Restoring Love

Mark 16:1-8

Introduction:

When we blow it, what are we to expect from God?

Lesson:

“For I will believe, that the wide world contained no more unhappy man than Simon Peter during the two days that intervened between his shameful denial in the judgment hall, and the receipt of this special invitation, unless it might be Judas Iscariot who had betrayed innocent blood, and who found his misery so intolerable that he went out and hanged himself. But the special invitation was like the bursting of the sun into Peter’s tempest darkened sky; it scattered his despair. It was his Lord’s assurance to him that he still had a place in His heart, that his great and terrible sin had made no difference to the strength and tenderness of his Lord’s love."" J.D. Jones, Mark, p. 678

""This is the truth of the gospel: no matter how sordid your life has been, no matter how many your sins have been, they are small compared to the grace of Christ. Jesus, the eternal Son of God, became a man, and He offered Himself on the cross, through the eternal Spirit, to be a sacrifice of infinite value for your salvation. He can make you a new person just as easily as He brought the entire universe into existence by speaking.” Walter Marshall, The Gospel Mystery of Sanctification, p. 155

Reflection:

“If we do not have this assurance the thought of serving God will make us grind our teeth. If, however, we are persuaded that God looks upon us favourably; if, though we are weak and can do nothing worthy of His approval, He accepts us in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, then we will surely be filled with courage. We will be like a ship's sail that has been stretched and filled by the breeze! Thus, our hearts will run to obey Him, like a ship driven along by its sail, when we know that God delights in us and accepts our works, not wanting us to be compelled into servitude. He is happy for us to be His children, and that we desire to obey Him. Knowing this, we can serve our God with all the more zeal. With His grace as our foundation, we are so filled with His joy that we can offer the sacrifice of praise. Likewise, having sought Him in prayer, we can know that He will answer us and, in return, we can thank Him for the priceless gifts that He communicates to us every day,"" (John Calvin, “Absolved Only Through the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ”).

© John Fonville

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