Category Archives: Imago dei

The Romans Challenge: Overflow!

Posted on by
Reply 
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭15‬:‭13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

We were not created to dwell in anxiety, fear, and depression!

Long ago, in the Garden of Eden, mankind was created to dwell connected to God. We were made to be His image bearers, reflecting all that He is to our world. When sin entered, that connection was broken and that image was shattered. However, Jesus came!

Jesus came to set us free from sin and to enable us to receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit comes into our lives the moment we receive the New Life Jesus came to give us! The Holy Spirit empowers us to live according to our original design as “image bearers” of God.

Our God is a God of Peace. Our God is a God of joy. Our God is a God of hope! By the power of the Holy Spirit, who lives within us, we can be filled to overflowing with His peace, joy, and hope! Yet so many of us do not live our lives this way…

I know this from experience. For years, I lived as a Christian full of anxiety, fear, and depression… I tried in my own power, using man’s ways, to fix the way I felt. All of these attempts ended in failure. Until, I determined that I needed to truly surrender EVERY area of my life to God. I decided that I would pursue Him above all things, and live my life focused on Him!

How is this even possible? By the power of the Holy Spirit! By faith in God and His Word, i.e. trusting in Him!

I was living my life focused on me. I was very me-centered! God made us to live our lives focused on Him. Our thoughts are to be focused on Him and His Word. Our speech is to reflect that focus — speaking His truth and His life regarding ourselves, our circumstances, our families, etc. Our actions will fall into line as our focus is laser focused on God and His Word!

Here is the truth of what we all need… We need to live our lives with this motto: Less of me…More of Him! When we overflow with the Holy Spirit in our lives, we will experience what we were created to be all along: People who dwell with hope— a confident expectation of good; People who trust Him — believe that God said it, I believe it, that settles it; People who live with joy, — an emotion that is excited by the expectation of good; People who live with peace — freedom from disturbance or agitation.

Holy Spirit we ask You to fill us up til we overflow with You!

For Such A Time As This

Posted on by
Reply 
“And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14

You and I have a small part to play in God’s Orchestral Piece called “History.” Our time here is short… But God makes no mistakes. He has placed us right here, right now for His purpose! Will we step up and play our part?

We can look at the events of our world and become VERY afraid, or we can accept our call.

Let us not cower in the corner with fear or live our lives with indifference. We have our part to play. We are not our own. We are God’s. He wants us to shine His light into ever dark corner of our communities and our world!
He is not done! He has not abandoned His plan.

“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”
‭‭Habakkuk‬ ‭2‬:‭14‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The Romans Challenge: Living Sacrifice

Posted on by
Reply 
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭12‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

If we are in relationship with Jesus, there will be evidence. We will be changed! When we look at all that Jesus did for us on the cross and see how great the mercy of God is towards us, we see what a wonderful and giving God we have. The only response is for us to give back to Him all that we have, our lives. This is our “spiritual worship.” (ESV). How do we give ourselves to God as we should? He wants EVERYTHING! He wants us to love Him with all that we are (entirely, totally, and completely).

The sacrifices in the Old Testament were laid upon an altar and burned completely. They were offered up completely to God. We are to live our lives that way. Everything about us is His – our time, our money, our entertainment, our jobs, our homes, our cars, our family, our clothing, our choices of food and drink, etc. It is ALL His!

How does this work practically in our world we live in today? We are to live our lives not as the world patterns it, but as God has told us we need to live in His Word! We are to continue to be “transformed” in our hearts and our lives. This comes as we allow God to renew our minds (our way we think and act) by coming to His Word over and over throughout our day.

You and I were meant to display God to the world around us. We are to be distinctly different. This only occurs as we allow God to change us and we become more and more like Him every moment of every day. As we know Him more, we will love Him more. As we love Him more, we will obey Him more. As we obey Him and live as He desires, we will be like Him. Living like this requires surrender to Him and His ways!

May we live our lives as “a living sacrifice.” Set apart for Him and His Glory!

