Spurgeon says, "According to this gracious covenant the LORD treats His people as if they had never sinned. Practically, He forgets all their trespasses. Sins of all kinds He treats as if they had never been, as if they were quite erased from His memory. O miracle of grace! God here doth that which in certain aspects is impossible to Him. His mercy worketh miracles which far transcend all other miracles."
Isn't that the greatest news you have EVER heard?? This is a truth that has gotten me through many days. The Lord forgets our sins. He treats us as if we had never sinned! Far from being a license to do whatever we please with no consequences, it is, instead, an encouragement and a comfort. The idea that our God takes my sins, forgives them and then casts them "as far as the east is from the west," is just amazing!
Lord Jesus,
If I love you my soul shall seek you,
but can I see you unless my love to you is kept alive to this end?
Do I love you because you are good, and can alone do me good?
It is fitting you should not regard me,
for I am vile and selfish;
yet I seek you,
and when I find you there is no wrath to devour me,
but only sweet love.
You stand as a rock between the scorching sun and my soul,
and I live under the cool lee-side as one elect.
When my mind acts without you it spins nothing but deceit and delusion;
When my affections act without you nothing is seen but dead works.
O how I need you to abide in me,
for I have no natural eyes to see you,
but I live by faith in one whose face to me is brighter than a thousand suns!
When I see that all sin is in me, all shame belongs to me;
let me know that all good is in you, all glory is yours.
Keep me from the error of thinking you appear gloriously
when some strange light fills my heart,
as if that were the glorious activity of grace,
but let me see that the truest revelation of yourself
is when you eclipse all my personal glory and all the honor, pleasure and good of this world.
The Son breaks out in glory
when he shows himself as one who outshines all creation,
makes men poor in spirit,
and helps them to find their good in him.
Grant that I may distrust myself, to see my all in you.
8 Let me hear what God the LORD will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly. 9 Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.
12 Yes, the LORD will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase. 13 Righteousness will go before him and make his footsteps a way.
"When a dying church is rekindled, when a spirit is revived, when harmony is restored - there is a blend of elements that produces a symphony of grace."
When we are willing to repent of something that the Holy Spirit has revealed to us, freedom and release occur. But let us not return to our folly! If we choose faith instead of folly, the Lord will give what is good and our land will increase.
"When I die to self, He will assume His rightful place as Conductor of my life, and I will hear the full symphony of His favor, promised to the faithful!"
I thank you, Lord, no I wildly PRAISE you, because my sins are not only forgiven, but FORGOTTEN!! I can't even begin to fathom how you can do that. But your words say that you can, and I believe it. It is such a comfort to know that I don't have to worry about those past sins. They are gone, wiped clean from my record. I just need help wiping them clean from MY record.
My soul will continue to seek Jesus. I pray that this will become such an obsession with me that it pushes away an unclean or unnecessary thing. Give me passion for Christ like I have never had before. It is true that, when my mind acts on its own, it "spins nothing but deceit and delusion." And it is true that, without you, my affections see only "dead works." You truly do outshine all creation, Lord. I trust you with all things.
PRAY FOR OUR CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS
The Senate and House are squabbling over $22.8 billion in supplemental funds for U.S. troops in Afghanistan,
attempting to offset the expenditure with recession to government programs no longer needing funding.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (Wisconsin) has proposed a 40% cut to the White House�s
$1.35 billion request for the 2011 �Race to the Top� incentive designed to spur reforms in K-12 education.
Pray that Congress would work to get governmental spending and programs under control.
Grace and peace, friends.