Romans 2 Practice What You Preach

Read Romans 2

This passage basically is in two sections -- God's Wrath and the Jews and the Law. But the summary for us today seems to be, will you live as you say you are?

Verses 1-16 teach us that the wrath of God is supreme. He is the judge, period. But how often do we act as judge and jury of others when we are committing sin against the Father? (See 2:1-4) God's reward is going to come on all men "who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality...." (2:7)

The second part reminds us that we must live under the law but more importantly, under the circumcision of the heart. (vs 12-29) Our lives must be examples, not talking heads. We have to model the law to uphold it.

I was raised in the church. I know the lingo. I know the theology. I know the doctrine. But the question is do I model what I teach? Am I living in the physical circumcision or in the circumcision of the heart? And if I am living the law only, then I am judging others who are not following the law and missing the entire objective myself.

What is that objective? To love the Lord my God with all my heart, soul, mind and strength and to love my neighbor as myself. (Mark 12:30-31 paraphrased) That life involves living under the law with the power of the heart in action. I cannot straddle the two; they must be a joint venture. One without the other makes me either a pharisee or a hippy. I can't be bound alone by law, and in the same vein I can't just be spreading meaningless "love." I can only live out the powerful love of our Lord while living under His direction.

And both of these practices - living the law and living in love must be covered by grace. It is through grace that I see my own unworthiness and am humbled. And in that humility, I can extend grace to others who are also unworthy rather than burdening them with judgment. Judging others will only bring destruction to them and to myself. Living by grace does not condone their actions any more than it condones my sin. But grace allows us to love others within their sin. And maybe, just maybe, they will turn from their sin because they have seen love and grace lived out through me.

Lord, guide me to walk under Your laws and live under Your grace with an open heart to others who are just as broken as I am. So be it.

Further Thoughts:

1. What does living under the law truly mean?
2. Define grace with Scripture.
3. Examine your heart - has it been circumcised? What is standing in the way?

James 4:11-12. "Watch Your Words"

Read James 4:11-12.

"Brothers, do not slander one another." NIV

If you read yesterday's post before I changed it, this passage was lumped in. I've since pulled it out to deal with separately as it seems to deserve it's own post.

Slandering one another and thus judging them is a way of placing ourselves in judgement over them. When we do so, are we not placing ourselves in a sense above God if not at least equal to Him? Is that not what Lucifer did and was subsequently kicked out of heaven for? We must be careful to deal with our fellow brother with the grace that was afforded to us, not with bad-mouthing and degrading comments to others about them.

I don't believe this passage is talking about consequences of being sinned against by a brother or about biblical discipline. First, being sinned against causes great pain from trust being broken. If the offender is repentant, then over time that trust can be rebuilt and the relationship restored. However, during that time, both parties must not speak out against the other and try to destroy their reputation among others but keep their counsel to themselves.

Secondly, Scripture is very clear about those who profess to believe and yet choose to blantantly sin without any notion of or progression toward change. Read 1 Corinthians 5:1-13. Paul makes it very clear that the those who choose to live in their sin are to be put out of the church body and handed "over to Satan, so that the sinful nature may be destroyed and his spirit saved on the day of the Lord." This is an active discipline of the church and not considered slander for there is evidence of wrong doing and continued activity in it by choice. Therefore, it is not a matter of judging one another but of adherring to the standards that God set for us to follow as His children.

If they choose to walk in their sinful ways, then being part of the body, not as a seeker, but as one who claims to be a devoted Christ-follower, is not an option. Not only do they spit in the face of Christ by their choices, but their sin infiltrates the body like yeast working through the dough. A Christian must always work toward eradicating sin from their life, not courting it. Tolerating the sin will only push them farther from the presense of God by their disobedience.

But even while guiding a believer through biblical discipline, we must exercise restraint in talking against them. Slander will not help them in being restored to the fold, and your heart will be tainted by your judgmental attitude.

Further Thoughts:

1. What is the different actions taken by the church concerning an immoral believer versus an immoral non-believer?
2. How is vs. 11-12 related to the earlier passage in James 3:1-11?
3. Look for other passages either on the "tongue," "gossip," or "church discipline."
4. How does living in humility before God help us to keep a reign on our tongue?

James 2:1-13 "Mercy Over Judgment"

Read James 2:1-13.

"Mercy triumphs over judgment!" NIV

How often have I been caught in this trap -- judging by appearances and favoring the one that looks better, dresses nicer, smells better. And I was so wrong. Jesus did just the opposite. He was drawn to the down and out, the castaways, the ostracized. Why is that?

I have been praying for some time now that God would allow me to see people as He sees them. That means that I must take the time to look past the outward appearances -- good or bad -- and into their heart which the Father sees. If they are good at masking their heart, I must rely on the Holy Spirit to help me to see the truth. But no matter what I see, I am called to love all people I come in contact with as my neighbor, and thus to love them as I love myself.

So it takes steps, 1) Remembering it's not about me, 2) Seeing past appearances, and 3) Trying to understand who people really are. We must always remember that we are not number one. We so often dwell on how am I looking to others, how will this affect me, am I going to be inconvenienced? I don't matter, what matters are others and their needs. When I received Christ as my Lord I died to self (and continue to die daily.) I must get past me first before I can reach out to others.

If I stay alert, I can get through number two pretty easily. All people are God's creation no matter what situation they are in right now. Lord, help me to not judge others by their appearance.

