Lent Day 22: Forgiveness


"Son of man, say to the Israelites,
"This is what you are saying: 
Our offenses and sins weigh us down,
and we are wasting away because of them.
How then can we live?'


"Say to them, As surely as I live,"
declares the Sovereign Lord,
"I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked,
but rather that they turn from their ways and live.
Turn! Turn from your evil ways!
Why will you die, people of Israel?"

Ezekiel 33:10-11 NIV
Thankful today for an online conference:
spiritual direction and accountability
Do you ever feel like God "has it in" for you? That he is a stern taskmaster looking over your shoulder, hoping to spot imperfections? That he's holding a whip over your head to punish any weakness? That illness (or financial crisis or family chaos or ...?) is his retribution for your past sins?

 The Bible says God is perfect. That sin has to be punished. That we can't earn our salvation. (Could a righteous judge look the other way if a thief pleaded "not guilty" because s/he did good deeds to balance their wickedness?)

 But here's the glorious out-of-the-box solution God offers: he comes among us and pays the penalty so he and we can reconcile in perfect goodness. He looks at Jesus, perfectly human and perfectly God, who accepted death on our behalf. And we are free - not so we can live any way we want, but so we can freely live in God's presence with absolute righteouness.

 I'm staggered to think of it. I can't grasp the mystery of such love and such a wild solution. But I know it is enough to save me and bring me into God's presence. Mind-boggling, don't you think?

 I don't have to understand it. Actually, I can't wrap my head around it. But my heart say, YES! THANK YOU! to a God so good he crossed the chasm between his perfection and my so-not-perfect hopes and dreams.

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