07/12/2019 DAB Transcript

1 Chronicles 12:19-14:17, Romans 1:1-17, Psalms 9:13-20, Proverbs 19:4-5

Today’s the 12th day of July. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. It is great to be here with you at the end of a workweek. And as I mentioned yesterday, we concluded the book of Acts yesterday, which means that we’re going to be moving into some new territory in the New Testament, but we’ll talk about that when we get there. First, we’re reading from the New International Version this week. First Chronicles chapter 12 verse 19 through 14 verse 17.

Introduction to the book of Romans:

Okay. So, yesterday we finished the book of Acts, and, as we will recall the first part of the book of Acts really helped us to get to know the apostle Peter and his immediate ministry after Jesus ascension, but then later, the second half of the book of Acts introduced us to Saul who became the apostle Paul and his missionary journeys. And, so, we’ve been all over the Roman Empire, practically with the apostle Paul. So, we had the opportunity to get acquainted. Today we’re moving into new territory into the book of Romans, which is a letter written by the apostle Paul and it’s the first of a bunch of letters that we’re gonna encounter from the apostle Paul in the New Testament. Paul’s not the only letter writer in the New Testament. There are other letters, but we’re gonna be spending our time for the next while now reading letters to people and to groups of people. But this one called Romans, most biblical scholars agree that Romans is by far Paul’s most comprehensive work and so much of our theology around this faith, this Christian faith, so much of our understanding of the good news of Jesus it originates in the book of Romans. And it’s likely that this letter was written from the city of Corinth we’re some of Paul’s greatest missionary work had been accomplished and it was probably written somewhere in the mid 50s A.D. That might be just a date. You may just think, “that’s a date and it’s a long time ago”, a couple thousand years ago, almost. Like if it were 2050 A.D. then we’re looking back to 50 A.D. And again, you could be just like, “well that’s cool, it’s cool to know when it was written, but what significance?” What’s interesting is that Paul’s letters…and one of the reasons why they’re so revered and important is they are some of the earliest writings about Jesus. So, when we talk about the mid 50s A.D. for the letter to the Romans, we’re talking about a letter that was written before any of the Gospels were written. So, you won’t hear Paul talking in kind of gospel narrative style where like he’s telling the story of Jesus because Paul never met Jesus in the flesh while he was ministering on the earth. The Jesus that Paul met…and by the way I’m not trying to say there is a couple of different Jesus’s…but when Paul encountered Christ, he encountered Jesus after His resurrection after His ascension. So, the Jesus Paul knew was essentially the cosmic Christ, like the Eternal One. And again, I know that gets kind of convoluted. I’m not saying that Jesus in the flesh on earth was a different Jesus than the cosmic Christ. They’re the same person. I’m just saying Paul didn’t know Jesus in life. Paul didn’t know Jesus in His humanity on earth. And when Paul wrote Romans the narrative stories, at least in written form that we know as the Gospels, those had not been penned yet. Of course, this opens up a can of worms because just about everything in the Bible has been up for debate over the thousands of years that scholarly disciplines have been applied to it. So, there would certainly be scholars who would argue for earlier dates of certain Gospels, especially the gospel of Mark being more contemporary with Paul’s writings and I’m not trying to get us in the weeds here. I’m just trying to say some of Paul’s authority in his letters come because of their earliness. They were being passed around between churches and communities. They were being copied and kind of moving their way throughout the early church, especially in a lot of churches that Paul had a hand in and founding. So, we see that as they’re passed around, they begin to carry weight and authority that lasts all the way until councils ratify the New Testament. So, anyway, when Paul finished the book of Romans, he sent a Deaconess, Phoebe, from the church of Cenchreae, which was just outside of Corinth to hand-deliver this letter and make an introduction to the apostle Paul to the Romans. And we have followed Paul in the book of Acts throughout his missionary journeys and we know that Rome was a place that he wanted to go but it was not a place that he was able to go until he was under arrest. So, the church in Rome wasn’t planted by Paul and we don’t know who brought the gospel of Jesus to Rome. The most likely scenario is that somebody or a group of somebody’s who were influenced by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost carried the gospel back to Rome and the church was established there. So, Paul was arrested in Jerusalem, right? And then he was held captive and under arrest in Caesarea Maritima before going to Rome and he was imprisoned mostly because he taught that the gospel, the message of Jesus, was open to Jews and Gentiles alike, that God was now welcoming all who believed in Jesus into his family, which was a massive reframing of the perceptions and traditions of devout Jews and was one of the reasons Paul constantly caused riots everywhere that he went. It’s the book of Romans that explains why Paul felt the way that he feels, that he felt, about all of these things, explains how he came to this truth. And he wrote in an educated way that devout Jews could understand, connecting beautifully Jesus to a story that had been taking place among the Jews since Abraham. Paul explained the law. We’ll hear a lot of talk about the law in Paul’s writings, which is referring to the Mosaic law. And he just unpacked its purpose as a Pharisee who would been devout while revealing that nobody’d ever been able to obey the law perfectly and the idea was if you could obey the law perfectly you could be justified before God. And, so, Paul’s just realizing and reiterating and saying out loud, nobody’s done that. No one be could become perfect before God on their own, through a law or through rules. But Jesus fulfilled the law and through Jesus we can all be made righteous before God. And, so, with all of that being said, we begin the letter to the Romans chapter 1 verses 1 through 17.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for Your word and we thank You that as we continue the journey day by day, step-by-step we get to turn the page and encounter new aspects and new stories and new insights. And so, as You have brought us safely here to the book of Romans, we invite Your Holy Spirit. So much of what we believe is contained in this letter. And, so, now we have a front row seat to hearing the argument, to hearing what it was that Paul was trying to say as he was unpacking the gospel. So, come Holy Spirit into our time as we navigate the letter to the Romans we pray. And of course, Your guidance, Your insight, Your love and compassion for us throughout every verse, every word that we read, we invite You. Plant Your word in our lives in our spirit and transform us we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is the website, it’s home base, of course, it’s where you find out what is going on around here. So, be sure to stay tuned and stay connected.

