J-e-s-u-s 3x Calling Your Name J-e-s-u-s, Your Name is a Wonderful, Your Name is Miracle, Your Name is a Mighty One J-e-s-u-s. You are highly lifted up there is no one like you, Alle- Alle-Alle-Alleluia Jesus.
Gracious Father, we thank You. Blessed Redeemer, we praise Your Name, we worship You with all that is within us. Thank You for the gift of another week, a brand new day You have made and said we should rejoice and be glad in it. Faithful God, we came with humility of heart and we plead for Your mercies and forgiveness in our lives today and forever.
Beloved, how are you doing? Putting your spiritual life on a scale of 1- 10, what is it reading this moment. Hope am not hitting hard this morning? Someone wants to find out whether we are taking spiritual audit and my answer is “Not at all”. But I just want to find out from you what your barometer of “uprightness” is reading today. No hard feelings.
I have find out overtime that it is difficult to deal with Christians especially those who feels that they are born- again for a long time. Discussing issues like sin, back-sliding, unforgiveness, anger, (the list too long to contain here) is usually difficult. They think they have outgrown such but the truth about this is that this ugly threats shows up especially under provocation.
Also asking for forgiveness from God for this group seems very unnecessary and uncalled for. My Christian journey has taught me otherwise. Thank God for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and the faithful men whom God has used to chastise me. If I may ask is it same with you? The bible made us to understand that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” If you say “you are without sin that there is no truth in you”. This is not a licensing for you to go on sinning but for us to tread with all carefulness in our Christian race.
On this back ground, every child of God must humble enough to say in our prayers “Father, forgive me for I have sin. Or when conversing with a young convert or your children to point out that we are not saint yet but “saints in making”. This will not only encouraged those you are bring up in the faith or before your Father in heaven that you are mere mortals and you must always watch it less you fall.
Having establish this, there is also another group of Christians who are very hard on themselves whenever they fall. Oftentimes they found it difficult to forgive themselves even when they have confess their sins before God. If you fall into this category, I want to encourage you with the study text today, like the prodigal son, go back to your Father and simply said “Father, I have sin.” Your heavenly Father is waiting for your home coming today, so much preparation has also been made for your arrival. Arise and go to your Father right now.
We have another group of people who willfully disobey God. They commit what is known as presumption sins. They take pride in sinful acts and do not fear God at all (Obad 1:3, 1 Sam 15:23). Such an individual must repent or face God’s wrath (Heb 10:26-27).
However, if you must humble yourself before the Almighty God and confess your sins, you will integrated into the household of God and you will approach your heavenly Father just in that child-like relationship with your earthly Father. Glory be to God.
Do not forget that if your sins are blotted out it is gone into the sea of forgetfulness through the cleansing power in the blood of Jesus shed on the cross of Calvary:
“Father, I have sinned.” Luke 15:18
It is quite certain that those whom Christ has washed in His precious blood need not make a confession of sin, as culprits or criminals, before God the Judge, for Christ has for ever taken away all their sins in a legal sense, so that they no longer stand where they can be condemned, but are once for all accepted in the Beloved; but having become children, and offending as children, ought they not every day to go before their heavenly Father and confess their sin, and acknowledge their iniquity in that character?
Nature teaches that it is the duty of erring children to make a confession to their earthly father, and the grace of God in the heart teaches us that we, as Christians, owe the same duty to our heavenly father. We daily offend, and ought not to rest without daily pardon. For, supposing that my trespasses against my Father are not at once taken to Him to be washed away by the cleansing power of the Lord Jesus, what will be the consequence?
If I have not sought forgiveness and been washed from these offences against my Father, I shall feel at a distance from Him; I shall doubt His love to me; I shall tremble at Him; I shall be afraid to pray to Him: I shall grow like the prodigal, who, although still a child, was yet far off from his father. But if, with a child’s sorrow at offending so gracious and loving a Parent, I go to Him and tell Him all, and rest not till I realize that I am forgiven, then I shall feel a holy love to my Father, and shall go through my Christian career, not only as saved, but as one enjoying present peace in God through Jesus Christ my Lord.
There is a wide distinction between confessing sin as a culprit, and confessing sin as a child. The Father’s bosom is the place for penitent confessions. We have been cleansed once for all, but our feet still need to be washed from the defilement of our daily walk as children of God.
Beloved, the word of God said “today, if you will hear His voice, harden not your heart.” As He promised, all your sins are blotted out, believe and be saved:
“I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto Me; for I have redeemed thee.” Isaiah 44:22
Attentively observe THE INSTRUCTIVE SIMILITUDE: our sins are like a cloud. As clouds are of many shapes and shades, so are our transgressions. As clouds obscure the light of the sun, and darken the landscape beneath, so do our sins hide from us the light of Jehovah’s face, and cause us to sit in the shadow of death. They are earth-born things, and rise from the miry places of our nature; and when so collected that their measure is full, they threaten us with storm and tempest. Alas! that, unlike clouds, our sins yield us no genial showers, but rather threaten to deluge us with a fiery flood of destruction. O ye black clouds of sin, how can it be fair weather with our souls while ye remain?
Let our joyful eye dwell upon THE NOTABLE ACT of divine mercy—”blotting out.” God Himself appears upon the scene, and in divine benignity, instead of manifesting His anger, reveals His grace: He at once and for ever effectually removes the mischief, not by blowing away the cloud, but by blotting it out from existence once for all. Against the justified man no sin remains, the great transaction of the cross has eternally removed His transgressions from him. On Calvary’s summit the great deed, by which the sin of all the chosen was for ever put away, was completely and effectually performed.
Practically let us obey THE GRACIOUS COMMAND, “return unto me. “Why should pardoned sinners live at a distance from their God? If we have been forgiven all our sins, let no legal fear withhold us from the boldest access to our Lord. Let backslidings be bemoaned, but let us not persevere in them. To the greatest possible nearness of communion with the Lord, let us, in the power of the Holy Spirit, strive mightily to return. O Lord, this day restore us!
Beloved, do you know that nothing is hidden from Him. You cannot hid your private sin from God. Remember, He saw you when you were formed in your mother’s womb. To Him no creature is unapparent before him; but all things (are) naked and laid bare to His eyes to whom we must give account. (Heb 4:13)
Beloved, do not harden your heart as His Word come to you. Hear Him and be save. Having shed His blood for your sake. Come with boldness to this Throne of grace and receive forgiveness. His Word is living and operative, and sharper than two-edge sword…. Heb 4:12, 14-16)
Beloved, pray this prayer with me “Father, I desire to do Your will.” Let us hasten as command and be save. May His grace abound in you as you come with boldness not with fearful heart. Someone is blessed now and another is receiving grace to return home. Glory be to God.
Beloved, this week is declared blessed in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
Remain blessed in the Lord.
