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Category: Romans (Page 3 of 26)

Share the Pain

September 19, 2024 / / 0 Comments

We’re looking at the middle part of Romans 8 as it answers three fundamental questions for us today: Where are we? What are we called to do? How is it going to go? Yesterday, we noted that the world is in pain. The world is groaning in frustration over the curse of sin and death. Today, I suggest that all Christians are called to share that pain. As children of God and followers of his Son Jesus, we are called to share the world’s pain.

“We ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as children, the redemption of our bodies.” ~Romans 8:23

We are called to share the world’s pain. To join the world’s pain. To bear the world’s pain. Not to ignore it, not to isolate ourselves from it, not to look the other way and pretend it’s not happening. The Church is called to share the world’s pain. We ourselves who have the firstfruits of the Spirit groan inwardly.

Wait. Why us?

Because we know. We know things are not the way they are supposed to be. Because we have the firstfruits. We have seen glimpses of the eternal glory. We’ve tasted the way things are supposed to be. We’ve experienced a little bit of what God is doing.

As a church, when we come together to worship, we get a sense of what’s coming. We join that great throng of heavenly witnesses around the throne of God, we’re united together with all the saints–past, present, and future. There’s another scene, there’s another city, there’s another reality beyond our time and space. And sometimes we see it. Sometimes we feel it, if only for a moment.

When we come together around the table and share the communion meal, we are one with God in Christ and we are one with one another. Perfect fellowship. Perfect unity. Perfect forgiveness and acceptance and love and peace. And it’s not ordinary. It’s Christian.

We don’t groan despite having the firstfruits; we groan because we have them. Because we’ve seen it. We know the glory that’s coming. Baby blessings and baptisms. Mission trip sendoffs. Harvest parties and fistbumps. 4 Midland. Small groups. We see and hear and touch and taste God’s healing and cleansing, his joy and unity and forgiveness, his life-changing power and reconciliation and compassion and love. We all experience up close and personal these firstfruits of the Spirit. And it’s not what you find in the ways of this broken world. It’s uniquely Gospel.

To accomplish what’s coming for us, our Lord Jesus had to get out of his comfort zone and put on our pain. That’s the Gospel truth. Christ Jesus left his home in glory, he sacrificed his position and his power, he gave up his rights and his status, and he joined us in our pain. He came to where we are and he put on our flesh and blood, he suffered in the dirt with us. The Bible says he became familiar with our sufferings. He carried our burdens. He became our sin for us, to rescue us from the corruption and decay.

We all share the common human predicament of pain. Of groaning. So, like our Lord Jesus, we intentionally seek out that pain in others. Where is that pain? You look for it. And you don’t have to look hard–we’re all surrounded by it. And we join the pain. We embrace the pain. We live in it. We share it. We stand for and with those who are in pain. We speak up for and with those who are suffering. The Church is called to share the world’s pain. Who else is going to? And if we don’t do it right now, when will we?

Some of you, I know, the pain is too far away. The problems are just on TV. You’ve never been shot by a police officer. You’ve never been discriminated against at work or school or had opportunities taken from you because of your skin color or your accent or where your parents were born. And maybe you don’t know anybody who has. It’s not something you think about or talk about unless it’s on TV.

For some of you, the pain is very close and very real. You do know someone. You’ve experienced it yourself. You think about it and talk about it all the time.

And, yeah, there’s no doubt, you’re all over the map in your own church. You have lots of different viewpoints and opinions, you probably don’t all agree on what should be done and what ought to work and the steps that need to be taken. You’re not all going to be on the same page.

But here’s what the Bible tells us. The world is in pain. The whole world is broken and suffering because of sin. It’s groaning. And, like our Lord Jesus, his Church is called to share that pain.

And you might say, well, I don’t know anything about racism. I don’t know how to fix it. I don’t know anything about homelessness or sexual identity. I can’t relate to people wrapped up in CPS cases or losing their jobs. I’ve never been to a prison. I’ve never even been in a hospital.

Well, you do know how to love people. You do know how to sacrifice and serve people. You know how to just sit with people, to just be present with people in their pain. To just listen. If it were your daughter, you’d do it.

I’ve seen you. I’ve seen you move heaven and earth, I’ve seen you sacrifice and suffer for the sake of being with your son or daughter. I’ve seen you struggle to build bridges, I’ve seen you lay aside your rights and your feelings to reconcile relationships with people you love. I’ve seen you work so hard and give up so much to heal and restore what’s broken in your own families. To just sit and be present and listen. Yes, you do know how to love people and share pain.

