Journal - Friend of God - wk08

Hi, everybody; it’s Pastor Dave, again, with another devotion guide for your Alone With God journal. So, grab your Bible, and grab a journal, and if you don’t have our special Alone With God journal, then go to wordbymail.com and order yourself one.

So, let’s open our Bibles today to Romans 5, verses 6-11. Be sure to grab your Bible and journal because that is super important. And so, first, I’m just going to kind of talk you through Romans 5:6-11, but I’d really love for you to read those verses first a few times yourself. Maybe just slowly read them two or three times to get them in your mind. So, do that first, if you can.

Romans 5:6-11 (NLT)
6 When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.
7 Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good.
8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.
9 And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation.
10 For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son.
11 So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.

Alright, now, I am just going to talk through these verses, and I am looking at the NLT translation. I’m not reading word for word. I’m hoping you have already read the verses. I’m just trying to help you see what is here.

So, verse 6 says When we were utterly helpless… when we had no way to help ourselves, that is when Jesus Christ came…and died for us while we were lost sinners. We did nothing to deserve it. We did nothing to earn it. We were utterly helpless and hopeless.

And then verse 7 says (it’s kind of a lead-up to verse 8) that most people would not be willing to die even for an upright person, although someone might be willing to die for an especially good person. But the point is it leads into verse 8 because verse 8 says But God… But God showed his great love for us by sending Jesus to die for us while we were still sinners. Jesus died for us in our place to pay for our sin when we were helplessly and hopelessly separated from God by our sin.

And verse 9 says since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, by the death of Jesus, since Jesus died in our place paying completely for our sin on our behalf, since he’s already done that, the end of verse 9 says he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation, from God’s wrath.

And then, I love verse 10. It says since our friendship with God was restored by Jesus dying on the Cross for us, we will certainly be saved through the life of Jesus. If the death of Jesus had the power to save us, how much more will his resurrected life at the right hand of God have the power to carry us through until the moment we see him face to face? I love that friend of God phrase.

And then verse 11. Verse 11 is a reiteration. It’s an incredible exclamation point to this section of Romans 5. Verse 11 says So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God. Jesus has made us friends of God. We’ve gone from enemies because of our sin to friends and adopted sons and daughters of the Most High God.

Alright, that’s a lot. So, now pause this guide, and in your Meditate section of your journal, write. Write what is God’s Word saying here. Just let these truths soak in by you writing plainly and simply what God’s Word is saying in these verses. Okay, ready? You write.

Okay, now for the Apply section, maybe look back over the verses if that would help, or maybe even listen to my comments again. But this time, ask yourself How does this apply to my life personally and specifically today? Remember, at the beginning of your Alone With God journal, we define the word “apply.” We define it like this: “It is the inward acknowledgment of the truths that the Holy Spirit is impressing on your heart for your life, personally and specifically.” So now, now pause the guide, and write how these truths apply to your life today.

And then, in the Respond section of your journal, write your response to these awesome truths. What do you say back to God in light of these truths? How will you respond to God in light of these awesome truths? So, again, pause the recording, and write your response to God in light of these verses.

And then, finally, we Pray. So, allow me to pray with you, and then when I’m done praying, I’ll ask you to stop the guide and write your own prayer to God. But first, let me pray with you.

Lord Jesus, when I was helpless and hopeless, you died for me. Lord, you died for me to pay for my sins in my place while I was still your enemy. Thank you, Jesus, for your love. And thank you for redeeming me from an eternity separated from God to having eternal life with God. And Lord, since you have made me right in the eyes of God by giving your own life in place of mine, I know for certain, Lord Jesus, that you will save me from the wrath that must come upon sin. You already have, Lord. Jesus, you have made me a friend of God. You have made me your friend. And Lord, I rejoice today in my new eternal life relationship with God because of what you have done for me. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. It’s in your mighty to save name that I pray, amen.

Alright, guys. That’s all for today. Be sure, when this is done, to write out your prayer to finish your time alone with God. I will see you soon, bye-bye.