He Did It

How would you describe your week so far, if you were to do it as a weather report, i.e., dark and stormy, bright and sunny, partly cloudy, etc.? Sometimes life seems sunny and bright, and at other times it feels like one storm after another.

Similarly, the Bible sometimes compares the highs and lows of our spiritual life:
 “This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:5-9).”

Now, how would you describe your spiritual weather report? Sometimes we may want to deceive ourselves by denying sin. We use things like justification (“He started it!”), denial (“I didn’t know!”) or reframing (“That’s just the way it is nowadays!”). When we are honest with ourselves about our sin, we usually feel bad. We don’t like to be in that spot. Sometimes we feel like a failure.

But God doesn’t think so. It's important to remember that when we are in these spots, God does not push us away. Rather, He reaches out to us. He wants us to be honest and upfront with Him. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” God loves, God gives. We believe, we have the forgiveness we need. God’s solution is not to try to be as good as we can be. Even if/when we try, we fall short and end up discouraged and feeling unworthy. God has declared us forgiven, not because of what we do, but because of what Christ has already done for us.

Psalm 139:8-12
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
If I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
If I settle on the far side of the sea,
Even there your hand will guide me,
Your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
And the light become night around me,”
Even the darkness will not be dark to you;
The night will shine like the day,
For darkness is as light to you.

4832 Ponderings
Sometimes we know of someone who also needs to hear of God’s redeeming grace. Who do you know that needs to hear the truth about forgiveness contained in this message?