The Eternal Love Story Podcast

If you’ve ever wondered what God is doing in your life, why you are having to go through such hard and disturbing things, this is the answer. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Romans 8:18-25 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

The new Day 34, Romans 8:13-17 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

One leads to life, the other to death. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

In this podcast, we show the gospel method of putting to death the misdeeds of the body, by the Spirit. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

What the Son and the Spirit do in our lives. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

A quick note before we begin: As I mentioned yesterday, Jody and I re-recorded fresh episodes for Days 19 and 20 after an earlier numbering mix-up. Yesterday we sent out Day 19, and today Day 20 is here. Thanks again for your patience.Day 20: Wages or GiftImagine two envelopes on a table. One is a paycheck, every cent earned, owed to you, fair to the last penny, and it’s all the work will ever give. The other is a gift, your name on the front in someone else’s hand, holding something you did nothing to deserve and could never have bought.In today’s episode, Jody and I work through Romans 6:19-23, where Paul lays those two envelopes side by side and asks a question worth considering: what has your sin actually paid you, and what has God offered instead? Sin advertises the pleasure and hides the bill. God hands you a gift you could never earn. By the end of the chapter Paul brings it all to one stunning line, and it turns on the difference between wages and a gift.Grab your Bible, settle in, and listen along with Jody and me. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

A quick note before we begin: Because of a numbering mix-up earlier in the series, Jody and I went back and recorded fresh episodes for Days 19 and 20 in our study of the book “40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom: How To Grow Into Christ-Likeness”. Today we’re sending out Day 19, and tomorrow Day 20 will follow. Day 19: The Freedom of a Good MasterAsk most people what freedom means and they’ll tell you it’s having no one to answer to, no rules, no master, no strings. But here’s the strange thing: that kind of freedom has never once existed, and chasing it has left more people trapped than almost anything else.In today’s episode, we dig into Romans 6:15-18, where Paul says something that sounds upside down at first. Real freedom isn’t the absence of a master. It’s belonging to the right one. We were all serving something long before we ever noticed the chains, and the gospel doesn’t just break the old ones. It hands us to a Master so good that being owned by Him turns out to be the freedom we were after all along.Grab your Bible, settle in, and listen along with Jody and me. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

This is the new Day 18 that matches with the Day 18 of the book. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

This is the new updated Day 17 that is now accurate with the numbering of the book. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Today is the day. Day 40. The final lesson of this journey through Romans 6, 7, and 8 is ready, and it closes with a passage that distills everything into a single, lifelong instruction. We move from Paul to the writer of Hebrews, from doctrine to the starting line of the race ahead, and from everything we have learned to the One all of it has been pointing toward. Today’s study guide also includes a few questions just for you, giving you the chance to reflect on the journey, share what God has done, and give us feedback. Jody and I are genuinely looking forward to reading every word you write today.The Day 40 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/39esYpRwPtbeTMyz6Please take your time today.Here is that link once more: https://forms.gle/39esYpRwPtbeTMyz6Thank you for running this race with us. It has been a privilege beyond words.Mike and Jody This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 39 is ready, and today we arrive at the summit of Romans 8. Paul has spent thirty-nine verses building a case, and now he brings it all together in a series of questions that every honest believer has asked at one time or another. Does God really love me? Will He come through for me? Can anything undo what He has done for me? Today’s lesson answers every one of those questions by pointing to a single place: the cross. What happened there settles every doubt, silences every accusation, and secures every believer forever.This is the second to last day of our 40-day journey, and tomorrow’s final lesson is one you will not want to miss. But today, give this passage everything you have.The Day 39 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/QW2Z42uSTifmA5Lq5Read the passage slowly before you begin the questions. This is not a day to rush.As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive. And here is that link once more: https://forms.gle/QW2Z42uSTifmA5Lq5Jody and I are grateful beyond words for each of you who has made this journey with us.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 38 is ready, and today’s lesson takes one of the most familiar verses in Scripture and opens it up in a way that may genuinely surprise you. Romans 8:28 is often quoted as comfort in hard times, and rightly so. But have you ever stopped to ask what Paul actually means by “good?” Today’s lesson answers that question, and the answer changes how you interpret suffering, failure, loss, and even the consequences of your own mistakes and sins. Joseph said it plainly after everything his brothers put him through: “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good.” Today you will see why that statement is not just biography. It is your story too.If you are new here, welcome. We are in the final two days of our 40-day journey through Romans 6, 7, and 8. We will be offering this study again and would love for you to join us from the beginning. All previous lessons are available in the archive.The Day 38 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/2f4BkXdVhdLZXuPw7Here is that link once more when you are ready: https://forms.gle/2f4BkXdVhdLZXuPw7Jody and I are grateful for every one of you pressing forward with us to the end.