Tag: God’s character

The Reason for Forgiveness

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We know that forgiveness is fundamental to God’s character. But why does He forgive us? What is it that possesses Him to do such a thing? As we continue our series, The Beauty of Forgiveness, this is the next thing we are going to explore together. It is a wonder that God is willing to forgive us in spite of the extent and nature of our rebellion. Yet He does it anyway. Through the lens of something Isaiah wrote in Isaiah 43, let’s take a look at why.

The Reason for Forgiveness

In the world of politics, when someone gives you a lot of money, it’s almost always because they expect something from you. It is a long established tradition that megadoners to the winning presidential candidate get nominated to be the ambassador to some island nation where they’ll get to enjoy island life for four years, living in a luxurious place, and attending fun events mostly on the taxpayer’s dime. In the world of business, if someone gives you a lot of money, it’s typically because they want something from you. They want you to support this or that venture. They are looking for regulatory help. They are looking for an ally in some coming fight. Something. Big and extravagant gifts rarely come without any strings attached.

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The Source of Forgiveness

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This week we are continuing our teaching series, The Beauty of Forgiveness. Last time we talked about the fact that when we sin, we can go to Jesus to receive forgiveness. This week, with the help of another psalm of David, we are going to explore why exactly that is the case. What is it about Jesus that makes Him the best place to go for forgiveness when we have fallen into sin. The answer has everything to do with who He is. Let’s take a look!

The Source of Forgiveness

In the opening of the second chapter of his international bestseller, The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins offered up a description of God that was intended to be provocative. I wonder some if his position hasn’t softened a bit in the years since given some of the public comments he has made recently—including describing himself as a cultural Christian just last year—but at the time, he gave word to something that a whole lot of folks were feeling. Many still do.

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Learning to Trust

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This week we are wrapping up our short series, When I Am Afraid. For the last three weeks we have been talking about how to deal with times of fear and anxiety in our lives. Ultimately, the way we are going to get through that particular storm is through our willingness to trust in God. But what if we don’t trust in God? What if someone we know who is struggling under the weight of life doesn’t trust in God? What then? Well, we have to learn how and why trusting Him is the best decision we’ll ever make. In this last part of our journey, unpacking that truth is what we are talking about with the help of something Jesus said that reveals a great deal about His character. Let’s dive right in.

Learning to Trust

I want you to think for a second about someone you just don’t trust. My guess is that you have at least one person in your life who fits that particular bill. I’m not as concerned with the precise reason for the mistrust right now as I am with the presence of the mistrust itself. Do you have that person in mind? Now, imagine that you are struggling with something fairly significant and this person comes and offers you help. Are you going to accept it? Probably not, right? Maybe if you are sufficiently desperate you’ll give it some consideration, but absent that, you’ll keep on struggling on your own rather than take help from this person. Why? Because you don’t trust them. You don’t trust they are really going to be there when you need them. You don’t trust they aren’t offering with insincere or ulterior motives. You don’t trust they aren’t going to let you down in the end. You don’t trust them. And when you don’t trust someone, it’s hard to receive much of anything from them. 

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Advent Reflections: Isaiah 9:6-7

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“For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. The dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Grace is hard to find in our world. The world outside God’s kingdom doesn’t do grace. It’s all judgment and vengeance. The irony of this is that the world accuses God of this very thing. Yet while God surely does bring judgment when it is due, His first instinct is grace. We see this grace put most gloriously on display in the coming of Christ as a baby to live and die for our salvation. The arrival, or advent, of Jesus was something God started preparing us for long before the time finally came. The prophet Isaiah foretold His arrival more than once. Let’s take a look at one such prophecy.

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Digging in Deeper: Romans 12:19-20

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“Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for God’s wrath, because it is written, ‘Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord.’ But ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink. For in so doing you will be heaping fiery coals on his head.’” (CSB – Read the chapter)

We’ve all been there. Someone comes along and does something that makes you mad. What’s more, they meant to do it. Now you are left with a choice: How are you going to respond? Do you get them back? Do you let it go? Do you express your displeasure in some unmistakable way? If we’re being honest, for most of us, our first instinct is to start plotting how we can get revenge in some way. That’s normal. It always has been. And if there’s no God, or if we can’t trust the gods to avenge us, that kind of thinking makes sense. But if there is a God as is revealed in the pages of the Scriptures, it doesn’t. Let’s talk about it.

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