Romans 5:6-11 New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

6 At just the right time Christ died for ungodly people. He died for us when we had no power of our own. 7 It is unusual for anyone to die for a godly person. Maybe someone would be willing to die for a good person. 8 But here is how God has shown his love for us. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

9 The blood of Christ has made us right with God. So we are even more sure that Jesus will save us from God’s anger. 10 Once we were God’s enemies. But we have been brought back to him because his Son has died for us. Now that God has brought us back, we are even more secure. We know that we will be saved because Christ lives. 11 And that is not all. We are full of joy in God because of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of him, God has brought us back to himself.

For Everyone:

When we were kids, we would often hear tales of amazing feats told by our friends. “I jumped my bike over the ditch down the street.” “I did a 360 Tomohawk dunk like Jordan on my rim back home.” “I beat all of Super Mario Bros. in 10 minutes.” The inevitable response to these outlandish tales was, “Prove it.” To which there would be a litany of excuses. “My bike has a flat.” “I sprained my ankle.” “I’m grounded from video games.” I think someone did actually beat Super Mario Bros. in ten minutes, but we didn’t believe it until we saw it!

Paul spends the opening chapters of Romans reminding us of God’s wrath, judgement, and righteousness. There was no hope for humanity to ever justify themselves in the eyes of God. But God loved us. “Prove it,” you might say. Proving it takes a demonstration. A demonstration of the skill, the feat, or in this case - a grand demonstration of love. God sent His one and only son to die for our sins. Even though God’s people fell short of his expectations again and again, he sent Jesus. Even though, we all have sinned and fallen short of His glory (Romans 3:23), God sacrificed His son. Even though the wage we earn for sin is death (Romans 6:23), God allowed Jesus to die for us, so that we may have life!

God loves us. He proved it through his actions. It is because of this proof that we can celebrate (v. 11). It is because of this proof that we can face the uncertain days of COVID-19 with confidence. It is because of this proof that even when we feel alone, neglected, and unloved by those around us, we can remember that God loves us. He proved it!

Wonder:

How do we know that someone loves us?

Is it more important to say you love someone or to show it with our actions?

Do we ever wonder if God loves us?

How does God show His love for us?

How might you show love to those in your household during this COVID-19 pandemic?

Bless:

Dear God, thank you for proving your love for us. Help us to not only accept your free gift of salvation, but to realize we are loved by you. May that realization lead us to show our love for others.

Amen

Watch Treehouse Club Ep. 6 featuring Romans 5:8.