us and it is up to us to determine what path to take in life. We can take the path of our own human nature and end up in Hell for eternity or the path of salvation that God has provided for us through the blood of Jesus Christ and spend eternity in Heaven. Starting out in chapter two we will learn of God’s judgment and that He shows no partiality, He’s righteously just, gives us warning, and that He hasn’t changed from the beginning of time. Paul points out the Jewish and Gentile people are equal in God’s eyes when it comes to judgment, even though the Jewish people of that time believed their salvation was guaranteed being a Jew. It is the same today that some denominations believe they are the true religion and guaranteed passage into Heaven. As I have stated in the past, there is only one way into Heaven and that is by Spiritual Birth, being Born Again. No religion on planet earth can guarantee a ticket to Heaven. It is only through believing in what Jesus did on the Cross, admitting you’re a sinner, confessing our sins to Jesus and asking forgiveness, repenting by making a commitment to sin no more, ask Jesus to come and live in our heart, and take control of our life. In the first 16 verses of chapter 2, Paul points out six principles that provides the foundation of judgment for the religious moralizers and hypocrites who consider themselves above judgment.

Verse 1: Point one being “reality”; What verse one boils down to is that we are quick to see the wrong in our neighbors, but yet we do the same thing and don’t realize it. It is that double standard we often times have. Do as I say and not as I do. For those of us that have raise children, we have all fallen victim to hypocrisy. For instance, who has allowed a teenager to go out and as they are walking out the door tell them no drinking or smoking, but yet we may have that vise. This is what the Pharisees were doing. They thought they were better than the Gentiles being of a Jewish heritage and would have favor with God, but Paul is telling them and us we are all judged by one standard, that being, God’s standard not man’s.

Verses 2 & 3: Point two being “integrity”; God expects us to view others as He does, with integrity and a truthful standard. If we view others based on mans rules and regulations we are only kidding ourselves. What truth lies in mans doctrine and what purpose does it serve? For example; a person uses God’s name in vain. Modern society doesn’t think anything about it anymore. It is an accepted way of life. I ask this question then, at some point in time, who’s standard will that person be judged by, man’s or God’s? What truth lies in man’s standard? God’s word is very clear on who’s standard will be used when we stand before Him. 1 Corinthians 4:5 NKJV Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God. Romans 3:4; Psalm 9:7,8.

Verses 4 & 5: Point three being “opportunity”; Paul is speaking of God’s kindness and patience toward us, but our stiff necks and hard hearts keeps us at a distance from God. We need to recognize what goes on in our lives is not because of what we think and do, it is because of the will of God. In his kindness, God holds back his judgment, giving us time to turn from our sin. It is easy to mistake God's patience for approval of the wrong way we are living. Self-evaluation is difficult, and it is even more difficult to bring ourselves to God and let him tell us where we need to change. Unfortunately, we are more likely to be amazed at God's patience with others than humbled at his patience with us. Although God does not usually punish us immediately for sin, his eventual judgment is certain. We don't know exactly when it will happen, but we know that no one will escape that final encounter with the Creator.  John 12:48; Revelation 20:11-15. We need to take the opportunity repent and turn to him.

Verses 6-10: Point four being “morality”; God will render to every man just judgment according to his deeds. His deeds meaning his character, his inner being, what is truly in our hearts that is displayed by our words, thoughts, and actions. The things we hold as secrets in our minds, the things we do when no one else is around, the things we fantasize about, the things we think about other people, but never say, the grudges we hold, the unforgiveness we can’t let go of. God sees all of these things. We can hide these things from humans, but not from God and it will all be revealed at some point in time. God’s wrath will be poured out on those that are self seeking and deny the truth.

Eternal life will be given to those who patiently preserver in seeking God to do His will, to give Him glory and honor by putting on immorality and keeping His law because of what is in their heart. It is living God’s word and not just knowing it. It is obeying God and wanting to do good to please God, and not doing something because you feel you should. It is being Christ like and the love for God and mankind, that drives your thoughts and actions from deep within your heart.

Verses 11-15: Point five being “impartiality”; Verse 11 “For there is no partiality with God,” should strike fear in all. God is just and judges us on a balanced scale, his scale. It doesn’t matter what sin we commit in God’s eyes, sin is sin. There is no such thing as big or little sin in God’s eyes. Only we humans have the standard of big and little sins. That is how we justify our actions. God will not be won or awed by a person’s rank or function; by their wealth or endowments; by their numbers, their power, or their robes of royalty and splendor. This thought alone should cause man to seek a refuge in the Saviour without delay. 1 John 2:1-2 NKJV My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.  2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.

