The resources God has given us to live a thriving life are His Word, Spirit, and People.
Read God’s Word:
Romans 1-4, Acts 20:1-3
Act 3: God’s New Covenant People
Scene 4: Christ’s Church: God’s People Advance the Kingdom
Background Information: Romans 1-4, Acts 20:1-3
We would be without hope of knowing God if he had not revealed himself to us. Humans often try to guess as to what the nature of ultimate reality is. Some say there is no god, that everything exists on its on without a creator. Some believe that there is no distinction between god or the gods and the Cosmos. Some design their own gods and then build their faith around their designer gods. When it comes to God, humans are terrible guessers. The one true God has made himself known to us so that we would love, obey, honor and enjoy him. Paul, writing his inspired letter to the church at Rome, writes of God’s revelation of himself in the Holy Scriptures (our Old Testament) that pointed forward to the gospel of Jesus Christ. God’s revelation of himself in Scriptures and in the person of Jesus have been called Special Revelation. Without these we would not have the knowledge necessary for salvation. Paul said that God has also revealed himself in creation. Some truth about God’s power and nature can be understood from what he has made. In addition, God has revealed himself in the human conscience, this built-in knowledge that there is good and evil, right and wrong–a kind of GPS pointing our hearts towards God. These two things, creation and conscience, have been called General Revelation. Since Special Revelation is necessary for salvation what about those without access to Scripture or who have not heard the gospel? How is God just to exclude them? Paul writes that people reject the knowledge of God they have been given. This includes the knowledge of creation and of conscience. Even many in Israel, who were given the revelation of God’s word, rejected it and lived and died in disobedience. Furthermore, many who hear the gospel of Jesus reject his offer of eternal life. The practical answer to the question of “what about those who have never heard” is that we should make sure that people around us do hear. Paul wrote that he was not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. What he meant by not being ashamed is that he sought to introduce Christ to everyone he encountered. We must trust God with our questions of his justice and “fairness.” We must obey God in our calling to introduce him to everyone as we have opportunity. We must be faithful to look for and make opportunity to share the good news of Christ. We must never become ashamed of the gospel.
Pray:
Praise God for…
Thank God for…
Confess your sins to God
Pray for Uyghurs living in their homeland of Northwest China – that God would take their suffering and use it for their good and His glory.
Ask God for… (what else concerns you?)
Reflect:
Write down one passage of scripture that stood out to you today.
Write down why this passage stood out to you.
Engage Community:
Text or call someone now and tell them…
– What you are praying for.
– What stood out from God’s word today.