fear

No Fear

Today’s reading is Psalm 27.

I grew up in the Lutheran Church attending Confirmation classes in junior high which ends the Spring of your 8^th grade year with taking your first Communion. As a part of this we picked our own personal Confirmation verse. By the time the sheet with possible options and a sort of “greatest hits” of Bible verses reached me, the ones I mostly knew at the time were gone.

Psalm 27:1 is what I ultimately selected…

The Lord is my light and salvation;

Whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life;

of whom shall I be afraid?

Many of us in born in the early to mid-80s probably remember the many “No Fear” shirts and stickers. While I didn’t have any myself, they were very popular, and I think is the reason I picked this verse. I had a great Aunt Naomi who was very close to our family being that she had no children of her own. When my Confirmation day came, I remember her telling me this was also her Confirmation verse, so I always think of her when I hear it again.

I read in the past few days something which said to the effect of that God did not keep Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from being thrown into the fire, but it was the fact that He put Jesus in their with them to protect them that mattered. God doesn’t promise us in this chapter that trials and bad things won’t happen.

In Psalm 27:2, “When evildoers assail me,.…”

In Psalm 27:3, “Though an army encamp against me,..”

In Psalm 27:5 it discusses, “in the day of trouble..”

The chapter indicates bad things will happen, but the Psalmist has peace in who will be with him and where his focus will be.

In Psalm 27:4, he seeks after being able to “dwell in the house of the Lord” and to “gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His temple.”

In Psalm 27:8, he says, “’Your face, Lord, do I seek.”

In Psalm 27:11 he asks God to “Teach me your way O Lord.”

Lastly, in Psalm 27:13, “I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living!”

As we reflect on current troubles, let us ask ourselves where our focus is…is it on our problems or Him?

Maybe we don’t have many troubles at this very moment but let us pray for wisdom that when we do, because Psalm 27 and John 16:33 says we will have them, our focus will be on Jesus. Let us pray that we will seek Him and His face and presence in these times.

Psalm 27:3 tells us when we do so we can live with confidence.

Though an army encamp against me,

My hear shall not fear;

Though ware rise against me,

yet I can be confident.”

The Great Eight

Today’s reading is Romans 8 which is often referred to as “The Great Eight.” This chapter is so full of rich content which we can apply to our lives daily that I think one could preach or write on it for a year if they wanted. With that in mind, we will just focus on a few verses.

Romans 8:31 reads…

“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”

There may not be a more profound verse in the Bible which can change the way we live our lives and handle fears, worries, anxieties, and doubts about the future. We spend much of our lives stressed wondering about the future and what it holds. Will the medical test I just had (or my family member) come back positive? Will I get in the school I want or which one should I choose? Will I have enough money to pay for college? Will I have enough money to pay my bills and buy groceries? Will I have enough money to retire when I want and live the way I want? Is my job safe or could I lose it? Have I prepared my child for their future as an adult? Will they choose the best spouse for them? I could go on and on…

These worries, fears, and doubts we have about the future are natural and normal. Some of the things we spend time stressing over are very serious which could cause us or our family a lot of challenges and pain in the short or long-term… and other are “first world” problems we’ve often created for ourselves as my brother likes to say and keep in perspective. Either way, if we can trust that God is always, and I mean always, for us and in our corner…it changes everything. How do we know this? Romans 8:32 says because He gave us His own Son’s life on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins!

Most of us have probably heard the saying, “Father knows best.” As an earthly father myself, I can say there is no way I can be certain about that 100% of the time. But, we can be certain this is true with our Heavenly Father all the time. And not only does He know the best for us and our future, but He holds controls it!

If we believe this and know this, along with Romans 8:28 which says He’s working all things out for the good for those who love Him, it can and should change the way we live our lives. We still don’t have to like pain, problems, or challenges that will happen on this side of eternity, but knowing and trusting in these truths of His love and His best plan for our lives in Roman 8 should change the way we live to do so with a joy and peace that inspires others to trust and follow Him as well.

Today’s reading is Leviticus 1-3, Psalm 27, and Hebrews 2.

What do you fear?

