Day 329: Rom 1:1 - 3:31

The book of Romans can sometimes be a difficult book to read if you aren't prepared to pay attention and use your brain the entire time. Reading the first 2 1/2 chapters without continuing on with the rest of the book can be both discouraging and dangerous. What we have learned so far, and will continue to learn, is the fact that without the law, grace would mean very little. We have found ourselves living in a society exactly like the one described in this passage where people have attempted to remove right and wrong in an attempt to absolve themselves from any real responsibility. Unfortunately, ignoring a truth could never make it any less true, and in fact, our society's ignorance of the necessity of righteousness has not only proven ineffective at getting rid of it, but has actually done well to support and even prove the fact that we are a lost generation without the desire to obey God's Word. The discussion of law vs. grace can oftentimes be a very heated one, and it is abundantly evident in the fact that God has written an entire book of the Bible specifically on this subject, but we are beginning to learn that Jesus didn't come to simply destroy the law and make it completely useless, but rather He came so that mankind would finally receive the final piece of the puzzle that doesn't cancel the law, but completes its purpose in our lives.

- Father help me to live a life of righteousness without becoming a legalistic Christian. I realize that I have yet to fully understand this subject, but I pray that as I continue to explore the book of Romans, You will continue to reveal this beautiful contrast between grace and the law. -