Daily Thought: Restoration of the Ruined

"I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you."

~Joel 2:25 (ESV)

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Damage Inexplicable

Ruined. The Christian felt ruined--ruined in the sense that so much damage had been done to his faith, his zeal, and his passion for God that speaking of how he got there seemed far from an explainable story. It seemed one day he was an extremely passionate servant, rejoicing at the mercy of God and the next--a sinner wondering if he even was a Christian and if there would ever be the slightest chance of being welcomed back home to the Father.

Further adding to the pain and guilt was that this damage was inflicted not only by draining bitterness at the acts of others, but primarily at his own hand of sin. He is no victim, he is a Christian met face-to-face by his own weakness and desperate need for a Savior to trust.

I've been there; perhaps you have too.

And where is the only place hope can be found for such wretches?

HERE:

There is no human so wrecked by sin that He cannot lift up and bring to life.

There is heart so wicked that He cannot cleanse and transform.

There is no sin that His Son's death did not provide payment for.

He loves His glory; He hates our sin. And that is why He so rejoices to bring unbelievers to Himself and bring strayed children back to Himself.

Take hold of the Gospel and never forget it!

The Prodigal
You held out Your arms, I walked away
Insolent, I spurned Your face
Squandering the gifts You gave to me
Holding close forbidden things
Destitute, a rebel still, a fool in all my pride
The world I once enjoyed is death to me
No joy, no hope, no life

Where now are the friends that I had bought
Gone with every penny lost
What hope could there be for such as I
Sold out to a world of lies
Oh to see Your face again, it seems so distant now
Could it be that You would take me back
A servant in Your house

You held out Your arms, I see them still
You never left, You never will
Running to embrace me, now I know
Your cords of love will always hold
Mercy’s robe, a ring of grace
Such favor undeserved
You sing over me and celebrate
The rebel now Your child

© 2009 Sovereign Grace Worship (ASCAP)

Recommended Resources
Sons & Daughters
Song: The Prodigal by Sovereign Grace Music

Daily Thought: So Distant Now

Does the Father's face seem distant to you now? Does the embrace of His love and warmth that you once experienced and held dear seem as a distant memory? Is your race as a Christian seen through your eyes as nothing but a heap of lost hope?

Fear not, for we have a Savior Who knows our weaknesses and in fact sympathizes with them. Further, He experienced them as we have:

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15).

So passionate is He for His glory that He is not willing to hide His face from you. He will let His mercy shine forth with the light of countless mid-day sun upon you. He will grasp your soul and fill it with truth to shake sin at its root and see it tremble to the ground as you do in awe of Him. Take heart, Christian! Your road it excruciating. But your hope is not in ease of pain, but peace of soul found in free, saving grace.

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Recommended Resources

Song: The Prodigal

Daily Thought: "I Get Off Here"

The enemy of our soul will always tempt us, threaten us, and try to strike up fear in us by way of end-time lies. Her will tell us...

• "You may as well give it up now--God will not take you back after your blatant sin."
• "The prodigal son was just an exception--he came back to God quicker than you, so God accepted that wanderer back."
• "You've sinned greater than all others" (which is true), "so you're the one 'black sheep' He'll condemn on the last day. You're out of reach of His forgiveness" (which is not true)!
• "God's forgiveness can only go so far and then He is unforgivingly angry with you. Don't you think you've reached His 70 times seventh forgiveness by now? You have already repeated this sin so many times!"
• This Christian life was once an enjoyable ride, but the restrictions and suffering you've experienced to follow this 'God'--is it really worth it? You may as well get off the train here and come enjoy pleasure. Give it up!

Christian runner, do not shrink God to a limited reverser of His Word as Satan would have you do. Satan's words are filled with lies and techniques that would use truths as arguement for fallacy (see the third bullet above).

For you, even you, to be out of reach of His forgiveness would be to say...

• The Gospel isn't sufficient for forgiveness of all sin.
• Christ died for no reason.
• God is a liar.
• The last words of Christ on the cross before He died, "It is finished!," were false and nothing but a dramatic ending to a pointless life.

None of which are true.

Have full faith in His faithfulness to forgive! Let His mercy drive you to repentance. Our God is the Awesome God and forgiver of the worst! Amen!

Daily Thought: Not the End - He Calls the Prodigal

This is not the end. Soul, this is not the end. Though you struggle and lose to sin seemingly more blatantly than ever you have in your life, this is not the end. Repent, my soul, for your sin is serious and His grace is great. Turn from wickedness because there is grace given to turn. Turn to Him because His arms are wide open with welcome. He will kill the fatted cow for you, young one--or old one. He will celebrate with all Heaven when you return. So make haste to the throne! He is calling you now! "Come home!"