The world is in pain right now. That’s where we are. The Church shares the world’s pain. That’s what you and I are called to do.

Tomorrow, how is the sharing of this global pain going to work out?

Peace,

Allan

The World is in Pain

September 18, 2024 / / 0 Comments

We began this thread yesterday by posing three questions about our situation as followers of Jesus in this day and place in which we live: Where are we, what should we do, and how is it going to turn out? I suggest that Romans 8:18-28 contains the answers to all three questions.

Romans is a letter the apostle Paul wrote from Corinth to the Christians in the city of Rome. Most scholars hold that Romans was written in AD 57, give or take a year, near the end of Paul’s third missionary journey. Evidence within the Scriptures tells us that the church in the Roman Empire’s capital city was more Gentile than Jew. And there were conflicts. There were cultural and racial divisions within this church and there was dissension along theological and church practice lines. One of Paul’s purposes in writing this letter is to reconcile the arguing factions. He wants to bring about unity in belief and purpose. Our unity with Christ and in Christ, he says, needs to stem from the Gospel truth that all people and things are being brought together in Jesus Christ. This union with Christ and in Christ should characterize all of God’s people today and forever.

With that as our backdrop, let me suggest that the answer to our first question, “Where are we?” is made clear in Romans 8:18, but is implied throughout the passage.

“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us…”

“The creation was subjected to frustration… the creation will be liberated from its bondage to decay  and brought into the glorious freedom…”

“The whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.”

The world is in pain. That’s where we are. That’s what’s happening. The whole world is in pain. Creation is groaning out of frustration. The rocks and trees and animals and birds and rivers and people–it’s all subjected to frustration. All of creation is a slave to decay. The whole world is in bondage to corruption. And it’s groaning. Right up to the present time. Right now.

And it’s groaning because of sin. Everything got messed up when we decided we know better than God. We know what’s best for us better than the one who made us. So when the one man Adam went against the will of the Creator, all of creation was infected with his sin. Everything that exists now is somehow corrupted by sin. Everything we know is distorted, it’s twisted, it’s unable to realize or achieve its God-ordained purpose.

This goes back to the curse in Genesis 3. The groans and pains of childbirth, the hard work and frustration and sweat, women and men struggling against each other for power and control and the man always winning. This is the result of sin. And when sin entered the picture, so did death. Now, everything decays. Nothing is permanent. Everything dies. Everything you know, everything you experience, even all the really good things–all of it is subject to corruption and decay. Relationships, work, our bodies, our marriages, the people and things we love–it’s all contaminated by sin and death. Right up to the present time. This is what’s happening now. This is where we are.

Racism. The discrimination and injustice against minority peoples that part of our fallen nature and built right into the systems and structures of society. Poverty. Selfishness. Greed. Lust. Power. Control. War. Disease. Dictators. Thirty-nine kinds of sexual sin. The sins of our society and our own individual sins separate us from God, they divide us from each other, and they devour our bodies and souls.

So people are hurting. Suffering. People are dying. People are crying out in pain. That’s where we are today. The world is in pain.

What is the Church called to do? How are Christians supposed to respond? We’ll cover that in this space tomorrow.

Peace,

Allan

Where, What, and How?

September 17, 2024 / / 0 Comments

There’s a passage in the middle of Romans 8 that tells us where we are, what we are called to do, and how things are going to turn out. This feels very important to me. These eleven verses tell us what’s happening right now, where we are, what’s going on around us; what we’re called to do about it and with it and through it; and what’s going to happen because of it, where all this is heading, how it shakes out in the end.

Today, you might not know any of these things for sure. You may be confused or unsettled about all three of these things.

Where Are We?
Man, you tell me! Vaccine-preventable diseases are on a disturbing rise. The number of polio and measles cases makes it feel like we’re living in 1924. We keep hearing about this inevitable economic depression that’s going to feel like the 1930s. The racial violence and injustice and protests feel like the 1960s. And the extreme reactions to all of it–the judging and labeling and the division and hate–feels like we’re headed for a Civil War like the 1860s. We’re so divided in this country that Republicans would rather side with Russia than with Democrats and Democrats would rather side with Hamas than Republicans. And the lies from the people in charge and the willingness, and even eagerness, to believe all the lies, makes it feel like we’re in a George Orwell novel or a Mad Max movie. It feels like chaos, like everybody’s lost their ever-lovin’ minds.

