Psalm 103:8-12 says, "The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. He has removed our sins as far from us as the East is from the West." All the sins that we have done are an offense to the holy character of our God, and our sins deserve the just punishment of God. According to Romans 6:23, the punishment for our sins is death; as a result, we died for our sins. We were completely separated from God's presence and bound to go to hell forever with no chance of going out. However, God did not give us the punishment that we deserved because He was full of compassion and merciful towards us. Instead of lashing out His anger, He lavished us with His unfailing love by sending His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross to pay the penalty of our sins. We were supposed to die for our sins, but Jesus took our place on the cross so that we may live.
God's love for us never fails. Through faith in our Lord Jesus, God gave us a way out of being eternally condemned to hell. God did not only say that He loves us, but He demonstrated it by His sacrificial death on the cross. When we believe in Jesus as our Lord and Savior and seek His forgiveness for our sins, He immediately washes our sins with His precious blood that He shed on the cross. He removed all the sins that we have committed as far as the East is from the West. To say that God separates our sins "as far as the east from the west" speaks of the absolute forgiveness of God. No matter how far we travel east, we will always be moving east. We will never reach the West because East and West are indefinitely far from each other. God's forgiveness is always available to us. There is no amount of sin that God cannot forgive as long as we are sincere in seeking God's forgiveness and willing to change to follow Him.
When we fail to sin, let us not hide from God or run away from Him, but we need to humbly go before Him and ask for forgiveness and restoration, for our God is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry, and filled with unfailing love.
Questions for application: (Think through these questions carefully, meditate on them while answering them, and let the Spirit of God speak to you.) How does God demonstrate His love for me? What should I do when I sin? Do I believe that when God forgives me, I am completely forgiven? If that is the case, how should I live my life?
Take a moment to write down all your worries today. Then, lift them up to God in prayer, surrendering them to His will and trusting in His guidance.
Prayer:
Dear Father in Heaven, thank you for being so compassionate and merciful. I deserve the punishment for my sins, yet you chose to place that burden on my Lord Jesus, granting me the gift of eternal life. Thank you for washing away all my sins. Please help me to overcome sin in my life so that I may praise your name in everything I do. In your name, Jesus, I pray. Amen.
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