This last week I had the privilege of hearing author and speaker Ryan Leak talk at a conference for our company. While it was not a Christian, faith-based talk, it was one of the best talks I’ve ever heard. He shared that we are only born with 2 fears which are the fear of loud noises and the fear of falling. This means all other fears are learned. He said we have 6,000 thoughts per day with 80% being negative and with 95% of our thoughts being repetitive. He also shared that every successful person we look up to has failed, yet we were taught not to fail..but I digress.

Ponder this question, is it a sin to fear?

The Bible tells us Jesus was without sin multiple times (1 Peter 2:22, Hebrews 4:15, 2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 John 3:5). We also know from Luke 22:39-46 on the night Jesus was betrayed, when He knew He was about to be scourged and nailed to the cross, He was in agony and was in so much stress in fearing for what would happen that he sweated drops of blood (Luke 22:44). To me, this answers our question and fear itself is not a sin.

In reflecting on this, it seems to me that fear can become a sin when….

It consumes our thoughts and lives
We don’t trust in God and His plan
We try to find our hope and trust in things of this world which are separate from God

Jesus taught us exactly how to face fear in Luke 22…

Kneel down and pray (Luke 22:41)
Ask for what you want (Luke 22:42)
Pray that ultimately the Father’s will be done and not your will… trusting in Him no matter what (Luke 22:42)
Pray again even more earnestly (Luke 22:44)

So, what did God do as a result? He sent angel from Heaven who gave Jesus strength (Luke 22:43). Notice God did not stop Jesus from going to the cross. And you and I should be thankful for that. We should be thankful God’s plan to save us from our sin and give us eternal life through Jesus’ death on the cross was bigger than Jesus’ pain.

I can’t promise you God will remove the pain or problems which may be causing your fear. But what I can promise you is that God will give you strength and that He is bigger..and His plan is bigger! We know in the end…we win through eternal life with Him.

“The Lord is my light and

my salvation;

whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of

my life;

of whom shall I be afraid?”

Psalm 27:1

I would encourage you to read more of Psalm 27 and Hebrews 2 on fear and how Jesus understands us because He suffered and faced fears just like you and me.

Perfect Love (God) Casts Out Fear

Today’s reading is Acts 27.

Have you ever been on ship or boat in the open ocean where no land or light was in sight? I remember going on a cruise with my parents and my brother and fellow Bible Journal writer Chad when I was under 10 years old. Standing outside at night on the deck with nothing in sight was not a feeling I can say I was particularly fond of. I remember thinking if I fell off the deck they would never find me. Feeling like this on a very large, world class cruise ship (where we had no storms) has me wondering how Paul and other passengers on these primitive first century boats must have felt with no electricity, GPS, limited provisions, and the terrible storms they faced.

During all these storms and troubles, what was Paul doing? Paul was still leading. Paul was still speaking the truth in what God was telling him to help others. I would guess Paul was still writing letters..some of which likely ended up as what is now part of the New Testament in the Bible. Many of his other letters we know were written while in prison. Paul was not focused on himself. Paul was focused on making an impact on others for God’s kingdom despite his circumstances.

This is the opposite of what human nature is. When I am facing challenging times, I become very self-focused and fearful. The fear is focused on me and what could go wrong in my life or the life of my family. It can consume me, and it’s all about me.

Paul was focused on God..not his problems. 1 John 4:16 says, “God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in Him.” Reading on, 1 John 4:18 says, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear…” Not only does verse 18 tell us when we are focused on love, and not on ourselves, we don’t fear, but since verse 16 tells us God is love…I like to trade out the word love for God in verse 18. It then reads… ‘There is no fear in God, but perfect God casts out fear.’ If we continue to read on in 1 John 4, we see more verses about how this focus on God means we are called to love others. 1 John 4:21 says, “And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.”

Don’t hear me wrong, it is absolutely ok to come to God in prayer and ask for what we want when we come with a humble heart and the right intentions. Jesus makes this very clear, as well does the book of James. God wants you and your whole heart, and He wants you to come to Him with your struggles needs. My intention of having us reflect on our prayer life and thoughts is not so that we don’t come to God with our challenges, but rather a nudge for us to reflect further on our thoughts, hearts, and actions. I’ve written before that expectancy theory says that which we focus on expands. Are we focusing more on God which means we are focusing on love which leads to focusing on others causing fear to dissipate..or are we focused on ourself only causing our problems and anxieties to blow up so to speak?

