In Christ, we are promised many things, including this: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:10). By grace through faith, if we are in Christ, then for Christ we will be treated with contempt, scorned for our faithfulness. For the Christian, persecution is not the consequence of a lack of faith but evidence of it.
Tag Archives: Obedience
How God Strengthens His Church
God also strengthens his church through the obedience of faith, an expression Paul used to begin this letter and now to conclude to it. It is the obedience to believe the gospel as well as to live it. Or, as one commentator describes it, “obedience always involves faith, and faith always involves obedience.”[3] He who enabled and empowered us to believe so also enables and empowers us to live obedient lives. We shall not be defined by sin and the decay of death but life through the faith God gives: “May we be rich in faith, be strong in faith, live by faith, walk by faith, experience the joy of faith, do the work of faith, hope through faith.”[4] And so, God strengthens his church through the obedience of faith.
The Righteous Shall Live by Faith
God desires that all kinds of people be saved, including those with whom you disagree and differ, and “come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:4) of the gospel: “For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved…For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’” (10:10, 13). This is the gospel, good news for you, good news for me, good news for our nation, good news for the world.
What the Law Demands
What is Paul’s opinion of the law of God? On the one hand, he says the law incites transgression (5:20), constrains liberty (7:1), arouses sin (7:5), and promises life but proves death (7:10). But on the other hand, he says, “the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good” (7:12). How can this be? Is Paul confused?
Love Among Friends
One of the evidences of Christian maturity is in fact love for one another. And in our friendship with Christ, as we love one another, true friendships begin to blossom. One of God’s blessings upon the local church is true and lasting friendships among brothers and sisters in Christ.
Rendered and Redeemed
What does this mean for the Christian? It means that we are not our own, for we have been bought with a price (1 Cor. 6:19-20). All of us, heart, soul, mind, and body is the Lord’s.
From the Heart
The promise is not of a better heart but a new one, one with which we may love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our mind” (Matt. 22:37).
Founded on the Rock
All that we need to know, all that we need to mature, all that we need for “every good work” is given to us in the Word.
The Way of Life
It is only by abiding in Him that we bear much fruit, because apart from Him we can do nothing.
Living Graciously
Living graciously is a gospel-centered life, a joyful life lived in light of the grace we have received in Christ.
Planter, Pastor, Preacher 