The Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin. Exodus 34:6, 7.
How grateful we should be that the Lord is slow to anger! What a wonderful thought it is, that Omnipotence puts a restraint upon His mighty power! But because the Lord is forbearing and long-suffering, the human heart often manifests a tendency to venture presumptuously to add sin to sin! … “Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil” (Ecclesiastes 8:11). Instead of God’s patience hardening the sinner to continual transgression, it should lead him to determine to seek God’s forgiveness, in order that the figures standing against his account in the heavenly record may be canceled….
Satan is the originator of evil. He swerved from his allegiance to God. Those who persisted in sympathizing with him in his disaffection were, with him, shut out of heaven. Implacable hatred against God fills Satan’s mind. Persistently he has used his influence to efface from the human family God’s image, and in its place to stamp his own satanic image. His effort to deceive our first parents was successful. Made in the image of God, the human family lost their innocence, became transgressors, and as disloyal subjects began their downward career. Satan gained control of man’s power of action. Through the senses he influenced the mind.
Thus it has been from the beginning of the world. Instead of remaining under God’s influence, in order that he might reflect the moral image of his Creator, man placed himself under the control of Satan’s influence and was made selfish. Thus sin became a universal evil. And what a dreadful evil is sin!
Yielding to Satan’s suggestions, our first parents opened the floodgates of evil upon the world. The questionable principles of the father and the mother of the human race influenced some of those with whom they associated. The evil that began in Paradise has extended down through the ages. Although Adam and Eve related with sorrow to their children the sad story of the Fall, their family became a divided family. Cain chose to serve Satan, Abel to serve God. Cain killed his brother Abel, because he would not follow his example.
That the world might not be destroyed because of its moral pollution, God undertook His great work of salvation, sending His Son to this earth to redeem mankind.—Manuscript 55, January 27, 1902, “The Long-Sufferance of God.”
The Upward Look p. 41
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Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for David that God will guide his thinking. Buck
—-Please pray for grandson Phillip in the hospital with gall bladder attack. Apparently going to do surgery! Ann
—-I’m asking prayers for my daughter and family. They work for AFM, they are doing a 10-year mission in _____. They have been there for almost 2 years now. We have no contact with my daughter, for 3 weeks now. They will be deep in the mountain for 3 months. It’s my daughter Sonya, Seth son in law Luke 11 and Littlest Lily 7. Just was told my daughter and granddaughter are sick don’t know how bad they are or nothing! So please keep them in your prayers! Toni
—-Gwen had a bleeding stroke. surgery was performed to stop the bleeding. after doing another mri during recovery, it was found that the bleeding had not stopped completely. Tests are being done to determine ow much, if any damage has the other organs have endured. She is still critical, Joseph
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Dear Friends,
My Auntie Joyce’s real name was Bessie Joyce, and like her mother’s sister Bessie, she often said something funny or embarrassing. Geography was never one of her strong subjects in school and one day when she was twelve, she made the mistake of asking if Europe was one of the United States. Everyone got a hearty laugh over that and teased her about the state of Europe. It became a family joke. It was funny to everyone else, but humiliating for her.
Another time, she came home all excited. The building that was being built a couple of blocks away finally had a sign on it. Joyce said that the sign said, “Collisions.” Everyone thought that it must be a body shop. It didn’t look like a garage, however, it looked more like it should have been a grocery store. A day or two later, as they were walking to town, they passed “Collisions” and began to laugh and laugh. No wonder it didn’t look like a body shop! It was “Collison’s Grocery!” Poor Joyce, never heard that end of that one either.
We all have things that we have done or said that we would like to forget. Some of them are embarrassing or funny like Joyce’s mistakes and really do not matter. Some of them are very serious faults and failings and have eternal consequences. Others often remember those things better than all of the good that we have done. Over and over we are reminded of that which we’d rather forget.
Moreover, our sins are recorded in Heaven. If we do not ask for forgiveness, we will have to meet them again. Indeed, ” For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad.”If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 Our Dear Heavenly Father assures us, “I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.” Isa 43:25 “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” 1:18 “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.” Heb 10:16,17
Think of it! God blots out our sins so thoroughly that He does not ever remember them. They are gone! They will not be mentioned again! (Eze 18:22) David tells us, “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust. As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more. But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children; To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.” Ps 103:12-18 What a wonderful God we serve! “He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.” vs. 10, 11
Let our heart be filled with love and gratitude for His wonderful forgiveness. Let us serve His with our whole heart. Let us praise Him for His grace which He has bestowed so freely upon us.
Rose