We see in Paul that God can make the most of our seemingly terrible circumstances to bring glory to His Kingdom and bring others to Christ. We must remember in our challenges that someone is always watching. When they see our unfailing trust in God and how we continue to love on and bless others despite our personal problems, they see the love of Jesus in us. They will then want to know more about the ultimate sacrifice He made on the cross for us. They will desire that same peace that passes human understanding that’s rooted in His love

Salvatio

Our daughter Gianna is now 2. As a newborn, I read that the only two fears infants have are loud noises and falling. At her young age, she has a fear of some bugs, large animals, heights by herself, and other things that her parents and older siblings have trained her to be afraid of. As an “adult” in my mid-40’s, the world’s fears have taken hold of me for many years. These fears can include what I say, do, or act in front of others with underlining insecurity. Fear can make you wonder if you have enough or hold a high enough position with the constant fear of failure. The Lord’s transformation of my life started around ten years ago, even though I can point to various points in my life where I know the Lord has always been by my side. Truth is he has never left you, I just never listened or opened my eyes. Until I was willing to surrender my selfish pride and surrender to a losing battle, I found my salvatio. (salvation) Merriam-Webster has a few definitions for salvation like 1. deliverance from the power and effects of sin, 2. preservation from destruction or failure, 3. liberation from ignorance or illusion. I feel like all three of these definitions fit me well at that time with some lingering effects. But thankfully, our debt has been paid in full, and we have hope in our Lord.

Today’s verses are a couple of my favorites.

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1

The world is sending a message always. In these dark times, we can always look to the light. As something or someone starts your anxiety level to rise, relax, turn to God our say in your head, “Whom shall I be afraid? ” As you begin to feel weak, and the physical or mental exhaustion kicks in. Remember where your strength truly comes from. Go ahead this morning, today, at lunch, dinner. Say it to a friend, a colleague, child, your spouse. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I be afraid? The Lord is the stronghold of life; of whom shall I be afraid? Repeat it if you need to. Say it as the pressures of the world enter into your day.

Remember Gianna, still semi-fearless besides what we as parents have instilled. No fear. She would jump from anything into your arms because they trust you. I would want my children, my wife, and myself to remember this verse as the world attempts to enter fear into our minds. Where are you today? Are you worried about something? School? Kids? Finances? Health? Our Lord is right there waiting to be the light, to be your strength. To be your salvation.

The Lord is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my Father’s God, and I will exalt him. Exodus 15:2

Whom shall you be afraid? Sing praise today; salvation is yours.

King of Kings

Resurrection and Life

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall live,…”

John 11:25

Today’s words to describe Jesus are the resurrection and life from John 11:25. Here it is actually Jesus himself calling himself this as He comforts Martha from the death of her brother Lazarus who He ultimately brings back to life later in the chapter after being dead for four days.

It’s not too often that we don’t attend church (now virtually) on Sunday morning during the planned service time, but this week because of some family circumstances we did not. I also typically write my Biblejournal.net posting on Saturday or Sunday, but here I am writing it Tuesday morning after watching the sermon Monday morning. As I watched the sermon Monday, God yet again left me in amazement as the central focus of Pastor Mike Baker’s sermon was the resurrection of Jesus. Yes, all sermons are about Jesus and typically come back to the hope we have in Him because of the resurrection, but this was the central theme of his entire message. I believe there are no coincidences, and apparently God wanted a few more people who may read this but who not attend Eastview Christian Church to hear some of Pastor Mike’s nuggets.

The central verses for Pastor Mike’s sermon were 1 Corinthians 15:3-11 where Paul discusses the resurrection. Pastor Mike said, “What’s weird is not someone dying for a cause which has been done for years, what’s weird is someone rising from the dead.” Paul adderesses in these verses that Jesus was undoubtedly alive after His crucifixion as He appeared to Cephas (Peter), the twelve (all the disciples), five hundred at one time (Paul does not give the exact event but many believe this to be the ascension in Luke 24:50-53), His brother James, the apostles, and to Paul himself even though Paul states he was not worthy because he himself persecuted and killed Christians. We know in Luke 24 Jesus was with the disciples and asked for something to eat in Luke 24:41-43. Pastor Mike brought to light the fact that five hundred people don’t hallucinate and a dead person or a ghost does not eat. As I’ve written about before, what is most convicting to me about the resurrection is the fact that the disciples went from running away and hiding in the room Jesus ultimately appeared to them in as they feared for their own lives to spreading the Gospel at all costs knowing they would likely be killed for doing so as nearly all of them were. Would they have done this if they had stolen the body themselves or if they didn’t actually see and talk to Jesus? Not a chance. Well, maybe Jesus wasn’t actually dead? Much has been written on this topic to debunk this which not only speaks to how the description of crucifixion event in the Bible prove He was dead, but also the fact that the Romans were killing machines. This is what they did. They didn’t make mistakes when it came to killing someone. If this topic is something you are interested in exploring further beyond the greatest source in the Bible itself, I recommend reading the book Case for Christ by Lee Strobel. Lee was in investigative reporter and atheist who was out to disprove the Gospel. He now has written many books and travels the world spreading the Gospel.

