​Do you remember your identity before you put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ? You were anxious, alone, lost, and rejected. 

But then, something happened once you met Jesus and yielded to Him. You were no longer afraid, but had a spirit of power and of love and of a sound mind. You were no longer alone, but a friend of God. You once were lost, but now are found. In Christ, you have been accepted and restored.

In the passage we considered this past Sunday, the Apostle Paul points out these disparities—the difference between a life without the hope of the gospel, and a life that’s forever changed by Jesus. 

On one side, there are words like without strength, ungodly, sinners, and enemies. And on the other side are words like love, justified, saved, reconciled, and life.

Paul wants everyone to know that Jesus is willing and wanting to take anyone from a place of weakness to a place of life, love, and strong consolation. Watch our study from Romans 5:6-11 and learn about the reconciliation that Jesus offers to all of us.

In Romans 5, we discover the gifts that Jesus is eager to give those who place their faith in Him: peace with God and access to God. These are essential to remember when circumstances tempt us to think that God is against us.

Paul knew we would encounter suffering. But he also knew that suffering produces perseverance, which produces character, which produces hope. This happens when we stand in the grace that God has given us and remember that God is for us, not against us. Trials, tribulations, difficulties, and bad days are NOT God being displeased with us or judging us. If you are in Christ, you have been justified—God sees you as sinless!

So the next time the devil reminds you of your past, stand firm in the grace of God and remind him of his future.

The next time the accuser reminds you of your sin and says, “Who said you could go to God?” remind Him that Jesus has justified you and has given you peace with God AND to God—then go to God and receive grace and mercy.

The next time you endure a trial or difficulty and Satan tempts you to think that it’s because God is mad at you, remember that nothing in all of creation could separate you from the love of God.

God is using suffering to produce in you the priceless qualities of perseverance and endurance, which will produce strength of character structural moral integrity, which will eventually produce hope.

So stand, dear friend—not on your own two feet, your own merit, or your own strength. Stand firm in the grace God has given you!

So far in the Book of Romans, Paul has provided the ordered and logical argument that the only way of salvation is to be justified by grace through faith. 

In the fifth chapter, we learn about the practical benefits of this justification, beginning with this incredible truth: “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ…” (Romans 5:1)

Through Jesus and Jesus alone, we have peace with God. But it gets better! We also have access to God: “…through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand…” (Romans 5:2)

Through faith in Christ, we have peace with God AND access God’s throne of grace—where we will receive mercy and grace to help us in our time of need!

This grace truly is amazing! Watch our study from Romans 5:1-5 as we opened up the word of God to read, hear, trust, and obey.

As we continue our study in the book of Romans, we are learning that God’s righteousness, redemption, and salvation is received by trusting, not by trying. In fact, all of God’s gifts are received by simply and merely trusting and believing, not by trying harder.

The futility of trying harder versus trusting God was something the Apostle Paul understood. Before Paul met Jesus, he endeavored to earn right standing with God through his own good works, religious rites, and religious rules. But once he encountered Christ, Paul realized that salvation comes by simply and merely believing God and receiving from God by faith.

This is the theme Paul has been emphasizing so far in the book of Romans. Watch our study from Romans 4:9-25 as we continued our study of God’s amazing grace.

John Phillips said, “Under a system of works, everything depends on the sinner. Under grace everything depends on the Savior. Under the first, God gives a fair trial. But under the second God gives a free pardon.” Either everything depends on you & your works, or everything depends on God & His grace.

We explored God's amazing grace as we continued our study of the Apostle Paul's layered, ordered, and logical argument for God’s Righteousness At Christ’s Expense—given freely to anyone and everyone who simply and merely believes.

Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.
–Genesis 15:6

Apart from Jesus Christ, Abraham is the most famous and widely known person mentioned in the Bible. He is given so much literary real estate throughout the scriptures—not just his life, but his faith in God.

In fact, faith is the word that is most often associated with Abraham. It’s the very quality that is necessary to please God (Hebrews 11:6). It was the faith the Abraham obtained and implemented so much by him that he would be called God’s friend on three different occasions.

But here’s the interesting thing about Abraham—there was nothing extraordinary about him. Even though Abraham was and is so highly regarded by so many, there was nothing uniquely special about him, as compared to others in scripture, like Moses, Joshua, David, Daniel, or Ezekiel. It’s his ordinariness that makes the life of faith accessible to everyone. He simply and merely believed God—and his belief was accounted to him as righteousness. It was this belief that gave him an everlasting hope–a hope that is an anchor for the soul.

