May 2021 Message

               I remember a cousin who used to say “God will punish me for that” whenever she may have done something without thinking or was rude to someone. I know to her it was just something to say as a way of acknowledging her awareness of her actions. To her it may have been just an offhand statement but it got me thinking about those who do indeed think God is going to punish them.

               In the Old Testament we see people being punished by God for sins and transgressions. We even see the entire nation of Israel being punished. Numbers 14:18, “Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished…” This is before Jesus and the cross. What does God say now?

               In his letter to the church at Ephesus Paul writes this, “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.” (Eph 1:4) When we accept Christ God sees us differently. In his eyes we are holy, blameless, guiltless and free from sin. God sees all Christians as sinless with no reason to be punished.

               “What about the things I have done, how can God not want to punish me?” We need to remember that God is perfect and holy. Yes we have and will continue to do things against his will. But look to the cross. 1 Peter 2:24, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness, by his wounds you have been healed.”

               Jesus took our sins on his body. Jesus took upon himself our punishment for those sins; past, present and future. God punished all our sins at the cross on his son. As a just and holy God, he cannot punish those same sins a second time on us.

               Similarly I have heard friends say that they feel as if the devil is in them. 1 Corinthians 6:19, “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God.” God himself lives inside the heart and soul of every believer.

               1 John 5:18, “We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them.”

               We are born again in the spirit when we accept Christ. We become brothers and sisters of Jesus and as such he protects us. By having the Holy Spirit in us, Satan cannot enter us.

               Be at peace, God sees us as shining white, as if we never sinned. We are the temple of God. Our foundation is on solid rock; our walls are sturdy and impenetrable by the enemy.

God’s peace, strength, love and rest be with you all,

Pastor Jim