Pastor Ralph Posted December 20, 2007 Report Share Posted December 20, 2007 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tabatha Posted January 15, 2008 Report Share Posted January 15, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? Jesus said to rejoice when we're persecuted. Persecution can be good because ( 1 ) It takes our eyes off the earthly rewards, ( 2 ) It strips away superficial belief, ( 3 ) it strengthens the faith of those who endures, And ( 4 ) our attitude through it serves as an example to follow. The fact that we are being persecuted proves we have been faithful. If we are to much like the world we are worthless. Christians should not blend in with everyone else, Instead , we should affect others positively, just as salt brings out the best flavor in food. Much as how salt adds flavor to food, so I believe we as " salt of the earth" should make a difference in other people's lives, be it through good works, witnessing to them, or simply being a friend in their time of need. During Jesus ministry on earth, the sick were healed, the lame walked and Jesus even befriended and dined with those thrown out and seen as outcasts. What further examples do we need as a guide to living a life like Christ. Just as only a pinch of salt is enough to make any dish taste much much better. If we live for Christ, we will glow like lights, showing others what Christ is like. Be a beacon of truth, Don't shut your light off from the rest of the world. ( Mathew 5:14 Isaiah 60:1 ) Arise shine, for your light has come, and the Glory of the Lord rises upon you". We are to be salt for the world and light for the world--- to the Glory of God. If we suffer in a positive and Joyful attitude it brings Glory to Christ. Praise God for all things and continue to do good deeds and be a blessing to those that are hurting and have nothing. Let Christ always be seen through us. Was Jesus suffering necessary? Yes, because He was an example for us. He was showing us that what ever we would go through and suffer He had already gone through those things before us. Yes our suffering is necessary It builds charcater and strengthens our faith to endure to the end. When Christ calls His Bride unto Him We will be overcomers in all things. ( Romans 12:2 ) God has good, pleasing and perfect plans for His children. He wants us to be transformed people with renewed minds, living to honor and obey Him. Because He wants only what is best for us, and because He gave His Son to make our new life possible, we should joyfully give ourselves as living sacrifices for His service. It must be firmly planted in our minds to " be transformed by the renewing of your mind. ' ' Only when the Holy Spirit renews, re- educates and redirects our minds, are we truly transformed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UncleBlake Posted January 19, 2008 Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? Verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12 in that in so letting our light shine, or being the salt of the earth, we are opening ourselves up to mankind. When we stand up for our faith, and for Jesus, we should expect persecution, because Jesus was persecuted..(18 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elwood C O'Dell Posted January 19, 2008 Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? If we are going to be effective witnesses for the Master, we must realize ahead of time that those of the world will bring persecution to come upon our lives, but we cannot afford to let our light be hidden or burn out. God will bless those who are faithful and consistent in letting their light shine before men. If we hide our light others will not be able to see the glory of God through us. We will be ineffective as witnesses. The receiving of glory is not without a cost being involved. As we endure suffering for his sake, and in the end we are saved, we will receive our final reward of glory. Yes, Jesus Suffering was necessary, for it showed the measure of His commitment to doing the will of the Father. It also gave credibility to how much He really loved mankind. As far as we are concerned we must accept the fact that if they hated and persecuted Him, those who are opposed to Him and His message will persecute His followers also. We are changed by the renewing of our mind, so when the mind of Christ occupies our mind then we can see things as He see them, including suffering for His sake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swordwoman Posted January 19, 2008 Report Share Posted January 19, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? How these verses relate to each is this: If you are persecuted for righteousness sake, then you know your light is shining and you are a "salty"...the persecution you will be under is a direct result of being a peculiar people (Praise God...!). By being this way, we know we are bringing glory and honor to the Father, and therefore, it matters not what the world thinks. The important thing is that they see Jesus and recognize there is Life to behold. All Glory and Honor be unto Him. What this has to do with Romans 12:2 is that we are not to be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our minds. To be renewed in our minds is to fill ourselves up with the Word...live a life bringing honor to God...and glorifying Him in our words and actions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charisbarak Posted January 21, 2008 Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 By letting our good deeds shine & praising God, we are becoming more like Jesus, and Jesus was persecuted for who