Guilty, but Declared Innocent

This post is third in a mini-series based on my jury duty experience.
See part one here
and part two here.

The main job of a juror is to look at the facts as seen in the evidence, and decide if the defendant is guilty or innocent, based on what the facts say.

In the case for which I was a juror, the facts didn't make that job easy. It was hard to trust the validity of the witnesses' testimonies, or the accuracy of computer data. We had no way of knowing whether something was dependable or not. Therefore, we had to decide that there was not enough proof to declare the defendant guilty of the main crime of which he had been accused. So, of that crime, we decided he was innocent.

As a sinful human being who answers to a far greater Judge than the one sitting in the courtroom I was in, I am not so lucky. There is very solid evidence against me. There's no jury debating my guilt or innocence.
I am, beyond all possible doubt, guilty of sin. I have broken God's laws, and God, who sees and knows everything, has no doubt of that.

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God..." Romans 3:23

Satan has accused me. My own sinful nature has convicted me.

But I will not receive the punishment due a guilty verdict.

"...and are justified freely by His grace." Romans 3:24

You see, when the Law pronounced guilty every person who's ever lived, God's Son stepped in to take the punishment we all deserve.
As a lawbreaker, I deserve death. Eternal separation from God.

"For the wages of sin is death..." Romans 6:23a

I'm not getting what I deserve.

"...but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:23b

Jesus Christ took my guilt upon himself. He had never sinned, and he was perfect--holy, pure and righteousness. He told his Father, "Look at them and see my sinlessness. Look at me and see their sin." And God said, "Yes. For your sake, I forgive them wholly."

"God made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Corinthians 5:21

He took the punishment that was rightfully mine--all of ours. He died. He experienced total separation from God, besides a physically excruciating death. He was mocked, humiliated, and tortured--so that I would not be.

But Jesus didn't stay dead. He paid the price, all right. But he is God, and God cannot die.

He faced my accuser--Satan. He announced that he had paid the price for my sin. And he declared to Satan that I can no longer be accused of guilt. Past, present, and future sins were all covered by Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. Nothing I do will earn me eternal condemnation. God looks at me as one holy and perfect, covered by the righteousness of his Son.

Now, I'll still have to face consequences for the poor choices I make. But I will never have to endure the punishment that those wrongs deserve.

There's no question: I committed the crime. But there's also no question that the guilt is no longer mine. The holy Son of the righteous Judge has taken my punishment. I am free and redeemed because of his love and grace.

Redeemed

Redeemed: bought back, exchanged, purchased, reclaimed, ransomed.

I have been redeemed.  I would be a slave to sin and Satan if Jesus had not paid the price for me.

Had he not given his life for mine, I would have had to pay for my sin with my own eternal soul.  I would have spent eternity in hell.  But Jesus paid the life-debt for me and all other people.  He took the guilt of our sin on himself and gave up his life as a ransom for us all.

Thus, I am free.  Saved.  Redeemed.  And so are you.

I am no longer bound to sin; now, because Christ is my Redeemer, I am bound to him.  I am one with him through my baptism, and my life belongs to Christ--to God-- because he made me.  In response to what he has done for me, I strive to love and serve him by loving and serving others.  I can't do this perfectly--I fail all the time--but he already took care of the guilt of my sins, including the failure to love and obey him fully, and even the sins I haven't committed yet.

I don't have to live in fear of punishment.  Jesus already took the punishment that I deserve.  He destroyed the power of Satan, death and hell.  They no longer hold power over me, or over you.  Satan still has power in this world, but the battle is over--he has already lost, and he knows it.  Those who believe in Jesus will spend eternity with him in heaven, no matter what Satan tries to do to them in this world.  Why?  Because we belong to Jesus, and he is more powerful even than Satan.

We can therefore live this life in joy.  We are free from the weight of our own sin, and from the weight of the sin of the world.  Jesus bore it for us.  Despite the evil that is still rampant all around us, our life doesn't have to be one of sadness or despair.  Not for us.  Not for those who are children of God.  We have the promise of eternal life, and we know that nothing can separate us from God's love--because he has redeemed and saved us.

I know that my Redeemer lives!
What comfort this sweet sentence gives.
He lives, he lives, who once was dead--
He lives, my ever-living Head.

