FROM PASTORS’ DESK…
Pastor Randy Barnett,
Oklahoma
ROBED
IN RIGHTEOUSNESS
You have an enemy that I very good at what he does, which, as
John 10:10 tells us he comes to steal , to kill, and to destroy. The good news for the child of God is that
he is powerless against us when we 1) understand who we are in Christ, and 2)
when we walk uprightly before the Lord, thus giving the evil one no place in
our lives.
One very effective weapon ole Slewfoot uses against us is the
old “you’re not worthy” ploy. One of the best illustrations of
how he uses this evil weapon is found in the poignant story of the young man
whom we call the prodigal son – the account is found Luke 15:11-24.
As you read the account of this foolish young man you see how
the choices he made led him into a life of wanton sin and degradation. He squandered his inheritance on loose and
sinful living, finding himself in the most deplorable condition imaginable,
especially given the fact that he had apparently come from a well-to-do home.
But it says that he came to his senses and remembered his father’s house and
decided to return there.
His decision to return was a good one. However, he returned with an attitude of
unworthiness. Of course that sense
of unworthiness stemmed from what he done in his sinful past. That sense of
unworthiness flowed out of him as he met his father: “…I am no longer
worthy to be called your son…” But I want you to notice very closely
the response by his father to this declaration of unworthiness. He ignored it completely! In fact, within moments the wayward son was
totally and completely reinstated to his full, former rank as “son” – the
family coat was placed upon him, the signet ring that denotes the family’s
authority was quickly placed on his finger, and sandals were placed upon his
feet. As I step back to see this young man adorned in the finest apparel and
possessing the ring of authority, I can hardly remember that just days prior he
was eating pig slop and smelling just like those swine!
How do you feel once you have sinned? You tend to feel shame, don’t you? You certainly have trouble approaching the throne of God even if it is to ask forgiveness and to confess you sins. But, let’s learn the lessons from what Jesus teaches us from the parable of the lost son.
1)
Wrong
choices (to sin) lead us away from close fellowship with our Father.
2)
Those
wrong choices remove the blessings we enjoyed at our Father’s house.
3)
True
repentance immediately restores us to the full enjoyment of the blessings of
our high-ranking status as the King’s kid.
4)
Sinning
does not remove us from family status. We know this because the prodigal
son never ceased to be the father's son despite the wickedness of his past.
5)
Father asks no questions
about our former sins – He simply forgives them, removes them, and remembers
them no more.
Hear the admonition to you from Father God as found in Hebrews 4:16
“Let us therefore come boldly
to the throne of grace that we may
obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Your heavenly Father is like the father in the parable; Jesus
meant for the story to reveal your heavenly Father's nature handles your
sin. He is so happy to see you return
from sinning, He makes no mention of it simply because He has already forgiven
it and cleansed you from all unrighteousness associated with it. All He can see is His son and all He can
feel is the great love in His heart for you.
And just like the father in the story who didn’t even take the time to
bathe the young man from the stench of his past life, he immediately draped the
robe of righteousness around his son. You too are draped with the white robe of
righteousness despite the fact that underneath there is still a fleshly man
that is, let’s say, “less than perfect.”
But your acceptableness to your Father comes from the robe, not from
what is under it. Your robe denotes
your family status and because of your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, you
are righteous.
So the next time you blow it and sin happens, remember you are
the Son of God, draped in His righteousness, and standing in His covenant
love. For those reasons, boldly approach
the throne of grace to receive mercy and forgiveness, not with your head held
down in shame, but confident in His love for you and rejoicing in His goodness.
