salvation by faith alone

This weekend we finished chapter 9 in our walk through Romans; it also included the first few verses of chapter 10. So in today’s devotion I will hit some of the highlights of that message. It centered around being a Christian has everything to do with faith and God seeking us and not living by the law and mankind seeking to make themselves right before God.

Romans 10:4 NLT

For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given. As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God.

Christ did for us what we can not do for ourselves, yet so many people seek other ways to be made right with God and to connect to God. Often that seeking God is through the law or man made rules.

Ephesians 2:8-9 NIV

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

Faith alone because of God’s grace. And His grace is embodied in Jesus!

1 Corinthians 1:23-24 NLT

So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense. 24 But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.

There is one of the tough ones as we know and see that Christ was our gift and sacrifice. Not all accept Jesus. That is a problem.

Ephesians 1:5,9 NLT

God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure… God has now revealed to us his mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill his own good pleasure.

What we pursue and who we pursue are important. Anything other than Jesus is the wrong pursuit. The wrong pursuit makes Jesus look like a stumbling block rather than the one who is pursuing us and seeking to redeem us.

Romans 9:33 NLT

God warned them of this in the Scriptures when he said, “I am placing a stone in Jerusalem that makes people stumble, a rock that makes them fall. But anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.”

Some people stumble over Jesus, who is the rock, while others find Him to be our rock of salvation. Which is He for you?

Isaiah 28:16 NLT

Therefore, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: “Look! I am placing a foundation stone in Jerusalem, a firm and tested stone. It is a precious cornerstone that is safe to build on. Whoever believes need never be shaken.

Francis Chan's "Forgotten God" (brand new book)

One of the most powerful preachers, writers and leaders of our time, in my opinion, is Francis Chan. His first book, Crazy Love , revolutionized my thoughts about God's love as well as my interacting with God. Now it is time for a brand new book from Chan being released tomorrow, September 1st. The book is Forgotten God . This is a phenomenal book about the power that Christians and the church can and must tap into. All of it is within the Holy Spirit. Francis talks about the power that was seen in the book of Acts when the Holy Spirit began to move among people. It is true that many have avoided or maybe forgotten what the Holy Spirit is all about. And like the Savior who poured out His life and blood so we have reason to rejoice, we were made to lay down our lives and give until it hurts. We are most alive when we are loving and actively giving of ourselves because we were made to do these things. It is when we live like this that the Spirit of God moves and ac...

inspiration from C.S. Lewis

There are many people, past and present, who get our attention by what they write or say or share. For me C.S. Lewis is one of those. He was a prolific writer who continues to grab the attention of thinkers from many different points of view. Lewis first grabbed my attention when I was in 5 th grader, and our teacher, Mrs. Foy, shared The Chronicles of Narnia with our class. It was a powerful time that this dreamer opened doors to thinking like I had never lived before. He wrote of faith, of far off places and of strong figures who found their character rooted deep in God. C.S. Lewis was born in 1898 and died in 1963, 7 years before I was born. It wasn’t until his 30’s that under the influence of his friend Tolkien that he came to be a Christian. He was raised in a traditional church going home, turned away from God as an Atheist in his teen years and through trying to stay away from God and faith returned to God with...

Catalyst ticket arrived

My ticket to the Catalyst Conference, in Atlanta Oct 8-10, just arrived. I'm excited!

Michael Harrison's e-devotion

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