Romans One

I've started going through Romans with my sister and our best friend. This week we read Romans one, and let me tell you the more I read over it, the more I find. It's like drinking from a fire hydrant, which in this case is good. But since there is just so much to take in I wanted to get all my jumbled up thoughts down and out of my mind, so I thought this might be a good place to do so...

Romans One.

"For although [we] knew God, [we] neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but in [our] thinking became futile and [our] foolish hearts were darkened." - Romans 1:21

What struck me about this verse was just that if I don't consciously turn our thoughts to the Lord by glorifying and thanking him just for who he is and what he has done my thinking will become futile and my heart will become foolish and unresponsive to the Spirit's leading in my life. This is something that I have witnessed in my life recently. If I let my mind become so overwhelmed with worry and stress about how I'm gonna get all my school work done or what someone thinks of me or what the future holds and I don't take those thoughts captive or turn those thoughts to God in prayer I will loose sight of the glorious God who has set me free and given me abundant life through Jesus Christ!

"Although [we] claimed to be wise, [we] became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal human beings and birds and animals and reptiles." - Romans 1:22-23

These verses directly follow the one above. As a continuation I see this as a mindset that has changed. It's when I don't glorify the Lord and give thanks to him for all he has done that my heart becomes foolish and I begin to think that I can do it all on my own; That I've got this life thing figured out and I know what's best for me. It's my mindset that has changed. When I don't start my day giving glory and thanks to my God, my focus has immediately shifted and I have exchanged the "glory of the immortal God" for my own glory. My focus has turned off of the mighty God of the universe, who was and is and is to come, who is Yaweh, the covenant maker and the covenant keeper, who is the lover and protector of my soul, who is my Savior, and who knew me, chose me and numbered my days before time began. Why in the world would I want to exchange the glory of this GREAT and MIGHTY GOD for something that is merely human!? 

It is because I am human. It is a result of my natural human, sinful, depraved nature. But praise be to God that he has set me free and given me victory over this sinful nature by his son Jesus Christ. He has given me victory, but it is my choice to actively walk in this victory daily. 

"They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator- who is forever praised. Amen." - Romans 1:25

As a continuation of my thoughts above. I must actively seek truth about God. This verse stuck out to me immediately because recently I went through the book "Lies Women Believe" by Nancy Lee DeMoss (I highly recommend it!!). Our whole life, the way we think, the way we see the world, the way we interpret circumstances and events, the way we do relationships, the way we view ourselves is all rooted in what we believe about God. This book was so helpful in pin pointing lies that have subtly crept into my life that I have accepted as truth without even realizing it. In pin pointing them I have then been able to counter them with truth from the word of God!

"Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they no only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them." - Romans 1: 32 

This last verse was a reminder to me that the wages of sin is death. As a human, left up to my own devices I deserve death. Sometimes I know what's right and what God has called me to but I choose what gratifies my flesh. And for that I deserve death and eternal separation from this glorious, holy God. But again I will say, Praise be to the LORD! Who out of his great mercy sent his son Jesus to die the death I deserved so that I could receive grace from God!

Again this whole chapter was just overwhelming. Paul sets up the background for the story of salvation, that he will go on to expound on in the rest of his letter to the Romans. He presents humanity in our disgusting, wicked sinful nature. We are a people undeserving, but because of his unfathomable love Jesus took our place on the cross so that we could live with him forever!

Wow, I feel like I just wrote a book. But this helped get all my jumbled thoughts out coherently (hopefully) and work through the truth that the Lord is teaching me!