He lives triumphant from the grave,
He lives eternally to save.
He lives all glorious in the sky,
He lives exalted there on high.

He lives and grants me daily breath.
He lives, and I shall conquer death.
He lives my mansion to prepare--
He lives to bring me safely there.

(I Know that My Redeemer Lives, vv 1, 3, 7; text by Samuel Medley.)

Offensive Grace

I don't like being told I'm helpless.  That I can't do anything to save myself.  I like feeling self-sufficient and independent.  I like feeling in control.

The thing is, I'm not.  I'm not really in control of my life.  I don't have control over my future.  And I certainly have no control over my life or how long it will last (ruling out suicide; that's an entirely different discussion).

God is in control of my life.  He gave me life, and he decides what will happen in it, and how long it will last.  And most importantly, God has guaranteed that I will not die eternally.

God has taken the responsibility for my salvation on himself.  I can do absolutely nothing about it.  No amount of good that I do has any bearing on my place in eternity.  Jesus took the punishment for MY sin on himself, and gave me his holiness and purity as a free gift.  I did not die for my sins.  I cannot claim the reward of salvation on my own because I do not deserve it.  I can only accept it because Jesus earned it for me and has given it to me freely.  He suffered an unbearable death on the cross in my place, and in the place of all other people who have ever lived.  He took the worst possible punishment--separation from God himself--on him, so that we would never have to experience it.

To many, many people, this sounds ridiculous.  "What does some Jewish teacher who lived two thousand years ago have to do with me?  How does his death guarantee my salvation?  Why do I even need salvation?  Why shouldn't I be able to earn it on my own?"

We don't like owing things to people.  We don't like to admit that we can't do everything for ourselves.

This is why the Gospel is foolishness to so many.  This is why grace is offensive.

Paul wrote to the Corinthians:

"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God....Where is the scholar?  Where is the philosopher of this age?  Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?  For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.

"Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 

"For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength...God choose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.  He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things--and the things that are not--to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.

"It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God--that is, our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.  Therefore, as it is written: 'Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.'"  (1 Corinthians 1:18-31)

Grace is a gift.  Plain and simple.  It's not something we deserve, it's something God gives to us because he loves us.

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast."  (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Linking with: Upward not Inward, A Wise Woman Builds Her Home,  Deep Roots at Home, We are THAT Family, Messy Marriage, Graced Simplicity

How I was saved, and how you were, too!

This post was inspired by this salvation story on natashametzler.com.  Reading Natasha's post and responding to it got me thinking about my own salvation story!

The story of my salvation doesn't start with me.  It starts with God.  God, who created heaven and earth and everything in them.  God, who from the beginning of the world had a plan to conquer sin and death (Genesis 3:15).  God, who sent His Son to earth to become a human baby, who would grow into a sinless human man, who would die for the sins of the whole world (John 3:16).

Image Credit:  bela_kiefer via www.freedigitalphotos.net

My salvation starts with the incredible love of God.  It's because God loves us--all people--so much that He has a plan for all of us to spend eternity with Him.

He gives us faith.  We become His children.  We believe in His Son, Jesus Christ, and the fact that Jesus' death paid the price for all the wrong we ever do.  We live a brief life on earth, obeying God and loving Him according to His Word and in response for the gifts He constantly gives us (in addition to the gift of faith in Him!  Wow!).  Then, when our sinful, earthly bodies die, our sinless souls are united with God in heaven, and spend eternity joyfully with Him in paradise.

This is what God did for me.  He made me his child just four weeks after I was born into this world.  In my baptism, the Holy Spirit came into my heart by the power of God's Word, and gave me faith.  It wasn't necessary for me to understand what that meant, because my saving isn't about me.  It's not anything I do.  God saves us, God makes us His children.  It's kind of like how we become our parents' children.  We don't have any choice to become their children.  And they don't love us because of anything we do.  They love us simply because they are our parents.  God loves us because He is our Father.

So I became God's child through the miracle of baptism.  As I grew, my parents taught me, using God's Word, how much God loves me, and what Jesus did for me.  And I knew for sure that I was God's child.  I knew that whenever I died, I would be in heaven with Jesus.  I knew that I was sinful, and did bad things, but I also knew that God forgave those sins when I asked Him to, just as my parents told me they forgave me when I disobeyed them.

