By Corie Steinke, director of student involvement
Scripture: Romans 1:1-7 (NRSV)
In this letter, written to the Romans, Paul assures them that 1) he is qualified to write to them as a messenger of God, and 2) that everything God has said about Jesus is true. Jesus is a descendant of David, Jesus is the Son of God, Jesus rose from the dead to give us life and that we have a responsibility to pass his message on to others. Everything that God promised in the Old Testament came true. Full stop. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. It happened because God said it would.
How often do we get, and pass up, the chance to talk about the promises of God? What holds us back from sharing that message? Are we afraid that we’re wrong? Do we not trust God? It is hard. It requires vulnerability, compassion and care to share something that is so deeply personal. But God has proven time and time again that the gospel is good and true. Anything that is good and true, and certainly the gospel qualifies as that, should be shared as often as possible. Christmastime －the symbolic birth of Jesus －the time where we prepare ourselves through glad tidings and good cheer for this whole story to kick start－let’s start to have the conversation.
My encouragement and prayers to you is that through the gospel you remember the promises of God, that the valley is never too low and permanent, and that Jesus is working through it all.
Scripture: Romans 1:1-7 (NRSV)
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures, 3the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the sake of his name, 6including yourselves who are called to belong to Jesus Christ, 7To all God’s beloved in Rome, who are called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.