The Daily Audio Bible Family Reunion, right, where the global campfire comes together here in the rolling hills of Tennessee will be taking place August 31st. So, we’re just about six weeks out and we’re looking forward to that. There a few spots left. So, get ‘em while you can. We’re gonna have a blast. It’s gonna be a fantastic Family Reunion by the looks of it and we can’t wait to see you here in the rolling hills of Tennessee. I mentioned yesterday, there are few cabins left. Got about a week on those and then we have to release them back to the camp. And as I mentioned yesterday, this is an important family reunion for us because several of the things that we do as the rhythm of each year we’re not going to be doing next year. The Lord’s invited us into a time of dreaming and and rest. So, we won’t be doing More Gathering in 2020 and we won’t be doing Family Reunion in 2020. And, so, very, very much looking forward to seeing your faces at this family reunion. So, you can get all the details at dailyaudiobible.com in the Initiatives section. Of course, you see the Initiatives section on the Daily Audio Bible app as well. All the details are there and we’re hoping and praying that you can be there as well.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, if what we do around the global campfire every day brings by light and good news and life to you then thank you for your partnership. We would not be here if we were not in this together. That is a fact. So, thank you for your partnership in the summertime. There’s a link on the homepage at dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the Daily Audio Bible app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or if you prefer the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or comment, 877-942-4253, is the number to dial.

And that is it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hello, this is Zach from North Carolina. I was calling in again about my son Orson. He’s…he was born on June 10th and I was calling for prayers for his…my wife and his mother Kelly and his two sisters Azlan and Danielle. I was calling for prayers for them for peace and understanding for them. My son passed away today around 6 PM Eastern time today at Duke University Hospital in Dermark North Carolina. He was 28 days old. He was born on June 10th. He died today on July 7th. Please pray for his sister’s Azlan and Daniela pray for his wife…I mean my wife…his mother Kelly as we grieve his loss. And pray for Orson as he joins God in heaven as one of his angels. Thank you so much.

