Share the good news!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.
(Romans 8:1-2 (NIV))

Do you obey the law?

Do you always drive the speed limit? Do you ever throw something from your car? Do you sometimes cross busy streets in places other than the crosswalks? If you do any of these, then you do not obey the laws one hundred percent of the time.

If you are ever caught doing any of these things, then there will be a penalty to pay.

Do you obey God’s laws?

Have you ever murdered? Probably not.

Have you ever taken the Lord’s name in vain? Many of us probably have done so out of frustration or anger.

Have you ever committed adultery? Hopefully not.

Have you ever stolen anything? Probably. Even an ink pen on accident could be considered stealing. It did not belong to you and you left with it.

What type of penalties would you expect for any of these breaches of God’s law?

Think of the worst possible penalty that could be paid and that is exactly what Jesus paid on the cross for each of us. He willingly paid the penalty for all of the things that we have done or ever will do. He paid the price for the law of sin and death so that we could claim freedom from its hold on us. Through Jesus, we can claim that our penalties have been paid in full. All that we have to do is accept this grace and mercy.

We will still slip up and break God’s laws just like we break human laws, but we can be forgiven for these transgressions. It is a matter of the heart. We must long to do what God desires us to do. If this is our true heart, then God will see and forgive through the atoning blood of Jesus.

We are free from the law of sin and death! Share the good news!

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Have you accepted this glorious gift?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
(Romans 8:1 (NIV))

Before Jesus came to this world to live and teach, and then to die for our sins, everyone lived under condemnation. No one was worthy to approach the Throne of God as righteous and blameless.

No one in all of history could have earned salvation on their own!

God knew that this was an impossibility due to the sinful nature of man ever since Satan was allowed dominion over this world. Still, God had a plan for a redemptive gift.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”
(John 3:16-21 (NIV))

God gave us the ultimate gift! The gift is freedom from condemnation through Jesus Christ. All of our sins are forgiven once we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

Have you accepted this glorious gift?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Have you accepted your inherited righteousness?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
(Romans 5:18-19 (NIV))

Don’t you hate when people say that one person cant make a difference?

History has countless examples of how one individual was able to turn the tide and make things different as a result of their actions. It is not impossible for one individual to make a difference.

Dare I say that the best examples of this are the two individuals referenced in this passage from Romans. Through the sin that Adam committed as the very first man to have ever lived, all of humanity was destined to live out lives cast away from God the Father. Billions of people have felt the consequences of the disobedience of one man. Billions were born into sin because of one man! These billions of people inherited a sinful nature as a result of the sin that Adam committed. I would venture to say that deep down, none of these people truly wanted this nature, but they had no choice in the matter.

As time unfolded, God saw fit to send at His perfect time, another individual man. God sent one singular person who would obey God and provide something that no other man had been able to provide or will ever be able to provide. God sent His only Son, Jesus, to save humanity from the consequences of what one man had done. Just as all of humanity inherited sin from Adam, we have the ability to inherit righteousness through Jesus. Adam’s actions made us all sinners. God sent Jesus to give each of us a choice. We can deny Jesus and choose to stay in the sin that we inherited from Adam, or we can accept Jesus and inherit His righteousness and a restored relationship with God.

It is you choice! All that you have to do is accept.

Have you accepted your inherited righteousness?

Copyright 1998 – 2017 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Are you free of condemnation?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.
(Romans 8:1-2 (NIV))

Do you ever feel that no matter what you do, you are always guilty of something? Do you go through life looking over your shoulder, afraid that something you did in the past will come back to haunt you? Do you feel that you are constantly just one step away from being trapped in a situation from which there is no escape? Do you feel that God is out to get you?

Rest assured that God is not out to get you. Satan is the one who is constantly trying to trick you. He is the one who is lying to you and making you feel as if there is no escape. Ever since Satan tried to overthrow God, he has made it his purpose to trap and trick God’s greatest creation in order to keep us from God. It is he who condemns. It is not God!

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.
(John 3:16-18 (NIV))

We have a God given way to escape condemnation! We can rest assured that the accuser has no legal claim on us. All that we have to do is accept the gift of grace and mercy that was freely given at the cross. Jesus paid it all so that no accusations against us have any merit whatsoever. All of our sins have been washed clean!

Are you free of condemnation?

Copyright 1998 – 2017 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Go now and leave your life of sin

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.
(Galatians 6:1 (NIV))

This is just another reminder that no one is above falling into sin.

We can point our fingers at those around us who have slipped into a sinful nature, but we must remember that we are not above the same temptations that tempted and caught others in the snares of sin.

Perhaps I should say that we do not have the right to point our fingers at those who have fallen into sin. Jesus did not point his finger at the woman caught in adultery.

“If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”
(John 8:7b (NIV))

Jesus simply invoked her to sin no more.

At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
“No one, sir,” she said.
“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”
(John 8:9-11 (NIV))

Jesus did not condemn sinners. He came to save them. We, too, are sinful in nature and in need of a savior. We must constantly be on our guard or the enemy will tempt us and we will return to our sin. We must watch ourselves. We must not condemn those who are still caught in their sins.

Copyright 1998 – 2013 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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