Walking With Romans: Become The Man God Intended You To Be

By Fred J Parry

Life is complicated. Today's definition of what it means to be a "real man" has become blurred and ambiguous. We are living in a world where men are inundated with conflicting messages about their masculinity and their role in the modern family. During times such as these, some men will turn to the Bibl

• Language: English
• Publisher: Carriage House Publishers
• Release date: Mar 12, 2022
• ISBN: 9781087926438

Fred J Parry

Fred Parry is a professional Christian writer dedicated to helping men understand how the Word of God can transform their lives while empowering them to develop more meaningful and fulfilling relationships with God, their families and other men. Parry is a former County Commissioner for Boone County, Mo and Publisher Emeritus for a group of magazines based in Columbia, Mo. Parry is a native of Liberty, Mo., and a 1986 graduate of the University of Missouri. He began his career working for newspapers in Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Pittsburgh, Penn. He is a former member of the advertising faculty at the Missouri School of Journalism. He worked as an advertising executive for the Gannett newspaper chain before he and his wife started their own publishing company in 1994. Fred has now spent more than 30 years in the publishing industry. He is the founding publisher of more than 15 magazines. In addition to his publishing career, Fred spent nearly 8 years as a daily radio talk show host and three years doing weekly commentaries for a local CBS Television affiliate. Parry has written and published four Christian men's devotionals, Walking With James: Becoming The Man God Intends You To Be, Walking With Ephesians and Walking With Matthew (Illumify Global Media) and Walking With Romans (Carriage House Publishers). Parry is the founder of the annual CoMo Christian Men's Conference which has attracted the nation's leading pastors (Tim Tebow, Matt Chandler, Craig Groeschel, Lee Strobel, Todd Wagner, Robert Lewis, etc) to Columbia, Mo. over the last eight years. He also leads a weekly Bible study for 30 businessmen on Friday mornings. Fred has been married to his wife, Melody for 28 years. Together, they have two grown sons, Max and Nick.

Book preview

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romans

Become the Man God Intends You to Be

WALKING

FRED J. PARRY

FROM THE AUTHOR OF THE WALKING WITH THE SAINTS SERIES

a 30-DAY DEVOTIONAL

AND BIBLE STUDY

WALKING WITH

ROMANS

Becoming The Man God Intends You To Be

Fred J. Parry

Walking With ROMANS

Copyright © 2022 by Fred Parry

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form

or by any means—whether electronic, digital, mechanical, or otherwise—

without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who

may quote brief passages in a review.

All Scriptures are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®,

NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by

permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

No part of this publication may be used, reproduced, stored, or transmitted

without the express written permission of Carriage House Publishers, 711 West Broadway, Columbia, Missouri 65203. Requests for information should be addressed to Fred Parry, 709 West Broadway, Columbia, Missouri 65203 or via email to [e-mail]

The views and opinions expressed in this book are those of the author and do

not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Carriage House Publishers.

Published by

Carriage House Publishers

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022902468

Paperback ISBN: 979-8-9857824-0-0

eBook ISBN:978-1-0879-2643-8

Cover Design by Debbie Lewis

Interior Design by Carolyn Preul

Copy Editing: Melody Parry

Theological Review: Patrick K. Miller

Printed in the United States of America

Acknowledgment:

Special thanks to my friend Patrick Miller for his expert and unabashed guidance during the writing and editing of Walking With Romans. Patrick graduated from Covenant Theological Seminary and oversees digital ministries at The Crossing in Columbia, Missouri. He has written for The Gospel Coalition and Christianity Today and is the co-author of the forthcoming book Truth Over Tribe. Patrick offers cultural commentary on the podcast Truth Over Tribe and teaches on Ten Minute Bible Talks. He is married to Emily, and they have two kids.

For my wife, Melody, who has endured a courageously fought battle with cancer over these past four years. By God’s grace and healing powers, she has demonstrated how victory is won through her steadfast faith in Jesus. She is an inspiration not only to me and our two sons but to everyone who has witnessed her journey through this chapter of her life. May every man who reads this be blessed by such a woman.

……..

"God is in the midst of her;

she shall not be moved; God will help

her when morning dawns."

(Psalm 46:5)

contents

Introduction 1

Overview of Paul’s Epistle to the Romans 5

The Apostle Paul 11

How to Use This Book 19

15 Rules of Engagement For Small Group Studies 23

week 1

Day 1: Bold In Faith 26

Day 2: The Ultimate Judge 28

Day 3: Rules vs. Relationships 30

Day 4: The Clean Slate 32

Day 5: No Room For Doubt 34

week 2

Day 1: Pushing Through 38

Day 2: Sacrificial Love 40

Day 3: The Two Adams 42

Day 4: Undeserved Grace 44

Day 5: A New Life 46

week 3

Day 1: A Slave To Sin 50

Day 2: Tug Of War 52

Day 3: Great Expectations 54

Day 4: An Eternal Perspective 56

Day 5: Earnest Expectations 58

week 4

Day 1: In Good Times and Bad 62

Day 2: God’s Got Your Back 64

Day 3: Blessed Assurance 66

Day 4: Humility 68

Day 5: The Key to Salvation 70

week 5

Day 1: Two Steps Away 74

Day 2: Too Good To Throw Away 76

Day 3: Renewing Our Minds 78

Day 4: Our True Self Worth 80

Day 5: All In For Christ 82

week 6

Day 1: The Art Of Forgiveness 88

Day 2: Respect Authority 88

Day 3: Living In The Light 90

Day 4: Breaking Down The Facade 92

Day 5: Finding Common Ground 94

Additional Resources 97

For more information on using this book for a group study,

please visit www.FredParry.Life for study materials,

handouts, and other useful information.

introduction

A REASON FOR HOPE

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.

(Romans 1:16 NIV)

In 57 AD, just three decades after Jesus’ death and resurrection, the Apostle Paul was preparing for a missionary journey to modern-day Spain. He hoped to stop over in Rome to raise financial assistance for his trip, but he had two significant challenges he would first have to overcome.

Because Paul did not plant the church in Rome, he did not know many people there. Unlike with the churches he planted in Ephesus, Corinth, and other cities, Paul would have to build trust and establish a relationship with the members of the Roman church.

At this time, the church in Rome was suffering from great internal division. Both the Gentiles and the Jews who had become Christian converts wanted to worship in separate communities. A divided church was not only problematic for Paul’s missionary purposes, but the internal strife would also make it more difficult to represent Jesus to the Roman Empire’s most cosmopolitan and influential city.

In many ways, the dynamics Paul faced in Rome are not unlike what we face today. As with Paul, the divisions we are currently experiencing seem insurmountable. We live in a divided society rife with conflict. There is extreme polarity in the political, cultural, and theological realms of our lives. The idea of reaching consensus, compromise, or just a basic level of tolerance for those with different beliefs seems all but impossible. Within our own society, there are deep divides in opinion about social equity, race relations, and even gender identity. We seem to have reached an impenetrable impasse.

At the time of the writing of this devotional, the world has suffered through nearly two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. This global health crisis has essentially put a gigantic magnifying glass on the lack of trust and civility that exists in our present culture. Emotions are high. Tensions have flared. Politicians wax poetically about the good old days when a terrorist attack on the United States brought together our then-divided country. These are desperate times, indeed.

I believe that hope can be found in Paul’s writings to the church in Rome. Once our differences are put into their proper context and approached with a sense of love and humility, the matters that currently divide us are minuscule in comparison to the matters that can unite us. Paul reminds us of the promise made to us by God has the divine power to bring us all together.

As Christians, we have a responsibility to represent Jesus in our communities. What would Jesus do in light of the current conflict we are