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Romans 12:12

rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;

Personal Challenge

I have heard, many times, the complaint that the Bible doesn’t give us enough instructions on how to live our daily lives. I guess this can only be true if you do not read the Bible. The Bible is full of guidance and direction on how to live full, productive, and godly lives. Today’s verse is just one little snippet of a powerful way to view life. Rejoicing in hope. As followers of Christ, we have a hope that is based on Gods’ love and mercy and is eternal. We can rejoice in this hope every moment of every day. We also know that every day in this temporal life will be filled with tribulation. We are charged to approach this tribulation with patience, a patience that can only be sourced from our precious Lord. All of this can only be done by steadfastly continuing in prayer, communion with our Lord. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Sirach 36:1-4

Have mercy on us, O Lord, the God of all, and look upon us,
And put Your fear on all the nations.
Raise Your hand against foreign nations
And let them see Your power.
As in us You have been sanctified before them,
So in them may You be made great before us.
Let them know You as we also have known You,
For there is no God but You, O Lord.

Encouraging Words

This is not a prayer for God to be hostile to the nations around Israel, but a plea that they might come to know God as they do. This can be our prayer today. As Christians, we are citizens of a country that is not of this world. Our prayer should consistently be that God will make Himself known to the nations of this earth in such a way that they turn to Him. This means the nation that we live in as well, for it sorely needs to turn to the Lord for His guidance and direction. Our role in this is to be shining beacons of God’s love to our neighbors. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Romans 12:9

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.

Personal Challenge

Paul makes it clear that our journey through life as a follower of Christ is not just saying a prayer and then going back to living as we always have. To be a follower of Christ, one of His disciples, we must let Him change us into His image. As this happens we begin to desire His ways. Doing this means loving others. Loving them honestly and without hypocrisy, or fake love. It means not only striving to avoid evil but abhorring it and clinging to that which is good. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Sirach 35:7-10

Glorify the Lord with your generosity,
And do not reduce the firstfruits of your hands.
In every gift let your face be cheerful,
And sanctify your tithe with gladness.
Give to the Most High as He has given to you,
And give to Him with generosity, according to your windfall.
For the Lord is He who repays,
And He will repay you sevenfold.

Personal Challenge

In old testament times, the people of Israel were expected to tithe their earnings. That tithe was 10% and it always applied to their first fruits, their first earnings or harvest When Christ became incarnate He fulfilled the law, including the law of tithing. However, He did initiate a new covenant, one by which we recognize that every­thing that we have belongs to God and that we are His stewards. With that in mind, We are to cheerfully give all that we have back to Him. In that act of cheerful giving, we know that God will continue to bless us as we walk with Him. This is not some kind of prosperity gospel. It is God’s grace and mercy being poured out on His children. Glory be to God!

Romans 12:4-5

For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.

Personal Challenge

God created us to be a part of a community. Even if we feel like it is best to be alone, we always end up realizing that we need others in our lives to live full lives. The Church is our ultimate community where individuals can come together to form a living and vibrant entity in, and of itself. In order to make this new entity function effectively, the individual parts, each and every one of us, must realize that we all have different functions in the community and that all of these functions are needed. We live in a symbiotic relationship to one another and our community thrives in Christ. Glory be to God!

Sirach 35:1-3

The man who keeps the law will abound in offerings;
He who heeds the commandments sacrifices a peace offering.
He who returns a kindness offers fine wheat flour,
And he who does alms sacrifices a praise offering.
To forsake evil is pleasing to the Lord,
And to forsake wrongdoing is atonement.

Personal Challenge

Ben Sirach lived in the time before Christ when the nation of Israel still practiced the sacrificial system for the forgiveness and atonement of sins. Even with the rigor of this system, he reminds us that our actions speak loudly to our Lord and to others around us. If we try to live our lives according to the teachings, precepts, and commandments of our Lord, then that is equivalent to making a peace offering. If we give out kindness to those around us it is as if we made a sacrificial offering of fine wheat flour to our Lord. If we practice giving alms to the poor and taking care of their needs over our own then we are making a praise offering to our Lord. Doing things that put others first is part of being living sacrifices as Paul challenges us to become. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Romans 12:1-2

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Personal Challenge

There is so much that could be unpacked from these two verses. We are being asked, actually beseeched, by Paul, to present our bodies as living sacrifices to our God. Jesus put an end to the old sacrificial system by being the ultimate sacrifice. We are now the only sacrifices that God wants, living sacrifices that have chosen to be dead to the world, holy sacrifices striving to be acceptable to God, transformed sacrifices that are no longer conformed to this world, sacrifices that have renewed minds that are focused on being acceptable to God and seeking His perfect and glorious will. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Sirach 34:15-17

Blessed is the soul of a man who fears the Lord.
To whom does he look? And who is his support?
The eyes of the Lord are upon those who love Him.
He is a powerful protection and a strong support:
A shelter from the burning heat,
A shelter from the noonday sun,
A guard from stumbling,
And help from a fall.
He raises up the soul
And gives light to the eyes.
He gives healing, life, and blessing.

Encouraging Words

Even though we do not deserve it, our God pours out this unconditional love on us. He blesses us. He supports us. He watches over us and protects us. He provides us shelter. He gives us healing, life, and blessing; of both the body and the soul. Why would I not put my trust and hope in Him? Glory be to God!