What Are We Supposed To Do?
I have no idea! Should I post on Facebook or Instagram? Or re-tweet something? Are you kidding me? You’re taking your life into your own hands if you try to do or say anything at all! Whatever I do won’t be enough, it won’t be woke, or it will be woke, or it’ll be misunderstood or taken out of context. I don’t need that! Well, we’ve got to vote for the right guy and the right party. Really? Somebody once said that if voting could change anything, they’d make it illegal. Yes, somebody needs to do something, but I don’t know who and I don’t know what.

How Is This Going to Play Out?
Nobody knows! The experts change their minds every seven minutes. Nobody can agree on anything. There’s no conversation. No compromise. It feels like nothing is grounded in fact or truth or science or history anymore–it’s all made up. It’s all gut. It’s all emotional. So there’s no predicting any of it.

We need a word from God. We desperately need the truth of God’s Word to tell us where we are, what we’re called to do, and how it’s going to work out. We need that clarity and confidence.

I suggest Romans 8:18-28.

I’m going to write about this here for the next three days, using words from the very middle of this most important chapter that sits right at the center of the most theologically profound book in the Bible. And I will suggest we use these holy words inspired by the Spirit of God as our lens. We look through this to make our decisions, we use this to guide our choices and to guard our emotions and inform the way we feel. This is the base–the way we think and talk, the things we do, the ways we act–all of it needs to be grounded in this. I feel deeply convicted that these are God’s Words to his children today regarding where we are, what we’re called to do, and how it’s going to go.

Please read these eleven verses. Then check back tomorrow.

Peace,

Allan

Put On Your Simla

February 5, 2024 / / 0 Comments

When Boaz starts taking an interest in Ruth, the meddling mother-in-law hatches a brilliant plan. She recognizes the reality of their conditions and she moves to seize the opportunity in front of them. Naomi instructs her widowed daughter-in-law to “wash and perfume yourself, and put on your simla” (Ruth 3:3). My NIV translates the Hebrew word simla as “…put on your best clothes.” But the word simla just means a regular robe. Your normal everyday clothes. Simla is just a generic robe by both men and women. It’s not a special dress. It’s not a special anything. And that’s the point.

Remember, Ruth is a recent widow. Her husband died like four or five months ago. And Ruth has probably been wearing special grieving clothes. She’d been wearing something that designated her as a grieving widow and Naomi’s telling her to change into an outfit that would send a different message.

The exact same wording is used in 2 Samuel 12 when David is grieving over the illness of his newborn son. For seven days, David was in a state of mourning, fasting, and praying for his son. When the child died, the Bible says David got up, washed, put on his lotions, and his simla, his normal everyday attire (2 Samuel 12:20). He’s signaling that his grieving is over now. I’m back to business.

That’s what Ruth is doing here. She’s changing into another set of clothes that say she’s available for marriage. She’s not grieving anymore. She’s not focusing on what she’s lost. She’s moving forward. She’s prepared and ready to seize the opportunity in front of her.

As children of God and followers of Jesus, we need to put on the right clothes that signal to the whole world that we are ready and prepared to seize the opportunities around us.

“As God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” ~Colossians 3:12-14

The people around you are seeking what’s really important. They’re searching for something trustworthy and true. The people you’re running into every day are disappointed, disillusioned, and divided. But they’re open to something different. They want something or someone that’s real and solid and dependable. They want an answer to everything that’s gone wrong, they’re looking for a solution to everything that’s broken. That way, that truth, that life is our Lord Jesus Christ and the time is right now to make him known to a desperate world.

Clothe yourselves with Christ!

Your life, your words, your actions, your attitude can be living proof to everyone around you that good overcomes evil. You can show people by how you behave that love is greater than hate, that unity is more fun than division, that forgiveness always beats revenge, and that peace is far more effective than violence.

“You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” ~1 Peter 2:9

Not just the things you engage in and the ways you act, but also the things you refuse to associate with and the things you say “no” to are a powerful witness to the only One who can truly fix what’s wrong.

“Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God.” ~1 Peter 2:12

Peter didn’t come up with that. He’s quoting our Lord from the opening lines of his Sermon on the Mount.

