A Faithful and Just God
One of the central aspects of the gospel message is that every human has fallen short of God’s moral standard. We have all sinned, or missed the mark of living rightly. We’ve all messed up, made mistakes, and acted in a way that goes against God’s way of living.
Sin separates us from being in a right relationship with God. But while we were separated from God, Jesus made a way for us to return back to God through His death and resurrection.
Now, we can be in a relationship with God again. But even though we’ve been forgiven for our sins, it doesn’t always feel that way. We frequently carry around the guilt and shame from our sinful actions even though we’ve been forgiven by Christ.
That’s why 1 John 1:9 is a great reminder: when we confess our sins to God, He is faithful to forgive us. Our forgiveness is not based on our own faithfulness— it’s based on God’s faithfulness. Since we know God is faithful and cannot lie, we can trust that He will forgive us and purify us from everything that keeps us from Him.
This means that we don’t need to live under the weight of our own guilt. We have truly been freed in Christ. Forgiveness should empower us to continue to live righteous and faithful lives with God.
Take a moment and thank God for forgiving your sins through Jesus’ death and resurrection. Thank Him that you are now a child of God, free from the guilt of the past. Ask Him to strengthen you as you walk in that truth.
God is Close
No matter what we face, we can always seek our unchanging God. We just need to call on Him in truth.
Praying with truth requires recognizing our own brokenness. That means we need to accept and acknowledge that there is nothing we’ve done that makes us worthy of talking to our Creator.
God draws near to us because He is good, kind, merciful, and humble. And we call on Him in truth when we humbly submit our will to His and genuinely delight in Him.
This doesn’t mean we need to call on Him perfectly—we can’t. We simply need to come as we are, and acknowledge our deep need for His grace, mercy, and love. You don’t need to have your life together. You don’t need to be free from anxiety, depression, or fear. In whatever moment you find yourself, God wants you to honestly and intentionally talk to Him.
And even though we might not always sense that God is near, the Psalms remind us that God will come to anyone who calls out to Him. God’s presence is not reliant ...