Now that I'm an adult, I'm still constantly learning what it means to be God's child.  How does that play out in my everyday life?  God reminds me daily to trust Him in everything.  He has to keep teaching me how to accept His forgiveness, because I struggle with remembering that.  Satan is constantly working to try to pull me away from God, but I know that because the Holy Spirit lives in my heart, Satan can't hurt me.  Jesus has already defeated him and his power, and I have nothing to fear.

So my salvation story doesn't end with me, either.  It ends with the ultimate gift from God--eternal life in heaven.  It will end when my sinful body dies, and my eternal, holy, sinless soul is taken to heaven by Jesus, where I will live with Him forever.  There no one will be sad or in pain.  There will be no death, no grief, no discomfort.  There will be joy, peace, love, and light, and it will be more wonderful than we can ever imagine, until we actually get there.

God wants everyone to be in heaven with Him.  He has created you just like He did me, and He loves you, too, more than you will ever understand.  I hope you know my Jesus, too, and know that He is your Lord and Savior--and how much He loves you.  You can spend eternity in heaven, too, because Jesus paid the price for your sins as well as mine.  Try saying this to God, your Father--you have nothing to lose, and everything to gain:

"Dear God, I know you love me.  I know you sent your Son, Jesus, to pay the price for my sins.  I acknowledge Jesus as my Lord and Savior.  Thank you for giving me faith in you and in what Jesus has done for me.  Now, as your child, I give my whole life to you."

Linking up today: A Holy Experience, Upward Not Inward, Deep Roots at Home, Raising Homemakers, We are THAT Family

Saved by Grace. This is what matters.

My friends, it's a blessed but weary morning.  Most days I'm ready to jump out of bed and start my Bible reading, make breakfast, write a post if I haven't already.

Today I'd love to go back to bed, but this house needs my attention, and so do you.  And you and I both need a reminder of the big picture--what life is all about, what the most important thing is.  (And I'll tell you what, it's not the fact that I have a lot of picking up to do around here.)

It's this:

Ephesians:
2 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins ² in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— ³ among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body^[a] and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.^[b] 4 But^[c] God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, ⁵ even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— ⁶ and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, ⁷ so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. ⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not a result of works, so that no one may boast. ¹⁰ For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. [Emphases added] [Source]

This is what matters.  We can't expect perfection from ourselves, because we're not perfect.  We needed saving--which means at one point, we were lost.  Specifically, dead (see v. 1).  But in our baptisms, God made us one with Christ--one in his death, and one in his resurrection, so both Jesus' sacrifice and righteousness count for us, too.  God made us alive with Christ.  He has given us the promise of eternal life with Jesus, and because of his grace has given us faith (again, through our baptism and in the Word) which saves us.

Can I add a note here?  Perhaps you don't believe the truth of these things.  You might have heard about them, but not made them a part of your life.  If you don't know who Jesus is, or if you've heard of him but don't believe in him as your Lord and Savior, please, email me (jaimie dot ramsey at cune dot org) and we'll talk.  This message is for you, too, because Jesus also died for and loves YOU!


Our salvation is not contingent upon anything we do or don't do.  That would make even salvation from sin into a law.  But it's not.

Our salvation is entirely about Jesus, and what HE has done for us.

We are children of God and the Holy Spirit lives in our hearts, enabling us to live obedient lives to God.  Because of Jesus' sacrifice on our behalf, God no longer looks at us and sees sinners.  He looks at us and sees Jesus.  He knows we're sinful, but he also knows Jesus has already paid the price for that sin.  He has already forgiven us for everything we have done or will ever do that is against his will for us.  There is no more price to be paid, no more punishment to be taken.  Oh, we experience the temporal consequences of bad decisions.  Sometimes those consequences are acutely painful.  But they don't affect our eternal state--our soul has been ransomed by Jesus Christ, and nothing in this world can touch it.

Ah...yes.  This is what's important.  God doesn't love me more if my house is clean.  He doesn't look at my homemaking skills or my good grades and say, "Well done, Jaimie, you've just made your salvation more sure."  That would be ridiculous.  God doesn't depend on us for our own salvation.  He just asks that we don't throw away the faith in his Son that he's graciously given us.  And I'm not about to do that.

