“For our sake he made him who knew no sin so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

As we saw yesterday, it is true that we are not only sinners but repeat sinners. We have this sinning thing down pat.

How then is it that God can continue to be for us, love us, be kind and gracious to us, and forgive us over and over and over and over again?

While you and I remember our sins even after we have confessed and repented – and when we forget, the devil is quick to remind us of our sins – God does not. One of the greatest promises in all of the Bible is found in Psalm 103:10-12. Check this out!

He does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
So great is his love for those who fear him;
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

The moment you and I confess our sins, our sins are in the process of being removed from us and from the presence of God. They are speeding away from us so that when God sees us, God no longer sees a sinner but a child of God covered by the righteousness of Christ.

The very moment we receive Jesus as Lord and Savior, as far as God is concerned, we are as righteous as Jesus is!

Think about that! That is amazing!!! That is grace. That is love. That is God.

Spend some time thinking on this truth and give thanks to our Savior. Thank him for at least three things this morning.

“He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities” (Psalm 103:10).

Thank God!

If God were to treat me as my sins deserve I would be toast! I would have no hope.

You see, I am not just merely a sinner. I am a repeat sinner!

One of the things that frustrates me most about my walk is how I continue to sin on such a stinking regular basis. There is not a single day where I make it through the entire day without sinning.

Sometimes I wonder how God puts up with me. God’s patience and kindness toward this sinner astonishes me.

As a person matures as a Christian, they become more sensitive to sin because they become ever more aware of sin and how much sin disappoints and hurts God. Sin impacts maturing Christians more deeply because of our awareness of how much our sins hurt God.

The most frustrating thing about sin is that I will continue to sin until the moment I die. I will continue to battle this flesh and its desires.

But, don’t be discouraged by that. It is a good thing that we struggle with sin. It would be far worse if we weren’t. The struggle itself is proof that the Holy Spirit of God is at work within us.

Remember God’s promise. Remember the truth of this verse.

God does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. God loves you. God is rooting for you. God is with you and appreciates you striving to be more like him.

Keep at it. Keep struggling. Keep battling.

“Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20).

There’s a story among church circles that in the 1890’s there was a small Baptist church in Mayfield County, Kentucky.

The church had two deacons who were constantly arguing and bickering over some issue or another. One of them put up a small wooden peg on the back wall so the pastor could hang up his hat. When the other deacon discovered the peg, he was outraged.

“How dare you put a peg in the church wall without first consulting me!”

The people in the church took sides and the congregation eventually split.

Today, the residents of Mayfield County still refer to the two churches as Peg Baptist Church and the Anti-Peg Baptist Church.

While this may be a silly and sad story, it speaks to the tragedy of what happens when churches forget the reason and the purpose for why she exists – Jesus Christ.

It is way too easy to get distracted by secondary and tirtiary issues like politics, gun control, masks, vaccines, and a host of other issues for which Christians who love Jesus can have differing opinions.

Should the church split and get occupied in secondary and tirtiary issues while ignoring the call to proclaim Jesus as Lord and Savior to a world who does not know him, what a crying shame that would be.

It’s all about Jesus. The Little Church and Lakewoodgrace exists to Make Disciples of Jesus Christ and Grow Faithful Disciples of Jesus Christ who share Christ’s love with all people.

It’s all about Jesus.

That’s the main thing.

Little Church and Lakewoodgrace, keep the main thing the main thing.