2 Chronicles 11:1-13:22, Romans 8:26-39, Psalms 18:37-50, Proverbs 19:27-29
Today is the 24th day of July welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I’m Brian and it is an honor to be here with you today as we just come…come in and find a place around the Global Campfire and just…ahh…exhale. I mean, some of the stuff I’m still thinking about from yesterday from the book of Romans. It was such an exhilarating view of who we are. And, so, I’m looking forward to getting there. But before we can get there, we have a little territory to cover in the book of second Chronicles and we’ll read second Chronicles chapters 11, 12, and 13 today. And just by way of reminder, we’re kinda covering this territory again where King Solomon, we…we went through his reign and he has passed away and his son Rehoboam has become king, but he has promised to be more difficult and put much more labor on the…much more of a burden on the people in his kingdom. And, so, ten of the tribes are in the process of rebelling and they are turning to a man named Jeroboam. So, Rehoboam and Jeroboam sound very similar so it’s easy to get them confused, but this is the point at which there is a divide in ancient Israel and their splitting into two separate kingdoms with two separate kings. So, we pick up that story in second Chronicles chapter 11.
Commentary:
Okay. So as we’re continuing to work our way through Romans, like in yesterday’s reading we read some of the implications of what Paul’s been laying out and that is, “the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead, this is the Spirit of the of the most-high God, the same Spirit dwells in us, that we have been…we have been made God’s children, that we are joint heirs with Jesus to the kingdom of God.” So, Paul’s kind of continuing forward today explaining to us that, “Jesus was the firstborn among many to follow into this new thing God is doing upon the earth and this new divine family of the children of God, joint heirs with Jesus to the kingdom of God upon this earth.” And you could step back and go, “okay. Where…like how…like, how does this work? Where is…where is this coming from?” For Paul this comes because Jesus was dead and was resurrected, right? He had a rebirth from the dead back into life. So, for Paul, he’s recognizing, “okay, nobody just raises themselves from the dead. God raised Jesus from the dead as the firstborn into this new family where the law and sin and death have no claim.” And Paul…in some of Paul’s other writings he’ll call Jesus “the second Adam, the last Adam”, right? So, there’s Adam, like the first person who did fall into sin and therefore every one of his offspring after him was…was in the same condition. Jesus on the other hand knew no sin, died, and came back to life reborn and those who believe, those who are in Christ then receive this Spirit that raised Christ from the dead. Like, then we also follow after the same footsteps of Jesus and die to who we were and are reborn into this new divine family upon the earth. We’re not separated from God by sin or any other claim to us. Now we call God papa, abba, daddy, father, or as my kids call me, “padre”, this term of endearment that’s like a loving parent and child relationship, this bond that never ends. That is so…that is the good news. That’s why this is good news. And it’s so huge. It’s like…how do you describe this? Even Paul…Paul says, “what then shall we say about these things? If God is for us who can be against us? Indeed, He who did not spare His own son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him freely give us all things? Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is the one who will condemn? Christ as the one who died. And more than that he was raised who is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will trouble or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?” In all these things we have complete victory through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor heavenly rulers, nor things that are present, nor things that are in the future, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” That is the best news ever! We are being invited forward, my brothers and sisters. We are not invited to just be on the spin cycle for the rest of this year and come in to next year so exhausted from all of the things that are going on in the world that we don't…don’t even know what to believe anymore or which way is up or down. Nothing can separate us from the love of God except us. We have to believe this, and then we have to live from this place. According to Paul, we have been reborn into the family of God, joint heirs with Jesus, who is the first born of this family, a new Adam as it were. So, on some level…like I’m asking you, but I’m asking myself, what are we waiting on? Like what are we waiting for? What has to happen before we actually embrace the good news and live from that place which changes the way we look at everything and everyone? Because we realize everybody’s invited. All are welcome and we are the light of the world according to Jesus, that will show the way. So, I don’t know. Something to think about today.
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, as…as we did yesterday, as we do most every day, we ask You to come and lead us into all truth. Make us aware. Give us eyes to see and ears to hear what is really going on here and how big of a role You have invited us to have. The invitation is unbelievable. This is the gift. It’s free. We don't…we can’t…we couldn’t earn this and yet You have bestowed upon us and it’s such good news it’s unspeakable. And, so, we are thankful for the unspeakable gift of the good news. And we ask that Your Holy Spirit would give us eyes to see and wake us up to the reality. We ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
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