People are condemned not for what they don't know, but for what they do with what they do know. James 1:22 NKJV But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. Those who know God's written Word and his law will be judged by them. Those who have never seen a Bible still know right from wrong, and they will be judged because they violated those standards that their own consciences dictated. God's moral law is within them, it is part of their DNA. For example, all cultures prohibit murder, and yet in all societies that law has been broken. We belong to a stubborn, sinful race. We know what is right, but we insist on doing what is wrong. It is not enough to know what is right; we must also do it. So it doesn’t matter, if you know the Bible or have never picked one up to read, God’s law is within us and we will be judge by his laws. We as human beings are incapable of living our lives in sinless perfection, only Jesus was capable of doing that because He is the Son of God. This is why we need a Saviour and admitting to yourself and to God that you frequently fail to live up to your own standards, much less to God's standards, is the first step to forgiveness and healing.

Verses 11-15: Point 6 being, “certainty”; In verse 16 Paul tells us we will be judged by Jesus according to his Gospel, and all our secrets will be displayed. How will our sinful secrets be displayed? Could it be like this? We are all seated in an enormous theater, the screen is so big you can’t even imagine one that big. Then someone is called forward and their name is announced for all to hear. The lights go dim and the movie begins. All of your sinful deeds flash before all to see. Then there is a sigh from all that are watching, because they all know what the verdict will be in Jesus eyes, “GUILTY”, and he will point to the gates of Hell.

It is because of our sinful nature that God made it possible for His Son to take on human flesh and be born for all. This is why we celebrate Christmas. Without Jesus birth and Him dying on the cross for us we would all go to Hell. Jesus is our Saviour and our only hope of going to Heaven. You have to confess your sins to Jesus, repent of your sins, and ask Jesus into your heart in order to defeat sin and be justified. If you haven’t asked Jesus to come into your heart yet, do it today, it is the season.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,

for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes,

 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Unless you are Born Again, you cannot enter into Heaven, the Kingdom of God."

http://jesus-christ-spiritual-food.blogspot.com/

Bill

Last Week’s Trivia: Where does Frankincense come from?

Answer: Frankincense is a vegetable resin, brittle, glittering, and of a bitter taste, used for the purpose of sacrificial fumigation. (Exodus 30:34-36 NKJV And the LORD said to Moses: "Take sweet spices, stacte and onycha and galbanum, and pure frankincense with these sweet spices; there shall be equal amounts of each.  35 You shall make of these an incense, a compound according to the art of the perfumer, salted, pure, and holy.  36 And you shall beat some of it very fine, and put some of it before the Testimony in the tabernacle of meeting where I will meet with you. It shall be most holy to you.) It was called frank because of the freeness with which, when burned, it gives forth its odor. It burns for a long time, with a steady flame. It is obtained by successive incisions in the bark of a tree called Arbor thuris. The first incision yields the purest and whitest resin, while the product of the after incisions is spotted with yellow, and loses its whiteness altogether as it becomes old.

This week’s Trivia: What is myrrh and where does it come from?

12-14-2011 Vol. 6 Part 6 Book of Romans (Romans 1:24-32)

Note: To download/print the document, click on the above title and when the Google Document window opens click on the word "File" under the word Google.

Book of Romans

12-14-2011 Vol. 6 Part 6

Psalms 53:1-6 NKJV To the Chief Musician. Set to "Mahalath." A Contemplation of David. The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity; There is none who does good. God looks down from heaven upon the children of men, To see if there are any who understand, who seek God. Every one of them has turned aside; They have together become corrupt; There is none who does good, No, not one. Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge, Who eat up my people as they eat bread, And do not call upon God? There they are in great fear Where no fear was, For God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you; You have put them to shame, Because God has despised them. Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion! When God brings back the captivity of His people, Let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad.  Father we praise you, we give you all the glory. Father touch our hard hearts and give us a thimble of the love you have for us, so that we can display that enduring love to all around us during this Christmas season. Father I pray that all keep you in sight this Christmas season and give you praise and thanks for sending your Son to us as our saviour.  In the name of Jesus of Nazareth we pray! Amen!

