Author: Larry Soape

Larry Soape is the Associate Pastor for Median & Senior Adults, and Missions at FBCSA.

Who is Your Master?

Re:Verse reading–Romans 6 (day four)

Verse 19 says, “…For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.” Sin is never a static or unchanging action.  It always results in more sin.  If we submit our lives to lawlessness, things will only get worse.  In our culture, there is no tolerance for those who practice righteousness.  Lawlessness is never content to just do its own thing…there must be increased acceptance and practice by all.  To practice righteousness results in sanctification…in other words, you become more and more like Christ.  Instead of a deterioration of character, there is a growth in character.  Romans 1 taught us that…when man rejected God and choose deception and untruth, God gave them over to the depravity of their minds.  It is a picture we see around us every day.  Lawlessness brings death, righteousness brings life…choose wisely!

The Roman Road

Re:Verse reading–Romans 5:1-11 (day four)

It’s called the Roman Road to salvation…good verses to memorize.  Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23, Romans 5:8, Romans 10:9-10, and Romans 10:13.  Here in Paul’s letter to the Romans is the road map to salvation for all who believe.  Do you understand the pathway?  Can you explain it to someone else?  In our Re:Verse passage this week is Romans 5:8…why not begin by memorizing this verse.  “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  Reconciliation is not something to keep to ourselves, it is our responsibility and privilege to share it with others.  Preparing, in advance, to share with someone will strengthen our courage and clarify our thoughts.  If memorizing scripture is difficult for you, mark these verses in your Bible and make a note in the margins for the next verse.  A note inside the cover can send you to the first verse on the road.  Prepare however you need to in order to share your faith with others.

Through Our Faith

Re:Verse reading–Romans 4:1-25 (day four)

It was by faith that Abraham received the righteousness of God.  We receive the righteousness of Christ the same way…by faith.  Is it by Abraham’s faith that we are saved?  If we know and understand that it was faith, not works, that brought salvation to Abraham, is that enough for us?  If we are raised in a Christian home with Christian parents who teach us about faith, is that enough for us to be saved?  No…we cannot be saved by Abraham’s faith or the faith of our parents.  We must exercise our own faith.  It is by faith…our faith…that we are justified.  When we place our faith in Jesus, our sin is credited to Jesus’ account.  When we stand before God in judgment someday, Christ himself will testify on our behalf that He has paid the penalty for our sin.  Just as for Abraham, we have the promise of God for the forgiveness of our sin through our faith.  “Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

By Grace Through Faith

Re:Verse reading–Romans 3:21-31 (day four)

It is not often we see a snowflake in Texas, but it is said that there are no two alike.  God is a creative genius.  Flowers, stars, animals, and people…God has endless creativity.  One thing though is common with all people…we have all sinned against God.  We have all disobeyed His commands and have chosen our own will rather than His.  Something else is common to man, forgiveness for our sin is available by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.  It is the only way we can be justified and it is available to all men.  Jews, Gentiles…rich, poor…good, bad…God’s grace reaches to every man, woman, or child who places their faith in Jesus Christ.  There is nothing…absolutely nothing…that we can do to earn our salvation.  It is a gift from God.  Faith in Christ is the key to the grace of God.  Have you received His forgiveness?

Led by Character

Re:Verse reading–Romans 2:1-29 (day four)

The character of God is who He is…the very essence of His being.  Verse 4 says that the kindness (one of His character qualities) of God leads you to repentance.  Everything about God will draw you to Him…choose any character quality of God and it will inspire worship, lead to obedience, bring a sense of awe or confront with repentance.  God is in the business of changing lives.  Ezekiel says that God will take our heart of stone and replace it with a heart of flesh.  He will change us so we can enter into a right relationship with Him.  We are without excuse when we stand before God.  How we have responded to His character through obedience will determine the outcome of our relationship with Him.  What does your character inspire?  Does it lead others to God?  Does it lead to repentance?  It will if our lives look like Jesus…we will give an accurate picture of the character of God.

