July 30, 2017

Breaking Open the Scripture Scriptures for July 30, 2017: Genesis 29:15-28; Psalm 105:1-11, 45; Romans 8:26-39; Matthew 13:31-33; 44-52 Romans: The book of Romans contains all we need to know about giving our lives to Christ. Chapter 8 is the pivotal chapter of the whole book. In it Paul gives a framework for living on earth, but living in the spirit of Christ. There is a constant battle between the spirit and the flesh. Paul says that the key to winning that battle is to have a prayer life. So Paul gives us a framework of what it means for us to pray, even when we do not have the words. A lot of times, we do not pray because we don’t believe that God can hear us, we are cut off from our own spirits. But Paul says that God is always with us. More importantly God always wants what is best for us and will provide a way for us to achieve it. In all of Paul’s writings, you will hear him talk about living in the spirit of Christ. That is what a Christian should strive for. We will never be perfect, but as long as we are connected and living in the spirit, God will understand us and forgive our sin. When we live in the spirit, we want to do what is right, even when we do wrong. We are always striving for something better. That is the definition of being saved. The spirit takes over our mind, our body and our soul. Matthew: in this second half of Mathew 13 Jesus continues to use parables to explain what the kingdom of heaven is like. None of us have ever been to heaven, so we have no context to put it in, so Jesus uses experiences from this earthly life to help us to imagine. Jesus tell five parables – heaven is like a mustard seed because size does not matter. Yeast that rises to the top. Hidden treasure – joy unspeakable. A merchant – a treasure. A net able to catch anything. And the scribe – able to be recorded. Why would we want to go to heaven if we did not understand it? Which is why Jesus spends so much time giving examples that we can relate to. Jesus says that anyone who wants to go to heaven should become a disciple, and disciples take what is old to define what is new – making the connection is the treasure. Questions: What does it mean to you to have a relationship with the spirit? Do you think that is a challenge to live in the flesh and the spirit at the same time? How do you overcome that challenge? What is the kingdom of heaven like for you? Which metaphor is most important to you? If you were describing heaven to someone, what would you say?