"Get Up!"

  Too many are drowning in guilt. I am speaking of those immersed into the name of Jesus. Guilt is a terrible master. People who have failed and failed thinking that God will not and cannot forgive them any further. Who taught us that? The result is people withdrawing into themselves, not wanting to do anything or be around anyone. Their service to the Lord wains and even stops. What a tragedy! 

  Have we forgotten the Lord Jesus and His love? Have we lost so much faith that we no longer believe that the Lord will forgive? Do many not realize that God delights in forgiveness?? Yes, that's not a misrepresentation of God. God delights to forgive! (Micah 7:18-19)

  Instead of spending time thinking about your failures we should spend time thinking about the God who forgives our failures if we will confess (I John 1:9). Those words spoken are spoken to the one in Christ Jesus. Confess and He will forgive! Confess as He wants to forgive! That's our Father. We need to spend more time thinking about who we are running to and less time thinking about who or what we are running from. One takes you down. One will build you up. The only way to finding freedom and forgiveness is to embrace the Lord who wants to forgive you. When will we learn, even while the Lord was lifted up on the cross between heaven and earth, shamed in the eyes of man, the words came from His lips to His Father: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do!" A cruel and hateful people yet we hear the heart of our Savior wanting their forgiveness. What about us? Why can't we believe that? Jesus isn't only willing to receive you the failure but is eager to receive you! 

  What are we waiting for? Get up, see the blood, believe the words of the Lord, embrace His assurance with what faith you have. Stop looking at you! God doesn't delight in our sins and He never will. But He does delight in forgiving and that's why He gave us His Son Jesus. The real question is: Who do you delight in? Your sins or your Savior?