Devotions

Romans 12 to me is like a wonderful garden, full of beauty and delight. It begins in full view of the sunshine of God’s mercy. The will of God is the path that winds through it and the gate to that path is found in abandoning the pattern of the world and being transformed through the renewing of our minds.

Romans 12 reminds us that everything we have and everything we are, is a gift of grace from God, given to us not to make us arrogant or puffed up, but to use for the benefit of all.

Each of us has received differing gifts from God. We are not the same, but we are all uniquely gifted by God; some to prophesy, some to serve, others to teach. Some of us are encouragers, others are givers. Some lead and others bestow mercy. Whatever our gift, we are to do it well.

But a garden cannot grow without water. Without the nourishing showers and streams, a garden will simply dry up and die.

The showers that nourish the garden of Romans 12 can be summed up in one word, “LOVE.” It is LOVE that brings refreshing rain to Romans 12, and it begins simply in verse 9. “Don’t just pretend to LOVE others. Really Love them.” [NLT]

Without LOVE, nothing grows. People, relationships, ministry, everything is stunted and shriveled without LOVE

Hebrews 7:25 NKJV: “Therefore [Jesus] is also able to save to the UTTERMOST those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

Hebrews 7:25 NIV: “Therefore [Jesus] is able to save COMPLETELY those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.”

Hebrews 7:25 NLT: “Therefore [Jesus] is able, ONCE AND FOREVER, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf.”

It’s “panteles” and it conveys a sense of absolute completeness—nothing lacking, nothing partial, nothing left to be added.

The denomination that I grew up in left me with the impression that Jesus made the down payment on my salvation and left the installments up to me. But our salvation in Christ lacks nothing. There is nothing missing, nothing I can add to it. It is all mine, completely forever mine by faith.

Meditate on that today. What do we have in this life that is utterly complete forever? Everything in this life (apart from God) is subject to change, corruption, and destruction. But God … BUT GOD … through His Son … provides salvation … to the uttermost, complete, and forever!

Glory to God. Amen & Amen

Resurrection Sunday is early this year, April 5, just about a month away. Each year as we approach Easter, I read through that final week of Jesus’ life leading up to His death on the cross. I don’t start with any particular Gospel account, nor always with the very first event—the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem.

I always find myself, however, in the Garden of Gethsemane with Jesus. That event is the decisive moment when Jesus sets His will to the will of the Father. (Matthew 26:36-46, Mark 14:32-42, Luke 22:39-46.)

In those three accounts we learn that Jesus asked the Father to take the cup of suffering away. “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me,” but surrendered to the Father’s will. “Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” [NLT]

In the Garden, “he became deeply troubled and distressed,” and His soul was crushed with grief, so intense it took Him “to the point of death.” His agony was so great that an angel from heaven appeared to strengthen him, so great that “his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood.” [NLT]

But the most amazing thing about that Gethsemane experience is that from then on you find Jesus in complete command. He was in command during the betrayal. He was in command during the trials – answering questions only when He chose to. Even on the cross He was in command, forgiving sins, granting salvation to a thief, and giving up His Spirit to God.

And gloriously in command when He declared, “It is finished (and will forever remain finished)!”

Amen & Amen

Romans 12:6-8: “God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out when you have faith that God is speaking through you. If your gift is that of serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching. If your gift is to encourage others, do it! If you have money, share it generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.”  [NLT]

We can do “certain things well.” Isn’t that delightful! Paul says that if God has given you the ability to prophesy, then speak out! Prophecy is just speaking forth the Word of God with reference to the past, the present, or even the future. If you have faith God is speaking through you, then speak.

If you are a server, then serve well. My husband is a server. He cringes if anyone wants him to speak in public but put him behind the scenes to repair a leaky church toilet or pull down an unwanted building, or pick up the trash, or paint the nursery, then he’s in his glory.

If your job is to encourage, then do it. In any and every way possible! If you are a giver, then give; a leader, then lead. And if mercy is the cry of your heart, then render kindness to others with a cheerful and glad heart.

What motivates you? When you see a bad situation, what is the first thing you want to do? Do you want to run up and hold the person, or do you want to try to fix the problem with financial assistance? Usually what our strongest motivation at that moment is our strongest gift.

I have acted in all the gifts in some measure. I can speak forth the Word of God. I’ve served and led and given mercy. I’ve contributed money and I’ve taught. But my motivation to do those things has always been because I’m an encourager at heart. It is the reason why I do everything I do. It influences everything. It is my heart gift, to encourage others, whatever avenue that encouragement takes. Have you thought about what your gift is?

We all love gifts. The very nature of a gift is that it is given from one person to another because of tradition, because it is expected, or just out of love and delight.

God loves and delights in giving gifts. In Ephesians 4, God gives the church gifts. Five are outlined: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. In I Corinthians 12, the Holy Spirit gives gifts, nine are mentioned: messages of wisdom and knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, discernment of spirits, different kinds of tongues and interpretation of tongues.

Romans 12 also describes gifts, seven gifts are mentioned. They are given, according to the grace of God, to individuals for the good of the Body of Christ. The seven outlined are prophesying, serving, teaching, encouraging, giving, leadership, mercy. No gift is to be thought of as more important than the others. They all come from the same God. They all flow from grace. They are all to be used for the benefit of the Body of Christ and the furtherance of the Kingdom of God.

Sometimes … and I say this hesitantly … believers find that they have one, two or three gifts more prominent than the others. Yet may I be so bold as to say, we all to a greater or lesser degree have each of the seven.

I mentioned recently that I attended a prayer meeting as a new Christian, still very dumb in the ways of God. During that meeting, the minister stopped by me and told me God had given me the gift of encouragement.  In the 53 years since, no matter what capacity I have served in the church or anywhere else, that gift has been the motivating force of my life.

