Scripture: Romans 8:31 – “What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us?” (NRSVUE)
When we look back at our ancestors in faith in the New Testament, we find their lives very similar to our own. They had an experience of God through Jesus, an expression of love, peace, and challenge to the selfishness and divisions of the world. And despite the centrality of its meaning for many people, others saw it as a threat to the religious, social, and political structures of the day. This is why John the Baptist, Jesus, and ninety-two percent of the disciples were executed or lynched. Almost everywhere they went, Christians found themselves being opposed by the world at large.
We feel the same way in the world today, which is ironic because for centuries Christianity was the dominant religious, social, and political reality. But even when these things bear the name of Christ, too often they disguise the same kind of selfishness and division that marked the Roman Empire of Jesus’ time. We are told to sit down, shut up, conform, and not rock the boat. Otherwise, the world will turn against us.
This is depressing and heartbreaking and soul crushing, but in his Letter to the Romans, Paul says, “So what?” Yes, most people do not care about a life in God. Yes, the world is arrayed against us. Yes, loss of status, family, home, and even life are possible. But all of that can be borne if we have Jesus in our hearts. Paul writes, “If God is for us, who is against us?” God supports us when we most need it and grants us peace when we are most distressed.
The world constantly pushes back against our need to be holy and loving. But if you truly commit to following Christ’s example of loving, forgiving, and crying for justice, nothing can ultimately stop you, and nothing can ever separate you from God’s love.
Prayer: O Lord, even as storms of anger and indifference threaten to overwhelm me, I turn to you as my rock and my salvation. Amen.
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