January 11, 2009

All Glory Belongs to God

“Timothy, my fellow worker, and Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater, my countrymen, greet you. I, Tertius, who wrote [this] epistle, greet you in the Lord. Gaius, my host and [the host] of the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the treasurer of the city, greets you, and Quartus, a brother. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ [be] with you all. Amen. Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began but now has been made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures has been made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith—— to God, alone wise, [be] glory through Jesus Christ forever. Amen.” (Romans 16:21-27 NKJV)

It is God that keeps us and not us. As hard as we try, we fail often to various degrees. However, perfection is not required, but faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His righteousness. That is the Gospel, righteousness in Christ by grace through faith.

We don’t become righteous at salvation; we have Christ’s righteousness imputed to us. Once that is accomplished, God will never disown you. Now that doesn’t mean you have license to sin for the soul that sins shall die.

However, it is cause for great celebration and abundant thanksgiving. Tertius, Paul’s amanuensis, joins Paul in this celebration of truth. It’s like Tertius, after taking all this dictation about the Gospel, is caught up in the glorious message of the Gospel, and has to add his sentiments to it.

We too should be caught up in the wonderful works of God. Rejoice in good news of salvation. Celebrate the joy of knowing God. We have been given the revelation of a great mystery. The old testament saints only saw shadows and types of Christ, but we live with the full revelation of His atonement.

Let this day be a day of thanksgiving and worship. He deserves all the glory. Humble yourself and adore our marvelous Savior. Amen.