(A Psalm of David, Maschil.)

1 BLESSED is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. 2 Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.

Have you ever considered what a blessing it is to have forgiveness of God? What a blessing to have the LORD not hold our sins and iniquities against us? To have the LORD’s forgiveness removes all fear of wrath and condemnation and gives us peace with God. To have forgiveness for all our sins gives us the assurance of life everlasting. Indeed, the one who admits his sin to the LORD instead of attempting to hide and cover up his sins is blessed because in the LORD, for the sake of Jesus’ holy life and innocent sufferings and death, he has forgiveness of God. Cf. 1 John 1:5 – 2:2.

What about you? Do you have God’s forgiveness, or are you attempting to hide and cover up your sins? Are you justified of God, or trying to justify yourself? Are you self-deceived and attempting to fool others in regard to your sinfulness, or do you admit your utter sinfulness and look to God for mercy and forgiveness?

3 When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. 4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah.

What happens when we keep silent about our sins? When we are unwilling to admit our sinfulness and look to the LORD for forgiveness? When we are unwilling to give up our sins? God’s hand is heavy upon us. We grow old and weary through our groaning and sighing all day long as we feel the guilt and weight of our sins. Our moisture, our vitality, our joy, is turned into the drought of summer; it is evaporated away.

5 I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

To confess our sins is to say and agree with what God says of us and our sin (cf. 1 John 1:9). Confession makes no excuses for sin, but acknowledges sin as sin and deserving of God’s eternal wrath and punishment! When we acknowledge our sin unto the LORD and quit attempting to hide it and cover it up, when we confess our transgression of God’s commandments unto the LORD, He graciously forgives our sins for Jesus’ sake. “We have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:7).

6 For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him.

For God’s forgiveness, everyone that is godly will pray now, before it’s too late! “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2). Don’t put off repentance! Don’t wait another day. Acknowledge and confess your sins now and receive God’s forgiveness. Tomorrow may be too late for you. You may never have opportunity to receive God’s forgiveness again. If you turn to the LORD now, God will have mercy upon you and save you from the judgment to come!

The Bible says, “For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee” (Psalm 86:5).

7 Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.

When we turn to the LORD for forgiveness, He also will protect and preserve us from evil and trouble. Cf. Psalm 91. That doesn’t mean that we will have an easy life here in this world. Quite the contrary is often true. But He will preserve us and bring us safely though the difficulties and sufferings of this evil world to himself in heaven.

8 I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. 9 Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.

God desires to instruct and lead His children in His ways. He does this through His Word, which is “a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path” (Psalm 119:105). But, how often are we not like the horse or mule which must have a bit and bridle to get them to go in the right direction! How much easier it would be for us, and better too, to let God instruct and guide us through this life!

10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about.

Just think about this word of God: “Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about.” The wicked, the impenitent, will have many sorrows. Not only will this life be full of sorrow, not knowing the forgiveness and peace of God; the life to come will be one of eternal suffering and sorrow for the wicked! On the other hand, God’s mercy and forgiveness shall surround and encompass the one who trusts in the LORD!

11 Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.

Indeed, those who have God’s pardon and forgiveness, those to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity and sin but counts them righteous and holy in His sight for Jesus’ sake, have cause to be glad in the LORD and rejoice. And, they can shout for joy; for they are blessed of the LORD forevermore!

[Scripture taken from the King James Version of the Bible]

Many are asking these days why God would allow such a tragedy as the recent earthquakes in Haiti and Chili. As a sinful human being with very limited understanding of the ways of God, I will not presume to speak on His behalf and try, as some have done, to explain God’s reasonings for permitting this tragedy to occur. I will, however, let God speak for Himself if any care to listen.

