2 CHRONICLES 4:1-6:11
ROMANS 7:1-13
PSALM 17:1-15
PROVERBS 19:22-23
Reading Romans again and seeing how intense and complicated Paul's writing is compared to other books that he has written I am picturing a bunch of college students sitting around saying "Deep man". A little research tells me that the book of Romans is the latest written of the epistles of Paul in the New Testament. And that it is written to a church that he had not founded. Maybe that is why he is writing in a way that feels like a professor presenting material repeatedly in different ways making different connections so that many different students can grasp all that he is teaching them. And what he is teaching them is the compellation of all the Christian principles that he has learned and taught over the years.
I think about the difference between the teaching style of our retired Pastor Cam and how he led the church, and our new young Pastor Rick's teaching style and leadership in the church. The experienced leader speaks with confidence in his teaching. He also has more in depth understanding that leads to teaching based on his discernment and personal study not just on research. He has years of study and experience to draw on and has developed a firm understanding of Christianity. He has lived though many personal experiences that has strengthened his relationship with Jesus so his teaching is personal and passionate. The same cannot be expected from a younger Pastor. The less experienced leader is more timid in his teaching style and more likely to relay information from research and study more than preach from a place of discernment, experience, and passion. It is like the difference between Paul and I bet any of the disciples from when they first began their ministry and years later into their ministries. There must be a time a growth. I am sure that Cam was the same way when he started his ministry but I had not know him then. We see from the disciples that the most important thing for the young leader is to seek the Lord and surrender to the Holy Spirit. We see in the early church how the Spirit moved and gave the disciples the words to speak. That is one of the ways they came to experience and understand Jesus better. Eventually they came to understand the Spirit led messages so well and were so in tune with the direction of the Spirit that they could discern exactly what each situation called for when they spoke.
Paul in Romans is the experienced seasoned professor who has a lifetime of learning and experiences under his belt. He has lived under the direction of the Holy Spirit and personally experienced the grace, peace, protection and provision of God so he has a passion to make sure that others understand and receive the Good News. I think that is why Romans is such an important book to study. For new Christians to learn and understand the compellation of the teaching on their faith but also for mature Christians to ground themselves in a depth of understanding that may help them to respond to others when given opportunity to share the Good News themselves. Romans being a full compellation of the Good News has all the key verses that we need to simply explain the Gospel. Those verses are called Romans Road to Salvation and that is how Romans is even important for non-believers to hear about. So, it turns out that Romans is not just a book for the scholarly Christian, but God in His sovereignty has given us a book that speaks to every person on the planet who is willing to receive it. From the seeker to the newborn Christian all the way to the mature Chrisitan teacher and leader. So, it really is soooo deep man!! Only God can do that He is also soooo cool man!! So, sit down at Jesus feet and dig into the book of Romans. You can start on the Romans road.
There is a lot of info out there about sharing the Romans Road to Salvation below is on website.
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