Thursday, December 9, 2010

Nothing Can Separate Me..From Your Love

Have you ever had one of those moments where your Spirit jumps for joy and you feel like you've just came to a new epiphany that has been waiting there for you to discover. Then once you stumble upon it you have that "ah hahh" moment. Well I just had that moment hence me writing this blog. I was lying in bed reading my Bible. I am reading from Romans.I try to read at least when I wake up and go to sleep and through out the day if can squeeze it in (I know that's bad but I am working on it). After all I have no excuse since I sleep with my phone which has the Bible on it. But back to the story. I was lying in bed reading Romans, picking up from chapter 5. In that chapter, it talked about the difference between Adam and Jesus. Adam brought death through his sin and disobedience but Jesus gave us grace and the ability to grasp righteousness which gives us LIFE.

In chapter 6 which is the infamous piece when people are baptized as they come into the Kingdom of God. Honestly, I never realized the strength of these words. I hear them every time a person is baptized but there have been no real meaning to the scriptures until I just read them today. That chapter asks questions pertaining to Adam and Jesus. It's so much to write and I can probably go on for days but read it for yourself! From chapter 6 leading up to chapter 8, these chapters let us know that even though we are born into sin and we have sinful nature, we do not have to abide by it. It lets us know that even though we are trapped in these bodies momentarily we don't have to live as this body wants us to live because as we were baptized we were dying to the old ways. It not only signifies that but it also synonymous to the death of Christ. Before Christ, every one was a sinner, but after He died on the cross and rose again three days later our sins were forgiven. And that is the truth behind baptism.

In chapter 7, Paul (the writer of the book) makes the distinction between our mind and our flesh. The mind serves God while the flesh serve sin. He talks about how sin overcomes us and how it is so enticing. The law by which the mind abides by and the law by which the flesh abide by are contrary to each other, so which law are we to follow are the main arguments Paul is trying to make.

And that is the transition into chapter 8. Between these two chapters is where I jumped out of bed and behind the computer because at the end of chapter 7 Paul makes it seem that we should serve both the flesh and the mind by saying "25..I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. so then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin." But remember from chapter 5 to 8 he makes clear of our death to sin once we were baptized. He doesn't say it as plainly but he does. So with that being said, the law of the mind and of God supersedes that of the law of the flesh and sinful ways. Finally he ends chapter 8 with "38-39..For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, not angels, nor principalities, nor powers, not things present nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Nothing, not even the law of sin can keep us away from God. Nothing!

Monday, December 6, 2010

Perception, Understanding, Decisions

Understanding is key in relationships. Often times friends, partners and even relationships with God don't work out because the relationship lacks understanding. When you can't see eye to eye on a topic, it is because you are not understanding with the other person's understanding. Take the "love languages" as an example. You cannot love someone how you want to be loved but how they want to be loved even if it isn't appealing to you. It is the same concept. We also studied this in my Theories of International Relations class. It is all about each person's own perception. A person's perception encompasses their unique experience, their character, their way of thinking etc, and after you get passed all of that comes their final decision. But in real life, the process is much quicker and sometimes irrational choices are made.

With God, my perception is ever changing because my experience with Him is becoming greater. I am coming to new realizations every single day. It's overwhelming but I am taking it. When you look to the future and the end result, the pain is not that bad. With a change in experience comes a change in my character.I may not have been as forgiving as I should have but as He shows me forgiveness and all the above, my character molds to fit that.

I never really gave this decision making theory much thought until studying it in class. But it is very much true in our interactions with one another. Decisions to do or not to do something make up our lives just as there are atoms that make up other beings and so forth until you reach a solid product.

Perception shapes our understanding which then shapes our decisions that affect our daily lives.