Good morning!

Today I come to you from Romans 8:35, 37-39. These are familiar verses because they have been used as song lyrics, Sunday school lessons, and I’m sure verse 35 is even on some bookmarks!

³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ³⁷ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Chapter 8 is a good news chapter of Romans. Paul was writing to let us know what kind of life awaits us if we accept Jesus and welcome the holy spirit into our lives. Throughout the chapter he gives examples of what God has done for us by sending his son. Paul tells us that there will be no condemnation for those in Christ, that we will be adopted into the family and be his heirs, and that the spirit will help us with our weaknesses. So, of course, he ends with a proclamation of love! He spends 34 verses talking about the wonders that God has offered us and (if we hadn’t figured it out for ourselves by then) tells us that the bottom line is God LOVES us. Oh, and nothing in all of creation can separate us from that love if we accept it.

Let’s help each other remember that we must never interpret the darkness of earthly life as evidence of God’s lack of love for us. It’s exactly the opposite, His love is what gets us through the darkness!

See you Sunday and until then, remember that if God is for us, who can be against us?

Love,

Katie