By Tabby Lee, InterHigh student, 10th grade @ Alameda High
Why would “jealousy and quarreling” be a sign of being worldly?
Jealousy and quarreling are signs of being worldly because God wants all the Christians to live in a community of believers working together, and jealousy and quarreling ruins the purpose of this community. Why does God want us to live in a community? Because it makes the work He has given us easier to do, it makes the lives we are supposed to live as Christians easier to live in this …

By Nick Yoo, InterHigh Mentor, Junior @ UC Berkeley
How does one come to understand the things of God?
One comes to understand the things of God not by his own innate capabilities or knowledge. Rather, we find that we have a sinful nature that is prideful, selfish, and unloving. It is only by the Spirit of God that we come to understand the things of God. Those who have not Christ continue to seek after the riches of this world, whether it be a comfortable and secure life, a life of …

By Pastor William Kang, InterHigh
Romans 12:1-3
“Our refusal to conform to this world’s values… must go even deeper than the level of behavior and customs—it must be firmly planted in our minds—‘be transformed by the renewing of your mind.’ It is possible to avoid most worldly customs and still be proud, covetous, selfish, stubborn, and arrogant. Only when the Holy Spirit renews, reeducates, and redirects our minds are we truly transformed.”[1]
Why is “in view of God’s mercy” the basis for …

Romans 11:1-10
“Seven thousand: a competent number to bear their testimony against the idolatry of Israel, and yet, compared with the many thousands of Israel, a very small number. […] Christ’s flock is but a little flock; and yet, when they come all together at last, they will be a great and innumerable multitude. […] The best evidence of integrity is a freedom from the present prevailing corruptions of the times and places that we live in, to swim against the stream when it is strong.”[1]
[1] Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary …

By Pastor William Kang, InterHigh
Romans 10:4-15
“Through Christ’s being brought down to earth (i.e., his incarnation, Rom. 10:6) and his being brought up from the dead (10:7), God has made righteousness readily available (10:8).  One does not have to ascend into heaven or plumb the depths of the sea to discover it.  All one needs to do to attain righteousness is to respond in faith to the gospel as it is preached.  Verses 9-10 draw conclusions from what Paul has said about the ‘righteousness that is by faith’ in verses 6-8.  …

By Pastor William Kang, InterHigh
Romans 9:22-33
“The implication for Jews was that they did not pursue… the righteousness which is by faith, but instead relied on their birthright as Jews or on their supposed good works in obedience to God’s laws.”   “The ‘stumbling stone’ was Jesus.  The Jews did not believe in him, because he didn’t meet their expectations for the Messiah.  Some people still stumble over Christ because salvation by faith doesn’t make sense to them.”
What warning does this passage give against Christians who presume upon God based on …

By Pastor William Kang, InterHigh.
How different is v.28 from the worldly perspective that people of this world live with? In this verse Paul says that God works for the good of those who love him.  According to Paul, I can understand, then, that God uses both good and bad situations in my life for my good.  So this verse gives me a framework by which I can understand why bad things happen in my life (I don’t try to understand when good things happen; only when bad things happen). …

by Pastor William Kang
Romans 7:7-13
What may be the reason why people lack personal conviction of sin according to this passage?  I think people don’t have the correct, Biblical understanding of human nature.  People in general lack conviction of sin because they think that they are inherently good and that their sins are attributed to others, to circumstances or to any force outside of themselves that forced them to play the sin card.  In other words, they blame their sin on others because that fits their worldview (the worldview that they’re …

By Tina Chan, InterHigh Mentor, Senior @ UC Berkeley
Sharing on Romans 6:11-14
I often feel so pathetic when it comes to my sin issues, especially recurring issues such as pride or laziness. It seems like I will never get rid of them, and it’s so tedious to constantly battle them so I might as well give up. But .. the verses are very clear. Either I’m offering my body to sin, literally as instruments of wickedness, or I’m offering myself to God. There is no in-between. In the moments that …

By Pastor Will Kang
Romans 5:1-10
“People give many different meanings to the word ‘peace,’ but almost everyone wants it […] Yet no ultimate peace is possible without coming to terms with God. People who search for peace will never find it until they find peace with God. Lack of such peace is the basic human predicament.”
List all the words from this passage that express what we received through the death of Jesus.  How do these expressions apply to my life? From vv.1-10, I see that I have received the following: …

by Pastor William Kang
Hi everyone, here’s my “devo” for today.  I hope you guys are following along. I hope what I wrote helps.
Romans 4:18-22
“The essence of Abraham’s faith in this case was that he believed that God could make the impossible possible. So long as we believe that everything depends on our efforts, we are bound to be pessimists, for experience has taught the grim lesson that our own efforts can achieve very little. When we realize that it is not our effort but God’s grace and power which matter, …

By Stephen Sun, Alameda High School, Class of 2011
Romans 3:21-31
Given the complete failure of human righteousness, what hope is there for any relationship with a holy God? In this chapter, Paul states that we do not have any hope of relationship with God based on any works that we do, or solely in obeying the law. Instead, there is hope only in the grace of God and his amazing decision to send his son as a sacrifice to die for us and atone for our sins. This incredible gift …

By Pastor Will Kang.
Romans 2:13, 17-29
“Possession of the law and the covenant sign of circumcision were perhaps the two most distinguishing marks of being Jewish.  Given to Israel by God himself, they signaled the fact that the Jews were a special people, elevated above all other peoples.”[1]
What are the things that people rely on to “brag about [their] relationship to God?” Some people look at their family background.  They say, “my dad is …

By Pastor Will Kang
Romans 1:21-28

According to these verses, what happens when people fail to respond to the knowledge of God that is available to all humanity? Their thinking becomes futile and their foolish hearts become darkened. They become fools and they end up worshipping an aspect of creation instead of the immortal God. Why are there these natural consequences to not responding to our knowledge of God?
Because the truth is that God exists, that he is the creator, and he is the reason behind our own existence. …