“But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation”. – Romans 10:8-10
LIGHT FOR NOW: We walk by faith and not by sight.
Paul has shown that there is a way to be made righteous before God. However, this does not include perfectly keeping the works of the law since nobody can or does (Romans 3:10, 23). Instead, God handed over His own sinless son to be the sacrifice to fully and completely pay the price for our sin. This upholds God’s justness and righteousness, but punishing sin, as well as upholding His loving mercy. As a result, those who place their faith in Christ can now be redeemed and justified by God. We are welcomed into His family forever.
Now, Paul turns back to our response. What can we possibly say? He asks, “What becomes of our boasting?” (Romans 3:27). Paul refers to the inevitable pride that comes with religious rule following, as men and women compete to be morally superior to each other in order to be more acceptable to God. Paul says that the game has become pointless. God has done all the work and offers His full acceptance to all by faith in Christ alone.
Paul anticipates an objection. Where is this written that we can’t boast in our own salvation? What kind of rule is this? Shouldn’t we have this in black and white? Paul says no! That’s the point. He calls it the “the law of faith”. Being made right before God in this way is all about faith in what God has done for us in and through Jesus. It’s not about any law we can try to follow in our own strength and therefore be judged by. Glory!
INSTRUCTION: You are saved by faith in Christ. Acknowledge this.
CONFESSION: Father, I thank you for the salvation of my soul, in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
QUOTE: Faith comes with belief
DAILY BIBLE READING: MORNING: MARK CHAPTER 10; EVENING: MARK CHAPTER 11
LIGHT FROM THE WORD 