12-4-20 THOUGHTS

I am always amazed how a passage area that hasn’t excited me before, can, with a careful reading, become powerful and have a richness of meaning.  The WORD OF GOD is truly GOD BREATHED and  SPIRIT INSPIRED!  There are some fundamentals in the reading below that apply to all times.  Our CALLING AS SAINTS for the OBEDIENCE OF FAITH to bring about MUTUAL ENCOURAGING in the FAITH of each other in order to produce FRUIT is a process statement that is to continually reoccur in the CHURCH.  The FRUIT of the CHURCH is an UNASHAMED PREACHING OF THE GOOD NEWS OF CHRIST!  It is God’s DESIGN and POWER to produce FAITH IN A LOST MAN!  May our faith be proclaimed throughout the whole world!

Rom 1:1-17    Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2  which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3  concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, 4  who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5  through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for His name’s sake, 6  among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ; 7  to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 8  First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all,9  For God, whom I serve in my spirit in the preaching of the gospel of His Son, is my witness as to how unceasingly I make mention of you, 10  always in my prayers making request, if perhaps now at last by the will of God I may succeed in coming to you.  . 11  For I long to see you so that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be established; 12  that is, that I may be encouraged together with you while among you, each of us by the other’s faith, both yours and mine. 13  I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented so far) so that I may obtain some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles. 14  I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 15  So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. 16   For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17  For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."

My Prayer:
Praise be to the only true and living God!  May we live to show your greatness and awesome nature.  Help us to proclaim boldly the good news of our resurrected Christ.  Help us to encourage one another in the faith.  May we ever righteously live by faith.  Grow us Lord.
In Jesus name             Amen