Romans 1:24-32

Romans 1:24-32 NKJV Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves,  25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.  26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature.  27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.  28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting;  29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers,  30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,  31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful;  32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.

Verse 24-25: What do you think about the statement Paul made, “God gave them up”? Do you think God does this? Does man reach a point of no return in his sinfulness? I thought God was infinitely gracious and forgiving? The answer is yes to both statements. God does turn his back on us and allows us to wallow around in our human estate of the sin nature, but when we come to our senses, He is sure to be there and forgive us and shower us with his grace. Why would God give us up? Could it be we think we know best, is it our arrogance, our idolatry, our immorality, our pride, our not giving God the worship, praise, thanks, and glory that He deserves? In reading the Old Testament God did this many times to the Israelites. When they would start murmuring against God, He would turn them over to their own wickedness, but always take them back when they realized they had forsaken Him, although in some instances God purged the wicked from the tribe as a way of punishing those responsible and putting fear in those remaining. The following verses tell of a time when God’s wrath was poured out. Not only Korah perished, but his men, their families, and another 250 people. Open your Bibles to Numbers Chapter 16 to read about it. Numbers 16:30-32 NKJV  But if the LORD creates a new thing, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the pit, then you will understand that these men have rejected the LORD."  31 Now it came to pass, as he finished speaking all these words, that the ground split apart under them,  32 and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, with their households and all the men with Korah, with all their goods.

Going on with verse 24 above it states, “uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves”. God turns people over to the lusts of their hearts when they turn their backs on Him, and then they start to spiral downward. Open your Bibles up to verse 18 and start reading the progression of sin. It starts out with people not worshipping the one and only true God, which is idolatry. It states that the evidence of God is all around us, yet we don’t recognize God’s creation. So we are the ones that start this progression of sin and God then abandons us. Our minds become dark and confused and we exchange the truth about God for a lie. We make images like people, animals, birds, etc. to worship, and then God turns us over to our desires, and immorality sets in. In this dark confused state man starts to worship and serve what God created and not Him, the creator of all things. 

Why do you suppose sexual immorality is listed before the lists in verses 29-31? Is it that call of the wild that is within our human nature? Is it the part of God’s command, “be fruitful and multiply”? I don’t know, but if you take a few minutes and think about it, we are surrounded by sexuality. Sex sells, just listen to or look at advertisements, TV programs, movies, etc. After thinking about this for a few minutes I have to agree that idolatry gives birth to immorality, sexual immorality. What do you think?

God does not cause this steady progression toward evil. Rather, when people reject him, he allows them to live as they choose. God gives them over to, or permits them to experience the natural consequences of their sin. Once caught in the downward spiral, no one can pull himself or herself out. Sinners must trust Jesus Christ alone to deliver them from destruction.

Verses 26 & 27: What is stated in these two verses has been in the news media a lot over the past few years. Here is what we need to keep in mind, Jesus loves the person, but hates the sin of the person, it is the love of benevolence that we need to practice when it comes to homosexuality. No other place in God’s word is it so clear that lesbianism and homosexuality are wrong and the results will be Hell for those that practice it. To put these two verses in layman’s terms; ….women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men…. How can anyone dispute these words? The key word for both verses is the word “natural”. All we can do for these people that live this type of lifestyle is tell them what God’s word says with love and grace and then pray, pray, pray for them. Verses 26, 27, 32, & Jude 1:7 is all you need to witness to these individuals.

The last phrase in verse 27 states, “and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due”. Does this phrase mean Hell or could it be referring to a venereal disease? I tend to think it is referring to disease since verse 32 speaks of dying, meaning Hell. So is this why we have Aids?

Verses 28 – 31: These verses list a multitude of sin that results when a person chooses a life without God. Since Dr. David Jeremiah defines them so well in his study guide I will just quote them. They are divided into five categories:

Words that Describe Shameful Human Character

·         Unrighteousness; This is a word which means injustice (as used in verse 18). The concept of injustice would have resonated with the Romans, who built their empire by means of their unjust treatment of others.

·         Wickedness; This word is used for depravity, iniquity, and evil purposes and desires. It stands for the general inclination to evil that reigned among the heathen and made them practice and take pleasure in their vicious actions.

·         Covetousness; Sometimes translated by the word greed, it is the desire always to have more. It is the lust to advance oneself at the expense of others.

