All Scriptures from The Message
In the letter to the church at Rome Paul records the best record that we have of his theology and the foundation of the message that he delivered to so many people all over what is now Turkey and Greece. Today’s Lectionary scripture presents the heart of the Christian faith, that Christ died that we might establish a loving relationship with God. In the midst of Lent and its dark tones of sacrifice and facing our many shortcomings there is the Good News – that God loves us unconditionally.
Romans 5:1-2By entering through faith into what God has always wanted to do for us—set us right with him, make us fit for him—we have it all together with God because of our Master Jesus. And that's not all: We throw open our doors to God and discover at the same moment that he has already thrown open his door to us. We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand—out in the wide open spaces of God's grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our praise.
Paul tells us that God has always wanted a relationship with us:
· What had to be corrected by Jesus’ sacrifice? How do you relate to the idea that prior to Jesus humankind was separated from God? Does your faith journey include feelings of leaving a separation from God behind and being acceptable to Him now?
· There is a sense of Jesus’ teaching from the Sermon on the Mount here, “knock and the door will be opened.” After Jesus’ sacrifice what stands between us and a relationship with God? What does Paul tell us first thing is the basis for establishing and maintaining that relationship? How would you describe what faith is, what it means, where it comes from?
· Have you felt times on your faith journey when you ‘threw open’ your door to God? What were some of the circumstances? Did you find that God had opened his door to you?
· This scripture ends with a sense of celebration, do you work any of these feelings into your Lenten experience?
After some words of celebration Paul brings us back to the real world with words based on his own hardships:
3-5There's more to come: We continue to shout our praise even when we're hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next. In alert expectancy such as this, we're never left feeling shortchanged. Quite the contrary—we can't round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit!
· There is a sense of ‘no pain, no gain’ here, would you endorse the idea that troubles can make us stronger? What does Paul recommend that we do to grow instead of wilt when troubles find us?
· Have you felt moved to praise God during times of trouble? What were the reasons you felt moved to praise God? Can we praise God when the troubles have a bad outcome?
· In the last sentence, after a discussion of troubles, Paul tells us of the abundance of blessings God pours into our lives. Is this a Pollyanna view or life or does it fit your experience? Can we be blind to these blessings by taking them for granted or attributing them to our own skill and abilities?
In some ways Paul repeats his thoughts so that we don’t miss the Good News:
6-8Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn't, and doesn't, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn't been so weak, we wouldn't have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.
9-11Now that we are set right with God by means of this sacrificial death, the consummate blood sacrifice, there is no longer a question of being at odds with God in any way. If, when we were at our worst, we were put on friendly terms with God by the sacrificial death of his Son, now that we're at our best, just think of how our lives will expand and deepen by means of his resurrection life! Now that we have actually received this amazing friendship with God, we are no longer content to simply say it in plodding prose. We sing and shout our praises to God through Jesus, the Messiah!
· Paul speaks of get and getting ready, what is he talking about? What do we need to get ready for in a relationship with God? What were some reasons that Paul states that kept us from being ready – what do they mean to you?
· Paul talks about things people can agree to sacrifice their lives for – what are they? What reasons can you think of that people have sacrificed their lives for in our times? What would you sacrifice your life for?
· How do you feel about the last words in the first paragraph when it says that, “while we were of no use whatever to him (God)? What does it mean to you? How can we become useful to God? What are some tools we are given to be useful?
· The last paragraph speaks first to Jesus sacrificial death for us – how does he describe it? How would you describe your own feelings about Jesus death? Do you have any questions about the theology surrounding Jesus’ sacrifice or do you agree with Paul completely?
· Does Lent normally lift up feelings of celebration for you? Paul concludes by celebrating the benefits of that sacrificial death – what are some of the things that he includes as reasons to celebrate? What would you celebrate about that sacrifice this Lenten season?
Closing Prayer
The love of Christ has gathered us as one. Let us rejoice and be glad in him. Let us fear and love the living God. And in purity of hear let us love one another. Amen. Oxford Book of Prayer
Next Week’s Lectionary Scriptures: Ephesians 5:8-14, John 9:1-41, Psalm 23, 1 Samuel 16:1-13
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