Today, you and I can rest in the knowledge that God loves us, no matter what our house looks like, no matter how we do in our job or our studies or whatever vocation we're in.  Remember that you are saved by grace through faith, and this is NOT of your own doing.  It's a gift from God.

Linking today with Upward not Inward, Exceptionalistic, Deep Roots at Home, Raising Homemakers

Abraham: Living by Faith

This week for my Bible study I've been reading in Genesis, chapters 12-22.  These are the ones about Abraham and Sarah.  I haven't really pondered their journey recently, and reading this story anew brought things to light that I hadn't thought about before.

First, Abram and Sarai (their original names) traveled with Abram's father and family from Ur to Haran-- quite a long way.  Then when Abram was seventy-five and his wife was sixty-five, God called them to leave their family behind and move again, this time all the way to Canaan.  (Click on this link to see a map of their journey.)

God made a promise to Abram before they left Haran:
^{2 "}And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. ³ I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Genesis 12:2-3

Shortly after their arrival in Canaan they traveled to Egypt to escape a famine (Gen. 12:10-20). Pharaoh tried to make Sarai part of his harem because Abram lied and said she was his sister (see 20:12).  Pharaoh found out and was not happy, but gave them riches and servants anyway and sent them on their way.

They went back to Canaan where Abram parted ways with his nephew Lot, who had been traveling with them.  Lot got into trouble with local kings and Abram had to rescue him (Gen. 13-14).  Abram and Lot were successful, and once again God blessed them through their enemies.  God renewed his covenant with Abram, promising him the land in which he lived would belong to his descendants, of which there would be more than there were stars in the sky (Gen 15).

However, Abram and Sarai were getting old, and Sarai doubted that she would be able to have a child.  So she gave her servant Hagar to Abram to conceive a child, which Hagar did, bearing Ishmael.  Unfortunately, as soon as Hagar became pregnant, Sarai was jealous of her and treated her poorly (Gen 16).

Not long after that, God and three angels appeared to Abraham (whose name God had changed) in the form of human men.  They told Abraham that in a year's time, his wife would bear a son.  God had already informed Abraham of this (17:15-22), but this time it was in Sarah's hearing (18:1-15).  Her response was the same as Abraham's when he heard:  She laughed.

Later, God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, where Lot and his family were living.  Only Lot and his two daughters escaped, and they did not live God-pleasing lives (Gen. 19).

Another king, this time Abimelech king of Gerar, tried to make Sarah part of his harem and God spared him punishment (Gen 20).

Finally, Abraham and Sarah's son Isaac was born, fulfilling God's prophecy (Gen. 21).  Then when Isaac was in his teens, God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son.  Abraham was about to do it when God stopped him and provided a ram for the sacrifice instead, rewarding Abraham for his faith and obedience (22:1-19).

Isaac, of course, was the father of Jacob, who had twelve sons, who became the twelve tribes of Israel.  From Abraham the entire Jewish line was descended, and through his son Ishmael the Arabian tribes descended (Muslims trace their heritage back to Abraham as well as Jews and Christians).  But Abraham and Sarah couldn't see how God's promises would be fulfilled, hundreds and thousands of years into the future.  They both struggled to trust.  They lied, doubted, tried to do things their own way, and laughed at God's words.

Despite all of this, Abraham was praised by the writer of Hebrews as a man of faith (Hebrews 11:8-12).  This passage says that Abraham trusted God "by faith," and that even Sarah "considered [God] faithful who had made the promise."  And that was after Sarah had laughed at God's prediction of her conception!

In 1 Peter 3 we read that the holy women of the past used to make themselves beautiful with "the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit" (1 Peter 3:4).

⁵ For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, ⁶ as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening. (3:5-6)

Abraham trusted and obeyed God, and Sarah trusted and obeyed her husband.  No, they did not do it perfectly.  They sinned.  They doubted sometimes.  But what does the writer of Hebrews tell us?  They had faith.

⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Eph. 2:8-9) 

The faith in God that Abraham and Sarah had did not make them perfect.  It did not make them impervious to fear and doubt.  But that faith was not something that they had by their own doing.  God blessed them with faith to trust in him.  He blessed them even when they faltered.  And God does the same with us.