he is. Persecution comes to Christians--the world does not like Jesus or His own. If we are hiding our light, we are not giving glory to God--we are disobeying. Glory is what we want to give to God--our lives will usually show this. Then comes the persecution--people can see the difference in us. Jesus' suffering was necessary. It was a foretaste of the Christian life--the anger of those who are Satan's will be taken out on God's own people. Yes, it is inevitable that suffering will come if we wholly give ourselves to God and live as salt & light for Him. Rom. 12:2 We are not to be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewing of our minds--so God can use us as His salt & light. The more like Jesus we become, the more the chance of our suffering for Him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stan Posted January 21, 2008 Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? 10Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. 13Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. 14Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Romans 12: 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. The first are the blessings of Godfor doing His will and the last are the things that keep uw from doing the will of the Father. If we lose our saltiness, or do not let our light shine then God will withhold the blessings of heaven from us. It is up to us,we are given free will to chose to let our light shine so that others will wish to glorify the Father in heaven. Hiding our light keeps the glory that we are to give to the Father from manifesting it's self, it can't shine unless we do. To give God His glory we must seek to do His will in reconciling others to Him and that means trying everyday to keep His commandments and let our light shine. Glory and suffering go hand in hand because there is still sin in the world and untill it is removed when Jesus comes to make us His own their will be non-believers who will persecute those who spread God's word and lead others to Christ. Jesus's suffering as well as ours was and is necessary becuse it is the will of the Father, Jesus asked the Father to let this cup pass from me but not my will but your will be done that should be our wish today as we go through life we need to keep God first place in our lives and always formost His will before ours even in the mist of suffering. Romans 2 tell us the same thing in differant words, we are to live our differant after becoming followers of Christ, our minds are to be renewed coming to obedience and seeking the perfect will of God. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanMary Posted January 21, 2008 Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? 1)Both sections have to do with quenching the Spirit of God. 2)The light I have is His light. If I hide it, all one sees is my flesh, and that will never bring Him glory. He is glorified when others see Him shining through me. 3)We war not with flesh and blood, but with powers and principalities, and Satan hates The Light. If he can't seduce us into hiding The Light, he seems to delight in persecuting those who let it shine. Suffering for the Lord's sake, brings Him glory. 4 & 5)Yes, to both. Hebrews 5:8 & 9 tells us that "Although He was a Son, He learned active, special obedience through what He suffered and, His (completed experience) making Him perfectly equipped, He became the Author and Source of eternal salvation to all those who give heed and obey Him. (see Is. 45:17) We are not above our Master, and will suffer too. 5) Quenching the Spirit of God IS being conformed to this world. He calls us to be transformed, changed into His Image, by the renewing of our minds, so that eventually, we will no longer think and act like the world, but like our Savior. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanMary Posted January 22, 2008 Report Share Posted January 22, 2008 1)Both sections have to do with quenching the Spirit of God. 2)The light I have is His light. If I hide it, all one sees is my flesh, and that will never bring Him glory. He is glorified when others see Him shining through me. 3)We war not with flesh and blood, but with powers and principalities, and Satan hates The Light. If he can't seduce us into hiding The Light, he seems to delight in persecuting those who let it shine. Suffering for the Lord's sake, brings Him glory. 4 & 5)Yes, to both. Hebrews 5:8 & 9 tells us that "Although He was a Son, He learned active, special obedience through what He suffered and, His (completed experience) making Him perfectly equipped, He became the Author and Source of eternal salvation to all those who give heed and obey Him. (see Is. 45:17) Romans 8:17: "And if we are His children, then we are His heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ (sharing His inheritance with Him); only we must share His suffering if we are to share His glory." 5) Quenching the Spirit of God IS being conformed to this world. He calls us to be transformed, changed into His Image, by the renewing of our minds, so that eventually, we will no longer think and act like the world, but like our Savior. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnie Nelson Posted January 22, 2008 Report Share Posted January 22, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? Anything worthwhile is going to cause suffering and victory. Everything we do has a consequence. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. So if this theory of Physics is true, then everything a Christian does will cause a reaction. If we allow our Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lion of Grace Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 No pain. No gain. I don't think anything that results in true, honest glory comes without a price. It takes sacrifice and hard training and dedication and a total desire to be in it with everything we've got. Christianity and the world are so opposite that the clash is going to be inevitable. Not only is there darkness but satan loves darkness and wants to keep those in darkness well into it! Darkness has to flee though with light. This is our victory in the world. It doesn't come without a battle though. For ourselves or others! The good news is...we win. The battle belongs to the Lord. That was the whole purpose of Jesus. He overcame everything. Our victory is in Him for the taking! That IS God's glory! Everytime we shine or season like salt or suffer in the process of dying to self or suffering for another or in persecution for our faith we show God's glory because we show His strength and might and power and wisdom and that He is it! No doubt. Number one. Undefeated! We have to know though.......where the victory is. It's not in ourselves. He did it and still does it. We partner in it while He is good and gracious to us. Romans 12:2 is instructing to put not only the material ways of the world behind but to retrain our minds to be "kingdom thinking." We offer our bodies for good things, like showing our good deeds and no longer presenting them for unholy purposes. We wash our minds with His Word and become conformed to what God instructs and we come to KNOW Him better through the Word. We become transformed and know what pleases Him and what is good. Before, we didn't know but we are learning. We have to be dedicated and it is hard and suffering and giving things up and giving away and in the midst of all that the world doesn't like the example and fights against us. It is suffering for something more. Something right. Something lasting. A better way but at a price for ourselves and others we are called to help. Taking up our cross isn't just a "motto" to recite. It means agony sometimes. Still, we can never do as He did. We can only be grateful and consider our meager part in it (compared to His) a joy because look what He did for us. We should never forget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustJeff Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 1. In verses 10-12 the Lord tells us to expect persecution for His name's sake. We are called by His name and identify with Him when we walk as He walked. This means walking and talking in His word which is truth. He was crucified for telling the truth by the religious people of His time and we should expect no less in our time. 2. When we are affraid to tell the truth we are hiding the light and there is no glory when we walk in darkness as Jesus, by His word, is the light of the world. He cannot be glorified if He isn't heard. 3. Suffering, sadly, was absolutely a necessary part of God's plan for His perfect sacrifice. Christ could not have been perfected had He not suffered. 4. Nor can we. 5. As we renew our minds by the word and commit our spirits to it's truth, we are changed. As we go from glory to glory we become increasingly uncomfortable in this world. We will suffer at the hands of the devil, the world and our flesh. By our suffering we come to understand the perfect will of God which will bring us to maturation. When we suffer with Him, we will reign with Him as this is our perfection process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masika Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? Verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12, in that they all talk of weak commitment one may encounter in following Christ. We are to true followers of Christ, and we have to commit our live fully to God. We are to do anything possible to help others especially those who are doing wrong, we should not except that they will reform on their own. Left alone, they will go from bad to worse. If we the opportunity, we should correct them so as to bring them back to faith In Christ. Christ Jesus is our roll model in our Christian walk, we are to follow His steps and fight for the truth, especially to protect younger Christians Wise Christians decide that much worldly behavior is off-limits for them. Our refusal to conform to this world Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom.nabors Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Letting our light shine (vv. 13-16) relates to persecution (vv. 10-12) because when light shines into darkness, the evil in the darkness is exposed and / or the darkness does not understand it (John 1:5). The glory of God is effected when Christians shine their light and are persecuted for it because they show the supreme value they place on Jesus Christ. Since Jesus was persecuted, as we grow more Christlike we should expect to be persecuted too. (Matthew 10:24-25) Jesus had to suffer if He were to take our place and fulfill prophesy. (Mark 8:31;9:12;Luke 9:22;17:25;24:46). Maybe we have to suffer for the same reason Paul said he had to suffer in Colossians 1:24. Romans 12:2 tells us not to conform to the ways of the world. Non-conformists are often persecuted or at least rejected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PATJOE Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? When we are persecuted "for His name's sake", we can be assured that someone heard us - someone who knows we are right in standing for God, but doesn't want to admit it. If he does, he will lose face in the world in his own perception of self power. So he tries to stomp us out, so he can look as if he is right. When we have spoken out this boldly for Christ, that we are stomped on, we have lit our candle and placed it on the lamp stand for all to see. This also explains why glory and suffering go hand in hand. We make a mockery of God to light the lamp in His name, then hide it under a bowl (succumb to temptation of the world instead) It was Jesus' suffering so willingly for us, at His father's bidding that glorified God. Our suffering is also necessary -- we would rarely glorify (or even come to know) God if we lived on a bed of roses. This has everything to do with Romans 12:2 - we are not to be conformed to the world, so that we can continue to see and live the truth in the light of God. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
June Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Everyone who wants to live a Godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. When we suffer & endure persecution because of righteousness we will receive the promise of the kingdom & heavenly rewards. God gets no glory if we hide what we know. We suffer to give God the glory. Yes, Jesus' suffering was necessary to fulfill the Word of God. ( Prophesy). Ours is necessary to receive the blessings of God as He has already gone through all we will ever go through. We need to be more like Jesus rather than like the world so we can discern what God's will is for our lives. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loisb Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? 1. In verses 10-12 we should expect persecution since we said that we want to be like Christ and we should let our light shine as in verses 13-16 to let everyone know about Christ. We should gladly let them know what we went through, what God has done for us and how they should make a change in their lives to be Christ like. 2. Hiding our light probably upsets God after all He has done for us. Jesus shed His blood for us and then we are not willing to spread the word of his goodness. 3. We must go through suffering like Jesus did. We are no better than He is. 4. Yes, it was. 5. Yes, it is. 6. In order to see God, we must have a renewed mind. There should be a change in us. We should stop doing worldly things and live a renewed life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherylle Ladner Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? First we should expect presecution because Jesus was persecuted. Hiding our light will upset God and He will not like this. Why does glory and suffering go hand in hand? They just do--without suffering we cannot Glorify God. Yes, for that was his purpose to come and show us the suffering that we must go through. In Romans 12:2, it means that our witness must consist of both deeds and words that point to God the Father and bring glory to Him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa Rupert Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? By letting our "light shine" and by being the "salt of the earth" we are representing God and we are saying that we chose Him. This helps us to stand firm in our Faith. If we hide our light then we can not be true in our works and deeds. Our word has to shine through and be a flavoring to this world or it's meaning will be nothing but blind faith to others who or unaware. We will be persecuted, for Christ who is innocent was persecuted for his namesake. His followers even to this day are/were persecuted for their faith. Giving glory and honor to the Lord is essential to the Father in all we are and in all we do. Jesus' suffering and persecution gave us the chance for a relationship with our Father. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YBIC Posted January 24, 2008 Report Share Posted January 24, 2008 I believe v.13-16 relate to v.10-12 in that "salt of the earth" and "light of the world" describe the righteousness for which disciples are persecuted. If we indeed are the saltiness and the light in the darkness we can expect persecution to follow. Hiding our light can affect the glory of God, when those that observe our actions and deeds, do not see the light and therefore do not know that the glory for our actions belongs to the Lord. The fact that glory and suffering go hand in hand should not surprise us. First of all we are told to expect it in v.10-12. Secondly we should not be so surprised that Satan and his angels would not use any thing at their disposal to bring about suffering, if they believe it will take away the salt's flavor and extinguish the light. Absolutely, Jesus suffering was necessary as it allowed him to show perfect obedience and ultimately power over death. In a small way I believe our suffering for righteousness is also necessary as it allows us to take up the cross and bear witness to all around us. In Romans we are challenged to no longer conform to world, but live a transformed life of truth. That transformed life will be one of saltiness and adding light to the darkness. It will be a witness to those who do not know Jesus and it will bring persecution from those who do not want others to know Jesus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eudora Posted January 24, 2008 Report Share Posted January 24, 2008 How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? Having Yah Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lulu 1931 Posted January 24, 2008 Report Share Posted January 24, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? When we bring our witness of God and his beliefs so others see then we will be subjected to persecution.If we hide this we will not influence the other people to follow us. In order to bring out the Glory Of God to the world we will bring suffering to ourselves. Yes his suffering was necessary as will as ours. What happens to you in this world will be rewarding to you in heaven! