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The Forward Day by Day Meditation for March 22, 2023
We post a Forward Day by Day Meditation for every day of the year - and we invite you to consider them and talk about them here. If you'd like to comment, you can log in to Disqus with your Facebook, Twitter, or Google account; just click "Login," or the appropriate logo below. Or, you can sign up for a Disqus account; just use the entry form below, or click the "D" logo to start the process. You can find the past week's Meditations in the box at right (or below, for mobile users), or search for previous entries on the Archives page. You can also listen to the Forward Day by Day podcast anywhere you find podcasts!
WEDNESDAY, March 22 JAMES DE KOVEN, Priest, 1879
Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
When I was a young evangelical Christian, I memorized this verse from Paul’s letter to the Romans. As a young man, I was often more reactive than intentional, more snippy than patient, and more impulsive than reflective. Like Paul wrote in the previous chapter, I found myself doing the very things I detested, which led to a form of self-loathing. To receive assurance that I was loved and forgiven by Christ was life-changing.
Throughout Romans, Paul distinguishes between a life lived under law versus that lived under grace. A person is condemned under law, though loved by God nonetheless. Under grace, a person is received, though loved by God none-the-more.
In some traditions, salvation hinges upon catchphrase “salvation” prayers. As for me, I tend toward believing in a broad grace, one that alleviates condemnation, a work on the cross by Jesus that accomplishes salvation in amazing ways for myriads of people, beyond our understanding, in this life, and in the life to come.
MOVING FORWARD: How has your faith changed over the years?
PRAY for the Diocese of Ruaha (Tanzania)
Ps 101, 109:1-4(5-19)20-30 * 119:121-144 | Jeremiah 18:1-11 | Romans 8:1-11 | John 6:27-40
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