“Let your light shine before all people that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” ~Matthew 5:16

Think about it. What if you and I remained calm when the other people around us are anxious and frantic and demanding? Everything is turned up so loud right now. What would it mean to others if you were quiet and calm?

What if you and I spoke with humility and grace? Instead of saying things and forwarding things and reposting things that insult and disparage whole groups of other people so the people like me know exactly where I stand, what if we only said thing that were encouraging to others and the only thing that came out of our mouths was intended to build those other people up? I believe that kind of language would really stick out as special.

What if you and I tried to love everybody? What if you and I were known for how kind and graciously we treated others, even when we disagree? Especially when we disagree! I really think that would get noticed. And what if we committed to that right now instead of later?

“[All the commandments] are summed up in this one rule: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ …Do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here… Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ!” ~Romans 13:11-14

Put on the clothes that signal to the world you take very seriously your vows to the Lord. Wear the simla that communicates a deep commitment to the ways and means of our King.

Peace,

Allan

Normal Discipleship

April 20, 2023 / / 3 Comments

You’ve seen NFL quarterbacks doing that on the field during a game. What are they doing?

The quarterback has a tiny little receiver (there’s a Wes Welker joke right here, but I’m letting it go) in his helmet so the offensive coordinator up in the pressbox can talk to him. The quarterback is trying to block out all the noise from the crowd in the stadium so he can hear the only voice he really needs to hear. He’s trying to block out the distractions so he can hear his coach who has a broader view of the field and a bigger picture understanding of what’s happening in the game. He needs to hear the voice from above, the voice of the one who wrote the playbook and developed the game plan, the voice he most needs to hear.

You’re never going to move in your discipleship unless you know that our God is dynamic and personal and active in his communicating with you. You’ve got to intentionally listen for his voice and it’s got to be more than just the Bible.

Now, hold on. Before you get all tuned up, let me explain.

The Bible is the voice of God. I believe that with all my heart. I believe and I preach and teach and live by my belief in the inspiration and authority of the Bible as the Word of God. The Bible is the voice of God. But the voice of God is not limited to the Bible.

What about Christians who never owned a Bible? What about the tens of millions of Christians over the past two-thousand years who have never even seen a Bible? Can they not have a relationship with God? Why does God’s Holy Spirit live inside us if everything we need is in the Bible? Being guided directly and personally by God’s Spirit within us is normal for a disciple of Christ.

“Those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.” ~Romans 8:14

The book of Acts is OUR book and finding a pattern in Scripture is OUR thing. And in Acts, it’s normal for Christians to get God’s Word both from Scripture and outside of Scripture.

In Acts 8, an angel of the Lord speaks to Philip and tells him to  take the Gaza Road. The Spirit, it says, tells Philip to jump in the chariot.

In Acts 9, the Lord calls to Ananias in a vision. Ananias answers, “Yes, Lord.” He knows who’s talking to him. The Lord told Ananias to find Saul, another guy he’s been talking to in a vision.

In Acts 10, an angel of God speaks to Cornelius. This non-Christian answers, “What is it, Lord?” He knows what’s happening. The angel tells him to find Peter. Later on, Peter is being addressed by the voice. Twice, it says, the voice speaks to Peter. And Peter acknowledges it as the voice of the Lord.

In Acts 16, the Holy Spirit tells Paul and his companions not to preach in Asia. The Spirit of Jesus, it says, would not allow them to go to Bithynia. During the night in Troas, Paul has a vision of the guy in Macedonia which caused them to leave immediately, “concluding that God had called  us to preach the Gospel to them” (Acts 16:10).

The way Luke gives it to us in Acts, it’s normal. He doesn’t write, “By the way, this was really weird.” It reads like the standard operating procedure for followers of Jesus to be led by the voice of God. So is the book of Acts a collection of exceptions or a collection of examples? Is hearing the voice of God no longer relevant for life in Christ, or is it the way life in Christ is supposed to be?

I was raised in and by the Pleasant Grove Church of Christ in Dallas, a medium-sized and very conservative congregation of God’s people. But we articulated these very things in our worship together every Sunday. We would pray for the preacher to have a ready recollection. We would ask God to bring us back at the next appointed time. We would pray for the Lord to guide, guard, and direct us (for the longest time, I thought that was one long word, like a theological word in Greek, like guidguardandirectus). It was normal for us to pray for God’s daily direction.

