Unashamed Reading Plan – W2D1
Check out all the previous Unashamed readings here.
Unashamed Reading Plan | Week 2 | Day 1
Prayer
As you come to spend time with Jesus, calm your mind and body until you feel fully present. Ask Him to teach you more about Himself today.
Bible Reading: Romans 1:18-20
Read these verses three times slowly.
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
Reflection & Questions
One of the striking things about the Bible, and the gospel in particular, is how well it diagnoses what is wrong with the world. This shouldn’t be surprising, since it is the truth, but it is unique among the various religions. This week we will be looking at what is wrong with the world through Romans 1 and a couple of other Bible passages.
Our verses today start with the phrase “The wrath of God is being revealed.” There’s a lot of ideas people have about what that looks like, but what it actually looks like might well surprise you. We will see that tomorrow. But what is clear, that God is not happy with how the world he has created and the “godlessness and wickedness of people,” and He is taking action.
And what is also clear is that people bear responsibility for that. Paul says, “people are without excuse.” There’s no one that can say “I didn’t know.” Twice Paul says God made the truth “plain to them.” Through creation and through their conscience, if people are humble enough to pause and willing to listen, they will see God has made Himself known. It is a hard truth, but a truth all the same: people are without excuse.
- How do these verses answer the question: “What about the people who have never heard about God?”
- What do these verses tell us about the character of God? Why is that good news?
Prayer
Pray in response to today’s reading.
Worship Song
You might use this song today to worship Jesus today:
Bible Reading: Romans 1:18-20
Read these verses three times slowly.
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
Reflection & Questions
The Bible is a pretty amazing book – it is full of the words from God that He wants us to hear. There are wonderful true stories of the men and women that lived a long time ago, but there are also stories that tell of the wickedness of the people that lived during that time too. Not only does the Bible tell us what was wrong back then, but even now in the world we live in today! This week we are going to spend some time looking at what is wrong with the world while we continue to read through Romans 1 and some other Bible verses as well.
Today’s verses start with the words: “The wrath of God is being revealed.” Do you know what wrath is? The dictionary defines it as “extreme anger.” Can you imagine God being extremely angry? There’s a lot of ideas that people have about what that looks like, but what it actually looks like might surprise you. We will see that tomorrow. But what is clear is that God is NOT happy with the and the “godlessness and wickedness of people,” in the world and He is taking action.
And the other part of this scripture shows that people are responsible for what is wrong with the world by ignoring God. You see, there are two ways that God shows us Himself so that no one can deny He is real. One way is in creation, the world around us and how nature all works together. It is so amazing and incredible that it could only be created by an all-powerful God like ours. The other way that God reveals Himself to us is through our conscience, the part inside us that tells us right from wrong. Sometimes we don’t look or listen to see God all around us and inside of us, but He is there! So no one has an excuse not to believe in God!
- What are some things in nature that make you think that God is just amazing because of what He created?
Pray
Take a minute to thank God for showing Himself in nature and also for being in your heart so that you know He is real.
Check out more Bible Reading Plans here.
Questions?
Ed Applegate