Scripture

When a potter makes jars out of clay, doesn’t he have the right to use the same lump of clay to make one jar for decoration and another to throw garbage into?

Observation

Even though God chooses some and not others, we cannot accuse Him of being unfair. He shows mercy to anyone He chooses.

God told Pharaoh that He appointed him for displaying God’s power and to spread God’s fame.

If God determines who will respond to the Good News, why does He blame those who do not respond? This is like a potter who makes two jars from the one lump of clay – one to decorate and the other one to use to hold garbage.

Application

There are many questions where the boundaries of human free will and divine sovereignty intersect.

Calvinists say that God chooses who will be saved and who will be condemned. Free will in people can never impinge on God’s freedom to do with His creation whatever He chooses.

Arminians, on the other hand, say that people are free to respond to the gospel and to receive God’s offer of salvation. They are also free to reject God. Love cannot be love unless we choose to receive or reject the offer of love.

The truth is that whichever end you choose to start at, you must understand both sides. God is in control, and He controls our destiny in such a way that we still choose to accept or reject Him.

Paul quotes the example of Pharaoh whom it was said was chosen by God to glorify Him through the world. At this point, Pharaoh had a choice to glorify God through repentance and submission to the Lord. We know he chose a different way. Even though God was determined to free His people from Egypt, Pharaoh had freedom to work with the Lord or to resist Him.

The choice always remains with us about whether we will follow God’s way or not. As we walk down the path of rebellion, our hearts become harder and harder.

Prayer

Lord, I thank you for calling me out of darkness and into the kingdom of your dear Son. Amen.

Scripture

This means that Abraham’s physical descendants are not necessarily children of God. Only the children of the promise are considered to be Abraham’s children.

Observation

Paul writes that his heart is filled with grief for his Jewish brothers and sisters. They are God’s adopted children. God revealed His glory to them, made covenants with them, and gave them the privilege of worshipping Him.

Being a descendant of Abraham, though, does not make a person a child of God. Only the children of the promise are God’s children. The example of this is Esau’s rejection by God in favour of Jacob.

Application

Many Jewish people made their family tree – their lineage from Abraham – the proof that they were God’s children. But Paul says that the Scriptures show that not every descendant of Abraham is a child of God.

Many Jews refused to believe that Jesus is the Messiah. Since Jesus is now the only way to the Father and the only way to be saved, this means that they are going to hell. They could have been saved, and should have been saved, but their rejection of Christ showed they were not truly children of God’s promise.

Anyone who puts their trust in anything other than Christ will also be rejected by God. There is only one way to be saved, one name by which we are forgiven- Jesus.

You can’t be saved by a parent’s faith, by going to church, or by water baptism.

Jesus is the only way to be saved.

Prayer

Lord, I thank you that you have given us your Son to be our salvation. Please protect me from the idols that try to distract me from you, and keep me on the right path with you. Amen.

Scripture

No power in the sky above or on the earth below – indeed nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Observation

The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. Even if we don’t know how to pray, the Spirit prays for us in groans that cannot be expressed in words.

God causes all things to work together for our good. He knows us in advance and He knows what we need to make us more like Jesus.

God has not held anything back – He even gave His son for us, so won’t He give us everything else we need?

Nothing can separate us from God’s love. Despite trouble, calamity, and persecution we are more than conquerors in Christ. So nothing in heaven or on earth can ever overcome us or separate us from the love of God.

Application

God’s love for us is absolutely invincible. Nothing in all creation can cut is off from it.

Some people are afraid of satan and demons. In God’s eyes these are nothing. God is far more powerful and has already broken their power.

Some people fear trouble in the world. I am surprised at the number of christians living in fear of the corona virus. Even when it is legal to hold church meetings, these people keep their churches closed out of fear.

Some people are anxious that they might not stand firm if opposition or persecution come against them. How awful it would be to deny Christ under pressure. But even this cannot separate us from God’s love.

Nothing in the whole of creation can separate us from God’s love – except us. We have freedom to walk away from God. Nothing outside of ourselves can cut us off.

Prayer

This promise is so enormous, Father. Your love for me is never ending, and it is greater than anything that might come against me. Amen.

Scripture

Since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share in his glory, we must also share in his suffering.

Observation

All who are led by the Spirit of God are God’s children. We have not received a spirit of slavery, but the Spirit of adoption. We call Him “Abba, Father” because we are His children. We are heirs of the Father’s glory, but if we are to share Christ’s gory we must also share in His suffering.

All creation is waiting eagerly to see who God’s children really are. The creation was subjected to bondage by Adam’s sin, but it will join God’s children in freedom from death. We also have the hope of release from sin and suffering.

Application

We are heirs of the Father, joint heirs with Christ.

Everything that God owns He will share with us. This is the way it was meant to be before Adam and Eve sinned, bringing death and curse into the world. People were supposed to work in partnership with God to unlock the secrets of the creation.

When God recreates the heavens and the earth, we will once again walk in perfect fellowship with God, in a world where there is no death and no sorrow.

As heirs of God’s glory, we will share in His morality and character to a far higher degree than we do now. No temptation and no sin will block us from communion with Him.

We will walk with greater dignity and self-esteem. Bullies and abusers will no longer peddle their suffering. We will see ourselves as God sees us- the pinnacle of creation.

All of this is ours. We are already in the family, so we already share in the benefits. But much more will come our way.

In the meantime, as we enjoy the benefits of being Christ’s joint heirs, we must also share in His suffering. In the west, this might mainly be insults and name calling at the moment, although some have lost their jobs for their stand. In many parts of the world, suffering with Christ is a literal fact of life.