·         Maliciousness; A disposition to injury and revenge, a deliberate desire to do harm to other people. It is wickedness that is not ashamed to break the laws, a vicious disposition.

·         Full of envy; Envy is a byproduct of greed but it goes beyond greed in evil. It is jealousy over the fact that other people have more than we do.

·         Deceit; This word in the Greek means "fish bait" and ultimately came to mean to lure, to ensnare, to beguile, to deceive.

·         Evil-mindedness; The lexicon translates it "bad character, depravity of heart and life, malignant subtlety, malicious craftiness." It is a desire to hurt and take pleasure in doing so.

·         Haters of God; The Bible says that the carnal mind is enmity against God (Romans 8:7). Wicked man hates God's holiness, His justice, and His sovereignty.

·         Violent; Injury, insolence, and insult. It could apply to the hissings of a mob even against the most dignified of persons.

·         Proud; A reference to arrogance and haughtiness. Having a high opinion of oneself and filled with contempt for others.

·         Undiscerning; Without understanding or discernment. Such persons were not ignorant in the things of the world, but when it came to the things of God, they were unintelligent and stupid.

·         Unloving; Sometimes translated "without natural affection." This concept is illustrated in the mother who abandons her child or the father who abandons his family.

·         Untrustworthy; The breaking of solemn engagements that have been ratified by oaths and ceremonies; covenant breakers, whether public or private, between individuals or nations.

·         Unmerciful; To be without any compassion. To be unable and unwilling to feel for the distresses of others. An example in the Roman world were the coliseums in which gladiators fought to the death to the audience's delight.

Words that Describe Shameful Human Conduct

·         Murder; This word frequently appears next to the word envy. In fact the two words look very much alike in the Greek language. There is only a breath, an impulse, between envy and murder. According to the apostle John, Cain murdered Abel "Because his works were evil and his brother's works righteous" (1 John 3:12).

·         Disobedient to parents; This is a violation of the fifth commandment, but it is also the violation of a law written in the hearts of the heathen as seen in the natural love of children for their parents. Disregard of parents by children is a disregard for this natural law of relationship (Ephesians 6:2; 2 Timothy 3:1-2).

Words that Describe Shameful Human Conversation

·         Strife; Translated in some texts by the word "quarrelsome." It is debate that has gone sour; wrangling in its ugliest sense.

·         Whisperers; Represents the kind of evil-speaking that is done in secret; sowing divisions. It is one of the most evil sins of the tongue because the whisperer often escapes the conviction of falsehood and the accused has no means of defending himself against the secret accusation.

·         Backbiters; A reference to those who take pleasure in scandalizing their neighbors. Unlike the whisperers, the backbiters do not hesitate to make their accusations in public!

·         Boasters; Ostentatious people who claim for themselves more than is just. An action that results from a feeling of personal superiority or undeserved self-confidence.

Words that Describe Shameful Human Concepts

·         Inventors of evil things; Inventors of unlawful pleasures and all kinds of additional evils.

Words that Describe Shameful Human Companionships

·         In verse 32 Paul says that those who consent to the practice of sin are as guilty as those who commit the sin. Anyone that encourage others to sin are also guilty of sin.

Paul says that man's character, his conduct, his conversation, his concepts, and his companionships have all been corrupted by his rejection of God.

At the close of Romans 1, we see what Paul meant in verse 18 when he said that "the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness." God's wrath is His judicial abandonment of wicked people. Romans 1 depicts the life we are living here on earth, will be the life we live for eternity. The question is will that eternal life be one of glory, or one of torment?

We have seen what we would be without the grace of God, and the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ for our sins. No wonder Paul felt a debt to share with the Romans the wonderful message that had so radically changed his own life! Paul says that God abandons man in three areas: idolatry, immorality, and iniquity. The natural consequences of man's choices in these areas lead him ultimately away from God. God cannot take up residence in our body that is a temple if we indulge in sin. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 NKJV  16  Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?  17  If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,

for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes,

 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Unless you are Born Again, you cannot enter into Heaven, the Kingdom of God."

http://jesus-christ-spiritual-food.blogspot.com/

Bill

Last Week’s Trivia: What do you think the word “Acts” could represent?

Answer: Answer: ACTS of the Apostles embrace:

A = Adoration of Jesus Christ

C = Confession of sin

T = Thankfulness of Jesus saving power

S = Supplication to our Father’s grace

This week’s Trivia: Where does Frankincense come from?

