SCRIP-BITS

Well hello there my beautiful fellow believers in Jesus Christ! As usual, it’s a brand new day with brand new mercies and blessings flowing down from heaven on high! Oh glory to our great and ever-generous God! 

So let’s be wise and accept them in the spirit in which they are being offered nuh, say a grateful thank you Lord, and acknowledge with sincere reverence His holy presence. 

At the same time, let’s all declare this biblical truth: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’ Yes my people, that’s the only option that makes any sense as true and faithful believers. 

Now today I want to shake us up a little, raise our faith level some, get us coming up over our problems, by reciting the Mountain Mover’s Prayer, penned by Gramps Schuler (Dr. Robert H. Schuler). 

Please declare in faith with me: ‘Lord when I face a mountain, do not let me quit!  Give me the strength to keep on striving until I climb over; Find a pass through, or tunnel underneath. And if my best efforts fail, give me the patience to stay, And the perception to see the possibilities Of turning my mountain into a gold mine with your help. Amen.’ 

Ah Friends, that is exactly the patience, the perseverance, the stick-to-it kind of faith we need to succeed in this dark and dangerous world! And there’s no better time to incorporate that into our souls and minds than at the beginning of this new year. 

So with that strong foundation laid down in our spirits, let’s now turn to our Bit: ‘I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord, and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin.  Selah.’ 

Yes my brethren, confessing our sins to Almighty God is one of the best moves we can ever make in this earthly life! It just lightens our load and brings us closer to our heavenly Father. And there’s nothing He desires more than that, because He is a holy God and cannot tolerate or associate with sin, or sinful people. 

So when we clear our consciences in the name of Jesus, on the basis of the work that our Lord and Saviour has done, then it clears the way for the Father to work with us and on our behalf. 

Enough of my moralizing though, (smile) let’s turn to the scriptures for enlightenment and encouragement on the subject. And we’ll start with one of the best and well known examples of confession of sin; that after Bruh David had taken up with Bathsheba and had her husband Uriah killed in battle. 

When the prophet Nathan confronted him with the secret sin, Bruh David confessed his transgression and threw himself upon the mercy of the Lord. 

‘And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said unto David, The Lord also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die. Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.’ (2.Sam.12:13-14) 

And we all know how the child of Bathsheba became sick and Bruh David fasted and prayed for the child’s life to be saved, but it wasn’t. (2 Sam.12:15-23) 

But please note too friends, that because Bruh David’s sin had been so disgusting, and though the Lord forgave him, He put a curse on him that he would have problems within his own house. ‘Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. 

Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will raise up evil (adversity) against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.’ (2 Sam.12:10-12) 

Ah mih people, sin is indeed a grievous thing, with serious consequences, even though we repent of it. 

And the scholars tell us: ’12:10-11. These judgements came to pass literally in the sins of his (David’s) own household (ch.13), the rebellion by his own son Absalom (ch.15), and the civil war that followed (chs.16-20) David was never fully to know rest again.’ 

Oh Friends, our God does not make idle promises, please remember that. Anything He says He will do, He will do it! 

And we have some more scholarly explanations. ’12:13. David genuinely grieved and repented (cf. Ps.32:5 – our Bit; 51:3-4). However the seed of sin was immediately to bear bitter fruit, for the child born of the adultery became grievously ill and died (vv.15-18).’ 

And I think we should all pay particular attention to this next scholar’s note. ’12:14. David’s sin had brought the name of God into disrepute. Such knowledge ought to serve as a deterrent to willful sin on the part of believers (cf. 1 Tim.5:14; 6:1).’ 

Yes my fellow believers, as they say, one of the best ways to learn is from the mistakes of others, therefore please, please, let us learn from Bruh David’s serious mistake, for the Lord will not put up with continual sin in our lives. 

Please remember too: ‘For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through (in) Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (Rom.6:23) 

Now let’s ponder on that today, for it is indeed wisdom of everlasting proportions! Much LOVE!

…we can sugar-coat sin…but in the long run…sin always has negative consequences…