The Healing of the Cross

Praise the Lord!

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!

His faithful love endures forever.

Who can list the glorious miracles of the Lord?

Who can ever praise him enough?

—Psalm 106:1-2 (NLT)

 

 

Who can I praise? My God, who I believe. And why can I praise Him? He is faithful and good to me. His love endures forever and sustains me. I believe the Truth He has revealed to me in His Word. Jesus proved His faithfulness to me on the Cross. There He saved me and healed me. There I received peace of spirit—peace of mind—and peace in my body. God continually reminds me of the many glorious things He has done for me through the years so I have the power to believe the miracle of the Cross and Resurrection. And I choose to believe and trust Him. I can never praise Him enough.

 

Peace in my life flows from a right relationship with God that Jesus purchased for me. I have peace in my spirit because I have been reborn by His Spirit. The peace I have received in my spirit transforms my mind when God's Truth renews my thought life. The Holy Spirit convinces me of God's amazing love that never leaves me or forsakes me. He convinces me that by the wounds Jesus took on Calvary, I am healed. Peace in my body (healing) comes when I place my trust entirely in the miracle of Christ's atonement on the Cross.

 

Jesus died for our healing from sin and sickness. "He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases" (Psalm 103:3, NLT). In His death, Jesus paid for the sins of all humanity and the sickness that sin brings. Sin keeps us from our wholeness. But when we believe in Jesus, everything changes.

 

“But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed” (Isaiah 53:5, NLT). Jesus took the crushing pain of my sin so I can be whole—healed in my spirit, mind, and body. I choose to believe in God's Truth. I allow the Holy Spirit to change anything that I have believed is wrong. Being renewed repeatedly in my mind by the Spirit, His Truth transforms the way I think, how I see myself, and gives me confident hope to believe in God's healing above any way I feel.

 

I have decided that the Word of God has authority in my life. I can have pain, but that pain is not who I am. Jesus died so that I can be saved and healed. What does God tell me in His Word?

 

“My child,” the Holy Spirit says, “pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart, for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body” (Proverbs 4:20-22, NLT). 

 

I choose to believe in His healing, no matter how I feel. I pay attention to the Word and listen carefully to what the Holy Spirit reveals. I hold onto His promise letting His Truth penetrate my heart. His words bring life to me when I FIND them—when they transform my mind to believe that God, who raised me from death to life spiritually, has also healed me. And it is what He promised. “He sent out his word and healed them, snatching them from the door of death” (Psalm 107:20, NLT). When I focus on His Truth, instead of how I feel or any lie the enemy wants to stir in mind, my faith grows. I believe in what I can't see, hear, or touch. I have the supernatural peace of God. Faith does not move God. Faith convinces me of what the grace of Jesus has done for me. 

 

Who can list the glorious miracles of the Lord?  I believe in the greatest miracle of all. He saved and healed me. Who can praise Him enough?  I can never praise Him enough for His Word's miraculous Truth that continually changes and heals me.

 

©2020 Lynn Lacher

www.lynnlacher.com/2020/08/the-healing-of-cross.html

 

My Prayer

 

O Lord my God, I cried to you for help,

and you restored my health.

You brought me up from the grave, O Lord.

You kept me from falling into the pit of death.

—Psalm 30:2-3 (NLT)

 

Your love is a miracle to me, O God!  Not only did you save me, Jesus, but you healed me. I cried to you for help and you restored my health. Your grace lifted me from the grave and breathed healing life into my tired body. I have no words to thank you enough for your redeeming love. You saved and restored all of me. Your Spirit gave my spirit everything you purchased on Calvary. I am healed forever by your perfect love. Your Word is Truth, and it works in my life and convinces me of what you have given me. Lord, your Word is life-changing!  It heals every concern of my heart, every pain of my body, and every struggle in my mind. 

 

Satan can’t destroy what you have given me. I trust you, Lord because you have shown me who you are in my life. You are faithful. You fought for me and won me on Calvary. Thank you, Jesus, for relating to me as no one else ever could. To be known so intimately fills my heart with such joy. You give the most incredible peace that carries me through the ups and downs of my life. You never turn away even when I struggle to remain consistent in believing your Word. You take time with me and guide me each day in understanding your Truth for my life. I am never alone. You never leave me. I praise you for loving me to the Cross, Jesus. The day you gave your life for me everything changed. Your love is more real to me than anything I can touch or feel.

