A Crushing Revelation

I received a crushing revelation this week. I found out I am not perfect. Those of you who know me very well understand that is not an easy thing for me to admit. I have always known it, but I usually do my very best to keep most of the things secret that might give me away. This week, however, a crushing reminder that I have done things in the past I ought not to have done came on stage and I had to work through how I felt about that. I am possibly more than a little embarrassed looking back at some of the things I have thought, said, and acted out in some cases. No, I am not going to confess them here. That has already been done and I do not do them any longer. In case that was not quite clear, the point is not that I have sinned. The point is those sins are in the past. It is kind of like being on the right side of, "Don't ask, don't tell."

One of the things I already knew is that people's memories are much longer than God's. This is especially true of those who would make themselves our enemies. The clear teaching of scripture is that our response to our sin should be to confess it, repent of it, and leave it at the cross of Jesus. Do not ask me about, or wait for me to confess, any of those things. It is an insult to the blood of Jesus and to His completed work in our lives to rehearse our forgiven sins.

There are those who think it a noble endeavor to discuss their past sins as a way of giving glory to God for what He has done. I think the theological word for that is translated "baloney." We give God glory by living a life that is pleasing to Him. That is what grace is all about. God gives us the ability, in spite of ourselves, to live the life He wants us to live, free from the sins of our past.

I once made the mistake of telling my daughter about what a great work God had done in the life of a man I was introducing to her. I mentioned, without detail, that he had been anything but a Christian when I had first met him years before. He took me aside and told me, not so politely, that he did not need to have me remind anyone of his past. That was a decade ago and writing this, I now understand the truth of what he was telling me.

Before we leave this subject, it is also an insult--on multiple levels--to rehearse the sins of anyone else. Our primary commandment as New Testament believers is to love God. (Matthew 22:37) The second commandment is to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:39) Love covers a multitude of sins. (1 Peter 4:8) All have sinned.(Romans 3:23) There are no sins that are worse than any others. Once we have confessed (told God we understand) our sins and repented (turned away from them) God forgets them (Hebrews 8:12)

Yes, I am crushed, just as all the other grapes in the Master's vineyard--crushed that the fragrance and the flavor of new wine might flow forth to a world that so desperately needs it. I am not perfect, but I am doing my best. I trust you are too. God bless!