“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.”
A few extracts from a message by Revd Leslie Land at Melbourne Hall, Leicester.
GOSPEL FORGIVENESS: There are three wonderful parts to it. Firstly, there is God’s willingness to forgive sinners; secondly there is the pardon which God extends to sinners. Thirdly, there is God’s wonderful atonement for sin in the death of Christ on Calvary.
SERIOUS PROBLEMS CONFRONTING US IN CHRISTENDOM: People only take sin seriously when they take God seriously. Sin is rebellion against God. The more godless the world, the less its sense of sin and need of divine forgiveness. ‘God is not in all his thoughts’ says the Psalmist – Psalm 10:4b, meaning; man leaves God entirely out of his thoughts. The result is godlessness, and the sequel to godlessness is unrighteousness (see Romans 1.) A godless age is not interested in God’s forgiveness because, away from God, it has no sense of sin.
Why are there so many so-called Christians who seem to have little or no experience of conversion, and to whom God’s forgiveness means comparatively little? Multitudes of people derive a sense of well-being simply by virtue of belonging to a religious denomination or movement. They have become inoculated against any experience of true conversion. To them, the preaching of the Cross of Christ seems so unnecessary, so overdone. ‘There is none other Name given under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.’ (Acts 4:12b.)
NO COMPROMISE: Some while ago, while away preaching, I slept in a bed where the bed clothes were too short for me. I like the clothes to come up over my ears. Now, when I pulled the clothes over my ears, I found my feet were uncovered. Eventually I got out of bed and took my dressing-gown and any other available fabrics to cover my feet. There are many professing Christians, who are trusting in a ferment of their own righteousness to cover them before God.
But if this garment of their own ‘goodness’ should prove too short, they hope somehow that the Gospel will then ‘come in useful’ at the last hour to eke out their own covering! They are trusting very largely to their own merit. And hoping that God’s kindness will make up any deficit. The Bible, however, makes it very clear that God did not give His only begotten Son to supplement our righteousness. Indeed, in His sight there is none righteous. Christ died for the ungodly. God went to such infinite cost and pains simply because there was no other way of saving lost mankind.
(Via Elizabeth at THE LITTLE FLOCK, October 2020)
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