Category Archives: spiritual heart

The Romans Challenge: Dead to Sin!

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“What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NIV‬

(Today we start Romans 6)

Baptism symbolizes a very important fact in the life of a follower of Jesus. We follow Jesus in His death, burial, and resurrection. Our old sinful life that we all lived before Christ is to die. It is “buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised form the dead… we too may live a new life.” Being “dead to sin” enables us to live the “new life” that God has given us.

If I were physically dead — at the funeral home, lying in a casket — it would be impossible for me to sit up and eat a donut that you may bring and pass before my nose and my mouth (even the cream filled ones…). I will not take a bite. I am dead to that donut. Our enemy will bring temptation to sin into our lives, but through Jesus we do not have to take a bite. We can live our lives dead to sin!

How can this be? I have this nature, a sinful one, that desires to do things that are wrong all the time… We cannot forget that WE HAVE NEW LIFE! This life is the Holy Spirit living in us. He comes as our Helper to help us to say “no” to the temptations. He comes as the Power to enable us to live our lives “dead to sin.”

We can live free of the patterns of sin that we have been chained to i.e. addictions, bad habits, sinful thought patterns, etc. We don’t have to “live in it any longer.”

As a Christian, it is one thing to slip up and say a hateful thing, do a sinful action, or make a wrong choice, chose to do a sinful act…God has given us a remedy for such a scenario…

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
‭‭1 John‬ ‭1‬:‭9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

It is a whole other thing to embrace our sinful choice, sit down for coffee with it, and indulge in it day in and day out… that is not being dead to it… That is preferring the sinful choice over obedience to God and His word. It is loving God less and our sin more… In this case, we are not dead to sin, we have chosen to let it grow, fester, and consume our lives.

Thank you God that You have provided all that we need to die to sin! We cannot die to sin on our own. The Holy Spirit is very willing to fill us with His life so that there is no room for sinful patterns to grow. God has given us His Word so we can keep our way pure. (Psalm 119:9) As we read His Word, live according to what the Word says, and ask the Holy Spirit to help us in our weakness, “we too may live a new life” that is dead to sin!

The Romans Challenge: Reconciled!

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“For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭5‬:‭10‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Reconciled- “Brought into friendship from a state of disagreement or enmity” (Webster’s 1828)

Today is Romans 5!

We were created for connection to God! Relationship is connection. Back in the Garden of Eden, God’s intent for mankind was to have relationship. When Adam and Eve chose to sin, separation from God came. This separation is all we have really known and understood in our lives. It is the norm. But God desires for us to experience something radically different than that. He wants us to be united to Him in a close and intimate relationship!

This is why Jesus came. His death, burial and resurrection provides the way for us to experience His salvation from sin. When we accept Him as our Savior, we are justified by His blood. His blood cleanses us from the sin that has separated us from God. Then we experience the most beautiful thing — reconciliation. We are brought back into the relationship that God originally desired for us to have way back at the beginning, in the Garden of Eden.

This relationship we now have with God is closely connected to Him. He gives us the Holy Spirit to live inside of us. We now live our lives literally walking and talking with God.

We go from being enemies of God, pursuing sin, to a friend of God, pursuing Him and His righteousness! We can now live our lives reconciled to God!

The Romans Challenge: A Sign and A Seal

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“And he received circumcision as a sign, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Today is Romans 4.

My husband and I started dating in the Spring of 92. We married after a whirlwind romance that occurred in what we fondly call our “Summer of Love.” (We married after 8 months, in January) I was 21 and he was 19.

It was during this time that Rich decided he wanted to seal the deal on our relationship and display that we were “a thing.” So as we were driving across an overpass not far from the campus house I lived in, he flipped his High School Senior ring up on the dashboard of the car and said, “Here you go! Put this on. It should keep the other boys from flirting with you.” Being 21 and having been in college for three years. I thought it was a little to “High Schoolish” for me, but I didn’t want to scare him off. (He was soooo cute!). So I put it on!

My heart was already his! We had a relationship. That ring was a sign and a seal!