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 37 is ready. Have you ever found yourself in a situation so overwhelming that you could not form a coherent prayer? You knew you needed God. You knew you should pray. But the words would not come. Romans 8:26-27 speaks directly into that moment, and what Paul reveals there has the power to change the way you approach prayer for the rest of your life. Today’s lesson uncovers a staggering reality about what is happening on your behalf right now, at this very moment, whether you are praying well or barely managing a whisper.If you are new here, welcome. We are in the final three days of our 40-day journey through Romans 6, 7, and 8. We will be offering this study again and would love for you to join us from the beginning next time. All previous lessons are available in the archive.The Day 37 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/BgaHqXqzjcU6broH7As usual, I really look forward to getting your answers. I learn a lot from you in them.Here is that link once more: https://forms.gle/BgaHqXqzjcU6broH7Jody and I are grateful for every one of you!Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 36 is ready, and today’s lesson gives every honest believer something they may not have known they needed: permission. Permission to acknowledge the ache of living in a broken world without concluding that something has gone spiritually wrong. Romans 8:18-25 shows us that Paul himself carried this inner weight, and that the Spirit dwelling in him did not remove it. What the Spirit gave him instead was perspective, hope, and the confident assurance that what God has promised through Jesus Christ will absolutely be delivered.If you are new to this Substack, welcome. We are in the final stretch of a 40-day journey through Romans 6, 7, and 8, and there are just four days remaining. We will be offering this study again in the future, and we would love for you to join us from the very beginning next time. In the meantime, all previous lessons are available in the archive.The Day 36 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/RXSJyqBaVU2AjYCx5As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/RXSJyqBaVU2AjYCx5Jody and I are grateful for every one of you, new and longtime alike.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 35 is ready, and today’s lesson is among the most tender and gospel-rich we have covered in this entire study. Romans 8:14-17 takes us into territory that many believers know about in their heads but might not have fully inhabited in their hearts. Paul draws a sharp contrast between two ways of living in God’s house, one marked by performance and fear, the other by intimacy and security. And then he points us to something in the gospel that changes everything: the very word we are given to cry out to God, Abba, Father, is the word Jesus surrendered at the cross so that we could have it forever.If you are new to this Substack, welcome. We are currently on Day 35 of a 40-day journey through Romans 6, 7, and 8. We will be wrapping up in just a few days, and we plan to run this study again in the future. We would love for you to be part of it from the beginning next time. In the meantime, all previous lessons are available in the archive if you would like to catch up or simply explore what we have been studying together.The Day 35 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/L15PpeyUS9k2GAzW9And here is that link once more for those ready to begin: https://forms.gle/L15PpeyUS9k2GAzW9Jody and I are grateful for each one of you on this journey with us.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 34 is ready, and today’s lesson may be the most practically confrontational we have covered in all of Romans 8. Paul has established that the Spirit lives in you and resurrection power is at work within you. Now he draws the conclusion that changes everything about how you engage with sin: you do not owe it anything. Not a moment of your time. Not a response to its demands. Not a compromise with its insistence. And more than that, Paul shows us that the goal is never to simply knock sin back. The goal is to put it to death entirely, by the Spirit’s power, following the model of the cross itself.The Day 34 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/R4QvRYL3ZYVPoeU4AThe questions today follow Romans 8:12-13 carefully and build toward the gospel heart of the lesson, that everything Christ endured on the cross, He endured for you, and that changes both the motivation and the method for dealing with sin.As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/R4QvRYL3ZYVPoeU4AJody and I are grateful for each of you pressing forward with us.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

You cannot see electricity. You cannot touch it or hold it. But flip a light switch and you know instantly whether power is flowing through the wires. The room either floods with light or it stays dark. No ambiguity. No guessing.The Holy Spirit works the same way. Romans 8:9-11 gives us specific, biblical ways to look for the evidence, and then closes with something that should stop every believer in their tracks: the Spirit living in you right now is the same Spirit who raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Not a similar spirit. Not a lesser version. The same one.Today’s study guide is here: https://forms.gle/nN4gsmTT995bFphV6The questions today follow the passage carefully and build toward that stunning truth. Give them the attention they deserve.If you are catching up, all previous lessons are in the archive. And here is the link one more time:https://forms.gle/nN4gsmTT995bFphV6Jody and I are thankful for each of you.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 32 is ready, and today’s lesson is among the most practically useful we have covered in this entire study. Romans 8:5-8 gets down to something very specific: your thought life. Where your mind habitually goes shapes everything about how you experience your days, your relationships, your struggles, and your relationship with God. Paul is not speaking in abstractions here. He is describing something you can observe in yourself today, right now, by paying attention to where your mind naturally drifts when nothing is demanding your attention. Today’s lesson names what that reveals and shows you what to do about it.The Day 32 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/wpSSsPvpUSpybAzD8Take your time with each question today, particularly the final one, which asks you to think concretely about what this passage looks like in the ordinary moments of your daily life.As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/wpSSsPvpUSpybAzD8Jody and I are grateful you are pressing in with us. Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 31 is ready, and today we step into new territory. Romans 8 has arrived, and with it a shift that changes everything about how you understand your daily walk with God. We have spent considerable time in Romans 7 learning what the law reveals, what sin exploits, and what the flesh cannot produce. Today Paul turns the corner and shows us what God did in response to all of that, and the answer is not a better system or a more demanding standard. It is a Person, a sacrifice, and a power that works from the inside out. Today’s study guide follows the flow of Romans 8:1-4 carefully.The Day 31 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/zbSWtsg1pnJQrAKJ9As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/zbSWtsg1pnJQrAKJ9Jody and I are grateful you are pressing into this with us. The gospel truth, and its application, only gets richer from here.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 30 is ready, and today we stand at one of the most significant turning points in Paul’s entire letter to the Romans. We have traveled through some of the most searching territory in all of Scripture, and today the landscape changes. Paul has brought us through the inner conflict, the desperate cry, the rescue, and the remaining tension of unredeemed flesh. And now, with one opening word of Romans 8, everything changes. Today’s lesson looks back at where we have been and forward at where we are going, and the study guide reflects that two-part movement in a format you have not seen before in this study.The Day 30 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/xp3rH2zdo8M4Lbj19Take your time with both sections today. The looking back questions are worth thinking about carefully, and the looking forward questions open up ground that will carry you through everything that remains in this journey.As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/xp3rH2zdo8M4Lbj19Jody and I are grateful you are in this with us. Thirty days in, and the richest truth is just ahead.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 29 is ready, and today’s lesson answers a question that troubles a great many sincere believers. Paul has just shouted his great celebration, “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!” and then in the very next breath adds something that stops most readers in their tracks. He describes himself as simultaneously serving God’s law with his mind and experiencing the pull of sin in his flesh. Has the rescue failed? Is something wrong with him? Is something wrong with you? With me? Today’s lesson answers that question directly, honestly, and with a great deal of pastoral care. If you have ever wondered why genuine rescue and genuine struggle seem to coexist in your daily experience, this is the lesson for you.The Day 29 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/X6rV6c1pFimcfGdBATake your time with each question today. They move through some important distinctions that are worth considering carefully before you write.As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/X6rV6c1pFimcfGdBAJody and I are grateful you are pressing in with us.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Yesterday Paul cried out. Today he answers himself, and he does it in a single breath. The distance between Romans 7:24 and Romans 7:25a is one of the most dramatic shifts in all of Paul’s writing, from the bottom of desperation to the height of worship, without a single verse in between. Today’s lesson unpacks what is packed into that one explosive half-verse, and there is far more there than many readers have ever stopped to notice. Three distinct truths, one Rescuer, and a rescue that is not merely past tense but present and ongoing.The Day 28 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/YZytPzuw3uMAohXB8Today’s study guide includes a question format you have not seen before in this study, so read the instructions carefully before you begin. Give each question the time it deserves.As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/YZytPzuw3uMAohXB8Jody and I are grateful you are here. Romans 8 is just around the corner.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 27 is ready, and today we stop at a single verse. Just one. Romans 7:24 is where everything Paul has been building across this chapter arrives at its destination, not with an answer, but with a question. A raw, unguarded, deeply human question that strips away every pretense and every strategy and leaves only one thing standing: the need for Someone else to do what Paul has discovered he cannot do for himself. There is a moment every believer eventually reaches, and Paul is showing us what it looks like when it arrives. Today’s study guide is built differently, with every question drawn directly from the specific words of this one verse, so read it slowly and give each question the space it deserves.The Day 27 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/XeiR8V4p2xmqVFb4AThe answer to Paul’s question is coming. But not today. Today we consider the question itself, and there is more to learn here than you might expect from a single verse.As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/XeiR8V4p2xmqVFb4AJody and I are grateful you are pressing in with us. Tomorrow brings the answer to today’s question.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 26 is ready. Romans 7:21-23 is one of those passages that every believer reads and immediately recognizes, because Paul is describing something you have experienced. He wants to do good and evil is right there with him. He delights in God’s law in his inner being, yet he feels another force waging war against his mind. Today’s lesson looks carefully at what this conflict actually is, where it came from, and what it means for how you understand yourself and your standing before God. There is more here than meets the eye, and the questions in today’s study guide are designed to press you into the specific distinctions Paul is drawing.The Day 26 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/tKJF56nmk9neHoSQATake your time with the questions today. They approach this familiar passage from some fresh angles that are worth considering carefully.As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/tKJF56nmk9neHoSQAJody and I are grateful you are in this with us. Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 25 is ready, and today’s lesson gets to the heart of something every sincere believer has felt but may not have been able to state. We are in Romans 7:18-20, where Paul makes one of the most honest admissions in all of his writing: the flesh simply cannot execute what God requires, no matter how genuine the desire behind it. This is not a discouraging word. It is a freeing one. Because once you see clearly what the flesh cannot do, you begin to see with fresh eyes what Christ has already done, and what it means that you are united to Him.The Day 25 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/WYNKJNbJ1tmp1kx96Take your time with the questions today, particularly the complete-the-thought questions, which ask you to work through the connection between Paul’s diagnosis and the good news of your union with Christ.As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/WYNKJNbJ1tmp1kx96Jody and I are grateful you are pressing into this with us. Keep going.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 24 is ready, and today’s lesson addresses something that quietly troubles a great many sincere believers. We are in Romans 7:14-17, where Paul describes the gap between what he wants to do and what he actually does. For many Christians, this passage has felt like a description of defeat. But today’s lesson reframes it entirely. The very fact that you hate what you do is not evidence that nothing has changed in you. It is evidence that everything has changed. Dead people do not hate sin. Paul draws a precise distinction between his new identity in Christ and the remaining presence of sin in his flesh, and that distinction changes not just how you see yourself, but how you fight.The Day 24 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/ghJo74UiNeWNUPh89The questions today are worth considering carefully, particularly the complete-the-thought questions, which ask you to work through some important distinctions about identity and the nature of the conflict you experience.As always, earlier lessons are available in the archive if you need to catch up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/ghJo74UiNeWNUPh89Jody and I are grateful you are in this with us. Press on.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 23 is ready, and today’s lesson addresses something that quietly trips up a great many believers. We are in Romans 7:8-11, where Paul exposes one of sin’s most effective and most overlooked strategies. Sin does not need to invent new temptations. It simply seizes the commandment itself, the very law God gave for your good, and uses it as a base of operations. The moment a rule says “don’t,” something in us wants to. And the more rules we pile on hoping to gain victory, the more ammunition we hand to the very thing we are fighting. Today’s lesson shows you why, and more importantly, it shows you what actually works.The Day 23 study guide is here: https://forms.gle/7qqn4ncYXhN3MMbg7The questions today are designed to press you into the specific distinctions Paul is making, so give them careful thought before you write, particularly the complete-the-thought questions.As always, all previous lessons are available in the archive if you are catching up. And when you are ready for today, here is that link once more:https://forms.gle/7qqn4ncYXhN3MMbg7Jody and I are grateful you are pressing in with us. Keep going.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 22 of our journey is ready, and today’s lesson addresses something that quietly trips up even seasoned believers. We are in Romans 7:7-13, where Paul defends the holiness of God’s law while making clear what it was never designed to do. The law is a perfect diagnostic tool, it reveals sin with absolute accuracy, it silences every excuse, and it makes sin appear exactly as God sees it. But a mirror cannot heal what it reveals. That work belongs to Christ alone, and today’s lesson shows you exactly why.Read Day 22 in your book. Then the study guide for Day 22 is here: https://forms.gle/owzk91R5jtjJ62437The questions today are worth considering carefully, particularly the complete-the-thought questions, which ask you to draw some important connections between the law, the gospel, and your union with Christ. Give them the time they deserve.If you are catching up or need to revisit earlier material, everything is available in the archive. And when you are ready for today, here is that link again:https://forms.gle/owzk91R5jtjJ62437Jody and I are grateful for every one of you who is pressing into this with us.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Day 21 of our 40-day journey is ready for you, and today’s lesson may be one of the most liberating truths we have covered so far. We are in Romans 7:1-6, where Paul uses the binding nature of a marriage covenant to make a stunning argument: death severs every legal claim. And because you died with Christ, the law’s condemning authority over you is gone, not weakened, not negotiated, but gone. You now belong to Someone infinitely better.First, read Day 21 in your book, then go to the study guide at the link below.The study guide for today is waiting for you right here: https://forms.gle/fVKifXyj9BK9SznS9Take your time with the questions. They are designed to make you think, not just recall, and the “complete the thought” questions especially are worth considering for a few minutes before you write.If you are just joining us or need to catch up, all previous lessons are available in the archive. But whenever you are ready for Day 21, here is that link one more time:https://forms.gle/fVKifXyj9BK9SznS9Jody and I are grateful you are on this journey with us. Press on.Mike This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

