David Bahn – Reflections

After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, “Follow me.” ²⁸ And leaving everything, he rose and followed him.

²⁹ And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them. ³⁰ And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” ³¹ And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. ³² I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

³³ And they said to him, “The disciples of John fast often and offer prayers, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink.” ³⁴ And Jesus said to them, “Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? ³⁵ The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.” ³⁶ He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. ³⁷ And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. ³⁸ But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. ³⁹ And no one after drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good.’” – Luke 5:27-39 [ESV]

How do you feel about cutting off your hand so that you are able to get into heaven? What about losing an eye? Or getting accused of murder just because you call someone a fool? These are jus a few hard sayings of Jesus. Most often we pass them off by saying that they’re hyperbole, symbolic, or applicable to someone else. 

But there’s one here in these verses that is easily dismissed because we miss it, and don’t recognize it as a hard saying of Jesus. 

Hard sayings of Jesus are those teachings that are difficult to understand, or believe. They call for extraordinary faith and action. But they’re pretty obvious. Camels don’t fit through something as small as the eye of a needle. And while it is better to enter heaven with only one hand, few think Jesus was teaching us to cut off our hands to get to heaven.

What of this one, however? “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. ³² I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” The dedicated Jesus-follower recognizes his sinfulness, and need for God’s grace. But I wonder how many people sit in the church pews not really believing that they are in desperate need of Jesus’ healing, forgiveness, and grace. I wonder if it’s really much easier than we think to believe that the really sick and sinful people aren’t actually the proper focus of the church’s ministry. 

It seems to me that this is one of those concept verses reality issues. We may believe in the concept of grace but desire only certain people to populate our pews on Sunday morning. We might believe conceptually that we ought to be reaching out to people who are in need of God, but we are much more comfortable reaching out to people who are not that kind of people.

Thankfully Jesus meant what he said. He came for sinners. He was seeking the lost, the sick, the hopeless. Sometimes we recognize we are the ones he is seeking. We must always recognize others as objects of is loving search as well. He is saying, in effect:

Come every beating heart that longs to find its worth
Come every aching soul in need of something more
Come with your questions
Come with your doubts
Bring them to the Lord

Come all you castaways, left out of every crowd
Come all you outsiders, unwanted until now
You are a people
You have a place
Waiting with the Lord

Troubled and restless, hungry and helpless

Sing for joy, the King is calling
Strong in justice, rich in mercy
Sing for joy, the King is calling
And His love is never-ending

Come all you servants, with no candle left to burn
Come every broken body, tired from years of work
Lay down your tools
Lift up your hands
Lift them to the Lord

Lift up a shout
Our King is full of grace
Lift up a shout
He’s worthy of our praise

The King is Calling – Kip Fox

For your personal meditation and reflection on this Lord’s Day.

On one of those days, as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with him to heal. ¹⁸ And behold, some men were bringing on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and they were seeking to bring him in and lay him before Jesus, ¹⁹ but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus. ²⁰ And when he saw their faith, he said, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.” ²¹ And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” ²² When Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts? ²³ Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? ²⁴ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” ²⁵ And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, glorifying God. ²⁶ And amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.” – Luke 5:17-16 [ESV]

She was 87 years old. Not confined to a wheel chair, but definitely not very mobile. She lived in a skilled care facility, and I would visit her there regularly. She delighted in receiving the Lord’s Supper and expressed joy in our conversations. She had a wonderful spirit and exhibited a strong faith. One day I received a call that she had died. She had lived a good life. Taught Sunday School. Served in the women’s group. Faithfuly worshiped until she could no longer get out. She had not suffered unduly in her last days. Hers was a peaceful death. I felt it was a true answer to the Lord’s Prayer, “Deliver us from evil.” God indeed gave her a blessed end, and graciously took her from this valley of sorrow to Himself in heaven. (cf. Luther’s Small Catechism, The Lord’s Prayer, The Seventh Petition)

He abandoned his wife and children, and left them in a lurch. He was unrepentant. He made his choice known and followed his own dream. There was little evidence of his faith; in fact more evidence of abandoning his faith. 

