Romans 2 - 2.7.23
SCRIPTURE: Romans 2:28 - 29 "For a person is not a Jew who is one outwardly, and true circumcision is not something visible in the flesh. On the contrary, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is of the heart - by the Spirit, not the letter. That man's praise is not from men but from God."
OBSERVATION: Paul addressed the Jews regarding the way they took such pride in their possession of God's law, especially the rite of circumcision, which set them apart from the Gentiles. Paul made it very clear that the only circumcision that counted before God was the circumcision of the heart. (Gene Getz)
UNDERSTANDING: The Scriptures teach us that it is possible to have head knowledge without heart knowledge. There are many people that know ABOUT God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit. They may even believe that the Bible is the incarnate word of God. Those same people may attend church, get baptized, and live a morally good life as they follow their conscience, but NONE of those things make a person a Christian! If human conscience could save people, then why did Jesus die on the cross? Why didn't He just teach people to be morally good and follow their conscience? There are two reasons that these people are not automatically saved and accepted by God based on human conscience. First: According to Romans 3:10, "There is none righteous, not even one." Even though there are some good people who follow their conscience, they are still sinners by nature. Human conscience alone has never given birth to moral perfection. Reason number 2: According to Romans 2:15 - 16, when the secrets of the human heart are exposed by the light of the gospel, sin and depravity will eternally stain the souls of the morally good. Being good is commendable, but it does not pay our eternal debt. "The wages of sin is... death." (Roman 6:23).
Like the religious Jews Paul was addressing, it's possible for both Jews and Gentiles today to believe the truth that is revealed in God's Word without that truth changing their hearts. The ONLY way our hearts can be changed is when we believe Jesus is Lord and receive salvation through His sacrificial death on the cross. When we exchange our sins for God's forgiveness, mercy and grace, we become His children, and His Spirit takes up residence in us, and it's His Spirit within us that wills us, and equips us with power and wisdom to want to be like Jesus. (Human Conscience and Salvation: by Terry Baxter Devotional).
LIFE APPLICATION: I am so grateful that God opened the eyes of my heart and revealed to me that Jesus is Lord! For many years I assumed that I was a Christian because I was raised in a Lutheran Church, attended vacation Bible school in the summer, and was taught the stories about God and His Son Jesus, who died on the cross for my sins. I knew He loved me, but I was not aware that I needed to have a personal born-again experience with God in order to be saved from my sins.
I did some drifting away from the church as a teenager, but I always felt an emptiness in my heart that I longed to be filled. It wasn't until I fell into a deep depression after I was married and had two young sons that I found myself needing to call out to God to come help me, and it was in that moment standing in my kitchen that He personally came to my rescue, and He led me back to Church where I was introduced to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior! A couple of men from the church came to pay me a visit and shared the gospel message with me, and I was asked 2 spiritual questions. My answer to those questions revealed that I was in need of a Savior, so I professed my belief in Jesus as Lord, confessed my sins, and invited Jesus to come into my heart to be my Lord and Savior. After the men left, the Lord allowed me to experience His love and peace that flooded the emptiness that once filled my heart. I was born-again! The depression left, never to return, and my mind has been free to be able to experience God's love and enjoy His peace and sweet presence every single day, ever since He gave me a new heart!
- Robin Orefice
Romans 1 - 2.6.23
Scripture:
Romans 1:12 NLT
“When we get together, I want to encourage you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours.”
Observation:
In this passage, Paul is writing the church in Rome. He is telling them how their faith in Jesus is being talked about all over the world, and that makes him really proud of them. Paul writes how he prays for them and he looks forward to seeing them soon. He yearns to be with his brothers and sisters in Christ, so they can help encourage and build each other’s faith, as they serve side by side in ministry together.
Understanding:
No man is an island.
This is a saying that comes from a sermon by the seventeenth-century English author John Donne. It means that no one is self-sufficient; everyone relies on others. Sure, in our Christian faith, we all rely on God alone to supply us with the strength, and our daily needs to live. But we also need one another to spur each other on, encourage one another, and love one another. If God intended man to be alone, he wouldn’t have created and gave him Eve.
“Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.”” Genesis 2:18
God wired us for relationships. A relationship with Him, and relationships with one another. He created us all different too. We all have different gifts and talents. And we are called as Christians to come together, and use these gifts and talents to not only help build each other’s faith, but we are to also use them to help those who don’t know God, come into a meaningful relationship with Him by sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ. So what are you waiting for?! Find a church family you can connect with; a church that teaches straight from the Word of God (The Bible); a church that is about knowing God, and having Him known; a church where you can be part of a family that strives in building our relationships with God, each other, and our community. Welcome to Desert Streams. ❤️😊
“Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.” Colossians 3:16
“Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” Hebrews 10:24-25
Life Application
Make going to church and meeting with God’s people a priority.
Let’s continue to build on this momentum we gained from our 28 Days of Prayer and Fasting. We heard some great testimonies yesterday. We heard just how God can move in people’s lives when we put Him first in everything we do. So let’s do that! Make meeting on Sunday mornings a priority. Don’t just make church an afterthought because our other plans fell through. Make going to church and meeting with God’s people a priority in your life. Get involved in something bigger than ourselves. Sign up in ministry. Be part of a small group or a 1 on 1 discipleship. Build relationships. Be open to it and see how God can move in your life when you love God and love one another.
-Moses Gaddi
Song of Songs 4 - 2.3.2023
Scripture - What stood out?
Song of Songs 4:16
Awake, north wind,
and come, south wind!
Blow on my garden,
that its fragrance may spread everywhere.
Let my beloved come into his garden
and taste its choice fruits.
Observation - What does it say?
A love poem with multiple meanings and layers. The woman here also represents the bride of Christ.
Understanding - What does it mean?
…Let my beloved come into his garden and taste its choice fruits.
As the church we are also known by another name, the bride of Christ Jesus. And just as husband and wife seek to live a life in love and harmony in the flesh with one another I picture our own relationships with you myJesus seeking to establish similar harmonies. This verse stood out to me on my first read through and on the second read through of our bible verses today I immediately became drawn to Galatians:
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
(Galatians 5:22-23)
I was assisting with a resume today and I became drawn to all the “corporate fruit” that we urge our potential employers to taste - I’m adaptable, dependable, malleable, but definitely not expendable! How much sweeter is this fruit that the Holy Spirit has for us to offer you Lord! Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control!
Life Application - How can I apply this to my life today?
What a joy it is to read Your word today Lord! For my life application today I pray that my spiritual garden produces any of these spiritual fruits. Please guide me today, Holy Spirit. May my spirit inside me produce Holy Spirit fruit, fragrant and amazing, specifically to offer our Lord Jesus, the bridegroom of His church!! In the name of Jesus do I pray, amen.
-kenneth lee