<html><head></head><body><div><div><div><div><br></div>Romans 9;3-5<div><br></div><div><b>3. &nbsp;For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen by race.</b></div><div><b>4. &nbsp;They are Israelites, and to them belong the sonship, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises;</b></div><div><b>5. &nbsp;to them belong the patriarch, and of their race according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed for ever. &nbsp;Amen.</b></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>&nbsp;God chose the descendants of Abraham, Isaac</span><span>, and Jacob to bring forth from their line the long promised Savior, the Messiah, the Christ. &nbsp;He is the <i>“woman’s Seed” </i>&nbsp;who&nbsp;crushes the serpent’s head, but who Himself still&nbsp;suffers (and we with Him)&nbsp;in delivering us from sin, death and the devil, and restoring us and all creation again into perfect oneness with God.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Is it not strange that when Jesus is finally born (as prophesied in Bethlehem), and as the Son of David he restored&nbsp;to us and the nations&nbsp;the true Light of Life, conquering death and the grave in His resurrection;</span></div><div><span>Yet,&nbsp;His own&nbsp;‘Chosen People,’</span><span>&nbsp;Paul’s “<i>brethren, kinsmen by race” </i>refused to see and confess Jesus as Lord, instead they rejected Him</span><span>! &nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Indeed, this is most sorrowful, the cause of true anguish of the soul. &nbsp;This&nbsp;&nbsp;terrible&nbsp;pain is so awful, that Paul says, &nbsp;&nbsp;</span><i>“I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off”</i><span>! &nbsp;That is like saying, ‘I could wish that I myself could be cast into hell, so that they might come to Christ!” &nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div><br></div><div>This too is a true expression of the love of God at work in Believers. &nbsp;Only Jesus alone could accomplish such a thing. &nbsp;He did, and in victory He alone,&nbsp;shines as the Light of the World dispelling all darkness. &nbsp;But, we do have a part in the saving work of Christ.</div><div><br></div><div>We the Church have been given to share in that love and light <u>in Christ.</u>&nbsp; <i>“Let your ‘light’ so shine before men, that they may&nbsp;see you good works and give glory to your Father&nbsp;in heaven.” &nbsp;</i>(Matthew 5;16)</div><div><br></div><div>Our calling is to not died physically but die to the old self. &nbsp;Living&nbsp;in our baptismal death and Christ’s own resurrection to newness of life,&nbsp;<span>denying ourselves, carrying our crosses,</span><span>&nbsp;we are called to follow&nbsp;Jesus in&nbsp;sacrificial living, loving all men&nbsp;</span><span>with the very&nbsp;love of God.</span></div><div><br></div><div>Think what Jesus really means when He says, <i>“Night is coming when no man can work.” </i>(John 9;4)</div><div>What terrible darkness that will be. &nbsp;This is why we are called <i>“children of Light.” &nbsp; </i>(see, Ephesians 5;8)</div><div><br></div><div>For now there remains this opportunity for the love of God to continue to&nbsp;come to those still in darkness, through us the Church and our ministry of the Gospel, not only on Sunday mornings in worship, but constantly through worshipful living in, <i>“the Spirit of the Law of Life in Christ Jesus.” &nbsp;</i>(Romans 8;2)<i></i></div><div>(see, Ephesians 2;10)</div><div><br></div><div>Prayer: &nbsp;Merciful Father, Burden our souls with the same love that inspired Paul to serveYour Gospel as his life’s work. &nbsp;Grant that we all be mindful that all we do and say is indeed a witness to either&nbsp;the Light of Life now living in our forgiven souls, or the ‘darkness’ that still clings to our flesh. &nbsp;In&nbsp;Jesus we pray, Amen.</div><div><br></div><div>Love,</div><div>Dad/Baba/Eric/Grandpa Pickle Pastor</div><div>“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word. &nbsp;God’s Word is our habitation, and we, broken-hearted, contrite, forgiven, believing children, are His.”</div><div><br><div><a href="https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&amp;c=Global_Acquisition_YMktg_315_Internal_EmailSignature&amp;af_sub1=Acquisition&amp;af_sub2=Global_YMktg&amp;af_sub3=&amp;af_sub4=100000604&amp;af_sub5=EmailSignature__Static_" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a><br></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>


Romans 9;3-5
3.  For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen by race.4.  They are Israelites, and to them belong the sonship, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises;5.  to them belong the patriarch, and of their race according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed for ever.  Amen.

 God chose the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to bring forth from their line the long promised Savior, the Messiah, the Christ.  He is the “woman’s Seed”  who crushes the serpent’s head, but who Himself still suffers (and we with Him) in delivering us from sin, death and the devil, and restoring us and all creation again into perfect oneness with God.
Is it not strange that when Jesus is finally born (as prophesied in Bethlehem), and as the Son of David he restored to us and the nations the true Light of Life, conquering death and the grave in His resurrection;Yet, His own ‘Chosen People,’ Paul’s “brethren, kinsmen by race” refused to see and confess Jesus as Lord, instead they rejected Him!  
Indeed, this is most sorrowful, the cause of true anguish of the soul.  This  terrible pain is so awful, that Paul says,   “I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off”!  That is like saying, ‘I could wish that I myself could be cast into hell, so that they might come to Christ!”   
This too is a true expression of the love of God at work in Believers.  Only Jesus alone could accomplish such a thing.  He did, and in victory He alone, shines as the Light of the World dispelling all darkness.  But, we do have a part in the saving work of Christ.
We the Church have been given to share in that love and light in Christ.  “Let your ‘light’ so shine before men, that they may see you good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.”  (Matthew 5;16)
Our calling is to not died physically but die to the old self.  Living in our baptismal death and Christ’s own resurrection to newness of life, denying ourselves, carrying our crosses, we are called to follow Jesus in sacrificial living, loving all men with the very love of God.
Think what Jesus really means when He says, “Night is coming when no man can work.” (John 9;4)What terrible darkness that will be.  This is why we are called “children of Light.”   (see, Ephesians 5;8)
For now there remains this opportunity for the love of God to continue to come to those still in darkness, through us the Church and our ministry of the Gospel, not only on Sunday mornings in worship, but constantly through worshipful living in, “the Spirit of the Law of Life in Christ Jesus.”  (Romans 8;2)(see, Ephesians 2;10)
Prayer:  Merciful Father, Burden our souls with the same love that inspired Paul to serveYour Gospel as his life’s work.  Grant that we all be mindful that all we do and say is indeed a witness to either the Light of Life now living in our forgiven souls, or the ‘darkness’ that still clings to our flesh.  In Jesus we pray, Amen.
Love,Dad/Baba/Eric/Grandpa Pickle Pastor“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word.  God’s Word is our habitation, and we, broken-hearted, contrite, forgiven, believing children, are His.”
Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPad
