Life + Faith

Tag: Devotional

  • And Forgive Us Our Debts

    Forgiveness is an issue central to the Christian faith. After all, Jesus’ primary mission through his life, death, and resurrection, was to bring forgiveness; a forgiveness that would repair the relationship between humanity and God. 

    In the Lord’s Prayer of Matthew 6:9-13 Jesus teaches us how to pray, and in doing so teaches us to ask for forgiveness from God. After asking for ‘our daily bread’, that is, our needs, we are also taught to ask for God to ‘forgive us our debts’. 

    To be clear, what Jesus is not teaching us here is that God will forgive our financial debts. So often we use the term ‘debt’ in a financial sense. This is the way the word is typically used today. Perhaps unfortunately for you, after praying this prayer you will still have your financial debts to pay. The mortgage will still be there, the car loan still needs to be paid this month, and the credit card bill continues to stack up. 

    But this idea of financial debt gives us an illustration of the position we find ourselves in. We are in debt to God. 

    We may ask, why am I in debt to God? 

    Well, the Bible teaches us that we are in debt to God because of what is called ‘sin’. Essentially, we have disobeyed, fallen short, and rejected God in our lives. In doing so we find ourselves in debt to God. As Romans 3:23-24 says, 

    “The righteousness of God is through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe, since there is no distinction. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. They are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”

    Here we find the Apostle Paul highlighting how great our sin is, therefore how great a debt we have, but also how great a God we have who freely gives his grace to those who believe.

    I am well aware this is not easy teaching to accept. To understand our need for forgiveness means we need to understand and accept our own wrongdoing toward God. And considering the hardness of life and injustice in our world there are times we are tempted to blame that on God himself. 

    Yet, what God has done is actually grace. And that grace comes through the person and work of Jesus Christ. You see, forgiveness is achieved because Jesus has paid the debt we couldn’t pay. His death on the cross was the payment for our debt and covers all sin–past, present, and future. It is not through saying this prayer that brings forgiveness, through prayer we come recognising what has already been done for us–God has forgiven our debts through the death of his Son. 

    In preaching on Ephesians 4:32, Charles Spurgeon remarks about forgiveness,

    “[God] not only forgave us at the first all our sins, but he continues daily to forgive, for the act of forgiveness is a continuous one. I have sometimes heard it said that we were so forgiven when we first believed that there is no need to ask for further forgiveness; to which I reply—We were so completely forgiven when we first believed that we ought continually to ask for the perpetuity of that one far-reaching act, that the Lord may continue to exert towards us that fulness of forgiving grace which absolved us perfectly at the first, that we may continue to walk before him with a sense of that complete forgiveness, clear and unquestioned. I know I was forgiven when first I believed in Christ; and I am equally sure of it now: the one absolution continues to ring in my ears like joy-bells which never cease. Pardon once given continues to be given. When through doubt and anxiety I was not sure of my pardon, yet it was still true; for he that believeth on him is not condemned, even though he may write bitter things against himself. Beloved friend, catch hold of that, and do not let it go. Divine pardon is a continuous act.”

    It is hard to understand the need for forgiveness from God if we don’t recognise our own brokenness and sin. And it is hard to understand grace because it is so undeserved. But amazingly, it is done. The call for us is to believe. 

    And so when we pray this prayer, when we pray for God to forgive us our debts, we are to come with a humble heart, being self-aware enough to know our own brokenness and need for God.

