Linked Together: In Scripture

Two pieces of recommended reading for your weekend.

Most Important Passage
Michael Kruger says Romans 3:21-22 is the most important passage the whole of scripture. 

This passage is the basis for the great Reformation doctrine of sola fide–the idea that we are saved by faith alone and not by the works of the law… .

Romans 3:21-22 explains how sola-fide works, teaching us that faith in Christ is the sole instrument through which we receive a righteous status before God. Which is good news

[f]or those who doubt their faith and find their faith to be weak … Our hope is not in how strong our faith is, but in how strong and righteous our Savior is.

Read Kruger’s explanation of this passage.

The Psalms
Three reasons to study the Psalms:

1. They are God-inspired poetry: “Studying the Psalms is a wonderful way to enter into the world of God’s inspired and inspiring poems!”
2. They teach us how to talk to God: “The Psalms cover the full range of human emotions, spilling out in praise, thanksgiving, and lament. And in this way, they model for us how to approach our transcendent but imminent God in prayer.”
3. They point to Jesus: “[The Psalms] point to the salvation found in Jesus Christ (as Jesus himself put it, Luke 24:44). A careful Christological reading of the Psalms can “make [us] wise for salvation” (2 Tim. 3:15).”

Read the whole piece by Douglas Sean O’Donnell.