WATCHWORD:
1 Since Christ suffered and underwent pain, you must have the same attitude he did; you must be ready to suffer, too. For remember, when your body suffers, sin loses its power, 2 and you won’t be spending the rest of your life chasing after evil desires but will be anxious to do the will of God. 3 You have had enough in the past of the evil things the godless enjoy—sex sin, lust, getting drunk, wild parties, drinking bouts, and the worship of idols, and other terrible sins. 1 Peter 4:1-3
Meditation:
God’s Perspective
Have you ever gone through a confessional? You know how it works, you slip into this phone-booth-size room, sit on a bench in front of a screen which obscures the Priest who is hearing you confessing your grievous sins. Then he, and most assuredly it will be a he, will tell you what you must do to earn forgiveness for your sins.
Forgive me, Lord, but, “earn my forgiveness”? I do believe that was one of the stumbling blocks for Martin Luther. Let me check his 95 Theses. Yep, there it is, Christ died for my sins, paying for them in full…or words to that effect. So, what am I “earning”?
Still, that doesn’t end it for us, does it? How come we still have that bag of guilt that we drag around? Worries that we have about something we did, or didn’t do. A word spoken or withheld because we don’t want to be seen as a know-it-all, or a critical person. What about something that happened when you were in the second grade, and now, so many years later, it’s still on your mind. Now that’s a problem.
I was listening to Pastor Robert Morris speaking on this topic. This is what he said the Lord put on his heart as he worried about his past life: Take a piece of paper and write down every despicable act or word, anything you would not want anyone to know about. Write it all down don’t miss a single thing that you can recall. Morris thought the Lord would tell him to burn it and forget it. But the Lord didn’t do that. He told Morris to sit down with his mentor and read it all to him. He did that and after a long pause, the mentor said, I’ve done all those things, and more. Morris was greatly relieved, but the Lord wasn’t through with him. Then he was told to read it to his wife. He did that and she told him “I knew you were bad when I married you, just not that bad. Then she said, “that may have been who you were but that’s not who you are. You are the most honest man I have ever known”.
In effect, God took all that sin, and wiped the slate clean.
Could we do that? Could we, would we write it all out, every despicable, shameful, awful thing that we’ve done, and then tell our loved ones, holding back nothing? I don’t know. But this thought came to me: Could we be painfully honest with ourselves? In the quiet of our personal confessional, could we self-admit to the most grievous things in our past and present? Could we then present all of it to the Lord? Lay it all at the foot of His Cross? What would he say? “Stan, you missed a bunch of stuff, but it doesn’t matter, I know it all, even those items you missed. Even those items you have forgotten. None of that changes my love for you, not one iota. You are forgiven.”
We are what God created, humans, with our own frailties. At one level we know that God knows it all, but we still worry, we still carry around guilt. Maybe it doesn’t scream at us, maybe it doesn’t make us long for a time when we could go back and correct something we did or said. Maybe it’s just a wee small voice that every now then sours a precious moment just for a second or two. That whispered voice is the Holy Spirit, telling you, “Child of Mine, lay it right there, at My feet. Move on. You are forgiven.” Amen.
Prayer for Forgiveness:
O Lord, Jesus Christ, Redeemer and Savior, forgive my sins, just as You forgave Peter’s denial and those who crucified You. Count not my transgressions, but, rather, my tears of repentance. Remember not my iniquities, but, more especially, my sorrow for the offenses I have committed against You. I long to be true to Your Word, and pray that You will love me and come to make Your dwelling place within me. I promise to give You praise and glory in love and in service all the days of my life. Amen.
