Romans 8:1 – So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. ² And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. ³ The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. ⁴ He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.

⁵ Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. ⁶ So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. ⁷ For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. ⁸ That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.

⁹ But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) ¹⁰ And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. ¹¹ 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. (NLT) 

If we were reading through Paul’s letter to the church in Rome from the beginning, we would have seen that to this point Paul has mentioned the Spirit only briefly.  In this chapter alone Paul will mention the Spirit at least twenty times.  Throughout this letter, and in this chapter, Paul uses the words Spirit, Holy Spirit, Spirit of God, and Spirit of Christ, interchangeably.  While we never find the term Holy Trinity in the Bible, it is clear to see that Paul was well versed in the doctrine of the Hoy Trinity.

While Paul  doesn’t use the word slave here, basically he’s giving the same idea – each of us will be controlled by something.  In verse five uses the phrases ‘dominated by’, and ‘controlled by’.  Each of these phrases speaks to the idea of the human spirit being enslaved by something.  We are fallen, and something will dominate and control each of us.  When sin dominates us, our minds are filled with thoughts of sinful things.  In fact, when sin dominates us, we are hostile towards God (verse 7).

However, when the Holy Spirit dominates us, we think of godly things.  Paul is not saying we will never sin.  Indeed, he tells us that we will sin (Romans 3:23), but we will not be controlled by sin if we seek a Spirit filled life.  In verse six we are told that a Spirit filled life leads to peace in our lives.  The Greek word we translate as peace is εἰρήνη.  This word literally means tranquility.  Life is often stressful; we could all use some tranquility!

Today, let us seek God’s Spirit and experience some peace and tranquility in our lives. 

Posted by Ramón Torres

Romans 7:15 – I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. ¹⁶ But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. ¹⁷ So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

¹⁸ And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. ¹⁹ I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. ²⁰ But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

²¹ I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. ²² I love God’s law with all my heart. ²³ But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. ²⁴ Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? ²⁵ Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin. (NLT)

In verse 15 Paul speaks of a situation in life where we often find ourselves – behaving in a way in which we know is wrong, an action that we dislike, yet we feel powerless to change.  Maybe this is anger towards someone, a grudge we can’t let go off, or a habit that holds us captive.  Whatever the situation, we all have found ourselves there.  Looking at verse 15 alone, one would think we are powerless to change.  That’s the point!  On our own, we are powerless to change.

As always, we should read more than one verse to gain a proper biblical understanding.  Paul states in verse 17 that what causes us to become stuck in such a behavior is sin living within us.  Here is a biblical truth we cannot ignore – sin wants to live within us.  Paul tells us in verse 18 that we will always lose to sin – on our own.  Verse 24 asks a question that each Christian must ask: “Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin?”

The answer is in verse 25: “Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.”  Now the Scripture wasn’t written in chapters and verses as we have it today.  Many of the books and letters were one continuous work.  Unfortunately, when the Scriptures were divided into chapter and verses, it caused us to miss something powerful in a passage because the key to understand the passage is in the next chapter.  Here in Romans, we quit reading at the end of chapter seven, but the first verse of chapter eight holds a key to understanding this passage.  Consider the end of chapter seven and the beginning of chapter eight together:  “Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin. So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus”.

Because of our faith in what Jesus has done for us, there is no longer any condemnation for those who belong to Jesus!  This is no excuse for our not trying to better ourselves, but when we fail, and when our hearts truly desire what is right, our sin is no longer held against us.  This, my friends, is Good News!

Today, let us do our best to live the life that God desires, but let us also know that there is no condemnation for those who belong to Jesus!  Amen! 

Posted by Ramón Torres

Romans 15:14 – I am fully convinced, my dear brothers and sisters, that you are full of goodness. You know these things so well you can teach each other all about them. ¹⁵ Even so, I have been bold enough to write about some of these points, knowing that all you need is this reminder. For by God’s grace, ¹⁶ I am a special messenger from Christ Jesus to you Gentiles. I bring you the Good News so that I might present you as an acceptable offering to God, made holy by the Holy Spirit. ¹⁷ So I have reason to be enthusiastic about all Christ Jesus has done through me in my service to God. ¹⁸ Yet I dare not boast about anything except what Christ has done through me, bringing the Gentiles to God by my message and by the way I worked among them. ¹⁹ They were convinced by the power of miraculous signs and wonders and by the power of God’s Spirit. In this way, I have fully presented the Good News of Christ from Jerusalem all the way to Illyricum. (NLT)

In this passage Paul is nearing the end of his lengthy letter to the church in Rome.  He’s wrapping things up, and doing his best to smooth over any feathers that he’s ruffled!  (A good lesson in and of itself, by the way).  Today I’d like to focus on just two verses from this passage.

