Groan
When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.” And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone. (Psalms 32:3-5 NLT)
Drinking. Drugs. Porn. Greed. Pride. Just to name a few.
Sin is a trap. It lulls us into a weak state of mind and can destroy relationships and lives. Engaging in activities which separate us from God wears on our minds and bodies more than we can know.
The good news is, there is a way out. There is a way to learn we do not need to let sin rule our lives. That way is to trust in God. To turn our lives, all of it, over to Him. Our sin, our joy, our sorrow, our work, our whole life. To let God heal us by brining our weaknesses to Him and discovering how His love, grace and mercy far surpass our failings.
It’s a gift. It’s a new life.
Let us turn our groaning bodies into lives of hope.
Naked
The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”
“Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’”
“You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”
The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. (Genesis 3:1-7 NLT)
With increased knowledge comes the realization we are not all that we think we are. Think environment… think wealth… think fame… think war…
Think sin…
In a world so strongly encouraging the pursuit of happiness and perfection, we as people come to realize we aren’t as perfect as we’d like to think we are. We come to realize we may never have the mansion overlooking the mountains descending into the ocean. We may never have the fancy cars and the parties with the social elite.
For some of us, this may be a painful realization. It may make us feel trapped, vulnerable… naked.
However, there are far greater riches in store for us when we trust in God. When we surrender our weakness, our faults… our sin… to Jesus Christ and allow him into our lives, we have a far greater reward.
God will provide for our every need. He will carry us through this life, and life evermore.
Rich
But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-7 NLT)
We cannot do it alone. There’s no way we can resist all the temptation to sin in our lives. Even the greatest saints of the Bible, those said to have the heart full of God within them sinned, sometimes grievously.
So, in His mercy, God sent Jesus among us so that we may know the fullness of His love and to be reconciled to God forever through His own sacrifice.
The cost of eternal life with our Father in heaven? Priceless.
How rich then are we in knowing God gave of Himself for those who believe so we may be joined with Him forever?
Believe
“There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants. ” (John 3:18-21 NLT)
These verses follow behind the famous John 3:16, “For God so loved the world He sent his only begotten Son…”
The verses above are an important teaching from Jesus as a follow-up to that verse. Yes, God sent His Son for all, but the point is we need to believe. For if we don’t believe, we are seen as being against Jesus, against what God is trying to do in the world.
If we’re against God? We will be judged.
Follow Jesus? No judgement.
Do you believe?
Found
“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors and say, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin.’ In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels when even one sinner repents.” (Luke 15:8-10 NLT)
Ever lost something you’d never thought you’d see again, even though you’ve searched the entire house, but found it sometime later when you least expect it? Remember the joy when you find it?
God never stops searching for His lost children. And when we are found, that is when we let God find us, there is great rejoicing in the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus tells us this story because he wants us to know God never gives up on us. God never turns His back. He is always there, waiting for us to be found. No matter how deep we hide, no matter how far we run. God’s love is waiting.
Come back. Don’t hide any longer. He is waiting.