You are Right With God Through Faith! The Transition from Works to Faith!

Good morning to all on the Glorious Sunday morning. Waine and I have had the luxury of waking up in our own bed for the entire weekend. What a treat! A shout out to Kenzo Maciel, our grand nephew who celebrated his second birthday yesterday. His grandmother Velma and his parents Marco and Michelle were very happy and proud. Its great to celebrate the passing of time with a new generation. I am still in awe that I am a grandmother many time over and now a Great Aunt. Life is very wonderful when there are others who can recall that you had an influence in their lives.

I am continuing my journey in Romans chapter 3, verses 1-31, " What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? Much in every way! First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God. What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written:

“So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.” But if our unrighteousness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly, what shall we say? That God is unjust in bringing His wrath on us? (I am using a human argument.) Certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world? Someone might argue, “If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases His glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner?” Why not say—as some slanderously claim that we say—“Let us do evil that good may result”? Their condemnation is just! 

What shall we conclude then? Do we have any advantage? Not at all! For we have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under the power of sin. As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit. The poison of vipers is on their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways,  and the way of peace they do not know. There is no fear of God before their eyes. Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.  

But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile,  for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,  and all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.  God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of His blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— He did it to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. Because of what law? The law that requires works? No, because of the law that requires faith. For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law." Amen and may God add a blessing to the reading and understanding of His Word!

Wow! Paul was stepping out on some thin ice. The Jews were relentless in thinking they were the only chosen of God. Paul is addressing the Roman Jews who saw themselves as the "sophisticated" Jews because they dwelled in the city where the seat of power of the known world was held. These Jews held fast to the notion that their Messiah had not yet come and when He did they would be vindicated and exalted. Paul is now trampling on all that. He is teaching that with the advent of Christ, His birth, His life, His death and then....His resurrection all bets were off if you were still holding onto the notion that you were the "chosen" few because of your circumcision. The era of being "special" because of your earthly birth lineage was over. God has created a new covenant with man. The covenant is FAITH through Christ. This was radical. Paul was speaking to people who measured their worth on what they did or did not do--he was telling them that God now expected them to reach deeper into a relationship with Him through an "unseen" factor called faith. They had to repent of their sins by accepting the message as preached by this Preacher from Nazarene--the one their tribe persecuted and crucified. Just think about what a radical concept this had to be. The concept of FAITH was so  new. How do you get out of the mold of thinking its what you do and not what you believe?  That's the POWER of FAITH. How radical is it to believe that the persecutor of Christians, Paul, becomes the very person who spreads the Gospel to Jews and Gentiles alike. I am sure Paul woke up every morning thinking this and it strengthened his faith. Remember Paul never met Christ. He persecuted the Jews who believed in the ministry of Christ and yet now he, Paul, was one of the chief evangelist. He became the embodiment of the transition from works to faith.

Christians have the same challenge today. We are given the task of spreading the message of faith to a world that remains blind to the message that Christ brought. There is a life we cannot see. There exists a life after the one that is now tangible. Our life is limitless and can be with God or without Him. My mind can't even wrap around it. We are all so busy trying to navigate this life that we hardly stop to think about what happens after the transition. Christ preached that we will be united with our Creator but must cross the divide on a Ship called Faith. Christ died to give us the chance to cross the divide. Some say what's the point? Well the point is that we were not put into existence just to be here for 70 years. We are ETERNAL creatures who have immeasurable  lives. We can either exist in the glow of God our creator or exist in the void with Satan. Our spiritual genetic make up demands that we think further than the flesh and blood that we see. It demands that we look forward to being reunited with our Creator. The choice is ours while we live and breathe on this side of Jordan.

Wouldn't it be great that when you cross Jordan you are met by those you love and care about. I tell all my children that when I get to Heaven I don't want to have to look for them. I am counting on seeing my mother and father again. I am counting on seeing my brother Yoshio again. I would like to see all of you.

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.

Stephanie



God love even Me. even you!

Good morning to all on this first Sunday in September. Waine and I were in Orlando-Miami last weekend to take advantage of the long holiday weekend and of course when we are with the munchkins, very little happens when their little feet hit the ground. We were able to share our home with our staff yesterday for our annual fall celebration and even though it was very hot a good time was had by all. God has blessed Waine and I in ways that are hard to express.

I am continuing my journey in Romans 2 verses 1- 29, "You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth.  So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? Or do you show contempt for the riches of His kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?  But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when His righteous judgment will be revealed. God “will repay each person according to what they have done.” To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, He will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For God does not show favoritism. All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous.  (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.) This will take place on the day when God judges people’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares. 

Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God; if you know His will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law;  if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised. So then, if those who are not circumcised keep the law’s requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker. A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God." Amen and may God add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.

Remember Paul is in Rome preaching the Gospel to the Roman Jews and transitioning them from a mindset of worshiping God through rituals to worshiping God through the Holy Spirit. This is coming from someone who was a Sadducee, a member of the Jewish sect of the time of Jesus Christ that denied the resurrection of the dead, the existence of spirits, and the obligation of oral tradition. These Jews emphasized the acceptance of the written Law alone. So for Paul to be preaching of the things of the Spirit is in and of itself a miracle. His conversion on the road to Damascus was complete! Remember Paul used to prosecute Jewish Christians. He had several of them put to death by stoning. He now is preaching the Gospel of true conversion to a group of people who only know how to have a relationship with God through works and rituals. God chose the PERFECT person in Paul to preach to the Jews and the Gentiles. He, God, chose a flawed man to spread His Gospel of repentance and what better person could you chose?  Human nature lines people up with their outward talents--if you are educated then you get the best jobs; if you are a non-minority then people think the best of you; if you are pretty then you are assumed intelligent. God looks on the inward person and judges our heart, mind and soul. He, God, is not concerned only with our actions. He is concerned with our intentions most of all. He is concerned with our commitment to His principles. Not because we always get it right--but because we want to. That's why God stated that David, was man after His own heart. David was flawed beyond belief. He had Jezebel's husband killed just so he could marry her. He lusted after women and had sex with them. He was power hungry and corrupted and yet God declared him a "man after His own Heart". Why you may ask and the answer is simple--God always looks at how tender our hearts are toward Him. He forgives us because He understands our flaws. Remember Christ died for us while WE WERE YET SINNERS! God's kindness has nothing to do with us--it is all about His love and forbearance so others can come to salvation. Hallelujah!


To know Him, truly know Him is to love Him. To love Him is to serve Him. To serve Him is to love you. Now may the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.


Stephanie