Failure.  Frustration.  Regret.

Shame.  Despair.  Brokenness.

Maybe it’s the divorce, the time of rebellion, experimenting . . . a little too far.  Maybe it’s the false religion, the abortion, the life-changing choice . . . the one thing you wish you had never done.  “Can God ever forgive me?”

Or maybe it’s more than just one event.  Maybe it’s the anger, the pride, the lustful thoughts, the broken promises.  “I failed the Lord – again.”

Broken . . . but not alone

Brokenness.  It’s a word we know too well.  Adam and Eve knew it. King David knew it.  Peter knew it, and Paul did too.

Jesus knew it too.  “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15).  Jesus was tempted in every respect.  Some translations say “in all points.”  In ALL points.  Every one of our weaknesses He knows.  The strength of every temptation He knows.

And more than that, Jesus knows the feeling of failure.  “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree” (1 Peter 2:24).  “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. . . . He was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities. . . . All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned – every one – to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:4-6).

Jesus experienced the shame, heartache, and consequences of our sin and brokenness in every way possible.  He understands.  Like no one else ever could, Jesus understands.

There is a Redeemer

Jesus came to bear our sins so that we wouldn’t have to.  He lived a sinless life so that we could live a changed life.  “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.  By his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:24).

Salvation is not simply praying a prayer, being baptized, or trying to live a good life.  None of us can be good enough to measure up to God’s righteousness.  “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).  We need Jesus.

Nor can we be saved by simply believing in Jesus.  We must truly follow Him.  “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21).  Jesus said, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples” (John 8:31).

Salvation according to Jesus means repenting of sin and turning to Christ, and then continuing to live in obedience to His commands.  For the early Christians, this two-step process of trust and obedience was clear:

• “The strength of our will is not sufficient to procure the perfectly pure heart.  For we need God to create it.  He, therefore, who prays as he should, offers this petition to God: ‘Create in me a clean heart, O God.’” – Origen (c. 248)
• “‘Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute sin’ [Ps. 32:2].  That is, having repented of his sins, he can receive remission of them from God.” – Justin Martyr (c. 160)
• “Into this joy, many persons desire to enter.  They know that ‘by grace you are saved, not of works,’ but by the will of God through Jesus Christ. . . . But He who raised him up from the dead will raise up us also – if we do His will, and walk in His commandments, and love what He loved, keeping ourselves from all unrighteousness.” – Polycarp (c. 135)
• “We do not teach concerning the unrighteous man that it is sufficient for him to humble himself on account of his wickedness.  Rather, God will accept him only if – after passing condemnation upon himself for his past conduct – he walks humbly on account of it and in a righteous manner for his remaining days.” – Origen (c. 248)
• “Rightly, then, to those who have believed and obey, grace will abound beyond measure.” – Clement of Alexandria (c. 195)

1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  Have you ever confessed your sins and made the decision to follow Christ?  Do you know the depth of His love and forgiveness?

When Jesus called people to follow Him, they immediately left what they were doing and followed.  You can make that same decision today.  Confess and forsake your sins, put your trust in Jesus, and commit to follow His teachings.  That’s what being a Christian – a Christ-follower – means.

The Bible says that at salvation, God washes our past sins away and gives us a new opportunity to live for Him.

• “He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot.  You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.” – Micah 7:19
• “And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him.” – Colossians 1:21-22
• “Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.  Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.” – Isaiah 1:16-18

Grace greater than all our sin

At salvation, we commit to follow Jesus’ teachings.  However, not long into the Christian life, we discover that we are not perfect.  We still fail.  Of course God’s grace should not be taken lightly.  Yes, Christianity is about obedience to Christ.  But at the same time, the grace that was available before salvation is still available now – if we repent and turn back to Jesus.

• “If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O LORD, who could stand?  But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.” – Psalm 130:3-4
• “The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” – Psalm 145:8
• “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.  Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.  Restore to me the joy of your salvation . . . . The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” – Psalm 51:10-12, 17
• “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.” – Proverbs 28:13

There are always consequences for sin.  Sometimes they are minimal, and sometimes they last for generations.  David’s sin of adultery reaped consequences for many years.  Adam and Eve’s sin affected all of humanity. Paul probably couldn’t tell his story without tears, as he thought of the Christians he had murdered and the families whose lives he had forever changed.

Yet none of these people were disqualified.  None of them were beyond God’s power to forgive, redeem, and restore.

And neither are you.  There is no sin too hidden for God to see, no heartache too deep for Him to feel, and no offense too great or too small for Him to forgive.  “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

“The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come.’  And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’  And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price” (Revelation 22:17).

Come unto me

• “But if a wicked person turns away from all his sins that he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does what is just and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die.  None of the transgressions that he has committed shall be remembered against him; for the righteousness that he has done he shall live.” – Ezekiel 18:21-22
• “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.  Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. . . . I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,’ and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.” – Psalm 32:1-5
• “He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners , . . .  to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. . . . Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance.  And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.” – Isaiah 61:1-7 (NIV)

Broken.  Forgiven.  Restored.

Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!
For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.

Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
and blameless in your judgment.

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me.
Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,
and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones that you have broken rejoice.

Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.

Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.

Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will return to you.
For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

– Psalm 51:1-13, 16-17