Read: Romans 1:18-32
Think: Just imagine, you live in Rome, you’ve never met Paul, and you open this letter from him and start to read it. He gets right into “hot topics” (for any culture) such as righteousness, ungodliness, creation, impurity, and dishonorable passions. He tells you that he wants to come to Rome to talk to you about these issues. And it doesn’t take long before what Paul is conveying to you is that the gospel is counter-cultural to the world’s ways. He doesn’t mince words saying, “although they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened . . .Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie…” And these words were written in the first century!
Act: What do you think about when you read Romans 1:18-32 in light of the current affairs and news stories across the world or in our nation today? Does the book of Romans make you feel more empowered or more uncertain, discouraged, infuriated, or clueless? One way you can take a step toward understanding your faith more clearly is to make a list of the lies our culture believes in contrast to the truths listed in Romans 1:18-32.
Pray: Dear Lord, I want to become more confident in my faith and to clearly articulate what I believe compared to the beliefs of the culture in which I live. Help me to grow in my knowledge of the Gospel with a determined heart to love Your Word and hold onto Your truths. I love You. Amen.
Be full of faith today!
