Monday, May 16, 2016

Revelation 1:1-3; 9-11

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw - that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.

I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit and I heard behind me aloud voice like a trumpet, which said, “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches; to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea."

One of the most common misconceptions of the last book of the Bible, the book called “Revelation,” is that it reveals to us how the world will end.

Now, in fairness, the book does include fantastic apocalyptic images of beasts and dragons; wars and plagues; fire and destruction. Revelation does clearly indicate that the world as we know it is temporary when set against the eternal world for which we were created. But the author begins by saying quite clearly the intent of the book:

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place.

This opening sentence can be understood in two ways.

First, we can read it as saying that Jesus is going to reveal to us what is going to happen as God brings about the end of this world and the inauguration of his eternal kingdom. And that is true, although not in the sense many assume.

The second way to understand what John is saying is to see the whole book of Revelation as being, first and foremost, about revealing Jesus; who he is; and the role he will play in the drama that will be the consummation and judgment of all things.

I think it’s a mistake to focus on what Revelation may say or not say about how history will end. It’s much more important to focus on what Revelation says about Jesus Christ.

Revelation 1:17-18

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead and behold I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”

John is telling us Jesus Christ is the eternal One.

Revelation 4:11-12

Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they sang:

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!”

John is affirming that Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

Revelation 19:11-16

I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

Here John sees Jesus as the conquering king of heaven who will come to judge all things.

Years ago I heard a speaker point out that in the ancient world a king would often ride into a conquered city on a white horse as a symbol of his power and strength. The Bible tells us that when Jesus entered Jerusalem before his arrest and crucifixion he rode on a donkey, which was the symbol of humility. The book of Revelation tells us that the next time we see Jesus he will come not on a donkey, but a white horse; he will be coming not in humility but in his triumphant glory.

Indeed, the apocalyptic images of Revelation seem to point to the world falling into terrible turmoil before the end comes. But we need not fear all of that because the one revealed to us in Revelation the One who is the first and the last; the One who is sovereign king of heaven and earth; the One who will judge the living and the dead; and the One who was slain so that we can know the hope of his salvation in the New Heaven and New Earth.

The One revealed in the book of Revelation is Jesus Christ.

Pastor Brian Coffey

Friday, May 13, 2016

We have spent this week reflecting on the parable of the wedding banquet in Matthew 22.  Take a moment to read the entire parable again one more time.

Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son.  He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.  “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’  “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business.  The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them.  The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.  “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come.   Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’  So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.  “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes.  ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ The man was speechless.  “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’  “For many are invited, but few are chosen.” 

- Matthew 22:1-14

Jesus told this parable to the religious leaders of His day.  These were the men who were already quite convinced of their place at God’s table.  They were so certain of their own spiritual status, that they missed the primary point Jesus was driving home in this story.  While there are many interesting cultural and historical details in this story, there is really just one penetrating theme.  The story is really not about the guests who rejected the King, nor is it about those who accepted Him.  The central theme of this parable is the amazing grace of the King!

I think we have a very shallow understanding of grace today because we do not fully understand our desperate need for it.  We do not like to think of ourselves as unacceptable to God.  We like to think that while we may not be perfect, we deserve at least a little credit for the good things we’ve done.  Let me close out our week of reflection by telling you the story of a man who was utterly transformed by the amazing grace of the King.

John Newton was born in 1725 in London. His mother, who was a godly woman and who taught him to pray as a child, died when he was only seven years old.  He had only two years at school, and at the age of eleven, his father, who was a Sea Captain, took him out to sea for the first time.  His sea-faring life is well known, and includes becoming the captain of a slave-trade ship.  Newton spent many years buying, selling, and transporting human beings as slaves.  On one such slaving trip, Newton was shipwrecked on a remote island off of the African coast.  He was rescued by a friend of his father who was a ship's captain as well.  Newton lit a fire of driftwood on the shore to attract the attention of any passing ship.  In the providence of God, this friend of his father, who was searching for him, sent a long-boat ashore to investigate, and John was rescued.  He was on this ship returning across the Atlantic when it encountered a great storm which was threatening to destroy it and everyone on board.

This took place on March 10, 1748. `That tenth of March', writes Newton, "is a day much to be remembered by me, and I have never allowed it to pass unnoticed since the year 1748.  For on that day the Lord came from on high and delivered me out of deep waters."

