Daniel 8:1-27
1 John 2:1-17
Psalm 120:1-7
Proverbs 28:25-26
"But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father - Jesus christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world."
"I write to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of HIS Name."
One of the hardest things for me to understand is the nature of God's forgiveness. When I sin - and especially when my sin is a persistent one I'd promised not to commit again - my reaction is to hide from God, the way Adam and Eve did. I know my sin makes me deserving of punishment; I think that were I in God's shoes, I would be angry. So I conclude I am unworthy of Him, and then hide.
At that point, I start to lie to myself. I tell myself I can do two things impossible for me - make adequate atonement for my sin, and change myself so I sin no more. I can't, of course - but in doing so, I make it impossible to obtain the very things I want - redemption and transformation - things which God so freely gives, for which I have but to ask.
John reminds us that while God's holiness demands punishment for human sin, God has sent his Son to make the atonement, and satisfy the Father's wrath in ways that we cannot. And the Son makes atonement not just for the sins we first committed, but for all sins- even the ones that persist. And so, when we sin, we are best served and satisfied not by running and hiding, not by trying to fix things ourselves, but by acknowledging our sinfulness, our helplessness, and receiving His salvation. And by, first and foremost, trusting in His love.
Father, it is so easy to feel frustration with our persistent sinfulness, and to cease to believe You would continue to love us. When we are tempted to make our sin worse by running away, please open our eyes to Your love, and remind us of your unconditional and unlimited redemption.
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