Month: February 2025

God Loved First

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For the last four weeks, we have been having a conversation about marriage. More specifically, we have been having a conversation about how to get back to the basics in order to fix the foundation of our marriage so that we can build properly and in a way that will lead to long term happiness and success. Most of this has been rooted in addressing our own relationship with God. Today, as we wrap up this series, we are talking about what most people understand to be the foundation of marriage: love. If we are going to get marriage right, we have to get love right. Let’s talk about what that means and how to do it.

God Loved First

Did you have a good Valentine’s Day? Guys, did you treat her right? Did you at least put a little bit of effort into doing something special? Do you know why we have a Valentine’s Day? It’s so Hallmark and Russel’s Stover can make obscene amounts of money selling cards and chocolate. It’s all a capitalist, corporatist plot to conform us to the social box they want us to fit into so they can keep making money off of us. It’s a scam! Or maybe it’s just a cynical effort to depress us for not doing enough to love our partners or to make us feel bad for not having a Valentine in the first place. Ever wallow in one of those particular puddles of self-pity? They can be a tempting line of thought this time of year, but, no, that’s not why we have Valentine’s Day. We have Valentine’s Day because hundreds of years ago, there was a pastor in Rome named Valentinus. 

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Digging in Deeper: Matthew 16:7-8

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“They were discussing among themselves, ‘We didn’t bring any bread.’ Aware of this, Jesus said, ‘You of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves that you do not have bread?'” (CSB – Read the chapter)

We tend to be a reactive people. When a problem presents itself, we focus on that problem until it gets solved. Then we go back into whatever our regular pattern is until the next problem presents itself. Then, we give that all of our attention until it is gone too. If we are not careful, our entire world can be defined by merely what’s in front of us that we can see at the moment. The problem with this is that there’s more to the world than we can see if we’re only looking forward. When we fixate on the immediate, we can easily miss out on the ultimate. Matthew tells the story of when the disciples once fell into this trap. I got the chance to talk about this recently with my Wednesday night Bible study group. Let’s explore the idea today for a few minutes together.

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Morning Musing: Romans 3:1-4

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“So what advantage does the Jew have? Or what is the benefit of circumcision? Considerable in every way. First, they were entrusted with the very words of God. What then? If some were unfaithful, will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? Absolutely not! Let God be true, even though everyone is a liar, as it is written: ‘That you may be justified in your words and triumph when you judge.’” (CSB – Read the chapter)

One of the things that new and still-learning followers of Jesus sometimes struggle with is whether they’ve done something to mess up God’s plans. It’s an easy thought to understand. If God planned for me to go left, but I go right instead, have I somehow set Him back or even derailed things He had previously set in motion? As Paul keeps up his condemnation of sin here in Romans, he starts this next section by dealing with some hypothetical questions that may be coming up in the minds of his audience. Let’s wrestle with him through the first one here.

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Morning Musing: Romans 2:25-29

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“Circumcision benefits you if you observe the law, but if you are a lawbreaker, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. So if an uncircumcised man keeps the law’s requirements, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision? A man who is physically uncircumcised, but who keeps the law, will judge you who are a lawbreaker in spite of having the letter of the law and circumcision. 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 person’s praise is not from people but from God.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

What is it that makes you who you are? Most people have some sort of identity that they count as defining of them. This identity is often at least somewhat connected to the tribe they consider themselves to be a part of. Actually, our tribal association very often plays a huge role in defining who we are. Although some people break from the tribe they were born into in order to intentionally join another one, most people stay at least mentally connected with the tribe they were born into throughout their life. We literally cannot understand ourselves apart from the framework our tribe provides…even if we don’t properly understand what that framework (i.e., worldview) is. If someone were to come along and tell you that everything you thought you knew about your tribe was wrong, to say this revelation would be disorienting (assuming you even gave them the time of day) is likely a rather dramatic understatement. Well, that’s what Paul does here. Let’s talk about it and what it means for us.

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Digging in Deeper: Romans 2:17-24

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“Now if you call yourself a Jew, and rely on the law, and boast in God, and know his will, and approve the things that are superior, being instructed from the law, and if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light to those in darkness, an instructor of the ignorant, a teacher of the immature, having the embodiment of knowledge and truth in the law —  you then, who teach another, don’t you teach yourself? You who preach, “You must not steal” — do you steal? You who say, “You must not commit adultery” — do you commit adultery? You who detest idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? For, as it is written: The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

When I lived in Denver, there was a pastor of a large church in a nearby city who had to resign after a very public moral failing. He spent years calling his congregation to live with the righteousness of Christ, but then it was discovered that he had a quiet meth habit and had been hooking up with male prostitutes. The church recovered eventually, but it was a pretty tough season for them for a while. We live in a culture that hates religious hypocrisy, and loves to shine light on religious hypocrites. Paul is inclined to agree with this. Let’s take a look at what he says here in the next part of Romans.

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