In Robert Louis Stevenson's famous novel by that name, the good Dr. Jekyll fights against an evil man who arises from within him, Mr. Hyde. The apostle Paul speaks for all of us when he writes, "that's our battle." But our battle is real. Although Dr. Jekyll lost his battle, Christ's resurrection is your guarantee that you'll win yours. Welcome to the gathering of sinners/saints to receive grace.
Romans 6 tells us about our response to Jesus' resurrection. It is freedom! But what do we do with our freedom from sin? Freedom from righteousness, that is, living in sin, only leads to death. But now, having been raised with Christ, we are free to be slaves to righteousness, and the result is eternal life.
On Easter Sunday, the white cloth was folded up, no longer covering Jesus’ dead body. He had risen, so it no longer had any use except to serve as the surrender flag of sin, death, and the devil.
On Good Friday, before Jesus was put on the cross, he was given a scepter and mockingly hailed. The king of the world accepted subhuman treatment and shunned earthly glory in order to reign with his people in heaven.
On Maundy Thursday, Jesus was within hours of death, but he offered the bread of life to his followers. He gave his body for the forgiveness of sins and the Lord’s Supper as tangible evidence of his love.
Jesus on a donkey…crowds shouting praise…palm branches on the road. The crowd on the first Paul Sunday welcomed Jesus as a hero and a king. He deserved every bit of it and oh, so much more.
A Lenten devotion by Mr. Steve Pelischek from Wisconsin Lutheran Chapel.
On December 7, 1972, we saw our planet for the first time from outer space. All of a sudden, we were able to see our planet for what it really is. The second half of Romans 5 is like that. It lets us see our planet and our lives from God's perspective. Today we look for our ruin, our rescue, and our reign, and we find the best news ever in Romans 5:12-21.
A Lenten devotion by Minister for Nurture Mark Kjenstad
The Book of Romans is full of deep theology, but the word "peace" occurs for only the fourth time in chapter 5, in which Paul develops this idea: we are at ease because of what God has done in Christ. With so many unknowns in life, so many crises we cannot guarantee we will avoid, so many possibilities that are out of our hands, we can hang our hats on something. We have been justified. Let's rejoice in the blessing of peace together.
A Lenten devotion by Pastor John Boggs from Luther Preparatory School.
Irish singer-songwriter Bono wrote a song called “Grace.” Grace, she takes the blame. She covers the shame. Removes the stain . . . Grace, it's a name for a girl, It's also a thought that changed the world . . . What once was hurt, what once was friction, what left a mark no longer stings because Grace makes beauty out of ugly things. When interviewed about the song, he said, "There is atonement built in [into the world]: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Then enters Grace and turns that upside down. I love it.” So do we. Grace brings us together to hear the good news of how God, by grace, turns the world upside down. In Romans 4, Paul teaches us through Abraham. Don't expect God to jump for joy over your obedience; instead, you can jump for joy over what he's done for you. It's grace. And we’re delighted you’re here to receive it with us.
Imagine someone gives you a generous gift for your birthday. A new car. A trip. A sailboat. Wouldn't it be ridiculous and wrong for you to tell a friend, "Look what I earned!" To brag about what you've done for the gift would not only be untrue, it would also be an insult to the giver. The only thing you could boast about would be the generosity of another person on your behalf. In Romans 4, the apostle Paul describes a gift the patriarch Abraham received from God but couldn't boast about. We've received the same gift. We can't boast about what we've done to deserve it, but we certainly do boast about the generosity of the One who gave it. We call that worship, and we’re glad you joined us for it today.
Some jobs require you to "beat last quarter's numbers." It drives some to continuous improvement, but it drives others to find employment elsewhere. Who can live with the constant push to do better, do more, and be better? Well, we all do. It is in our fallen nature to imagine that if we're just a little better, God will be on our side. But part of us knows we’ll never get there. It drives some to search for God elsewhere. There’s a better solution. In Romans 3, we find the Spirit's answer to stress we can't bear and the truth we need. We’re glad you’re with us today to enjoy the banquet table of God’s grace. If you want to explore more of what you experience today, please let us know. We’d love to help you.
What kind of advantages have you had that you did not utilize? In what areas have you not lived up to your potential? Last week, the apostle Paul reminded us of our status before God: sinners because of our innate disposition toward evil but holy through the blood of Christ. This status is ours even as Gentiles. So what advantage did the Jews have, if any? What advantage do we have as God's people today? Let's continue to study Romans together, seeking God's wisdom in utilizing our advantages.
Everyone loves a good shortcut, but they’re usually called that for a reason. If it were truly the best option, it would just be the way. With a shortcut you’re sacrificing something or taking a risk. In Romans 2, the apostle Paul warns about spiritual shortcuts, a temptation
that plagued ancient Israel and first century Christians. Today’s world is no different. We want all the credit, but we want things easy. Let God’s Word teach you what the best and only way is through our study of Romans 2:25-29.