We would sing it, too. Guide me, O thou great Jehovah. He leadeth me, O blessed thought! Break, thou, the bread of life; beyond the sacred page. He walks with me and he talks with me. My God and I, we walk and talk as good friends should and do. We would pray it and we would sing it, but we would never preach it or teach it – that two-way communication with God is normal.

There are several reasons you might not be hearing God. One might be that you don’t expect to. If you’re not expecting to hear God’s voice, then you’re not listening for it. Maybe people told you that you can’t hear God or that God doesn’t talk anymore. Maybe no one ever taught you how to hear God. Or maybe you don’t want to hear God. Maybe you prefer a silent God. A non-talking God is a lot easier to deal with. If you hear the voice of the Lord, it might change your agenda, it might blow up your whole life.

In John 5, Jesus tells the religious experts, you diligently study the Scriptures, but you’ve never heard the Father’s voice. It’s possible to be an expert in the Bible and be lousy about hearing God.

How will Jesus know his disciples? They hear my voice, he says.

Peace,

Allan

Each Member Belongs

October 7, 2022 / / 0 Comments

“In Christ, we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” ~Romans 12:5

Plenty of studies have been conducted over the years that prove the importance of strong relationships. You’ll be in better health, you’ll be happier, and you’ll live longer if you have close friends. Even if you have poor health habits, the effects are mitigated by having a group of good friends. According to all the research, it’s healthier to eat donuts together than to eat broccoli by yourself!

That’s a theology I can embrace!

When God gathers us together in Christ, we belong to each other. All of us. Almost all the commands in the Bible are “one another” commands: love one another, build one another up, encourage one another, pray for one another, be devoted to one another, honor one another, live in harmony with one another, accept one another, instruct one another, greet one another, agree with one another. serve one another, be patient with one another, be kind and compassionate to one another, submit to one another, forgive one another. These commands can only be obeyed in community. We can only follow these instructions if we’re together, if we live and worship and serve together, and if we really belong to each other.

I think you can get to heaven without good close Christian friends. Probably. But you’re not going to be changed by God to become all he intends for you to be without other disciples of Christ pushing you, challenging you, lifting you up, helping you, and worshiping and serving with you.

That’s church. At least, that’s the intent of church. We know that’s how and why it started. From the very first day, the church is built on and functions through intimate Christian relationships.

“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer… All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts.” ~Acts 2:42-46

All these people from all different walks of life gathered by God to live together in community with Christ. Every day. In each other’s homes. Loving each other, serving each other, ministering to each other, taking care of each other, eating together, singing and praying together. They devoted themselves to the communion, it says, the koinonia, this sharing of life together in Christ.

As a whole, generally speaking, we don’t do this very well anymore. Over the centuries, the church, the community, has moved from smaller intimate groups who share life together in Christ to larger more impersonal groups who share a weekly meeting. We’ve moved from encouraging one another and building each other up to, “Hey, you got a problem? Go talk to the preacher.” “You’re dealing with some issue? Call the elders.”

We’ve moved away from the priesthood of all believers where everybody meets the needs of the ones in their community to specialized programs.

“Dan’s in the hospital? I don’t do that. That’s not my ministry.”

“Trudy’s lawnmower broke? That’s not my program. But somebody at the church does stuff like that.”

“We haven’t seen John in three months? The church should have a visitation team.”

“George and Jane’s teenage son is in trouble? Don’t we have a youth minister?”

Over the decades and centuries, we’ve lost community in church. We’ve turned the church’s weekly community thanksgiving meal together into the most individual and solitary, leave-me-alone time imaginable. We’ve gone from doing life together in Christ around the kitchen table to a solemn ceremony in an auditorium. Don’t distract me!

We’re trying to shift some of that here at the Golf Course Road Church in Midland. We’re starting twelve new small groups as a step toward formational Christian community. These groups are going to eat together and study the Bible. But they’re also going to practice spiritual disciplines together and serve on mission together in our city.

We’re also doing more interactive things when we’re together in the worship center on Sunday mornings. We’re doing more participatory things, more getting up and moving around, more eye contact, more talking to each other. We’re attempting to shift the Lord’s Meal to be more about communion, more about fellowship and sharing, and less about individual meditation.

There are plenty of things our churches can program and plan to cultivate an environment for tighter Christian community. But maybe you could start by grabbing a dozen donuts in the morning with some future friends.

Peace,

Allan

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