“Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” Luke 23:43. The dying thief found freedom in the final hours of his life. He admitted that God was right to punish his sin and right there from the cross, Jesus gave him the assurance that he would enter Paradise that very day! What […]
“Your brother was dead and is alive again and was lost and is found.” Luke 15:32. You are never too far away or too far gone to come back to you Father’s love. He stands waiting, just as the father of the prodigal son did…he had compassion and rejoiced that his son was no longer lost. […]
“You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people.” Leviticus 19:18. Harboring malice robs us of close relationships with others. Jacob cheated his brother and stole his birthright. Understandably, Esau was angry. But what he did with his anger became a serious problem, not only for Jacob but for Esau himself. He harbored […]
“Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?” Matthew 18:33. Genuine forgiveness runs deep. It is not a thin surface patch on a relationship, but an inner change of heart toward the offender. Too often we think we have extended forgiveness when we have only covered over […]
“I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions.” Isaiah 43:25. Just as an Old Testament writer would write something on a papyrus scroll and then get rid of it forever by blotting it out, so God wipes our sin from His record. Consider David’s use of the words “blot out” in Psalm 51:9. He […]