Today’s reading from Isaiah reminded me of the words of one of my favorite contemporary Christian songs. It says “He’s not mad at you. He’s not disappointed. His grace is stronger, still than all of your wrong choices.” Those words echoed … Continue reading
Hey y’all, remember me?
I’ve been out of pocket a lot the last two weeks, one for a family trip up to St. Louis, the other to Jackson for our Mississippi Annual Conference. Things should be back to normal now, or as normal as they can be the week of VBS. If your in the Petal area, we’d love to have you join us for Night Two of our Wilderness Escape VBS here at Asbury. You can show up tonight starting at 5:15 or you can go and register on our website.
Today as I was reading, I read this passage here in Matthew 8: 14-15. This passage talks about why Jesus heal us, and why He saves us. Listen to what it says:
And when Jesus entered Peter’s house, he saw his mother-in-law lying sick with a fever. He touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she rose and began to serve him.
In this passage we see Jesus heal Peter’s mother in law. We don’t know exactly what she was suffering from, but we know that she had a fever.
So, Jesus heals her, and then what happens? The text said she rose and began to serve Him. She wasn’t heal for her own sake, her own glory, or her own purpose. She was healed so that she could serve Jesus. She had a purpose in life, she had a purpose in that moment. That purpose wasn’t hers, but it was to serve Him.
So is ours. That’s what this whole thing called life is all about. It’s not about us. It’s not about what we want to do, or about how we want to do it. But it’s about Him. It’s about His purpose. It’s about His plan. It’s about His reason.
We are healed, we are forgiven. We are restored. Not for ourselves. Not for our purpose. But for His.
Never forget that. Never forget that is what this life is ultimately about; never forget where life is truly found. In Him. And for Him.
That’s why we are healed.
Today, may we rejoice in our forgiveness, and may we live in His power.
Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones, and you thought our app, you can now watch our worship services from Asbury too!
Something I like to say is that I have to choose between law and grace, I choose grace. I’m going to always choose grace. Now, yes, there are things that are wrong and are destructive, and we should avoid evil and stay away from things that will destroy us, destroy others, and destroy our walk with God.
But, even folks that are far, far from God and acting in ways that are destructive, you know what? I’m going still going to give grace.
I’m going to love much.
Why?
Because I’ve been forgiven much. Listen to what Jesus says in Luke 7:44-47:
Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came she has not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”
I have been forgiven so much in my life. Jesus has given me grace after grace, hope after hope, love after love, mercy after mercy. He has forgiven me so very much in my life, and the only response that I can make is to forgive others. To give grace. To show mercy. To show love. To show that hope.
Because He has shown that to me. And as I’ve been forgiven and loved, so must I forgive other and love.
I have been loved much. So, I must love much.
Each of us have. We have all been given grace and mercy today. We’ve all been given love. And with that love we’ve been given, we much give love in return. Today, we must love much. Because we’ve been loved much.
Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.
You are new today. The past is the past. It is done away with. It is over. It is gone. It is past.
For those of us in Christ, we are a new creation. Not we will become a new creation. We are a new creation. We are new.
It’s not that the past will be done away with. The past is done away with.
It’s not that it will be left behind us. It is left behind us. It’s done. It’s over. It’s gone.
Listen to what Paul says today in 2 Corinthians 5:17-19:
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
Today, you are new. Now, you may not be fully formed. You may not be perfect. You may not have it all figured out. you may not be yet what you need to be and what you will be one day. Sure, that’s all true.
But, you are new. You are a new creation. You are forgiven. You are restored. You are made right. You can walk today in life, new mercy, new grace, new hope, new peace, new life.
You are new today. Live new. Live with hope that comes from being a forgiven child of God today.
Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.
We talked yesterday at Asbury about forgiveness. Forgiveness really is the one thing that makes relationships possible. It’s the thing that makes faith possible. It’s the thing that makes love possible.
Without forgiveness, there would not be much hope for anything that is good in life. Forgiveness makes it all possible.
We are all going to be hurt at some point. We are all going to be wronged at some point. We are all going to be in a position where we have to choose to forgive or not. And it’s tough. And we can’t do it on our own.
