Romans 16 – in easy to understand language

Romans 16 – in easy to understand language

by | Feb 7, 2021 | Bible Paraphrased, Romans

Romans 16

Before I close the book of Romans, I wanted to make special mention to people who have been a great help to me as I share the Gospel with the world.  I ask that you please support and encourage these people.

Many risked their lives for me.  Some were in prison with me.  Many have suffered hardship and trial and endured successfully.  They work so hard together with me.

One last time, I want to ask you to be careful about people that try to cause dis-harmony and like to argue with each other.  Keep away from people like this.  They are not serving God but only serving themselves. 

God will soon crush Satan under your feet.

All praise and glory be to God, that through Jesus Christ has reached out to all nations with the Good News – that by believing in Jesus, they will be saved.

Romans 15 – in easy to understand language

Romans 15 – in easy to understand language

by | Feb 7, 2021 | Bible Paraphrased, Romans

Romans 15

If you are a person who has strong faith, be humble.  Be patient with other people who may not have a strong faith.

Our primary goal should be to encourage others and help them grow, not to just live life to please ourselves.

Even Jesus allowed Himself to be insulted and tortured on our behalf, rather than pleasing Himself.

Put others first, just as Jesus did.

The Bible was written to teach us and show us how to live.  The Scriptures help us to endure hard times and bring us encouragement so that we can have hope.

I pray that God will speak through His Word, to give us the same endurance, encouragement and attitude that Jesus had, so that with unity of mind and heart we can glorify both our heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, our Savior.

Accept each other just as Jesus accepted us.

We can rejoice and praise God, that His Word and the plan of Salvation is for all people on earth – people from every nation and every language, so that we can all praise God together.

As each one of us puts our trust in Jesus, He gives us joy, peace and hope.  He sends the Holy Spirit to live in our hearts and bring us closer to God.

As each of us grows in our knowledge and understanding about God, He enables us to teach others about Him.

Remember, no nation is better than any other nation.  We are all God’s children, loved equally by Him.

We are called to love and support each other, not just to share our spiritual knowledge but also sharing financially with people who need it. 

I, Paul, have written this letter to you.  Please pray for me to be kept safe as I continue to minister the Gospel to the world. 

I hope I will be able to see you soon.

May God’s peace be with you all.

Romans 14 – in easy to understand language

Romans 14 – in easy to understand language

by | Feb 7, 2021 | Bible Paraphrased, Romans

Romans 14

Don’t argue with other believers about beliefs you may disagree about.  This is not God’s will.

Some people eat meat, others are vegetarians.  Though people may feel passionately about their beliefs and their choices, these are not worth arguing about. 

Accept each other completely, whether you agree with each other or not. 

One person thinks that one day of the week of more sacred than another day.  Other people might believe that every day is the same. 

Don’t argue over these things. Each person is free to choose what to believe in.  It is a matter just between them and God.

Why do you judge other believers or why do you treat them badly because their beliefs are different to yours?  We will all stand before God when He judges the world.

Each of us is only responsible for ourselves before God.

I say it again, stop judging others.  You are not the judge.  God is.

Nothing is actually clean or unclean in itself.  The important thing is that each person lives in accordance with their own conscience. 

If we believe one type of food is unclean, but eat it anyway, we are not being true to our own conscience.

If you believe that all foods are clean, but you are eating with a believer that believes certain foods are unclean, then don’t cause strife, by eating this food in front of them.  If we do, we are not acting in love. 

The loving way is to live is to respect other people’s beliefs. 

Don’t argue with them and don’t go out of your way to do what they believe is wrong.

The really important things about the Kingdom of God are not things like what is right to eat or whether one day is more special than others.  The true Kingdom of God is about peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

We need to make every effort to live in peace and harmony with others and to encourage them.

Whatever you believe – keep just between you and God.

Romans 13 – in easy to understand language

Romans 13 – in easy to understand language

by | Feb 7, 2021 | Bible Paraphrased, Romans

Romans 13

While we don’t always agree with the Government’s policies or actions, we do need to obey and respect them.  God has established these governments to help maintain law and order on the earth.

Don’t rebel or disobey them or you will get into trouble.  Live in peaceful obedience to them.

We may resent paying taxes to the government, but God asks us to pay taxes that are due, in order to pay for the government staff’s salaries and their work in the community.  Even beyond money though, we need to give our honor and respect to the government.

If you want to truly fulfil the law, then love other people fully and completely. 
Love fulfils the law.

