“Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity,
    and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering. Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
    test my heart and my mind. For your steadfast love is before my eyes,
    and I walk in your faithfulness. 

I do not sit with men of falsehood,
    nor do I consort with hypocrites.I hate the assembly of evildoers,
    and I will not sit with the wicked. 

I wash my hands in innocence and go around your altar, O Lord, proclaiming thanksgiving aloud, and telling all your wondrous deeds. 

O Lord, I love the habitation of your house
    and the place where your glory dwells. 

Do not sweep my soul away with sinners,
    nor my life with bloodthirsty men, in whose hands are evil devices,
    and whose right hands are full of bribes. 

But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity; redeem me, and be gracious to me. My foot stands on level ground; in the great assembly I will bless the Lord.”   (Psalm 26)

“They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he did not want anyone to know, for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.” But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask him.

And they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”  And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me (Mk.9:30-37).”

One of the perplexing questions we’re all forced to address is, ‘Why does man behave the way he does?’ Another way to frame the question is to ask, ‘What is it that fundamentally shapes our character and orders our behavior?’ Thomas Goodwin, the 17th century President of Magdalen College, Oxford, spoke insightfully to this question: “In God’s sight there are two men, Adam and Jesus Christ, and these two men have all other men hanging at their girdle strings (gracequotes.org).” In other words, the essential character of every person is determined by either their connection to Adam, the federal head of the human race, and in that relationship the human condition is dominated by sin, condemnation, and death; or their life is shaped by their commitment to Christ, the head of a new humanity, who provides righteousness, justification, and eternal life.

The resurrection of Christ is an event of history in which the natural and the supernatural intersect. It was the miraculous conquering of death that forms the ultimate witness to Christ’s deity. Only God can overcome death, because he has life in himself. The resurrection sets Christ apart from all other religious leaders. Professor Childers wrote: “All the millions and millions of Jews, Budhists, and Mohammedans agree that their founders have never come up out of the dust of the earth in resurrection (Apologetics315).” Christ’s resurrection is a distinguishing and crucial Christian doctrine.

“Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.” (Eph. 2:11-19)

“Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you? You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all. And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” (2 Cor. 3:1-6)

“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” (Romans 5:1-11)

“What then, brothers? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up…..If anyone thinks that he is a prophet, or spiritual, he should acknowledge that the things I am writing to you are a command of the Lord. If anyone does not recognize this, he is not recognized. So, my brothers, earnestly desire to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues. But all things should be done decently and in order.” 1 Corinthians 14:26, 37-40

“...I am writing these things to you so that, if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth. Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness; He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory (1 Timothy 3:14-16).”

“I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that, if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth. Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness:

He was manifested in the flesh,

vindicated by the Spirit,

seen by angels,

proclaimed among the nations,

believed on in the world,

taken up in glory.” [1 Tim. 3:14-16]

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1)

In a letter to Erasmus, a 16th century scholar and theologian, Martin Luther wrote - “your thoughts of God are too human.” We’re all vulnerable to this failing since we're made in the ‘image and likeness of God’.

“Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.”

In the course of our Christian lives, we will all go through seasons of spiritual barrenness, times when praise comes hard and a consciousness of God’s goodness and grace is overshadowed by physical pain or relational stress or emotional exhaustion. During these times it’s easy to lose our spiritual bearings and entertain thoughts that distort a right understanding of God’s character and care. It’s in these times that we need the Lord’s help to regain a healthy perspective regarding God’s goodness and grace.

“I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” - Rom. 1:14-17

“I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” - Rom. 1:14-17

The idea of merited salvation has tremendous appeal to human pride and it’s at the heart of every man-made religious system. This is true of all the major living religions - Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Judahism, and the Christian cults. In these systems, salvation is what we earn, not what we receive. This is why the Christian gospel is so different and so foreign to our basic religious instincts. Biblical salvation is grounded solely in God’s grace and mercy; it’s not God’s response to human goodness.

Chapter eight of the book of Romans begins with a promise of ‘no condemnation’ (v. 1) and ends with the promise of ‘no separation’ (v. 39). Those who have placed their faith in Christ as their Lord and Savior are free from the condemning judgment of God and are assured that their union with Christ will never be broken…..they are safe in Jesus! We’ve been repositioned before God in Christ on the basis of God’s grace alone. In Christ we’re justified….we’re sanctified….and we will be glorified!

Romans 8:18-21 is an extension of the teaching given to us in verse 17 - “...fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” The challenges posed by our glorification being predicated on our faithfulness in suffering are many and we need some encouragement that, in fact, we can be faithful.