So why does the resurrection matter to each one of us? Pastor Mike says there are two central questions we must all answer and move beyond. First, how do I get past my wrongdoings and sin? Second, what happens to me when I die? Jesus is the resurrection and also the life because He is the answer to both these questions. Believing in Him and that He was without sin yet was sacrificed for us and our sins and that He was raised so we who believe will also be raised (John 11:25) means that we can all answer both these questions and ultimately have life.

Last week I was meeting virtually with a client and as a part of our initial chit chat we were talking about all the craziness going on in the world today on many levels and especially with him being in healthcare. Although He was satisfied from our financial review, I didn’t really know how to wrap up the call to say goodbye as I knew there was still some discontentment with the world today in general. The only thing I could think of to say was that we know who’s really in control and that He has a plan. He responded by saying honestly that is only way he is getting through all of this. The only thing we have to fear is death, but as 1 Corinthians 15:55-57 says, “’O death where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through the Lord Jesus Christ.” We have nothing to fear because we are ALL undefeated through Him. He is life…eternal life.

As the song “Great Are You Lord” says…

You give life, You are love

You bring light to the darkness

You give hope, You restore

Every heart that is broken

Great are you Lord

It’s Your breath in our lungs

So we pour out our praise

We pour out our praise

It’s your breath in our lungs

So we pour out our praise to You only….

https://youtu.be/ZZqV6i98SkA

The Fear of Letting Go

Jesus shared approximately forty parables with his followers, and it’s no wonder that almost half of them included a message on wealth. He knows our hearts, what we hold on to, and what trips us up. Money is definitely one of those things.

I know how money makes me feel – more powerful and more in control. Which is exactly when I start to get in trouble and rely less on the Lord and more on myself. While the world is focused on wealth accumulation, God calls us to wealth distribution through reduction. Can you think of anything that is asked of us, that isn’t ultimately for our own good? I love the scripture that says “lay aside every weight” – and our wealth can become a heavy, burdensome weight that slows us down.

More money, more problems… it’s so true! The more stuff we buy, the more it requires. We need space and time for all of the upkeep, repairs, updates, and maintenance, for the THINGS we accumulate through our wealth.

When you read in Mark 10:17-31 about the Rich Young Man, you find that he is seeking eternity. He has followed the letter of the law, and now he is seeking surety of eternity. How cool that Jesus’ love for this man is called out. Right before he gives him this very direct admonition, he “looks at him and loves him”. God’s grace for us is so amazing, leading us with love.

Because Jesus knew his heart, he drew his attention to the one thing that was getting in the way of his relationship with God. His stuff. He was told by Jesus to give away all he had, and come and follow him. Instead of heeding the instructions, the man left, sad at the thought of losing his stuff. I wonder what specifically was most hard for him. Did he cling to the security he believed his money represented? Were there family heirlooms that he didn’t want to give away? Maybe he was accustomed to the conveniences that he saw his wealth provide.

Another thing that strikes me is that time and time again in scripture we have examples of people being called to sell or give their stuff. It’s not just “give your extra money”, but it’s a call to simplification through reduction. Idolatry has been a challenge for thousands of years, and while we may not be making golden calves, I think we all could think of things that get in the way of our relationship with the Lord.

