These words from Martin Luther King Jr. are still needed today, and they are our calling as followers of Jesus.
"I'm concerned about a better world. I'm concerned about justice; I'm concerned about brotherhood; I'm concerned about truth. And when one is concerned about that, he can never advocate violence. For through violence you may murder a murderer, but you can't murder murder. Through violence you may murder a liar, but you can't establish truth. Through violence you may murder a hater, but you can't murder hate through violence. Darkness cannot put out darkness; only light can do that."
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The power of forgiveness is remarkable. When we think of the grace we have received from God through his forgiving of our sins, we are left speechless.
Ephesians 1:7 says, "He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins." Gone are the excuses, the pretense, the masks. We can do nothing to wash away the ugliness of our sins, or even earn our cleansing. But we come in humility to Calvary and we find freedom! We discover that his forgiveness has the power to transform. This Sunday we will look at Psalm 51 where confession is taught and God's forgiveness is celebrated. The following quote is from musician Rich Mullins, who wrote 'Our God is an Awesome God'. "I think I would rather live on the verge of falling and let my security be in the all-sufficiency of the grace of God than to live in some pietistic illusion of moral excellence. Not that I don't want to be morally excellent but my faith isn't in the idea that I'm more moral than anybody else. My faith is in the idea that God and His love are greater than whatever sins any of us commit." |
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October 2023
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