The word of the Lord through the prophet Jeremiah often helps me understand my calling as pastor in my own day and time. There is something about the rawness of Jeremiah's experiences, the scope of the opposition, the depth of God's intent that help me stay grounded in faith and obedience when the flame of...
The opening pages of R.C. Sproul's 2019 commentary on the book of Romans reminds us of a necessary correlation we should take into account when we think about our spiritual identity as doulos (slave.) Slaves, by definition, belong to someone, and frankly, it matters in this discussion who we belong to! Paul declares in Romans...
We are answering a practical, spiritual question. Since we are slaves of Christ Jesus, called, and set apart as a matter of faith in Christ, how do we connect personally with this reality that is now ours as believers and followers of Jesus? We've been examining Paul's introduction of himself to the church at Rome...
The apostle Paul identifies himself, and by extension all true Christians, as doulos, a slave of Christ Jesus. He also notes that we are kletos, called, and aphoridzo, set apart. We are asking how to connect authentically, appropriately, spiritually, emotionally, and faithfully with this identity we have on account of genuine saving faith in Jesus...
We're getting a bit practical here, I hope. It is one thing to read and agree theologically that through faith in Christ we become slaves (douloi) of Christ Jesus, just as Paul identifies himself in Romans 1:1. But how do we come to experience that relationship with Christ in the way we are intended to...
How do we connect personally, emotionally, spiritually, passionately, faithfully and fully that, in accordance with the word and will of God, we are, through faith in Christ, slaves of Christ Jesus, called to mission, and separated for the gospel? How can we really experience the reality Paul describes for us in the day to day...
In this series on Paul's introductory words to the church in Rome (Romans 1:1-7), we've looked at the "what" of the passage. We've identified the unique identity every Christian has who puts their faith in Christ and lives in faith and obedience to Him. We are doulos (slave), kletos (called), and aphoridzo (separated) to Christ...
The first post in this miniseries drew attention to the fictional "Borg," an alien species in a television show whose cultural uniqueness was absolute, unquestioned, irresistible conformity. Among the Borg, all sense of individuality was sacrificed to the reality of the whole. The Borg were not plural, though there were millions of them. The Borg...
When I was a kid and we were playing games, we had a saying for when one person excelled in an action over someone's counter-action. We would say the losing player "got owned" by the prevailing player. I can tell you, no one wanted to get "owned." It was embarrassing, disappointing, undesirable. Given that we...
Romans 1:1 (ESV) 1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God . . . In only eighteen words in the English text of Romans 1:1 the apostle Paul summarizes his whole life. Those eighteen words can be further condensed to four (three in the Greek...
