Made Right
"But now God has shown us a different way of being right in his sight--not by obeying the law but by the way promised in the scriptures long ago. We are made right in God's sight when we trust in Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we all can be saved in this same way, no matter who we are or what we have done." Romans 3:21-22
"What do I need to do to make this right?" I cannot begin to tell you how many times that I've wished for a customer service representative to ask me this question. Accounting errors, incorrect fees, unannounced pricing changes, wrong orders and the like have resulted in much frustration over the years. How refreshing it would be in those moments to work with someone who wanted me to feel like the wrong was addressed in a satisfactory way. An equally frustrating experience occurs when I am in the wrong and am unable for whatever reason to make things right with someone. Regardless of what side of the coin we may be on, in the long run, seeking acceptable resolutions and making amends with others is worth far more than the short term cost to get there.
In our verses for today, God speaks to this exact situation in the context of our relationship with him. We don't need anyone to tell us that we've done wrong and offended a completely holy and perfect God. We already know that we are anything but perfect. What we need to know is how are things made right between us and God. We may have heard this a million times before or we may be hearing it for the very first time, but here it is: Only Jesus can make us right in God's sight. I cannot work my way into God's good graces. Who I am and what I have done neither impress God nor deter him. He invites all of us into a relationship with him on the same terms, Jesus. We must trust in him to take away our sins.
Grace and Peace,
Tom
"What do I need to do to make this right?" I cannot begin to tell you how many times that I've wished for a customer service representative to ask me this question. Accounting errors, incorrect fees, unannounced pricing changes, wrong orders and the like have resulted in much frustration over the years. How refreshing it would be in those moments to work with someone who wanted me to feel like the wrong was addressed in a satisfactory way. An equally frustrating experience occurs when I am in the wrong and am unable for whatever reason to make things right with someone. Regardless of what side of the coin we may be on, in the long run, seeking acceptable resolutions and making amends with others is worth far more than the short term cost to get there.
In our verses for today, God speaks to this exact situation in the context of our relationship with him. We don't need anyone to tell us that we've done wrong and offended a completely holy and perfect God. We already know that we are anything but perfect. What we need to know is how are things made right between us and God. We may have heard this a million times before or we may be hearing it for the very first time, but here it is: Only Jesus can make us right in God's sight. I cannot work my way into God's good graces. Who I am and what I have done neither impress God nor deter him. He invites all of us into a relationship with him on the same terms, Jesus. We must trust in him to take away our sins.
Grace and Peace,
Tom
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