I wonder how many have never done anything wrong.
How many could stand before God and say, “I have never made a mistake. I have never failed at anything.”?
The truth is that we’ve all made mistakes, experienced failure, sinned, falling short of God‘s plan, God’s intention for us.
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23
“Failure” is the one label we don’t want.
We fear failure.
If I fail what will happen to me?
What will other people think? Will I be rejected? Will anybody love me?
Will God send me to hell?
The fear of failure is universal, causing enormous amounts of stress.
Students fear failing a class.
Parents fear failing their children.
Others fear failing the Lord, failing in Christianity, failing to live sinless lives.
If these examples describe your feelings, I have good news for you: You are in good company.
Some of the Bible’s greatest men and women of faith were failures. If God had a dishonor roll, it would include MANY well-known Believers.
For instance, in the book of Genesis, Abraham, the man of faith, lied to government officials, two times, about his relationship with Sarah. Both times, he introduced her as his sister instead of his wife, because he was afraid that he would be killed because of being married to such a beautiful woman.
Consequently, poor Sarah was taken into a harem each time and each time, God had to rescue her from potential adultery.
After the second time, God could have said, “ABRAHAM, YOU ARE FIRED!
“You obviously don’t trust me to save you. You obviously feel that lying to people is necessary to save your own skin.
“I cannot work with you anymore.”
But God forgave Abraham both times. And the Lord went on to do amazing things in his life. Even though Abraham showed the fear of unbelief instead of faith on these occasions, God still made a covenant with Abraham, and Abraham learned to believe God. God accounted this faith as if Abraham were righteous.
And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. James 2:23
More tomorrow.
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The more I read God’s Word, the more of my own sin I see. As I repent of that sin I see, my eyes are opened to still more.
And if it weren’t for my Savior, I would be devastated. But instead I am joyful and hopeful and happy because God saved one like me.
Oh, I know.
That’s because God’s goodness is infinite and also happens to be the goal, for us who are finite. This makes our capacity to miss the mark infinite, sighs.
However, the infinitely sufficient Sacrifice covers ALL. Whew.
Thanks for this comment. ❤
Katherine. Good pace. I understand this. Citations, schmitations! Just tell it like it is. I know you know the Bible. Melis xoxo
Some folks like to look it up, though, and I had the references at my fingertips, thanks to a friend who helped with this. 🙂
I am so glad you are getting this! Thanks for stopping by and giving the encouragement, here. 😉 I got a late start this week, due to a small emergency, so may post twice daily to get caught up, IF I CAN! Ha.
Love these stories of human frailties yet people used and called by God. It allows room for me! Thanks Katharine.
Oh, Debby, you are so right! It allows room for me, too! 🙂
God’s forgiveness is infinite. He tells us to forgive 70 times 7, not because He wants our forgiveness for others (or ourselves) to be finite, but because that finite number is a huge number of times for us to conceive of actually forgiving. Wonderful post.
Oooh, Kate, if ONLY we forgave others as we naturally tend to forgive self!
However, God’s ability and seeming willingness to make use of people who have failed is a mystery we often do not grasp, on this side! 😀
Katharine, I really appreciate the title of this series, because it puts us right where we belong. Though we love fellow believers, we understand that ‘Hall of Fame’ or ‘Heroes Hall of Fame’ is wrong. Jesus is our true Hero.
Blessings to you for doing this series! Hope all is okay with you!
Maria
Maria, what kind things to say! And yes, Jesus is the Hero in all our lives. That is absolute truth. Yes, all is going pretty well for me. I keep trying to have health problems, but my very good doctors keep me in line. 😀
Kathy!
What a blessing! Jesus understood type A perfectionist types before we were even invented. I love the NT for that very reason. We are all fallible. And that is OK. You remind us it is part and parcel AND Jesus knew this. God knows this.
Turning it over. Letting love cleanse us.
‘go and sin no more’
So simple and loving.
Thank God for that
And for you!
XO. Jen
Turning it over . . . letting love cleanse us . . . yes, that about says it all, Jen.
Thanks so much for this comment and for your kind words.
I love the way this Old Testament exchange between God and man shows a sneak preview of the New Testament, how it all works together like a sword with a handle. 🙂
I agree, but I have a quibble with Romans 3 23 being quoted without verse 24 which starts “and are”. So does the “all have sinned” not just refer to the ones that are “justified freely”?
Genuine question. That verse out of context always makes me think I am missing the point of it.
Hey, Sans! You are right! Out-of-context is not good. So here we go . . .
Romans 3:19-31
“Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.
“But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished–he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
“Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law. Is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. Do we, then nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.”
The point this post was making by using verse 23–“all have sinned . . . “–was only to state that all have sinned, which is one point of this passage above. Whether we know God’s law or not, we all are breaking it; it’s the default setting for us to sin.
However, when we come to those who are justified, it applies only to those who have faith in Jesus Christ. It matters not how small we perceive our sins to be, or how large; how religious we thought we were, or how irreligious. One of my pastors once said, “Even if you could live a sinless life, that would not get you to heaven because that is not how we get there. God provides that the only way is through faith in Jesus Christ. He is the way.”
So, when verse 24 says, “and are justified freely by . . . grace . . . redemption . . . Christ Jesus . . . ” of course, Paul means to say that all who are, in fact, justified, do so by those means. All. Whether “good” or bad, that’s how we get in. However I believe this passage also clearly shows that all, all, all have this option. Believe and receive. Too easy. So easy that, for pride, some never even try.
Thanks so much for your bright observations. You really did wake me up, at the 7:00 hour, this morning! What a grand way to wake up, thinking of justification by faith!
Hope this answers your point. Love ya for caring so.
Thanks for that, Katharine. I’ll need to do some thinking to process it all.
😎
Gotcha! 🙂
Kathy, this really came at a great time in my life. Thank you for this post. Our family just read this story and the one where Isaac did this same thing. The apple doesn’t fall too far does it?
Honestly, I struggle when I mess up. It is difficult to climb out of this pit. Going to read part 2.
You are NOT alone. I did NOT see any raised hands at the first two paragraphs, above! 🙂
Yes, sometimes generational sin tries to show up, even in the redeemed. It is a time for fighting off the hoardes. You know. Isaac did not know.
Be thankful in all circumstances, is my prescription. When He allows us to “mess up” it just helps us see, more and more, how far we have strayed, how much we need Him, and how closely we must cling to Him and His lovely ways. We tend only to look at the bad side of things, and sin is bad, for sure. But there is a good side: Awareness, alone, is a gift. Not everyone has much awareness of sin. Something to be thankful for. And forgiveness, of course. 🙂
Thanks for your comments, here, Sis.
I appreciate your words of encouragement. You are a wonderful cheerleader. Being aware is a blessing but grievious to me when I know I have failed.
Karen
Stay tuned! We will go there. 🙂
Staying tuned!!!!!