Season 1

Episode 69: Romans 5

Today's meditation is based on Romans 5 from the Passion Translation
My faith in Jesus transfers God’s righteousness to me and he now declares me flawless in his eyes. This means I can now enjoy true and lasting peace with God, all because of what my Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, has done for me. My faith guarantees me permanent access into this marvelous kindness that has given me a perfect relationship with God. What incredible joy bursts forth within me as I keep on celebrating my hope of experiencing God’s glory!
But that’s not all! Even in times of trouble I have a joyful confidence, knowing that my pressures will develop in me patient endurance. And patient endurance will refine my character, and proven character leads me back to hope. And this hope is not a disappointing fantasy, because I can now experience the endless love of God cascading into my heart through the Holy Spirit who lives in me!
For when the time was right, the Anointed One came and died to demonstrate his love for me, when I was a sinner, entirely helpless, weak, and powerless to save myself.
Who else would have dared to die for my sake? I could understand if someone was willing to die for a truly noble person. But Christ proved God’s passionate love for me by dying in my place while I was still lost and ungodly!
And there is still much more to say of his unfailing love for me! For through the blood of Jesus I have heard the powerful declaration, “You are now righteous in my sight.” And because of the sacrifice of Jesus, I will never experience the wrath of God. So if while I was still his enemy, God fully reconciled me to himself through the death of his Son, then something greater than friendship is mine. Now that I am at peace with God, and because I share in his resurrection life, how much more I will be rescued from sin’s dominion!
And even more than that, I overflow with triumphant joy in my new relationship of living reconciled to God—all because of Jesus Christ!
When Adam sinned, the entire world was affected. Sin entered human experience, and death was the result. And so death followed this sin, casting its shadow over all humanity, because all have sinned. Sin was in the world before Moses gave the written law, but it was not charged against them where no law existed. Yet death reigned as king from Adam to Moses even though they hadn’t broken a command the way Adam had. The first man, Adam, was a picture of the Messiah, who was to come. 
Now, there is no comparison between Adam’s transgression and the gracious gift that I experience. For the magnitude of the gift far outweighs the crime. It’s true that many died because of one man’s transgression, but how much greater will God’s grace and his gracious gift of acceptance overflow to many because of what one man, Jesus, the Messiah, did. And he did it for me!
This free-flowing gift imparts to me much more than what was given to me through the one who sinned. For because of one transgression, I faced a death sentence with a verdict of “Guilty!” But this gracious gift leaves me free from my many failures and brings me into the perfect righteousness of God—acquitted with the words “Not guilty!”
Death once held me in its grip, and by the blunder of one man, death reigned as king over humanity. But now, how much more am I held in the grip of grace and continue reigning as a king in life, enjoying my regal freedom through the gift of perfect righteousness in the one and only Jesus, the Messiah!
In other words, just as condemnation came upon me through one transgression, so through one righteous act of Jesus’ sacrifice, the perfect righteousness that makes me right with God and leads me to a victorious life is now available to all. One man’s disobedience opened the door for me to become a sinner. So also one man’s obedience opened the door for me to be made perfectly right with God and acceptable to him. So then, the law was introduced into God’s plan to bring the reality of my sinfulness out of hiding. And yet, wherever sin increased, there was more than enough of God’s grace to triumph all the more! And just as sin reigned through death, so also this sin-conquering grace will reign as king through righteousness, imparting eternal life through Jesus, my Lord and Messiah!
Until next time, be blessed and be a blessing.
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Episode 68: Romans 4