 

You are not a mystery to me. You are the love of my life. You have opened your Word to me. In you, I have redemption through your precious blood. The riches of your grace are too wonderful to take in sometimes. You sweep me into your presence. I don’t have to explain a thing. You know where I am in my mind and how I am in my heart. Your love encompasses me, and I don’t care what I’m going through. You alone are my testimony. You are my Truth. I believe you even when no one else understands.

 

I rejoice in you! And I rejoice again! I declare that you are my Savior, and I have great confidence in you. As soon as I pray, you answer me. You encourage me by giving me strength. You are for me, and no one can come against me. Praise you, Jesus! I know who you are in me. Without you, I have nothing. But with you, this life is your beautiful gift.

 

Your promises are true. You have restored my health, and you are teaching me what that means. My mind believes, and my body is receiving what you have done for me. I trust you. You are the Word! I can stand on what you reveal, Holy Spirit. This journey is worth every moment. You are my lamp to guide and the light for my path. I step out in faith each day, believing you. You hold my hand from now into eternity. And you have finished all for me. I am whole.

 

There are never enough words to praise you, Jehovah Rapha!

 

www.lynnlacher.com/2020/08/my-prayer.html 

 

 

Purchased for Me

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.

—Hosea 4:6 (NKJV)

 

 

God’s people perish every day from a lack of knowledge in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Jesus died to save and heal, but if His people don’t know and believe God’s Truth, it makes little difference. When a person struggles to receive something he unknowingly has, he gets frustrated. He begs God to do give him something that God has already provided. He doesn’t realize what Jesus has accomplished for him on Calvary.

 

We don't have to beg God for what He has given in Jesus Christ. Jesus saves not only those who are lost (Matthew 18:11). He also restores those He saves (Isaiah 53:5). His restoration is the ultimate healing of spirit, soul (mind), and body. 

 

We live far below what Jesus died to give us. That is why understanding the relationship we have with Jesus is critical. In learning our relationship with Him, we start to realize the healing Jesus purchased for us with His life (1 Peter 2:24). Instead of accepting illness, we begin to trust the truth of God’s Word and see ourselves in good health He desires for us (3 John 2). Instead of focusing on what we are experiencing in our bodies, we focus on the Word and His Truth. Finally, moving away from continually thinking about our illnesses, we let God’s Word minister to us. 

 

The Word says that we are healed by the wounds Jesus took for our sins (Isaiah 53:5). Jesus died so we can experience healing in spirit, soul, and body. By faith, we believe God’s Word is true. But our faith doesn’t move God. It moves us. Faith receives what grace has already provided. God doesn’t need any convincing. But we need convincing of what He has done for us on the Cross.

 

Have you ever prayed to be healed and experienced nothing? Perhaps you asked what you have done wrong. Christ’s salvation healed you of sin and fear and guilt and shame and rejection and illness. His atonement made you WHOLE. Quit living in fear of sickness or why you haven't experienced healing. Start digesting the Word. The Word is powerful and changes you. Allow His Truth to teach and transform what you believe into what He says is true. Apply your faith to God's Word. Speak His Word. And what you received in your born-again spirit when you were saved will manifest in your mind and body one day.

 

Satan doesn't want you to know who you are in Jesus. He doesn't want you to believe God's Truth. He wants to keep you confused and afraid. And He will try to convince you that Jesus doesn't love you enough to heal you. Satan knows once you believe the Word, he will not be able to touch you.

 

“So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. (John 1:14, NLT). “And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace” (John 1:16 NKJV). 

 

The Word became Jesus. Filled with love and faithfulness, Jesus willingly took our sins to the Cross. There He redeemed and healed us—spirit, soul, and body. We have seen His magnificent glory. Do we realize we have received of His incredible abundance? 

 

Grace is the unmerited favor of Jesus to save us. But it is also God's supernatural ability to do for us what we can't do for ourselves. It is the fullness of the Gospel penetrating and changing us with God’s Truth. The richness of God’s glory became ours in Jesus. We have received His grace—always flowing—never stopping—never withheld. 

