Museum of Modern Art, New York, New York, 1931.
Oil on canvas, 9 1/2 x 13" (24.1 x 33 cm).
© 2007 Salvador Dalí, Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Romans 13:8-14
For Sunday, September 4, 2011
Proper 18
The sun is peaking out from under the clouds and just over the trees. The alarm clock signals the break of dawn. How will we respond? Hit snooze, roll over, and hope it all gos away? Or will we seize the day understanding the time? This is the question posed to us by Romans 13:8-14.
The passage divides into two paragraphs. The first paragraph, vv. 8-10, is about "Seizing the day." Paul encourages us to "let no debt remain outstanding." In other words, live debt free. Have you ever been debt free? It is tremendously liberating. You aren't encumbered: you can do what your heart is set on doing. This is far more valuable than any Aston Martin DB9 or summer home could ever be. When we live debt free, not only financially but also personally, we are positioned to seize the day for the glory of God.
The second paragraph, vv. 11-14, is about "Understanding the time." Paul says, "The hour has come for you to wake from your slumber. . . the night is nearly over, the day is almost here." We have a choice to make: stay in the dark, or put aside the deeds of darkness - whether self interest, drunkenness, or sexual bondage - that we might "put on the armor of light" and live to the glory of God.
The alarm is sounding: will we personally and the church corporately answer the bell?
Here is one practical step you might consider. Invest Saturday morning September 24th in attending or hosting a "Doing the Right Thing" simulcast.
1 comment:
I was recently thinking about grace being so multifaceted, and yet, really, about as simple as anything could possibly be. Your words about "living debt free" ring true in my ears! there is a tremendous empowerment in realizing the magnitude of his love (as much as humanly possible). I don't know how else to put it, but joy, overwhelming contentment, clarity, just fill the human heart in light of this...
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