Friday, December 20, 2019

1 Timothy 1:12-17

1 Timothy 1:12-17 
English Standard Version (ESV)

  Christmas is in only 5 days!!!  It's drawing nearer, day by day, minute by minute, and we'll marvel once more about how our all-powerful God chose to come to this earth as a vulnerable infant, dependent on two poor parents, born far from the center of power.  All this is true, but it was part of the mission of God to draw people back to God, so that Jesus might grow in wisdom and power and reveal his purpose -- to save sinners.
  You and I are a small part of the large group of sinners that Jesus came to save.  Maybe our sins aren't as public or as notorious as the sins of others, but that doesn't mean they aren't there.  I'm a fan of the Cincinnati Reds, who for the last few seasons have quietly been one of the worst teams in baseball.  Now, they're not absolutely terrible, so they escape the focus of the national press, but that doesn't make them any better, just because no one notices that they keep losing games (they're going to win the division in 2020.  You heard it here first!!).  They still need dramatic, outside help in order to get better.
  I'm the same way.  My own efforts will not save me.  I depend on the child, born in the manger, who will grow into the man who dies on a cross so that he can rise from the dead.
  As Paul says, this mercy is not just for me.  It's so that God's patience with us can serve as an example.  The idea is that we can declare, with pride, that if God can save us from even our sins, then God can save anyone, and isn't that marvelous?!
  To God be the glory, forever and ever!

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