Yet another young man took his own life. He had suffered gravely because of his drug addiction. Having suffered a stroke, he was recovering at home, mostly confined to bed. I visited him in the days immediately before he died. He asked for prayer, and seemed genuinely repentant. But he took his own life. 

Yes. No. Maybe. Would you say that pretty well captures the range of answers about these people’s faith? She did have faith; it showed in her life and end of her days. He showed every sign of abandoning the faith in his choice to leave his family. The other young man showed a mixed-bag of faith and despair. 

Thankfully we don’t have to make any of those calls – at least not in terms of their eternal destiny. That is God’s determination. I’m thankful for that on two levels. I don’t have the weight of that judgement on my heart. And God alone knows the heart, and is gracious and good. I thankfully put all things into his hands.

Jesus saw the faith of the men who brought their friend to him for healing. I’m guessing that while faith is a matter of the heart and soul, it is also something that can be seen. It’s not merely conceptual. It’s more than a theological bent. It lives in the soil of a faith-filled heart, but buds in the light of a faithful life. 

And here’s the delightful truth: God receives even the faint of faith. We may cry out, as the anxious dad, “I believe. Help my unbelief.” (Mark 9:24) And God helps us in our unbelief. Want further evidence?

“He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle.” – Isaiah 42:3

The man who prayed in the temple, not even lifting his eyes to heaven, “God be merciful to me a sinner,” went to his home justified. (Luke 18:13)

The doubters (!) on the day of Jesus’ ascension were still commissioned for God’s Great Mission. (cf. Matthew 28:16-17)

We cannot actually see faith, but we can see evidence of it. God knows our hearts. And Jesus promises, “Whoever comes to me I will not turn away.” – John 6:37

On one of those days, as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with him to heal. ¹⁸ And behold, some men were bringing on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and they were seeking to bring him in and lay him before Jesus, ¹⁹ but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus. ²⁰ And when he saw their faith, he said, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.” ²¹ And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” ²² When Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts? ²³ Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? ²⁴ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” ²⁵ And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, glorifying God. ²⁶ And amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.” – Luke 5:17-16 [ESV]

One of our sons was notorious for missing sights along the highway as we were traveling in our big blue van. We would load up the 6 of us in a full-sized Dodge Ram van and hit the road. Whether to visit family in Missouri or on a cross-country adventure. One of us would point out something interesting, the rest would ooh and ahh over it, and that one son would inevitably say, “What? What was it?” He would miss it. What amazes you? What catches your attention? What may distract you? What kinds of things might you miss because you’re watching something else? 

As I think about this encounter with Jesus and the paralyzed man with his four friends, there are at least three things that are noteworthy. Three things that might amaze people. 

There’s the earnest effort of these four who will do whatever is necessary to get their friend to Jesus – including lowering him through a hole they had made in the roof above where Jesus was teaching. Remarkable. Amazing. 

There is the grumbling of the Pharisees who are watching Jesus with the intent of shutting him down, discrediting him and his ministry. They had determined that Jesus was not the messiah. He was not to be trusted. He must be shut down. Sad. Amazingly sad.

And consider the words of Jesus: “Which is easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say ‘Rise and walk’”? That is an amazing question. And the question itself is worth a second look. For to say, “Your sins are forgiven,” seems really easy to say. And no one can verify or discredit the statement. But we know when Jesus asks the question, he is not being merely philosophical. Everyone can see whether his words are true if he tells the man to rise and walk. But saying that the man’s sins were forgiven will require something way more difficult than just saying the words.

And what about seeing the man take up his pallet and walk out in front of them all – at Jesus’ command? I notice how Jesus couples that with a show of his power over sin itself. Jesus shows that he has the authority to forgive sins by healing a paralyzed man. 

The people’s response? “We have seen extraordinary things today.” Yes they have. All of the above are amazing. Which is most amazing to you?

