Living Above And Beyond Reproach.

“This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me, and they worship me in vain, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” Matt. 15:8-9.

In about 1830, a man named George Wilson killed a government employee who caught him in the act of robbing the mails. Wilson was tried and sentenced to be hanged. The President of the United States, Andrew Jackson, sent Wilson a pardon. But, Wilson did a strange thing: he refused to accept the pardon. No one seemed to know what to do because of this, so Wilson’s case was sent to the U. S. Supreme Court. Chief Justice Marshall wrote the opinion: “A pardon is a slip of paper, the value of which is determined by the acceptance of the person to be pardoned. If it is refused, there is no pardon. George Wilson must be hanged.” 

He was hanged.

The cross of Christ is a revelation of God’s love and pardon for all people. We may do cowardly and disappointing things and bring deep pain to the Father’s heart, but in the cross we see that He never gives up on us. Something happened that day on Calvary that forever makes a difference in the relationship between people and God. Even when the love of Jesus was thrown in His face with spitting, mocking and cursing, it remained unbroken. The death of Christ on the cross is the pardon God has sent. But before it becomes a pardon, we must accept it in faith and obedience. It is through the cross, and only through the cross that we can be saved from sin and its consequence of eternal separation from God in hell. Have you accepted God’s pardon in Christ Jesus? If not, will you? 

The phenomenon of religious individuals living in contradiction to their stated faith, can be often described as "throwing back God's pardon" or abusing grace—is a profound issue centered on the tension between belief and behavior. While religious, many struggle to bridge the gap between acknowledging God and living in alignment with that acknowledgment. I guess a lot of church folks misinterpreted grace to be a licence to continue in wrongdoing, rather than empowerment to live righteously. While salvation is instant, some believers fail to understand that true faith should lead to a life transformed, not a "new life" that behaves like the old one. Hypocrisy comes from the Greek term for "actor," someone wearing a mask. The true danger is when a person uses the outward appearance of religion to cover a private, unrepentant lifestyle of sin. Habitual wilful living in sin is equivalent to the rejection of God's pardon. May you embrace the grace that genuinely helps you live above and beyond reproach. Amen. Selah!

FURTHER READING:

“The sovereign master says, “These people say they are loyal to me; they say wonderful things about me, but they are not really loyal to me. Their worship consists of nothing but man-made ritual.” Isa. 29:13.

“But a time is coming – and now is here – when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such people to be his worshipers.” John. 4:23.

DECLARATION: 

Dear Abba Father, I thank You for the gift of life and the privilege of salvation. Lord, I thank You that I stand justified in Your presence, holy, acceptable, and beyond reproach, because Jesus paid the full penalty for my sins. I receive the strength to walk after the Spirit and not after the flesh. Help me, O Lord, to lead an examined life in the light of Your sacrifice, that my character may be aligned with Your will, and that I may walk in wisdom, integrity, and honour. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN:

Job. 26:1-14.

Job. 27:1-23.

Job. 28:1-28.

QUOTE FOR THE DAY:

“Grace Is Never A License To Sin, It's An Empowerment To Live Above And Beyond Reproach.”