In Luke 13:1ff., Jesus was told of certain Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. Jesus asked, “Suppose ye that these Galileans were sinners above all the Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”

Applying Jesus’ words to those who died in Haiti or Chili, were these people worse sinners than others, including us, who did not suffer such tragedy? Jesus said, “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”

In 2 Peter 3, the Bible speaks of God’s final judgment upon this earth, and we learn why it has not yet occurred. Verse 9 says: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” The recent events in our world could have just as well struck right here, at home. Stop and think about the possibilities.

Why hasn’t such a tragedy struck us? Why hasn’t God permitted death to come suddenly upon us? His answer: He “is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

Perhaps – no, most definitely – we ought to use the remaining time God has given us in this world to consider what He has told us in the Bible, repent of the evil in our lives and seek the forgiveness God offers us through the death and resurrection of His Son!

Jesus added this parable to His words: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down” (Luke 13:6-9).

Our gracious God expects to find fruits of repentance in our lives too. If we are truly sorry for our sinful ways and trust in Christ Jesus for forgiveness, we will not just continue on in our old sinful ways but seek to live for Christ according to His Word. Jesus is patient with us and, by His Spirit, works to strengthen us in the faith and sanctify us that we might live for Him. But ultimately, if we produce no fruit for Him, we, like the fruitless fig tree will be cut down.

Jesus’ words are a warning to us against false security – thinking that all is well with our souls if we are baptized church members while we go our own way and live as we please rather than as God commands in His Word and as God’s Spirit leads us. Unless we repent, we will be cut off and perish.

God is patient with us and desires that we all repent of our foolish and sinful ways and turn to Jesus Christ and His innocent sufferings and death upon the cross for forgiveness and new life in Him. He is patient, but one day that patience will run out and the day of the Lord will come upon us.

O dearest Jesus, forgive my foolishness and sin and teach me to walk in Your ways and live for You in accord with Your holy Word. Grant that I produce the fruits of true repentance in my life and be found to Your praise and glory. I ask this for the sake of Your holy and precious blood shed for the remission of my sins and the sins of the whole world. Amen.

[Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.]

Dear Friend,

The Bible tells us that Jesus Christ, God’s Son, is coming again soon to judge the living and the dead. Are you ready to stand before Him and to be judged by Him?

The Bible also tells us that: “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). This means that all of us – including you -  have sinned against God and deserve to be condemned to suffer forever in hell!

That is a frightening thought for each of us, but there is hope. There is a way to stand in Christ’s judgment on the last day.

The only way to be saved from the eternal punishment we so deserve on account of our sins was provided by God Himself when He sent His only begotten Son into the world as a true man to live a holy life in our place and to suffer and die upon the cross for the sins of the entire world. Jesus Christ bore the just penalty for the sins of all when He died upon the cross, and His resurrection on the third day is proof that God accepted His sacrifice and payment for sin – that the sins of all people are paid for in full and pardoned! Jesus, by His death and resurrection opened the gates of heaven to all!

God, in His Word, tells all of us: that we are “justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24). This means that God pardons us and forgives our sins for the sake of His Son’s holy life and bitter sufferings and death in our place.

God’s Word also tells us: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31). Through faith in Jesus Christ, God’s gracious pardon and gift of life eternal is yours!

The Bible tells us that “there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

And Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life” (John 5:24).

Dear Friend, I urge you to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ – to trust in Him as your Savior from sin and the eternal torments of hell. Then you will not be condemned in Christ’s judgment, but stand and receive instead the everlasting joys of heaven which Jesus Christ won for you!

For more information on God’s gift of salvation in Jesus Christ, or for help and guidance from God’s Word, please contact us.

By Dr. C. F. W. Walther

“For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.” (1 Thessalonians 4:7)

With these words the Apostle desires to say that the believing Christians, upon whom grace has been bestowed, are not only obligated to a life of holiness, which duty all men have, but the very grace which they have received has no other aim and no other final objective than their holiness of life, their sanctification. If as people who have been created for fellowship with God they already are obligated to a life of holiness, they are that doubly so as believing Christians.

