- Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Romans 13:1 – This certainly is not a command of scripture that is easy to follow, let alone understand. For is scripture saying that “every” authority that is established was done so by God? That God’s hand was behind even the bad politician and the dictators and the evil emperors? For let’s remember when Paul wrote this, it was in the time of the Roman empire when the emperor was not a supporter of Christianity. Did God even put that emperor in his place? The Lord did, but also keep in mind that leaders are not always put in place to bless. God very well may allow a bad leader to come into power to bring punishment over a people that has turned from the Lord. Are we then to follow everything a bad leader tells us to do since God established even them? No, if an earthly leader (good or bad) is directing us to do something contrary to that of God’s commands, then we follow the King of Kings over any earthly kingdom’s rules. Yet what if the laws, even of a bad leader, are not in opposition to anything God says but are ones we simply don’t want to follow? Then we are to follow those rules and be faithful to the authorities that are in place…even the bad ones. This means paying taxes even when we don’t want to. This means respecting the boss that is a nightmare, even when they aren’t present. This means praying for the politician even if you didn’t vote for them. No this is not going to be easy, but it is what’s going to demonstrate a testimony with our lives that is so contrary to that of the lives of those who don’t follow Jesus. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 3436
- The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Romans 13:12 – The time is now to set aside the sin and live for Jesus. God understands the temptation and struggle Christians have with the sin in their story, but God is also telling us it’s time to stop playing around with the sin we keep entertaining. What’s that for you? What needs to be cast off so you can put on the things God wants you to put on? Don’t expect God to use you like He could if you refuse to let go of a sin in your life. God’s moving and He wants you to move with Him. Cast off that sin, the time has come for it to no longer be played with anymore. Begin leaving it in God’s hand, take His strength to resist the temptations, and begin replacing that void with things that are holy. It’s time for a change. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 1061
- But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. Romans 13:14 – Logos not sarx. Last week at middle school camp we learned like we did with high school camp that Jesus is the logos. Logos is the biblical Greek term for “word.” That Jesus is the word and was the word, like we learn in John 1:1. Sarx is the biblical Greek term used in our passage for “flesh.” Our role as a follower of Jesus is to embrace and put on our lives the logos, not the sarx. We are to take on the teaching of Jesus and take on the challenge to follow the example He set out for us. The sarx, the sinful things of the flesh, the things that before we knew Jesus we lived in and the things that even as a follower of Jesus we have struggled with, we are to cast far aside. We are to make no provision for the flesh, for the sarx. When you plan your calendar there will simply be no time for the flesh and when the temptations to sin come, you make no effort to satisfy those temptations with sin. That sounds great, but we all know the struggle with sin and the flesh is so much easier said than done…so how do we accomplish such a task? Jesus. As we have learned in Romans, without Him we can’t say no and we can’t live sin free, but with Jesus we can find victory. So put on the Lord Jesus Christ. Take in His word, take time to spend with Him in prayer, and seek to follow the example of love He set for us. No longer saying yes to the sin in our story is possible, but only with Jesus. Thankfully, He is right here and He’s not going away. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2422
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