Too Bad To Be Saved

I don't have enough fingers to count how many times I've heard people say, "If you only knew what I have done! God could never forgive me." And because they feel that way, they reject the idea of forgiveness, the meaning of the cross, or consider salvation. Is there anyone too bad that God's love cannot pardon and save? Some people think they fall into that category. Perhaps you know of someone that feels too stained with sin for God to forgive them. They are wrong. God looks at sin differently than we do. We have a tendency to rank sinners based on the severity of their crime. Liars are okay, cheaters a little worse, murderers and rapists we measure as positively evil, and think of how we rate the likes of Hitler, Stalin, Bin Laden, etc. Every sin is a direct offense to GOD. No one sin is measured above another in God's eyes. James wrote in Chapter 2 verse 10, " Whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it." In other words, if you've ever broken one law, you are stained! I've sinned, you've sinned, all of us have done something that has broken God's law. Even if we don't know the Bible or the specifics of God's moral law, we sin whenever we do what our conscience tells us not to do. God put a conscience in every human being, so when we sin, we know it. It's equivalent of spitting in God's face and saying, "I DON'T CARE WHAT YOUR STUPID LAW SAYS, I'M GOING TO DO AS I PLEASE." Unfortunately, this rebellion becomes a way of life. One little sin leads to another, then another, then bigger sins. Our conscience becomes duller and duller over time until we care less and less if what we are doing is wrong.

Guilt can build over time. Sometimes we can get in so deep we don't know how to escape. Eventually, this kind of life always leads to inner emptiness though we may lie to ourselves by showing the world that we are happy. Maybe this is you. Perhaps you've tried psychological help, psychic help, meditation, a new religion or church, but still, nothing takes away your sense of despair. Do you feel hopeless, unable to shake what you're involved in and so believe God will never forgive you? If you think like this, your view of God is incorrect. The ultimate purpose of Jesus' execution was to take the punishment for "the sin of the world" (John 1:29). Jesus didn't just die for little sins, but also the worse infractions of all... it is written, He died FOR THE SIN OF THE WORLD. If you have sinned, if you live in "the world," Jesus died to take your punishment so that you could be excused, exonerated, saved from the retribution sin brings. Do you understand? JESUS ALREADY PAID THE PRICE. He paid it when He hung on a cross and died in your place. Your shackles have been broken. I'm speaking to the rapist, murderer, liar, extortionists, child molester, abortionist, cheater, thief, homosexual, fornicator, pedophile, etc. Think of that! Jesus has given you a way out of hell's punishment IF YOU WILL ONLY BELIEVE HE DIED FOR YOU, THAT HE IS THE SON OF GOD, WAS CRUCIFIED, DIED, AND ROSE THE 3RD DAY. If you believe, if you follow His ways, exoneration is yours! It's like you did something worthy of the death penalty and an innocent man went to the guards and said I will take his place, I will sit in the electric chair. Take my life and free him. This was Jesus. And Jesus did this for you over 2,000 years ago. His GRACE saved you if you'll only believe. He is waiting for you to accept it, then come follow Him.

Grace is God's kindness toward people who don't deserve it. There is no way you could do enough good things to pay for your own sins. It would be like trying to pay off the trillion dollar debt of this country! Jesus is the only one who could pay off your debt. He was free of sin, a pure sacrifice, offered up for mankind. Listen to this description from the Message Bible: "It was a perfect sacrifice by a perfect person to perfect some very imperfect people. By that single offering, He did everything that was needed to be done for everyone who takes part in the purifying process." Did you know Paul called himself "the worst of sinners"? (1 Timothy 1:15). Did you know Paul hated Christians at one time and had them killed? Were you aware King David, the king of Israel, was called "a man after God's own heart" because of his extraordinary devotion to the Lord (1 Samuel 13:14) yet David committed 2 grave sins. He committed adultery with Bathsheba and had her husband, Uriah, murdered so to assure David he could have Bathsheba for himself. How grave was that? Peter, one of Jesus disciples actually denied ever knowing Him after confessing Jesus was the Christ, the son of the living God! Peter had followed Jesus for years. I gave these two examples (though there are many more) because they fit many people today who have done these same things .... committing adultery, some have murdered, AND then there are even devout Christians who follow Christ for years then at some point deny they ever were followers of the faith. NO ONE is beyond redemption!

The unlimited love of God will not stop pursuing us no matter how far we flee from Him. I will not stop pleading for sinners to come home as long as His Spirit lives in me and prompts me to do so. The truth is, there is no darkness that His Light cannot dispel. There is no cruelty that His gentleness cannot transform. There is no addiction that His power cannot tame. There is no lust that His faithfulness cannot purify. There is no greed that His generosity cannot quell. The death of Jesus has paid the penalty, your penalty, my penalty for the totality of our sin ... big or small, and He freely offers forgiveness to all who put their trust in Him. For anyone reading this blog, are you ready to receive His Grace into your life and let Him take that mountain of sin that is crushing your hope, killing your joy, and leaving you in despair? You need to pour out your heart to Him and receive His forgiveness for the path you've taken and are going. It can be a simple prayer. Maybe something like this: Dear Jesus, I know that I am a sinner before your eyes. No matter how I try, I cannot find a solution to stop what I'm doing or to escape from the darkness of my own heart. I need your help. Please cleanse me, make me new by Your cleansing blood. Wash away the evil I've done, take control of my thoughts, my actions, and my words. Show me what's right, show me your knowledge that I may walk in eternal life with you. Teach me this love you talk about and let it produce love, forgiveness, kindness, compassion, generosity, and grace toward others in me. I give you my will, today, right now. I want to start over. I'm sorry I have sinned against You. Rescue me from myself. Amen. If you have decided to follow Christ today, I am thrilled. I am always available VIA email to answer questions or encourage you. My email address is in the right column directly below the list of blog titles. Until next time ...
-Pat-