Tanya and
her husband Greg live with the excruciating grief of losing their six month old
son to SIDS. Although they have continued to be faithful in worship and
well-grounded in the Word, their questions continue. “Why was our baby taken? What assurance do we
have of holding Luke again?”
Luke’s
parents can count on a reunion in heaven: not because their child understood
justification, but because of a trustworthy God. Baptism gifted Luke with saving faith. This
miracle is the work of the Holy Spirit, not an effort or action made by Luke or
his parents. The grief journey continues life-long for this family, but their
hearts also carry the certainty of resurrection joy.
Acts 2:38 Peter replied,
“Repent and be baptized,
every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.
And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
.
Handicapped Hearts
Twenty-six year old Andrea has Downs
Syndrome. Thankfully, she was given Sunday School and catechism lessons at her
level of understanding. The members of her congregation smiled and were
inspired by her loud, “You betcha!” in answer to Pastor Mike’s confirmation service
questions. Despite a low reading level,
it does not hinder Andrea’s bold and sincere singing of hymns. Does the Holy
Spirit give an extra dose of trusting faith to those with special needs? Or is
it that people who are rich in cognitive ability think of more reasons to
ignore or reject God’s gifts?
Matthew 19:14 Jesus
said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the
kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.
Mark 10:24 (EHV)
“Children, how hard it is for those who trust in their riches to enter the
kingdom of God!
Damaged Minds
Mrs. Sanders was one of those
Christian grade school teachers who did it all: showed the love of Jesus to the
3rd and 4th graders through devotions and academics,
played organ, volunteered for the grimiest church kitchen chores, and was an
encouraging, loving wife. Friends respectfully
referred to her as a Proverbs 31 woman.
"She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her
tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not
eat the bread of idleness."
But
that was before the car accident caused irreparable brain damage. Ten years later, despite therapy and
antidepressants, Mrs. Sanders doesn’t “feel the need to go to church.” She is unable to read the Bible or keep
focused attention to anyone trying to share its truth. This once very capable servant of Christ is
now is too confused to do simple necessities for herself. The cognitive, emotional, and
physical systems misfire or don’t properly connect. Caregivers in the assisted
living center understand her anger, rudeness and frustration as results of the injury.
Caring friends and family members have learned what behavior to
expect and what might be helpful. Listening to hymns often has a calming
effect. Sometimes Mrs. Sanders sings
along, remembering most of the words. Her husband prays that God does not hold his wife
responsible for her occasional Christ-denying outbursts.
Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced
that neither death nor life, neither angels nor rulers, neither things present
nor things to come, nor powerful forces, neither height nor depth, nor anything
else in creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ
Jesus our Lord.
Romans 11:6 Now it it is by grace, then it is not the result of works--otherwise grace would no longer be grace.
What are the LORD’s expectations of believers
who are suffering with a serious illness that seems to have damaged their faith?
2 Corinthians 12:9 And he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you,
because my power is made perfect in weakness.”
Romans 5:20 (EHV) But where sin increased, grace overflowed much more.
Weary Souls
Frank was
raised in a Bible-believing church. He
bragged about marrying Kalinda; “the
best looking woman in the choir.” They thanked God for three healthy daughters,
whom they taught and modeled a love for the Lord. When Joelle had married and Akira and Brianna were in college, cancer took
their mother’s life. Frank knew his
Savior would lead him through his grief journey.“I know God has a plan
for me, but I don’t want to face it without my wife.” The crying wouldn’t
stop, and the sleep wouldn’t come, so he turned to alcohol to numb the pain.
Along with adding to his depression, Frank's drinking prompted poor decision-making. It was as if Satan was speaking through the vodka: “ This is helpful therapy! When you are coping better you can always stop.
Then you can just ask God for forgiveness.” Frank
stayed alone in his house, venturing out only to buy fast food. When he got caught driving under the
influence, the ticket added shame to his despair.
For the
past six months, Frank has been too embarrassed to go church services. He knows
what he is doing is not God-pleasing. Despite praying to make better choices,
he continues the cycle. He told his
sister, “It would serve me right if I died, condemned, in this sin.”
John 1:16 For out
of his fullness we have all received
grace upon grace.
Romans 7:15-25 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do, I do not do, but what I hate I do...Now if I do what I don not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it...Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!
An Example of Mercy
John (chapter 8) shares what
happened when Pharisees (and others who took pride in following the Law), wanted
to stone an adulteress woman. The words,
“caught in adultery”, infer she was not the one who stopped her sinful behavior. What was Jesus’ response to this woman who hadn’t
asked for forgiveness? The Savior humbly stooped down into the dirt with this
sinner and offered her grace.
John 8:11 “Then neither do I condemn
you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”
Sound familiar? Jesus left the perfection of heaven to walk in
this dark world, and offer forgiveness to God-rejecting, slow-minded,
self-righteous sinners.
2 Timothy 1:9-10 He saved us and
called us with a holy calling, not because of our works, but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given to us in Christ
Jesus before time began, and
it has now been revealed through the appearance of our Savior Christ Jesus.
What Grace Requires
There
are times when fruits of faith (Galatians 5:22-23) are more apparent in a believer’s life. There are also many back-sliding, sad, dark situations
when the Holy Spirit’s faith fire might not be detected by the human eye. But when it comes to salvation, whose actions
are the only ones that count? Which of our faith-fruits could qualify to be added to Jesus’ death and resurrection? His "It is finished" shows us the answer: NONE. Our
heavenly Father sacrificed his beloved son, in order to uphold the requirements of holy
justice. God’s
perfect provision of grace means “no prerequisites needed.”
Ephesians 2:8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by
works, so that no one can boast.
Romans 5:1-2 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have
peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through
him we also have obtained access by faith into this grace in which we
stand. And we rejoice confidently on the basis of our hope for the glory of
God.
God has sections of
heaven reserved for Luke, Andrea, Mrs. Sanders, Frank, me and you! When we are incapable of making decisions,
unable to follow the Holy Spirit’s leading, depressed, confused or stunted in
faith by sinful actions or illness, we can count on his faithfulness.
Romans 7:24-25 What a
wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our
Lord!
Psalm 86:15 But you, Lord, are
a compassionate and
gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
With whom could you share the truth of God's grace ?
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