The storm was terrible.  When the ship went plunging down into the trough of the sea, few on board expected it to rise up again. The hold was rapidly filling with water.  As Newton hurried to his place at the pumps, he said to the captain, "If this will not do, the Lord have mercy upon us!"  His own words startled him.  "Mercy!" he said to himself in astonishment, "Mercy!  Mercy!  What mercy can there be for me?  This was the first desire I had breathed for mercy for many years!"  At about midnight the hold was free from water, and then came a gleam of hope. "I thought I saw the hand of God displayed in our favor.  I began to pray.  I could not utter the prayer of faith.  I could not draw near to a reconciled God and call him Father.  My prayer for mercy was like the cry of the ravens, which yet the Lord does not disdain to hear."  "In the gospel," says Newton, "I saw at least a chance of hope but on every other side I was surrounded with black, unfathomable despair."  On this glimmer of hope Newton staked everything.  He sought mercy and found the amazing grace of God. 

It was this same John Newton who would later write these immortal lines to one of the greatest hymns ever written:
"Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,that saved a wretch like me.I once was lost, but now am found,was blind, but now I see."
Pastor Jeff Frazier

Thursday, May 12, 2016

In Matthew 22, Jesus tells a story about a king who prepared a great wedding feast for his son.  But those who were initially invited by the King rejected his gracious invitation.  So this amazing king sent more of his servants out into the towns and villages to invite anyone and everyone to come to the feast. 

Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’  So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

- Matthew 22:10

When you read the entire parable, it almost sounds like this should be the end of the story.  The wedding hall was filled and everybody lived happily ever after.  The end.

But this is not the end.  Jesus gives us another chapter, which at first seems to kind of ruin the nice happy ending in verse 10.

“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes.  ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ The man was speechless.  “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’  “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”

- Matthew 22:11-14

This part of the parable actually poses quite a problem for us.  On the one hand we see here (and in many other places in Scripture) that God’s grace is available to all people regardless of race, or gender, or social status.  Nobody is beyond the reach of the grace and mercy of the King!  On the other hand we have this man who is thrown out of the banquet hall.  Do you see the conundrum here?  If God’s grace is available to all, then why does this fellow get tossed out?  This question is so perplexing that there have been some who have proposed that that this part of the story was a later addition and Jesus did not really say this at all.  However, just because something in the Bible is difficult for us to understand, does not mean that we can ignore it or explain it away.  The fact is that Jesus said quite a few hard and difficult things.

The key to understanding this part of the story is in the clothing.  This man was not wearing the proper wedding clothes.  Now nobody likes to be grossly under-dressed, but we don’t imagine someone getting tied up and thrown out of a party for it (although I was once refused entry to a restaurant because I didn’t have a jacket on).  In Jesus’ day, nobody would dare show up to a King’s feast without the proper clothes.  There are really only two reasons that you would not have wedding clothes on: either you didn’t own any because you were poor, or you did not have time to go and change before the banquet.  These guests were late invitees to the party and were from all levels of society (“both good and bad”).  Though Jesus does not explicitly state this, the implication is that the King must have provided wedding clothes for his guests.  This is really a beautiful picture; there are no social classes or distinctions of earthly rank at this party because everyone has been dressed by the King!

But Jesus is not talking about social etiquette here.  He is talking about a very deep spiritual reality.  In this parable, the clothing really represents righteousness.  This man had only his own righteousness covering him in the presence of the king; he had not been clothed by the king.  The New Testament speaks repeatedly about what it means to be clothed in Christ.

Galatians 3:27 - For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

Romans 13:14 - Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.

Revelation 19:7-8 - Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.  Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.”  (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)

The man without the wedding clothes is tossed out because on his own, dressed in his own righteousness, he is unacceptable.  Ah, but here is the real point.  On our own, we are all unacceptable.  We are all just beggars in filthy rags before the King of kings.  This is why the King must clothe us if we are to be at His feast!  At the end of this parable, Jesus makes a surprising statement.  He says, “For many are called, but few are chosen.”  I have known many people who don’t like this idea of only a few being chosen.  It sounds like God is intentionally leaving some people out of His Kingdom.  However, Jesus is simply stating for us the reality illustrated in His parable; God’s gracious invitation or call is open to all, but only those who receive His call will be clothed in Christ, and therefore only those few will be chosen. 

Pastor Jeff Frazier

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son.  He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.  “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’  “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business.  The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them.  The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.  “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come.   Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’  So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

- Matthew 22:1-10

The king in this story showed incredible mercy and kindness even toward those that had initially rejected his invitation. "Again he sent out other slaves saying, 'Tell those who have been invited, "Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened cattle are all butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast."'  He did not want them to misunderstand.  The king was not asking his guests to prepare the feast.  He had prepared it.  He was not asking them to come to a feast that lacked preparations. This was no potluck supper! Everything necessary for the royal banquet had been set forth.  Nothing was neglected or left undone.  All they had to do was show up!

But nobody came.  Those fortunate people who were invited to the king’s feast ended up rejecting Him.  To reject a royal invitation was a serious offense; it was an insult to the king.  In our culture, we don’t see it quite that way.  We value the rights of the individual to make his or her own decisions.  We think, “Well, what does it matter to God if I do not want to follow Jesus Christ? Can He not just leave me to my own decision and life?”  I suppose that would be the normal logic, and that might be the case if we were dealing with mere men. But we are not dealing with a normal human king; we are talking about the Creator and Sovereign Lord of the universe. 

