From His Heart Daily Devotional 20 December 2021
WHEN YOU SIN BIG TIME
For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You.
Psalm 86:5
Have you ever committed a BIG, terrible sin and felt so condemned and horrible as a result? I know I have. When we get like this, it seems to take days and even weeks for the painful stench to subside. It is almost as if we are shunned by God until sufficient time has passed for Him to not be totally disgusted with us. But is that really the way God deals with His children? NO!
THE TRUTH
The Lord is not our “condemner,” He is our Savior and Friend. He is “good and ready to forgive.” He has a heart of love for us, EVEN when we sin HUGE sins that bring terrible devastation. Remember the prodigal had “dissed” his father something fierce. He had wasted his father’s money on parties and prostitutes. He ended up in the pig sty of life, needy, broken, sin-stained, and alone. He was filthy inside and out. Yet when he repented and returned to his father, he found his father to be “good and ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness.” What a beautiful picture of the mercy and grace of God that is available to us when we repent!
WHAT TO DO
Let me encourage you, no matter what terrible sins you have committed, to take those sins to Jesus in humility, brokenness, and true repentance. Believe His Word. He will receive you, and lavish on you complete and total forgiveness and restoration. The consequences of your sin don’t magically disappear as a result, but your heart is immediately made right with God. And that is the most important thing.
TWO MOUNTAINS
If you have BIG sins from your past that continually haunt you and bring you down, if you are struggling with guilt, shame and condemnation, go to the right place with those sins. Go to Mount Calvary.
You see, there are two great mountains in Scripture: Sinai in the Old Testament and Calvary in the New. Sinai is the mountain where Moses received the 10 Commandments. It is the mountain of Law. The Law was given to show us we are guilty before God. It was given to lead us to Christ and His grace. When you sin as a Christian, do not take your sin to Sinai. At Sinai, you will only find condemnation as the Law cries out, “SINNER!” Take your sin to Calvary, the mountain on which Christ died. At Calvary, you will find mercy, grace, and the blood of Jesus that washes white as snow.
Love,
Pastor Jeff Schreve,
From His Heart Ministries
Read In Touch Daily Devotion 20 December 2021 – Christmas Memories
