Major Themes in Matthew’s Gospel

1. Jesus is God’s messiah who was enthroned on the cross and who now reigns over all creation as the risen Lord.
2. The kingdom of God has come to defeat the powers of death, destruction, and evil and renew all things.
3. God’s blessings to Israel have begun to overflow to the Gentiles.
4. The messiah reveals the true meaning and purpose of God’s law.
5. God is renewing Israel by forming a community of disciples faithful to the way of Jesus and sending it to world in his name.

Blessed is the Nation

The use and misuse of Psalm 33:12

The first half of Psalm 33:12 is yet another biblical passage misappropriated by some who claim that the United States is a Christian nation.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD

This verse does not apply to the United States or any other nation on earth. The second half of the verse identifies which nation the Psalmist has in mind.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD,
the people he chose for his inheritance. (Psalm 33:12)

The Holy Spirit in Romans

A list of references to the Holy Spirit in Romans sorted by theme

Resurrection power

the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh, and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, (Romans 1:4)

Membership in the people of God

Rather, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not the written code. (Romans 2:29)

But now we are discharged from the law, dead to that which held us captive, so that we are enslaved in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the written code. (Romans 7:6)

to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:16)

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. (Romans 8:14)

When we cry, “Abba! Father!” it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs: heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if we in fact suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans 8:15-17)

No Condemnation

Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1)

Why is there no condemnation? Should there be condemnation?

God’s Wrath

Paul begins the letter by writing, “For the wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and injustice of those who by their injustice suppress the truth” (Romans 1:18). The world is a messed up place. People have committed crimes against each other and against God’s justice. There is a coming “day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed” (Romans 2:5). In Romans 1:29-32, Paul lists some of the evil things that people do which, he says, deserve death. Even worse, he says, has says that “all have sinned” (Romans 3:23) and “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).

 What might God do about this? The options are:

1. God does nothing and all forms of evil continue to run rampant. Grace, however, does not mean doing nothing.
2. God judges the world and destroys all the evil people. That’s the story of the great flood in Genesis. That approach is not the solution. Sin reappears in Genesis as soon as Noah gets off the boat.
3. God destroys evil but provides a means of escaping judgement. What means of rescue might there be if everyone is part of the problem.

Justification

It’s tempting to think of this problem solely in legal terms. There are plenty of legal-sounding terms in Romans. Justice (also translatable as righteousness) and judgement show up frequently, both by themselves and in compound words, both in nouns and verbs. The verb that runs through Romans is “justify.” God justifies the ungodly (Romans 4:5). In legal terms, to justify is to acquit, to declare someone “not guilty” and free them from the legal consequences of the crimes of which they have been accused.

Stairway to Heaven: Jacob at Bethel

Genesis 28:10-19

Surely the LORD is in this place–and I did not know it! How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.

Jacob’s Journey

It’s a long way from Beersheba to Haran – about the distance from Savannah, Georgia to Richmond, Virginia. Jacob had been on the road only a few days. The trip would take 10 times that long. He had been traveling the ridge road through the Judean hills, and he came to a place called Almond Tree – or Luz, in Hebrew.

When he got to Almond Tree, the sun was going down. He had been walking – fast – all day. He was in a hurry. He was hot. He was tired. He was thirsty. He was hungry. He was alone. His future didn’t look very bright. He lay down in the dust and literally pulled up a rock as a pillow.