 

Healing is not about us. Healing is all about the love of Jesus for us. The lack of knowledge of the Word—the lack of understanding of our relationship to Jesus—keeps us from the healing of spirit, soul, and body.

 

I’m on a journey to receive what Jesus has purchased for me. Would you like to be on one, too?

 

©2020 Lynn Lacher

www.lynnlacher.com/2020/08/purchased-for-me.html

 

 

His Word—True or Not

 

 

For the Word of the Lord holds true,

    and we can trust everything he does.

—Psalm 33:4 (NLT)

 

 

“In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word gave life to everything God created” (John 1:1,4, NLT). 

 

"The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the Word of our God stands forever" (Isaiah 40:8, NLT).

 

“Make them holy by your Truth,” Jesus prayed for His disciples and also for us. “Teach them your Word, which is Truth” (John 17:17, NLT). 

 

The Word existed before creation and gave life to everything God created. The Word breathes Truth. Through all of life's changes, the Word never changes. It remains factual forever.  Jesus prayed for His disciples to be made holy by God’s Truth. He prayed that the Holy Spirit would teach them God's Word, which, he declared to be God's Truth.

 

Do you believe that God’s Word is Truth?  Either His Word is true, or it isn't. You decide to believe it and act upon that belief, or you don’t. 

 

“The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. It is the same with my Word,” God says. “I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it” Isaiah 55:10-11, NLT).

 

God’s Truth has a purpose. When we believe what His Truth reveals, it grows us spiritually. And we receive according to what we believe. His Word produces fruit in our lives. It accomplishes what it says it will do and prospers whatever it brings into being. We can trust everything God does because what He does is born of Truth.

 

Do we live as if His Word is Truth? Look at Proverbs 4:20-24. “My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart, for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body” (NLT). 

 

Do we believe that His Word brings healing to the whole body? When His Word flourishes within us, it has the power to do exactly what these verses in Proverbs 4 reveal—to heal us. We believe in what He has shown us in His Word. Our faith applied to what the Word reveals to us releases its power. Without faith, we can't please God. He rewards those who diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6). God is the Word. When God’s Word penetrates our souls, the Holy Spirit changes the impossible we see into the Truth God speaks. 

 

What does God speak? “He sent out his word and healed them, snatching them from the door of death” (Proverbs 107:20, NLT). This is an incredible Truth that God speaks.

 

Are you ready to stand on the Word?  The Word saves. The Word heals. The Word provides. The Word gives new life. The Word of God stands forever. Believe in His Truth. Live the Truth that you believe. The power of life is in your tongue (Proverbs 18:21). Speak the Truth of His Word and receive what Christ purchased for you with His life.

 

“But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5, NLT). Jesus purchased our salvation and healing.

 

 “Who has believed our message? To whom has the Lord revealed his powerful arm” (Isaiah 53:1, NLT)?  Has He revealed the Truth of His Word to you?  Do you believe that Christ healed you when He saved you? Hold tightly without wavering to the hope you affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise (Hebrews 10:23, NLT). 

 

©2020 Lynn Lacher

www.lynnlacher.com/2020/08/his-wordtrue-or-not.html

 

Love Mercy Grace

Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.

—I Corinthians 13:4-5 (NLT)

 

 

Any relationship is hard without unconditional love. Marriage is especially hard without the kind of love that is willing to lay down its life. Yet marriage is often the relationship where we hurt those we don’t mean to hurt. Misunderstandings seem to happen most with those we care about—with those who know our weaknesses. I know this from personal experience.

 

For several months my husband has taken care of me because of an illness, and I have become dependent on him for daily needs. I have been frustrated by my lack of ability. He has been patient when, at times, I’ve not been. Neither one of us is perfect, and we both make mistakes. The reason our marriage is still alive after fifty-one years is forgiveness. Marriage without forgiveness is a constant battle of wills. Unforgiveness kills any relationship.

 

Jesus Christ gave the ultimate love on the Cross when He bought our total forgiveness. He thought more highly of us than Himself. His love sets us free from selfishness. We choose to love the other person more than ourselves. Putting another's need above our own needs changes our attitude. We see circumstances and problems from the other person's perspective. Mercy flows when our needs are not our first concern.

