How Do We Believe the Unbelievable Goodness of God?
Sunday Psalm 5.19.24
Father God Lord Jesus Holy Spirit We present ourselves before You again this Sunday. Unlike You, we usually turn sin against us Into rejection of the one who hurt us. To forgive offends our natural selves. But the predisposition to forgive is core To your supernatural self. When we run towards You, You readily receive us. Every time. You are watching for us with open hands. Do we really believe Your purity that both Condemned our disobedience and paid for it? Do we trust that the reward of forgiveness Is worth what forgiveness costs? You are unbelievably good. How do we believe the unbelievable? And how do we give up comparing Our resentment to how we were hurt? Our resentment is not as bad as their sin, So we’re not so bad, we say. You can’t expect us to be perfect. Yes, we want those who’ve been nasty To us to get what they deserve. But we try to resist those thoughts. We hope we get credit for trying. We will never give up looking to You For grace to want your best for everyone. We will always need your empowering. And we wait to see You with our own eyes; To behold the unbelievable best. Amen.
Hi Karen,
You outdid yourself today! Let me tell you the three things that struck me.
First: you began with, "We present ourselves before You again ..." For some reason, this just struck me hard. I almost gasped. From the fall in the Garden of Eden onward, mankind did everything we could to "present ourselves before Him." But we couldn't come into His presence. From the tower of Babel to sexual sins to violence to the Pharisaical trying to be perfect, we did everything. And failed.
And in an instant, on the cross, in the biggest payment (and greatest pain) of all time, Christ opened the door.
I take it too lightly, but you reminded me today.
Second: your conviction of the sin of our resentments. Oh, we LOVE to recount "their" evils in all they did to us, but you point out our sin. And I SO SO appreciate that you did that.
My one, single, biggest problem in the whole wide world: is what I do not what "they" did. And you remind me. Thank you.
Third: we look to YOU (Father, Lord) for the grace to love "them," to want the best for them. I need God both for my salvation but also for my change of heart to love those who have hurt me. I can't do any of it on my own. To God alone be glory.
Thanks,
Sam