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  Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?  (Rom 2:4) Lord, you desire repentance when I sin.  Grant me such a heart, and don’t let me excuse my sin or take advantage of your kindness. I once worked as a substance abuse counselor for the Salvation Army, which provided drug and alcohol rehabilitation for the homeless. We gave homeless men a warm bed, three meals a day, and a job and required them to stay clean and attend counseling during their…

For by grace you have been saved through faith.  And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.  (Eph 2:8-9) For I know that nothing good dwells in me (Rm 7:18) Lord, you are my redemption, my salvation, my hope.  If I lean on myself, I lean on nothing and fall, but if I come to you, I come to a Rock and to a King full of grace to the sinner.  Praise you. God is a God of grace, and grace is for those…

But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.  (I Jn 2:1) Lord, concerning the law, I am guilty as charged, yet I plead the blood of Christ and lean on your Son as my advocate, and through Him claim your mercy and forgiveness.  Hallelujah! When a man breaks the law, he needs help, for he must stand before the judge, who will give sentence. When that time comes, the accused does not want to stand alone before the judge. Instead, he needs someone to represent him — someone who knows the law and…

For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. (James 2:10) Lord, I cannot keep the law.  I can’t.  On the outside I may look good, but I still violate your commands.  Have mercy on me. Kendall was driving down Oak Street one afternoon when he saw flashing lights in his rear view mirror. He pulled over to let the police car pass, but the lights pulled behind him and parked. “Oh great!” Kendall thought, and he began to wonder what he had done wrong. He knew he had not been…

… to the purified, you show yourself pure, but to the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.  (Ps 18:26) This blog is a continuation of last week’s introduction to the doctrine of depravity. To some people, the Christian doctrine of depravity smells rotten. They want God to be good and loving, and they think God must be a tyrant if He condemns people for sin they cannot escape. To them God loses the right to judge if people are born sinful. It makes no sense to them for us to be objects of God’s wrath by nature (Eph 2:3). If…