Isn’t it incredible how Jesus never gives up on any of us? No matter who we are or what we’ve done, he always searches for His lost sheep. When I think back about what my life was like, what I was like, before I returned to Christ, I’m amazed. I was living for myself, and no one else mattered. Period. I did not take a passive role in falling away from Christ, either; I actively proclaimed how He did not exist. I was more than willing to share these thoughts with anyone at anytime. But Christ stayed with me. He protected me. He did not give me what I deserved, but instead gave me gifts of love and grace. He never gave up.
Why? Because I am His. None of us are just a number to Jesus. Each of us matter. Wouldn’t it be great to have the ability to see people the way Christ sees them; to love with his love? What a gift it would be to see past who we think a person is now, and be able to see with God’s eyes who they have the potential of becoming. To trust that God has a plan in mind. Considering how He never gave up on any of us, it should be easy to seek after everyone with the same perseverance.
But Pastor reminded us Sunday that it is so very easy to forget what it’s like to be lost. It is almost natural, I think, to fall into that legalistic mindset that the Pharisees reflected in Luke 15:2. Instead of sharing God’s love and grace with others, we like to assume the role of judge and jury. “Look how so and so is doing such and such. Oh yeah, they’re definitely going to hell.” Does anyone else have that problem? I certainly do. I thank the Lord that He did not give up on me like I so easily give up on others.
How easy is it, how natural is it, for us to forget that we are all sinners? As Pastor had mentioned, the problem with sin is everyone of us do it. We don’t have to read a book about it, we don’t need any instructions from siblings on how to do it. We are sinners even in the womb. If there is one thing all of us are accomplished at, it’s the ability to sin. Thankfully, Jesus is a friend of sinners; if He wasn’t, none of us would be in a relationship with Him. None of us are any better than anyone else. There are not the “sinners” and the “non-sinners” in the world. There are only the lost and the found. There are those who are living for the world, and those who are living for Christ.
Which one are you? I’d like to say I always fall on the “righteous” side of this spectrum, but it wouldn’t be honest. I struggle continually with passing judgement on others, with writing others off as unworthy. A little over a week ago, I was watching a testimony video on iamsecond.com. (If you have an extra 10 minutes today, I strongly suggest you take a look). The woman’s name is Karen Green. She describes her life before Christ. How she had been molested at an early age, pregnant by her mother’s boyfriend at age 13 and kicked out of the house because of it, used drugs to fill her emptiness, turned to prostitution to pay for her drugs. All the while, raising her son alone. Then one day, someone came into her life that looked past what she was. They did not pass judgement. They saw a child of Christ. A lost sheep. Now Karen has a ministry that goes out on those same streets and shares Christ with other prostitutes. She uses her past to reach out to others.
Would I have done the same as the person in Karen’s life? Not likely. It would just be too easy to go the other direction and automatically condemn. I just don’t think I would have been able to recognize the lost sheep. It would be too easy for me to forget where I was when Jesus called me back. It’s too simple to overlook how much He has forgiven me in my life. To admit that I am no better than a prostitute is humbling. Unfortunately, it’s the truth. We are all sinners, but Jesus loves us anyway.
Lord Jesus, thank you for never giving up on me. Thank you for always loving me. Please forgive me for not sharing this love in all situations. Please help me to never forget that everyone of us matter. We are all your children.
These are just my thoughts over Sunday's topic. Please feel free to share yours! We would love to hear what others have taken from the messages. God bless!
Jim
Great post Jim. I used to see how things applied to others but not me. Like as in let the others do childcare during church because I need to hear the message. And maybe I did at that time but now that I have gotten through that I feel like I am more one of the flock than the lost sheep. I can clearly visualize that I too have a place in the church. I also believe that I am qualified by God to help others. My personal struggles and failures do not mean that I cannot be an asset. I may not be what I could be, or should be, but I am grateful to God I'm not what I used to be!
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about wanting to hear the messages. I looked to avoid doing the other ministries because I didn't miss out on the sermons. Then Ryan brought up the "serving verses be being served" a while back. What an eye opener! I couldn't argue and had no excuse.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely you have a place in the church! That's why God put in at Central.
You had mentioned your personal struggles. I've often wondered if our past is what God wants us to use to help reach out to others. Our personal struggles and failures can be beneficial when we share it with the lost. No matter what any one of us has done in the past, Christ has erased it. I think that's what God wants us to share with others. All of us are sinners, all of us fall short and none of us deserve salvation. What an amazing gift!
Jim
I can't stand to miss a sermon as well. I know that they are put up on the web to listen to in MP3 format but I am generally a busy/lazy person I most likely won't take the time to listen to one that I have missed. This is a part of me that I am working on of course because I don't like that I am that way. It is a good thing that I have perseverance to learn new disciplines. It might take me longer than others with some things but I know that I will eventually get there.
ReplyDeleteI can’t agree with you enough Jim on everything that you mentioned. I was raised a Methodist but left the church at a young age 8/9 because I didn’t have a relationship with Christ. I didn’t even understand who He was because nobody had really sat down and explained it to me to make sure that I did understand. I believed in nothing really till about the age of 19 when I became fascinated with Wicca (Witchcraft) due to have friends in the craft. I followed it loosely for a while and then took it up to practice it myself. Of course drug use was involved and my view of drugs was that they where helpful in casting spells.
Long story short Jesus found me within a few months of practicing the craft and within a few years delivered me of drug addiction. I have an expanded testimony of course that gets way more down to a personally level with all the thoughts and feelings that I experience in those days but that is for another time maybe. I just that Jesus that even though I left Him that He never left me. He found this one sheep and folded me back in with the other 99. Thank you Jesus!
Amen!
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