That faith and hope is accessible to us—right now! You may never be a great lawgiver like Moses, a smart military leader like Joshua, a brilliant king and psalmist like David, an incredible statesmen like Daniel, or one of the greatest prophets like Elijah—but you can be a person a faith like Abraham.

You see, Abraham was just a man—and God met with him right where he was at. Not only that, God gave him His word and a covenant to conform His word. It was by these two immutable, unchanging, and eternal things that Abraham had every opportunity to believe in God and to believe God. ​

We too have God’s word and His covenant so that we can believe Him. Like Abraham, the covenant God has made it one-sided. We have no contribution in it—only the opportunity to believe God.

As the Apostle Paul continues his ordered and logical argument for God’s grace in his letter to the Romans, he looks back in history for an example of righteousness to which he can point. In his search, he looks beyond the prophets, beyond the kings of Israel and Judah, and beyond Moses. He finds the example he’s looking for in Abraham—the father of the faith.

It's faith, Paul tells us, that is the means through which we are justified. It's not by our works we are saved, or anything we can earn, but a gift of God that is received by faith (Ephesians 2:8). We see this faith that justifies throughout the life of Abraham. Just like the covenant that God made with Abraham, we have no contribution in the covenant He made with us through His son—we only have the opportunity to believe. ​

Watch our study from Romans 4:1-3 as we considered the faith of Abraham and the righteousness God credited to him—and credits to us—through belief.

The solution to the greatest quandary in all of history is found in Romans 3. How could God be a loving Heavenly Father and an absolutely righteous Judge at the same time? We are absolutely sunk unless God can solve this. And He did! Only in Jesus could God be absolutely just AND the justifier of those who have faith in Him.

Think of it this way: one day, an absolutely just judge has his son on the docket. His son is guilty and his punishment is a $50,000 fine or 5 years in jail.

This judge has a reputation of being a just judge who gives everyone a fair trial. But for those who were guilty, he would deliver the maximum sentence allowable by law. Do you see the quandary? If he threw the book at his son, he would violate his character as a loving father. But if he was lenient in his judgment toward his son, he would violate his character as a righteous judge.

The judge calls a recess to think things over. Everyone is wondering how will he solve this seemingly unsolvable situation. Once seated, he looks at his son, lifts his gavel, and delivers his verdict: “Guilty. Maximum sentence allowable by law.”

But then the judge stands, removes his judicial robe, steps down from the judicial bench, walks over to the bailiff, and writes out a check for the full amount. He pays the full penalty himself and solves the quandary of being absolutely just and the justifier.

This is what God did for us in and through Jesus—and so, so much more! He took off His royal robe, stepped down from His throne, lived an absolutely righteous life, and then died an absolutely horrible death in order to pay our penalty the maximum penalty allowable by His law in full. In doing so, God showed Himself to be an absolutely righteous judge AND a Father who forgives and paid our penalty Himself.

Join us Sunday at 10am as we worship the Lord and continue our study in Romans. We gather in-person at 912 W. St. Germain Street, St. Cloud, MN; online and on the radio.

God doesn’t grade on a sliding scale for His entrance exam into heaven. It’s only pass or fail—and in order to pass, you need to get 100% right, 100% of the time. If you’re wrong even once, you fail and fall short of God’s standard.

What is God’s standard? We can look at just ten of God’s commandments to test ourselves. Have you ever…
…loved anything more than God?
…given more devotion to something?
…used God's name as cuss word?
…worked all seven days in a week?
…treated your parents poorly?
…harbored hatred for someone?
…looked on another with lust?
…stolen—anything?
…lied?
…wanted something that wasn't yours?

Well, how’d you do? Did you pass or fail? Remember, there’s no sliding scale. You either keep and fulfill God’s law completely your whole life, or you have broken God’s law at some point in your life. And if you have broken His law, you’re guilty.

Religious rites, rituals, or ceremony cannot deal with that guilt. To say that any religious rite saves or even contributes one bit to your salvation is to say that Jesus’ sacrifice was insufficient.

But there is hope! It’s not found in religion—it’s only found it Jesus. Only Jesus through His finished work on the cross saves. Come to Him and acknowledge that you have broken His perfect law. Be willing to turn from your sins, then believe that Jesus Christ died for you on the cross and rose from the grave.

You can ask Jesus to become the Lord of your life by praying a prayer like this:

Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. In Your Name, Amen.