First, consider verse 17: “So I have reason to be enthusiastic about all Christ Jesus has done through me in my service to God.”  There is a difference between being filled with pride and being filled with enthusiasm.  Paul was enthusiastic about what God was doing with and through his life.  Consider Paul’s life before his Damascus road experience.  He had spent much energy on persecuting Christians, running many out of Jerusalem (and inadvertently aiding the spread of the Gospel).  Paul considers his life then, and compares it with his current life.  When he considered such things, he got enthusiastic – he got excited about Jesus!

Now consider verse 18: “Yet I dare not boast about anything except what Christ has done through me.”  Paul did not say that he would not boast.  Paul said that he would not boast about what he had done, but rather he would boast about what Christ had done!  Boasting about Christ is good stuff!

Today, let us consider a powerful way to witness – by being enthusiastic about the difference that Jesus has made in our lives.  Let us boast about the things Christ has done! 

Posted by Ramón Torres

Romans 3:1-8 – Then what’s the advantage of being a Jew? Is there any value in the ceremony of circumcision? ² Yes, there are great benefits! First of all, the Jews were entrusted with the whole revelation of God. ³ True, some of them were unfaithful; but just because they were unfaithful, does that mean God will be unfaithful? ⁴ Of course not! Even if everyone else is a liar, God is true. As the Scriptures say about him,

“You will be proved right in what you say,
and you will win your case in court.”

⁵ “But,” some might say, “our sinfulness serves a good purpose, for it helps people see how righteous God is. Isn’t it unfair, then, for him to punish us?” (This is merely a human point of view.) ⁶ Of course not! If God were not entirely fair, how would he be qualified to judge the world? ⁷ “But,” someone might still argue, “how can God condemn me as a sinner if my dishonesty highlights his truthfulness and brings him more glory?” ⁸ And some people even slander us by claiming that we say, “The more we sin, the better it is!” Those who say such things deserve to be condemned. (NLT)

Throughout his letters, Paul seems to give a lot of attention to the law, and to the Jewish faith.  We need to understand why.  First, the majority of the first Christians were Jews, and remained true to many of the Jewish traditions.  Indeed, even Paul observed many Jewish traditions.  In Acts 18 we read that Paul shaved his head following the observance of a vow (Acts 18:18).  This was most likely a Jewish Nazarite vow.  Because so many Christians were intertwined with Jewish customs, Paul often spoke of the relationship between Jews, Christians, and God.  This also led to the second reason he spoke often of the Jews – the observance of the law.

Customs and traditions are fine – as long as we know why we do them, and as long as they bring something meaningful into our relationship with God.  In this passage, Paul states that being a Jew was special, but not that it earned one more points with God than being a Gentile (non-Jewish).  In verse two he states that being a Jew was special because the revelation of God came through the Jews.

I think we can ask ourselves – what’s the advantage of being a Christian?  I can think of many advantages!  There are many Christians, who when asked what is the advantage of being a Christian, will answer with “eternal life.”  Eternal life is a great benefit, to be sure!  However, if that is our only answer – how sad!  I believe that Paul speaks to this in this passage.  Having our sins forgiven, and being right with God, should lead us into a different life here and now.  We should not remain content to sin because we are forgiven.  Paul tells us in Romans 12:1 – And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. (NLT)

Through Jesus, we are forgiven and right with God, but this of itself is not how we should show the righteousness of God (verse 5).  Let us not be content to let only our Christian traditions (going to church, receiving communion, etc.) speak of God’s power, but our very lives.  If we truly want to show others the power of God – and we should – then let it be seen in the difference that God makes in our lives this day!   

Posted by Ramón Torres

Galatians 4:21 – Tell me, you who want to live under the law, do you know what the law actually says? ²² The Scriptures say that Abraham had two sons, one from his slave wife and one from his freeborn wife. ²³ The son of the slave wife was born in a human attempt to bring about the fulfillment of God’s promise. But the son of the freeborn wife was born as God’s own fulfillment of his promise.

²⁴ These two women serve as an illustration of God’s two covenants. The first woman, Hagar, represents Mount Sinai where people received the law that enslaved them. ²⁵ And now Jerusalem is just like Mount Sinai in Arabia, because she and her children live in slavery to the law. ²⁶ But the other woman, Sarah, represents the heavenly Jerusalem. She is the free woman, and she is our mother. ²⁷ As Isaiah said,

“Rejoice, O childless woman,
you who have never given birth!
Break into a joyful shout,
you who have never been in labor!
For the desolate woman now has more children
than the woman who lives with her husband!”²⁸ And you, dear brothers and sisters, are children of the promise, just like Isaac. ²⁹ But you are now being persecuted by those who want you to keep the law, just as Ishmael, the child born by human effort, persecuted Isaac, the child born by the power of the Spirit.³⁰ But what do the Scriptures say about that? “Get rid of the slave and her son, for the son of the slave woman will not share the inheritance with the free woman’s son.” ³¹ So, dear brothers and sisters, we are not children of the slave woman; we are children of the free woman. (NLT)   

When I read this passage recently, I was reminded of an event that happened many years ago.  I had to appear in court with my seventeen year old son for a traffic violation.  What an interesting morning!  As we sat in the courtroom we had to wait through about 20 cases before my son’s case was heard.  It was a sad experience to watch families in crisis, some of which were feuding amongst themselves.  Even though the court was there to provide justice under the law, the atmosphere was heavy.  The law is the law, and a violation of the law must be dealt with according to the law.