While Jesus was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” ¹³ And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him. ¹⁴ And he charged him to tell no one, but “go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” ¹⁵ But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. ¹⁶ But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray. – Luke 5:12-16 [ESV]

Yesterday I wrote, “I believe it is God’s will to heal. In every single case. Every. Single. Case. I base that on God’s expressed will that all be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. And in heaven there is no sickness, illness, disease, death, or sin of any kind. So it’s not a matter of if God wills someone to be healed. It’s a matter of when…and of faith.” And I promised to deal with that today. So here goes…

On the one hand it’s really easy. I’ve already explained it above. When we pray for healing, we do not have to say, “If it is your will.” For we know it is God’s ultimate will. For all people. For God, “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (cf. 1 Timothy 2:4) And salvation is ultimately experienced in the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. 

This is a mystery promised in 1 Corinthians 15:42-43: What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. 

If we are saved – and we have been saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8) – we will be raised. Our perishable bodies will be raised imperishable. I’ve already promised a wheel-chair-confined brother in Christ, that we’ll have a race down the garden path in heaven. That will be a sweet moment. My achy shoulder, artificial knee and hip, and whatever else is not 100% perfect will be 100% perfect in the life of the world to come. 

That’s all well and good. Truly good. But there remains these moments and days. Our beloved daughter-in-law died of cancer. My own sister succumbed to it too. My dad succumbed to the same disease 37 years ago. Friends have been taken from us by this terrible covid disease. Children and pregnant mothers have been brutally wounded and killed in Ukraine. Certainly prayers are going up for them even now! 

“How long, O Lord?” writes the David. (Psalm 13:1) “Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? Jesus himself tells us, “In this world you will have trouble.” (John 16:33) But we are not looking only for relief from our troubles this side of eternity. We are looking toward the perfect and complete culmination of our redemption in the life of the world to come. As we wait we may still pray, thy will be done, knowing that god’s ultimate will is pure, perfect, good, and gracious.

To all this I guess I’m with C.S. Lewis, when asked about his seemingly unanswered prayers in behalf of his wife who died of cancer. When pushed on this issue, he said, “I pray because I’m helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn’t change God. It changes me.” And I surely do need to be changed…and I will, along with all those who wait for Jesus, we will be changed, in the blink of an eye. Peterson paraphrases it well:

But let me tell you something wonderful, a mystery I’ll probably never fully understand. We’re not all going to die—but we are all going to be changed. You hear a blast to end all blasts from a trumpet, and in the time that you look up and blink your eyes—it’s over. On signal from that trumpet from heaven, the dead will be up and out of their graves, beyond the reach of death, never to die again. At the same moment and in the same way, we’ll all be changed. In the resurrection scheme of things, this has to happen: everything perishable taken off the shelves and replaced by the imperishable, this mortal replaced by the immortal. – 1 Corinthians 15:51ff

While Jesus was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” ¹³ And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him. ¹⁴ And he charged him to tell no one, but “go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” ¹⁵ But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. ¹⁶ But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray. – Luke 5:12-16 [ESV]

I play a little game at one particular piece of road near where I live. It’s a “Will I get a Signal” game. The piece of road is notorious for people who make a turn in the left lane trying to sneak in front of those who make that same turn from the right lane. It’s a two-turn-lane intersection, so the proper way to make the transition – if you want to be truly proper – is to turn left from the right lane, so you can then make the next turn to the right in a matter of 2 blocks. Confusing? Well here’s the not-confusing part. I will gladly let someone in front of me if they turn on their turn signal, indicating their desire to get into “MY LANE.” If not… well, It is a race. And I do own the road! 

But I digress. I am willing to let someone in. I am able to do it too; I need only to slow down a bit and make room for the driver seeking entry into my lane. 

Is it that easy for Jesus to heal the sick? Raise the dead? Still the storm? Give sight to a blind man? I’m not sure, but I suspect it’s not too difficult. Jesus is God in the flesh. He shows that from time to time by his miracles. If he can raise the dead, he surely can heal a man full of leprosy. The question is whether he is willing to do so. 