For the Jewish people, Circumcision was meant to be just that! God wanted a nation that was His. This nation was to display Him, His glory, to the world around it. Circumcision was meant to be a sign and seal that the Jewish people were in a committed relationship with God. It wasn’t what made them righteous, or in right standing with Him. Righteousness only comes through faith! Not our deeds.

I could have wore that ring around back in 92 with my heart far from loving Rich. I could have hung out with him out of obligation or to get a free meal. Wearing it would have been hollow.

The circumcision that the Jewish people thought made them something special was only a hollow act if their hearts were not God’s.

They had the law. They followed the rules. But they weren’t obeying out of a heart that was connected to God through faith. They didn’t have the relationship!

The Romans Challenge: Conscious of Our Sin

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“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.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Today is Romans 3.

One of the most impactful exercises I have ever done is taking the time to complete a “Spiritual Inventory” list. It is a check list of sins that are listed in the Scripture. Prayerfully considering the condition of my spiritual heart is of upmost importance.

I believe it is healthy for us to come to God with the same prayer that David did on a regular basis:

“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭139‬:‭23‬-‭24‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Sin numbs us. Our enemy would love for us to live unaware of the sin in our lives. He would love for us to blame all of our problems on others and our circumstances. He is aware that once we see the truth, we have a sin problem, we are close to freedom. Because it is the truth that sets us free from the chains of sin!

Romans 3 has a list that describes where we all are without God. It concludes that the Law of God, makes us “conscious of our sin.”

Knowing that we have a problem with sin is good! Then God can show us the answer for our sin problem, Jesus.

Even in the life of a believer, sin that we embrace separates us from that close and intimate relationship that God desires for us to have with Him. It clogs up the communication lines. It keeps us at a distance from Him.

Jesus has provided all that we need to deal with our sin problem. Once we become conscious of our sin all we need to do is go to Him in prayer. He promises us this: 

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
‭‭1 John‬ ‭1‬:‭9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The Law served its purpose. It helped us to understand that we need Jesus! Jesus said that He didn’t abolish the law, or set it aside. He fulfilled it. What Jesus did on the cross is enough to deal with the sin in our lives.

Thank you Jesus!

The Romans Challenge: Circumcision of the Heart

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“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.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭2‬:‭29‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Today is Romans 2.

God’s desire since creation has been to have people who are His. (Jeremiah 31:33). We were created with a purpose. This purpose is for our spiritual hearts (the center of our being —our mind, will, and emotions) to be a reflection of Him.

When sin entered our world in the Garden of Eden, the sinful nature filled our hearts. Since that time, our minds have been filled with selfish thoughts. Our will- desires- have been for our own ways and not God’s. Our emotions have reflected this. We feel hatred, bitterness, anger, anxiousness, discontentedness. This is all because we need our spiritual hearts to be transformed!

At salvation, when we accept Jesus as Lord of our lives, we receive a new heart — one that desires to obey Him. BUT our old desires, our old thoughts, our old emotions need to be removed. This is a spiritual circumcision — cutting away — of our spiritual hearts. The Holy Spirit is the one working all this within our hearts as we submit to Him. Simply put, God wants to change us from our old way of living to His new way of living.

Where we had turmoil, He desires to give us peace. Where we had hatred, He longs to give us love. Where we have been angry, He offers to help us to forgive others. The list goes on and on.

When we allow God to transform our lives, we will experience Him in a close relationship like none other. We will know Him. This knowing of Him, or intimacy with Him, will change us. We will reflect Him more and more each day.

May we submit to the Holy Spirit as He circumcises our hearts!

The Romans Challenge: Living a Double Life

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“As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.””
‭‭Romans‬ ‭2‬:‭24‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Today is Romans 2.

People are watching to see how we live. Paul warned the Jewish people of that. He told them that they were “relying on the law and boasting in God”, but then they would turn around and not practice what they were preaching. They were committing sins that were effecting the people around them. Non believes (the Gentiles) were watching and they blasphemed, were irreverent and spoke of God reproachfully.

When people hear us speaking of how we are so much better because of God, but cannot see any evidence of God in our lives because of our behavior, they have no reason to believe what they hear.

