Friday, September 20, 2013

Gone Forever ...................... Parables 021

Have you ever done something that was completely irreversible, creating a situation where you had to begin all over again? Most everyone can relate to that, and today, I certainly can. I just put my storage disk into the disk drive to call up the article I was writing on my computer for this week’s Record. Before I started, I wanted to scratch one file from the disk, but I punched an “n” instead of an “s.” Instead of removing the one file, it removed all of them: an article in its final stages for a magazine, meeting notes, a few other short articles, and some other records. 

Vanished. Completely! Some of these had already been put into printed form so they are available, but others, including the two most important to me, were not in any other form. Nor were they on a duplicate disk, as the instruction manual recommends. 

So I say and looked at a blank screen and said, “Now what, God? I messed it up.”
 

Many years ago, I said almost the same words to God. Only it was my whole life that had been “punched out on the wrong keys.” I had, in so many ways, messed it up. When I looked to Him with “Now what?”, He lovingly allowed me to discover that he was not only willing that I recover and start over, He would equip me and provide all that was needed to do so.
 

In order to get His help, I first needed to clear away the barrier between myself and Him, my sin. I learned that the only way that could be done was to accept Jesus Christ as my substitute. I discovered that there was no way that I could make myself acceptable to God. The Word of God does not give that option. God made the provision for sin by sending his Son to die in my place, taking my punishment for sin on Himself.
 

When I did see my need and accepted God’s provision, I soon found out that Jesus had more to give me than forgiveness, marvelous as forgiveness is. He gave Himself! And in that gift, I was given His wisdom, His righteousness, His love, and everything else that is true of Him. In fact, when God looks at me, I have been so united with Christ, that all God sees is Christ. (Humanly, I don’t see myself in such a glorious fashion, nor does anyone else, but God does, and that is what counts for eternity!)
 

Relating back to my erased disk, the Bible says this: “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12). Furthermore, He says, “Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.” He has not, does not, and will not, ever, hold me accountable for my sin. It has been erased, removed from the records of God, irretrievably!
 

And then, wonder of wonders, because of the reality of Christ in my life, it became possible to begin anew, with His help in making choices and even to correct some of the previous errors. That isn’t instant perfection. My life is like the average typist’s; I still punch some wrong keys now and then, but the mistakes do not go on record to condemn me. The disk of my life was wiped clean because Christ died for me, and that life is now being reprogrammed because Christ lives in me.
 

I regret making today’s error and losing the files from a disk, but it is only mildly annoying. He changes lost lives. Compared to that, a lost disk is nothing.


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