The good news of God calls all people, regardless of race, to obedience that comes by faith. Concerning Jesus, Paul says, ”through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ, To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 1:5-7 ESV) “
Sad to say today, people discriminate. You find discrimination all around you. It’s in the work place. It’s in school. It’s even in churches and denominations. A big issue right now in America is immigration. You may have very strong feelings on immigration. Let me share a perspective with you that you may not have thought about. America was founded as a Christian nation or a “good news of God” nation. God has made it possible for people of all races to come to America to have opportunity to hear about God’s good news and to see it lived out by example. They think they are coming for a better life. God is bringing them and placing them next to you in the work place, in the school house, in the market place and in your neighborhood so that you can share the good news of God with them through your actions and through your words.
May we never close down a door of opportunity that God has given us. May we constantly be reminded by the Holy Spirit that there will be those from all nations around the throne of God, worshipping Him for all eternity. It’s a dream that Martin Luther King had that has now become a reality to him around God’s throne. Let’s pray and live as Jesus taught: “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
It’s all about Jesus. The Old Testament points to Jesus. The sacrifices, the feasts, the tabernacle, the furniture in the tabernacle, the placement of the furniture in the tabernacle; everything points to Jesus. Studying the types of Christ in the Old Testament is fascinating and faith building as the student sees God’s wonderful plan of redemption foretold in such detail.
Paul says “which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, (Romans 1:2-4 ESV).”
This speaks of the humanity and the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ. He was both man and God; a concept that is hard for our feeble minds to understand, but a truth that we as believers receive by faith. It took a man to stand in the gap for our sins, but the man had to be sinless. God came into our world through Jesus Christ to be a sin sacrifice; a sinless offering for our sins. Jesus was a descendant of David and was birthed through a virgin. He was crucified as an innocent man. He was resurrected the Son of God and being re-glorified, He was placed back at the right hand of the Father.
Beloved, the good news of God is that He loves us so much that He sent His only begotten Son to take care of our sin problem. God wants to spend eternity with us, but sin separated us from God. At the cross, Jesus took our punishment for sin, which is death, so that we can have eternal life. We are God’s inheritance and He longs to spend eternity with us. Isn’t that good news? That’s the good news of God!
When Paul says “which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, (Romans 1:2 ESV),” he is referring to the Old Testament as the New Testament was currently being written with two thirds of it being written by Paul under the Holy Spirit’s unction. Throughout the whole Old Testament, we are given the promise of the good news of God. Everything in the Old Testament points to the good news of God, which is Jesus Christ.
Many people today have devalued the Old Testament since we are now living under the new covenant. Beloved, never devalue the Old Testament; read it; study it; understand it. It will strengthen your faith as you understand that God did not randomly react to our sinful condition. No, God did not randomly react; He graciously had a plan of redemption in place. The Old Testament points to and reveals God’s good news of redemption through Jesus Christ.
You will be hard pressed today to pick up a newspaper, turn on a newscast, or surf the news feeds on the Internet and find any good news. The world is in turmoil and local news is not any better. In the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans, he immediately begins to talk about good news and specifically the good news of God. Check out these powerful words:
(Romans 1:1-7 NIV) "Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God-- {2} the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures {3} regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, {4} and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. {5} Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. {6} And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. {7} To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ."
Four words continually jumped out at me in this paragraph of Scripture – “the gospel of God.” “Gospel” means “good news.” In the letter to Romans, Paul is writing about the good news of God.
Beloved, when the problems of this world get you down, meditate on the good news of God. When life’s problems get you down, meditate on the good news of God.
Beloved, as we follow Christ, His goodness will overwhelm our being, flowing outward to all those around us because of who He is and what He has imparted within us, allowing us to become more and more like Him, and allowing others to be touched by His good works.
"Goodness is a process of becoming, not of being. What we do over and over again is what we become in the end." - Joan Chittister, Benedictine nun, author, and lecturer.
When I was in my early teens, a thought took hold of me: Jesus didn’t die to save us from suffering—he died to teach us how to suffer.... Sometimes I actually mean it. I’d rather die young, having lived a life crammed with meaning, than to die old, even in security, but without meaning.
As one country does not bear all things, that there may be a commerce, so neither has God opened, nor will open, all to one, that there may be a traffic in knowledge between the servants of God, for the planting both of love and humility.
I prayed and asked the Lord to give me a word for you today and He laid Hebrews 1:3 on my heart to share with you. In this verse of Scripture given to us in the midst of everything that comes our way; we are pointed to Jesus Christ.
He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, (Hebrews 1:3 ESV)
Becky and I hear daily from people nearing the end of their rope, not knowing what to do, or where to turn. Some are torn by broken relationships, painfully haunting, weighing constantly on frail emotions, leaving the one desiring better wondering why the other is so rejecting and seemingly disinterested in making mends and building back that which has been ripped away. Some are hardly able to make it on limited or drying up finances, making paying rent, keeping the house, buying medicine, receiving adequate healthcare, putting food on the table all stressful happenings instead of normal living, leaving one wondering day to day if they will even survive the next day, week, or month. From the mother who is one week from being homeless, to the husband whose wife has fallen in the arms of another, to the parent who is heartbroken with a rebellious child, we minister daily the only way we know how. We spend our life pointing the hurting, suffering, and seemingly hopeless to Jesus.
Life is seldom easy, often messy, proving difficult on more occasion than not, but can be lived graciously and victoriously because of Jesus and what He has done for each of us. God loves us so much, He sent Jesus into our world. Jesus loves us so much; He willingly came, experiencing how we live in this world filled with pain, heartache, suffering and death. He willingly gave his life, so that we can have life in Him, not only now, but for all eternity.
Beloved, whatever you are going through right now, rest assured that Jesus knows, He cares, and He is praying that your faith will not fail even though you may be going through the greatest sifting of your faith that you can recently remember. You will come through this trial, the next, and every trial victoriously as you fix your eyes on Jesus who “upholds the universe by the word of his power.”
We thank God constantly for the faithful prayer and financial support that we receive for LGF. It is allowing us to touch 12,609 people per day with the love and gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
To be human is to be responsible. That is the inner meaning of the "dominion" of Genesis 1:26, which is a dominion not of domination but of stewardship, taking care of the world's back yard ... God the world-maker is God the care-taker. Humans properly stand over other creatures only as they stand with other creatures, showing them love, giving them space, and granting them "rights."
And this, then,
is the vision of that Heaven
of which we have heard,
where those who love
each other have forgiven
each other, where, for that,
the leaves are green,
the light a music in the air,
and all is unentangled,
and all is undismayed.
Beloved, may we continually give of our lives in ways allowing those who witness the consumption pointed to the One we serve and follow.
I am your message, Lord. Throw me like a blazing torch into the night, that all may see and understand what it means to be a disciple. - St. Maria Skobtsova, Orthodox nun and martyr (1891-1945)
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