I don’t want to be captive to my possessions. I can think of a few areas I need to “clean house” and let go. Along with an abundance of stuff, I also have a bunch of justifications for it all. Seriously! One big category for me is in all things ‘serving and hosting’. At some point in time, I started accumulating things for celebrations. Decorations, dinnerware, linens, and on and on. You know, for the next dinner party, birthday gathering, etc. I’ve collected and then kept all these things, justifying it with some scripture about the gift of hospitality. Serve well. Oh, and I will use it all again someday, so I should really be a good steward and save it. WHAT?!! Okay, who is going to check in with me in a couple of months to see if I’ve cleaned out my storage area?

As God loves us, he sanctifies us. I don’t know what God has for you today… maybe it’s a release of your money, stuff, time, or something else. Ask him, and I know he will lovingly reveal it to you, just as he did the Rich Young Man. He perfectly knows what we need, and what we don’t need.

This passage wraps up with the disciples questioning the difficulty of a wealthy man entering heaven. And Jesus reminds them of God’s power: With man it is not possible, but with God, all things are possible. Be encouraged – God will equip you to do whatever he calls you to. And when he helps us to unclench our fists, and truly let go of the things we so tightly hold on to, it is then that our hands are open. Open to receive more of his love, grace, and blessing. He promises that we will receive so much more in eternity than we can imagine.

More Than Conquerors

Today’s reading is Romans 8 or as some call it…”The Great Eight.”

In reading it again, it’s easy to see why it has that nickname as it’s chalked full of so much great content that it is really hard to choose what to write on. If you’re interested in digging more into this chapter, I highly recommend the book “If” by Mark Batterson. He does a great job of breaking this chapter down in a way that may change the way you live your life..without fear…knowing God’s immeasurable love for you.

Mark says when you see “therefore,” see what it’s “there for.” Take note right away because verse one starts off by saying, “There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” We live in a world where committing a crime or doing something wrong comes with punishment..or most agree it should any way. This makes it natural to wonder when we have something go wrong in our life such as losing a baby, getting sick, getting downsized from your job, or you or your child get sick if God is punishing us for something we did. Paul makes it clear hear right away that when Jesus was nailed to the cross, so was our sin. Jesus also makes this clear in John 9:3, “Jesus answered, ‘It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.” This is very hard for us to comprehend…it’s just not natural. But, first 1 John 4:16 tells us, “God is love.” God’s true love means God doesn’t always stop these things from happening because good can come from it in a way that is incomprehensible to us on this Earth and that we may never know while alive. Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” He loves us and allows only what’s TRULY good to happen..and only He knows what’s TRULY good. If we knew what was truly good, we would be God.

The principle and main point in Mark’s book, “If,” is that the word “If” in Romans 8:31 is a true game changer in how we live our life, “…If God is for us, who can be against us?” When we wake up knowing every day that God wants us to succeed, it changes the way we live. We can we live without fear because when know God loves us and wants what’s truly best for us. We already discussed that “God is love,” and 1 John 4:18 tells us that “…perfect love casts out fear.” We can replace “love” with “God” and say…’..perfect God casts out fear.’ Subconscious doubts of God’s best intentions for your life will result in many fears! Don’t doubt his love!

How do we know His unfailing and unconditional love?

The following verse, Romans 8:32 says, “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will He not also with him graciously give us all things?” Drop the mic.

Because of this, Paul says in verse 37, “..we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us?” When we know the game we’re playing to win is not in life which doesn’t matter, but for eternal life in Heaven…and we know we already have the title belt through His love…it changes everything. Let us not live like Jesus and our sins are still nailed to the cross, He’s risen and our sins are erased permanently giving us eternal life and making us “..more than conquerors through Him.”

One Wish…

As many await the release of the remake of the Disney classic Aladdin later in 2019, we read of an “Aladdin” or “genie” type event in 1 Kings 3 as God comes to King Solomon, the son of David, through a dream asking him what He should give Solomon. Be honest with yourself, before reading Solomon’s answer here, what would you ask for…wealth, happiness, health, love, or something different? Solomon answers in 1 Kings 3:9, “Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?” Wisdom…Solomon asked for wisdom, so we should not be surprised that he later wrote 2 books of the Bible which were filled with wisdom in Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. How many of us would have asked for wisdom?