Prayer

Father God, thank you for adopting me into your family. Thank you for the promise of inheritance. Amen.

Scripture

The Spirit of God who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.

Observation

There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ. The power of the Spirit of God has freed us from sin and death. In Christ’s body, God declared an end to sin’s reign.

Those who are dominated by sin think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. The sinful nature is hostile to God, so people who are under the reign of sin cannot please God.

When we come to Christ, the Spirit of God comes in to us to live in us and to bring us eternal life. This is the same Spirit who raised Christ from the dead, and will give life to us in the same way.

Application

The Holy Spirit raised Jesus from the dead and He will certainly bring life to our bodies. The Spirit is like a guarantee that we will be saved.

Christians can rise above the despair of our culture by affirming that we will live for ever. Life is more than 70 or so years of meaningless existence. We were made for eternity.

The Holy Spirit assures us that we are destined for eternal life. We have been set free from the law of sin and death. We have been given a new nature, a nature that is being equipped for heaven.

The same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead now lives in me, and will in the same way raise me from death also.

For christians, death is not the last word. Death has been defeated by Christ, and it no longer has a hold on us.

Prayer

Hallelujah! Father, I thank you that through your Son you have conquered death, and through your Spirit you assure me of eternal life. Amen.

Scripture

I love God’s law with all my heart. But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a save to the sin that is still within me.

Observation

There is nothing good in our sinful nature. We want to do what is right, but we can’t do it. Regardless of what we intend, we end up doing the wrong thing.

Paul says he loves God’s law with all his heart, but even so, he is captive to another power at work in him. There seems to be no way out.

But praise God! The answer is in Jesus Christ. He supplies the answer to the dilemma.

Application

As a zealous Pharisee, Paul was passionate about God’s law. Before he came to Christ, he thought that the law of God was the answer to sin.

All christians, including Paul, have been given forgiveness and righteousness from God through Christ.

But still sin has a hold over us. We can let our old sinful nature dominate our lifestyle to the point that people around us cannot see any difference in our lives.

The law cannot fix this problem. No kind of legalism can solve the dilemma. Only surrendering ourselves to Christ will make us truly righteous.

When christians sin in one part of our lives, it is a sign that we not really handed that part of our lives over to Christ. We are still controlled in that area by our sinful nature.

To be set free from sin, we must continually yield our mind, body and soul to God. We are called to be holy to the Lord, set apart for His purposes. That means every part of our lives is to be holy.

It is not my efforts or striving that brings this into being. No, it is the power of God in me.

Prayer

Thank you Lord for setting me free from sin. Please help me to surrender every part of my life over to you to be used for your glory. Amen.

Scripture

Sin took advantage of these commands and deceived me; it used the command to kill me. But still the law itself is holy, and its commands are holy and right and good.

Observation

Paul is not saying that the law of God is itself sinful. No, the law shows us our sin. We didn’t know it was wrong to covet until God’s law told us so,

But when we know coveting is wrong, sin immediately causes us to do the wrong thing. The law’s commands bring life, but sin uses the same command to kill us. The law itself is holy, righteous and good.

Application

It is the nature of sin to take what is good and turn it to evil. Although Paul is talking about the Jewish Law here, it is true of any good gift from God.

Sex is God’s good gift, bringing babies into the world and deepening the connection between husband and wife. Sin takes this life-giving thing and uses it to wreak havoc in society through babies born to single mothers, adultery, pornography, prostitution, child trafficking- the toll of human suffering goes on and on.

Drugs, used correctly, are a gift from God for healing, pain relief and many other positive things. But misuse of them causes addiction and health issues, even death, as well as crime and corruption.

Every good gift from God has the potential to be twisted by sin so that what is meant to bring us joy and life brings instead misery and death.

So I need to constantly examine my heart. Do I bring life to myself and others, or do I bring death? Am I walking in the ways of God’s goodness, or am I seeking my own benefit?

Prayer

Lord, I am so aware of the tendency of sin, of my sin, to hurt others and myself. Please help me to live in submission to you. Amen.

Scripture

But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.

Observation

The law only constrains us while a person is living. So a married woman does not commit adultery if her husband dies and she then remarries.

We have died to the power of God’s law because we died in Christ. We are no longer controlled by our old nature, and the law is no longer stirring up evil desires. Now we are free to serve God in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Application

One of the problems of legalism is that it stirs up our fascination with sin. If somebody had not told me not to covet my neighbour’s wife, it is quite possible that it would never occur to me to do that, much less commit adultery.

The problem with the law is that sin is not about our actions but our motivations. We see this at work in the recent lock down and curfew in Victoria. When a curfew was announced, the internet lit up with questions like “Can I stay at my girlfriend’s house?” and “Can the lawn mowing contractor still come?”

It is not surprising that hundreds of people have lied on their cross-border permit applications. When a Government first restricts access it seems that most people’s first thought is not, “That’s a sensible precaution at this time”, but” I’ve got to go there, now, at any cost.”

So God’s law was never about controlling behaviour but addressing sinful desire.

Now Jesus has set us free from the power and the penalty of sin, so we do not have to follow a written law to find favour with God. Rather, we serve God by living our lives in surrender to the Holy Spirit.

Over time, the Holy Spirit changes our desires and our attitudes. I no longer need to worry about a law that says, “Do not steal.” The Holy Spirit is teaching me to trust in His provision and to share what I already have with my neighbours in need.

Prayer

Thank you Father for the gift of salvation in Jesus Christ. Thank you that I don’t need to learn a set of rules to please you, but instead I can hear the still small voice of your Spirit at any time. Amen.