This is the question we, too, must ask when we pray. Jesus teaches us to pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Luther explains, “The good and gracious will of God is done even without our prayer. But we pray in this petition that it may be done among us…” (Luther’s Small Catechism, the Lord’s Prayer) 

I believe it is God’s will to heal. In every single case. Every. Single. Case. I base that on God’s expressed will that all be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. And in heaven there is no sickness, illness, disease, death, or sin of any kind. So it’s not a matter of if God wills someone to be healed. It’s a matter of when…and of faith. I’ll talk about that more tomorrow. 

So the matter of timing still remains. And I notice how Jesus would “withdraw to desolate places and pray.” I’m thinking that at least part of that prayer was to discern God’s will for the timing of his miracles. How did Jesus discern it was time? He did so by spending time with his Father in prayer. 

I wonder if I might have a greater insight about God’s healing, timing, and will if I were to spend more time in prayer. Oh well…no I don’t wonder. I’m certain I would.

While Jesus was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” ¹³ And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him. ¹⁴ And he charged him to tell no one, but “go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” ¹⁵ But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. ¹⁶ But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.

¹⁷ On one of those days, as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with him to heal. ¹⁸ And behold, some men were bringing on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and they were seeking to bring him in and lay him before Jesus, ¹⁹ but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus. ²⁰ And when he saw their faith, he said, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.” ²¹ And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” ²² When Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts? ²³ Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? ²⁴ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” ²⁵ And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, glorifying God. ²⁶ And amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.” – Luke 5:12-26 [ESV]

Where is your line? Does it have to do with your favorite sports team? Your child? Your spouse? Your church? Your politics? Your reputation? Most people have a line. It’s a place beyond which you will not go. A place were an opponent turns into a sworn enemy. A place where tolerance stops and judgment begins. Human trafficking. War mongering. Blasphemy. 

Ah, blasphemy. There’s the rub. Jesus is well received as he is healing disease. A man is “full of leprocy.” He approaches Jesus asking for healing. Jesus complies and sends him to the priest. Well within the bounds of Jewish religious propriety. Jesus even tells him not to make a big deal that it was Jesus who did it. He directs him to do what Moses commanded. All is well. 

Next, however, there comes a line. It’s interesting to me that the line that is crossed here is not the destruction of someone’s roof. It’s not the the fact that the friends interrupt Jesus in the midst of his teaching. But when Jesus claims to deal with the profoundly foundational need of all people by forgiving the man’s sins, the line is crossed. 

“Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 

Who indeed. If Jesus is just some good natured faith healer, who sends people back to their synagogue or to the priest, all is well. He stays within the boundaries. He upsets no one. But if he claims to heal and to forgive sins, that’s another matter. 

When I first attended a Lutheran worship service and the pastor said, “I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” I took offense. He can’t do that, I thought. I didn’t understand the fullness of the phrase, “in the name of…” I thought it was merely a religious add-on, like how we are supposed to end our prayers. Actually it is speaking as though God himself is speaking. The pastor isn’t forgiving. God is…through the pastor. 

When we forgive we are doing exactly what Jesus taught us to do. And it’s all based not on our character and gracious kindness. It’s based on God’s nature and gift. For Jesus is speaking for himself as God in the flesh, and forgiving sins because that’s exactly what God does. And he will do so through Jesus’ suffering and death. His resurrection proves it. His ascension and second coming will culminate all that on the Great Last Day. 

For Jesus there is a line not to be crossed. It’s when we call the work of the Holy Spirit (bringing us to faith) the work of the devil. But we do not do that! We may struggle with our faith. We may have doubts. But we delight in the work of the Holy Spirit who turns us to Jesus, and calls us to faith in him. That’s a line I don’t want to cross!

On this Lord’s Day, please pray these psalms for the people of Ukraine.

On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, Jesus was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, ² and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. ³ Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. ⁴ And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” ⁵ And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” ⁶ And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. ⁷ They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. ⁸ But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” ⁹ For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, ¹⁰ and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” ¹¹ And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him. – Luke 5:1-11 [ESV]

Have you ever been to a real magic show? Sleight of hand. Distraction. Mirrors and smoke. Fake bottoms. Special boxes and props. All designed to divert your attention away from the mundane and make you think it’s truly magic. 

