04/15/2026
“There is Good News and Bad News. Which do you want to hear first?” Most of us have had this question posed to us at some time. The dilemma of choosing only increases anxiety and provokes fear so let’s start with the Bad News and get it over with! “All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law.” And, “This will take place on the day when God will judge men’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.” (Romans 2:12 & 16) This means that no one will escape God’s judgement. Okay that is really bad news. Now for the Good News! God knows not only our secret thoughts, but knows our hearts too. Regardless if we are a Jew or not, we can be saved through faith just like Abraham. “And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6) A person cannot be considered righteous without faith in Jesus Christ. Romans 2:28-29 states that “A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code.” Romans 3 declares that we become conscious of sin by observing the law. We are like toddlers who have been shown a line on the floor and told not to cross it. We look our Dad in the eye and step right over it just to see what he will do! Our Father is faithful despite our disobedience. However He wants us to genuinely worship and obey Him. When we can truly see our soul deficit, our spiritual bankruptcy, humility is born. The Holy Spirit can come and circumcise our hearts. We can be made truly His. It is through dependence that we become authentically free and independent. This heart surgery entails the removal of stubbornness, sin and spiritual apathy. It enables us to love God fully. It is a renewal. Now our hearts can be fully dedicated to God. The obstacles are gone. There is no more resistance to living God’s way. We are no longer a slave to our lower nature. We can finally run the race to win!
