One of the most challenging things a teacher has done, as far as I remember, is to impose a “right minus wrong” rule in our examinations. Imagine your score being deducted again with the same number of mistakes? It surely brought down our scores, and even caused some of us to flunk the test.
In our spiritual life, we sometimes feel like we may flunk too because we cannot live up to the heavenly standards. And it is true because God’s standard is high, and just as He is merciful He is just too. Hence we may feel that we can never be clean enough to come to Him, and that we are bound to remain miserably guilty because of our weaknesses or the things we have done.
But such is farthest from the truth, because unlike a terror professor out to prove that we can never be good enough, our Heavenly Father abounds in steadfast love and mercy. He loves us so much that He sent His only Son to save us from our sins.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16
When we decided to surrender our lives to Jesus, confessed our sins, and stepped away from our sinful lifestyle, we in essence have been cleansed from our past transgressions. However, human beings as we are in this fallen world, we are still bound to commit mistakes. And the good news is, when we sincerely ask for God’s forgiveness for the failures we have committed after deciding to follow Him, He will again forgive us and reconcile us to Himself.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9
What this means for us is that when we fail, we do not have to grieve and return to the sinful lifestyle we once lived. We can again seek God’s forgiveness, and count on His love.
And so as long as we know that we are doing our best to please God, we can rest in the assurance that God loves us even if we make mistakes. That He does not condemn us and that His light is not meant to shame us but to guide us.
“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” Romans 8:1-2
And what is the proof that He does not condemn us? Well, He has loved us even before we came to our senses and surrendered our life to Him! He loved us back when we were still stubborn in our sinful lifestyle.
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8
And while we will receive forgiveness for our sins, that does not mean we are free from the consequences of our mistakes. So when we receive God’s loving correction and discipline, we can rest assured that we are experiencing that because He loves us and sees us as His children.
“For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” Hebrews 12:6
Thank you for reading through our devotional today. I invite you to
ponder on 1 John 4:13-19 to dig deeper on today’s topic.
Reflection Question: Do you feel like you can no longer be clean enough to get to Jesus feet?
Conversation with the Lord: Heavenly Father, thank you for being merciful, and loving us enough to forgive us and forget about our sins. Help us forgive ourselves too, and grant us the confidence to continue seeking your mercy and presence. Amen.
