It is a rare and precious gift that too many Christians get to receive all too infrequently, but of which I am privileged to partake every single week. Our pastor's style and method of preaching the Scriptures is very different than mine, but that's OK because the Holy Spirit is behind both our preaching, and he does one thing (there's actually more than one) better than I ever did. Every Sunday before presenting the bread and the cup, pastor Joe calls us to repentance. Some people might be offended by that; others perhaps gloss over it, but it never fails to bring me up short. He reminds us that coming to the table unrepentant is serious business.
I wish I could say that there has been a week in which I had no need to repent, but that hasn't happened. I'm not going to go into any detail concerning the sins for which I need forgiveness; some would look at my list and say, "Is that all? Can't he find something more racy than that?" Others would look at my list and think to themselves, "I'm not sure I want to associate with him any more." We humans have a tendency to make comparisons in which we come out smelling either like roses or skunks. Such comparisons are never helpful, fostering either pride or despair. The only comparison we need to make is to our Hero, Savior, and Leader, Jesus Christ.
The blessing in comparing ourselves with him is that we never have reason for pride, but we also never have occasion for despair, because although we never measure up, we are always included in his invitation to come, repent, and find full and free forgiveness.
Today pastor Joe preached on tithing, using texts I have used for the same purpose many times. There was little he said that I haven't said at one time or other myself. But as I re-read the texts and the surrounding contexts, I found that God was relentless in directing his words to the spiritual leaders of the people, calling them to repentance for their carelessness in the fulfillment of their responsibilities. Here's one example: "You have wearied the LORD with your words. But you say, "How have we wearied him?" Because you say, "Everyone who does evil is good in the Lord's opinion, and he delights in them," or "Where is the God of justice?"" (Malachi 2:17). I've often looked at the mess our world is in and asked that very same question. Guess what? It''s a sin! For this offense, and for many others, I found myself in an attitude of repentance this morning, and will no doubt find myself next week also. But, praise God, I know I will meet with forgiveness then just as I did today, and I will once more come to the Table. For that, I am humbly grateful.
No comments:
Post a Comment