WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BREAK?

There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek.  Romans 1:9-10

I can’t communicate the impact of these verses in a way that matches the fire in my spirit.  I am watching the truth of these concepts play out in people’s lives and these realities are staggering when viewed off the written page and in the everyday lives of human beings.

Paul wants to make sure that we get the message that no one is exempt from the truth of these principles.  His “Jew and Greek” references teach that these verses target everyone.  God is no respecter of persons.  If I spurn God’s ways, there will be tribulation and distress.  If I live by the Spirit, I will know glory, honor, and peace.  The contrast between both ends of these spectrums is stark and should serve to be a wake-up call to any who live in the distress of disobedience.  Yet, most seem to persist and fight God.

As a Christian, I can take up a spot in the pew, sleep my way through the Sunday morning sermon, casually dismiss any of God’s commands that ruffle the feathers of my pride, and resolve to live my life the way I want.  The outcome though, will be tribulation and distress.  There will be trouble in my house the likes of which no one may know on the outside.  Torment will be my companion.  I will indulge in things that distract me from it and numb out my conscience.  The ability to function in the downslope of disobedience will continue to deteriorate.  Tribulation and distress will escalate to the level of blinding pain.

Who can do good and live God’s way on their own strength?  No one.  If I recognize that, come to the end of myself and rely on the power of the Spirit to change my heart, I will know three things according to Paul.

1.)   Glory – God will transform me into someone who resembles Jesus.  By the power of the Word and His Spirit, with time, I will cease to recognize the old me.

2.)   Honor – God will show me His favor.  I will experience what it’s like to live my life with a God who blesses my every encounter and appointment.  His hand prepares the path for my feet and I feel completely taken care of.

3.)   Peace – I love solitude.  I am not afraid to hear God’s voice in my spirit because I am at peace with Him.  Even when I am in other’s storms, I know a calm deep in my soul.  I don’t even fear death.  I know that on the other side of death’s sting, the greatest peace awaits me as I am finally delivered from ALL the distress and tribulation of this world.

Why would I ever run from God in light of these realities?  Yet I have, and now I watch others as they wage their war with God.  Oh, how long it takes for pride to break and men to submit to God’s ways over their own.  For every one in our path today who walks in disaster and yet continues to fight God’s wooing, we pray that God’s corrective work will be swift, merciful, and the results, permanent.

Come, Lord Jesus, with power and conviction upon your disobedient children.  I long to see them know glory, honor, and peace.  Amen