 

The unconditional love of Christ has to flow for a relationship to flourish mutually. Both people in a relationship need to be patient and kind and not demand their own way. Both need to watch their words because they have the power to destroy. And no one needs to keep a record of things that have happened. Forgiveness, just as Christ forgives us, is the only way a marriage or any other relationship will remain resilient.

 

“Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance” (1 Corinthians 13:7, NLT). The love of Christ never gives up. He never loses faith in us. He always believes in us. His love endures, no matter what problems arise. You can't earn His love. It's given without cost. Neither should our love have to be earned. It is given freely without requiring payment in return. There should be no, "I'll do something for you if you’ll do something for me.” 

 

When we understand the love of Jesus and our relationship with Him, it is much easier to offer the love He has given. We know what we mean to Him and that He values us above anything else. Isn't that what each person yearns to have? A love that values them above anything else?

 

Grace is the essence of any healthy relationship. Jesus extended grace to us. It was His decision to die for us. It’s also our decision to extend grace and be willing to hurt for someone else. We have received unmerited favor. Jesus loved us, not because of anything we have done, but because of who He is. And our love should be the same. We love just because Jesus loved us.

 

If we have the strongest faith that can move mountains and don’t love others, we’re nothing. We choose to forgive as we’ve been forgiven and to love as we’ve been loved. When I choose the love of Christ in my relationship with my husband or anyone else, His love defines who I am. And that is what I hope will live in me—His love that claimed no rights. When I live what He died to give me, I know the joy of giving. The grace of Jesus flows in me.

 

Lord, forgive me for ever putting myself first. Forgive me for demanding my own way. I find in giving that I receive and in forgiving that I'm forgiven. I'm so thankful your love died for me—your mercy forgave me—and your grace continually changes me. 

 

©2020 Lynn Lacher

www.lynnlacher.com/2020/08/love-mercy-grace.html

Real Love

This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

 —I John 4:10 (NLT)

 

 

         Real love is not about how much I love God. Real love reveals how much God loved me. He sent His only Son to die for my sins so that I might be free from the condemning guilt of my old life. That past life is over because of Christ. My new life has risen with Him from death.

 

         “We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love” (I John 4:16a, NLT).          

 

         Because of God’s amazing gift of His Son's life, I yearn to grasp how deep that love grows in me. Without any thought or worry, I ache to trust Christ's love and rest in His peace. I want to believe without any hesitation in the life-changing freedom His grace won for me.   

 

         Resting in God’s peace comes from experiencing a divine revelation of Jesus’ redeeming love for me. It comes from realizing how His love changes who I am. When I understand how His love transforms my life, I know what His death and resurrection have given me. I am no longer in bondage to the lies of who I used to be. That old person has died. I am forgiven and filled with His righteousness instead of my unworthiness. His real love consumes me. I melt in His peace. 

 

         Are you tired of dealing with lies that arise from a limited understanding of His love for you? Are you exhausted from wrestling with the symptoms of fear and rejection—hurt and unforgiveness—guilt and shame? These are all symptoms of an underlying issue—not knowing who you are in Jesus. If you want to melt in His peace in each moment, learn who Jesus says you are. Recognize and accept the holiness of character that He died to give you. Allow His character to shape yours. Quit treating the symptoms from your old life. Be healed by knowledge of your new relationship in Jesus. Be transformed by the fullness of His grace.

 

         Your life—once shattered—is now clean and whole. Your life—once empty—is now full of His peace and joy. It is time to stop struggling with symptoms that are no longer real. You become devastated when you try. Now is the time to seek and pray for the whole truth of your new life. Get to know the real you in Jesus. 

 

         “Be still and know I am God,” the Holy Spirit whispers (Psalm 46:10). “I am your protector—your power—your peace” (Psalm 46). Your old life is not who you are. Trust the new life He unfolds before you, and melt in His peace.

 

©2020 Lynn Lacher

www.lynnlacher.com/2020/08/real-love.html

No Sting of Death

Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?

