Round the Sphere Again: Good Words from Women

Meditating on the Text
Leslie Wiggins posted her thoughts on Philippians 1:7-10, which was last week’s portion a scripture memory challengs. She tells us, among other things, what kind of man Paul was not.

Preaching to Herself
From Staci Eastin:

And that’s the biggest part of the problem: I wrote a book about this. I know the cause of my angst is really unbelief. I even outlined it carefully and sent it to a publisher. And now they’re going to put their money where my mouth is and bind it up in print on real pages. I should be beyond this kind of thing by now, shouldn’t I?

The whole piece: Rainy Days and Unbelief Always Get Me Down.

Following Our Hearts
is not necessarily a good thing (Kim Shay): 

This principle of being “who I am” has been taken a hold of by modern secular psychology (and some “Christian” psychology, sadly enough) as being some kind of standard of virtue.  I am so “real” and “relevant” if I have the courage to be “who I am.”  They key to emotional health is to be “who I am.” 

But

My heart is deceitful.  It is sick.  Is this what I want guiding me?  I have inclinations to serve myself, not God.  So, if I have the “courage to be who I am,” is it any kind of courage at all?

Read more: Teach Our Children Well

Called According to Paul: Romans 1:1-7

I’ve had a very busy day and a Christian education committee meeting this evening. I planned to get the Theological Term up, but my plan ain’t happening. We’ll be making do with a repost of an old post in the Called According to Paul series.  An explanation of this series of posts can be found here. You’ll find other posts in this series here.

Not Herman Ridderbos.

In this post, we’re inspecting the introductory or greeting paragraph from Paul’s letter to the Romans. The word “called” is used three times—once referring to Paul himself, and twice referring to other believers.

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,

To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (ESV)

Verse 1

In the first verse, Paul says that he has been called to be an apostle. He said the same thing in 1 Corinthians 1, one of the passages examined previously. Used like this, the word call carries the meaning of a summons or appointment, a significance made stronger by the phrase that follows: “set apart for the gospel of God.” This call is an appointment to a particular office or role that sets Paul apart among the followers of Christ.

Verse 6

Paul says here that the Gentile people to whom God has called him in order for him to “bring about the obedience of faith” (or to bring to a transforming faith in the gospel) includes the specific believers in Rome that he is writing this letter to. They are the ones “who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.” This calling is a summons into the group of people who belongs to Christ. (In I Corinthians 1:9 the idea was similar.)

Verse 7

There’s a close association between being loved by God and being called by him. This calling springs from God’s love for particular people. It is because they are loved by God that they are called to be saints. This a calling to something: They are called to be saints (or to be holy). And this is yet another call that sets people apart.

Once again, I’ll ask what you see that I missed. What can you see in this passage about the meaning of the word called when it is used by Paul in regards to the call of God? 

A Catechism for Girls and Boys

Part I: Questions about God, Man, and Sin

17. Q. Of what were our first parents made?
      A. God made the body of Adam out of the ground, and formed Eve from the body of Adam.

(Click through to read scriptural proofs.)

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