Today's meditation is based on Romans 4 from the Passion Translation
Because Abraham believed God’s words, his faith transferred God’s righteousness into his account.
When I work, I earn wages. It can’t be considered a free gift, because I earned it. But I cannot earn God’s righteousness. It can only be transferred when I no longer rely on my own works, but believe in the one who powerfully declares the ungodly to be righteous in his eyes. It is faith that transfers God’s righteousness into my account!
Complete wholeness came when God’s powerful declaration of righteousness was heard over my life. Apart from my works, God’s work is enough. Like David, I can say that happy fulfillment is ahead for me because my rebellion has been forgiven and my sins are covered by blood. Happy progress came to me when I heard the Lord speak over me, that he would never hold my sins against me.
This happiness is available to all who believe.
Abraham received the gift of righteousness while he was an uncircumcised gentile. God transferred his righteousness to him by faith. So now this qualifies him to be the father of all who believe among the non-Jewish people. Abraham is my “father of faith,” and God also transfers his righteousness to me by faith. I can claim Abraham as my true father of faith because I walk in the way of faith that he displayed.
God promised Abraham and his descendants that they would have an heir who would reign over the world. This royal promise was not fulfilled because Abraham kept all the law, but through the righteousness that was transferred by faith. For if keeping the law earns the inheritance, then faith is robbed of its power and the promise becomes useless. 
The promise depends on faith so that it can be experienced as a grace-gift, and this gift now extends to me as a descendant of Abraham, the father of us all. I am part of the many nations that God made Abraham the father of. 
He is my example and father, as Abraham believed, so do I believe that God can raise the dead and call into being things that don’t even exist yet. Against all odds, when it looks hopeless, like Abraham, I believe in God's promises and fully expect him to fulfill them. I take God at his word.
My faith is so strong that it cannot be undermined by physical facts and circumstances. I will never stop believing God’s promises. I am made strong in my faith, and because I am mighty in faith and convinced that God has all the power needed to fulfill his promises, I glorify God!
Just as righteousness was credited to Abraham's account through his faith, this declaration of righteousness from God is also spoken over me. I believe and embrace the one who brought my Lord Jesus back to life, and his perfect righteousness has been credited to my account as well. Jesus was handed over to be crucified for the forgiveness of my sins and was raised back to life to prove that he had made me right with God.
Until next time, be blessed and be a blessing.
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Episode 67: Romans 3

Today's meditation is based on Romans 3 from the Passion Translation
If some are unfaithful to their divine calling, does their unbelief weaken God’s faithfulness? Absolutely not! God will always be proven faithful and true to His word, while people are proven to be liars. God's words will always be vindicated and he will rise victorious when he is being tried by His critics!
If my lie brings into sharp contrast the brightness of God’s truth, and if my lie accentuates his glory, then why should I be condemned as a sinner? Is it proper for me to sin, just so good things may come? Of course not! 
Scripture plainly states that there is no one who always does what is right, no, not even one! There is no one with true spiritual insight, and there is no one who seeks after God alone. All have deliberately wandered from God’s ways.
Every excuse I would make is silenced. And I cannot boast of innocence. Along with the entire world, I will be held accountable to God’s standards. I know that I cannot earn the status of being declared righteous before God by observing the law, for it is the law that fully exposes and unmasks the reality of sin.
But now, independently of the law, the righteousness of God is tangible and brought to light through Jesus, the Anointed One. This is the righteousness that the Scriptures prophesied would come. It is God’s righteousness made visible through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ. And now, because I believe in him, I am able to receive that gift. There is really no difference between any of us for we all have sinned and are in need of the glory of God. Yet through his powerful declaration of acquittal, God freely gives away his righteousness. His gift of love and favor now cascades over me, all because Jesus, the Anointed One, has liberated me from the guilt, punishment, and power of sin!
Jesus’s God-given destiny was to be the sacrifice to take away sins, and now he is my mercy seat because of his death on the cross. I come to him for mercy, for God has made a provision for me to be forgiven by faith in the sacred blood of Jesus. This is the perfect demonstration of God’s justice. He had been so patient — holding back his justice out of his tolerance. So he covered over the sins of those who lived prior to Jesus’s sacrifice. And when the season of tolerance came to an end, there was only one possible way for God to give away his righteousness and still be true to both his justice and his mercy. He had to offer up his own Son. So now, because I stand on the faithfulness of Jesus, God declares me righteous in his eyes!
Where, then, is there room for boasting? Do my works bring God’s acceptance? Not at all! It was not my works of keeping the law but my faith in his finished work that makes me right with God. So my conclusion is this: God’s wonderful declaration that I am righteous in his eyes can only come when I put my faith in Christ, and not in keeping the law.
God is the God of all people. Since there is only one God, he will treat me the same. He eliminates my guilt and makes me right with him by faith no matter who I am or who I might have been. Emphasizing my faith doesn't invalidate the law. Instead, my faith establishes the role the law should rightfully have.
Until next time, be blessed and be a blessing. 
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Episode 66: Romans 2

