As human beings we fall short; we make mistakes; we sin — and when we do we feel bad about ourselves; we wrestle with guilty feelings. Peter, who was no stranger to falling short himself, wants us to know that we are forgivable! He affirms this in I Peter 2:10: “Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”
Some of us, even though we believe in Jesus, think whenever we’re having problems God is getting even with us; He’s punishing us.
Like the guy heading for Mt. Shasta… on his way up, it started to snow, so he pulled over to put on chains. Another car came by and slammed into his car, shoving it over a cliff. He decided to walk in the snow and sleet. On the way he caught a cold. When he finally made it, he rounded the corner and discovered his cabin had burned down. At that point he started hitting his head against a tree, saying, “Why me, God?”
The heavens parted and a voice said, “Because some people just tick me off!”
We laugh, but that is exactly how some of us view God! We think whenever we don’t measure up, make a mistake, fail or have a problem, God is ticked off. Does God treat us like this poor fellow heading for Shasta? Not at all! He’ll correct open, continuous rebellion, but He’s gracious with those who desire to follow Him and deal with their sin when they fail!
“I am the God who forgives your sins, and I do this because of who I am. I will not hold your sins against you” Isaiah 43:25.
God doesn’t hold a grudge! As pastor Rick Warren puts it: “He doesn’t rub it in, he rubs it out! He doesn’t rehearse it, he releases it!” If God forgives me I should forgive me!
“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” Isaiah 43:18
Awhile back I read about a woman who every week told her pastor about some new sin God was convicting her of. Finally, the minister said, “Does God ever say anything nice to you?”
When we receive Christ we receive a full pardon; the penalty for our sins is paid in full by Jesus. Does that mean we’re never going to fail? Of course not! It just means from that day forward when I fall short I acknowledge it, turn from it, and carry on.
Dr. Charles Cooley (1864-1929), a renowned American sociologist, said that: “Your self-esteem… is determined to a large degree by what you think the people or the person that matters most to you thinks about you.”
It behooves us to make Jesus Christ the most important person in our life because He is Lord of all — and He says we’re acceptable, adequate, valuable, and forgivable. If you’re a follower of Christ, let this message penetrate your soul. If you’ve never opened your heart and life to Jesus, why not do it today?