Here again the Apostle in great earnestness opposes certain false ideas and conceptions which many people hold regarding Christianity. Many secretly think in their hearts, even though they do not always voice it: To what purpose did Christ come into the world, to what purpose did God permit the comforting Gospel of redemption to be preached, to what purpose was faith ordained as the means of salvation, if believing Christians must still concern themselves so earnestly in battling against each sin and in seeking after an ever greater holiness of life? If this were so necessary, what kind of a difference then were there between Christ and Moses, between the Law and the Gospel, between a believer and an unbeliever? But how greatly such people do err!

Indeed it was necessary, if we Christians should be saved, that Christ come into the world and win for us grace and a righteousness which is acceptable to God; and it is indeed now necessary for everyone who is to be saved that he by faith in Christ grasp and obtain that grace of God and that righteousness which avails before God which has been won for him. This all, however, is not the sole purpose of Christ’s coming into the flesh and of our profession in His Kingdom of Grace, but only the means, only the path to the real goal. God did not send His Son into the world reconciling Himself to man, and God did not call him to faith, merely in order that He might relieve man of the thought that God is his enemy and that after death he will have to expect punishment. The final, the real goal of God’s work of grace for and on man is nothing else than his sanctification, his holiness of life.

Man was originally created after the image of God in perfect righteousness and holiness. This image, which man lost through sin, should and must therefore be restored again and the person must again become holy; for only if he is holy, can he also be saved. Therefore, in order that a person may again become holy, he has been redeemed; in order that he may again become holy, the Gospel is preached to him; in order that he may again become holy, faith is given him and is counted to him for righteousness; in order that he may again become holy, he is baptized; in order that he may again become holy, his sins are forgiven, he is given the body and blood of Christ, he is promised salvation, heaven is opened to him.

Does it not of itself necessarily follow from this how essential holiness of life is also for the believer and for the Christian who in hope already is blessed? It is indeed true: No one is able to earn salvation through holiness of life. A person must rather first have embraced salvation by faith before he is able to strive after holiness of life. Just as surely as it is impossible to earn and procure salvation through holiness of life, just so surely, nevertheless, can a person again trifle away his salvation by no longer continuing in holiness of life. For what does he do who refuses to follow after a holy life? Since God offers him the Means of Grace and bestows His grace through faith for the very purpose that he might again become holy, (by his refusal to follow after a holy life) he resists God, and grieves and drives out of his heart the Holy Ghost, who alone is able to preserve him in the faith, and thus finally loses his salvation.

Whoever, therefore, wishes to be saved, let him first in true repentance seek grace; but if he has grace, then let him also be in earnest about leading a holy life, for that is the will of God and for that purpose Christians are called. Indeed, in this life here below we will never reach perfection, but woe unto him who hides behind his weakness and imperfection seeking thereby to excuse his service of sin and his lukewarmness! Such a person will receive his reward with the hypocrites. Blessed, on the other hand, are they who from the heart can say with the Apostle: “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which I am apprehended of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:12). In such earnest Christians the Lord’s glory already here below reflects itself with covered countenance, and they will be changed from one glory to another into the same image until finally they will there awaken in heaven in the perfection of His likeness.

“As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness” (Psalm 17:15).

Lord on Thy breast me quicken. My passions crucify: All evil lusts be stricken, and day by day may I the old evil world denounce, my own wicked flesh renounce, Thee only glorify. Amen.

This Biblical position was also Luther’s position: “If thou wouldst give up the doctrine of faith or subvert it and, leaving Christ, depend upon thine own sanctity, or publicly live in sin and shame, and yet glory in the Gospel and in the Christian name: then thou shalt know that thou art a false branch and hast no part in the Vine, but, cast out and condemned with wood and fruits, belongest to eternal hell-fire” (Popular Commentary, N.T., Vol. 1, p.494 by P. E. Kretzmann).

Read Ephesians 2:8-10 – “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”