12-7-2011 Vol. 6 Part 5 Book of Romans (Romans 1:18-23)

Note: To download/print the document, click on the above title and when the Google Document window opens click on the word "File" under the word Google.

Book of Romans

12-7-2011 Vol. 6 Part 5

Psalms 52:1-9 NKJV Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man? The goodness of God endures continually. Your tongue devises destruction, Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully. You love evil more than good, Lying rather than speaking righteousness. Selah You love all devouring words, You deceitful tongue. God shall likewise destroy you forever; He shall take you away, and pluck you out of your dwelling place, And uproot you from the land of the living. Selah The righteous also shall see and fear, And shall laugh at him, saying, "Here is the man who did not make God his strength, But trusted in the abundance of his riches, And strengthened himself in his wickedness." But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever. I will praise You forever, Because You have done it; And in the presence of Your saints I will wait on Your name, for it is good. Father we praise you, we give you all the glory. Father open our ears, eyes, mind, and heart so we can recognize the things in our lives that we put above you, so that we can repent and put them in the proper order. This way we can truly worship you and only you that deserves glory and praise. In the name of Jesus of Nazareth we pray! Amen!

Romans 1:18-23

Romans 1:18-23 NKJV  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,  19  because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.  20  For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,  21  because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.  22  Professing to be wise, they became fools,  23  and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.

In our last lesson we learned about the righteousness of God and the only way to Heaven is placing our Faith in what Jesus did on the Cross for us. Paul tells us that in; Romans 1:18 NKJV  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, and again in; Romans 3:22-23 NKJV  even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;  23  for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Between these two verses Paul tells us that we are all guilty of sin and need to put our faith in Jesus if we want to go to Heaven to be with Him.

Verses 18 – 20: So in this and future lessons we will learn about the unbeliever and those that have never heard about Jesus. We will learn the answer to an often asked question by many people. That question is; What happens to those that die and have never heard about, or been told about Jesus? In the following verses we will learn about who, meaning all are guilty:

·         The heathen are guilty; Romans 1:18 – 32 (Heathen refers to a pagan; a Gentile; one who worships idols, or is unacquainted with the true God.)

·         The hypocrites are guilty; Romans 2:1 – 16

·         The Hebrews are guilty; Romans 2:17 – 3:8

·         All have sinned and are guilty; Romans 3:9,10,23

The wrath of God is defined as violent anger; vehement exasperation; indignation; vengeance. The Greek work for wrath is “orge”, not a sudden or arbitrary anger of passion, but a consistent indignation based on a holy and righteous standard, God’s standard. God’s wrath is very much a part of the Bible. In Romans it is mentioned 10 times. In the Old Testament there are 20 different words that refer to God’s wrath that is mentioned approximately 600 times. God’s anger is revealed more than his love. So let’s take a look at the first three verses and see what they are all about.

Verses 18 – 20: They start out stating that God shows his anger against all sinful wicked people that suppress the truth by their wickedness. The wickedness of their flesh and thinking they can figure things out on their own. They forsake God until things get so bad, and then call upon the Lord for help. This is our human nature to do this, but God has revealed Himself to us and has manifested Himself in us, and if we would just be observant and look around us, and within us, we would be in awe of God. All we have to do is look around at what God has created, this universe and all that is in it, with us being made in his likeness by Him for Him. Colossians 1:16 NKJV For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. God put in our hearts the knowledge of right and wrong when he created us. We know what is right and wrong, but our sin nature and the pleasures of our flesh override good, and we justify our actions according to other human beings and their lifestyles instead of God’s Commandments. Everyone has an empty spot deep inside of them. That is why people long for something, but they don’t know what it is. Some think if they have lots of money everything would be okay. Some people look to fill that void with drugs or alcohol. Some look to fill it with promiscuity, thinking love of this type will fill it. There are all kinds of vices people get involved with in an attempt to fill that void. When I gave my heart to Jesus that void in my life was filled. There was a great calm, peacefulness, and assurance that everything was alright now. It was like a great weight was taken off of my shoulders. It is a feeling that is hard to explain. Jesus is the only thing that will fill that void in our heart.