If we are living a double life (one that says all the right stuff, but does the opposite), It will eventually come out that we are a hypocrite, and unbelievers will take it as opportunity to speak against God.

May we live as ones desiring to follow Jesus with all our hearts and to reflect Him in all we say and do!

Life goal: To know God and make Him known!

The Romans Challenge: Written on Our Hearts

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“They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts…” 
‭‭Romans‬ ‭2‬:‭15‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Today is Romans 2.

The Jews of Paul’s time thought that they had it together. They believed they had the inside connection to God because they obeyed a long list of rules and regulations — outward obedience. But even with all their efforts they still would end up breaking the smallest of laws (such as “thou shalt not lie”… ). Keeping a long list of rules in our own effort is exhausting and it is fruitless. Jesus came to give us the better way. Through Him we can be born again!

When we are born again, we are given a new spiritual heart. We desire to do the things that are pleasing to God. The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah describes it this way: 

““This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭31‬:‭33‬ ‭NIV‬‬

God has given us everything we need to live close to Him. His desire is for us not to be living our lives “checking off the boxes” of our spiritual life — i.e. “working” for His approval. He loves us!

He desires us to have internal obedience — I desire to obey God because I know He loves me and His way is always best! His Law (His Word) is in my heart and my mind so I don’t sin against God. He will help me to obey because His Holy Spirit is living inside of me working to make me more like Jesus in each and every way — transforming my heart and mind.

May the way we live “show that the requirements of God’s law are written on {our} hearts.”

The Romans Challenge: What Am I Seeking?

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Today is Romans 2. 

“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.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭2‬:‭7‬-‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Our actions are a reflection of what is in our hearts. If our hearts are polluted by preoccupation with ourselves, we will be “self-seeking.” If our hearts are polluted by embracing the lies of the enemy, our hearts are polluted by rejection of the truth and following evil. But if our hearts are seeking God’s approval, our hearts are full of the desire to glorify Him. If our hearts desire to reflect His character to those around us, our hearts are full of desiring to honor Him.

What I am seeking reflects what is truly in my heart. Seeking God and His ways brings great reward to our lives — “eternal life!” Seeking after “self” will lead us in paths of death, darkness, and destruction — “wrath and fury.”

We need to ask ourselves: What am I experiencing in my life? Does it reflect what I am seeking?

If I am seeking God first, He assures me that I will find Him and experience Him — life!

The Romans Challenge: What Am I Seeking?

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Today is Romans 2. 

“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.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭2‬:‭7‬-‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Our actions are a reflection of what is in our hearts. If our hearts are polluted by preoccupation with ourselves, we will be “self-seeking.” If our hearts are polluted by embracing the lies of the enemy, our hearts are polluted by rejection of the truth and following evil. But if our hearts are seeking God’s approval, our hearts are full of the desire to glorify Him. If our hearts desire to reflect His character to those around us, our hearts are full of desiring to honor Him.

What I am seeking reflects what is truly in my heart. Seeking God and His ways brings great reward to our lives — “eternal life!” Seeking after “self” will lead us in paths of death, darkness, and destruction — “wrath and fury.”

We need to ask ourselves: What am I experiencing in my life? Does it reflect what I am seeking?

If I am seeking God first, He assures me that I will find Him and experience Him — life!

The Romans Challenge: What Am I Seeking?

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Today is Romans 2. 

“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.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭2‬:‭7‬-‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Our actions are a reflection of what is in our hearts. If our hearts are polluted by preoccupation with ourselves, we will be “self-seeking.” If our hearts are polluted by embracing the lies of the enemy, our hearts are polluted by rejection of the truth and following evil. But if our hearts are seeking God’s approval, our hearts are full of the desire to glorify Him. If our hearts desire to reflect His character to those around us, our hearts are full of desiring to honor Him.

What I am seeking reflects what is truly in my heart. Seeking God and His ways brings great reward to our lives — “eternal life!” Seeking after “self” will lead us in paths of death, darkness, and destruction — “wrath and fury.”

We need to ask ourselves: What am I experiencing in my life? Does it reflect what I am seeking?

If I am seeking God first, He assures me that I will find Him and experience Him — life!