Romans 3:23 NIV
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
I changed the tagline of this blog to An Imperfect Blog because I realized that some of my recent posts were not Giving the Glory to God.
I am human. It took me seven years to read the New Testament in my Life Application Study Bible. I started when I first joined New Wine Fellowship in 2013, and I stopped around the time I left in 2020. I had a few more books to read in therapy, with Dr. Davis, and so I did. Completing Revelation in about 2021.
I am simply a person who applies what I read to my daily life and try to live by it (I was much better at it then) and now I write about it. That’s why the commitment to walk with the Lord is so difficult. It’s easy to fall off.
But Jesus is not the problem. He promises to be “the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8 NIV). The problem is actually us. And the guilt and shame we feel is actually the work of the enemy (Satan). He is the accuser (Revelation 12:10). Religion or its sidekick, legalism, could leave us sidelined from the slightest sin.
God loves all creation. He “sends rain on the righteous and unrighteous.” (Matthew 5:45) But God detests sin. Hence, the reason for Jesus our Mediator. My pastor gave me advice as an evangelist. Preaching God’s love will not work with everyone. Some will not take that seriously. God’s love and God’s judgement must be preached evenly in order to communicate the seriousness of sin.
But that is why grace is such a wonderful concept. It’s the Good News! Repentance is all that is needed. Transgressions are blotted out (Psalm. 51:1). If you hang out in really biblical circles, it is said that the consequences of each sin still remain. But forgiveness is guaranteed; through the ultimate debt paid on the cross by Jesus Christ.
Scripture quotations taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used with permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. http://www.zondervan.com