May 17 | Romans 6:14-23

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DAILY READING

Romans 6:14-23

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REFLECTION

Sin No Longer Your Master

by David Thompson

When I was young, I worked on a farm with my two brothers. One day, my older brother and I were out in a field of grass harvesting it to make it into silage. For those not with a farming background, silage is grass put up into the old silos on a farm. It would ferment over time and smell pretty bad. Cows don't seem to mind. Well one day, the farmer was riding on the tractor pulling a harvester that shot the cut grass into a sided wagon. We always worked the wagon pushing the thrown grass into the corners of the wagon. Well, having five or six boys in the wagon usually led to some chicanery. We would throw grass at each other, let the shot grass bury our feet up to our knees (we lost some good shoes doing that), and this one day my older brother decided he was going to go all in and let the grass completely bury him. The day went on and the full wagons were in the corner of the field and my brother was nowhere in sight. My mom sent me over to get Charles and have him come home for lunch. When I got there, the other boys told me the story, and luckily I made them go with me to the wagon and dig my brother out. He was blue from a lack of oxygen and from the weight of the grass. Actually, he almost died, and my mom always related this story and gave credit to God, as she never had wanted us home for lunch from the farm before.

So why do I tell this heralding story? Our passage states that,"For sin will no longer be our master, for we are no longer under the law..." My brother was trapped and couldn't move. The grass had become his master. The passage goes on to say, "...but under grace." You know we are trapped by something. Luke 21 verse 34 says, "Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life and the day will close on you suddenly; like a trap." The Bible teaches that we will be under the law trying to live perfectly and failing. Or we will be under grace and knowing that even when we do fail, we have an advocate to the Father in Jesus Christ. When we ask for forgiveness for some sin, it is taken care of. If you say to God, "Remember when ....?" God replies, "No" He chooses to forget. Psalms 103:12 tells us, "As far as the east is from the west, so far does He remove our sins from us." As far as the east is from the west is a straight line that goes on forever, with no end. Thanks be to God.

Jesus says later in the passage that, "Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness." "Sin resulted in death," "But now that you have been set free from sin...the result is eternal life." As I said earlier, you will be under one or the other, so which do you choose?

PRAYER

Dear Lord, thank you that you gave us the New Covenant where we are free from the law. Being under grace by your free gift is a burden lifted off all of our shoulders. Be with each of the readers and non-readers alike in seeing the "Good News" of the gospel. In Christ's Name, Amen!

May 16 | Psalm 119:33-49

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DAILY READING

Psalm 119:33-49

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REFLECTION

The Path of a Rule Follower

by Judy Webb

“35 Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight. 36 Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain.” (Psalm 119:35-36)

For many years I was miserable. These were the years before I was drawn to Jesus. These were the years of my darkness and what seemed like a meaningless existence. Have you ever been there? Are you there now? You don’t have to stay in that spot. There is a better way to live.

I must admit that I am a rule follower. I always have been, even before I knew Jesus as my Savior, I knew I had to follow the rules set out before me. Before Jesus, I followed rules out of fear, not love. I was afraid of what would happen to me, what repercussions there might be if I didn’t do things a certain way. But one day, I had enough. That is the day I made my escape.

What a difference a life with Jesus makes. It took a while, but I learned truth from 1 John 4:18, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” Even now, years after embracing Scripture as a perfect guide for living, it only makes sense to follow the rules. Seeking God’s will and perfect plan for our lives is the way to go. Walking on the path of His will is the only path on which we find true happiness.

Having lived with a perpetual stomachache caused by the fear, and then to be freed, reveals just how good God and His plan is. “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees.” (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

PRAYER

Dear Jesus,

Thank you for rescuing me from my former life and for placing me here, right now. I am praying for anyone reading this, who needs to escape their life of fear and fall into the loving arms of Jesus. It is the path to true happiness, joy, and amazing hope. Amen.

May 15 | 1 Peter 5:1-7

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DAILY READING

1 Peter 5:1-7

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REFLECTION

Elders/Small Groups

by David Thompson

In the Lutheran Church, we don't have an elected position called "elder." We have a church council with a number of good people on it, but it is my understanding that they do not have to overtly counsel anyone, but they are still considered the spiritual /business leaders of the church. The position of elder in my experience had a great deal to do with being there for the individual parishioners. They certainly had a presence on the church board, but primarily the role was specifically spiritual. They were examples of people of exemplary Christian character and were believed, by me anyways, to have their spiritual walk together. I found myself always comparing myself with the head usher (a big mistake).

When I had a breakthrough in my spiritual walk (like taking a step on the spiritual ladder), it seemed that he would move up two steps. Like the passage says, he didn't lord it over me, but he was always dedicated to his Bible reading, prayer life and shepherding ministry. His name was Jesse and he had seen a lot in his life. He served in Vietnam and at one religious retreat, we roomed together and we sat up through the night talking. He shared a lot about his childhood, his experiences in Vietnam (they were hair raising) and also his experience with the Lord. I respected him greatly before hearing his story but I respected him even more after hearing all the rest.

In today's church (at least our church), this kind of closeness will likely only be attained by being a member of a "small group." I know I feel quite close to the eleven guys in my group.

We have some great leaders in our church, but getting to the "gut" level with them is hard due to our massiveness. Like the passage states, "Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, watching over them--not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock." It goes on to say in verse 5, "In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders."

We have older members of our small group (some just older in their Christian walks) and some that are older by years. We also have some younger. The small-group is a perfect setting to fulfill the recommendations of this passage. Unless you have the good fortune of living with one of the pastors as I do or you are best friends with one of the more mature leaders, then the small group is the second best option. Through our great examples in the church, help them to show us that we can "cast all our anxieties on Him, because He cares for you."

PRAYER

Dear God, thank you for your words of wisdom as seen in 1 Peter 5. Help us to support one another in the ways of the elder you outline there. We have a great institution in our church called the small-group that can serve in most every way as your recommendations showed. Help us to be a "beacon of light on a hill" for others to follow to your family. Amen!