GPS Guide – May 10, 2019
FORGIVENESS AND HOPE
Read: Romans 8:37-39
“37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. ” (NIV Romans 8:37-39)
Study: The truth of Romans 8:38-39 is that nothing can separate us from God’s love. When he wrote that, the apostle Paul knew all about “trouble, or distress, or harassment, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword” (verse 35). Those are the parts of life that often shake our faith in God’s love. But Paul said God allows us to face them, but never leaves us while we face them. The compound Greek word translated “sweeping victory” was hupernikaō. “Huper” was a superlative, the origin of the English “hyper.” And the “nik” in the middle of the word came from the Greek word for “victory,” a word we know from shoes and athletic gear—NIKE! Paul asked two compelling questions: “If God is for us, who is against us?” and “Who will separate us from Christ’s love?” Both were phrased in a way that assumed the answer was “Nobody and nothing!” In what ways does that confidence shape your daily life for the better? What can help you, even on the hardest of days, to open your heart to the sweeping victory God offers you?
Prayer: All powerful God, whatever comes my way, hold me close in the shelter of your love. Thank you that, through you, I can win a sweeping victory in “all these things.” Amen.