In this encounter with Peter and his fishermen partners we have so many things going on that I missed the centerpiece of the whole event. Right there in the middle is the miracle. No fish all night, turns into more fish than one boat can handle. Nearly the same thing happens after Jesus’ resurrection. Peter and a few of his fellow disciples are out fishing all night. Again, no fish. Jesus comes on the scene and tells them to cast their nets on the right side of the boat. They do, and another remarkable number of fish are caught. This Jesus seems to have power and authority over the fish of the sea as well as demons, disease, and the devil himself. 

A woman once told me that she thought miracles were natural processes sped up. Sorry. Water doesn’t turn into wine naturally. Little girls don’t naturally regain life. Blind men don’t naturally recover their sight. And fish don’t just appear in one spot at one time. This is a miracle. Jesus marshals a school of fish just for Peter’s nets. At that time. In that place. 

So is this miracle simply an attention getter? Is Jesus merely wanting to make a dramatic statement to gain Peter’s ear? Perhaps. But this is also a revelation of Jesus’ nature as true man and true God. He is God in the flesh. He commands waves and fish. This is his world. He is the one who – as God spoke to Job – set the boundaries of the sea. He spoke creatures into being. 

Jesus is beginning to show his majesty – if but for a while. There will come a time he lays it all aside and appears as powerless and unsuccessful fishermen toiling all night. But make no mistake, the One who  will hang on a cruel Roman cross is the same one who commands fish to fill Peter’s net. It should be clear that we don’t follow a mere good teacher. We don’t follow someone who only manages to put people under has spell.

Jesus is God in the flesh. I don’t think he’s finished testifying to his glorious power. Maybe you’ve see his gracious and miraculous intervention in your life. And maybe you’re following him – just like Peter and his brothers. What will he do next? I don’t know. But I look forward to his next miraculous touch!

But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” ⁹ For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, ¹⁰ and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” ¹¹ And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him. – Luke 5:8-11 [ESV]

Job encountered it first hand. He said, “My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:5-6) David reflected on it. “I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.” (Psalm 51:3-4) Isaiah expressed it this way: “’Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!’” (Isaiah 6:5) Here Peter is responding to it: “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” (v. 8) They were overwhelmed by the holiness and majesty of God and their own sinfulness. 

That seems to be a lost art these days. Today we talk about pride. We make excuses. We lay the blame on others. We don’t bow the knee to anyone. And when we do begin to come to grips with our sin or shortcomings others tend to make little of it. They tell us it’s not so bad. They say it doesn’t matter. They assert, “It’s no big deal.” Yet deep in our souls we know better. It is a big deal. It does matter. It is bad. We have sinned. We are sinners. 

But we have drawn the wrong conclusion to the truth of our sinfulness. For sin does not disqualify us from God’s love. Only its denial would do that. For if we say we do not sin we deceive ourselves. And if we confess it, God faithfully and justly forgives our sins. It was a big deal. It was very bad. It does matter. But God is bigger than our sin. He is good beyond the bad we’ve done. You matter more to him than your sin. 

Jesus shows this when Peter falls in despair at Jesus’ feet. Depart from me is turned to follow me. Peter’s self-disqualification is replaced by Jesus’ invitation. No wonder the people of Jesus’ day had such a difficult time with his message. Nothing like this had happened before. Except for Isaiah, David, Job, and now Peter. Those were surely all exceptions, right. Wrong again. Think of Paul, “chief of sinners.” He was shown mercy and the violent persecutor became the faithful missionary. 

Be clear about this, however, Jesus’ forgiveness is not just a get out of jail free card. It’s call to a new and different freedom. We’re free to follow Jesus. We’re free to invite others along. We’re free from condemnation. We’re free to rejoice in God’s grace. We’re free by the truth of Jesus’ word. No need to deny the truth of our sin. Just heed the invitation and follow Jesus. It’s quite a gracious invitation.