Good morning DABbers, this is Bruce first time caller from California. I’m leaving a prayer request from bio wife Donnie. She’s about to have shoulder replacement surgery on the 15th of this month and I’m just reaching out to you to make sure that we get as much prayer for her as possible. And while I am on the subject of Donnie I just want to let you know, wives out there, that she has listened to the Daily Audio Bible for years now and it’s because of her commitment to listening to the Daily Audio Bible and hearing her lay in her bed and every morning pray for those people that call in with prayer requests that I went from not only just listening to the Daily Audio Bible but actually listening to the prayers that come on after Brian delivers the message. And wives just…I want to let you know that your commitment to leave an example for your husbands doesn’t go unnoticed. It is because of her actions that I am at where I’m at with my walk with God. So, just keep up the good work and please pray for Donnie. Thank you very much have a great day.

Hello DAB this is Terry the trucker. I’m just calling to give an update. I’m probably about 2 ½ weeks left of therapy. Ask for continued prayers that my body will be ready to go back to work and I’m able to by the end of the month. Also want to give a shout out to all the people that’ve called in about…about being discouraged and losing hope and not knowing their purpose. You know, we all go through seasons. Some of them last just a few days, few weeks, months. Some years, sometimes a lifetime. But, you know, we never really know why. Sometimes, you know, God will reveal or it to us and sometimes He don’t, you know. And it may last you…if it lasts you your lifetime then it might just be that it encourages somebody that hears your story and knows what you went through and can say, “man that person went through a lot, but they stayed faithful. They fought the fight, they ran the race and that we’re a good and faithful servant.” That’s what our Lord wants of us. So, I just ask you to stay strong, keep your eyes on Jesus. That’s what we’re here for. And that’s what He’s for. I want to give a shout out to Cherry and Greg. You’re in my prayers. Blessings from California. Blind Tony. All you guys. And everybody that calls in, I want you to know that you’re in my prayers daily. It’s been a long year. It’s been almost a year. August 15th’s comin’ up fast. To be honest, I’m scared. I’m scared to get back in the truck, but I’ve got faith. So, I ask for prayers for my mind to be strong and not scared. I know God’s got me, but I’m still human. You all have a blessed day. Thank you.

Hey there, I just want to pray and speak to my brothers and sisters. There was a lady, you called in, I didn’t catch your name. You were played on the first of July and I’m just praying for reconciliation with your son and for you to get to meet your grandbabies. I pray that in Jesus’ name and I thank God that you’re not letting the world make you believe you’re broken. Joyful Noise, thank you for your generous heart to encourage donating to the DAB. For your son, I just pray that God will work in his life to encourage him to seek God to overcome his difficulties in Jesus’ name. Jay from Nashville, I thank God for your recent promotion. A year ago, I was a custodian and now I’m in a better…in a much better position…just through prayer and working __ for the Lord. So, congrats brother. Kristi from Kentucky thank you for putting up prayers for others. You have an extremely sweet soul. I’m praying for you and your family losing your dog. That’s never easy. I just recently lost our dog Buddy and he wasn’t just a pet I was like his littermate. And it’s never easy but now know that I’m praying for you and yours in Jesus’ name. Jesse from Washington, bless you and your restored marriage and business. I will be checking out the Daily Prayer. I’m just so excited for you brother. That is just so amazing. Scott from Tennessee. Brother, I know how rough depression and anxiety can be, especially when Scripture says not to be anxious, which is easier said than done sometimes. I also pray that God will rid you of your eating issues and that He’ll help you with your financial troubles. Just keep trusting in Him. In Jesus’ name I pray. And Drew from Minnesota, I thank God in Jesus’ name for your heart to give and trust that God will provide. That is just…