Today's meditation is based on Romans 2 from the Passion Translation
I do not judge the wickedness of others, because I remember that I am also without excuse, for I too am guilty of the same kind of things! When I judge others, and then do the same things that they do, I condemn myself. I know that God’s judgment falls upon those who practice these things. God is always right, because he has all the facts. And no matter who I think I am, when I judge others who do these things and then do the same things myself, I know that I will not escape God’s justice.
I have experienced the riches of his extraordinary kindness. I have experienced how kind and understanding he has been to me. I don't mistake his tolerance for acceptance. I realize that all the wealth of his extravagant kindness is meant to melt my heart and lead me into repentance. I do not allow a calloused heart or refusal to change direction pile up wrath for myself in the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment is revealed. I know that God will give to me in return for what I have done.
I live in constant goodness and do what pleases him, seeking an unfading glory and honor and imperishable virtue, and I will experience eternal life. I am not governed by selfishness and self-promotion. My heart is responsive to God’s truth and I embrace righteousness.
Because I do what pleases God, I can expect unfading glory, true honor, and a continual peace, for God sees us all without partiality.
It’s not merely knowing the law that makes me right with God, I would have to  do all that the law says for God to pronounce me innocent.
The requirements of the law are woven into my heart. I know what is right and wrong, for my conscience validates this “law” in my heart. My thoughts correct me in one instance and commend me in another. So this judgment will be revealed on the day when God, through Jesus the Messiah, judges the hidden secrets of our hearts. My response to the gospel will be the standard of judgment used in that day.
I lean upon my trust in the Lord and in my relationship with God. I know the will of God. I am a shining light to those who live in darkness. I have the treasury of truth and knowledge in the good news of the gospel. I practice what I preach. I am not a theif, or an adulterer. I do not withhold from the true God what is due him.
I do not trust in the covenant of the law, but in the covenant of the blood of Jesus. I am a child of God because of the inward act of spiritual circumcision - a radical change that laid bare my heart. It’s not by the principle of the written code, but by power of the Holy Spirit. For then my praise will not come from people, but from God himself!
Until next time, be blessed and be a blessing.
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Episode 65: Romans 1

Today's Meditation is based on Romans 1 from the Passion Translation
I am a loving and loyal servant of the Anointed One, Jesus. He called me and set me apart with a mission to proclaim God’s wonderful gospel. I am called as a holy one. Joyous grace and total well-being, flowing from the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, rest upon me.
My commission is to preach the good news. Yet it is not entirely new, but the fulfillment of the hope promised through his prophets in the sacred Scriptures. For the gospel is all about God’s Son. As a man he descended from David’s royal lineage, but as the mighty Son of God he was raised from the dead and miraculously set apart with a display of triumphant power supplied by the Spirit of Holiness. And now Jesus is my Lord and my Messiah. Through him grace cascaded into me, empowering me so that I can win people from every nation into the obedience that comes from faith, to bring honor to his name. I am a chosen one, called to belong to Jesus.
I give thanks to God that the testimony of the faith is spreading throughout the world. I pray for my fellow believers continually and at all times. For I serve and worship God with my spirit in the gospel of his Son.
I am empowered to stand strong in my faith. Side by side with my brothers and sisters in Christ, something wonderful is released, as we are co-encouraged and co-comforted by each other’s faith.
Love obligates me to preach to everyone, to those who are among the elite and those who are among the outcasts, to those who are wise and educated as well as to those who are foolish and unlearned. 
I refuse to be ashamed of the wonderful message of God’s liberating power unleashed in me through Christ! For I am thrilled to preach that everyone who believes is saved.  This gospel unveils a continual revelation of God’s righteousness — a perfect righteousness given to me because I believe. And it moves me from receiving life through faith, to the power of living by faith. I am right with God through life-giving faith!
I know the truth of God instinctively, for God has embedded this knowledge inside every human heart. I cannot excuse opposition to truth on the basis of ignorance, because from the creation of the world, the invisible qualities of God’s nature have been made visible, such as his eternal power and transcendence. He has made his wonderful attributes easily perceived, for seeing the visible makes me understand the invisible.
Throughout human history the fingerprints of God have been upon us. And I honor him as God and I am thankful for his kindness. Only a fool would trade the unfading splendor of the immortal God to worship the fading image of other humans, idols made to look like people, animals, birds, or creeping reptiles.
I refuse to trade the truth of God for a lie by worshiping and serving the things God made. Rather, I worship and serve the God who made all things. Glory and praises to him forever and ever.
Until next time, be blessed and be a blessing.
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Episode 64: Jude