Natives that live in jungles know there is a supreme being. Do you remember in Acts 28 the occasion when a poisonous snake bit Paul and he was unharmed? The natives thought he was a God. Acts 28:6 NKJV  However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god. So people that haven’t heard the Gospel know there is a greater power, because by nature they do the things of the law by their conscience bearing witness from right and wrong. Romans 2:14-15 NKJV  for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves,  15  who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) The evidence of God is all around us and who can deny His handiwork of creation and how everything fits together and functions. Psalm 19, 8, and Isaiah 40:21-26 are more examples of Gods art work. A person that has never heard about the word of God will not be judged for rejecting Jesus, but he will be responsible for the revelation he has had presented in his conscience and in God’s creation around him.

Verses 21: In spite of man having the witness of conscience and the witness of creation, he still rejects God. Paul tells us even with all of God’s workmanship around us, man thinks up in their own mind, who and what God is and they make and worship idols they make. Man tends to think there is a scientific answer to all things. Cause and effect, you can’t make something out of nothing, but that is exactly what God did, Genesis 1:2. Man doesn’t even give thanks for what God provides, which is everything we have. If God held back the rain, what would happen to us? No crops, no food, no livestock, no cotton, no wool, no jobs, etc. When you stop and think what would happen without rain, lakes, and rivers, it is mind boggling. We need to give God thanks for rain whenever we get it, because without it we will perish. Yet we don’t, we complain on how the rain ruins our day of activities. Our minds become dark and confused and we get upset because the activities we had planned won’t happen and we can’t please our flesh.

Verse 22: Who is Paul referring to that claim to be wise? It is the Jews and Gentiles that claim to have all the answers and cannot believe who Jesus was, or the miracles that He preformed. Sometimes our education, human nature, and peer pressure gets in the way of us believing in the truth. When man deliberately rejects the Gospel he becomes an utter fool in his unbelief. Psalm 14 gives us a clear picture of what God sees when He looks at mankind. Psalms 14:1-3 NKJV The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, They have done abominable works, There is none who does good.  2 The LORD looks down from heaven upon the children of men, To see if there are any who understand, who seek God.  3 They have all turned aside, They have together become corrupt; There is none who does good, No, not one. Sin is sin to God. It doesn’t matter if the sin is little or great. If one takes a grape from the produce stand and eats it or if someone steals a car, both are stealing and sinning in Gods eyes. Our God is a just God and there is no gray area, it is black or white.

Verse 23: Why did the Israelites make a golden calf to worship? Why do modern day people worship  idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles? The previous two verses tells us why; they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like and as a result, their minds became dark and confused, claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. It has been this way since the beginning. Mankind appears to have to have something physical, something he can see and touch in order to believe. Take the Apostle Thomas for instance, he wouldn’t believe until he saw Jesus. So man fabricates an idol out of his imagination. He fantasies about it and soon gives the image credit for good things that are happening in his life instead of giving God the credit. He starts telling others about what has happened to him because of the image he is worshipping. It get to the point where he believes in it so much he convinces others it has great power and worthy of worship, and if they worship it, great things will happen to them. Here is a modern day example of how we get sucked into believing in the wrong things in life. Chain letters/emails that come and they state that if you send them on to 10 people something miraculous will happen to you. This is a form of idolatry in God’s eyes because a person’s faith is put in the letter instead of God. So can you see how we get deceived into believing in the power of false images that man fabricates? You have to ask yourself these questions; What do I worship, God or mans idea of gods? Do I have to have a picture, statue, pet rock, lottery ticket, horse shoe, four leaf clover, etc. to pray to and put trust in? Your thinking now, it is pretty foolish praying to a lottery ticket, but when one buys one and hopes it is the winner, isn’t he putting his hope in it instead of God? Isn’t it a form of praying?

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,

for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes,

 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Unless you are Born Again, you cannot enter into Heaven, the Kingdom of God."

http://jesus-christ-spiritual-food.blogspot.com/

Bill

Last Week’s Trivia: Did Abraham find favor with God through obedience?

Answer: No, it was Abraham’s faith in God and who God is, that pleased God. It was because of Abraham’s faith in God that he was obedient to God. Abraham had faith in God so much that he was willing to sacrifice his son to God. It is out of faith that we are obedient to God. If Abraham only had obedience, his flesh would have ruled, and he would have been unwilling to sacrifice his son. This is why we live by faith.

This week’s Trivia: What do you think the word “Acts” could represent?

