I FORGOT BUT GOD FORGAVE

"I forgot." I cannot tell you how many times I hear that phrase in a day. It is perhaps one of the most common phrases used as an excuse for something you should have done and didn't. There is no telling how many times I said it to my own parents. And now, I hear it from my children. "Why didn't you clean your room?"..."I forgot!" or "Why didn't you take out the trash?" ... "I forgot!" Even as an adult, I use the phrase often. "Mom, did you get me the notebook paper I need for school?" "No, I forgot." I could go on and on, but I won't. In a spiritual sense we say the same thing to God just about as often. I mean, don't you think He asks too? "Why weren't you in church when my Word specifically says that you are not to forsake the assembling.....?" "Oops, sorry Lord, I forgot." or "Why did you say that when you know my Word specifically says not to let corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth?" "Sorry again Lord, I forgot." Again, I could go on and on, but I won't. We have a tendency to think that God is forgetful, like we are. We take verses in His own Word and twist them out of context, in order to do what we want to. For instance, we will do something we know we are not supposed to (sometimes even when we know we shouldn't) and we will do them anyway. Then, we will say, "Well, I asked God to forgive me and he doesn't hold it against me anymore." You know what? I wish that were true. I mean, the thing that IS true, is that before I knew Him as my Father, I was a dirty sinner on my way to hell, and when I accepted Him as my Saviour, he took me, knowing what I was (and would be) and forgave me of those sins. He buried them "in the deepest part of the sea" (Ps.103:12), or "as far as the east is from the west." (Micah 7:19) At least those are the parts we like to remember anyway. But He still loves me, and He still claims me as His own, even now that I am a saved, rotten sinner! BUT, His Word says something we tend to over look. II Cor. 5:10 says, "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." Now if I understand this correctly, we will stand before Christ and be judged for the things we've done "in the body". Well, I don't know about you, but I certainly am still in my body. So, even though Christ forgave and continues to forgive me of all my sin, He is STILL going to hold me accountable for what I have done since I became HIS. And thankfully, He is still going to let me live in His Heaven, even though I don't deserve it. I may not have as many rewards as I had before I did those things "in the body" that I knew I shouldn't do and did anyway, but I still get to go to heaven because I am HIS child. PRAISE THE LORD and THANK YOU JESUS!!! So, next time you start to tell someone that they should forget all your sins, like God does, you need to remember two things: 1. We will never be like God or as good as God, until we get to heaven. We can "...press toward the mark...." but we will never attain the perfection of God. 2. God does forgive but we are still held accountable for what we've done. Our God is not mindless. He doesn't lose his mind just because we do. We have to stop putting Him on our level. HE IS NOT ON OUR LEVEL. He is WAY HIGHER than we could ever hope to be. II Corinthians 5:14-15 says"For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again." Praise the Lord for His forgiveness and move on with your life. But, don't expect that you can "live unto yourself" and not be held accountable. Before I close, let me give you one example. If the church treasurer steals all the churches money, and spends it, BUT he comes back and asks for forgiveness, do you forgive him? The answer is YES! Do you let him go back to being the treasurer? NOPE! Are you then holding his sin over his head? I don't think so. I mean, I trust the Lord to keep my children safe but I don't let them play on 465 in rush hour traffic either. God gave us (well, most anyway) common sense. Let's use it!

PROVERBS

PROVERB: A short sentence often repeated, expressing a well known truth or common fact, ascertained by experience or observation; a maxim of wisdom. One of the things my children enjoy the most about eating chinese food is the fortune cookie that we get at the end of the meal. They each take one and open it quickly to see what the little piece of paper inside will say. Then they try to decide if what they got really fits them. They say things like, "Oh, that sounds just like so-n-so" or "Man! I wish I'd gotten the one she got." (That usually happens when the paper says that fame & fortune are on their way). It is always fun to see what each person gets. However, there really are people in this world that live their life by these "sayings", which are referred to as chinese proverbs. There are even some who live by, what we call, old wives tales. You know,..."a stitch in time saves nine" and "A watch pot never boils" ... things like that. Though some of these have great meanings, and may even provide a little wisdom, it is still earthly. It is man-made. For the past few summers now, I have made it a rule with my children that no one gets to eat, play, swim, watch TV, or whatever else there is until they read the Proverb for the day and quote the memory verse that I have chosen from the chapter. Of course, the Proverb I'm referring to is a book of the Bible, located between Psalms & Song of Solomon. You might wonder why I'd do that. Well, let me explain... Real wisdom, Godly wisdom comes from the Word of God (KJV). I want my children to be wise. Wisodm will give them "the skill needed to deal with certain situations and the ability to discern between what matters and what doesn't." This is what Solomon was asking for when he asked God for wisdom. God rewarded his request by giving him a knowledge that far exceeded anyone else around. Because of this wisdom, people would travel for miles to seek his counsel. I am so thankful that God inspired him to pass some of his wisdom on to us through his Holy Word. The beginning of all wisdom is..."the fear of the LORD" (Prov. 1:7). This is not a fear that causes us to live in terror, but a fear that is reverent. A fear that causes us to live a life that is holy and righteous because that is what our GOD is. In order to be wise, we have to begin with a right relationship with the Lord. Lost people can have skill, and smarts, and be clever, but this wisdom that is in Proverbs can only be achieved by those who belong to God and have the right kind of relationship with him. When we reject wisdom and instruction, and refuse to fear the Lord, we are foolish. Someone who would ignore wisdom is just stupid. The Bible calls them a "fool". When you lead a life that is absent of God's wisdom and instruction you will never have any peace. When you purposely refuse to heed God's Word you have no one to blame but yourself when the consequences come. (Gal.6:7) There is a day of reckoning coming. When you stand before God and remember wisdom's call to righteousness (Prov.1:24) you will wish you had heeded God's Word. Prov. 1:24-33 "Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD: They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them."