—1 Corinthians 15:55 (NIV)

 

 

We have heard about the vast numbers of deaths in our country and the world, and we have prayed for families we don’t know who have sustained loss. Until it became personal and hit home, the magnitude of its pain had not been as real. Now we know, and our prayer is for those we know and love. It hurts terribly to lose someone you love, but knowing you will see them again makes all the difference.

 

I hope you have the assurance you will see those you love again. If we are honest, we all have someone we love who, without Jesus in their life, will not be with us in heaven. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).  Jesus is the only way to the Father. He gave His life so that we could receive forgiveness for our sins and have the promise of eternal life with Him. 

 

“When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: ‘Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting’” (1 Corinthians 15:54-55, NIV)?

 

The love of Jesus gives victory over sin and death. When we know Jesus, there is no sting of sin that leads to death. We are saved by the innocent Lamb of God, who was slaughtered for our sins. With His own blood, Jesus wrote our freedom. He died on the Cross, and then rose to life again. When we die, what is written becomes true. Death won't have the last word. Our perishable bodies will die but not our souls. Mortal life shall be replaced with immortality. We will die to live again in heaven with God and those in Christ who have passed before us.

 

Doesn’t your heart ache for those you love? People dying in huge numbers have made everyone more aware of their mortality. Death around us has brought it even closer. But death for us is an open door to eternal life. We have that promise. Don't we long for our loved ones to have that promise, too? We can't force anyone to believe. But we can offer His love.

 

“When I am lifted from the earth,” Jesus said, “I will draw everyone to myself” (John 12:32, NLT). Jesus was lifted to the Cross; He was lifted from the grave; He was lifted to the Father. And the Holy Spirit draws hearts to Jesus. The soul of man lives on after physical death. Jesus gave His life so no one would have to suffer the agony of terrorizing pain for eternity but have the assurance of pain-free life with Him forever. All someone needs to do is believe that Jesus died for his sin and rose from the dead. By believing in his heart in Jesus, a man confesses his sin and is made right with God. By speaking what he believes, a man is saved (Romans 10:9-10).

 

Pray for those you know who need His love. Share His forgiveness. Speak His hope. Love with His grace. And ask if they would like to receive the promises of forgiveness and eternal life.

 

In Christ, there is no sting of death. There is no dread. There is only the peace of God that surpasses all understanding. Death doesn’t bring fear. It is the promise of life forever with Jesus, and with those you love who know Him.

 

 

© 2020 Lynn Lacher

www.lynnlacher.com/2020/08/no-sting-of-death.html

 

His Love in Me

My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God. My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other. No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love!

—I John 4:7-12 (MSG)

 

I can’t make myself love as God loves me. But I can allow Him to change me so His love grows in me. God’s love was born in me when I first believed in Christ, and it transforms my life and gives me an intimate relationship with Him. But if I refuse to love—if I refuse to forgive, then I don’t know the first thing about God, and I damage my understanding of who God is. My relationship with Him is hurt. 

 

God loved me enough to send His Son, Jesus, to die for me. The grace of Jesus gives me the ability to love others unconditionally. I choose to forgive and never hold a grudge—and to think of others more highly than myself. When I surrender to God’s love, allowing the grace of Jesus to change the way I think, the love of Jesus defines me. I discover that my human love is nothing compared to His.

 

Though I have never seen God, His love is in me. When I love with the love of Jesus, God reveals that He owns me—spirit, soul, and body. His grace completes me. I am in Him, and He is in me.

 

“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it” (I Thessalonians 5:23-24, NIV).

 

God sanctifies me through and through—spirit, soul, and body. He perfects His love in me. The one who calls me to love is faithful. And He will do it.

 

© 2020 Lynn Lacher

www.lynnlacher.com/2020/08/his-love-in-me.html

 

Grace Makes the Difference

 

 

Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

—1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NLT)

 

 

What kind of love do I give? Or is my life all about me and what I want? Jesus said to love my enemies and do good to those who hate me, blessing those who curse me and praying for those who hurt me. If someone slaps me, I should offer him the other cheek. When someone demands something from me, I give it to him. Give to those who ask for help. If someone takes something from me, I don't try to get it back. Do to others as I would like them to do to me. (Luke 6:27-30, NLT). 

