Grace For Your Failures

So, there we were.
 

 

My six olive shoots and I around the table, trying to have morning devotions.

It had started out bad and was filtering into ugly.

Child one had woken up cranky and annoyed and everyone who opened their mouth in this child’s presence was feeling the irritation.

Child four and five were bickering over Legos in an argument that was coming to blows.

Child two was enjoying irritating child one.

Child three was complaining in a tone nearing temper tantrum force, about breakfast not suiting their preferences.

Child six was just screaming at the top of their lungs about nothing in particular.

And I am still trying to read Hebrews 4:12-13 over the swell and crash of noise but no one can hear me.

And I read for the fifth time, “For the word of God is living and active.  Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.  Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.  Everything is laid bare before Him to who we must give account.”

They don’t care.  If they can hear it even they don’t notice.

I pull child five off child four to stop the pummeling and take away the Legos.  Screaming ensues.

I rebuke Irritated Child for their rudeness to the rest of the family.  It doesn’t help.

I correct Child Annoying Others On Purpose, they feign innocence.

I’m asking questions like, how is God’s word like a sword?  What kinds of thoughts and attitudes of the heart does it judge and how?  What must we give an account for?

They look at me like I’m speaking Greek.

I’m thinking of plenty of thoughts and attitudes that could be judged right now.

But they have no idea.

And as I stare at that living Word, it’s my heart attitudes that pop into mind.  I’m sickened.  It’s ugly.  I feel like I may want to run and hide myself under a rock and never come out because that’s where fungus belongs. 

And I’ve been feeling this way for a while, just sort of wallowing in my sinful unworthiness.

But I am supposed to be leading these kids, teaching them to know God and love his Word and right now I’m wondering, where is the good news?

It must be here.  I just haven’t seen it yet. So I read on.

Verse 14, “Therefore since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.  For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.  Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

This is the Good News I needed to hear. 

God sends His word to judge my heart and lay it naked, exposed before Him and me so that I will see how deeply damaged I really am.  He lovingly shows me the depth of my sinfulness so that I can see my need of this Savior, not just once, but every day. 

But He doesn’t leave me like that.  He doesn’t leave me wallowing in a pit of unworthiness, instead the One who was sinless, gave me His rightness, His perfection so that I can be made right with God.  And because of Jesus sacrifice for me, I can boldly approach His throne of grace and find the help that I so desperately need.

I tell this to my kids. 

Listen, there is hope for people like us.

It’s not found in being good enough.  You’ll never be that.

It’s not found in trying harder.  It will only wear you weary.

It’s found only in throwing yourself upon the gracious mercy of this loving God who made a way for us miserable failures to come to Him.  And when we do, He gives us His robe of perfection that we didn’t earn and don’t deserve and says to us, “Wear this.  I bought it for you with my blood.”

And this, I gladly accept with thankfulness.

This is the hope that changes us. This in the only hope for our sinful kids and sinful us. And as we remember this hope, we are changed into His likeness with ever increasing glory.