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His Forgiveness
Brian Mashburn
February 17, 2008
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The Forgiveness of God
We end our journey with the Hebrew slaves of Egypt having seen that the great God, Yahweh, has forcibly decided to make them into a people. A people with honor, dignity, and strength.
He decided to listen to them. He decided to reveal Himself to them. He decided to deliver them. He decided to sustain them with life. He decided to include them in His wonders and work. He decided to make them special...holy, if you will. And if that wasn't enough, He decided to live with them.
Was it too much that He expected them to worship Him? Was it really that hard to be grateful enough to follow Him?
Apparently, it was. Fresh out of slavery, with stories of miraculous wonders still on their minds, and chewing on manna from heaven...Yahweh's people sin.
And not just a little bit. They don't stub their toe and cuss. They don't go into a rage and murder. They don't just have a moment of weakness and use sex inappropriately.
No...they do what in their day could not be worse. They build an image with their own hands, call it God, and then worship it.
You know what Yahweh did at the sight of such insolence? You know what the Bright and Morning Star called forth upon these puny, helpless, taunting ingrates?
He forgave them.
"Them" are "us", church. And He forgave them. And He keeps on forgiving them. He forgives us.
In Christ, He exposes that in the end, Yahweh knows that forgiveness is the most powerful force on the planet, the best possible means of transforming people and making them holy.
That's why He does it. That's why He forgives you. For His own glory, out of His own nature. It's what He does. And while you can do things that keep you from its glorious effects, you can't stop Him.