Tuesday 11 Jun 2013

Tuesday Reading: Romans 5:1-5

Key Verse: Romans 5:3
3  And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;

Devotion:
We have a wonderful peace that we have obtained through what Christ has done for us on the cross; we are broken and without peace when we are in a life of sin whether we know it or not. God cannot be at peace with a sinner in that state of sin because God cannot abide sin but when we turn our backs on that sinful life by turning toward God we invite our Peace-Maker into our lives. We are then brought into this peace, not by what we can do or by avoiding sin, but because of the grace of our God!

We are led into this state of peace as pardoned offenders, pardoned by Jesus Christ Himself. As we find ourselves being drawn into this peace we are strengthened internally because we see how much Christ has done and we then see how much He loves us. That gives us a hope that we see as being very real because we see the results of that hope.

But when someone turns round and says that they rejoice in the trials and tribulations many people question their motives or their sincerity, after all, how can anyone be happy with trial and tribulations? It is not the trials or the tribulations that we are happy with; it is the outcome of those trials that we rejoice in! Facing the trials is hard work just the same as anybody else facing those trials; but we begin to see how God answers our calls for help and those answered prayers give us more hope and build up our faith. That renewed or bolstered faith gives us a certain peace within by us knowing God is real and cares for us.

We begin to also see that even though we cry out for help immediately, the answer does not always come when we want it to by rather when we actually need it to. We also begin to see that God gives us the strength to be able to face those trials and the assurance that He is doing something about them. What He is doing is building up our faith and patience knowing that we need the experience so that our faith is strengthened and that our love endures all things; just as His love has endured our sins for so long…

Points to Ponder:
How much do you sin?

Are you trusting God?