We can learn a few very important lessons here from Solomon. The first being humility. The saying often goes, “you don’t know what you don’t know.” How many of us actually realize and think about that regularly, as opposed to believing we have all the answers? I know I don’t. Solomon says in the 2nd part of 1 Kings 3:7 “….although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in.” Here, the leader of God’s people who he says in 1 Kings 3:8 “are too many to be numbered or counted for multitude,” does not get cocky or arrogant upon his throne which God placed him, but instead humbles himself to say he doesn’t know what he doesn’t know and he needs help from God asking for wisdom.

The second lesson we can learn from Solomon is life is not about us. Solomon asks for wisdom because he realizes he has a great and important responsibility to “govern this your great people.” Not only did he not ask for riches, happiness, or love, but instead for wisdom, which likely would lead to those other things, not for that reason, but rather to help the people around him which God had put in his life and entrusted him to lead. How cool is that?! How many of us would have the same “other focused” mindset? Should it not surprise us that when Solomon takes the focus off himself, God says in 1 Kings 3:13 that he would give him “riches” and “honor,” as well as “lengthen his days” if he continued to walk faithfully in His ways like his father David.

The verse 1 John 4:18 says, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” Fear always comes back to us and our insecurities and selfish worries. Love is focused on others, removing that fear. God put us on Earth for a purpose to impact the lives around us to bring Him glory by modeling the love He showed us by giving His life on the cross for us to bring us together with Him. Let us show love to those God has entrusted us to lead (family, co-workers, team members) and put in our lives (the waiter/waitress, gas station attendant, cashier) in the same way King Solomon and later Jesus did.

Many of our stresses in life also come from wondering what the right answer is, what the right direction to go is, or wondering what God’s purpose is in certain things happening in our lives and in the world around us. We are paralyzed about making the right decision, not only in the big things, but even in the little things. Let us pray for wisdom daily to make small and large decisions for His glory and to know His purpose for what’s happening to and around us….or at the least to have the wisdom to give us the peace to realize we don’t know the purpose of what’s going on, but He does…..and has a perfect plan.

Got Talent?

Today’s reading is Matthew 18:23-34 and Psalm 115.

We will focus on the parable in Matthew which many of us our familiar with where a king forgave a servant 10,000 talents. Some resources indicate 1 talent is about 20 years of wages in biblical times so 10,000 talents would be 200,000 years of wages! However, when the servant was released and someone owed him 100 denarii which resources say is about 4 months wages, he did not show the same grace. In fact, he had him thrown into prison.

Tonight, I was talking with a friend about a mutual relationship we have with another individual who we both have a disagreement with. My friend made a comment in which he said something to the effect of…”you’re a little more forgiving than me on items like this” with this person. However, while I would like to say I’m living this out…I would say this very circumstantial and is not the case anywhere near to the level the Bible calls us to do. He doesn’t know this, but I actually went off on this person’s boss about them at one point and learned later I was quick to judge, didn’t know some things about the individual, and felt the need to apologize to this person’s boss for my quick and harsh judgement without knowing everything. This person’s boss is also someone I’m trying to witness, too. Oops..I did not show them a very good example to draw them to Christ in this case did I?!

One time I even took a personality assessment which said I’m typically forgiving….to an extent. It said I give individuals chances, but when it reaches a certain “breaking point,’ I’m completely done with them and write them off. I’m not going out on a limb to say my breaking point is WAY less than 10,000 talents!

In fact, I often find my amount of forgiveness depends on the relationship with the person or if I find myself with similar beliefs. I’m quick to forgive family, a close friend. or those that have the same political beliefs as me or are on the sports team I root for. Yet, I am quick to condemn someone who stumbles and makes a mistake that has different political views or is a celebrity I don’t know or is on a rival sports team for example. This is just wrong. It shouldn’t matter. I need to realize that I’m called to forgiven in the same way Jesus has forgiven me as this parable teaches of. If Jesus held me to the same standard I hold others to, I’d be in big trouble.

As we read through the Psalms, we come across many passages that talk about having a healthy fear of the Lord. This passage is very humbling because it reminds us at the end that if we don’t forgive others, the Lord will not forgive us. It is also humbling because reminds me how thankful I should be that the Lord has forgiven my sins that come not just by the hour, but by the minute. By using 10,000 talents or 200,000 years wages…He wanted to show the unbelievable depth of His forgiveness and grace. He washes ALL our sins white as snow. It is not circumstantial like my forgiveness of others which I must improve on. All we have to do is believe in Him and ask…and give the same grace to others. God is great!