The day when Jesus comes back to take us to heaven is coming very soon.  We are closer to that day now than when we first believed in Jesus.

Now is the time to get rid of sinful behavior – getting drunk, partying excessively, sexual promiscuity, fighting and jealousy.  Leave these things behind and pursue a life fully devoted to God.

Romans 12 – in easy to understand language

Romans 12 – in easy to understand language

by | Feb 7, 2021 | Bible Paraphrased, Romans

Romans 12

Before Jesus came to the earth and died for our sins, God’s people had to offer an animal as a sacrifice, to show that they were sorry for their sins. 

When Jesus came to the earth, He died for our sins once and for all and no more sacrifices had to be made.

Instead, God asks us to give him our hearts and lives.  He calls this “a living sacrifice”.

Don’t live the same way that most of the world lives – selfishly seeking money, prestige and popularity.

Allow God to transform your life by renewing your mind.  The word ‘transform’ means to change completely, just like when a caterpillar turns into a butterfly.

God changes you to become the person He created you to be.

What goes on in your mind and thoughts is of crucial importance.  Your thoughts determine your actions.  Your actions determine your habits.  Your habits determine the whole course of your life.

When you give your mind to God, He teaches you to think like He does.

Don’t think of yourself as more important than other people.  God loves everyone equally.

God has given each one of us a special gift.  Each gift that God has given is needed.  No one gift is more important than another one.  It is similar to all the parts of a body.  The parts are so different, yet all parts are needed.

Some examples of the gifts God gives are teaching, encouraging, leading, serving, showing mercy and giving to others.

When you go through hard times, wait patiently for God to work on your behalf.  Put your hope in Him and He will keep you filled with His joy.  Never stop praying and believing.

Welcome people into your homes, showing them hospitality and being generous toward them.

Be aware of how other people are feeling.  If someone is happy, be happy with them.  If someone is sad, be sad with them.

Choose to live at peace with everyone as far as it is possible.  Others may not be peaceful towards you, but you can still choose to be peaceful towards them.

Even if you have been wronged by someone, don’t try to take revenge – leave this in God’s hands.  He will avenge you.

Be kind and generous to people we like as well as people we don’t like, or who don’t like us.  When you are kind to your enemies, they will be completely mystified.

Don’t let evil overcome you.  Instead, overcome evil by doing good.

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Romans 11 – in easy to understand language

Romans 11 – in easy to understand language

by | Feb 7, 2021 | Bible Paraphrased, Romans

Romans 11

Even when we turn our backs on God, He never turns His back on us.

He chose us.

Sometimes, as a believer, you feel alone; like you are the only one who is true to God.

The prophet Elijah felt this way – but God told him that He had 7,000 faithful believers who had not turned their backs on God.

You are not alone.

God has other believers out there, ready for you to join together with your hearts and minds, in worship of our God.

We have been chosen by God’s mercy and grace to be saved and reconciled to Him. 

“Grace” is God’s gift to us.  We cannot ‘work’ for it.  We do not need to prove our faith by ‘good works’ in order to be right with God.  “Grace” is God’s gift to us.

When we are joined to God through Jesus Christ, it is like Jesus is an olive tree and we who believe in Him, are branches on that tree.

But if, like many of the Israelites, we do not believe in Jesus, by our own choices, we have let go of the olive tree. 

As people come to believe in Jesus, they are grafted into the tree.  Even when people have lived, wild, selfish lives, when they choose Jesus, their old life no longer matters.  They are grafted into the olive tree – and there, they gain strength and hope and the salvation of their souls.

It simply comes down to ‘belief’.  Do you believe Jesus died for your sins and came to save you?

If you do believe, you are joined with God, grafted into the olive tree.  If you don’t believe, you are not joined to the olive tree.

And even those people who have never believed before, or who stopped believing and therefore were no longer connected to the olive tree, at any moment, God is there…waiting for them to believe and come back to Him and be grafted into the tree again.

God never takes away His gift of life, grace and forgiveness that He has freely given us.  God does not change His mind.  He loves us – always and forever.

Praise and Glory be to His Name.

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Romans 10 – in easy to understand language

Romans 10 – in easy to understand language

by | Feb 6, 2021 | Bible Paraphrased, Romans

Romans 10

When Jesus died on the Cross, He died for the sin of the whole world.

Up until that time, people were struggling to keep the Law in their own strength –
struggling and failing.

