Sin & Forgiveness

To evangelize is to spread the good news that Jesus Christ died for our sins and was raised from the dead according to the Scriptures, and that as the reigning Lord he now offers the forgiveness of sins and the liberating gift of the Spirit to all who repent and believe.  John Stott

I read recently that when we lose our focus on God we are drawn to the very thing we don’t want to do which is sin.  If you focus on something that is a sin long enough eventually your footsteps will take you there.  It is like an unseen force driving us.  How do we stop this train wreck into sin?

We need to shift our focus.  If our focus is on sin we are far more likely to commit it.   When we shift focus to God we stand a much better chance of avoiding the train wreck.

God provided us with a lifeline.  That lifeline is Jesus.  Jesus never committed sin.  It is hard for me to wrap my arms around that.  Someone with absolutely no sin was willing to die on a cross for my sin.  Jesus paid a high price for our sins.  God poured his wrath for a sinful people onto Jesus His son. 

God also provided a way for us to return to fellowship with Him when we sin.  God’s forgiveness is not automatic.  We must understand and acknowledge that we have sinned followed by confessing our sin and then repent of the sin.  In Proverbs 28:13 it says “he who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.”  Forgiveness is given when we confess and repent.  “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”  The two words that stand out in this verse for me are “forgive” and “purify”. (1 John 1:9) If I am truly sorrowful for committing the sin and repent He will forgive.  That is where my hope lies.  There was a verse we used to sing in church that reminds me of Jesus our Savior. “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ love and righteousness.”

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I am a sinner in need of a Savior.  I praise You for loving me and for understanding that I needed someone to save me and You provided Your Son as a sacrifice for my sin.  I don’t deserve it, I will never earn it but I am forever thankful that You provide a way to You.          

Scripture:  As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” So he arose and followed Him.

Now it happened, as Jesus sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples. And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

When Jesus heard that, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” Matthew 9:9-13