Many think that diversity is something new, but diversity has been around for a long time. F. F. Bruce in his commentary on Romans 12 says: “Diversity, not uniformity, is the mark of God’s handiwork. It is so in nature; it is so in grace, too, and nowhere more so than in the Christian community.”  (The Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, Williams B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, MI)

God has brought together in the Church a diverse bunch, people from every conceivable ethnic group, possessing different heritages, parentages, traditions. All are brought together into one Body, the Body of Christ, and endowed with a variety of gifts, to be used for the good of all. Romans 12:6 begins: “We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.”

Too often we want everyone to be the same, think the same, act the same. What would this world be like if everything was the same? Every flower the same shape and color. Every tree exactly like all the rest. Every mountain like its neighbor. Every person alike. I can think of only one word to describe such a scenario – BORING! 

God instead gave us color and variety, different seasons, different climates, different terrains. He made us all unique; no two people the same. We look different. We think differently. We act differently. Our personalities are different. We are diverse, and in the church this diversity works for the benefit of God’s Kingdom. The church would be very boring if we were all the same.

And just as we have received a measure of faith from God so that no one can boast, so we receive different gifts from God, according to the grace given us. Different gifts that are used in a variety of different ways. Different gifts used by unique people in the Kingdom of God, all for the benefit of the Kingdom.

Today is the 107^th anniversary of my mother’s birth. My mother did not have an easy life. She was a child when the great depression began, the youngest of three children. She suffered from mental and emotional instabilities all her life. Her father was an atheist until he accepted Jesus on his deathbed.

My father became extremely protective of her in their later years. He would act as a buffer, standing in the gap between her and the “world.” Although not an easy task, he acted as a mediator between her and the “world,” and between the “world” and her.

I saw in their relationship an example of Christ Jesus who “stood in the gap.” That phrase originates in Ezekiel 22:30 where God searches for someone to intercede for His people Israel to prevent judgment.

He didn’t find anyone. Not until Jesus. Jesus came as the Mediator – the Only Mediator – between God and man. He stands in the gap for us.

He offered Himself as a sacrifice for our sins. His death and resurrection alone provide the way for us to come to God – the gap between our Father and us has been bridged. Now we have a constant supply of the mercy and grace we need. Now we have the indwelling spirit to lead, guide and teach us. WE ARE SO BLESSED!

“There is one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus.” [1Timothy 2:5 NLT]

Over the course of our almost 59 years together, we have lived in 24 different homes. We have always had helpers when moving from one place to another. Mostly it was family members and friends. I remember one time when they had to move my home organ and piano, a friend suggested that I take up the guitar instead!

Romans 12:3 reminds us that everything we have was given to us by God, even the very faith with which we believe, and because of that we should think soberly about ourselves. Now from that seedbed of faith will spring a bountiful harvest of gifts which Paul will outline in Romans 12:6-8, but before he does, he says a very important fact, we need each other!

Rom 12:4-6: “Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are all parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do. And since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others.” [NLT]

We belong to each other in this Body of Christ, and each of us needs all the others. This is a lovely transition from receiving the measure of faith from God in verse 3, to using the gifts outlined in verses 6-8. We are not the same, Hallelujah!  We do not all function the same, Glory!  Yet we fit together perfectly in Christ’s body, each with our own special function, each with a different work to do, and we belong to each other and need each other. “Each of us needs all the others.”

We needed the members of our family each time we moved. They always joked about not showing up IF we ever decide to move again, this time was always the LAST TIME! But Bob and I know better. IF the time ever comes again, they’ll be there for us. And we’ll be there for them. In this family, “each of us needs all the others.” In the Body of Christ, “each of us needs all the others” too!

I will be darting in and out of Romans 12 over the next few weeks, but in the meantime … I love sports, all kinds of sports, which is odd because my mother hated sports and my dad was simply a baseball fan.

The 2026 Winter Olympics recently concluded. I watched much of it, and much of it left me fuming.

I love these young athletes who have trained and worked hard and dreamed about competing in an international event that only happens every four years. They come in filled with hope. Sometimes their hopes are realized and sometimes they are dashed.

When they don’t live up to the expectations others have placed on their shoulders, they are often hounded by reporters and the keyboard courageous. That happened often during these past winter games. (I wish these athletes would say to these rude and obnoxious people “Here’s my (skates, skis, snowboard, whatever), show me how it’s done.”

When did we become such unkind people, so lacking in compassion and good manners?  Too often I am ashamed of our culture’s behavior. I pray for God’s forgiveness for this nation.

Let those who name the Name of Christ embrace a far different set of standards.

“Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.” [Colossians 3:12 NLT]

Amen

In Romans 12, we are abiding in full view of God’s mercy and offering our bodies as living sacrifices. We are seeking to no longer be conformed to the pattern of the world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

When all that comes together, Paul says in verse 2: “Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

When we do the things mentioned in verses 1 and 2, then, THEN, we will be able to test and approve what God’s will is. There is absolutely no way to know the will of God through earthly means. It is only by God’s Spirit that the will of God can be known.

If you read the first two chapters of 1 Corinthians, (beginning especially in 1:18: “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing.”) you will see that the Will of God makes no sense to the world.  How could the death of a Jewish preacher on a Roman cross be salvation for the entire world? It makes no sense when viewed from the world’s perspective.

Paul goes on in 1 Corinthians “but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.  The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God . . ..  No one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God that we may understand what God has freely given us . . .. because they are spiritually discerned.”  [2:9-16]

The will of God can only be discerned spiritually. There is no way to logically sit down and do the pros and cons to discern God’s will for our lives. We can’t guess, we can’t take a poll, we can’t throw darts at a chart. Only by allowing the Spirit of God within us to reveal God’s will to us, will we be able to know what God has prepared for those who love him!