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“Yet somehow many have come to believe that a person can be a “Christian” without being like Christ. A “follower” who doesn’t follow. How does that make any sense? Many people in the church have decided to take on the name of Christ and nothing else. This would be like Jesus walking up to those first disciples and saying, “Hey, would you guys mind identifying yourselves with Me in some way? Don’t worry, I don’t actually care if you do anything I do or change your lifestyle at all. I’m just looking for people who are willing to say they believe in Me and call themselves Christians.” 
― Francis Chan, Multiply: Disciples Making Disciples

Romans 14:1-23

It happens all too often.  One believer is convinced that the Christian life is to be lived according to specific rules and rituals, and looks with judgment and condemnation upon a fellow believer whom they perceive not be be living a "good enough" life.  Another believer is convinced that Christ has freed them from the burdens of performance and legalism, and looks with judgment and condemnation upon a fellow believer whom they perceive to be a modern day Pharisee.

In this week's chapter, Romans 14, Paul speaks to this gaping distance between those who are supposed to be united in Christ, pointing to the underlying attitudes of the heart that are far more important than any of the preceding views.

Without a heart of authentic love for our fellow believer, even the most well-meaning of us completely miss the point of our faith, and are actually working against God's ultimate purposes in the church and in the world.  Instead, Paul pleads with us to "make every effort to do what leads to peace and mutual edification."  We may know that we have liberty in certain matters, but it is far better "whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God," or to even voluntarily abstain from something altogether if we know that it may prove to be a stumbling block to a brother or a sister in Christ.

OPENING QUESTION:

What are some of the differences of opinions within your Christian community, church or small group?

STUDY QUESTIONS:

• Read Romans 14:1-23.  Who does Paul consider to be the "weak in faith" and, by implication, the "strong in faith"?
• What attitudes are the two groups to have toward each other?
• Over what issues in today's church are we in danger of judging one another because of things that Paul would declare to be unimportant?
• How can condemnation become a consequence of differing opinions (vv. 7-12)?
• How can we as believers know on which issues we can live with differences of opinion and which we cannot?
• Paul says in verse 14 that nothing is unclean in itself, but how does he say something can become "unclean" (vv. 13-23)?
• In what specific ways does the church today reverse verse 17 and make God's kingdom about "food and drink" rather than about justice, peace and joy?

After this week, we only have two chapters of Romans remaining, but a vast wealth of riches yet to be gleaned from the Bible ahead of us.

Come and partake of good coffee, conversation, and Christian community!

Love in Christ,

Pastor Joe

Disclaimer: These questions have been drawn from N.T. Wright’s study guide on the book of Romans, and are posted here to provide a general sample of the in-depth study each chapter entails.  Though the study guide is not required for participation in our weekly study, it is an excellent resource for advanced study of God’s word.

Romans 13:1-14

We're on the final stretch of chapters in Romans!

In Chapter 13, it is equally important to study the context of any given Scripture.  Like many other passages, Romans 13:1-7 has been misused and abused by others for less than godly purposes, even justifying turning a blind eye to injustice and acts of atrocity.  This is not at all what Paul is writing about here; instead this very topic is worthy of constant discussion.

Likewise, the remainder of the chapter speaks to our hearts, our attitudes, and our personal responsibility to be followers of Christ in an ever-darkening world.

OPENING QUESTION:

What happens in a society when there are no properly accredited and generally recognized rulers?  What examples can you give?

STUDY QUESTIONS:

• Read Romans 13:1-14.  According to Paul in verses 1-5, what is to be the role of government?
• Paul describes the "ruling power" as "God's servant" twice in these verses.  How can government be a servant of God?
• Read Acts 16:35-40 and 23:1-3.  How can what Paul says in Romans 13:1-7 regarding government be reconciled with Paul having no hesitation in telling authorities they are acting illegally or unjustly?
• Verses 8-14 show Paul using the idea of fulfilling the law through love. How can love fulfill all of the law?
• In verse 13, Paul notes three pairs of activities Christians should avoid.  How are bad temper and jealousy just as destructive in a Christian community as drunkenness and sexual immorality?
• Paul's solution to avoiding the activities of the night is to "put on the Lord Jesus" (v. 14).  How are we to do this?
• Think about your Christian community, your church or a small group.  In what ways can your community live in a way that is more attractive to the surrounding culture?

From this point out, the book of Romans speaks primarily to this theme.  We are nearing the end of  this study, but the practical applications of it will forever impact how we live in this world as a community of believers, and as individual followers of Jesus Christ.

I'm thankful to be sharing the journey with you!

Love in Christ,

Pastor Joe

Disclaimer: These questions have been drawn from N.T. Wright’s study guide on the book of Romans, and are posted here to provide a general sample of the in-depth study each chapter entails.  Though the study guide is not required for participation in our weekly study, it is an excellent resource for advanced study of God’s word.

Romans 12:1-21

Jesus commanded us to "love one another," a command He gave equal weight to as the command to "love the Lord your God."  Not only did he perfectly live this out, but the entire New Testament is replete with "one another" commands that echo and expand upon this central component of the Gospel.

Loving one another, however, involves practical action.  The book of James says, "What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?" (James 2:14-16)

This week's reading takes us to the very altar of God, exhorting us to present ourselves as living sacrifices to God  What does this mean?  Fortunately, Paul doesn't leave us hanging there, but proceeds to expound upon this idea by addressing our relationships with each other, our attitudes and motivations, and the unique callings and giftings that God has entrusted to each of us.

In 1 Peter 4:10, Jesus' disciple Peter writes, "God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another."

OPENING QUESTION:

Describe the gifts that you believe God has graciously given you that are or can be an asset to your community of faith.  Don't be shy about sharing the wonderful ways God has gifted you.

STUDY QUESTIONS:

• Read Romans 12:1-21.  What does it mean to be "living sacrifices" (v.1)?
• Why does Paul emphasize the mind in verse 2?
• How do Paul's words in verses 3-5 help Christians be more unified in one body?
• In verses 6-13, how does Paul suggest that the gifts he mentions are not just ways in which we are carried away by supernatural power but that they also involve plain hard work?
• How, according to Paul, might our attitude make a big difference as we express our gifts?
• What do you find particularly challenging in verses 6-13?
• How is Christ himself a living example of living out what Paul calls for in verses 14-21?
• The early part of Romans 12 (vv. 1-13) deals with what we might call the inner life of the church.  This last section (vv. 14-21) is about how Christians behave within the wider public world.  How would the wider world respond to seeing the church live out what's described in 14-21?
• In what specific ways can you be a "living sacrifice" to those around you right now?

From this point out, the book of Romans speaks primarily to this theme.  We are nearing the end of  this study, but the practical applications of it will forever impact how we live in this world as a community of believers, and as individual followers of Jesus Christ.

I'm thankful to be sharing the journey with you!

Love in Christ,

Pastor Joe

Disclaimer: These questions have been drawn from N.T. Wright’s study guide on the book of Romans, and are posted here to provide a general sample of the in-depth study each chapter entails.  Though the study guide is not required for participation in our weekly study, it is an excellent resource for advanced study of God’s word.

Romans 11:1-36

Jealousy can be a dangerous thing, and it is something we are often warned against in Scripture.  This week's reading, however, discusses a healthy kind of jealousy.  Where jealousy inspired by limited, worldly possessions or positions produces all manner of evil actions, jealousy inspired by witnessing God's grace and favor freely given to others can be a motivation to seek the same kind of relationship with Christ.

After all, God has made these great and precious gifts available to all who would open their hearts to receive.

OPENING QUESTION:

How do Christian believers who aren't ethnically Jewish respond to the Jewish people today?

