Tag Archives: Romans 16:10-27

August 3, 2015 Bible Study — Stay Away From People Who Cause Divisions

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

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Proverbs 20:19

    If you spend your time with those who are always talking about what others are doing, pretty soon everyone will know what you are doing. More importantly, they will “know” it in a way that is unflattering to you.

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Psalm 26

    If we act with integrity God will declare us innocent, but how can we be sure that we will act with integrity?

    Remember that God examines our hearts and our minds, which should make us aware of His unfailing love and cause us to rely on His faithfulness. This results in us being uncomfortable when we find ourselves around liars and hypocrites, so uncomfortable that we choose to not be around them as soon as we are able. Our integrity will lead us to separate ourselves from gatherings of evildoers and to not aid the wicked in their projects (even those projects which appear to be innocent of their wickedness, because while that may appear to be the case, it is not).

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Romans 16:10-27

    Paul wraps up his letter to the Roman believers by warning them to watch our for, and stay away from those who cause divisions. This is an important message for the Church today. However, it is interesting to note who it is that Paul says causes divisions. The people who cause division are those who teach things which are contrary to what we have been traditionally taught. This strikes me as pointing out a mistake the Church often mistakes. All too often we have allowed and encouraged those who teach, but don’t practice, that some behavior is acceptable to remain in leadership positions.

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2 Chronicles 33:14-34:33

    In yesterday’s passage it told us that King Manasseh did many evil things until he was taken prisoner by the Assyrians. During his captivity he turned to God and repented his sins. Today’s passage starts out by describing how he acted after this transformation. He spent the rest of his life working to reverse the things he had done as a young man. Unfortunately, his son followed his youthful example rather than his mature example.
    However, Manasseh’s grandson sought God from a young age. Josiah started out by destroying pagan shrines and idols as far as his power would reach. He continued by purifying the Temple and restoring it to use. Josiah led a religious revival in the land of Israel, one which extended beyond the area over which he ruled.

August 3, 2014 Bible Study — Who Really Causes Division In the Church?

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

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Proverbs 20:19

    If someone tells you gossip about others, do not be surprised if they reveal any secret you share with them to those you would rather did not know it. If you find yourself talking a lot, be careful that you do not reveal secrets which have been told to you in confidence.

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Psalm 26:1-12

    Those who live according to God’s truth do not spend their time with liars. They do not associate with hypocrites. If we truly trust God we will say, “No, thanks” when invited to join the activities of the wicked. Let us live with integrity and publicly praise the Lord.

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Romans 16:10-27

    Throughout the letter to the Romans Paul warns us against division in the Church. Here he points out that division is not caused by those who defend the traditional teachings. Rather division is caused by those who teach things contrary to those traditional teachings. There are people who use arguments that are carefully crafted to hide their flaws and appeals to how wise their listeners are (all the while implying that their listeners are wise for agreeing with them, but foolish if they do not) to convince people. These people are not seeking to serve Christ. Instead they are attempting to further their own desires. If we remain obedient to God and faithful to His word, we will not be fooled by such teachers (or at least, not for long).

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2 Chronicles 33:14-34:33

    Hezekiah’s son had turned to idol worship and built many pagan shrines throughout Jerusalem. However, when he was defeated and captured by the Assyrians, he cried out to the Lord. God returned him to Jerusalem. Upon his return, he remained faithful to God and destroyed the altars and shrines he had constructed for pagan gods. Even after his reformation the people continued to worship at the high places, but the worship was to God alone. Let us remember that people can change and return to God, no matter how sinful their previous lives have been.
    I find the story of King Josiah inspiring. He became king at the age of eight, after his father was assassinated (apparently for good reason). Josiah’s father had been a godless king, who sinned in many ways. When Josiah turned sixteen, eight years after taking the throne, he began to seek God. Four years later he began a campaign to wipe out idolatry in all of the land of Israel, including territory that was not truly under his control. He destroyed the shrines in the high places and demolished the altars to pagan gods throughout the entire land. When he finished this campaign, he appointed men to repair and restore the Temple.
    Up until this point, Josiah, and his advisers, had been worshiping God based on oral tradition and common sense. While they were cleaning and repairing the Temple, the workmen found a copy of the Book of the Law. When they brought this to Josiah and read it to him, he was devastated to discover by how much they had fallen short of God’s commands. Josiah called an assembly of the people. There he dedicated himself to follow the instructions which God had given Moses and called on the people to renew their covenant with God. Josiah is a wonderful example of how a strong, dedicated leader can bring about change in a society by inspiring people to dedicate themselves to serving God.

