Contemplative Bible Reading

Romans 3:21-22 (New Living Translation)

21 But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. 22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.

Paul is writing to Christians in Rome. The Christians were a mixed group of Jews who chose to follow Jesus as the Son of God and Gentiles who were introduced to Jesus also followed Jesus as the Son of God.

There is now a way to be right with God without keeping a law. To help myself understand this “law,” I think of work, salary, and buying a ticket. If I work hard enough, long enough, and just right enough, I can earn enough money to buy a ticket to heaven. I just keep working and working and working just right enough. The trouble was and is, no matter how much and hard and right I work, no matter how much money I save, I can’t afford the ticket to heaven.

Rats.

Okay, so now what? We need something different. Here is it: faith in Jesus Christ. Believe. No matter who we are, where we came from, who we know, what we do for a living, and all that other stuff we use to divide people. Faith in Jesus Christ.

Now that is pretty simple. It isn’t easy, but it is pretty simple. Somehow we have made it complicated and … well just plain complicated.

Going to heaven? Oh, that. Faith in Jesus Christ makes us right with God. We can be with God now. That’s heaven, and that is a topic for another day.