10-5-2023

Good Morning All,

         Luke 19:10; “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

      I was reading an article in an advice column on the internet the other day.  A woman writer was complaining, she was aghast, that she had gone to a church and the pastor had said some things about “sinners!” and he pretty much stated that, in fact, she was a sinner.  She said she felt humiliated and would have stormed out but “didn’t want to make a scene.”  The advice columnist went on about how incredibly insensitive the pastor was, and she was a fabulous person for not storming out and of course she was under no obligation to ever go back or even speak to this person again.  (Big sigh!!)

    This woman was offended to be called a sinner; sorry but you are.  Now to clarify a little, there has been an attempt by some to alter the definition of “sinner.”  These people imply that a sinner is someone who murders, or abuses children, or steals things; stuff like that.  So, if this woman was offended to be called a murderer or child abuser or thief; I can see her offense.  But while these people are sinners so are those who gossip, who speak poorly of others, who fail to help those in need and any one of a whole host of actions which are sins.  So maybe she should look at sin a little differently.  Instead of seeing sin as an action, she should see it as a condition.

    Being a sinner is not so much about what you do, it is more about being lost.  It is more about not knowing where you are or where you are going.  Imagine that you are driving in a city in which you are unfamiliar.  As you are driving along, you miss your turn off.  You don’t even realize that you are lost so you continue to drive.  Now you are not only lost and going the wrong way, but you are getting farther and farther from where you want to be.  That is what sin is.  It is missing the turn off and getting farther and farther away.

    Since we are no longer on the pathway to God, we do things which are not according to God’s will.  Since we are our own navigator, we follow our own set of directions.  This path is designed to provide us with our own personal, selfish, and self-centered desires.  Deep down, we only worry about us.  We help others because we want to be able to use them later on.  Our only real worry is “what is in it for me.”  This selfish way takes us farther and farther from God and, ultimately; causes us to become unhappy, to lack contentment and to lose a sense of true purpose.

    That is what sin does to us.  It makes us lost and keeps us lost so thus we are not content or happy in any way, shape, or form.  We become more and more frustrated as we become more and more lost.  We have no way to deal with problems or struggles.  We may even turn to false helps.  Yet Jesus came to find us and put us back on the right path.  It is by his grace that we have peace, contentment, hope and security.  God’s grace finds the sinner; God’s grace finds you.

Father of mercy, you sent Jesus to find me, a poor, miserable sinner.  I am found by your tender love and given hope.  Guide me that I may stay on your path.  Help those who are especially lost.  In the name of Jesus our risen Savior, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret