The sanctuary of forgiveness
Some things people do seem unforgivable. Yet, Jesus told us to forgive 70 times 7—for the same infraction, every day.
But some things are not personally against me—they are against my faith. During the time when I’m reconnecting with God, they interrupt and sometimes that reconnection doesn’t take place. Do you know how miserable it is to not be connected with Jesus? To not have faith in His love? Without His love I can’t love. And life is miserable.
One thing that interrupts that reconnection is in the middle of the worship service, during a song, the prayer, the preaching, a cell phone rings. Suddenly, the wonderful atmosphere of heavenly love, the peace that comes with faith, is broken and we are brought back to this dark godless world. This makes me angry.
For some who are struggling to have faith and grace for the first time, such a disturbance could mean the postponement of surrender and conversion and peace—a delay for a long time, possibly years.
Bringing a cell phone into the worship service and believing every call is more important than having your faith catch on and meeting with God breaks the first commandment, “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.” It is unforgivable, especially when it impacts other’s difficult search for faith.
Yet, though the sin is grievous and unforgivable, the person who was negligent or forgetful about putting the phone on vibrate is forgivable—and always will be. ALWAYS! But what do you do when your heart is twisted in knots between not forgiving the sin and needing to forgive the sinner?
You run to the sanctuary. “For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning. If I say, I will speak thus; behold, I should offend against the generation of Thy children. When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me; until I went into the sanctuary of God.” “Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary.” (Ps. 73:14-17;77:13).
How many times did trouble erupt in the wilderness and the children of Israel threaten the life of Moses! And what did he do? He fled into the sanctuary and talked it over with God.
“Come, My people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.” (Is. 26:20). “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” (Ps. 23:6). “In the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion: in the secret of His tabernacle shall He hide me; He shall set me up upon a rock…. Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say on the Lord.” (Ps. 27:5,14).
There, in the sanctuary we see a God who forgives us 70 septillion times 7! There we see our Redeemer work through us in the uplifting of those around us, all the while having to overlook our rottenness while He uses us. We see the pain that our self-indulgence and self-sufficiency cause Him. We see a Lamb suffering and losing life because of us.
We must run to the sanctuary, and we will find that even the most grievous sins against us, that very relationship with God that someone is stealing from us and from others, is restored anyway simply because trouble drove us to Him. We also find that though sin is unforgivable, sinners must always be forgivable by other sinners.
But some things are not personally against me—they are against my faith. During the time when I’m reconnecting with God, they interrupt and sometimes that reconnection doesn’t take place. Do you know how miserable it is to not be connected with Jesus? To not have faith in His love? Without His love I can’t love. And life is miserable.
One thing that interrupts that reconnection is in the middle of the worship service, during a song, the prayer, the preaching, a cell phone rings. Suddenly, the wonderful atmosphere of heavenly love, the peace that comes with faith, is broken and we are brought back to this dark godless world. This makes me angry.
For some who are struggling to have faith and grace for the first time, such a disturbance could mean the postponement of surrender and conversion and peace—a delay for a long time, possibly years.
Bringing a cell phone into the worship service and believing every call is more important than having your faith catch on and meeting with God breaks the first commandment, “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.” It is unforgivable, especially when it impacts other’s difficult search for faith.
Yet, though the sin is grievous and unforgivable, the person who was negligent or forgetful about putting the phone on vibrate is forgivable—and always will be. ALWAYS! But what do you do when your heart is twisted in knots between not forgiving the sin and needing to forgive the sinner?
You run to the sanctuary. “For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning. If I say, I will speak thus; behold, I should offend against the generation of Thy children. When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me; until I went into the sanctuary of God.” “Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary.” (Ps. 73:14-17;77:13).
How many times did trouble erupt in the wilderness and the children of Israel threaten the life of Moses! And what did he do? He fled into the sanctuary and talked it over with God.
“Come, My people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.” (Is. 26:20). “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” (Ps. 23:6). “In the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion: in the secret of His tabernacle shall He hide me; He shall set me up upon a rock…. Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say on the Lord.” (Ps. 27:5,14).
There, in the sanctuary we see a God who forgives us 70 septillion times 7! There we see our Redeemer work through us in the uplifting of those around us, all the while having to overlook our rottenness while He uses us. We see the pain that our self-indulgence and self-sufficiency cause Him. We see a Lamb suffering and losing life because of us.
We must run to the sanctuary, and we will find that even the most grievous sins against us, that very relationship with God that someone is stealing from us and from others, is restored anyway simply because trouble drove us to Him. We also find that though sin is unforgivable, sinners must always be forgivable by other sinners.
posted by David | 7:01 AM
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