Scripture

 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

~Colossians 3:13, NLT

Quote

Christianity is about repentance and forgiveness.

~David R. Shepherd

Inspiration is wonderful but it is like the wind, it comes and goes as it pleases. When there is a breeze you set your sails but when no air is stirring, you wait in good faith. The following thoughts are not original with me but in preparing to teach MERE CHRISTIANITY, I came across these words by Charles Clayton and I highlighted them. The Christian church is not a society of totally integrated personalities. It is not a society of good people, contrary to what some think. It is a society of broken personalities, men and women with troubled minds who know that deep down inside they are not good. The Christian church is a society of sinners. It is the only society in the world of it’s kind where membership is based on the single qualification that the candidate is unworthy of membership. You may not appreciate these words but they were music to my ears.

If mankind is to make any substantial progress, the first step is to acknowledge that we are broken. As the scriptures teach, we are all sinners. Solomon may have said it best, Not a single person on earth is always good and never sins. {Eccl.7:20} Job said, “Who can bring purity out of an impure person?” Even Eliphaz the termite, {JK, temite} got it right, Can any mortal be pure? Can anyone born of a woman be just? You know the answer, All have sinned and come short of the perfection we see in Christ. There is not one good person, all are cursed with the nature to sin. As Lewis makes clear, there can be no progress until with acknowledge our sinful nature and repent of our sins and seek God’s forgiveness in Christ. I may have mentioned this a few days ago but in these last days I have come to a conclusion; I am a puritan. This does not mean I am pure, it means I am beginning to see my deep impurity. I totally agree with John Bunyan who said, “Whatever the world may say about me, I am much worse than they think.”

Extra

I forgot to hit the publish button this morning: better late than never, I hope!