August 3, 2013 Bible Study

     I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.

Magrat on the walk
Magrat on the walk

2 Chronicles 33:14-34:33

     After returning from being held captive by the Assyrians, Manasseh tore down all of the idols he had constructed and reconsecrated the Temple. He told the people of Judah to worship only God. The people continued to offer sacrifices and worship at the high places, but they stopped worshiping idols there and worshiped only God. Manasseh’s son Amon succeeded him on the throne. Amon followed his father’s early example, encouraged the worship of idols and did evil in the sight of the Lord. His own officials conspired against him and assassinated him.
     The people of the land rose up and killed the officials who had assassinated Amon. They then placed his eight year old son Josiah on the throne. Josiah began to seek the Lord when he was sixteen years old and had been on the throne for eight years. When he was twenty he began destroying the high places of worship, the Asherah poles, and the idols throughout the land. He even went into the lands of the Northern Tribes and destroyed places of pagan worship there.
     When Josiah had finished purifying the land he commissioned some men to repair the Temple. While they were repairing the Temple Hilkiah, the high priest, found a copy of the Book of the Law. One of the king’s officials read the Book of the Law to him. Upon hearing what was written in the Book of the Law Josiah tore his clothes and wept for how badly he and the people of Judah had failed to keep God’s commands. He ordered Hilkiah and others among his officials to go to the Temple and inquire of the Lord what they should do. The prophetess Huldah told them to tell Josiah that God was going to bring disaster on Jerusalem because of the sins of the people. However, because Josiah had humbled himself and sincerely repented of the sins carried out by his forefathers, God would not bring the promised destruction until after his death.
     Josiah then summoned all of the leaders of the people to Jerusalem. He read to the assembled leaders the Book of the Law and pledged to keep its commands with all of his heart and soul. He demanded a similar pledge from all of the people. The people of Judah did not again turn away from God for the rest of Josiah’s reign.

Magrat plays with a piece of grass
Magrat plays with a piece of grass

Romans 16:10-27

     The first thing I realized as I started reading is that Paul was not finished with his letter in what I read and blogged on yesterday. Paul continues with greetings to specific people living in Rome of whom he thought highly. When he concludes his personal greetings, he gives two final commands. The first is for the believers in Rome to “Greet one another with a holy kiss.”

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     I am not quite sure what Paul intended with that command, but I have observed that people need a certain level of physical contact with other people in order to have healthy relationships. I think that Paul was suggesting that we need touch one another, shake hands, pat someone on the back, hug one another, and even exchange platonic kisses, that not all friendly physical contact between human beings is sexual in nature.
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     Then Paul gives the second of his final commands. He tells the believers in Rome to watch out for people who cause divisions by teaching things contrary to the teaching they have already learned. They are to stay away from such people and have nothing to do with them. They are not serving Christ, rather they are serving their own personal interests. They use smooth talk and flattery to deceive innocent people.
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     Paul points out two signs that we can use to recognize those who are false teachers. When someone always dresses in the finest clothes and goes to the fanciest restaurants AND is telling how wonderful they think that you are, you should be very skeptical of anything they teach which does not line up with what you were taught before you met them.

Magrat catches the piece of grass
Magrat catches the piece of grass

Psalm 26:1-12

     This psalm is a declaration of determination to live with integrity and in the middle of it the psalmist tells us how to do that. If we want to live a life of integrity, we need to follow the example of this psalmist.

I do not sit with the deceitful,
nor do I associate with hypocrites.
I abhor the assembly of evildoers
and refuse to sit with the wicked.

If we spend our time with those that fall into the categories the psalmist lists above, we will begin to act as they do. If we want to live lives of integrity than we must spend our time with those who live with integrity.

