Tag: God’s grace

Morning Musing: Romans 11:30-32

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“As you once disobeyed God but now have received mercy through their disobedience, so they too have now disobeyed, resulting in mercy to you, so that they also may now  receive mercy. For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may have mercy on all.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

I want to go back with you one more time to Jesus parable of the wedding feast we talked about a few posts ago in Matthew 22. I think that is the primary inspiration for what Paul has been talking about here at the end of this section of the letter. In that parable, the rejection by one people meant opportunity for another to receive what they had missed. But just because the one people missed it, didn’t mean their chance was gone forever. It just meant they were in the same place everyone else had been. At the end of the day, everyone gets in by the same door: grace. Let’s talk about it.

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Digging in Deeper: Romans 8:28

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“We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

There are some verses in the Bible that just lend themselves to bumper stickers and cheap, Christian-themed wall art from places like Hobby Lobby. The promise they seem to make or the encouragement they seem to offer is so good that even the least cynical person almost can’t help but wonder if it’s too good to be true. Regular skeptics immediately start thinking of all the obvious exceptions and counterexamples to show why it’s not, and therefore why none of the Bible can be trusted. This is one of those verses. Let’s talk about what Paul is saying here, what exactly he means by it, and why it’s such good news.

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Morning Musing: Romans 8:18

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“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is going to be revealed to us.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

I don’t get sore throats anymore. Not often anyway. And on the rare occasion that I do get one, it’s typically not very bad, and it hardly phases me. This wasn’t always the case. I used to get them fairly frequently. I still remember suffering a bout of mono in high school which featured what was quite literally the worst sore throat of my life. None had been that bad before, and none since have come close to it. Part of the reason none have been that bad since is because that one gave me perspective. Perspective is a powerful thing in the midst of a hard season because it allows us to see beyond the immediate to something bigger than that. One of the blessings of the Gospel is the gift of perspective. Let’s take a look at one of the ways that can be particularly helpful.

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Morning Musing: Romans 4:22-25

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“Therefore, ‘it was credited to him for righteousness.’ Now ‘it was credited to him’ was not written for Abraham alone, but also for us. It will be credited to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.  He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

I enjoy listening to classical music. I also enjoy listening to new music. Those two musical preferences don’t often play very well together because there aren’t very many albums featuring new classical music coming out. Instead, there are new recordings of old music. That’s the thing about classical music, though: it’s classic. It has withstood the test of time and is good enough to keep being played and replayed over and over again. Every now and then, though, you come across something different like a variation on an old theme. Let me tell you about a fun recording I found the other day and another variation on a theme that’s rather more important.

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Advent Reflections: Psalm 40:1-3

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“I waited patiently for the Lord , and he turned to me and heard my cry for help. He brought me up from a desolate pit, out of the muddy clay, and set my feet on a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and they will trust in the Lord.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Misery loves company. This saying is true in a couple of different ways. The first is that someone who is miserable will often try to make the people around him miserable, dragging them down into the much of life with him so that he isn’t alone down there. That’s the more common meaning of the phrase. It is also true, though, that someone who is in a miserable place in life can find hope and comfort by knowing she is not alone in her striving and struggling to get through a hard season of life. The season of Advent is a reminder that even when it feels like all the people around us are leaving us to our own miserable devices, there is one who is always ready to meet us there and bring comfort to us. Let’s talk about it.

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