August 10, 2017 – Romans 15:13

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13

Read this verse until a word pops out!  About the fourth time I read it, I saw it.  Is it Joy and Peace?  I saw BECAUSE.  Did your parents ever tell you do behave or do something and you asked WHY?  And their answer came — BECAUSE I said so.

Apostle Paul is teaching… because we trust God, jut what we will have. We will be filled with joy and peace.  We have nothing to hide.  You remember that guilty feeling, knowing you should be punished?  Doing the right thing erases that guilt, and we know our parents love us.  We feel this love and hope through the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells in our heart when we accept Jesus as our Lord.

Apostle Paul knew his brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus are full of goodness.  He knows we can teach these things – trust and love and peace.  Do you know how we can continue in the love of Jesus?  Acts 13:38 – Brothers, listen! We are here to proclaim that through this man Jesus there is forgiveness for your sins.  The Lord’s Prayer includes these words…and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. Matthew 6:12.

This verse begins love, joy, peace, and forgiveness in our hearts.  It rests on this verse – Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’  Matthew 22:37.

I am fully convinced, my dear brothers and sisters, that you are full of goodness. You know these things so well you can teach each other all about them. Romans 15:14