Friday, March 26, 2021
Where Will This Day Take Us?
The First Step is Always
Confess, Repent, and Be Gratefully Gracious
Jeremiah 2:21
Yet I planted you as a choice vine, from the purest stock. How then did you turn degenerate and become a wild vine?
Revelation 2:5
Remember then from what you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.
Words of Grace For Today
Humble pie, these readings are for today.
God creates us good, choice vines from the purest stock.
We degenerate and become wild vines, producing little good!
We have fallen from the greatness that God created us to be, to live out in creation.
What are we to do?
The most common human response is …
Denial.
No, we are not that bad. No, we have not fallen. No, God did not create us to be good only.
And on go our denials, some quite marvellous in their creativity.
What is God to do?
We expect that God will punish us, removing our lampstands, unless we return to being good and doing good works.
This expectation is more denial. It is not just that we have fallen. We cannot rescue ourselves or ever again but sin, behave as wild vines, fail to do the good works that God created us for to do.
Doch, God does not punish us. God has mercy on us and is prodigiously gracious with us. God forgives us. God promises to forgive us. God invites us to face reality. God invites us to repent.
To repent is to turn about: we cannot ‘turn about’ and be and do good; but we can ‘turn about’ our pride and arrogance that denies our prolific sins. We can acknowledge, confess, and rely solely on God’s forgiveness … and then move forward relying solely on God’s Grace each day, each moment.
We become humble, grateful, and gracious with ourselves and others.
We recognized that we are broken, somewhat repaired, vessels that carry in our brokenness witness to God’s overwhelming mercy, grace, and love for us (and for all people, and for all creation).
Creation needs our good hard work. We need our hard, diligent, and good work … for our own survival and for the survival of all other people … and more than survival we work to provide abundant life for all people.
This day has it’s fullness waiting.
Are we ready to repent … and let God guide us to (with joyful thanks) accomplish the work that is ours this day?