DBRP_146 1SA.15 PSA.99 ROM.5

Turning to 1SAMUEL 15:

Jonathan saved the day! He and his faithful armor bearer kind of took a leaf out of Gideon's play book and agreed on a sign that would show what God wanted them to do— although they didn't ask for confirmation like Gideon did. They took the adventure God set before them and won an amazing victory, and God worked with them by causing panic among the Philistines. After lapses and dithering at the beginning, Saul went on to be a great military leader. Note that Ahijah, the priest, is Eli's grandson.

PSALM 99:

Take off your sandals, because this ground is holy! Enjoy this psalm proclaiming God’s majesty and holiness.

Translation notes:
[I have modified the GNT so that this whole psalm will be understood as speaking to God, as does the CEV.]
1 [You, Lord, are king//The Lord is king],
and the people tremble.
[You sit on your//He sits on his] throne above the winged creatures,
and the earth shakes.
2 [You, O Lord, are//The Lord is] mighty in Zion;
[You are//he is] supreme over all the nations.
3 Everyone will praise [your//his] great and majestic name.
[You are holy!//Holy is he!]
…
6 Moses and Aaron were [your//his] priests,
and Samuel was one who prayed to [You//him];
they called to [You, Lord, and You//the Lord, and he] answered them.
7 [You//He] spoke to them from the pillar of cloud;
they obeyed the laws and commands that [You//he] gave them.

We turn for the second time to ROMANS 5.

God’s ways are always counter-intuitive for humans. One would think that if one is right with God and at peace with him, that everything would be smooth sailing from then on, with health, wealth, and prosperity. God shows his love for us by treating us like sons and heirs— meaning, He gives us problems and trials to cause us to grow and better reflect his glory. There is a wonderful side to Christ's dying for us and being resurrected: He lives now and is deeply involved in continuing to help us. At the end of the chapter Paul draws important comparisons and contrasts between Adam and Christ.

Translation notes:
1 Now that we have been put right with God through [believing//faith], we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
2 He has brought us by [means if our believing//faith] into this experience of God's grace, in which we now live. And so we boast of the hope we have of sharing God's glory!
20 Law was introduced [in order that people might realize how greatly they have sinned//in order to increase [mankind’s awareness of] wrongdoing]; [But as people sinned more and more, God's grace became even more abundant.//but where sin increased, God's grace increased much more. ]
21 [NLT So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God's wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.//So then, just as sin ruled by means of death, so also God's grace rules by means of righteousness, leading us to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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