Psalm 32 Shows That God Forgives
Am I more disposed to repent or to excuse myself?
Does my definition of repentance match God’s?
Which (if any) sin am I still trying to hide from God?
What do I know about hiding in God?
Must I have a bridle or can God guide me with His eye?
That mercy compassing me about — do others get some from me?
What’s my song today?
[Just some questions I asked in 2010 when I quick threw together God Forgives the Penitent.]
God forgives For my guidance
“I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye” (Psalm 32:8). By my choice, God has led me for some three decades. To do this He has used and continues to use His Word and His undershepherds. I thank Him for providing me this kind of instruction, teaching, and guidance. I know where I am going, and I know how to get there!
But how difficult it has been at times to accept the fact that God wants to lead me…by using other men to do so! I want to look into the Lord’s eye myself; I don’t always want to submit to “mere men” for direction from the Lord. I need to be wary lest I take the doctrine of the priesthood of believers and “stretch” it to include an insubordinate, independent spirit. I do not wish to fall into the error of some in the past who have declared: “Hath the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us?” (Numbers 12:2).
I want to remember God has given ordained brethren as gifts to the church. He chose these men so He might…
However, not all leaders are faithful leaders who are safe to follow. And not all faithful leaders…
Every leader will someday give an account to God for himself…and for those…
Excerpted from The Minister, a Godly Servant
Why God forgives us?
Consider the state of the human race today. We could hardly say that we are corporately functioning according to the Creator’s designs and purposes. As a race we have become utterly unprofitable, contaminated through and through by sin and death. Why should God forgive anyone?
Consider your own spiritual state. If it at all resembles mine, we are both a long way from Adam’s pristine condition back in the Garden of Eden. While we may be functioning better than other individuals we know of, we still fall short of what we were intended to be. Why should God forgive either one of us?
Why should I forgive? as God forgives?
It seems incongruous to ask such a question after writing and reading that first section. Nonetheless, it is a very practical question because many of us struggle with forgiving those who wrong us.
So why should I forgive? Well, the section above gives me two possible answers: I should forgive because the offender needs it and because I want to. The problem is, when I am in the throes of hurt and anger because of the offense, I don’t much (want to) care about the needs of the offender. Thus, it impossible for me to want to forgive.
That’s when I need to look again at my own condition before God. I need to humbly accept the privilege and responsibility of…
Excerpted from something I wrote long ago that explains why God forgives and why I should too.