By Jesus dying in our place and being raised to life again, He completely fulfilled the
law’s requirements – once and for all.

For the Israelites, who had been keeping the law for generations, it was very hard for them
to accept that they no longer needed to do this.

Jesus was enough. 

Because of Jesus, our relationship with God has been completely restored.

And God has made it so easy to become right with Him.  We don’t have to go searching near or far.  We don’t have to do anything – except say ‘I believe in You Jesus, please forgive my sins and save me’.

God does not reject anyone who gives their life to Jesus.  Every one of them will be saved.This is “The Good News”.

We are called to tell people about this “Good News” and that they too can be saved by calling on the name of Jesus.

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Romans 9 – in easy to understand language

Romans 9 – in easy to understand language

by | Feb 5, 2021 | Bible Paraphrased, Romans

Romans 9

Paul speaking.

I feel very sad because the people of my own race, the Jewish people, who are called the Israelites, were God’s chosen people, yet they rejected Jesus as the Messiah.

God chose them to reveal His miracles, His Law and the way He wanted to be worshipped’.

And Jesus was a direct descendant of the Israelites.  He was one of them.

Yet, instead of recognising Jesus as the long awaited Messiah, they rejected Him and killed Him on the Cross.

Then they continued on, blindly, still trying to become right with God through their own works and by keeping the Law.

While the people who were not Israelites, but who loved and believed in Jesus as the Messiah and started living by faith in Him, receive the incredible blessings that were originally intended for the Israelites.

So now, even though the Israelites are literally descendants of Abraham, they are no longer considered his ‘true’ children when they choose not to put their faith in Jesus.

The people who believe in Jesus and put their faith in them – they have become the ‘true’ children of Abraham.

To help understand this a bit more, think of the situation where a child has been adopted by loving parents.  Although they are not the child’s biological parents, they become the ‘true’ parents of the child because they have loved and adopted the child as their own.

Whereas, if that family had a biological child who grew up and chose to rebel against them, the child is effectively rejecting them as parents and it is as if he was no longer their child.

While the parents still love him, he does not love them.

At any time, he is welcome to come home and accept his parents love again, but the parents do not force him.  The rebellious child is free to make their own choices.

God adopts us as His children and that we are now considered heirs with Jesus Christ and God is our Father.

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Romans 8 – in easy to understand language

Romans 8 – in easy to understand language

by | Feb 5, 2021 | Bible Paraphrased, Bible Simply Understood, Devotional, Faith Blog, Romans, Shop

Romans 8

Before Jesus came to the earth, we didn’t have any hope.  We were lost in our sins.  When we give our life to Jesus, our sins are forgiven.  God does not condemn us.  He loves us.

Ever since God gave His law to Moses, we have been trying to obey that law – trying and failing. 

Our sinful, human bodies kept doing what was wrong. 

This is why we could never be saved by following the law – we simply could not follow it.  Our fleshly impulses and desires always got in the way.

But when Jesus came to the earth, He was tempted to sin just like we are, but He overcame temptation and did not sin – not even once.  And because He did not sin, Jesus fulfilled the law on our behalf and this set us free from it.

Instead of having a written law, God wrote the law on our hearts. 

When we give our life to Jesus, God fills us with the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit reminds us of the law that God has put in our hearts and He also gives us the strength to withstand temptation.

While we live on this earth, we still struggle against sin, but now we have help, because the Spirit of Jesus has come into our hearts and he leads and guides us.

But we are not perfect.  We will not be made perfect until Jesus comes and takes us to Heaven.

At that time, He will take away our old, sinful bodies and give us brand new bodies and a brand new nature – one that will never sin again.  We will be free at last.  We patiently wait for that time.

In the mean time, we still live in a sinful body and this means that we still do sin. 

But now, all we have to do is ask God to forgive our sin in the Name of Jesus, and we are instantly and completely forgiven.  In God’s eyes, it is as if we never sinned.

As we walk with Jesus every day and follow the leading of the Spirit, we become more like Him. 

When we love God, we will still experience hard times because we live on this sinful earth, but God promises to take every hard situation and bring good out of it.  What a comfort this is. 

When you have God on your side, no-one can successfully come against you.  They might try, but they won’t succeed. 

God does not condemn us.  He loves us and He sent Jesus to save us.  Now Jesus is in Heaven, working continually on our behalf.

There is nothing at all – not any amount of trouble or hardship – that can separate us from God’s love.