pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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Hope and Peace

Reading: Romans 5:1-5

Romans 5:1 – “Therefore, since we have been made righteous through his [Jesus’] faithfulness, we have peace with our God through Jesus Christ.”

Our passage today begins with a connecting word: “Therefore…” In Paul’s original letter there was no big “5” nor were there any small numbers marking verses. 4:25 would’ve just flowed into 5:1. In what we call chapter 4, Paul has been writing about how Jesus died for our “mistakes,” meeting the “requirements of righteousness for us.” Through his blood we are forgiven. “Therefore, since we have been made righteous through his [Jesus’] faithfulness, we have peace with our God through Jesus Christ.” Being made right again with God, cleansed and forgiven, we have “peace” with God. We are reconciled back into right relationship with God through Jesus Christ’s faithfulness.

Living in right relationship through faith, we can stand firm and we can hold onto hope. These are essential to our walk of faith. Paul gets to the “why” in verses 3 and 4. “Problems,” as Paul puts it, are simply part of living as imperfect creatures in this broken, sinful world. Sometimes these “troubles” are our own making, sometimes not. We are each just one of a world full of imperfect creatures. But because we have hope and because we can stand firm in Jesus Christ, we can “see” beyond our present troubles and problems. We know that the world does not have the last word.

Through the Holy Spirit, which pours the love of God into our hearts, we can endure the hard times. This endurance builds up our Christian character, which, in turn, reinforces our hope. What enables us to go through this refining and growing process again and again? The loving presence of God in Spirit that covers us in God’s peace. For this presence and the peace and hope that it brings to our hearts and minds, we say thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, it is hard to imagine living this life without you. Some do, but without hope and peace, the struggles and trials of this world would overwhelm us. Therefore we thank you first for Jesus’ sacrifice, which allows us to be in your presence. It is your Spirit presence that gives us the love, hope, and peace that guides us through the struggles and trials. Thank you for this loving presence, the fuel for our faith and hope. Amen.


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Act Differently

Reading: Proverbs 25 and 26

‭Proverbs 26:21 – “Like adding charcoal to embers or wood to fire, quarrelsome people kindle strife.”

Removing the dross from the silver is like removing the evil from the royal court – a beautiful vessel is the result. Removing arrogance and pride not only avoids some embarrassment, it could lead to honor and recognition. Removing fuel from the fire and gossip from conversations both cool the situation. Removing the selfish and evil from our lives yields good outcomes.

Much is said about a lying tongue. False testimony is like a club or sword to the victim. A lying tongue crushes and brings destruction to those affected. The sage compares smooth lips and an evil heart to silver coating on clay – both can look or sound good from a distance but it is oh so fragile underneath.

Fools are slow to learn. They repeat their mistakes often so they are like “a dog jwho returns to their vomit.” Neither makes much sense but both happen. Those without self-control are like a breached city – no walls or filters. So just as a whip is used to control a horse so too must a rod be used on a fool’s back.

The wise act differently. Their words calm strife and build up. These words are like “golden apples in a silver setting.” Instead of making fun of or ignoring their enemies when they’re hungry or thirsty, a wise person gives them food and drink. The wise understand that compassion is much more powerful than hate or anger. So too may our words and actions bring healing and wholeness, peace and hope.

Prayer: Lord God, while it seems so, so clear that wisdom and humility are the much better choices, we can be selfish, we can speak hurtful words, we can gossip and tear down, we can play the fool. So, Lord, help us. Send the Holy Spirit to whisper in our ear when we venture down the wrong path. May the Spirit shout if need be. May the nudge become a shove too if we’re not quite seeing how we’ve gone down the wrong path. Help us, Lord, to be love and healing to our broken world. Amen.