Tag: Christian living

The Cry for Forgiveness

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This week we are kicking off a brand-new teaching series. For the next few weeks we are going to be looking at forgiveness. We’ll explore this important idea from a variety of different angles including our cry to God for it, where it comes from, how it works, and what it looks like when we have received it. If forgiveness is something you need more of in your life – whether offering it or receiving it – this is series you won’t want to miss. We’ll start today with a look at the natural cry for forgiveness found on our lips when we have sinned in some way and broken a relationship. Guiding us in our journey will be David’s writings in Psalm 51. Let’s dive in.

The Cry for Forgiveness

When I was little I watched a lot of TV. It was mostly cartoons. There aren’t too many cartoons I didn’t watch growing up. That was before they started making adult cartoons, so I wasn’t really in much danger in that regard. I loved cartoons. I still do. Because of this, when I occasionally stepped out of line, one of the pressure points my parents could use as punishment was to take away TV for time. I remember one time when I had lost the privilege of watching TV for a week. I don’t have any idea what I had done, but I’m sure it was something that more than warranted the punishment. 

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Volunteers gardening; sign reads “URBAN ÖLYMPUS COMMUNITY GARDEN – FEEDING OUR NEIGHBORS.”

Faithful Words and Righteous Living

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“Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but one who hates correction is stupid. One who is good obtains favor from the Lord, but he condemns a person who schemes. No one can be made secure by wickedness, but the root of the righteous is immovable. A wife of noble character is her husband’s crown, but a wife who causes shame is like rottenness in his bones. The thoughts of the righteous are just, but guidance from the wicked is deceitful. The words of the wicked are a deadly ambush, but the speech of the upright rescues them. The wicked are overthrown and perish, but the house of the righteous will stand.” (Proverbs‬ ‭12‬:‭1‬-‭7‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

I was watching a new Batman cartoon the other day. In the episode, a crime boss was being threatened by a man he had ruined publicly and psychologically. The crime boss lived in a huge mansion guarded by more than a dozen well-armed and well-paid men. He scoffed at a warning call he received to take cover because he believed himself to be secure. He wasn’t. If he had listened to Solomon here, he might have been okay. His perceived security was all rooted in his wickedness, yet wickedness provided no real security at all. Let’s talk about this and the other proverbs in this first set from Proverbs 12.

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Two men support each other in a debris-strewn informal settlement.

Trusting in Something Worthwhile

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“One person gives freely, yet gains more; another withholds what is right, only to become poor. A generous person will be enriched, and the one who gives a drink of water will receive water. People will curse anyone who hoards grain, but a blessing will come to the one who sells it. The one who searches for what is good seeks favor, but if someone looks for trouble, it will come to him. Anyone trusting in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like foliage.” (Proverbs‬ ‭11‬:‭24‬-‭28‬ ‭CSB – Read the chapter) ‬‬

My son asked me the other day about the difference between Karma and God’s justice. I explained that the former is impersonal and not something we can rely on without having to resort to explanations like that we all live multiple lives. Ultimately, it’s not just. The latter, on the other hand, is personal and just and righteous and always driven by love and grace. It is better in every way. But for all its flaws, that we invented an idea like Karma is unsurprising. We are made in the image of a God who is just and we long for justice in our very souls. The idea that people reap what they sow only makes sense to us. Several of this next group of proverbs would agree. Let’s take a look.

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Man praying with clasped hands inside a stone church

But Did You Mean It?

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“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say, ‘We have not sinned,’ we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” (1 John 1:9-10 CSB – Read the chapter)

I had the chance last night to see the band MercyMe in concert along with Jeremy Camp, Tim Timmons, and Sam Wesley. It was a great show. Timmons and Wesley I hadn’t heard of, but that’s apparently because I haven’t yet seen the movie I Can Only Imagine 2 in which both feature prominently in the story. Wesley is actually the son of the lead singer of MercyMe. None of the actors who played them looked even remotely like the actual people, which is always funny to me. One of MercyMe’s biggest hits over the years is the song “Flawless.” The song offers listeners the assurance of forgiveness thanks to the incredible grace of God. The idea is that like John writes here in his first letter, God’s grace in Christ Jesus will cleanse us from all unrighteousness so that we are flawless. God’s grace, won for us by Jesus on the cross, is indeed an amazing thing. But it comes with a catch. Since I didn’t preach yesterday, let’s take a few minutes to talk about this catch this today.

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Pig with a nose ring standing in a muddy farm pen

How to Live a Life of Substance

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“The wicked person earns an empty wage, but the one who sows righteousness, a true reward. Genuine righteousness leads to life, but pursuing evil leads to death. Those with twisted minds are detestable to the Lord, but those with blameless conduct are his delight. Be assured that a wicked person will not go unpunished, but the offspring of the righteous will escape. A beautiful woman who rejects good sense is like a gold ring in a pig’s snout. The desire of the righteous turns out well, but the hope of the wicked leads to wrath.” (Proverbs‬ ‭11‬:‭18‬-‭23‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

Our culture is suffering from a crisis of meaning. Having unmoored ourselves from the solid rock of Christian theism with its clear and compelling vision for each person’s life, we are searching with greater desperation for something, anything that can give our lives the substance we need. Work is sometimes one of those things, but again, without that large framework of meaning, it quickly becomes empty too. All the rewards we receive from it amount to nothing. Solomon warns us of that here at the beginning of our next group of proverbs. Let’s take a look at these together today.

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