Accomplishing the third step is a little trickier. Jesus could look at someone and know everything about them. He told the woman at the well how many husbands she had and that she was not married to the man she was living with. I really don't expect the Lord to give me instant information like this although occasionally He does give me insights. So how do I know people for who they really are? How can I know someone who is hidden behind riches or rags?..... Questions. Really good questions.

Since I was a little girl I watched my mom ask really good questions. She could dig into the heart of a situation faster than anyone I knew. It can even start with a "How are you?" But what we must do is listen past the cursory, "Fine." everyone responds with. What's their body language, tone of voice, facial expression? Are they really fine? And most of the time, if I make sure that I really want to know how they are, they sense that and will tell more. If not, I need to probe further. Loving my neighbor as myself means I need to take time to really know them, understand them, hurt and rejoice with them.

Lord, help me not to overlook someone because of their appearances. Help me to see people as You see them. Give me ears to hear their true heart and wisdom to ask the right questions. May all I do come out of a love for You and for Your creation.

Further Thoughts:

1. Which of the three steps do you get hung up on? Why? What can you do to change that?
2. Have you ever thought of favoritism as a sin? Why or why not?
3. Reread the passage of Jesus with the woman at the well. (John 4:1-26) What other passages show Jesus reaching out to the unloved? See Luke 7:36-50 and John 8:1-11.
4. How is showing favoritism related to judging? Search for other Scriptures on "judging."

Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43, 47-52 "Reach Out to All"

Read Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43, 47-52.

"The kingdom of heaven is like...."

Commentators believe that the weed that Jesus is talking about here is the darnel. When it is young, it looks very much like wheat. But as it grows, it distinguishes itself from the true plant. We all begin in the same pool with a sinful nature. Before the age of accountability, we can look pretty much the same -- innocent, yet capable of mischief. Then there comes a point that we start making choices about the way we will live. Those choices are mostly influenced for good or for ill by the people that raise us and our peers. But in most cases, there is still a choice made none-the-less.

Then as adults we truly distinguish ourselves by things as big as our career or religious beliefs to how we dress and the words we use. The differences begin to come into focus like the slow turning of a camera's lens. Here is where the four distinctions of the sower come into play -- seed on the path, in the rocks, among the thorns, and in good soil. The question as believers is: How do we view these different groups? The answer: Like wheat and darnel weeds. It is not our job to start weeding the world. Those that may appear to be hopeless, deep-rooted, stubborn agricultural menaces, could change into sweet grain ready for harvest. Never underestimate the power of the Holy Spirit and our Lord drawing them to Him. You see, that's where the plant analogy ends. In our physical world, weeds never change into healthy, useful plants. But in the spiritual realm with the transforming power of Jesus Christ, they can. Look at Paul, look at Matthew, look in a mirror. God can still perform miracles today - He hasn't changed.

Our responsibility is to continue to live among the weeds and not allow them to infiltrate our lives with spiritual disease while at the same time spreading seed to reach as many as possible. The judgment is coming, but it is not our job. We must remain diligent until the end. Even though it should never leave our thoughts, it's not time for the harvest. We're still busy with the planting.

Further Thoughts:

1. Do you struggle with a judgmental spirit so much so that you give up on the apparent "hopeless cases?" Ask the Lord to show you those people as He sees them and to fill you with hope and purpose.
2. Saul is a prime example of the transforming power of God. Get to know Paul in Acts 8:1-3, Philippians 3:4-7, and 2 Corinthians 11:21-31. Then read his letters and hear his heart's cry for God's people.

Matthew 7:1-6 "Judge Not"

Read Matthew 7:1-6.

"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?" NIV

Anyone who has studied with me on this blog knows I most often take NIV sections of Scripture. But God did not section out the Bible that way, the New International Version committee did. So even though I am once again looking at a section here, you really need to look at 7:1-7:23 to get the complete picture.

Some would take 7:1-6 and say we should never hold anyone accountable for their sins because we ourselves always have sins that need dealt with as well. And this is true to an extent. But it goes much further than that. That is why for this entry in the "Further Thoughts" section, I am going to quote the NIV study note for verse 7:1. It gives plenty of references to work on to come to a much better understanding of this passage than I could give.

For the time being, however, let's just say that when we do see our brother or sister in sin, if they have a repentant spirit, we need to treat them with the grace that was afforded us by the Lord in our sin. If they are not repentant, we continue to show them love, but they have chosen to not be part of the body. (See 1 Corinthians 5:1-13 and Matthew 18:15-20.)

Our responsibility is to mainly be sure we have our hearts right with the Lord and are living as He would have us to live and sharing His love and His truth with others.

Further Thoughts:

1. New International Version Study Notes for Matthew 7:1, "The Christian is not to judge hypocritically or self-righteously, as can be seen from the context (v.5). The same thought is expressed in 23:13-29 (cf. Romans 2:1). To obey Christ's commands in this chapter, we must first evaluate a person's character -- whether he is a 'dog' (v.6) or a false prophet (v.15), or whether his life shows fruit (v.16). Scripture repeatedly exhorts believers to evaluate carefully and choose between good and bad people and things (sexually immoral, 1 Corinthians 5:9; those who masquerade as angels of light, 2 Corinthians 11:14; dogs, Philippians 3:2; false prophets, 1 John 4:1). The Christian is to "test everything" (1 Thessalonians 5:21)."