Ephesians and Romans Journaling

Mathew 25:31-46

We are called to help the least of people.

What am I doing in my life that will matter in eternity?

³¹ “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. ³² All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³ He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶ I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

⁴¹ “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. ⁴² For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, ⁴³ I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

⁴⁴ “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

⁴⁵ “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

⁴⁶ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

God has chosen me

I HAVE CHOSEN YOU

"Long ago, even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes." Ephesians 1:4

"Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own?  Will God? NO!  He is he one who has given us right standing with himself.  Who then will condemn us?  Will Christ Jesus?  No, for he is the one who died for us and was raised to life for us and is sitting at the place of honor next to God, pleading for us."  Romans 8:33

Ephesians 1

Ephesians 1:3-9

"How we praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we belong to Christ.  Long ago, even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be hold and without fault in his eyes.  His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ.  And this gave him great pleasure.  So we praise God for the wonderful kindness he has poured out on us because we belong to his dearly loved Son.  He is so rich in kindness that he purchased our freedom through the blood of his Son and our sins are forgiven.  He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.  God's secret plan has now been revealed to us, it is a plan centered on Christ, designed long ago according to his good pleasure."

A Gift of Peace

Isaiah 48:18 "¹⁸ Oh, that you had listened to my commands!

      Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river

      and righteousness rolling over you like waves in the sea."

Jesus offers us peace like a river - not a pond.  Peace in the midst of chaos and busyness. With Christ it is possible to be in turmoil and walk in peace.  Do you trust that God is bigger than your fear?

Share Love

Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.

Our love for others should go beyond affection to self sacrificing service to imitate Christ.

I will allow the JOY of the Lord to rise in me continually.

I will walk in PEACE and not stress. 

I will be PATIENT and not lose my temper.

I will show KINDNESS no matter what.  

I will be GENTLE and not harsh to others.

I will not allow myself to get out of CONTROL.

People of Faith

Faith Hall of Fame

"All of these faithful ones died without receiving what God had promised them, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed the promises of God.  They agreed that they were no more than foreigners and nomads on earth."

"So you see it is impossible to please God without faith.  Anyone who wants to come to him must believe there is a god and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him."

Hebrews 11