NOVEMBER 14 Nothing Shall Separate You from the Love of God For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. — Rom 8:38,39 When the apostle Paul wrote the above verses, he had been facing grueling times because he was a Christian. He had suffered rejection from friends, persecution from the government, and had spent many months of his life in an isolated prison cell. But regardless of what people or the circumstances of life did to him, Paul had discovered a vital truth: Nothing that occurs in this life has the power to separate a believer from the love of God. That is why Paul said, “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom 8:38,39). Notice that Paul said, “For I am persuaded....” The word “persuaded” is the Greek word peitho. It means to be persuaded, to be convinced, or to be swayed from one opinion to the opinion held by another. This word describes a person who has been coaxed from a particular conviction to embrace a different one. Furthermore, the Greek tense implies that this was a persuasion that had occurred to Paul in the past but is still so strong that it continues to be his conviction in the present. He was persuaded, and he continues to be persuaded. It could therefore be translated, “For I have been persuaded, and I remain convinced....” It is a fact that many believers feel overwhelmed by the situations they face in life. In fact, they often feel so confused and weighed down that they wonder if God is still near to them. This is precisely why Paul adds that even life cannot separate a believer from the love of Jesus Christ. However, even in the deepest, darkest, most gruesome prison cell, Paul tangibly felt and personally experienced the love of God. In addition to these points Paul has already mentioned, he uses the phrase “things present” to let us know that nothing that currently exists is able to prevent a person from experiencing Gods love. The words “things present” are derived from the Greek word enistemi, a compound of the words en and histemi. The word en means in, and the word histemi means to stand. Thus, when these two words are joined to form the word enistemi, the new word describes something that is presently standing in its place. In this case, it means nothing presently existing or nothing that currently stands is sufficient to separate a believer from the all-powerful presence of Gods love. But Paul doesnt stop with the things that presently exist. He goes on to say that “things to come” are also not able to separate a believer from the love of God. The Greek word used here is from the word mello, and it describes events that will occur in the future. These are things that havent happened yet, but will take place in the days and years to come. Paul has already said that nothing currently existing is strong enough to separate a believer from the love of God. Now he boldly declares that nothing will ever happen in the future that will contain enough power to hinder a believer from knowing and experiencing Gods love. In light of the meanings of these Greek words in Rom 8:38 and 39, an interpretive translation of this verse could read: “I have been persuaded, and I remain convinced, that neither death, nor the complications that often arise in life, nor powerful angelic beings, nor even an entire group of high-ranking demonic spirits, nor anything that currently exists, nor anything that could potentially happen in the future, nor any political power, nor anything in the highest heavens, nor anything that resides in the deepest depths, nor anything that has ever been created is capable of disconnecting us from the love of God or of putting any distance between us and the love of God, which is in Jesus Christ our Lord.” Never forget this message Paul proclaimed. Nothing in this world has enough power to disconnect you from the love of God. No angel, no demon, no government, no creature — and no mistake of your own making — will ever be capable of cutting you off from the love of God. Gods love is greater than man will ever be able to comprehend. It reaches to the highest mountain, and it penetrates to the lowest parts of the earth. Regardless of what you are facing in your life today, Gods love is with you — and nothing will ever be able to disconnect you from this awesome, powerful, all-consuming love!
Posted on: Fri, 14 Nov 2014 14:27:56 +0000
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