Every Last Bit, No Exceptions

Late this evening, shortly before Robin and I would ordinarily begin wrapping things up and going to bed I was looking on Facebook and saw a post from a woman who is a mutual friend of ours. She posted something that came from Psalm 130. I responded to her post with a comment and link to a version of that Psalm, set to music, that I am quite fond of. And, being fond of it, I put my headphones in and listened to it.

A few minutes later I heard Robin's phone begin to play some very familiar music. She had seen my link and was playing it for herself. I then connected the speakers to my laptop and we listened to the Psalm again.

In my Bible the last verse of Psalm 130 reads:

"And he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities."

In the song that verse is:

"Who will at last his Israel free,

 from all their sin and sorrow."

That last phrase, "from all their sin and sorrow" then repeats a number of times, back-and-forth between a male and female voice, and then repeats and fades, like a haunting echo, as the music ends.

Earlier this evening, shortly before this whole episode I'm describing took place I read a sermon by George Whitefield. In the latter part of the sermon Whitefield made a powerful appeal to his listeners to consider how sinful their lives really were, when seen from God's point-of-view. He said that there was no way to soft-sell what they had done against God. He said that for the least of their sins they would bear terrible guilt and the truth of the matter was that they had many more sins than they could possibly imagine. Whitefield didn't cast them as any kind of exceptionally evil people, for he said that he was just as much of a sinner as any of them were.

But here is the thing. When they, or he, or you or I, for that matter, come to have faith in Jesus as our Savior, it is Jesus who deals with our sin. Every last bit, no exceptions. The freedom that Psalm 130 points forward to is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus.

Jesus isn't a Savior in the same way where I might sweep up a floor. Doing a job that may be pretty good, but not worrying too much about a missed spot here or there. Something that I will probably get the next time I get the broom out.

Jesus is the kind of Savior who removes every last bit of sin from every single person who has faith in him. He misses nothing. He prepares us for that moment of final judgment before the Father so completely as to make us spotless.

That is hard to see sometimes, living here in the world and continuing to struggle with sin. But it is the Bible's truth, and the Bible never lies.

Turn to Jesus. Now. And know freedom from "all your sin and sorrow." Every last bit, no exceptions.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Believing In Nonsense

I came across something last week that I had heard before. The idea was credited to John Piper, and it was basically this: "We read whole books, and should read whole books, but rarely does a whole book change us. What grabs us and makes an impact is a chapter, or more often a paragraph, or a sentence, or a phrase." The idea is that reading books is worthwhile but most often what we come away with and are shaped, or influenced by, are just one or two things within that book.

So I had that thought hanging out someplace in the back of my mind while I was reading According To Plan: The Unfolding Revelation Of God In The Bible, by Graeme Goldsworthy. It is an introduction to the field of biblical theology. It's a pretty good, and very readable book, that walks through the revelation of God's plan of redemption, beginning with creation and ending, presumably, with Christ. I'm a bit past halfway in my reading of it.

And so I was reading about the people of God, having left slavery in Egypt and headed for the Promised Land, when they receive the Law and are called to live in obedience to it. Goldsworthy writes this:

"Salvation or redemption means being restored to a position of sonship and fellowship with God. To claim to have received the gift of friendship with God while persisting in a life marked by alienation and enmity is clearly nonsense."

That sentence in bold just stopped me in my tracks. Goldsworthy cuts to the chase in saying how impossible it is to claim to have faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord, and then continue to live each day as if you are your own savior and lord. To claim one as true but to live for all practical purposes as if it's not is "clearly nonsense."

Have you ever known times of prayer, where perhaps you confessed of a sin, repented of it, and almost as soon as your prayer ended your mind turned to thoughts of getting back to it. I know that I have. The biblical phrase for this is:

            "a dog that returns to his vomit."

We could praise God for many specific things but the ones that come to mind as I wrote this is his mercy and forgiveness. I was reading Psalm 130 earlier today, where the Psalmist writes:

"If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O LORD, who could stand?

But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared."

So I can praise God that when in those times I am living on the wrong side of the tracks in my relationship with him, that he is forgiving when I come back to him. Or, to refer to the biblical phrase above, when I see how disgusting the thing I am "eating" truly is, he has forgiveness as I came back to him. Which is infinitely better than to continue believing and living in what is truly, and clearly, nonsense.

Note: It appears that one of our cats had an upset stomach sometime today.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Always willing to save

I was reading Psalm 130 as I was working on planning for worship on the last Sunday of June and something just seemed to jump out at me towards the end of the psalm.  In the Good News translation, the version of the Bible we have in our pews, the last two verses read like this:

"Israel, trust in the Lord, because his love is constant and he is always willing to save.  He will save his people Israel from all their sins."

"He is always willing to save."  Just a few words, one phrase in the midst of a psalm, but they are words that carried great meaning to the people that they were first written for.  These words reminded the Israelites that whenever they turned from their sin and turned towards God they would find Him waiting for them, willing to forgive their sin.   The Lord is a God who is always willing to save His people, and as the following sentence makes clear, when the Lord saves He does not save in part but in whole.  He saves His people from all of their sins.

No matter how many sins there are.  No matter how bad those sins may look from the viewpoint of the sinner.  No matter how unforgivable any person may think that their sins make them.  When they turn to the Lord in repentance, with a heart and mind that want to live with the Lord, the Lord forgives their sins.  This was His promise, and God keeps His promises. 

These words were first written for the Israelites, but they remain true today for all who call on the Lord.  The psalm was a cry for help and it was written long before the life of Jesus but these words point forward and anticipate what God would be doing in His Son Jesus.  They anticipate the grace and mercy that God would give to sinners through Jesus. 

I know that I am writing this primarily for people who are inside the church.  The people who read this in the church newsletter or on my blog are most likely Christians already.  If that describes you then I am glad to be able to give you a reminder of the deep and wonderful grace that God has given you.

But…if you are a bit uncertain of your place with God, then I want to encourage you to turn toward Him and embrace Him.  The promise of God in the psalm is a sure and certain promise.  He will forgive your sin.  Every last bit of it.

And for both groups I invite you to prayerfully seek God and ask Him whom you might share the precious word of His grace and mercy with.  For God's desire to save sinners is news that is much too good to keep to ourselves.