    This continues our series in the Lord’s Prayer. More posts can be found at the following:

  • Your Kingdom Come

    Well, it seems I’m in a little series about the Lord’s Prayer. The last couple of posts have been about the start of the Lord’s Prayer, a prayer taught by Jesus to his disciples in Matthew 6:9-13. You may well be familiar with it. I figure I might as well continue with it too. So, this week we come to the next phrase of this prayer, ‘Your kingdom come’ (Matthew 6:10)

    Over 10 years ago I was impacted by a song related to this theme. The song, which can be found here, is conveniently titled, Let Your Kingdom Come and was released in 2003. I thought at the time, and still think now, it’s a great congregational song for any church. And it upholds the truths of scripture, the sentiment of this verse, and calls for God to continue to make his presence felt in this world. The lyrics go:

    Your glorious cause, O God
    Engages our hearts
    May Jesus Christ be known
    Wherever we are
    We ask not for ourselves, but for Your renown
    The cross has saved us so we pray

    Your kingdom come
    Let Your kingdom come
    Let Your will be done
    So that everyone might know Your Name
    Let Your song be heard everywhere on earth
    Till Your sovereign work on earth is done
    Let Your kingdom come

    Give us Your strength, O God
    And courage to speak
    Perform Your wondrous deeds
    Through those who are weak
    Lord use us as You want, whatever the test
    By grace we’ll preach Your gospel
    Till our dying breath

    When I pray this prayer that Jesus teaches, and if I ponder these words, ‘Your kingdom come…’, then I am struck by the tension that is within it. For in praying for God’s kingdom to come we are recognising that it isn’t all here yet–it being ‘God’s kingdom’.

    We live in a world that is broken and sinful and, at times, downright horrendous. But we also live in a world where there is joy, happiness, and satisfaction. We live in a world that is in tension all the time. Whether it be through personal relationships or the environment and creation groaning, or whether it be the internal nature of our soul and attitudes. We are living in tension and learning to constantly live in tension our whole lives.

    The theologians among us may be familiar with the term ‘Now and not yet’. This is a phrase that describes just this–the tension of living between two worlds. The kingdom of earth and the kingdom of heaven. For what we do recognise as believers is that God has entered the world in the form of his Son, Jesus Christ. And through entering this world he has begun the redemption and restoration of his kingdom. And yet, not all is well. Sin still reigns, brokenness still exists, and pain is still present. We continue to wait for the glorious reconciliation of all things.

    2 Corinthians 5:1-8 reflects some of this when Paul writes,

    For we know that if our earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal dwelling in the heavens, not made with hands. Indeed, we groan in this tent, desiring to put on our heavenly dwelling, since, when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. Indeed, we groan while we are in this tent, burdened as we are, because we do not want to be unclothed but clothed, so that mortality may be swallowed up by life. Now the one who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave us the Spirit as a down payment.

    So we are always confident and know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. In fact, we are confident, and we would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. Therefore, whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to be pleasing to him.

    To bring in a sporting analogy, we are playing away. We are playing our games away from our home stadium and our home city. And so while we recognise this tension we live in, this playing away from home, we also know that God is here with us. Through his Spirit he is present in our lives and in this world and at work in it. And so we strive to serve him, by his grace we strive to know him more and make him known to others in this world.

    If you pray, ‘Let your kingdom come’ this week, may you be aware that he is with you in the tension that you live in. And may you call on him for the comfort and grace that you require this week.

    This continues our series in the Lord’s Prayer. More posts can be found at the following:

  • Christ In A Curfew

    Our city has now been under a curfew for a week.

    What an amazing sentence to write.

    I’ve always figured that to be under curfew would mean I was living in a country under martial law or something similar; where there would be the threat of violence and war.

    Even living in the Middle East for a couple of years, in a country that had numerous political assassinations, bus bombings, a short-lived war with its neighbour, and military checkpoints throughout the area I lived, there was never a curfew.

    It’s a strange and sad sentence to write.

    And it’s a sentence that already feels like it’s taking a toll.

    Christ In A Curfew

    I’m not sure how you’re feeling about this curfew and this Stage 4 business, but in conversation with people I know it seems we already feel the weight of it. There’s the emotional toll, coming to terms with the shock and awe of being in such a lockdown again and all the feels that come along with that. There’s the psychological toll, as people wrestle with their own mental health, anxieties and depressingly negative thoughts of what the next six weeks is to look like. And then there’s a relational toll, as the alone-ness continues the loneliness of isolation is felt more deeply. Let alone all the other stresses and pressures this lockdown now leads to–unemployment or lower job security, financial pressure, family pressure at home, and the overwhelming stress from remote learning for young families. It feels like a dangerous cocktail.