For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.  He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.  – Colossians 1:16-17

Stop and think about that for just a minute.  This is not a human king or the president of a country.  This King is the Lord of heaven and earth.  This is King is the one who created and rules over every planet, in every solar system, in every galaxy, in all the universe.  And He rules over every molecule in every cell of your body as well!  If this is the kind of King we are talking about, then you don’t respond to Him when you get around to it!  You don’t put Him off until you’ve had time to weight your options.  You don’t tell Him that you will come to Him after you have had a chance to live it up a little.  You don’t come to Him on your terms.  You come to Him when He calls/invites you, or you don’t come at all.  This is the truly amazing thing about this King.  Although He is Lord of all creation, He is also so patient, and so gracious, and so loving that He continually extends His invitation out to all people, even to those who will ignore and reject His offer. 

Pastor Jeff Frazier

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son.  He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.  “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’  “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them.

– Matthew 22:1-6

The parable in this text is the third in a series that Jesus told that He directed at the Jewish religious leaders in Jerusalem.  The first parable dealt with the religious leaders' rejection of God's authority over their lives, demonstrated by their rejection of Jesus Christ.  The second symbolized the religious leaders' foolishness in rejecting God's way to righteousness through His Son.  Now the continued theme of rejecting God's revealed will in the gospel of His Son is found in this present parable.

In our culture, we are accustomed to a wedding and reception lasting for a few hours.  But the ancient custom of wedding feasts often lasted for as much as a week.  In the case of a royal wedding, the celebration might go on for two or three weeks.  The party in this parable is no ordinary party.  To be invited by the king as his guest for the wedding of his son - the anticipated heir to the throne - would have been the opportunity of a lifetime.  Such an invitation usually came by a personal envoy of the king.  Once invited a citizen felt a deep obligation to attend the wedding feast or face the displeasure of the king.  We might say that it was an invitation that you could not refuse!  Nor would anyone want to refuse an invitation to a celebration in which the King Himself provided everything.

But then again, it is not inconceivable that a person would refuse a royal invitation.  As a mater of fact, there have been more than a few famous people to do so.  British authors C.S. Lewis and Roald Dahl both rejected invitations to be honored by the Queen of England.  Actor and comedian, John Cleese, and astrophysicist, Steven Hawking, both turned down offers of being knighted by the queen.  NFL linebacker James Harrison refused to join his team in visiting the White House after winning the Super Bowl.  Some folks even admire a person who would turn down such an invitation for reasons of personal conviction or political principle.  There is something is each one of us that resists the idea of being subject to a sovereign authority.  We don’t like the idea of a king (even a benevolent one) telling us where we have to go or what we have to do.

This is the truth that Jesus is driving at when He describes the reactions of the invited guests in the parable. The original guests refused to come, and in that culture, to reject the invitation of a king was tantamount to treason.  This was a serious offense.  Notice that some of them are indifferent, some of them are too busy or preoccupied with their own concerns, and some of them are openly hostile toward the servants of the King.  The first invitation was actually not the first; an advance invitation would have already gone out telling of the coming feast (like a wedding "save-the-date" card).  This is not pictured in the story, but it is understood as part of that culture. It might seem strange to us that guests would react this way, but those who had received the advance invitation had ample time to prepare for the feast. They had no legitimate excuses.

How do we account for such a strong rejection of the king's invitation? Jesus is giving us a picture of what God had done in preparing Israel for the coming of the Messiah. Just as in Jesus’ day, there are those who are indifferent to Christ, those who are too busy trying to do things their own way, and there are those who are openly hostile toward Him. 

The prophets had come in previous centuries announcing that God would send the Messianic King.  John the Baptist boldly announced that the time had arrived; the Messiah was present.  The arrival of the Messianic Kingdom had come. A new age for humanity had dawned. God had come among His creatures to redeem a people for Himself for all eternity. Jesus Christ Himself came announcing the advent of the kingdom and calling people to repentance.  "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the good news" (Mark 1:15).  This is the invitation of the King, calling upon all to repent and believe the good news of Jesus Christ.  Whether you want to believe it or not, there is something inside each one of us that resists the invitation of Jesus.  We are all indifferent, too busy, and even hostile toward God.  Yet, despite our resistance, the King of all creation invites you to come to Him by believing in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Pastor Jeff Frazier

Monday, May 9, 2016

We all receive invitations in the mail throughout the year requesting our attendance at various functions.  Some are decorated wedding invitations from long-time family friends.  Others have vivid colors and graphics inviting you to birthday parties, special holiday parties, or graduation parties.  Still other invitations call upon us to join others for anniversary celebrations or the opening of a new business or even for a special sale.