Paul asks in verse 21: “Tell me, you who want to live under the law, do you know what the law actually says?”  It’s apparent that in our land, many don’t know what the law actually says!  Just as we are judged under the law of our land, if we choose to live under God’s law then we will be judged under God’s law.  God’s law was given so that the people could be right with God.  By the time that Jesus walked the earth, it should have been clear to those who were trying to live under God’s law that it just wasn’t working for them.  Yet, here we are two thousand years later, and many Christians are still trying to be made right with God by obeying religious laws!

By paying for our sins (which is breaking God’s law), Jesus has set us free.  In court, my son and I experienced a heavy atmosphere.  With God, we can experience joy instead!  Our violation of God’s law has been dealt with through the cross.  We are set free from any heaviness with God.  Paul says it best as he sums up this passage in Galatians 5:1 – “So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law”. 

Let there be no heaviness of heart in our relationship with God this day.  Let us approach God joyfully, knowing that we have been set free!   

Posted by Ramón Torres

Luke 10:21 – At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and he said, “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.
22 “My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
23 Then when they were alone, he turned to the disciples and said, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you have seen. 24 I tell you, many prophets and kings longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it.” (NLT)

Today’s passage follows the story of Jesus sending out seventy-two disciples to share the message that the kingdom of God was near. When they returned, they shared with Jesus that even the demons obeyed them when they used the name of Jesus (Luke 10:17). People were hearing and seeing evidence that God was doing a new thing. As a result, Jesus is filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit. Jesus then thanks the Father that this new thing has been revealed to the childlike. This tells us something of faith, and Jesus spoke of this in Mark 10:14-15 – “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.”

Contrast this childlike faith with that of the wise and clever that Jesus spoke of in verse twenty-one of today’s reading. Jesus is thankful that the kingdom was being experienced by the childlike, but the wise and clever could not experience the kingdom. Paul speaks of this in 1 Corinthians 1:24-25 – “But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength”.

God’s plan of salvation seems to be foolish by the ‘wise’ of the world. God’s foolishness, however, is wiser than the wisest of human plans. This passage always makes me think of my faith – and how it is that I come to God. For all my understanding, and even for my education (for which I am thankful), none of those things gets me any closer to God. It is only when I seek God like a child that I can approach the kingdom.

Recently, I was able to spend Father’s Day weekend with my grandchildren. One of my youngest, three years old, still has a childlike approach to the world. He see’s the world  with wide wonder. His honesty and approach to life are lessons for me, and for all of us!   

Today, let us approach the things of God like a child, and experience the wonder of God’s kingdom!

Posted by Ramón Torres

Romans 8:26 – In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. ²⁷ And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. (NIV)

Have you ever encountered a circumstance or situation in your life that was so difficult that you just didn’t know how to pray about it?  I suppose that is truly a rhetorical question, for we all have had such times.  During those difficult times, have you ever asked the Holy Spirit to pray for you?  The Holy Spirit is God’s Spirit, and it might seem strange to be asking God to pray for us, but that is what this passage suggests that we do.

Imagine the very Spirit of God interceding for us when find ourselves in troubling times.  We must, however, stay connected to God through God’s Spirit. An awareness of God’s Spirit not only guides us through each day, but helps us when we can’t find the words we need to pray. 

Thank God for God’s Spirit here with us!

Posted by Ramón Torres

Romans 7:7 – Well then, am I suggesting that the law of God is sinful? Of course not! In fact, it was the law that showed me my sin. I would never have known that coveting is wrong if the law had not said, “You must not covet.” ⁸ But sin used this command to arouse all kinds of covetous desires within me! If there were no law, sin would not have that power. ⁹ At one time I lived without understanding the law. But when I learned the command not to covet, for instance, the power of sin came to life, ¹⁰ and I died. So I discovered that the law’s commands, which were supposed to bring life, brought spiritual death instead. ¹¹ Sin took advantage of those commands and deceived me; it used the commands to kill me. ¹² But still, the law itself is holy, and its commands are holy and right and good.

¹³ But how can that be? Did the law, which is good, cause my death? Of course not! Sin used what was good to bring about my condemnation to death. So we can see how terrible sin really is. It uses God’s good commands for its own evil purposes.