The Romans Challenge: The Patience of God

Posted on by
Reply 
“What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction? What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory— even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles?”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭9‬:‭22‬-‭24‬ ‭NIV‬‬

For many years, I struggled with the concept of the wrath of God. It seemed like God was an angry God, and that He was looking for the perfect opportunity to throw some lightening bolts toward us for messing up. What a lie I believed! God is a patient God!

In order to understand God’s patience, it is helpful to truly understand the nature of sin. Sin divides and separate us from God. This is because God is holy. He cannot have sin within Himself. Sin is like a spiritual cancer. It destroys our lives and will eventually kill us. Sin brings nothing but death, darkness, and destruction to our lives. God hates sin! This is because sin keeps us from being in a relationship that is close and connected to Him. God will eventually eradicate sin from our world when He comes in His judgement. He will end the pain and suffering sin has produced. He will make all things new. But for now He is patient in His longing to destroy evil. Why? Because He wants “to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy…”

He wants us to know Him. He has patiently waited for us to come to Him so He can have the opportunity to reveal Himself to us. God’s glory is the sum total of His attributes. It is who He is. He wants us to know—experience intimately— who He is. He wants us to know His perfect love. He wants us to experience His complete joy. He wants us to be intimately acquainted with His perfect peace.

We are the “objects of His mercy.” God’s mercy — His tenderness of His heart, His benevolence, His willingness to overlook our offenses (forgive) — is directed towards us! His plan for us is for us to know Him and through that knowledge, we will become like Him. We will display Him to those around us. We will make Him known. This is what God desires for us and intends for us. This is why He patiently waits for us to come!

God is continually holding out the opportunity for us to KNOW Him! Jesus provided all that we needed to be able to come close to God through His death, burial, and resurrection. God has given us the Holy Spirit to dwell inside of us so we can experience Him every moment of every day. God has given us His Word so we can learn about His character, His desires, and who He is. He patiently waits for us to come to Him and experience His glory — who He is!

Thank You Father for Your patience. We know Your desire is to end the suffering that sin has brought, and You wait patiently to execute your just judgements. This is because You desire for everyone to KNOW You! Help us to truly desire to know You more and to make You known to everyone You place in or path! In Jesus name!

The Romans Challenge: The Children of the Promise

Posted on by
Reply 
“In other words, it is not the children by physical descent who are God’s children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham’s offspring.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭9‬:‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

As my kids were growing up, my husband and I took them to church faithfully. We talked about God often. I read them Bible stories and worked with them on memorizing Scripture. In all of this, I told them. I can tell you about God, but I cannot give you a relationship with God. You MUST get that relationship on your own.

The Jewish people thought they had the “in” with God. They were blood descendants with the Fathers of their faith. But they were missing something… relationship with God. This is not something they could receive as a physical inheritance. They had to receive the relationship by faith. “The children of the promise” are the ones who are “regarded as Abraham’s offspring.” 

“If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”
‭‭Galatians‬ ‭3‬:‭29‬ ‭NIV‬‬

When we come to Christ and accept Him as our Savior, we enter into a relationship with God. We become His child. We receive His promise of salvation for those who believe. We are “the children of the promise.” Our relationship with God as His child is not through a human pedigree or our personal efforts to live the best we can. It is not our own doing at all (no jumping through hoops). It is not the result of our relationship with our mom, dad, grandpa, or grandma (we don’t have to be biologically related to the right person.) Relationship with God comes from a personal faith — one on one. We believe and then we simply receive what God promised to us!

The promise is simply this:

“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭10‬:‭9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Thank You God for the simplicity of Your Good News! Relationship with You is received through faith in Your promise!

The Romans Challenge: Jesus Image

Posted on by
Reply 
“For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭29‬-‭30‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Last month, my husband and I went to Mt. Rushmore for the very first time. As we were driving through the Black Hills of South Dakota to get to its location, we were taking in the beauty of the mountains. Then the thought came to us, “who is it that just looks at a mountain and sees a monument with the faces of the Presidents? But not only that, they create it?” You and I are similar to that mountain in South Dakota. God looked at us and predetermined that He was going to create the very image of Jesus in us!