We can’t “will” ourselves to forgive. We can’t just “make” ourselves do it. It’s something that only God can do though us. Listen to the words that Jesus speaks today in Luke 7:47-48:
Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
Jesus forgives a woman, and He talks about since she is forgiven, she loves. And then He says, he who is forgiven little loves little.
Those of us that have been forgiven much, we should love so much more. We can’t truly forgive, we can’t truly love, we can’t truly do any of these things until we know this one true fact.
We are forgiven. You are forgiven. God loves you, wants to know you, wants to spend time with you. You are forgiven.
You are loved.
Now, love others. Our forgiveness for others flows from our forgiveness from God. Those who are forgiven much will love much.
Today, as those that have been forgiven so very much, may we love so very much.
Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.
God is a God that forgives His people. He is a God that longs to restore and renew His people.
We get that. You’ve heard me say that a lot. You’ve seen me write that a lot. If you’ve been around my ministry for any length of time, you’ve heard multiple times that God is a God that loves us and forgives us. That His love for us is more than we can ever understand.
Ok, Andy, sure.
But why?
Why does God forgive us? Why does God restore us? Why does God renew us?
Why?
There are lots of reasons why. Lots of reasons why the Lord forgives us our sins and renews us.
The first is because He made us. He created us. He made us in His image and He loves us. As a father loves His children, so does God love us. Jesus came, suffered and died for our sins to pay the price for our sins.
Why? He loves us.
He made us. He loves us. That’s one reason why.
But, that’s not the only reason.
We see Isaiah talk about another reason this morning. Listen to what he says in Isaiah 63:13-14:
who led them through the depths? Like a horse in the desert, they did not stumble. Like livestock that go down into the valley, the Spirit of the Lord gave them rest. So you led your people, to make for yourself a glorious name.
He says that the Spirit of the Lord lead the people, He gave them rest. He restored them. He forgave them.
Why?
To make for Himself a glorious name. God forgives us and renews us to restart that relationship with us. And as we are renewed and restored, we have so many reasons to praise God and to give Him glory.
His forgiveness in our lives makes us praise Him. His mercy in our lives makes us to praise Him. His grace in our lives makes us to praise Him.
He loves your and forgives you because He loves you. And wants you to live your life for His glory. To make His name great. To live with love. With purpose. With joy. With peace. With mercy.
To give Him glory.
We aren’t just here for us. But for Him. That’s really our purpose in all of our lives. To give Him the glory.
To live for Him.
Today, you are forgiven. Know that you are loved. And live today as a response to that grace and love. And in that you will find your purpose.
And in that you will bring glory to His name.
Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.
God makes a lot of promises to us in His Word. He says a lot of things to us that give us hope, give us peace, give us courage.
He will never leave nor forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6)
He has good plans for us (Jeremiah 29:11)
We can do all things through Him (Philippians 4:13)
Nothing can separate us from God’s love Romans 8:37-39)
There is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).
We could go on an on.
But today, the passage we are reading, it has perhaps my favorite of God’s promises to us. Listen to what it says today in Jeremiah 31:33-34:
But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
We focus a lot (and rightfully so) about the part where we promised that God will give us a new covenant, where He will write His law on our heart.
God wants us to know that our faith moves from being an outward (action) based thing to an inward (heart) based thing.
God wants your heart. If He has your heart, He will have your actions.
And that’s all pretty awesome. Good stuff. But, I love what it says most of all, after that. Jeremiah tells us that will forgive our sins and, here’s the kicker to me, remember them no more.
That’s a promise. From God.
Not only will He forgive your sin, which is a big deal. But He will forget it.
It’s done.
Gone.
Forgiven.
Forgotten.
The sin that you can’t forgive yourself of, that you can’t let go of, that keeps you up at night, that robs your peace and joy?
Not only has God forgiven it. He has forgotten it.
His word promises that.
Today, let God. Forgive. Forget. Move into the new life that God has for you.
Today, you are a forgiven child of God. Live like it! Live in that new grace today, and each day.
Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.