I think too often we read the Genesis passage in light of the Hebrews one.  Abraham was a man of faith, so those things he did in Genesis weren't as bad as they really seem.  Well, they really were bad!  Abraham was a sinner, just like you and me.  But when we look at the Hebrews passage in light of the Genesis one, we see God's grace.  We see that God counted Abraham and Sarah righteous, and faithful, not by anything they had done, but because of God's grace and mercy--because of Jesus and what he did for them.

The same is true for us.  We are sinners, yes, but because of Jesus, God looks at us with love and grace.  He does not look at the sinful things we have done or count them against us, because Jesus has paid the price for those sins.  God looks at us as perfect and holy, because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross in our place.  He died for us and for all people who have ever lived (including Abraham and Sarah) so that we don't have to die eternally, but can look forward to eternity in heaven with Jesus.

Therefore, like Abraham, we may live by faith--by the grace of God in Jesus Christ. 

Can you relate at all with the struggles of Abraham? How do you see God's grace working in your life?  

Linking today with Upward Not Inward, Exceptionalistic

the reason for friendship. And my Best Friend.

I realized yesterday why God gives us friends.

It's so that he can love us through other people.  Friends are one of God's means of blessing us.

And, he gives us friends so that he can bless them through us.  It's a two-way street.

I mean, even Jesus surrounded himself with just twelve men--his closest friends--and even had three very best friends out of those twelve (Peter, James and John).  If God himself needed friends while he lived on this earth, then we certainly do.

It's so important to have someone in your life who you can trust completely.  Who can trust you.  Someone who will love you for exactly who you are, but still let you know when you're being an idiot.  Someone who helps you to grow, and become the person God is shaping you to be.

It's even more of a blessing when you have several someones like that.  I'm more thankful than words can express to say that I do.  Besides just my husband, who is my very best friend, there is more than one other person who I consider a true friend.

Not all of them are people I talk to all the time.  Some of them I haven't seen in months, or even in over a year.  But when we do get together, we pick up right where we left off.

Some of them are so much like me it's scary.  Some of them are very different from me.  But they are all in my life for good reason--even if God's the only one who knows what those reasons are.

I have to be careful to remember, though, that these human relationships aren't the most important relationship in my life.  There is Someone who wants to be my Best Friend, even better than my husband.  He wants me to come to talk to him about everything.  He knows me exactly as I am, all my best and worst qualities, and he loves me anyway.

His name is Jesus.

And if he isn't your Best Friend, too, I know he wants to be.  You can just ask him to come into your life.  He'll come.  He loves you more than you can imagine.  He's better than any human friend--because he's God.  He made you.  He saved you from all the evil in the world, and in your own life, and in yourself.  He died so that you could be forgiven of every bad thing you've ever done or will do.  He rose again so that he could, someday, bring you to live with him in heaven forever.

This friend gave his life so that he could spend eternity with you.

That's a real friend.

Simple Faith

I recently read a book by Janette Oke called A Bride for Donnigan.  I won't give a full synopsis--it was just the end that really moved me yesterday.  (However, I would recommend this and all her books!)

By the end of the book, two parents are trying to raise their six young children as well as they can.  Neither parent was raised in a Christian family, but they believe there is a God, and that they should teach their children about Him.  Slowly, through much study of the Bible, they come to understand what God has done throughout history.  But there is something missing.  The husband and wife are both still burdened with anger and unforgiveness as a result of their past.  Finally, while talking with their children about Jesus, their little girl realized what they needed to do.  "I want to tell God sorry," she sobbed.  Her parents had not yet understood what it meant to pray--that they could just tell God anything--but their small daughter spoke simply to God, telling Him she was sorry for the bad things she had done, and asking Him to forgive her.  When she finished, she looked up at them with a smile full of joy and peace, knowing she was forgiven.

Her parents wanted that.  So, not long afterward, they each told God that they were sorry for what they had done wrong, asked Him to forgive them, and asked Him to help them live their lives in obedience to Him.

It was that simple.  They, too, felt the peace and joy that their little daughter had.