Today's Meditation is based on the Book of Jude from the Passion Translation
I am a loving servant of Jesus, the Anointed One, wrapped in the love of Father God—kept and guarded for Jesus, the Messiah. God’s mercy, peace, and love cascade over me.
I participate in an amazing salvation! And I vigorously defend and contend for the beliefs that I cherish. For God, through the apostles, has once and for all entrusted these truths to his holy believers.
There are some who have perverted the message of God’s grace into a license to commit immorality and turn against the only absolute Master, my Lord Jesus Christ.
But Jesus saved me from darkness and those who are guilty of unbelief are destined for destruction.
I do not corrupt and pollute the natural realm, or reject the spiritual realms of governmental power, nor do I scoff at heavenly glories.
I do not insult what I don't understand or live by animal instincts and bring about my own destruction.
I am reverent and Jesus is my shepherd. I am like a cloud with rain, watering the earth. Like trees bearing fruit for harvest, with roots that run deep and strong. I am like a calm sea, and a north star shining brightly in the darkness. 
I am not a complainer or fault-finder, but am content. I follow God's desires and my mouth speaks blessings. I enjoy building up and encouraging others. 
I remember the prophecies of the apostles of our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One. I steer clear of mockers who are motivated by their own ungodly desires. These people cause divisions and are followers of their own natural instincts, devoid of the life of the Spirit.
Instead, I constantly and progressively build myself up on the foundation of my most holy faith by praying every moment in the Spirit. I fasten my heart to the love of God and receive the mercy of my Lord Jesus Christ, who gives me eternal life.
I remain compassionate to those who still have doubts, and snatch others out of the fire to save them. I am merciful over and over to them, but always couple my mercy with the fear of God. I am extremely careful to keep myself free from the pollutions of the flesh.
My Lord Jesus Christ is the one with enough power to prevent me from stumbling into sin and bring me faultless before his glorious presence to stand before him with ecstatic delight. To the only God my Savior, be endless glory and majesty, great power and authority — from before he created time, now, and throughout all the ages of eternity.
Until next time, be blessed and be a blessing.
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Episode 63: 3rd John

Today's meditation is based on the 3rd Book of John from the Passion Translation
I pray prosper in every way and continually enjoy good health, just as my soul prospers.
I am faithful to the truth. And continually live my life in ways of truth in Christ.
I demonstrate my faithful love by serving my brothers and sisters in Christ on their journey -- even if they are strangers. I show them beautiful acts of love and send them on their way with a generous gift, in a manner that would honor God. Their passion for the glory of the name of Christ launched them out, and they are deserving of all the support I can give them, because through my giving I can partner with them for the truth. I welcome my brothers and sisters, and show them hospitality.
I do not imitate what is evil, but I imitate that which is good. Because I know that whoever does good is of God; whoever does evil has not seen God.
Because of my actions, I am spoken highly of, and the truth itself stands by my side. 
Until next time, be blessed and be a blessing.
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Episode 62: 2nd John

Today's meditation is based on the 2nd Book of John from the Passion Translation
I love all those who are in the truth. The living truth that has a permanent home in me and will be with me forever.
Grace, mercy, and peace belong to me, flowing from the presence of God the Father and from Jesus Christ, Son of the Father and from the realm of true love.
I am delighted and filled with joy and I constantly live in the truth, just as I have received the command from the Father.
I constantly love others. This love means living in obedience to whatever God commands me. For to walk in love toward one another is the unifying commandment I’ve heard from the beginning.
I know there are numerous deceivers who have surfaced from among the believers and gone out into the world. They do not acknowledge Jesus Christ coming as a man. These deceivers are antichrists. So I am on my guard so that I do not lose all that I have diligently worked for but receive a full reward.
I do not wander away or become unfruitful to the teaching of Christ, because I have a relationship with God. I remain in the teaching of Christ and have a wonderful relationship with both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes along claiming to be a true believer yet doesn’t bring this teaching, I don't consider him as a fellow believer, nor do I welcome him into my home. For if I welcome him as a believer, I will be partnering with him in his evil agenda.
But I look forward to every opportunity to spend time with fellow believers, as being in fellowship with the body of Christ completes my joy!
Until next time, be blessed and be a blessing.
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Episode 61: 1 John 5