11-30-2011 Vol. 6 Part 4 Book of Romans (Romans 1:16-17)

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Book of Romans

11-30-2011 Vol. 6 Part 4

Psalms 51:11-19 NKJV Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, And sinners shall be converted to You. Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, The God of my salvation, And my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness. O Lord, open my lips, And my mouth shall show forth Your praise. For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise. Do good in Your good pleasure to Zion; Build the walls of Jerusalem. Then You shall be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, With burnt offering and whole burnt offering; Then they shall offer bulls on Your altar. Father we praise you, we give you all the glory. Father give us the courage and boldness to proclaim your Good News. In the name of Jesus of Nazareth we pray! Amen!

Before I get started with this lesson I want to clarify something. In the last lesson I mentioned that churches are known for many things, but hardly any, if any, are known by their faith in the community. We all know faith is dead without works, and works is defined as spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all. After a lot of thought and in my daily readings I came across the following scripture, which defines what I was trying to say. I think these verses are pretty self explanatory in stating the Thessalonians were spreading the Gospel to anyone that came along. As a result they were known for their faith. 1 Thessalonians 1:6-10 NKJV 6 And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit,  7  so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Achaia who believe.  8 For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place. Your faith toward God has gone out, so that we do not need to say anything.  9 For they themselves declare concerning us what manner of entry we had to you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,  10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

Romans 1:16-17

Romans 1:16-17 NKJV For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.  17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: Are you ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ? When you first read that question, your answer is probably, no. Why would I be you ask? I believe in Jesus and what he did for me, so no, I’m not ashamed of Jesus. Then let me ask you another question. When was the last time, if ever have you started a conversation with someone you know, or a total stranger, or someone at work, or out shopping, or at a sporting event, etc. and the topic was about Jesus? What about when you go out to eat at a restaurant, do you give thanks for the food you are about to eat before you start eating? Do you tell people on the phone, or at a check out register, or a bank teller to have a nice day and may God bless you? Even little things like this could stir someone to pick up a Bible or start going back to church and get saved. Ok, now that I have you thinking and you are getting convicted by the Holy Spirit, ask yourself that question again. Am I ashamed of Jesus? If I’m not ashamed of Jesus, then why don’t I do these things if I claim to be a Christian?

What is the definition of ashamed? The one we are talking about here is, to have a feeling of fear or shame which prevents a person from doing something. So what is that fear? Is it the fear of not being accepted by people, or talking about something we don’t really know a lot about and might appear ignorant, or if we talk about Jesus we will be categorized as a weirdo Jesus freak? I can’t answer this question for you. You have to look deep inside and answer this question yourself, but don’t feel like the Lone Ranger, because you’re not. I was the same way at the beginning of this past summer when I would go out on Saturday nights to street witness, but by the time Labor Day rolled around I was comfortable with talking to strangers about the Gospel. Actually it was very rewarding and you know what, most people will talk about Jesus, in fact, I found a lot of people had a lot of questions about the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

What about the apostles/disciples of Jesus? Were they ashamed of Jesus? We know Paul wasn’t because he was imprisoned in Philippi, chased out of Thessalonica, smuggled out if Damascus and Berea, laughed at in Athens, considered a fool in Corinth, declared a blasphemer and lawbreaker in Jerusalem, stoned and left for dead at Lystra, etc., but kept right on going like the Eveready Rabbit and was anxious to get to Rome and on to Spain. If you want to model yourself after someone, I suggest you chose Paul.

What about Peter? Was he ashamed of Jesus when he denied Him three times. What about Timothy? Paul told Timothy this; 2 Timothy 1:7-8 NKJV For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.  8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God. When Paul was in chains other disciples turned away from Paul in fear, but Onesiphorus didn’t. 2 Timothy 1:15-17 NKJV This you know, that all those in Asia have turned away from me, among whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes.  16 The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain;  17 but when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very zealously and found me. You see, being ashamed of Jesus goes back from now to when Jesus walked the earth. It is our human flesh that gets in the way.

for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes,  for the Jew first and also for the Greek: Could another reason why the Gospel isn’t talked about be the convicting words of Jesus about sin and how sinful we are? Jesus words will cut you to the bone. We like to think about ourselves as being good. We compare ourselves to other people to justify our conduct, actions, and language, but God judges us by his Commandments. That is why we are like filthy rags in God’s eyes. Isaiah 64:6 NLT We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind. A church that preaches the wrath of God has few members compared to a church that preaches the New Age philosophy. If only the feel good topics are preached, people will believe it is ok to keep living in sin and not come to Jesus. They will think it is ok to have out of wedlock sex, couples living together, using God’s name in vain, pornography, stealing, lying, gossiping, etc. The only thing that comes out of the, “if it feels good do it,” mentality is eternal Hell. Proclaiming the Gospel will put conviction on a person’s lifestyle, making it difficult to proclaiming, therefore they don’t proclaim it. The Gospel is the power of God.  After all, who wants to hear they are living in sin if they haven’t given their life to Jesus.

