7-29-2023

Good Morning All,

             John 3:17; ^“God sent his Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but to save the world.”

    If you are a baseball fan, do you know who Wally Pipp was?  He led the American League in home runs two years in a row.  He was the first Yankee to do so.  Most people really don’t know him.  He was a great baseball player, but he is most famous for having a headache.  One day he told his manager that he didn’t feel up to playing so his manager let him sit out and tried a new kid, a guy by the name of Lou Gehrig.  Wally never played another game for the Yankees.  He was good but not as good as those around him.

    The Bible has some “Wally Pipp” verses.  These are verses that are really good and speak to us.  The problem is that they are next to some super verses.  Our verse for today is probably the classic “Wally Pipp” verse.  We all know John 3:16 but what about John 3:17?

    This is a verse for those of you who believe they are saved but feel guilty about it.  I hear it often.  Faithful Christians feel guilty.  They feel guilty for God’s blessings.  They feel guilty for what they have when they see others have not.  They even feel guilty for being forgiven.  This is why churches that push the idea that you must do something to be saved are so popular; it makes sense to us.  It gives us a feeling of some control in our lives.  It feeds into our own sinful desire for personal value and worth, like we create it.

    First and foremost, know that guilt is always, ALWAYS, the tool of the devil.  Jesus did not come to the world to condemn it but to save it.  He came to remove guilt.  He came to free us from this pain.  Guilt, by definition, is to feel remorse for doing something wrong; the feeling that we need to “pay” for the wrong.  For you and me, the debt is already paid.  Jesus died to pay for your sins.  Our condemnation has been paid; we need not feel the guilt associated with condemnation.

    Rather than guilt we can experience the joy that God has given to us.  So, when the devil tries to make you feel guilty, remember that Christ’s blood bore the price for your sin and the guilt which you feel.  We don’t need to feel guilty; so, don’t let the devil remove the grace that God has for you.  Jesus came to save, to bring you into his family and into his wonderful kingdom where we can live in joy and peace.  It is here that we can find peace and rest, true peace, and true rest. This is the rest that allows us to “fear no evil, for You are with me.” This is no small pleasure; this is what it is all about.

Dearest Father, the devil loves to make me feel guilty.  Keep me in your precious loving arms and give me the assurance of your love to help me remove the guilt which blocks my joyous life in service in your kingdom.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret