06/13/2021
2 Cor 5:19 To know that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not holding their trespasses against them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
I will never forget when I first read this verse and the revelation hit me with understanding. I had struggled for years trying to be a good Christian thinking God was angry with me for the so-called sin in my life. As a young Christian I was told I could not enter the presence of God with sin in my life. I used to get up early in the morning and go out in the desert, I lived in Lancaster California, and I would plead with God to forgive me and deliver me.
When I first understood that God was not holding me accountable for not being able to live up to the Christian standard it was hard to believe the goodness of God. We have been given such a poor concept of God by religion. I was not able to live a godly live because of my darkened understanding and all my religious legalist teaching.
Rom 4:5-8 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, Saying, blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.
There is nothing we need to do but believe in the goodness of God.
Jesus said, John 17:20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
The world does not believe because of all the divisive and legalistic teaching. May we all drop the division between us and love one another.
1 John 4:7-11
Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
KJV