Excerpts from 1 Corinthians Chapter 10

“If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experienced. And God is faithful. He will not allow temptation to be more than you can stand. when you are tempted, He will show you a way out so that you can endure.” (1 Corinthians 10: vv. 12-13, NLT)

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Don’t give offense to Jews or Gentiles or the church of God. I, too, try to please everyone in everything I do. I don’t just do what is best for me; I do what is best for others so that many may be saved. And you should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.” (1 Corinthians 10: vv. 31-33, NLT)

More Excerpts from Romans Chapter 12

“”Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them: pray that God will bless them. Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!

Never pay back evil with more evil. Do this in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.

Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say,”I will take revenge: I will pay them back,”, says the Lord.

Instead, “If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads.”

Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.””
(Romans 12: vv. 14-21, NLT)

More Excerpts from Romans Chapter 12

“In His grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give 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.

Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.” (Romans 12: 6-13, NLT)

A Living Sacrifice to God

“And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice – the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” (Romans 12:vv. 1-2, NLT)

Salvation is for Everyone

“”For Moses writes that the law’s way of making a person right with God requires obedience in all of its commands. But faith’s way of getting right with God says, “Don’t say in your heart,’ who will go up to heaven?’ (to bring Christ down to earth). And don’t say, ‘Who will go down to the place of the dead?’ (bring Christ back to life again).” In fact, it says,

“The message is very close at hand; it is on you lips and in your heart.”*. (Deut. 30:12-114)

And that message is the very message about faith that we preach. If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved. Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who give generously to all who call on Him. For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”*(Joel 2:32)
(Romans 10: vv. 5-13, NLT)

Nothing Can Separate Us from God’s Love

“What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us., who can ever be against us? Since He did not spare even His own Son but gave Him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for His own? No one – for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who then will condemn us? No one- for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and He is sitting in the place of honor ag God’s right hand, pleading for us. “(Romans 8: vv. 31-34, NLT)

“And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow – not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below – indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8: vv. 38-39, NlT)

The Future Glory

“Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory He will reveal to us later. For all creation is waitings eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who His children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, this creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. “
(Romans 8: vv. 18-21, NLT)

“We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as His adopted children, including the new bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We were given this hope when we were saved.”
(Romans 8: vv 23B-24A, NLT)

“And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groaning that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.” (Romans 8: vv. 26-28, NLT)

Life in the Spirit

“So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to Him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent His own Son in a body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving His Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit. (Romans 8 vv. 1-4, NLT)

Struggling with Sin

“I have discovered this principle of life – that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God’s law with all my heart. but there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still with me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin.” (Romans 7: vv. 21-25, NLT)

Sin’s Power is Broken, Part II

“Do not let sin control the way you live, do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become and instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace. (Romans 6: vv. 12-14, NLT)

“When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. ” (Romans 6: vv. 20-23, NLT)