Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight!
Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty!
Living with regret weighs down our hearts and makes us weak. Regret is a curse we pronounce over ourselves. It is self-inflicted punishment that keeps us from experiencing the joy and peace we tell ourselves we do not deserve.
“I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’”
At times the weight of our world can seem overwhelming. Greed and dishonesty dominate the political landscape. We turn on the news only to witness another atrocity committed in our own neighborhoods or in communities on the other side the globe. Against a rising tide of evil and moral confusion, we well may ask, What are we to do? How would God have us respond?
Love never fails.
Paul tells us that “love never fails” in the sense that love is eternal and imperishable. Love is always steadfast and sure; it bears all things and never gives up. Love cannot be destroyed by circumstances or disasters, injuries or betrayals. It is solid as a rock, immovable, dependable. It cannot be corrupted by sin or desire; it does not succumb to pressure or fade away. Even when all else fails, love remains.
Can we know such love as this?
When Moses sent them to explore Canaan, he said, “Go up through the Negev and on into the hill country. See what the land is like and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many.…How is the soil? Is it fertile or poor? Are there trees on it or not? Do your best to bring back some of the fruit of the land.”
I once took a horticulture class, and our professor emphasized the importance and distinctiveness of soil. “Don’t call it dirt!” he said. “Soil has both structure and function to support living growth.”
“The land must never be sold on a permanent basis, for the land belongs to me. You are only foreigners and tenant farmers working for me.”
When we choose to follow Christ, we voluntarily give up ownership of our lives. In our acceptance of God’s new covenant in Christ, we acknowledge that we—all that we are, all that we have, all to which we aspire—have been bought with the high price of the cross. Instead of working and planning to serve ourselves, we shift our perspective and now work for God.
