daily devotional

When I was 15 my family started going to a little country church in my hometown of Ava, Missouri. I didn’t understand most of what the pastor was saying, but I knew something in my heart was moved when I would sing the words “Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, he washed it white as snow.” I was young, I hadn’t racked up a whole lot of sin at that point, but I knew I wanted to be washed clean.
Ephesians 1: 4-7 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.

Before this world was even created God was thinking of YOU. He was thinking of you, loving you, choosing you. Yes, the creator of the universe wanted you and he placed you in the middle of his creation because you bring him great pleasure. And you are without fault in his eyes. Yes, that’s exactly what this scripture says. He chose you in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. Daughter, he doesn’t look at you with disgust. Nor does he look at you with disappointment. He sees you as the daughter he paid the highest price for because you were worth it. And this is what he wanted to do. God wanted to save you because you are worth saving. Your life is worth the sacrifice. And THAT is how God sees you. Maybe that’s a far cry from how you see yourself, and if so, you need to take another look.

God purchased your freedom with the blood of his Son and that blood covers ALL your sins. Not just a little. Not just some. Not a select few, but all. All your sins have been covered. What is the most shameful thing you carry around with you? You’ve been dragging the guilt of this sin like a stone tied around your neck, weighing you down, holding you back and limiting your potential. And listen to me, it’s NOT YOURS TO CARRY.

Oh it was your sin, no doubt. Your bad choice, your neglect, your mistake, it was you, but it’s no longer yours. On the cross the price was paid for you personally and that sin, the one that still haunts you today, it was bought. You have been forgiven. And what does our scripture today say? “This is what he wanted to do and it gave him great pleasure.” God wanted to pay the price for you. Jesus willfully did this for you knowing in advance every bad choice you would ever make.

Ahhhhh, think about that for a moment. God knew every bad choice you would ever make in your entire life and he said “yes, she’s worth it. She’s the one I want. I want to pay the price for her. I don’t want her to have to face the penalty for her sins or carry the guilt through her life. I’ll cover her.”

This is what has been bought FOR you, freedom. And this is what has been bought FROM you, shame. You have no right to carry around the shame of your sin any longer. Someone bought it from you. Now imagine if you had a car and someone bought that car from you. It would no longer be yours, right? Even if that car was a total hunk of junk and you felt it had no value, if someone bought it from you, it is no longer yours. When you accepted payment, you relinquished your rights.

And understand, this is what Jesus did for you. He showed up and bought that old hunk of junk that was littering your front yard and he hauled it off for you. He paid the price. Now it’s no longer yours. You have no right to go hunt it down and try to bring it back home. It’s not yours.

As a mom of 3 teens, this is a truth I need to continually remind my kids of. They’re going to screw up. They will make world class screwed up choices just like I did, and God knew that when he chose them. It didn’t stop him. In fact it made him all that much more determined to save them because he knew they couldn’t do it on their own. Won’t you tell your kids they don’t have to carry around that guilt and shame any longer? They have been forgiven.

Maybe you’ve been holding a grudge against someone who wronged you. Won’t you let it go today? It’s not yours to carry. If God can cover your sin, don’t you believe he can cover someone else’s sin against you too. He can heal that wound. He can make you whole. Jesus paid the price for it already. You can walk in freedom now.