Though it is hard for me to comprehend and believe at times, this is exactly what God had planned for me, “before the foundation of the world…” (Ephesians 1:4 ESV) God has had a plan for you and me. He doesn’t see us as we do…sin scarred, messed up, worthless, etc. He sees us fully conformed to the image of Christ— beautiful. In fact, we can be assured that He has begun a good work in us and He will finish it! (Philippians 1:6)

God predestined. He marked out beforehand (Greek for “predestined”) what we will be. This predestination is a present process of a future hope. (Berean Study Notes — Bible Hub) What we are going through today is being used to produce our future that has a confident expectation of good. What is the good we expect? The greatest good we could ever experience is to be just like Jesus. God called us, or invited us (Greek for “called”) to this. He justified us through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. He provided the way for us to be cleansed of our sin and placed us in right relationship with Him. He has glorified us — made us His image bearers. This is what we are now, Jesus Image, here on earth. This is what we will become more and more of as we surrender our lives to Him!

What a wonderful promise for us now and the not yet! Being just like Jesus is our glorious future in Him!

The Romans Challenge: Suffering

Posted on by
Reply 
“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭18‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The images of “The Passion of The Christ” have been in my mind lately. Jesus suffered. What He suffered was for us to be able to see His glory — the sum total of all of His attributes. The prayer of Jesus right before He went to the cross has been echoing in my heart over and over again. “Not my will but Your will be done.” Jesus prayed, “Father, if You are willing, please take this cup from me.” He knew the price He would pay and the suffering He would endure. It wasn’t something He took lightly. BUT Jesus wanted only what His Father wanted, even if, it included suffering. His willingness to persevere means a victorious salvation for you and for me.

If I am to live my life as Jesus did, I will suffer. Jesus told us that our world was filled with trouble. Sin is still a factor and its consequences are far reaching. BUT we can take courage because Jesus has overcome.

The sufferings you and I are going through today are hard. We can allow it to make us bitter or we can allow it to make us better. It is our choice. As followers of Jesus, we have one aim — Be like Jesus! If we want to join Him in His victory, we will participate in His suffering. If we want to live as Jesus did, we must pray as Jesus did, “Not my will, but Yours be done.”

Whatever circumstance God has allowed into our life we can be assured He allowed for our good and for His glory. If suffering is what He has allowed, we know that His “glory will be revealed in us.”

Perseverance, in suffering, produces character, God’s character in us. (Romans 5:4) His glory — His complete attributes of love, joy, goodness, peace, kindness, etc. are revealed in us when we endure suffering.

Ultimately, when our final battle with the hardships of our world is fought, we will see Jesus face to face. We will finally be like Him in every way.

For now we are to rejoice in our suffering, because we know it is producing in us the very character of God.

Father, help us to keep in our hearts and our minds the suffering of Jesus. Help us to look at His example when hardships come. Help us to suffer as He did, fully surrendered to Your will. We thank You that as we do, we will also participate in Your victory. Help us to be like Jesus in every way, shape, and form. May our prayer always be, “Not my will, but Yours be done.” In Jesus name!

The Romans Challenge — Reign in Life

Posted on by
Reply 
“For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭5‬:‭17‬ ‭NIV‬‬

(Today we read Romans 5.)

The Garden of Eden was a happy place! Imagine being able to walk face to face with God — who is complete peace, complete joy, complete love, complete goodness, etc. There wasn’t any pain, sadness, or sorrow. Happiness, all the agreeable sensations from enjoying all of God’s goodness was all Adam and Eve experienced 24/7. But then they CHOSE to sin.

Death entered the picture. They were separated from that beautifully happy i.e. blessed relationship with God. From that moment on “death reigned.” The divine life they had experienced was just a memory. It remained that way until Jesus came.

Jesus is God’s “provision of grace.” (Or divine favor) His righteousness becomes ours when we place our trust in Him and receive Him as our Savior. Jesus came to restore what was lost in the Garden of Eden, and He has come to us to restore what was lost in our lives!

