Psalm 51:1
Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; according to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.
Isn’t it wonderful to meditate on the depth of God’s love for us? There is not a single person on the face of this planet that does not deserve to spend all of eternity separated from the very one that created us. And yet, because of the Father’s love, every man and woman has equal access to the throne of God. Though “the wages of sin is death” and “there is found not one without sin,” Christ, “who knew no sin, became sin for us.”
How gracious the Lord has been to us! It was according to His lovingkindness that the Lord sent His Son to die on a cross for our sin. God did not make His decision due to any effort on our part. His decision was not based on pity or gratitude towards us, but solely on His compassion for us. When we come to the Lord and ask for repentance, when we truly turn from our sins and promise to live our lives for Him and Him alone, an amazing transformation takes place within each of us. This transformation, this new creation, is able to manifest itself, not only because the Lord forgives us of our sins, but because He has completely “blotted” them out. The Lord has accepted our repentance and has cast our sins “as far as the east is from the west”. He will never again use them against us. How gracious the Lord has been to us!
I have often meditated on the Lord’s love for me. Sometimes I find it difficult to understand why Christ would die for a sinner like myself. His love is greater than any I have ever known and His compassion is deeper than all others combined. Yet, I am commanded to love as He has… I am commanded to have compassion on others, I am to be a model of Christ’s love to everyone I meet. This must be a conscience effort on my part. Because I am human, I will never wake up and naturally show compassion to those around me. I must daily crucify my flesh… I must daily kill my natural (sinful) nature that begs to govern my every action. Over the years I have learned that this can only be accomplished through the power of Jesus Christ living within me. I must daily spend time in prayer and Bible study. I must continually evaluate my life and ask the Lord to protect me from the temptations of Satan. I cannot… I will not allow the evil one, the devil, to have a grasp on my life. “Greater is He who is in me then he who is in the world”. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”. And, furthermore, nothing I try to do on my own will be successful. The love and compassion that I must show to others cannot come from within me, but only through the Holy Spirit expressing Himself through me. They will know that I am a Christian through my love for them. They will come to know my God through my love for them. It is my duty; it is my only reason for living.
The Lord has shown unprecedented love to you. He has, time after time, made known His compassion to you. I pray that you might live today with one goal in mind: that is to share this extraordinary love to every last person you meet. It is your mission… it is your reason for living… it is your command from the Lord. Rise up and be obedient that the Lord may one day say to you, “Well done my good and faithful servant.”