Peace with God

Peace with God

Romans 5:1

Week 2 of January 2018

 I am currently teaching a series in Romans chapter 5.  While verse 9 and 10 are my focus,  I want to include some secondary teachings from the entire chapter.     I'm doing this on Wednesday night,  through the radio on Sunday mornings,  and through this blog.

I'm going to illustrate  my teaching primarily from the Old Testament using the Exodus as our example.   What happened in the Exodus?   if you remember the people of God were slaves to Egypt.   They were not happy in Egypt  and they possessed no real purpose or satisfaction in their existence.   Again and again they cried out to God for deliverance.

Finally,  when Israel least expected it God's presence graced them in a person named Moses.  Moses, empowered by God and directed by him confronted Pharaoh.   Through a series of miracles and judgments God’s people were freed,  nevermore to return to Egypt as slaves.

While they were free,  they never experience a victory.   In their disbelief,  they failed to exercise faith trust and reliance upon God and they found themselves dwelling in deserts for the rest of their lives.

God wanted to give them the victory of Canaan,  homes they did not build,  roads they did not pave,  and crops they did not plant.   While all of that was something God very much wanted to give them they choose to settle for the lesser blessing.  They chose to eat manna instead off grapes, they choose quail {lean meat} instead of fatted calfs.  

What is the problem with the Israelites?  I think their problem was the same as our problem today.  They spent to much time as wilderness dwellers.  The wilderness although was not God’s perfect plan, it was his permissive plan.   

God had more, much more that he wanted to give them but his gifts were cut short because of the peoples attitude, and desires.  Their lack of faith caused them to be short sighted, and casual in their obedience.   They only knew the dessert life and therefore they only wanted the dessert, as it became an awkward comfortable existence. 

In this New Year, can you examine your life and Ask God to show you, convict you in the areas that he has much more for you?  Much more for your personal life, much more for your church, and much more for your community.

Paul said in Romans 5: 1 that we have been justified through faith.  That justification is a great gift but it is not the only gift. There is more, much more.  

The much more life begins as we live at peace with God!