13 things for 2013

(from Romans 9-14 MSG) Hosea put it well: Ill call nobodies and make them somebodies; Ill call the unloved and make them beloved. In the place where they yelled out, Youre nobody! theyre calling you Gods living children. (Romans 9:25-26) -------Isaiah maintained this same emphasis: If each grain of sand on the seashore were numbered and the sum labeled chosen of God, Theyd be numbers still, not names; salvation comes by personal selection. God doesnt count us; he calls us by name. Arithmetic is not his focus. (Romans 9:27) -------Its the word of faith that welcomes God to go to work and set things right for us. This is the core of our preaching. Say the welcoming word to GodJesus is my Masterembracing, body and soul, Gods work of doing in us what he did in raising Jesus from the dead. Thats it. Youre not doing anything; youre simply calling out to God, trusting him to do it for you. Thats salvation. With your whole being you embrace God setting things right, and then you say it, right out loud: God has set everything right between him and me! (Romans 10:8-10) -------Is there anyone around who can explain God? Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do? Anyone who has done him such a huge favor that God has to ask his advice? Everything comes from him; Everything happens through him; Everything ends up in him. Always glory! Always praise! Yes. Yes. Yes. (Romans 11:34-36) -------So heres what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary lifeyour sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around lifeand place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Dont become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. Youll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. (Romans 12:1-2)

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-------If you preach, just preach Gods Message, nothing else; if you help, just help, dont take over; if you teach, stick to your teaching; if you give encouraging guidance, be careful that you dont get bossy; if youre put in charge, dont manipulate; if youre called to give aid to people in distress, keep your eyes open and be quick to respond; if you work with the disadvantaged, dont let yourself get irritated with them or depressed by them. Keep a smile on your face. (Romans 12:6b-8) -------Love from the center of who you are; dont fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle. 11-13 Dont burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Dont quit in hard times; pray all the harder. Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality. 14-16 Bless your enemies; no cursing under your breath. Laugh with your happy friends when theyre happy; share tears when theyre down. Get along with each other; dont be stuck-up. Make friends with nobodies; dont be the great somebody. 17-19 Dont hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If youve got it in you, get along with everybody. Dont insist on getting even; thats not for you to do. Ill do the judging, says God. Ill take care of it. 20-21 Our Scriptures tell us that if you see your enemy hungry, go buy that person lunch, or if hes thirsty, get him a drink. Your generosity will surprise him with goodness. Dont let evil get the best of you; get the best of evil by doing good. (Romans 12:10-21) -------You cant go wrong when you love others. When you add up everything in the law code, the sum total is love. (Romans 13:10) --------

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The night is about over, dawn is about to break. Be up and awake to what God is doing! God is putting the finishing touches on the salvation work he began when we first believed. We cant afford to waste a minute, must not squander these precious daylight hours in frivolity and indulgence, in sleeping around and dissipation, in bickering and grabbing everything in sight. Get out of bed and get dressed! Dont loiter and linger, waiting until the very last minute. Dress yourselves in Christ, and be up and about! (Romans 13:12-14) -------Welcome with open arms fellow believers who dont see things the way you do. And dont jump all over them every time they do or say something you dont agree witheven when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. Remember, they have their own history to deal with. Treat them gently. (Romans 14:1) -------So where does that leave you when you criticize a brother? And where does that leave you when you condescend to a sister? Id say it leaves you looking pretty sillyor worse. Eventually, were all going to end up kneeling side by side in the place of judgment, facing God. Your critical and condescending ways arent going to improve your position there one bit. Read it for yourself in Scripture: As I live and breathe, God says, every knee will bow before me; Every tongue will tell the honest truth that I and only I am God. So tend to your knitting. Youve got your hands full just taking care of your own life before God. 13-14 Forget about deciding whats right for each other. Heres what you need to be concerned about: that you dont get in the way of someone else, making life more difficult than it already is. Im convincedJesus convinced me!that everything as it is in itself is holy. (Romans 14:10-14) -------(God's Kingdom) Its what God does with your life as he sets it right, puts it together, and completes it with joy. Your task is to single-mindedly serve Christ. Do that and youll kill two birds with one stone: pleasing the God above you and proving your worth to the people around you. (Romans 14:17b-18) -------So lets agree to use all our energy in getting along with each other. Help others with encouraging words; dont drag them down by finding fault. (Romans 14:19)

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