But the Gospel is the Good News, it is by the power of God that salvation for all is possible, if they believe.  Gospel is translated from the Greek word “euangelion”, which is made up of “angelia”, meaning message, and the Greek prefix “eu” means well or good. So you see, Gospel means “good message” and it is good news. Here are several other reasons why we need to proclaim the Gospel:

1.    It is the proclamation of good news; Jesus died for our sins, He was buried, He rose on the third day, and is now seated at the right hand of God Almighty so that whosoever shall believe will have eternal life. 1 Corinthians 15:3, 4

2.    It is the explanation of salvation; Salvation is the deliverance of man from the consequences of the fall and of sin. To be saved means to be set free from the greatest evil and placed in possession of the greatest good.

3.    It is the declaration of God’s purpose; Salvation via the Gospel is God’s purpose for lost man. Romans 8:3 NKJV  For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, When you share the Gospel with an unsaved person, you bring that person one step closer to realizing why God created them.

4.    It is the demonstration of God’s Power; The Gospel is not about the power of God, it is the power of God. Romans 1:16  The Power of God, the Gospel, is foolishness to man. 1 Corinthians 1:21 NLT  Since God in His wisdom saw to it that the world would never know Him through human wisdom, He has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe. God’s resurrection power is toward believers, see Ephesians 1:19, 20.  We were created by his power, see Ephesians 2:10.  By the power of God’s saving grace we are a work in progress toward holiness, see Philippians 1:6.

5.    It is for all mankind; Whosoever believes, see John 3:16; Whosoever calls, see Joel 2:32 and Acts 2:21; Whosoever thirsts, see Revelation 22:17.

6.    It is the Revelation of God’s plan; Only God could invent the plan of salvation, because man would invent something that would make them self-righteous by their works or something that would excuse their behavior so they can commit the evil they desire. Only God with a prefect heart of love could have chosen to redeem man the way he did.

7.    It is what Jesus stands for, Righteousness; We are made in his likeness, by God and for God. Jesus is virtue, morality, justice, decency, honesty, loving, forgiving, humble, etc. Through Jesus the righteousness of God is revealed. Jesus is the only way, truth, and life.

8.    It is the affirmation of Faith; When we share the gospel, it is the love of Jesus being portrayed through us by Him. It is His love for us, that is in us, that we want to share His Gospel out of our love and obedience to Him.

For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.": How is God’s righteousness revealed to non-believers? Do they one day wake up and presto they have the Gospel all figured out? Do they hear about it from a believer? Do they pick up the Bible and start reading, and the Good News is revealed to them by the Holy Spirit? Is it by going to church and Bible studies? The answer is yes to all the above and it might take all of the above to bring a non-believer to that saving Faith. Habakkuk figured out that it was by faith we are saved. Habakkuk 2:4 NKJV "Behold the proud, His soul is not upright in him; But the just shall live by his faith. You see it takes the faith of a believer to share the Gospel and it also take the faith of the recipient to come to Jesus. The non-believer has to have faith in what the believer is witnessing and testifying to in order to place his faith in what Jesus did on the Cross for us. Without Faith, we are lost.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,

for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes,

 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Unless you are Born Again, you cannot enter into Heaven, the Kingdom of God."

http://jesus-christ-spiritual-food.blogspot.com/

Bill

Last Week’s Trivia: Is it possible that stones and rocks can talk??????

Answer: Luke 19:37-40 NLT When He reached the place where the road started down the Mount of Olives, all of His followers began to shout and sing as they walked along, praising God for all the wonderful miracles they had seen.  38 "Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the LORD! Peace in heaven, and glory in highest heaven!"  39 But some of the Pharisees among the crowd said, "Teacher, rebuke Your followers for saying things like that!"  40 He replied, "If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!"

This week’s Trivia: Did Abraham find favor with God through obedience?