eMpower • iMpact • iMpart
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He calls us to forgive
Without an acknowledgment of wrong from the one who hurt us,
Without repentance or contrition from the one who wronged us,
Without an apology or a promise to do better from the one who offended us,
We are exhorted to forgive just as freely as we were forgiven.
Does God walk away from us when we sin? Does He stop talking to us when we sin? When Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden tree, they hid. They covered. God continued to speak to them. God looked for them. David said, “Where can I hide from His presence. If I make my bed in hell, He is there.” An aversion to sin did not prevent Jesus from allowing...
Does the thought, “we are naked before God” make you uncomfortable? The truth that God knows our every thought can honestly make us a little squeamish. Sometimes I entertain thoughts of jealousy, revenge, self-promotion, intolerance. Can God hear those thoughts and still love me? When Adam and Eve were in the Garden, they walked around naked and free. Oblivious to their exposure. They experienced no shame. But after their snack,...
I was commenting on the humility of a former student, R. Another student said, “Well M is also humble. Even though she makes an A on most tests, she still worries about her grade and thinks she didn’t do well.” I looked at M (she is a former student and we have a great relationship) and said, “That’s not being humble. That’s being neurotic.” Then I thought about us as...
I wrote a couple of days ago we don’t have bad days, just bad moments. But I think it’s safe to say on this day in history, Jesus was having a bad day. Betrayed by a friend. Abandoned by his students. Denied by his buddy. Ridiculed. Beaten. Slapped. Spit upon. Lied upon. Sentenced to death. Crucified. But as He was dying, as He came to the end of this horrific...
What is sin? Since we are no longer under the law, can we still sin? Are the sins listed in the Old Testament still applicable today? As I read Colossians 3 this morning, I find myself thinking about conversations and teachings I have heard over the last few months. Here is my humble conclusion on the matter. In my life, it doesn’t matter. Does this mean, I’m going to go...
Understanding the Old Testament as a New Testament Christian can be tricky. It can almost seem like we are picking and choosing what we believe. It can seem like we are ordering from a menu, “I’ll have the blessings but hold the curses.” This is a challenging topic and can in no way be answered in a FB post at 5:00 am by a sleep deprived math teacher. But I’ll...
King David had many sons, many choices for someone to proceed him as king. Yet he chose Solomon. Solomon was the child born from David’s most renown sin. When David should have been at war, he was home napping, and spotted a beautiful woman innocently fulfilling the law of purification. He spotted her, took her, slept with her and then killed her husband as a cover-up. Solomon was the product...
Did you know shame, guilt, and condemnation were not emotions initially experienced in the Garden of Eden? The emotions of guilt and shame were introduced after the fall. We were not designed to carry these emotions. So how do I overcome them? How do I show remorse without partnering with guilt, condemnation and shame? 1. Take responsibility. Apologize without explanation. Make amends where possible. 2. Receive the forgiveness of God....
Unrepentant. Unaware. They shouted for His death – a cruel, agonizing, shameful death. No one asked for forgiveness. Why would they? They were acting on behalf of God or so they thought. Jesus, watched as they yelled crucify him! He willingly allowed the nails to be driven in His hands, His feet. The blood flowed and He looked at his accusers through the blood. His eyes were not filled with...