Up Side Down Thinking

Re:Verse reading–Romans 1:18-32 (day four)

“Therefore, God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity…”  Often times we look at this passage and think it deals only with sexual perversion and God’s judgment against it by allowing the consequences of the sin to reign in the sinners.  I once heard a sermon by Dr. Roger Magnuson that explained that the corruption went far beyond just the sexual perversion.  Dr. Magnuson called it ‘upside down thinking.’  God allowed them to see the unnatural and call it natural…to see darkness and call it light…to see deception and call it truth…to see wickedness and call it goodness.  Everything about their thinking was upside down.  Have you seen it around you?  Everything seems to be based on false premises and flawed logic.  Even if they don’t practice the evil themselves, they are in hearty agreement with those who do. (verse 32)  Clear thinking or ‘right side up thinking’ comes only from God’s truth.  Use discernment according to God’s Word.

Under Obligation

Re: Verse reading–Romans 1:1–17 (day four)  Why was Paul not ashamed of the gospel? …because it is the power of God for salvation.  Paul knew that the ‘good news’ of Jesus…His sinless life, His death on the cross, His resurrection from the dead and His ascension into heaven…had power over sin, death, and eternity.  Paul knew that there was no other event, or action, or relationship that was more important than this ‘good news’.  Fear of man, fear of ridicule, fear of persecution or even fear of death…nothing was so bad as to miss the message of the gospel.  Paul said he was under obligation to tell everyone about the gospel.  What about you?  Do you feel an obligation to tell others about Christ?  Are you willing to take the risk to share the righteousness of God?  For Paul, it was a privilege to share.  May God grant us the eagerness to share the gospel with everyone who we come in contact with!

Purchased Life

Re: Verse reading–2 Corinthians 5:11-21; 1 Peter 3:15-16; Colossians 4:2-6 (day four)  It is for love of Christ…He died for us…He brought forgiveness and life through His resurrection.  Because of His work, we are new.  Everything in our lives is new as a result of His work of reconciliation.  By faith, we trust Him…receive forgiveness…and become ambassadors for Christ.  Ambassadors are sent by one sovereign to represent him in another country.  Christ has sent us to tell of his work of reconciliation here on earth.  Galatians 2:20 says, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”  Out of reverence to Christ, we walk in a manner worthy of Him.  As His ambassador, we must represent Him accurately to the world.  Are you living a crucified life?

Perfect Health

Re: Verse reading– Acts 4:32-37; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Galatians 6:9-10; Hebrews 10:24-25 (day four) The relationship within the church is much more than a group of people joined together to learn about God and do good things. When we trust Christ and are filled with the Spirit and baptized into the fellowship of the church, we enter a unique relationship. Faith in Christ removes barriers like rich or poor, slave or free, Jews or Greeks…we become one in Christ. Just as in a marriage, we become one. In the early church, they shared all their possessions so that no fellow believer suffered for lack of provision. Paul described the relationship as a body…with different parts, but all a part of the whole. Each part functioned for the good of the whole. For the body to function fully, every part must be working smoothly and thoroughly. Have you done a checkup lately to see how your part is functioning? The church needs your part to be in perfect health!

Integrity and Submission

Re: Verse reading–Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13; Hebrews 13:17-18 (day four) 

We’ve been talking about relationships this quarter…relationships with children, parents, neighbors, employers, government, and church.  Our passages this week teach us that we are to grow in our relationships.  We are to strive to improve in how we interact with others.  It seems that most all of our relationships require some level of submission to another.  God has created man to be interdependent and to operate within His plan of leadership.  To submit to another does not mean that one is superior over another…submission is a voluntary yielding of our will to another, based on their position or calling.  God holds those in authority accountable for the way they wield their authority.  At the end of the prophet Samuel’s life, he asked the nation if he had wronged any man.  No man brought an accusation against him.  (1 Samuel 12:3-4) As a leader, demonstrate integrity.  As a follower, demonstrate submission.  God’s plan brings peace and brings glory to His name.