You cannot possibly respond to every invitation that comes through the mail.  So you have to make some decisions as you sort through the mail.  Some invitations impersonally address you as "The Occupant."  That normally does not get much attention!  Some invitations are actually attempts to lure you into a “business opportunity” where you will spend money that will profit the one who sent the invitation. But there are other invitations that are quite different.  They come from close friends who invite you to be part of a very special occasion.  You feel honored to be invited.  Your attendance is valued by the one offering the invitation, and you dare not neglect it. 

Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son.  He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.  “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’  “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business.  The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them.  The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.  “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come.   Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’  So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.  “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes.  ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ The man was speechless.  “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’  “For many are invited, but few are chosen.” 

- Matthew 22:1-14

This parable, like all of Jesus’ parables, has many layers of meaning.  However, the primary meaning of this story has to do with the amazing invitation of our gracious King. The gospel of Jesus Christ is God's invitation for us to have a relationship with Him.  This invitation reflects the character of the One offering it, and it comes with the certainty of His honor and our joy!  It is given out of His loving kindness with the assurance of grace sufficient to accomplish everything He desires.  Such an invitation cannot be tossed aside, and it must not be neglected.  The Eternal King is no mere businessman trying to bring in a new customer.  He speaks with eternal authority and calls upon us to hear and respond to the invitation of the gospel of His Son, Jesus Christ.  This is God’s invitation to us, that we would come to know Him through His Son!

Do you hear the Lord's invitation to know Him through the gospel?  Then do not make excuses. Do not ignore Him or attempt to put Him off until later.  He is the Eternal King, and He invites you into His family.  To hear His invitation to come to the wedding feast is to know His mercy. 

Pastor Jeff Frazier

Friday, May 6, 2016

Luke 7:44-50

"Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

The actions of the woman in this story illustrate that she had repented of her sins and placed her faith in Jesus as the true Messiah who had the power to forgive sin. What do you think of when you hear the word “repent”?  Does it sound like an old fashioned church word to you?  Do you immediately think of an angry preacher pounding the pulpit and shouting for people to repent of their sin?  Maybe you have no idea at all what this word is supposed to mean.  I think that most people (even Christians) simply don’t understand the nature of true repentance. 

Martin Luther once said that “most stare blinking at the doctrine of repentance like a cow stares at a new gate.”

But consider what Jesus had to say about the repentance that this woman had obviously heard, believed, and embraced:

“‘The time has come,’ he said. ‘The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!’” – Mark 1:15

“They went out and preached that people should repent.” – Mark 6:12

“He went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” – Luke 3:3

“Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham.” - Luke 3:8

“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” – Luke 5:32

Whatever it is, repentance seems to be pretty important to Jesus!  Most of us think it means being really, really sorry for the wrong things we have done, or feeling really guilty all of the time, or living with a vague sense of general self-loathing.  While it is true that the Bible teaches that we are all sinners, it also teaches that we are created in the image of God and loved with an everlasting love through Christ!  The biblical concept of repentance is not just about the first half of that message.

Take the often quoted verse Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”.  Do you realize that the very next verse (which is actually a continuation of the same thought) says, “and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus”? Too many Christians think that repentance is only dealing with the first verse (3:23), but true repentance means to live in light of both verses (sin-3:23 & grace-3:24)! The Gospel is supposed to be the “Good News”, but the announcement that “all have sinned” is not really very good news (it is not even news) without also telling them that their sin can be forgiven and wiped clean by the free grace of God in Christ!

Jesus’ last words to the woman in this story are “go in peace.” True repentance does not mean we must go through life beating ourselves up spiritually for being sinners.  It means that while cannot rationalize, ignore or justify our sin, we can be lifted out of it by the one who gives us divine grace!

The apostle Paul tells us that it is the kindness of God leads us toward repentance. Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance? Romans 2:4

Sin, guilt, judgment and death are in the Bible, but they are only half of the story and these words will not bring anyone to true repentance without the second half of the story.  The second is the part about grace, forgiveness, mercy, joy, hope and freedom! Simon the Pharisee could not experience the second half because he could not accept the reality that he was a sinner. It is only when we can truly acknowledge the first half (our sin and guilt) that we begin to experience the power of the second half (God’s forgiveness and grace).  When you put these two together in the human heart, you get true repentance!

Oh Lord God, you are high and exalted.  You are the Holy One and the Lord of all creation.  We are weak and corrupt and undeserving creatures.  Yet you have poured out your love on us through Jesus.  Teach us the meaning of true repentance that we might become humble and joyful servants, extravagantly loving you like the woman who had been set free from her sin. Help us to “go in peace” because we have received the forgiveness that comes from you alone. – Amen.

Pastor Jeff Frazier