“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven.” (Luke 6:37 NLT)
In 1984 Karla Faye Tucker was convicted of a gruesome murder that resulted in her receiving the death sentence by lethal injection. She remained on “death row” awaiting execution, filing many appeals that prolonged her execution, for 14 years. In that time, she gave her heart and life to Jesus and was dramatically changed. There were those who sought to save her life, but to no avail.
Recently, when I read that story, it occurred to me that there were many who believed her conversion was a ploy and didn’t believe she deserved forgiveness. What about you? What if the man she murdered was your husband, brother, father or son?
See, here’s the deal: NO ONE DESERVES TO BE FORGIVEN! Regardless of what they have or haven’t done, forgiveness is by grace – a free, unmerited, undeserved gift! You may recall the story of the rich man in Luke 18 who came to Jesus asking how to inherit eternal life. Obviously, he felt he deserved to be forgiven and to find an eternal home in heaven, but the problem was, something else other than Jesus owned his heart – his money!
We too often look at the externals that are obvious to everyone and make judgments as to whether they “deserve” to be invited into our life, or even to church. They have to look right, act right, and smell right or else they don’t meet our exacting standards. The problem is none of us do! What if Jesus demanded everyone who gets forgiven to be like Him?
Truth be told, that’s exactly what God DOES demand! So, how in the world does ANYONE EVER GET INTO HEAVEN? By grace, my friend, by God’s limitless grace! That’s the miracle of the new birth that Jesus died to offer each of us who is willing to yield our life and allegiance to Him by faith in His completed work on the Cross.
When we seek the Lord’s forgiveness, we must recognize that there’s nothing in or about us that deserves it. That’s the miracle of new birth! It means that what Jesus did on the Cross pays the penalty for OUR sin. Only the perfect “Lamb” of God could offer a suitable sacrifice for the sin of mankind. So, He voluntarily chose to do what only He could do for each one of us, who could do nothing to earn or deserve His forgiveness.
He died so we could live; He suffered in unimaginable ways so we wouldn’t have to, then He offered anyone who would be willing to humble themselves, recognize their need, and seek His forgiveness, a brand-new life that would meet the Father’s standard of perfection. But how?
When the Holy Spirit comes to live in the life of each person who puts their trust in the Lord Jesus, God will view each of us as though He were looking at His perfect Son. That’s how He can look at Karla Faye Tucker who committed such a heinous sin and extend to her His hand of invitation into His perfect presence. But here’s the real miracle – He’s willing to do the same thing for you!
Regardless of who you are or what you’ve done, come to Him with sincerity and a willingness to allow Him to change you into what He’s always envisioned you could become, and He’ll forgive and cleanse you and make you into the person of God you never dared dream was possible. It’s a miraculous act of grace and it’s available to you today.
If you’re not sure what to say or how to ask for His forgiveness and receive the new life that’s nothing short of a miracle, click on this link and let Ron Hutchcraft help you understand what you need to do.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 