All rights reserved. Music used by permission under CCLI #1600166, OneLicense #A-709447, and Worshipflow.com. Pre-service music all rights reserved by Koine (koinemusic.com) & Michael Schroeder.
One of the biggest stumbling blocks that keeps people from listening to Christ and giving him a fair hearing is the hypocrisy of religious people. Yep, that would be us. The Spirit inspired the apostle Paul to speak to us about it in the book of Romans. He doesn’t speak to crush us, but to show us every reason we have to rejoice in the kindness, tolerance, and patience of God.
Think of a gigantic spring you're trying to compress. While you're pushing down with all your might, it's resisting you and wanting to spring back up into its original position. In Romans 1, Paul says that's what we do with the truth of God. By nature, we take that truth of God and press it down to get it out of our minds. Yet even with all of the strength we use to suppress that truth of God we just can't get rid of it. It's everywhere. It's pushing back up. Thank God, it's pushing back up. That’s why we gather -- to encourage each other and receive encouragement that the truth of God might have its way with us. If there’s any way we can serve you, please let us know.
John Chrysostom, archbishop of Constantinople in the 4th century AD had the book of Romans read to him four times a week so that he would remain familiar with it throughout his life. English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge said Romans is "The most profound book in existence." Martin Luther wrote, "The epistle to the Romans is the true masterpiece of the New Testament and the very purest gospel, which is well worth and deserving that a Christian should not only learn it by heart, word for word, but also that he should daily deal with it as the daily bread of men's souls. It can never be too much or too well read or studied, and the more it is handled the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes." St. Augustine of Hippo, a 4th century church father in North Africa, wrote, "I wish to have seen Christ in the flesh and Paul in the pulpit."
Get fired up for our next worship series on Paul's epistle to the Romans. One way to get the most out of our study of Romans is to set aside ten minutes each day to read however far you get. Then the next day, pick up where you left off and read for another ten minutes. Or read chapter one every day for two weeks, then chapter two for two weeks, etc. Whatever your plan, you'll be among those who have found Romans to be a great source of transformation and blessing.
Isn't joy something that happens to you? Can you really control it? A recent Westside Christian School staff Bible study discussed the differences among joy, happiness, and gladness. Maybe the distinctions are arbitrary, but one that was proposed was that joy is more constant and less dependent on precisely what is happening in a given moment. Be inspired by the wise men of Matthew 2:1-12: their deliberate action and their joy.
You know it’s coming. Get ready for it. Someone will ask you, “Will you stay awake until midnight?” If you ask it, you can anticipate a range of answers from, “I’ll just be getting started,” to “The new year will come in whether I’m awake or not.” If someone asks you, “Will you stay awake until midnight?” you might answer, “I’m not sure what I’ll do, but I know I’ll be celebrating a baby who went to church.” His or her quizzical-looking response might give you the chance to explain, “I’m still celebrating Christmas and the truth that God not only came to earth as a baby, but he went to church as a baby.” It’s not the expected answer, but you’re pointing to the best news everyone needs: a Savior has come for the world. We’re so glad you’ve gathered with us today to continue celebrating the truth that will make our new year great: “Christ is born.”
Why did the angels say “fear not” to so many people at the very first Christmas? What’s there to fear about a little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay? What's there to be afraid of? The angels knew any human being coming into the presence of the glory of the Lord would have to be afraid. So do we. We tend to bury that fear with distraction, polish, and the illusion that we have plenty of time to figure it out. The angel announced a better way: “Fear not, for, behold, I bring you good news of great joy.” Let’s marvel at the good news both on Christmas Eve and on Christmas Day
In the novel Charlotte’s Web, a pig named Wilbur enjoys an unusual friendship with a barn spider named Charlotte. When a little farm girl discovers Charlotte can write words in her web, the girl’s mother takes her to the doctor, concerned that something is wrong with her. The doctor agrees he can’t understand how a spider can write words in a web, but he points out, it’s just as impossible to understand how a spider can make a web in the first place. We have to leave room for the mysterious. The angels show up at the birth of Christ to keep us from writing off the wonder of God learning how to walk and talk and just staring at things like little babies do. Don’t say, “Impossible.” Just say, “Mysterious.” And let the angel tell you what he told Joseph: “Do not be afraid.” We’ve gathered to revel in the mystery and worship God for it. We’re so glad you’ve joined us!
Immaculate
adjective: free from fault or flaw; free from errors
Can we ever apply this term to any human effort? Luke 1 describes two different encounters between an angel and a human. We can see something immaculate, or very close to it, in the account about Mary. Let's learn together from one of the greatest announcements of all time.