How does someone get to heaven? This is was the book of Romans is all about. In fact, it’s sometimes referred to as the Gospel according to Grace—God’s Righteousness At Christ’s Expense.

This grace is given as a gift freely to anyone and everyone who believes. It’s a gift—we can’t take credit for it. We can’t earn it by being good enough because no one is good enough. We have all sinned. Our religious efforts to earn God’s favor will never be enough to make us right with Him.

With this truth in mind, we turned our attention to an interesting question Jesus asked a man who was ill for 38 years. What was this question and how would you answer it? Watch our study in Romans 2:12-29 to find out!

How in awe of God’s mercy would you be if you constantly looked to Jesus and compared your righteousness to His? How much compassion would you have for those who are struggling with sin if you were looking at the Lord, bearing in mind how much He’s forgiven you, instead of looking at others?

In his letter to the Romans, Paul is trying to help us see the bad news (we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory) so we can appreciate and cherish the good news (we can all be justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus).

This news (both good and bad) is for the overtly immoral AND the intentionally moral and the really religious. God extends His mercy to all—those who have been running away from Him and those who have been trying to earn His favor, all the while looking down on others. When we forget that it is by grace we have been saved, we become like the older brother in the parable of the prodigal son, who became angry that his brother was receiving love from his Father since he felt he was so much better.

But the Father corrects His mistaken oldest son and us in the process—we can’t earn God’s love or His righteousness. Hear the Father’s heart: “You are always with me, and all that I have is yours.” Because when you are secure in who you are in the Lord, it frees you from seeking self-righteousness and makes you ready for God’s service.

The wrath of God not a knee jerk reaction. It is revealed for the purposes of producing repentance. Often, the wrath of God is letting you have giving you over to what you wanted more than Him.

He will hold on as long as possible, knowing there are very real consequences of sin. But God cannot and will not override our free will. The Father, unfortunately, has to let go.

And then what?

Consider the heart of Jesus, who receives sinners and eats with them (Luke 15:1-2). The religious rulers saw this as an affront. From their point of view, Jesus was spending time with people who deserve God’s wrath.

And yet, these religious rulers didn’t understand the true nature and character of God. They didn’t comprehend that they were sinners too—just as much in need of a Savior. To help them, Jesus told three parables to illustrate the true nature and character the true heart of God towards sinners (Luke 15:4-32).

And after each parable, Jesus reveals the joy God has for a sinner who repents. This is God’s heart towards every one of us because all of us have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.

This is so important to remember as we work our way through Romans 1. Whether we are overtly immoral, intentionally moral, or really religious, we are all sinners. So we all need to repent. Just turn around and come home, like the prodigal son.

And as we do, we’ll find a Father rushing to welcome us and ready to receive us.

Have you repented? Have you retuned? You can right now. Just acknowledge that you have sinned. Be willing to turn from your sins (repent). Then believe that Jesus Christ died for you on the cross and rose from the grave.

You can ask Jesus to become the Lord of your life by praying a prayer like this:

Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. In Your Name, Amen.

In his letter to the Romans, the Apostle Paul writes an ordered and logical argument for God’s grace.

But in order to believe and receive this good news, we need to understand and acknowledge the bad news: we all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glorious standard of righteousness. Anyone who would believe the good news of Jesus and receive the free gift of his righteousness must admit this first.

This is the bad news that leads us to the best news—we can be justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus (Romans 3:24)!

As Paul continues his ordered and logical argument, he demonstrates this reality in three different categories of people. This past Sunday, we worked our way through the first category: the overtly immoral—those who have rejected God and are running the other way on purpose.

Watch our study from Romans 1:18-32 as we hear God’s heart through Paul’s pen for our need for repentance.

In a society of ever-changing opinions, there is a constant and felt pressure to conform to the prevailing view at hand, to compromise on truth when speaking up for it is costly, or to shy away from clearly communicating the whole counsel of God’s Word. We might be tempted to alter or edit God’s Word to make it more acceptable to those who do not yet recognize the authority of the One who authored all of Scripture. This temptation is motivated by fear—fear of giving offense, fear of losing relationships, fear of what others might think of us if we truly center our lives around God and His Word, fear of appearing ridiculous, out-of-touch, or unloving.

But fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and nothing could be more loving than to follow Paul’s example in faithfully representing God’s heart as revealed in His Word to those around us. When we realize that only God’s unedited and unaltered Word has the power to save souls, we will care more about what God thinks of us and about the condition of someone’s soul than we care about our own reputation.

