Tag: Christian living

Digging in Deeper: Romans 14:1

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“Welcome anyone who is weak in faith, but don’t argue about disputed matters.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

I was a pretty easygoing kid when I was growing up. I rarely, if ever, got into an argument with friends. I was respectful to other adults. I internalized early the importance of going along to get along. But at home, my sister and I fought like cats and dogs. We argued about almost anything. I antagonized her all the time. I love her now—and I did then too—but we mixed about as well as oil and water growing up. Sometimes it seems like the church kind of does the same thing. We fight amongst ourselves and over some of the stupidest things. We think that if someone is not just like us, then they can’t be a part of us. Natural human tribalism is alive and well in our midst. What are we supposed to do about that as we pursue the unity of Christ together? Over the next chapter and a half, Paul sets about offering some counsel on how we can get this often broken part of our lives together right. Let’s start digging in and see what we can learn about how to get along.

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Digging in Deeper: Romans 13:13-14

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“Let us walk with decency, as in the daytime: not in carousing and drunkenness; not in sexual impurity and promiscuity; not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to gratify its desires.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Do you remember getting left home alone for the first time as a kid? The sense of freedom—at least for a short time—was exhilarating. The only thing that could dampen that joy was a to do list from your parents. The freedom was really a test to determine how trustworthy you were. Eventually they were going to return. When they did, you wanted to be caught doing the right things so you could enjoy even more freedom. Last time, we reflected on Paul’s emphasis on the nearness of Jesus’ return and what that means for how we should be living our lives. In this next part to conclude the chapter, Paul gets more specific on what that looks like. Let’s take a look.

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Morning Musing: James 2:19

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“You believe that God is one. Good! Even the demons believe—and they shudder.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Today is Halloween. It’s the night when ghosts and ghouls come out to play. The macabre takes over and everyone feels just a bit freer to lean into mischief and mayhem than away from it like normal. Evil is stronger than it is on other days of the year. Those who belong to Jesus need to lean extra hard into prayer and righteousness to stand against this rising tide in order that the world isn’t wiped away by it; in order that the judgment of God doesn’t come to bear on us all. And do you know what the worst part of all is? Too many people believe that kind of nonsense. Don’t get me wrong: I very much believe that evil is real, but this kind of pop cultural understanding of evil I do not. C.S. Lewis mockingly observed it is a ploy of the Devil to keep us unwittingly immersed in real evil, blissfully unaware that it is slowly poisoning our souls, all the way back in the 1940s in his classic, The Screwtape Letters. Evil does exist, but it doesn’t often look like we might expect. The horror genre was classically a way for us to explore evil through the fairly nonthreatening vehicle of a story. Today it is more often little more than an excuse for lazy filmmakers to splash lots of guts and gore and nudity on the screen. A fairly recent entry into the genre, though, leans back into its roots in really powerful ways. Let’s talk for just a few minutes about Nefarious.

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Digging in Deeper: Romans 13:11-12

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“Besides this, since you know the time, it is already the hour for you to wake up from sleep, because now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is nearly over, and the day is near; so let us discard the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

I don’t like to put things off. My preference is generally to work ahead of whatever the schedule happens to be. That way I can sit and relax until it’s time to get started. Some people, on the other hand, work best under pressure. Admittedly, though, when I have a quick approaching due date, I can be remarkably productive. There’s something about an impending deadline that spurs us into action. No one wants to be caught unprepared when the moment of testing arrives. A sense of urgency can result in a whole lot of positive action. Here, near the end of Romans 13, Paul puts a bit of a sense of urgency on our faith. Let’s talk about why the return of Christ matters and what it means.

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Digging in Deeper: Romans 13:8-10

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“Do not owe anyone anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, ‘Do not commit adultery;’ ‘do not murder;’ ‘do not steal;’ ‘do not covet;’ and any other commandment, are summed up by this commandment: Love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no wrong to a neighbor. Love, therefore, is the fulfillment of the law.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Have you ever owed something to someone else? I currently owe one bank a car payment, and one mortgage company a house payment. I’ve owed for a car once before in my life, but that’s all the debt I’ve ever had. How about beyond monetary debts? Have you ever had any of those? If you want to switch gears to something like personal debts of honor or failings that need to be forgiven, I’ve owed quite a few more of those over the years. Paul was just talking at the end of the last section about the kinds of debts we can incur in this life. Being in debt to anyone for anything is not a good state of affairs. There’s only one kind of debt that should be ongoing in our lives if we can help it. Let’s talk about what that is.

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