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patricia A Posted January 24, 2008 Report Share Posted January 24, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) [/size] How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? At first glance, persecution seems contradictory to the way and purpose of God. Though we certainly do not wish it upon anyone, and though we sincerely hope we do not have to face it, we can understand in the broad overview that, because of the enmity of Satan, it is inevitable. And in reality, it is a disguised blessing, designed to complete our preparation for God's Kingdom. What great blessings there are for the people that give mercy to other people! Mercy will be given to them. What great blessings there are for the people that are pure in their thinking! They will be with God. What great blessings there are for the people that work to bring peace! God will call them his sons and daughters. What great blessings there are for the people that are treated badly for doing good! The kingdom of heaven belongs to them. "People will say bad things against you and hurt you. They will lie and say all kinds of evil things against you because you follow me. But when people do those things to you, know that God will bless you. Be happy and glad. You have a great reward waiting for you in heaven. People did those same bad things to the prophets that lived before you. "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its taste, then it cannot be made salty again. How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Now Jesus comes to the point: letting people see your good works rather than hiding them. And here is the reason for a Christian's witness: "that [men] may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Both salt and light are worthless if they are saltless or hidden from view. Jesus gives these parables right after a discussion of persecution. So we must be willing to bear our witness, even though it may bring persecution. Indeed, Paul says, "Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted" (2 Timothy 3:12). It comes with the territory. Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? Christ did not suffer because He deserved it. He endured suffering for our benefit: to help fulfill God's purpose for us. During His ministry Jesus Christ was ridiculed, despised and rejected by the religious leaders of His day. This was a large part of His personal afflictions before His crucifixion. His countrymen demanded His execution. In the end, even His disciples abandoned Him to suffer His fate alone. "He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief" (Isaiah 53:3). "He came to His own, and his own did not receive him" (John 1:11). He endured the full range of human suffering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjj Posted January 25, 2008 Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? As an artist the first thing I note is to show light you need to have the contrast of dark. God has always been in the free will mode and this is an important step. When you suffer - Reach out to be beyond your scope how can you glorify God. It becomes the process that is relevent. It is about trusting God , seeking him, getting closer in the trials. Jesus chose to suffer to identify with us. We suffer to identify with Him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s8nfighter Posted January 25, 2008 Report Share Posted January 25, 2008 Q4. (Matthew 5:13-15) How do verses 13-16 relate to verses 10-12? How does hiding our light affect the glory of God? Why must glory and suffering go hand in hand? Was Jesus' suffering necessary? Is ours? What does this have to do with Romans 12:2? The whole thing is about verse 16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. For many years now we have been taught that once saved always saved, and you don't need to do a thing to receive a reward in heaven. This is contrary to 12 through 15 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. 13 "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. 14 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. It is more than just being salty or well lit, it is about being used for the purpose of God's will, and pleasing God. In order to do that we must reach out to people not show off to people. There are enough show offs in the world already and we don't need to add to that. Because Jesus suffered for our sins in order to remove the need to be a slave to sin and the law we really do not suffer. Because of his resurection we now live with the Holy Spirit within us and if we obey the Holy Spirit we are no longer concerned with the things of this world which drive so many people to envy, anger, ****, deciet, cheating, stealing, etc. etc.. We no longer look to self gratification but God being gratified through us only if our light is not hidden in self seeking rewards of this life. But we are yoked with Christ and with His help the burden is light enough to be a help to others instead of just bragging about how God has been such a help to us. Paul puts what I have just said better in Galatians 6 14 As for me, God forbid that I should boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world died long ago, and the world's interest in me is also long dead. (nlt) Darrell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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