series: Romans

title: 07 The Exchange

teacher: Jacob Bender

date: March 3, 2019

scriptures: Romans 1:28-32, 2:1-5, Romans 1:18, Isaiah 61:1-4, Luke 4:18-22, Deuteronomy 6:4, Genesis 1

The Hebrew concept of “echad”(unity in the midst of diversity) is an amazing image that we get for God, marriage, and even the church. It is the glue that is holding everything together.

When we begin to view the world the through a lens that says" “what happens to one affects many” or even “what happens to one affects me personally” we are much more apt to work for justice in our communities and on behalf of others.

The list that Paul lays out in Romans 28-31 all fall into this category. The category of injustice. The category of “if these things continue, the whole world will not be able to go on.”

When you understand echad, you stop pretending like you are the one who determines what another person is worth, because we all know their value:

Jesus showed us how valuable each and every human being is, when He paid for us with His life.

The book we referenced in this teaching is out of print and very hard to find, but is listed here as a reference.