I read a Max Lucado quote a million years ago that I think of quite often. He said “The reason God hates sin so much is because of what it does to His children. It destroys them.” The longer I live the more I find that to be true. Sin destroy us. John 10:10 tells us that the thief (the devil) comes to rob, to kill, and to destroy.
That is what sin does in the big picture. It’s also what it does in our own lives. When we sin, when we do something stupid, when we fall, what happens, at least in my life, is this.
I run from God. I’m ashamed. I’m embarrassed. I feel like I’ve failed. And I want to hide from God.
That’s what sin does. It separates us from God.
So, today, listen to what we read in Hebrews 4:14-16:
Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
We have a high priest, Jesus, who has been tested as are, and yet remained sinless. He became the perfect sacrifice for us. He atoned for us. He did for us what we could not do for ourselves.
He allows us to go home. He allows us to stop running. He allows us to have peace.
He lets us know the fullness of God’s mercy, forgiveness, and grace.
Today, you are forgiven. Today, you can come home. Today, you can start over. Today, you can draw near. Today, you are new.
Not because of anything you’ve done, or haven’t done. But totally because of what He has done for us through Jesus.
Today, you are forgiven. May we each draw close to our God today!
Don’t forget, you can click here to download Asbury’s mobile app and read these devotionals, as well as listen to my sermons on your smart phones.
Who are you? Who do you feel like you are? What are your dreams? Your wishes? Your hopes?
Who do you see yourself as? What do you see yourself doing? Where do you see yourself with your walk with family and friends; with your walk with God.
We want to think of ourselves in good places. With good hopes and dreams and futures.
But perhaps, just perhaps, you have heard the whispers.
You aren’t any good.
You are worthless.
You’ve done too much. God can’t love you. . . . .can’t use you. . . . you are of no worth to Him.
Or anyone.
Just give up. . . . quit. . . . stop trying. . . . what’s it matter. . . . . you can’t do it anyway.
Perhaps today, you’ve heard those whispers in your head. If so, listen to what Paul tells us in Colossians today:
This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.
You were once far away from God. You were his enemy. That’s a big word.
But you were.
And so was I. So were we all. Because we were all dead in our sins. We were all far away from God. We. Were. His. Enemies.
And how did God respond? By giving us His son to reconcile us to Him. To forgive us. To bring us into the throne room of grace. To make us clean.
To change us from being His enemies to being His children.
Today, when you hear the whispers, remember who you are. Remember what’s been done for you. Remember what Jesus has done for you. You are forgiven. You are restored. You are His child and you are loved.
Don’t listen to the whispers. Listen to voice of God here through His word. You are redeemed, you are restored, you are made clean and made whole.
Don’t listen to the whispers. Listen to God. And know that you are no longer His enemy. You are His child.
Go out and live like the loved child of God that you are.
Today, I was reading Psalm 25, and one simple phrase jumped out it me. One simple phrase grabbed men and would not let me go.
It’s a phrase I’ve heard over and over, it’s a phrase I’ve said a million times.
It’s a phrase that I know so well, but today, for whatever reason, it was as if I’d heard it for the first time.
Today, slow down, stop and listen to this one phrase from Psalm 25:
10 For your Name’s sake, O LORD, *
forgive my sin, for it is great.
Forgive my sin. As a pastor, I’ve said many, many, many times that folks sins are forgiven.
Not that I, or any other person, have the power to forgive anyone’s sin. That’s God’s domain and God’s business.
But, what I have had the chance and opportunity to do is to remind folks and let folks know that God has forgiven them their sin.
Today, you are forgiven. Today, if you desire forgiveness, it is there.
Today, if you ask for forgiveness, it is given.
Today, you don’t have to hold onto the mistakes of your past.
God doesn’t. God has forgiven you. He has let it go. He has forgiven you.
Let me say it again. Listen, as if you’ve never heard this. And realize it’s true.
Today, this day, you are forgiven. You are forgiven.
You can leave the past behind. God has. You can too.
If forgives you, you are allowed to forgive yourself.
Today, and each day, live like the forgiven child of God that you are!
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