"… for all
have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,"
Martin Luther writes in his Commentary on Romans, (translated by J.
Theodore Mueller): "This Epistle is really the chief part of the New Testament and
the very purest Gospel, and is worthy not only that every Christian should know it word
for word, by heart, but occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the
soul."
Luther says of Romans 3:23, men are altogether without any virtue in
which they may glory before God. They have no righteousness at all of which to boast
before God, as we read in I Corinthians 1:29 "so that no one may boast before
him." Luther notes in the commentary, the real glory before God is righteousness,
wisdom, and spiritual strength, and all these come from God and are given to us freely by
his grace.
Romans 3: 24 tells us that we "… are justified freely by his
grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Jesus died for our sins.
There is no greater truth. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only
Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16.
God has given us the greatest gift of all. He has forgiven our sins and
he has given us eternal life. The only requirement to receive this gift is to believe. God
sent his son into the world to save us from our sins. Christ came as a servant. Therefore,
if it is our desire to be more Christ-like, we to will choose to be servants. We, as
Christians do not serve others to save ourselves, we serve others because we ourselves are
saved.
I am thankful for the people I go to church with here at Reformation
Lutheran Church. I feel I am surrounded by people whose greatest desire is to serve the
Lord. I feel I am privileged to be a member of a church where so many people are focused
on their spiritual growth. I see all around me people who are dedicated to our Lord,
people who serve in many ways and according to their gifts. I feel I am very blessed to be
a part of this church.
