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Romans 8

8/16/2014

Romans 8:1-2
"So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to Him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death."

The Spirit in us has freed us from sin, it has showed us and will continue to show us what is wrong and right so we can have help in our decision making. We have a Spirit in us that loves us and guides us, we are not on our own thanks to God and His love for us. Verse 4 says, "He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit." We must make the effort to know what the Spirit is saying. He is not confusing, but He will not force us to do what is right, He will only comfort, guide and prompt us.

Paul shares in verse 5-6, "Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace." We can't fight what's in us if we continue to feed it. That happens by studying God's word, praying to God always and stopping to listen to what the Spirit is showing us before we react out of emotion.

Our desire to know what is best for us is strong because the world teaches us that we control our own destiny. But I say, when we learn surrender and submission then we truly open our heart to let God change it. When we begin to change, we see how much the Spirit of God knows what is best for us (even if it doesn't seem that way.) Jesus talked about blaspheming the Holy Spirit in Mark chapter 3 verses 28-29 which says, "I tell you the truth, all sin and blasphemy can be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences." As we grow and walk by the Spirit we show that something is more important than our desires and we take 2nd chair to what God has shown us and given us, and our desires become ones that want to please Him.

I want to finish with what Paul says in Romans chapter 8 verses 12-14, "Therefore dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful mature, you will live. For all who are lead by the Spirit of God are children of God." Amen

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Romans 5

8/13/2014

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Romans 5:3-5
"We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love."

The Holy Spirit is in us filling our hearts and guiding our ways, are we putting the time in to listen? When we slow down in this crazy world the Holy Spirit is loud and clear, He is at work in us prompting us to seek God and live our lives as Jesus lived His. We never have to question what is right or wrong because He will show us what is right every time. Do we always listen and choose what is right, absolutely not, because our flesh is pulling us to satisfy ourselves. We slow our flesh down by praying and reading God's word and listening to the Holy Spirit. I love what Jesus says in Luke chapter 11 verse 13, "So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him." God doesn't keep the things we need from us, He wants us to have everything we need to live for Him, surrendering our will and desires.

When our hearts are full with the Holy Spirit we desire good and when our flesh tries to lead us astray we say, no and we lean on our faith which has made us right with God. When we believe in Jesus Christ and we accept Him as our Lord and Savior we are not slaves to our thoughts, we have been renewed and that renewal keeps us focused on good. Look at what Paul says in Romans chapter 5 verse 17, "For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God's wonderful grace and His gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ." Let me write it again; "...all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ." Now that is awesome and worth every effort I put into learning more about His life and hearing more of the Holy Spirit in my heart. He is alive in us working, I say lets work to hear Him and follow what He says. Amen

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Romans 2

8/8/2014

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Romans 2:6-8
"He will judge everyone according to what they have done. He will give eternal life to those who keep on doing good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers. But He will pour out His anger and wrath on those who live for themselves, who refuse to obey the truth and instead live lives of wickedness."

This just spoke to me today as I read it, and it made me think of pursuing my relationship with Jesus Christ. It's not about doing things to earn salvation, it's about doing things that are good because we are seeking after living like Christ. At the end of verse 4 Paul says, "...can't you see that His kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?" The love He showed by sending His only Son into the world to teach us and to be the perfect offering gives us the example of sinless, unselfish life that's purpose was living for God.

It says Jesus often went and prayed and Jesus also said in John chapter 5 verse 19, "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what He sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does." That is someone "seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers." As we follow Jesus and seek His way of living and we let God transform our hearts we grow, and as we grow our desire to lead our lives starts to shrink and we desire more knowledge of Him.

When we seek what is right we will find what is right. Look at what Paul goes on to say in Romans chapter 2 verse 13, "For merely listening to the law doesn't make us right with God. It is obeying the law that makes us right in His sight." When we apply our knowledge to our lives we live pleasing God not worrying about pleasing ourselves and our lives become full of joy and peace because we believe in Him. It is not that our lives become trial free or problem free, but we have hope and it is alive because we know the hope of the world, Jesus Christ. As I end this blog post I want everyone to pay close attention to the last verse in Romans chapter 2 verse 28 which says, "No, a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by God's Spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks praise from God, not from people." Amen

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Acts 9

8/1/2014

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Acts 9
This is right after Saul leaves Damascus and is back in Jerusalem. As he was teaching some with the apostles some Greek speaking Jews tried to kill him. At this point the apostle send him back to his home town of Tarsus. Look what it says in chapter 9 verse 31, "The church then had peace throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria, and it became stronger as the believers lived in the fear of the Lord. And with the encouragement of the Holy Spirit, it also grew in numbers."

As they lived in the fear of The Lord. (Not that they were afraid but they revered Him) and they were encouraged by the Holy Spirit and that lead to numbers in the church. It's not by what we do in our own strength it is believing and letting the Holy Spirit guide our heart to make us change. When we can do things in our own strength we are not living by faith but our own will. We must let go and let God so as the Holy Spirit encourages us we know that it is Him. Peter goes on to share this in Acts about faith and it is important for us to remember.

Acts chapter 10 verses 34-36 "Then Peter replied, “I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism. In every nation he accepts those who fear him and do what is right. This is the message of Good News for the people of Israel—that there is peace with God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all." As we grow and Jesus perfects our faith we have peace in our lives because we can feel the encouragement of the Holy Spirit. Then we move because we are not relying on our own strength. We need to keep focused, keep reading and keep praying so we continue to grow and have peace in The Lord. Amen

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Romans 8

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Acts 9

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