A quick note before we begin Day 20.Due to a numbering error in the book, today’s chapter has been corrected and is included in full right here in this post. Please read it here before moving on to the study guide.If you have a digital or Kindle copy of the book, the corrected version has already been updated and is available to you now. If you purchased a physical copy, the text below is your updated chapter for today. I apologize for any confusion this may have caused.Read today’s chapter below, then work through the study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.New Day 20A man spends forty years working the same job. He was never mistreated. He was paid every dollar he earned, on time, without complaint. On his last day, his employer shakes his hand and hands him his final check. It is fair. It is honest. It is exactly what the work produced. And standing in the parking lot, he realizes this is all the job ever had to give him. Every hour invested, every sacrifice made, every late night, came back to him in wages. Nothing more, nothing less.A few miles away, another man receives a phone call. A lawyer’s voice tells him that someone who loved him deeply has died and left him everything in his estate. He sits in silence, trying to comprehend that he is now the heir of something he could never have purchased with any amount of work.These two pictures capture the contrast at the heart of Romans 6:19-23. Over the last several days we have been learning what it means to have a new Master. We have seen that grace doesn’t give license to sin but changes who owns us, and that you were transferred from sin’s household to Christ’s through the gospel. Today Paul asks you to examine what each master actually produces, what each master ultimately pays, and why the contrast settles the question of which master is worth serving.Point One: Present Yourself Deliberately to RighteousnessPaul opens these verses with a pastoral admission. He knows that this “slave” language is imperfect and limited. Let’s see how he introduces it in Romans 6:19: “I am using an example from everyday life because of your human limitations. Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness.” (NIV)Notice the word “offer.” This is not passive drifting. Paul is calling you to something deliberate. Just as, before you knew Christ, you actively gave yourself over to sin, you are now to actively give yourself over to righteousness. The same energy. The same wholehearted surrender. Only now, directed toward your new Master.Some believers treat holiness as though it materializes automatically. They have received Christ, they know they have a new master, and they wait for transformation to arrive. But Paul says, “offer yourselves.” In Romans 12:1 Paul urges believers to “offer your bodies as a living sacrifice” to God. Holiness requires deliberate, daily presentation of yourself to Christ. You do not drift into Christlikeness, you offer yourself to Jesus.Think of a musician. The gift may be genuine and the talent real, but the musician who never deliberately sits at the instrument, never offers the hours of practice, will never become what the gift makes possible. God has given you a new nature. The Spirit lives in you. But you must offer yourself, place what you have been given into the hands of your Master, and say, “I am yours today.” And notice where this offering leads: “righteousness leading to holiness.” Holiness is the destination. Righteousness is the road.Point Two: Look Honestly at What Sin Once ProducedPaul now turns backward and asks a penetrating question about the old life. We see this in Romans 6:20-21: “When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death!” (NIV)What did sin actually give you? What did those patterns, those years, those choices, actually produce? Paul expects an answer. The answer is shame.Notice the phrase “the things you are now ashamed of.” Paul is pointing to things his readers can still feel. There are chapters of a life that, when remembered, make you look away. Relationships damaged. Words that cannot be unspoken. Years spent chasing what promised to satisfy, only to leave you emptier than before. Proverbs 14:12 says it plainly: “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.” (NIV) Sin does not announce its destination. It advertises the pleasure and hides the bill.The prodigal son in Luke 15 is a picture of exactly this. He demanded his inheritance, left home, and spent everything. Standing in a pigpen, longing to eat what the pigs were eating, he finally looked back over the journey and calculated what the far country had actually given him: hunger, loneliness, shame, and rags. That is what sin pays. It extracts the fullest price and delivers the least possible return. But Paul is not asking this question to condemn. He is asking it to clarify. When you can see what sin truly produces, the appeal of returning to it loses its color. The offer loses its shine. You have seen where that road ends.Point Three: The New Master Produces a Harvest Worth HavingPaul’s contrast could not be sharper. Look at what he says in Romans 6:22: “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.” (NIV)Two things deserve your attention. First, the word “benefit.” Paul has just asked what benefit sin produced, and the implied answer was nothing worth keeping. Now he names the benefit of belonging to God: holiness and eternal life. This is not the language of loss and restriction. This is harvest language. Galatians 6:8 echoes it directly: “Whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.” (NIV) You are not a prisoner being denied pleasure. You are a farmer sowing into the richest soil in the universe, and the crop that grows is life that never ends.Second, notice the phrase “set free from sin.” This is accomplished fact, not ongoing process. Christ went to the cross, bore every sin that could condemn you, and rose from the dead, defeating death itself. Because He died your death, you now live His life. Isaiah saw this coming centuries before the cross and wrote in Isaiah 53:5, “he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” (NIV) Your freedom is not something you achieved. It is something Christ accomplished and handed to you.Belonging to God produces holiness the way sunlight produces growth in a garden. You do not manufacture it through sheer effort alone. You present yourself to Him, and holiness becomes the result. Jesus said it in John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” (NIV) The branch does not strain to produce grapes. It stays connected to the vine, and fruit comes.Point Four: Wages Versus Gift, The Final ContrastPaul ends Romans 6 with one of the most concentrated statements of truth in all of Scripture. Let’s read it as the crescendo it is, in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (NIV)The entire verse turns on the contrast between two words: wages and gift.Wages are earned. They are owed. When you work a job, your employer doesn’t hand you a paycheck as a favor. He owes it to you. Sin works exactly the same way. Every act of rebellion accrues a debt, and the paycheck at the end is not arbitrary. It is the fair, deserved wage of a life lived apart from God. Romans 3:23 says “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (NIV), and