Tag: forgiveness

Christian

No One Can Snatch You Out of His Hand

Cindy Dawson

Is backsliding forgiven? Is there anything in the Bible about it? Is there any example of a Christian backsliding and then being restored? I don’t think so! I can’t think of anyone! As these thoughts crept into my mind, a panicky feeling started to embrace me.

In church Sunday, The Lord let me know right away that He absolutely does forgive us when we stumble.  My pastor said something in his sermon that spoke to my heart. He said, “No one can snatch you out of His hand.” 

I know God was speaking these words directly to me. A peace came over me instantly. (That’s the great thing about hanging out where God can speak to us.)

The Lord reminded me of the Apostle Peter. He denied Jesus 3 times. Peter said, “I don’t know him! . . . I’m not one of them! . . . I don’t know what you’re talking about!”  Then he left and wept bitterly. The Amplified Bible says, “with painfully moving grief”. (Acts 22:57-59) I wonder if a panicky feeling started to embrace Peter.

Peter denied he even knew Jesus. Yet we know, the Lord forgave Peter and used him mightily.

Saul (who would later become The Apostle Paul) gave approval to the stoning of Stephen for speaking the truth about our Lord Jesus. That very day, great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem. “Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison.” Acts 8:3

Yet we know, the Lord forgave Saul and used him mightily.

King David stole another man’s wife (Bathsheba) and then had the man (Uriah) killed!

Yet we know, the Lord forgave David and used him mightily.

“(God) testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart ..’.” Acts 13:22

No matter how bad our sin, His love is greater! His mercy is greater! I don’t think we will really truly understand how much He loves us until we go to Heaven. 

It doesn’t mean there won’t be consequences to our actions. There will still be consequences. But we can be sure of this: No one can snatch us out of His hand.  

I testify that He has surely done this for me. And so, I share with you, “My Journey Unscripted”.

God has used imperfect people through out history, and He does still today. 

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24)

“He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” 1 Corinthians 1:8-9

With Love,

Cindy

This Is My Journey Unscripted.

Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?

realchristianwomen.blog  

Christian, Women

Sins Like Scarlet

Cindy Dawson

Have you ever thought, “I love Jesus, but I’ve lived a sinful life. I’m divorced, I was a prostitute, a thief,  a liar, a drunk, Fill in the blank.

Does that mean church people won’t accept me? Do I have the right to be in church? Will I be punished for the rest of my life? Will I be shunned? Could Jesus ever use me?

Jesus said this about the woman who had lived a sinful life, “Because her many sins have been forgiven, she has loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.” Luke 7:47 (Berean Study Bible) 

Honestly, I would be more worried if I had lived a so-called “perfect” life! If I was really proud of myself for following all the rules, would I be as thankful for Jesus as I am now? Would I judge those who had not followed the rules? Would I look down on them? Let’s consider some other things Jesus had to say about this.

“Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.” Luke 11:39 NIV

Basically that means they did things for show and they were very legalistic, but there was no love in their hearts and they only thought about themselves!

In verse 42 He adds, “You give God a tenth . . . but you neglect justice and the love of God.”

“You load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them.” (verse 46)

In other words, you give people a lot of rules to follow, but you don’t care anything about them and you couldn’t be bothered to help them.

If you have had “Pharisees” in your life, or if you are just afraid that church people will judge you, listen to  the words of Jesus.  

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

The Scripture says, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” Isaiah 1:18

“As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.” Psalm 103:12

I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more. Isaiah 43: 25

If you have given your heart to Jesus, but you have a past, remember this. He forgave you when you asked him to. He remembers your sins no more. It’s like you never did them in his eyes. Being a Christian means you are a Christ-follower. Pleasing Him is what matters.

 The Rest of the Story

When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume.  As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. 

When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”

Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”

“Tell me, teacher,” he said.

“Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”

Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”

“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.

Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.  

You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 

Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” Luke 7: 36-48

With Love, Cindy

This is My Journey Unscripted.

Do you know Jesus?

If you have never asked Jesus to be your Savior, you can do it now. He loves you more than you can comprehend, and it will change your life forever.