Now, I know this is a fictional story.  But Janette Oke is right.  The apostle John wrote in his first epistle,

"If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:8-9).

It's that simple.  When we confess our sinfulness, God forgives us and purifies us from the sin within us.

I've been a Christian all my life.  I was baptized when I was less than a month old, and I've had saving faith in Jesus Christ ever since.  I am thankful for this, but sometimes I make my faith more complicated than it needs to be.  Sometimes I'm fooled into thinking I actually have to do something to earn God's forgiveness...that I have to live a perfect life in order to please Him.

Well, I would have to live a perfect life to please God...if Jesus hadn't already done it for me.
There's nothing more I have to do.  Jesus has paid the price for my sins, taken them away on the cross, and provided the means necessary for my eternal forgiveness and salvation.

I don't have to try to impress God.  All He wants me to do is "tell Him sorry."
Thanks be to God for His immeasurable grace!!

Yesterday, as I closed this book, I was in tears.  I realized that I had been trying too hard.  I don't need a big, complicated faith.  Jesus encouraged His followers to have faith like a child--and that's what I need, too: a complete, unassuming faith that expects nothing of myself.  God doesn't expect me to be perfect.  He knows I can't be, and that I can't do anything good on my own.  He is the One who gives me the willpower, strength and ability to please and serve Him.  

So I asked Him for that.  I asked Him if this blog is really what He wants me to do--if it's pleasing and glorifying to Him.  I asked Him to help me be the best wife I can be to Joshua.  I asked God to help me honor, glorify, serve and praise Him in everything I do.

Then, last night, a friend messaged me on Facebook.  She said that my blog was a blessing to her, and even asked for help in coming up with an idea for a devotion.

A comment on yesterday's post suggested that I write devotions for women.

My husband reiterated once again that I am a great wife to him.

Now, it's not often that God answers my prayers quite this clearly.  Sometimes I'm not sure what His answer is.  Sometimes it's "No" or "I have something better for you."  But yesterday, the answer clearly was "Yes."  I am so very thankful to have been encouraged in this way.

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins

and purify us from all unrighteousness."

When we pray, "God, please forgive me," that is a prayer He always answers with "Yes."

God keeps His promises.

Whenever we confess, He will forgive and cleanse us.

And it really is as simple as that--as simple as a child's faith.

A Political Victory, or a Spiritual Tragedy?

A friend posted on facebook last night, "Who needs the news when I have facebook?"  Around 9:30 and 10:00 every other post was announcing Osama bin Laden's death.  My initial reaction was one of relief--finally, the ring leader of Al Quaeda is dead.  And then, to my shame, I thought, I wonder how Satan felt about this.  It's a victory for our side, right?  One of Satan's most powerful tools is gone, after all.

My wonderful and wise fiance reminded me, when I voiced this thought, that Satan probably laughed: he had claimed another man for his own.  God would not want me to consider this a victory.  He weeps whenever one of his created people is lost to Satan.  It hit me:

Jesus died for Osama bin Laden for the same reason He died for me.  Paul wrote in his first epistle to Timothy that God "wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth" (1 Tim. 2:4).  John wrote in his Gospel, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).  The Gospel is for ALL people.  Jesus died to save the world.  That includes bin Laden just as surely as it includes me.

Some are calling bin Laden the "Hitler of our generation."  That he may be.  He certainly is responsible for the deaths of millions of people.  It was the attack on our country that he orchestrated that caused the war that has lasted for the last decade.  This man was responsible for much grief, pain and death.

But Jesus took all bin Laden's sins on himself, just as he took my sins on himself.  "For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God," Paul writes in Romans 3, "and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."  The death of Osama bin Laden is a tragedy, because he rejected the saving grace of Jesus Christ and will now spend eternity separated from God.  Who could rejoice at such a thing?

I rejoiced yesterday, watching over 20 confirmands profess their faith in Jesus Christ.  Two of them, adults, had been born and raised Buddhist, and have recently come to faith in Jesus.  That was cause to rejoice: two more people are members of the Body of Christ and will spend eternity in heaven with him.

I don't want to sound legalistic or holier-than-thou.  I admitted that at first I felt relief knowing bin Laden was dead.  But I feel greater relief at knowing that in Jesus, I am alive, by the grace of God.