Sin only brings death to us! It separates us from what we were created for, living in relationship with God — being fully alive. We can possess the Happiness of Heaven through the new life that Jesus gives to us. This is what it is to “reign in life” through Jesus.

The more we experience God in close and intimate relationship, the more we will experience Him in our lives. His complete peace, His complete joy, His complete love, His complete goodness, etc. will be what we experience over and over again. Because God is who He says He is, and He wants us to KNOW Him. This knowing is to experience Him day in and day out.

Jesus told us when He walked on earth that we would experience troubles as we live on earth. The effects of sin are still with us… But we could take courage, because He has overcome the world! (John 16:33)

To reign is to “live victoriously” (Webster 1828 Dictionary). We can “reign in life (live victoriously), through the one man, Jesus Christ. He has given us all we need to live victoriously. His Holy Spirit living in us, empowers us and produces in us the fruit of a victorious life — peace, love, joy, patience, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. (Galatians 5:22)

The secret to this life of victory is close relationship to God. Just like Adam and Eve experienced before they sinned, we are to walk and talk with God. Jesus provided the way for our relationship to be restored. Once again we can experience the “happiness of the garden”, but now that happiness goes with us wherever we go because the Holy Spirit is living inside of us!

The Romans Challenge: It’s All About Him!

Posted on by
Reply

Today is Romans 3. 

“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.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

I once heard it said that “history” is “His story.” We tend to think that everything before us, everything now, and everything that is to come is about US. But the first four words in the Bible indicate what everything is truly about, “In the Beginning, God…”

The Jews of Paul’s time thought they had the corner on God. They had the Law and the covenant of circumcision. They worked hard at doing all the right things, but their hearts were hard and far from God. They thought all the history and their heritage was about them and what they did. They thought their actions in their present proved how special they were. They thought their good works insured that their future was secure. Everything was about them…

What they forgot was that God chose them for a reason. They were “entrusted with the very Words of God.” . Not to show off how good they were at following a list of rules. God wanted them to display to the nations God, Himself. God desired them to receive His Word so they would humbly obey it. This obedience would bring blessing. That blessing would display to all the nations around them a God that was very different than the gods they worshipped.

We aren’t any different. We tend to think that “our” lives are about “us.” Through Jesus, we have been chosen. We are meant to display God, Himself, to everyone we come in contact with. God has given us His Word. He desires for us to humbly receive it and obey it! This obedience will bring blessing into our lives. When people around us see the difference God has made in our lives, they will realize that they need Him.

We have “been entrusted with the very Words of God” as well. May we live our lives centered on Jesus who is the living Word. When He comes to live within our hearts, our lives are to be all about Him!

Live to Know Him and to Make Him Known!

The Romans Challenge: It’s All About Him!

Posted on by
Reply

Today is Romans 3. 

“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.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

I once heard it said that “history” is “His story.” We tend to think that everything before us, everything now, and everything that is to come is about US. But the first four words in the Bible indicate what everything is truly about, “In the Beginning, God…”

The Jews of Paul’s time thought they had the corner on God. They had the Law and the covenant of circumcision. They worked hard at doing all the right things, but their hearts were hard and far from God. They thought all the history and their heritage was about them and what they did. They thought their actions in their present proved how special they were. They thought their good works insured that their future was secure. Everything was about them…

What they forgot was that God chose them for a reason. They were “entrusted with the very Words of God.” . Not to show off how good they were at following a list of rules. God wanted them to display to the nations God, Himself. God desired them to receive His Word so they would humbly obey it. This obedience would bring blessing. That blessing would display to all the nations around them a God that was very different than the gods they worshipped.

We aren’t any different. We tend to think that “our” lives are about us. But through Jesus we have been chosen. We are meant to display God, Himself, to everyone we come in contact with. God has given us His Word. He desires for us to humbly receive it and obey it! This obedience will bring blessing into our lives. When people around us see the difference God has made in our lives, they will realize that they need Him.

We have “been entrusted with the very Words of God” as well. May we live our lives centered on Jesus who is the living Word. When He comes to live within our hearts, our lives are to be all about Him!

Live to Know Him and to Make Him Known!