“IF YOU CONFESS WITH YOUR MOUTH, ‘JESUS IS LORD,’ AND BELIEVE IN YOUR HEART THAT GOD RAISED HIM FROM THE DEAD, YOU WILL BE SAVED. FOR IT IS WITH YOUR HEART THAT YOU BELIEVE AND ARE JUSTIFIED, AND IT IS WITH YOUR MOUTH THAT YOU CONFESS AND ARE SAVED. AS THE SCRIPTURE SAYS, ANYONE WHO TRUSTS IN HIM WILL NEVER BE PUT TO SHAME.”   ROMANS 10:9-11

realchristianwomen.blog

 

 

Christian

Lord, Help Me Forgive

Cindy Dawson

Are you struggling to forgive someone? Does it seem impossible?  You can do it. But before we begin, remember this: Unforgiveness will destroy you, not them.

There is only one way to forgive the unforgivable. These Scriptures will strengthen and empower you to do it, as they did for me. Ask the Holy Spirit to soften your heart so that you can receive what He has for you.

They crucified him and Jesus said, “Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”    And they divided up his clothes by casting lots. The people stood watching and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others. Let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.”    The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar. Luke 23: 34-36

We can forgive others when we understand the depth of His forgiveness of our own sins. Crucifixion is the most brutal kind of execution. Yet Jesus pleaded with the Father to forgive them. He suffered heart-breaking rejection at the cross, yet He loved and forgave those responsible.

Nothing we have to forgive can compare to His example of forgiveness. He suffered and died so that we would be forgiven for all the sins we have ever committed and even the ones we will commit in the future; He asks us to forgive others in return.

The Apostle Paul warned the Corinthians, “I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.” (2 Corinthians 2:10-11)

Paul knew that the sin of unforgiveness would give the devil a foothold. Satan is a genuine enemy of every Christian. The Bible is clear about this.

In Ephesians 6:10, Paul exhorts God’s people: “Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Our obedience to Christ protects us from the devil’s schemes.  You may not find the power to forgive within yourself, but through Christ, you can. Forgive as an act of your will. Your feelings will eventually change. The first step is to tell God that you forgive this person.

Meditate on God’s promises, instead of meditating on the injustice. The more time you spend in His presence, in His Word, in prayer and meditation, the less that injustice will have power to hurt you.

Whenever something I have already forgiven crosses my mind, I refuse to think about it. I consciously begin to think about something else. Sometimes that can be difficult. Just do it! Take control over your thoughts.

Thank Jesus for what He has done for you. It will destroy the power of the wrong to upset you. Peace and joy is already given to the child of God; God’s Word reveals how to live in it. We must trust and obey.

A Story About Forgiveness

21 At that point Peter got up the nerve to ask, “Master, how many times do I forgive a brother or sister who hurts me? Seven?”

22 Jesus replied, “Seven! Hardly. Try seventy times seven.

23-25 “The kingdom of God is like a king who decided to square accounts with his servants. As he got under way, one servant was brought before him who had run up a debt of a hundred thousand dollars. He couldn’t pay up, so the king ordered the man, along with his wife, children, and goods, to be auctioned off at the slave market.

26-27 “The poor wretch threw himself at the king’s feet and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ Touched by his plea, the king let him off, erasing the debt.

28 “The servant was no sooner out of the room when he came upon one of his fellow servants who owed him ten dollars. He seized him by the throat and demanded, ‘Pay up. Now!’

29-31 “The poor wretch threw himself down and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ But he wouldn’t do it. He had him arrested and put in jail until the debt was paid. When the other servants saw this going on, they were outraged and brought a detailed report to the king.

32-35 “The king summoned the man and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave your entire debt when you begged me for mercy. Shouldn’t you be compelled to be merciful to your fellow servant who asked for mercy?’ The king was furious and put the screws to the man until he paid back his entire debt. And that’s exactly what my Father in heaven is going to do to each one of you who doesn’t forgive unconditionally anyone who asks for mercy.”  Matthew 18:21-35 The Message (MSG)

 

With Love, 

Cindy

This Is My Journey Unscripted.

Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?

realchristianwomen.blog  

Photo by Sam Manns on Unsplash