    Is there a positive in this at all?

    Let’s be honest, sometimes it seems hard to see through to one.

    Nevertheless, positives or not, there are some truths worth holding on to. Because despite what is happening in our lives, despite the pressures we’re under, and despite the strain of the day, there is still a God who is with us, who cares for us, and who brings hope into our lives.

    He Is With Us

    Even though we’re all surprised by how 2020 has turned out God is not.

    For thousands of years God has been across and involved in the world we live. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He hasn’t changed. He remains steadfast, he remains faithful, he remains a God of love. He remains a God who looks upon his creation and seeks to be with them, to know them and he be known by them.

    God has not disappeared. He hasn’t gone on holiday. He hasn’t run away. No, God is with us. He is with us in the confusion and the chaos, just as he is with us in our health and in our happiness.

    In John 14:26-27 Jesus speaks with his disciples promising that God will always be with them through the Holy Spirit. He says,

    “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

    How assuring to know that God is with us. As followers of Christ we can know that he is with us. That upon his death, resurrection, and ascension Christ didn’t leave this world to its own devices. Rather, Christ has given us his peace, a peace that surpasses all understanding, a peace through his Spirit and worth holding onto in this season.

    He Cares For Us 

    And just as Christ is with us, so too he cares for us.

    As 1 Peter 5:7 reminds us, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

    When we feel all is lost, when we’re under pressure, when we’re despondent, when we’re angry, when we’re in tears, when we’re annoyed, when we’re anxious, when we’re fearful, when we’re worried, and when we’re none of the above, Christ still cares for us.

    However we might be feeling, and in whatever situation we may find ourselves during this curfew period, Christ cares.

    He cares for the overwhelmed parents juggling remote schooling and their own work from home.

    He cares for the single person stuck at home with little relational contact with friends or family.

    He cares for the bored student trying to make their days somewhat productive but seeing no point.

    He cares for the grandparent confined to their home without grandchildren running through their house as usual.

    He cares for the worker who has just lost their job who now faces months of uncertainty.

    He cares.

    Christ cares.

    Christ cares for you.

    He Brings Hope To Us

    This time of curfews and COVID brings with it a loss of hope, a loss of purpose, and a loss of identity. We understand hope is diminished because of all the feelings, the restrictions, and unwanted changes to life. But in Christ we find hope restored. Christ is our hope. He is our hope in this season and our hope in eternity to come.

    This hope doesn’t come from some positive feeling, nor even a positive action or thought. This hope comes from Christ and the cross. Ironically, through death comes hope.

    Through the death of Christ comes the hope of Christ.

    For through the death of Christ comes the hope of knowing we are forgiven, we are accepted and loved as we are, and we are at peace with God.

    As we recognise, and perhaps even more so in these strange days, we are not in control we may come to realise that there is little we can do to save ourselves. Whether it be an internal or external struggle we are familiar with the exhaustion that comes from those constant waves beating down upon us. And so as Christ goes to the cross for us he takes with him our exhaustion, our frustration, and our brokenness from life in the world.

    As we put our faith in this Christ on the cross Paul reminds us in Romans 5:1-5:

    “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

    Are there greater words than this!?

    That through our faith in a crucified Christ comes the hope of Christ through the love of God. May we know this hope this week. For during this time of curfew we may be isolated and lonely. We may be angry and hurt. We may be disappointed and sad. Whatever we may feel will be what it is. Yet, what we can know and be sure of is that Christ is with us, that he cares for us, and that there is hope.

    And perhaps that’s the sentence we really ought to be amazed by.

  • A Psalm For Our Sanity

    Ooft, there’s no other way to say it, the restrictions now placed on us here in Melbourne are brutal.

