Paul is writing to the church at Rome about justification to God. He explained how we can be justified and forgiven of sin through faith in Jesus Christ. Paul used old testament scriptures to prove his point. Remember the bible is one book and not divided. Which includes the Jews and the Gentiles. Paul, in chapter 15 of Romans, says that your faith is for other people. You are to reach out and help the world, not to keep praying for yourself. He also says the God called the gentiles to the faith in Jesus. And we as believers are to go into the world and preach the gospel. So that at least some will be saved. Paul was headed to Jerusalem with a collection for the saints. He was leaving Greece headed home. He told the Roman church he was going to see them soon. Then he prayed for them. Paul wrote about reaching the world for Jesus. And that world is just outside your front door. Helping other and not yourself is the call of God.

Crain Blanchard.

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In Romans 14, Paul talked about not offending Christians who are new in the faith. He said that just because we have liberty in the Lord, we’re not to use it to cause someone else to sin or be offended. Paul would purchase meat in the market place that was offered up to idols. He knew that the idols we’re nothing. And it was a good source of cooked meat. But young Christians were being offended by it. So Paul stopped buying the meat. Because it was more important to love the young Christians than to feed his belly. We aren’t to judge those not as strong in the faith as we are. Jesus died for all of us. And they are His servants, not ours. “For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s. ” Romans 14:8 ( KJV).

Crain Blanchard.

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God chose the Hebrews as His people. He gave them a way to be justified. But what did God do for the rest of the world before Jesus? He gave the world the covenant of Noah. It established not only the ten commandments but it established government. God says that they are the minister’s of God. We are to give honor, customs, tribute and fear to the minister’s of God. But be afraid if you do wrong, because they don’t carry the sword in vain. Paul said that if you love your neighbor as yourself, you fulfill all the law. And have nothing to fear. God said with this covenant and faith, you will be justified before God. In bible, when you read the followers of the way, it is talking about the gentiles the followed the covenant of Noah. It also refers to the believing Jews. The way was the first court of the temple. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life. He that believeth in Me through he be dead, yet shall he live. And he believeth in Me shall never die. Believeth thou this?

Crain Blanchard.

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In Romans 12, Paul discusses the church. The church isn’t the building. It’s the people who believe in Jesus. He begins to talk about each member in the body of Christ and how they are to behave to each other. Everyone has a place in the church and no one is more important than the other. Then Paul talks about dealing with people in world. Basically, we are to treat everyone, believer or not the same. If we want to help the church, we have become servants of both the church and the world. Jesus didn’t come to rule but to serve. God lifted Him up and made Him King of kings and Lord of all. “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. Therefore if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink; for in so doing you heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. ” Romans 12:19-21. (KJV).

Crain Blanchard.

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The bible says when the Prodigal son came to himself, he saw that he was living with the pigs. And his father’s servants had homes,food and family. He said to himself, I will go to my father and ask forgiveness and become one of his servants. He started thinking soberly. God has standards so that our quality of life is good. As any father who wants for his children, God will move heaven and earth to do for us. But first we must come to ourselves and think soberly about who we are and where we are. It is true the no one can take us out of God’s hands. There is one exception, point you finger at yourself. You are the only one that can take yourself out of the hands of God. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God has given to every man the measure of faith. Romans 12:3. (KJV).

Crain Blanchard.

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Paul in the book of Acts was chased, stoned,and imprisoned for preaching the gospel. In every city he always went to the synagogue first, then went to the gentiles. He did this because as the word of God says, it is to the Jew first, then to the Greek. Salvation came to the Jews first. Some believed, some didn’t. But God has always kept His word to every man. In the book of Romans, Paul prays for the nation of Israel, they would see and understand the gospel and believe. And that we shouldn’t condemn them because of their unbelief. He said until the fulness of the gentiles comes in, then Israel will believe. God called them first. And that we should have mercy on them. As it says in Romans 11:29, for the gifts and calling of God are without repentance. (KJV).

Crain Blanchard.

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God chose the Hebrews to be a light unto the world. He wanted to show the world that God was alive and real. Although the Hebrews had their set of problems, God still brought the Messiah, Christ, into the world through them. Like the world, some of the Hebrews believed and some didn’t. In the book of Romans, Paul was discussing justification for all mankind. Showing how everyone can recieve Jesus and be accepted back into the kingdom. In Romans 9, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”(KJV). Everyone can come to Jesus and be accepted into the kingdom of God. For God is no respecter of persons.

Crain Blanchard.

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There are 2 parts to the gospel, the law and grace. Before the law was given to man, only death reigned not sin. The law brought the knowledge and accountability for sin. It’s the works towards God. And many hebrews believed that they could enter in with just works. But without faith they couldn’t enter in. Then Jesus came and brought grace. And people believed and had faith towards God. And yet in the end, Jesus will reject people who have lived in the church. If it isn’t just the law or just faith, what are we to do? The bible is one book. There aren’t any divisions in it. It is Jesus from one end to the other. If you don’t believe the entire bible, you have missed the mark. Faith has been required since the beginning. But if you don’t do something about your faith, it dies within you. This was true 6000 years ago. And it’s true today. Faith without works is dead, being alone. It takes the law and grace to be saved.

Crain Blanchard.

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The bible says that we are held in bondage all of our life through the fear of death. But Jesus came to set the captive free, by His shed blood. So if we are redeemed by God, then, “who can separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long, we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8, KJV).

Crain Blanchard.

Www.joseph1637.com