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Expunged

April 23, 2011 by Fritz

Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. – Hebrews 10:22-23

The Bible’s Letter to the Hebrews uses the rich imagery of the Old Testament to present the central benefit of Christ’s sacrifice for sin — a cleared conscience!

Clear, not from having done nothing wrong or sinful, but cleared by having our wrong deeds expunged by Christ’s actions. How do I know? God said so and I have no reason to doubt him. If the Judge, himself, says “Not Guilty!” who am I to argue?

Sound Bite: My criminal record with God has been expunged. In Christ I can walk with God as if I had never sinned.

-fritz

Posted in Explanations, Forgiveness, God, Guilt | Tagged | Leave a Comment »

Failed Expectations

April 22, 2011 by Fritz

We would never cry “Crucify Him!”  But haven’t we?

Holy Week commemorates the events leading to Christ’s resurrection.  Long ago the same people who greeted Jesus with excitement and, “Hosanna!”, later cried “Crucify Him!” – Why?  Failed Expectations.   They expected immediate political deliverance – what do we expect?   Anthony Bloom, former archbishop in the Russian Orthodox Church, said in his Palm Sunday message on April 4, 1993,

How many are those people who have turned away in hatred from Christ because He has disappointed one hope or another.

I remember a women who had been a believer for all her life and whose grandson died, a little boy, and she said to me, “I don’t believe in God anymore.   How could He take my grandson?”   And I said to her, “But you believed in God while thousands and thousands and millions of people died.”   And she looked at me and said, “Yes, but what did that do to me?   I didn’t care, they were not my children”

He goes on to say,

[S]omething happens to us in a small degree so often that we waver … when something which we expect Him to do for us is not done, when He is not an obedient servant, when we proclaim our will, He does not say, “Amen,” and does not do it

So we are not so alien from those who met Christ at the gates of Jerusalem and then turned away from Him.

What do you do when God doesn’t meet your expectations?

– fritz

Read Metropolitian Anthony’s whole message here.

Posted in Anthony Bloom, Expectations, Holy Week, Quotes | Leave a Comment »

Better Guidance

April 21, 2011 by Fritz

I will guide thee with mine eye. Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, … whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle” – Psalm 32:8b-9a,c

Sorry, but this verse reminds me of a scene from the movie “Men In Black” — let me tell you how.

An alien was hiding under a table in the morgue while an unsuspecting Mr. Smith, a Special Agent, interviews the doctor.   Trying to warn the agent without getting herself killed, Dr. Weaver kept looking in the alien’s direction — the doctor was trying to guide agent Smith with her eyes but he wasn’t alert enough to get it.

In our passage God is saying his guidance is with his eyes, so it requires a certain alertness on our part.   Instead of having to be jerked around like a horse or mule God wants us to be sensitive to his subtle painless guidance.

Sound Bite:Don’t be like a mule, let God guide you with his eyes – it’s less painful.

Prayer:Father, help me to be so close to you that I can be guided by your eye. Amen

– fritz

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