the payment sin earns is death: separation from God, the extinguishing of everything that makes life worth living.But the second half of the verse changes everything. “The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” A gift is not earned. It is given freely, out of the generosity of the giver, with no claim on the recipient’s performance. Eternal life is not your wages. You did not earn it, and you could not. It is God’s gift, purchased by Christ’s death and offered through faith in His resurrection.This is the gospel at its most concentrated. Christ took our wages. He stood in our place, bore the full payment of our sin, and absorbed the death we had earned. Then, rising from the dead, He unlocked the gift God had always intended for His people: life, unending, unbreakable, untouchable by sin or death or time. As Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (NIV) He took what we earned. He gave us what He deserved. And He did it freely, as a gift.This is why you pursue holiness not out of fear but out of love, not to earn life but because you have been given it. You do not offer yourself to righteousness to gain God’s approval. You already have it, fully and permanently, in Christ. You offer yourself because you have tasted the difference between two harvests, and you know beyond any doubt which one is worth growing.What would change in how you offer yourself to God today if you truly believed that eternal life is already a gift in your hands, not a reward you are still working toward?Once you have finished reading, your study guide is waiting.Day 20 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/mZbdhdJfstg3BXHJ8In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 20 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/mZbdhdJfstg3BXHJ8 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Two people. Same church. Same struggles with sin. Twenty feet apart.One is exhausted, cycling through the same patterns week after week. The other has stumbled onto something that is quietly changing everything underneath. The difference between them is not willpower, not technique, not how long they have been Christians.It is which king is actually ruling their life right now.Today in Romans 6:12-14, Paul makes a declaration that will change the way you face temptation: sin shall not be your master. Not might not be. Not shouldn’t be. Shall not be. Come and find out why.Day 19 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/Ex256VkScrMp5Gi38Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 19 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/Ex256VkScrMp5Gi38See you there.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 19 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/Ex256VkScrMp5Gi38 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Every morning you open a ledger.The question is whether you are recording what is true.Today in Romans 6:8-11, Paul gives us one of the most practical commands in all of Scripture: count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God. Not because believing it makes it true. Because it already is true, and your job is to record it accurately, every single day, every single hour if needed. Come and see how this changes everything about the way you fight sin.Day 18 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/5DAffBfLuKdxyefX8Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 18 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/5DAffBfLuKdxyefX8See you in there.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 18 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/5DAffBfLuKdxyefX8 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,One sentence. That is all Paul needs today.“Anyone who has died has been set free from sin.” Romans 6:7.No conditions. No qualifications. No fine print. Today we are going to let that sentence land with its full weight, and then we are going to let Job show us four pictures of what that freedom actually looks like in your daily life. Come and read it.Day 17 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/1WU8QhHUTpqe2HeX7Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 17 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/1WU8QhHUTpqe2HeX7See you in there.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 17 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/1WU8QhHUTpqe2HeX7 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

One word changed everything.CONDEMNED.That is what God stamped on your old self. Not “needs improvement.” Not “could do better.” Condemned. And at the cross, He didn’t renovate it. He demolished it entirely.Today in Romans 6:6, Paul shows us why playing spiritual whack-a-mole with individual sins will never work, and what God actually did about your sin problem. It is not what most people expect. Come and read it.Day 16 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/uCYSG62fGMRSob8N9Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 16 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/uCYSG62fGMRSob8N9See you in there.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 16 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/uCYSG62fGMRSob8N9 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Here is a question worth considering today: have you been straining to manufacture holiness, or have you been staying connected to the One from whom all new life flows?Today in Romans 6:4-5, Paul shows us that new life doesn’t come from grinding effort. It flows organically from being united to the Risen Christ. New desires. New impulses. New hunger. All of it already placed within you. Come and see.Day 15 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/vr8DZzuwwFMMbwo77Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 15 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/vr8DZzuwwFMMbwo77Let’s go.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 15 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/vr8DZzuwwFMMbwo77 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Can I ask you something? Have you been spending your Christian life trying to fix what God has already buried?Today in Romans 6:4, Paul shows us that God didn’t renovate your old self. He executed it, buried it with Christ, and raised you to completely new life, powered by the same glory that rolled away the stone. That changes everything about how you fight sin. Come read it.Day 14 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/nvCmW2TkftEkT3mf8Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 14 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/nvCmW2TkftEkT3mf8Let’s go.