Today's meditation is based on 1st John Chapter 5 from the Passion Translation
I believe that Jesus is the Messiah and that I am God’s spiritual child. I have been fathered by God himself. And because I love Father God, I love his children as well. I have a passionate love for God and obey his commands because true love for God means obeying his commands. His commands don’t weigh me down as heavy burdens. As a child of God, I have overcome the world, for my faith is the victorious power that triumphs over the world. The world conquerors, the ones who defeat its power, are those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son by his water baptism and by the blood of the cross — not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit, who is truth, confirms this with his testimony. So I have these three constant witnesses giving their evidence: the Spirit, the water, and the blood. And these three are in agreement. I accept the more authoritative testimony of God that he has testified concerning his Son over the testimony of men.
Because I believe in the Son of God, I have the living testimony in my heart. Those who don’t believe have made God out to be a liar by not believing the testimony God has confirmed about his Son. This is the true testimony: God has given me eternal life, and this life has its source in his Son. Whoever has the Son has eternal life; whoever does not have the Son does not possess eternal life.
I am assured and know without a doubt that I have eternal life.
And because I have this confidence, I can also have great boldness before him, for I know that if I ask anything agreeable to his will, he will hear me. And I know that if he hears me in whatever I ask, that I have already obtained the requests I ask of him.
I intercede for my fellow believers -- especially those who habitually sin in a way that doesn’t lead to death, praying that God will give that person life. 
I am convinced that everyone fathered by God does not make sinning a way of life, and the Evil One cannot touch him. I know that I am a child of God and although the whole world lies under the misery and influence of the Evil One, the Son of God protects me because I am the child of God. He has made my understanding come alive so that I can know by experience the One who is true. And I am in him who is true, God’s Son, Jesus Christ — the true God and eternal life!
So I guard myself from worshiping anything but him.
Until next time, be blessed and be a blessing.
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Episode 60: 1 John 4

Today's meditation is based on 1st John Chapter 4 from The Passion Translation
I am delightfully loved by God, and as his child, I have learned not to trust every spirit. But I carefully examine what they say to determine if they are of God. I know that many false prophets have mingled into the world. It's a simple test, really, those with the genuine Spirit of God confess Jesus as the Christ who has come in the flesh. If they do not acknowledge that Jesus is from God, they have the spirit of antichrist, which is already active in the world.
But of this I am certain, I belong to God and have conquered them, for the One who is living in me is far greater than the one who is in the world. They belong to this world and they articulate the spirit of this world, and the world listens to them. But I belong to God, and listen to those who speak from the genuine Spirit of God. That's how I can know the difference between the spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit.
I am loved by God, and I let his love continually pour from me to others, because God is love. I am fathered by God and experience an intimate knowledge of him. The one who doesn’t love has yet to know God, for God is love. The light of God’s love shined within me when he sent his matchless Son into the world so that I might live through him. This is love: He loved me long before I loved him. It was his love, not mine. And he proved it by sending his Son to be the pleasing sacrificial offering to take away my sins.
Because he loved me with such tremendous love, “loving others” is my way of life! No one has ever gazed upon the fullness of God’s splendor. But as I love others, God makes his permanent home in me, and I make my permanent home in him, and his love is brought to its full expression in me.  And he has given me his Spirit within me so that I can have the assurance that he lives in me and that I live in him.
I can testify to the truth that Father God has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. I give thanks that Jesus is the Son of God. I live in God, and God lives in me. I have come into an intimate experience with God’s love, and I trust in the love he has for me.
God is love! Those who are living in love are living in God, and God lives through them. By living in God, love has been brought to its full expression in me so that I may fearlessly face the day of judgment, because all that Jesus now is, so am I in this world. Love never brings fear, for fear is always related to punishment. But love’s perfection drives the fear of punishment far from my heart. Whoever walks constantly afraid of punishment has not reached love’s perfection. My love for others is my grateful response to the love God first demonstrated to me.
Anyone can say, “I love God,” yet have hatred toward another believer. But this would make me a phoney. If I don't love a brother or sister, whom I an see, how could I truly love God, whom I cannot see? He gave me this command: Whoever loves God must also demonstrate love to others.
Until next time, be blessed and be a blessing. 
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