Magrat spies her prey
Magrat spies her prey

Proverbs 20:19

     Gossips are constantly telling other people’s secrets, those who are chattering away all of the time will, sooner or later, reveal any secrets you confide in them.

August 3, 2012 Bible Study

     I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.

2 Chronicles 33:14-34:33

     When Manasseh returned from captivity, he destroyed the idols and altars to pagan gods that he had built. He offered sacrifices to God and encouraged the people of Judah to abandon the worship of foreign gods. The account tells us that his son, Amon, returned to worshiping idols and did not repent, instead doing even more evil than his father had. Amon was killed by a conspiracy of his own officials. The people killed the conspirators and made Amon’s son, Josiah, king.
     Josiah was crowned king when he was eight years old. When he was sixteen, he began to seek God. When he turned twenty he began a program of religious reform. He had the pagan idols and their altars destroyed throughout Judah and even into the territory that had been controlled by the Northern Tribes. He had all of the pagan priests throughout the territory killed. When he finished this, he took the money that people had been donating at the gates of the Temple and began repairing the Temple.
     While they are repairing the Temple the workmen discover a copy of the Book of the Law. The Book of the Law was taken to King Josiah and read to him. When Josiah hears what is in the Law, he is distraught because the children of Israel have not been keeping the Law. Josiah sends his aides to inquire of God and request His forgiveness. They went to speak with a prophetess named Huldah. Huldah sent word back to Josiah that God had declared that He was indeed going to bring disaster upon Judah and Jerusalem. But because Josiah had humbled himself, repented of the sins of his ancestors and turned to God, God was not going to do so during Josiah’s lifetime. Josiah called an assembly of all the people before which he pledged to keep the whole Law of God, not just the word but also the spirit. He then called on the people to make a similar commitment. We are told that the people of Israel did not turn away from God through the rest of his lifetime.
     The story of Josiah shows us the impact that one person can have on the culture around them. Josiah was sixteen when he began to seek the Lord. He was twenty when he began his religious reform. But by his example the entire people of Israel became faithful followers of God, abandoning idol worship for his lifetime. Yes, he was king and that allowed him to force others to his will. Nevertheless, if we live our lives as examples of faithfulness and with fervor for worshiping the Lord, we can have an impact on the people around us.

Romans 16:10-27

     Paul continues sending greetings to specific people that he knows in Rome. We tend to think of the book of Romans as being written to a single church, which in some ways is true. However, in his acknowledgements of people here at the end of the letter, Paul greets three groups that meet with people he is acknowledging. In addition, he extends his greetings of specific individuals to their entire household. All together this suggests that the Church of Rome was composed of multiple congregations, just as the Church of any modern city is so composed.
     Paul goes on to appeal to the Church at Rome to avoid people who teach divisive things contrary to what has already been taught. He tells us that they use smooth talk and glowing words to convince the innocent. I do not know what teachings Paul had in mind here, if he was indeed thinking of specific teachings. However, we can see the sort of thing he was talking about in the Church today. There are people who teach that behaviors that Paul condemned are OK and then try to tell those supporting clearly worded teachings from the Bible that they are being divisive. A classic example of this is the fuss over remarks by the COO of Chik-Fil-A. In an interview, he talked about how the company is supportive of traditional marriage. As he continued that he even gave an idea of what he meant by a traditional marriage when he said in the very next sentence, “…we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that.” He was called bigoted for attacking “gay marriage”, yet nowhere does he mention “gay marriage.” As a matter of fact, he seems to be putting more emphasis on opposing divorce in his comments than on opposing “gay marriage.”

Psalm 26:1-12

     The psalmist declares:

I do not spend time with liars
or go along with hypocrites.
I hate the gatherings of those who do evil,
and I refuse to join in with the wicked.

Do we do the same, not just declare it, but actually do what he declares that he does? Do we live lives of integrity, singing songs of thanksgiving and telling all who will listen of God’s wonders? Do we publicly praise the Lord? I strive to do so, but know that I fail more often than I should.

Proverbs 20:19

     Today’s proverb tells us that those who gossip will betray things told to them in confidence. That if you spend time with someone who talks too much, sooner or later you will tell them something in confidence that they will tell to others.