STUDY QUESTIONS:

• Read Romans 11:1-26.  Once again Paul raises the question of whether God has abandoned Israel and perhaps broken his promise to them.  In verses 1-6 Paul uses the story of Elijah (from 1 Kings 18-19).  How are Paul and Elijah similar?
• The idea of a "remnant," a few people who remain after a great disaster, comes from the heart of the Old Testament, from Isaiah 10:20-23 where the prophet describes those who will return after the punishment of exile.  Who is the remnant Paul has in mind?
• Verses 7-15 (and all of Romans 9-11) echo the stories of tensions between younger and older brothers from Genesis (Cain and Abel, Ishmael and Isaac, Esau and Jacob, Joseph and his brothers) as well as Jesus' own parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15.  In all these cases God establishes and vindicates the younger over the older.  How is Israel now in the position of being the older brother in the prodigal son story?
• How might jealousy, as described in verses 11-15, actually draw Jews to Christ?
• Verses 33-36 end chapter 11 by using the rich traditions of Hebrew praise from Isaiah and Job.  How does Paul want us to feel and respond at the end of this amazing discussion of God's grace and faithfulness?
• Once Israel arrogantly assumed it was the sole repository of God's mercy and blessing.  Paul warns the Gentiles against a similar arrogance in Romans 11:20.  How does the danger of arrogance, which was a temptation for Jews and Gentile Christians alike, seep into our churches today?  How are you tempted by it in your own life?

I look forward to your insight!

Love in Christ,

Pastor Joe

Disclaimer: These questions have been drawn from N.T. Wright’s study guide on the book of Romans, and are posted here to provide a general sample of the in-depth study each chapter entails.  Though the study guide is not required for participation in our weekly study, it is an excellent resource for advanced study of God’s word.

Romans 9:30-10:21

This weeks reading concludes our study of Chapter 9, and takes us through Chapter 10.  In the middle of the book of Romans, we find these two chapters speaking to the collision of the old system of the Law and the new system of Christ.  Though the Jews based their faith around the idea of being made right with God through obedience to the Law, a task Scripture clearly paints as impossible, Jesus Christ was "the end of the Law," declaring people right with God through faith alone.

This simple truth has long been a stumbling block for those who hold a merit-based faith, by which our standing with God is directly in proportion to how good we are.

Instead, the heart of the Gospel is presented clearly in one sentence, found here in the heart of Romans 10:9 --

"If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."

This reiterates what Jesus plainly taught in John 6:29,

“This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.”

As you read this week's passage, Romans 9:30-10:21, bear in mind that this message of Christ was not only foolishness to the Jews, but a perceived offense to their very system.  In the big picture, however, God had been laying the foundation for this redemptive plan from the very beginning.

OPENING QUESTION:

Do you long for certain people to find God?  What is the substance of your prayers for them?

STUDY QUESTIONS:

• Read Isaiah 28:16 and Isaiah 8:14, which Paul combines in Romans 9:33.  Looking at Romans 9:30-10:4, what is Paul trying to communicate by saying that Christ, the Messiah, is both a stumbling block and a reliable block?
• In 10:4 Paul says the Messiah, Christ, "is the goal of the law."  Christ is the end, the final purpose of the law, where God's purposes that began with Abraham were headed all along.  The purpose of the law is not to accumulate a treasury of moral merit, but it is the assured status of belonging to God's people.  How does Christ accomplish the purpose of the law?
• In Paul's world, "Lord" was a title for Caesar.  Saying that Jesus was "Lord" meant, ultimately, that Caesar was not.  Today, when we say Jesus is Lord, who or what are we saying is not Lord?
• How does Paul also make the case that even Scripture itself foresaw that those who weren't even looking for salvation from Israel's God would stumble into it?
• At the end of this chapter of Romans we do well to stop and ponder the strange path by which the gospel first made its way into the world, humbling the proud and lifting up the lowly.  Is this what happens with the preaching of the gospel today?  If not, why not?

This is deep material, but praise God, we have the Author Himself to teach us all things!  Come ready to dive in headfirst, and to enjoy our regular fellowship!

Love in Christ,
Pastor Joe

Disclaimer: These questions have been drawn from N.T. Wright’s study guide on the book of Romans, and are posted here to provide a general sample of the in-depth study each chapter entails.  Though the study guide is not required for participation in our weekly study, it is an excellent resource for advanced study of God’s word.

1/8/15 Study Cancelled Due to Weather

We've decided to cancel tomorrow morning's study at Dunkin Donuts, due to severe cold weather anticipated throughout the night and into tomorrow.  We will resume next Thursday, January 15th, bright and early!

Stay warm, stay safe, and stay blessed!

Love in Christ,
Pastor Joe