    Yesterday evening we entered a ‘State of Disaster’, which now means we have a curfew, limited time for exercise, and we’re unable to travel more than 5km from our home (except for special circumstances). This is now in place for six weeks, and is off the back of a second lockdown of which we had already been in for three weeks.

    There’s not much to say.

    It’s been tough, it’s going to continue to be tough.

    There’s a range of feels–annoyance, sadness, denial, shock, depression, apathy, anger, and whatever else you’ve been going through.

    It’s times like this I’m thankful for the Psalms.

    5 Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
        my hope comes from him.
    6 Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
        he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
    7 My salvation and my honour depend on God;
        he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
    8 Trust in him at all times, you people;
        pour out your hearts to him,
        for God is our refuge. (Psalm 62:5-8)

    There are plenty of Psalms that may help those of us who are struggling right now. And it seems the lament-style are the most appropriate ones. Here in Psalm 62 I find comfort in the words like rest, hope, rock, fortress, refuge and trust. These are words that resonate with the God I know, and I hope they are words that resonate with the God you know too. With so much changing, often by the day, knowing God is firm and solid and provides care and refuge for us is important. He gives us something stable to rely on in these unreliable days.

    These days are not easy. And while we may all be in this wild seas together, each household is in a different boat. As we navigate the range of emotions we feel and the situations we find ourselves in may we show the kindness and graciousness of God to each other and to ourselves.

  • The Quarantine Quiet Life

    I doubt any of us who aspired to achieve a quieter and more peaceful life in 2020 thought this was the way to go about it. Sure, in my case, less children’s birthday parties, less meetings, and more time with family were all good things to aspire to. But at the sake of people contracting a virus, people losing jobs en masse, and not being able to visit anyone outside of the home wasn’t really what I was thinking. I suspect the same for you.

    The Quarantine Quiet Life

    BC, ‘Before COVID-19’, life was hectic. Everyone in their different ways and in their different stages of life were walking at a brisk pace that was hard to keep up with. The calendar was always full and the different people and events garnering my attention was constant. One of the first books I read this year was “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry” by John Mark Comer. It’s an excellent book and well worth the read, but also a symbol of how I was approaching this year–one that required some work in order to become less hurried in life and more at peace with a slower pace.

    I’ve often been struck by Paul’s encouragement to the church in Thessalonica to aspire to a quiet life. It’s a little verse tucked away at the back of the letter, there in the middle of the New Testament, encouraging something that seems beyond our comprehension. He writes,

    9 Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, 10 for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, 11 and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12 so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one. (1 Thessalonians 4:9-12, ESV)

    In context we’re talking about loving others, loving the brothers and sisters of our churches and those around us. There is also a missional bent to this passage where we are to seek to walk in godliness in order to witness to outsiders. But there tucked away in v11 is this little phrase, ‘aspire to live quietly’.

    These days of isolation aren’t all quiet. I know they are for some, painfully so. But for others, these days of isolation are even more full and tiring than they were before coronavirus hit. While we may not be in the same boat, we’re all sailing the same seas and being hit with different waves.

    As this year has progressed we’ve been incorporating different things in our weeks that have helped to slow us down. While the meetings and events may have disappeared, in person at least, there is still plenty to keep our family of five occupied. One particular rhythm we’ve begun is to have what we call a ‘Saturday Sabbath’, which basically means we do things as a family that are life giving to us and avoid all digital devices. Phones are kept in drawers and not looked at until late in the evening (and to be honest, the addictive nature of these things become so much more evident on this day!). An all-in family activity usually happens in the morning. We talk, and read, and play, and pray, and celebrate life together. They’ve been refreshing, and something we don’t want to do away with come post-isolation.

    But that’s just an example from our household, I wonder how you’ve pursued the quiet life in yours?

    In this second round of isolation, here in Melbourne at least, I wonder what pursuing a quiet life might look like? My situation will no doubt be different to you, and by now the whole thing is becoming more and more frustrating. That’s the reality. Yet, as we continue to aspire to a quiet life, how might it be marked by the love of God and the love of others?