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 14 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/nvCmW2TkftEkT3mf8 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 13 is here, and today Paul takes us deeper into what union with Christ actually means. There is a world of difference between following someone’s example and being united to them. A man can study everything about marriage, attend a thousand weddings, and memorize every vow, but none of that makes him married. Only the actual union does. Today in Romans 6:3-4, Paul shows us that the Christian life is not defined by following Jesus’ example. It is defined by being joined to Jesus Himself, and that changes everything.Start by reading Day 13 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 13 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/UcQbiTWrG5En5ayFASubmit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 13 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/UcQbiTWrG5En5ayFADay 13 is waiting. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 13 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/UcQbiTWrG5En5ayFA This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 12 is here, and today we tackle a question every honest believer has asked: if I am really dead to sin, why do I still become tempted and want to sin? Yesterday we established that you died with Christ, and that death is a real fact about who you are. Today Paul shows us what that death actually means for the daily struggle, and the answer is going to change the way you face temptation.Start by reading Day 12 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 12 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/SiMU3kMtHkSYPvyu5Submit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 12 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/SiMU3kMtHkSYPvyu5Day 12 is waiting. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 12 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/SiMU3kMtHkSYPvyu5 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 11 is here, and today we step inside Romans 6. For ten days we have been laying a foundation, and today that foundation begins to bear weight. Paul is about to show us something that will revolutionize the way you fight sin: it is not just that Christ died for you, it is that you died with Him. That death is not metaphor, and not a spiritual feeling to work up on your best days. It is a fact about who you are in Christ, and it makes sin fundamentally incompatible with who you now are. Dead people don’t answer doors.Start by reading Day 11 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 11 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/vocdWyQ3y4ojNu7Q8Submit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 11 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/vocdWyQ3y4ojNu7Q8Day 11 is waiting. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 11 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/vocdWyQ3y4ojNu7Q8 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 10 is here, and today we complete our foundation. Tomorrow we step into Romans 6. In 1 Corinthians 1:26-31, Paul brings these first ten days to a stunning conclusion by showing us why God deliberately chose the weak, the foolish, and the despised. The answer is both humbling and liberating: God chose you in your weakness so that Christ would get all the glory. Not so you could prove yourself. Not so you could demonstrate your potential. So that when transformation happens, when sin is overcome, when holiness grows, everyone who sees it points not to you but to Jesus Christ.Start by reading Day 10 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 10 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/sBVWo5p5Mg1GH9BbASubmit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 10 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/sBVWo5p5Mg1GH9BbADay 10 is waiting.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 10 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/sBVWo5p5Mg1GH9BbA This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 9 is here, and we are now just one day away from completing our foundation. Today the apostle John identifies three distinct stages of Christian maturity in 1 John 2:12-14, and what is remarkable about every single one of them is that none are defined by what you have accomplished. Each stage is defined by what you have received from Christ and how deeply the gospel has gone into your life.Start by reading Day 9 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 9 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/hzWWjcq8f4pT4741ASubmit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 9 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/hzWWjcq8f4pT4741ADay 9 is waiting. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 9 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/hzWWjcq8f4pT4741A This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 8 is here, and today we are going to address something that may be holding back more sincere believers than almost anything else. Many Christians who have walked with God for years are still spiritually stuck, not because they have failed to learn enough, but because they have moved on from the gospel too quickly. In 1 Corinthians 2 and 3, Paul shows us that the very message that saved us is the same message that transforms us, matures us, and sets us free. You don’t graduate from the gospel. You go deeper into it.Start by reading Day 8 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 8 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/iPCgEAf9y5hhY4Xe9Submit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 8 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/iPCgEAf9y5hhY4Xe9Day 8 is waiting. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 8 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/iPCgEAf9y5hhY4Xe9 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 7 is here, and today we are going to confront one of the most common and subtle lies sincere believers fall into every single day: the idea that trying harder to obey God’s law is what produces spiritual transformation. In Galatians 3:10-14 and 21-24, Paul shows us exactly what the law can and cannot do, and why reaching for the law to produce change is like trying to use a mirror to wash your face. The diagnosis is perfect. But the mirror cannot cure what it reveals.Start by reading Day 7 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 7 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/h7G6S9BMtpxpqvPM7Submit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 7 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/h7G6S9BMtpxpqvPM7Day 7 is waiting. