We continued this our second week of the study, “It Could Only Be Jesus“:

1. The Law serves a purpose in our lives. In Romans 3:1-3 and 9-20, Paul addresses the equality of Jews and Gentiles before God. He reminds us how fallen man, which is the reason we cannot think of God through the filter of man’s behaviors and actions. When people fail us, we need to remember – God has not failed us. He is always faithful. This is imperative to our faith and will keep us from walking away from Him. Paul reminds us none are righteous, none are wise, and all have turned away from God. But before we go getting hard on man, he brings the precious reminder that the Law simply shows us how sinful we are and how we would be apart from Jesus. The Law reminds us to rely on Jesus – the sinless One – to keep us walking steadfastly in His ways. May our hearts be filled with gratitude for the freedom from sin He has brought to us.
2. Only Jesus. Our reading was Romans 3:21-31, where we learn we all have fallen short and are in desperate need of the atoning power of Christ. Only Jesus could make us right without our needing to keep the requirements of the Law. Can I just say “Thank You Father!”, for I surely would not have been capable of keeping those requirements. Jesus – God in the flesh – come to save us because He loves us. “For God so loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:16-17, NLT). So simply beautiful and powerful.
3. Faith grows stronger. In reading Romans 4:13-25, three thoughts stood out. God’s promise of salvation is received solely by faith – “So the promise is received by faith. It is given as a free gift” (verse 16). May we never think we have done anything to obtain it. Even when there seems to be no reason to hope, we keep on hoping. Believing. “Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping …” (verse 18). This hoping and believing is to be a continuous and ongoing action in our lives. When we don’t waver, our faith grows stronger – “Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God” (verse 20). The question began to stir in my heart, “Are you fully convinced that I am able to do what I promise?” The answer, if I may be totally honest, is that sometimes I am fully convinced and sometimes, I waver or wonder. And yet, God always and faithfully has kept His promises.
4. We have assurance. In Romans 5:1-11, we read we have been justified and stand in grace through the blood of Jesus Christ. His grace does not preclude us from trials but, instead, gives us the assurance of God’s presence in the midst of the trials. So much so that each trial allows us to move closer to God and His love for us. God is right there with us. His power is available to each of us in our daily lives.
5. We have this hope. In Romans 5:12-21, we read about the hope of our salvation. At the point of Adam’s sin, sin entered the world … and so did death. Then came Jesus and He brought us the greater gifts of forgiveness and of righteousness. In this time when we see sin on the increase all around us, my heart was filled with hope as I rejoiced in these words from verse 20: “But as people sinned more and more, God’s wonderful grace became more abundant!”

By the end of this week of study, the words to the old and familiar hymn came flooding back to my memory:

“Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul
Thank you, Lord, for making me whole
Thank you, Lord, for giving to me
Thy great salvation so rich and free. “

It could only be Jesus.

The first week of this study can be found > HERE – One Sufficient Sacrifice.
Today I am joining … Trekking Thru the Week and Tell His Story and Grace Full Tuesday and #RaRaLInkup .