"I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” Luke 13:5
One evening, a woman driving home noticed an 18-wheeler behind her that was driving uncomfortably close. She stepped on the gas; the truck did, too. The faster she went, the faster went the truck. Afraid, she got off the freeway. So did the truck. She turned up a main street hoping to lose her pursuer in traffic, but the truck ran a red light and continued the chase. In panic, the woman whipped into a service station and bolted out of her auto screaming for help. The truck driver sprang from his truck and ran toward her car. Yanking the back door open he pulled out a man hidden in the back seat.
The woman had been running from the wrong person. From his high vantage point, the truck driver had spotted the would-be attacker. The chase was not his effort to harm her but to save her, even at the cost of his own safety.
That story is a pretty clear comparison to humanity’s history, at least in regard to the heavenly Father. When Adam and Eve fell into sin, their very first reaction was to run and hide. When God came looking for them, they did their best to avoid Him. When He confronted them, they tried to hide their guilt and shift their blame to someone else. Even then, after all their avoidance, God continued to love them.
If you have, up to this moment in your life, been running from a God who seems to be angry and erratic, you need to see Him for who He really is: a loving Lord who gave everything so that you might be safe. See His gracious gift, His Son, in the Bethlehem manger, upon Calvary’s cross, and in front of Joseph’s empty tomb. To save a world that was steeped in sin—that wallowed in darkness—Jesus came. To a world that didn’t want Him; who rejected and hated Him, condemned and crucified Him, Jesus came. The Son of God, at the cost of His own life, became one of us, so that with Him as our substitute, we might be safe and secure, having salvation.
It is impossible for me to see what wounds, fresh or scarred-over by time, you carry on your soul. I cannot see, and if I could I would be helpless to do anything. But the Savior sees, and He will save. He, who loves with a sacrificial heart, can help. All you need do is stop running from Him and have the Holy Spirit move you into His open arms.
Excerpt from The Lutheran Hour sermon preached on March 14, 2004
The Prayer:Dear Lord, You have sent your only Son to save my life, so why am I still running from accepting Your calling for my life? I cannot see the clear picture, and I am helpless without you. Please save me. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
Today's Bible Readings: Numbers 3-4 Mark 12:28-44
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