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 7 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/h7G6S9BMtpxpqvPM7 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 6 is here, and today we are going straight to the root. Every temptation that has power over us is built on a lie, and every lie loses its power the moment it is replaced with the truth of the gospel. In John 8:31-36, Jesus makes a stunning promise: the truth will set you free. Today we are going to find out why that freedom begins with asking God honestly, “What lies am I believing that are keeping me in bondage?”Start by reading Day 6 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 6 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/f7QzGPZFQq4AgyPz8Submit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 6 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/f7QzGPZFQq4AgyPz8Day 6 is waiting. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 6 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/f7QzGPZFQq4AgyPz8 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 5 is here, and today we are going all the way back to the Garden of Eden. If you have ever wondered why guilt and shame are so hard to shake, even after coming to Christ, today’s lesson answers that question. In Genesis 3, God shows us that the double wound sin inflicts, guilt before His law and shame before His eyes, requires a covering only He can provide. And the price of that covering was blood. Start by reading Day 5 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 5 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/UtpuBifrMFZAwEzr8Submit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 5 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/UtpuBifrMFZAwEzr8Day 5 is waiting. Jody and I are with you in it. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 5 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/UtpuBifrMFZAwEzr8 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 4 is here, and today’s lesson may be one of the most personally liberating truths in this entire study. In Romans 5:1-5, Paul shows us that justification doesn’t just change our standing before God, it produces something we can live from every single day: peace with God. Not someday. Right now. Jody and I are in this study with you.Start by reading Day 4 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 4 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/Yn5xmgadjy9xyLHg8Submit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 4 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/Yn5xmgadjy9xyLHg8Day 4 is waiting. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 4 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/Yn5xmgadjy9xyLHg8 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 3 is here, and today we are going to stand in a courtroom. The evidence against us is undeniable, the verdict should be certain, and yet the most extraordinary thing happens. Someone steps forward and takes our place. The penalty is paid in full by our substitute, and the judge declares us not guilty, fully righteous, case dismissed permanently. In Romans 3:21-26, Paul shows us that justification is God’s final verdict, not His opening offer in an ongoing trial. Jody and I are in this with you.Start by reading Day 3 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 3 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/c3Y8CV4B6Cy7m4F49Submit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book 40-Day Journey Into Gospel Growth and Freedom: How To Grow Into Christ-Likeness at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 3 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/c3Y8CV4B6Cy7m4F49Day 3 is waiting. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 3 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/c3Y8CV4B6Cy7m4F49 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Day 2 is here, and today’s lesson may be one of the most important foundations we lay in this entire study. Before we can go deep into Romans 6, 7, and 8, Paul takes us to Ephesians 2 and shows us something we cannot afford to skip: the gospel is not a starting line we leave behind. It is resurrection power, and that same power that raised us is the power that keeps us. Jody and I are in this with you.Start by reading Day 2 in your book, then work through today’s study guide questions at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 2 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/zRsuUU5Z1eik5umm9Submit your answers and I will personally respond to each one within 12 hours, Lord willing.Not yet in the study? You can purchase the book Growing Up in the Gospel at https://tinyl.co/4XLc, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book at no additional cost.Day 2 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/zRsuUU5Z1eik5umm9Day 2 is waiting. Let’s keep walking.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 2 Study Guide — Click Here https://forms.gle/zRsuUU5Z1eik5umm9 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe

Dear friend,Something about day one of a study like this feels like standing at the trailhead of a long and beautiful path. You can see a little of what’s ahead, enough to know it matters, but the full view only opens as you keep walking. Jody and I are walking this path with you.Start by reading Day 1 in your book — What the Gospel Actually Is — then work through today’s study guide questions either at the link below or respond on Substack.Day 1 Study Guide — Click Here to BeginSubmit your answers and I will personally respond to each one. We’ve also released a podcast episode to go alongside today’s reading if you’d like to listen in. It’s attached to this email.Want to join the full 40 days? You can purchase the book Growing Up in the Gospel at tinyl.co/4T6r, or become a paid Substack subscriber and receive the book free.Day 1 Study Guide — Click Here to BeginDay 1 is waiting. Let’s go deeper.In Christ, Mike ClevelandDay 1 Study Guide — Click Here to Begin This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit mikecleveland.substack.com/subscribe