Why do we feel like we need to moderate or diminish the Word of the Lord? How can we be ashamed of the Gospel that has transformed our lives? Brothers and sisters, let us not be deceived! There is nothing dishonorable, improper, or ridiculous about the Gospel. Instead, we can find compassion, courage, and holy confidence to deliver God’s word unedited and unaltered.

Watch our study of Romans 1:16-17 as we discovered the same confidence Paul had in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Throughout his letters, Pastor Paul openly and specifically thank God for the churches, the pastors, and the people to who he was writing. He specifically thanked God for their faith, love, and hope (among many other things). These are the things that blessed and impressed Paul. 

Unfortunately, these are not always the qualities by which a ministry or a minister is measured today. Success or failure is usually measured by nickels and noses or buildings and budgets. 

But is that what God is looking for? Are those the metrics that God would use? No!

And it’s very important to our ministry that we understand that fully. We have never desired to grow numerically. We have only desired to care for and cultivate the people who are coming. Hoping that if we do that well as unto the Lord, that we would see the qualities of faith love, and hope—just as Paul did so that we can do just as Paul did—refresh the hearts of believers and proclaim the Gospel to all!

In the opening of his letter to the Romans, Paul expresses his desire to go to Rome. He is eager to build up Roman believers and tell everyone in that city that they are not only loved by God, but that they are the beloved of God, and this same God is calling them out of the darkness into the light to be set apart for a good good work.

That’s and intense desire, especially when you consider who was in Rome at this time. People like Caesar Nero, a madman who found a twisted enjoyment in persecuting Christians. Paul understood that Nero needed the Gospel—just like him. Remember that Paul (who used to be Saul) was so much worse, yet God loved him and called him and used him to preach the gospel.

Paul would arrive in Rome. He would come in chains, but did not see himself as a prisoner of Rome. Paul always referred to himself as a prisoner of Jesus Christ, knowing that he had put his life in the hands of Jesus.

Watch our study from Romans 1:8-15 as we continued to work our way though the opening of this amazing letter.

You may have never heard of a man named Mephibosheth. It’s not the most common name for a man. However, there are lessons to be learned through this man that are common to us all.

Mephibosheth was tragically crippled because of a fall when he was young. This accident resulted from a misunderstanding of the heart of King David. Convinced that the king didn’t have his best interest at heart, Mephibosheth lived a life far from the king in isolation and fear.

But then, the king called him into his courtroom—not to kill him, but to show him kindness because of a covenant the king made with Mephibosheth’s father, Jonathan.

Not only did the king show Mephibosheth kindness, but also invited him to sit at the kings table continually as one of the king’s own son’s with full rights and privileges.

Do you see the metaphor in the life of Mephibosheth? Have you been spiritually crippled by a fall—a personal sin or perhaps because of someone else’s? We are all crippled by THE fall of original sin—leaving us isolated, broken, and ashamed, thinking that the King doesn’t have our best interest in mind. And yet, because of a covenant He made, He wants to show your kindness, and mercy, and goodness!

What is keeping you from answering His call? Oh, how He wants to bless you and show you His kindness and invite you to sit at His table continually with full rights and privileges as His own adopted son or daughter! Come to Him, today!

There was once a man named Mephibosheth. He became crippled because of a fall and lived a life of isolation because he misunderstood the character of the king. One day, this king sent for him—not to kill him, but to show him kindness because of a covenant. On the surface, this is a beautiful story, but when we consider the context, there is even more in the life of this man named Mephibosheth.

Join us Sundays at 10am (central) as we worship the Lord. We gather in-person at 912 W. St. Germain Street, St. Cloud, MN; online at https://live.refuge.mn; and on the radio at http://refuge.fm or 96.1 FM (in the St. Cloud area).

This past Sunday, we began our study in the letter of Paul to the Romans. The letter begins with the author, Paul, who used to be Saul—a former Pharisee set out to completely eradicate Christianity. That is, until Christ met him, and called him to build up the church rather than tear it down.

Paul describes himself as a bondservant of Christ—a servant of Jesus under his own choice rather than compulsion—and called to be an apostle, set apart for a specific purpose.

It’s Paul’s calling we considered in our study—along with our own calling. For we too have been called. Now, what do you think that we have been called to be wholly set apart for?

Watch our study of Romans 1:1-7 as we discovered the nature and purpose of our calling from God.