¹⁴ So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. ¹⁵ I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. ¹⁶ But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. ¹⁷ So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

¹⁸ And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. ¹⁹ I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. ²⁰ But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

This passage continues where we left off last week.  Paul now explores what he has hinted at previously in this letter, that the law actually serves as a means of bringing more sin into our lives.  Because we have this natural desire in us to deviate from what is right, our sinful nature sees the law and says “Hey that sounds good!”  To sin, the law is like wood to a termite.  What good, then, is the law?  It helps us to recognize sin.  We are all sinful, and our nature is fallen.  The law allows us to see this more clearly.

In verses 9 and 10, Paul states that learning the law stimulated the power of sin, and he died.  He is speaking in spiritual terms.  The law promises life – if we can obey the law.  However, who can keep the law at all times?  Yet, the law is holy (verse 12).  The law, which is holy, does not cause us to be separated from God.  It is our sin that separates us from God, not the law.

Verse 14 is critical to understanding this passage: “So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin.”  In chapter 6 of Romans Paul writes that we are all slaves to something.  All too often, humans are slaves to sin.  In the remaining verses here in chapter 7, Paul writes about wanting to do what is right, but his sinful nature takes over.

Let’s consider verse 16: “But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good.” The law offers to us a paradox – if we continually hold the law before us, even though we know the law is good, it stimulates our sinful nature.  If not the law, what then should a Christian look to as a guide to live by?  We should look to Jesus.  The law holds before us what we should not be doing.  Instead of looking at what we should not be doing, we should look at how we should be living, and Jesus is the model for how we should be living.   

Posted by Ramón Torres

Romans 7:1 – Now, dear brothers and sisters—you who are familiar with the law—don’t you know that the law applies only while a person is living? ² For example, when a woman marries, the law binds her to her husband as long as he is alive. But if he dies, the laws of marriage no longer apply to her. ³ So while her husband is alive, she would be committing adultery if she married another man. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law and does not commit adultery when she remarries.

⁴ So, my dear brothers and sisters, this is the point: You died to the power of the law when you died with Christ. And now you are united with the one who was raised from the dead. As a result, we can produce a harvest of good deeds for God. ⁵ When we were controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death. ⁶ 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. (NLT)

The people of ancient Rome had a saying that the laws of Rome would apply to them only until they died!  The Apostle Paul, having been familiar with the saying, uses it in this passage as sort of a tongue in cheek remark.  His point is that we were formerly married to the power of the law. We have now died to the power of the law, and consequently, we are now free to belong to another.  That other – Jesus.

It wasn’t just the Jews who clung to religious laws in ancient times.  Many pagan cultures had various laws to follow.  Following these laws was their attempt to make things right with their gods.  As Christians, we don’t cling to any law, we cling to Christ.

We should note from verse four that the result of dying to the law is a harvest of good deeds!  (Other translations have bearing fruit for God).  Paul often mentions good deeds.  These good deeds are not our attempt to please God, but as Paul notes in verse 6, the result (or harvest) of a ‘new way of living in the Spirit.’  As Paul tells us in chapter five of Galatians, living in the Spirit produces a change in our lives (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control).  These changes are not seen just by ourselves, but by others through the harvest of our good deeds.

Are you living a new way in the Spirit of God?  A great way to measure our spiritual health is to take a look at ourselves.  Are we producing a harvest of good deeds? Today, let’s strive to live in the Spirit! 

Posted by Ramón Torres

Acts 2:1 – On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. ² Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. ³ Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. ⁴ And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

⁵ At that time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. ⁶ When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers.  ⁷ They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee, ⁸ and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages! ⁹ Here we are—Parthians, Medes, Elamites, people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, ¹⁰ Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the areas of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome ¹¹ (both Jews and converts to Judaism), Cretans, and Arabs. And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!”  (NLT)

In the Christian year, yesterday was Pentecost.  Pentecost is a day that many call the birthday of the church.  Pentecost is the day when the Holy Spirit first came down upon the disciples, and changed their lives, and the world, forever.  

Some people read passages of Scripture like the one for today and are filled with questions.  Is this what the gift of tongues is all about?  Were they speaking in other languages, or did the people just hear them in their language?  What was really going on?  When I read the Bible, I have many questions, as well.  However, what I try to do is take what I can from the reading and apply to life here and now.  How can we apply this passage to our daily lives?  

I think one of the best ways is to simply look at the big picture.  The disciples were all together.  That’s great, but then they went out and did what the Spirit led them to do.  Gathering as a church community is great, important, vital to our survival – but so is going out and doing what the Spirit leads us to do!  It is interesting to note that the nations listed in this passage were the known nations of that day.  In other words, the people of the church were making God’s presence known to all of the world.  We, too, are called to make God’s presence known to all of the world.  Let’s start today by making God’s presence known in our own little corner of the world! 

Posted by Ramón Torres