 

The world has become highly polarized into opposing political parties—opposing views—opposing races. And what can make a difference? The grace of Jesus Christ flowing in my life—given away as Jesus gave it to me. Christ died for every life, whether that person believed in Him or not. He gave His life for all humanity. Jesus held me in the highest regard, so why can’t I do the same for those who oppose me? The world opposed Jesus, but He loved us anyway. The “me” mentality of “what about what I need” pushes people away. And if I think that only others are guilty of this, then I should look at myself. Jesus humbled himself to die for me. Can't I humble myself and lay down my “needs” for someone else?

 

Paul said that love is kind. It is not boastful or jealous or proud. Am I boastful and jealous and proud like a Pharisee? If so, I don’t love with His grace. The love of Jesus never demands its way. It doesn't keep a record of those who have caused pain or been unfair. Jesus never demanded anything for himself but, instead, gave His life. Do I keep an account of those who have said things that hurt or slighted me? Christ’s love never rejoices about injustice but always rejoices when truth wins. The justice Jesus offers is full of forgiveness and grace. Do I extend the gift of His mercy? The love of Jesus never gives up. It always has faith to believe in what is not seen or heard. Looking beyond the selfishness of the human heart, this kind of love is hopeful and perseveres through any circumstance. 

 

If Christ's unconditional love is not alive in me, I have nothing to offer but my selfishness. Who bridges the polarized oppositions in this world? Who steps out in faith and loves the unlovely?  Jesus does when He is alive in me. I don't want to be one screaming my opinion or pushing my agenda. Jesus had no plan but to give His life. He had no opinion but Truth, but did He demand that others believe it? No, He died so they could.

 

Our world is starving for the grace of Jesus, but it doesn’t realize it. When I allow the “me mentality” of “what I want and what I know is right” is be crucified with Him, I can share His grace that keeps no records. Only then He can use me to make a difference.

 

©2020 Lynn Lacher

www.lynnlacher.com/2020/08/grace-makes-the-difference.html

 

No Debt

When was the last time you read the parable of the merciless servant in Matthew 18:23-35? Did you get the fact that the servant did not understand his master had entirely erased his exorbitant debt—one that he would never be able to pay? Because of this misunderstanding, the servant believed that he still had to collect money from someone who owed him so he could pay his master. What if that servant had heard his master correctly? What if the knowledge of his new debt-free state had penetrated his mind? The excessive weight would have lifted, and joy would have seized him. If only that servant had received the message that the master had wiped his slate clean, how free He would have been! 

 

Jesus fully paid your debt for sin. He wiped your slate clean. Yet, do you live as if you are still under obligation to pay your Master—forever struggling to win His approval? Why do you allow the enemy to convince you that you must earn God’s love? Is it because you believe you owe something and must make payment as penance? Self-effort never credits your spiritual account with His righteousness. Good works can never save you. So what does your payment achieve? The enemy of your soul blackmails you, saying you must continue to work to make payment to be forgiven. The truth is your payment would never be enough. The enemy’s lie is that the debt exists. In Jesus, you have no debt. You are forgiven and free.

 

If you could understand the truth of the Gospel that you, like the servant in the parable, are entirely debt-free, you would begin to grasp your identity in Christ. You would see yourself as He sees you—freely forgiven by His Grace. You would comprehend the truth that Jesus paid the debt of your sin with His righteousness. Almost too good to be true—this truth is life-changing!

 

Knowing you are debt-free in Jesus is freedom from the performance trap. Trying to compensate for a debt you do not owe achieves you nothing but frustration and defeat. Knowing and believing Jesus has paid your debt in full gives you freedom like nothing else. You do not work for Him because you owe Him. When work for Him is born of your faith, it flows from the upmost gratitude. It pours from the deepest debt-free joy. You have a revelation of His Grace as never before. His love is freely received and generously expressed. At last, you understand what your freedom means!

 

Jesus accepts and approves of you—not because of who you are but because of who He is and what He has done. Abraham’s faith was credited to Him as righteousness. Faith in the finished work of Jesus on the Cross is credited to you as righteousness. You do not have to prove who you are in Jesus. He has already shown it on the Cross. Jesus became your sin so that you might know freedom in His righteousness. There is no debt—nothing you owe. He paid the price, and you are free.

 

©2020 Lynn Lacher

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