God using me, rather than me using God...

I would like to take some time and share with you some of the words that came to me today from God. I really don't understand their purpose, whether they are part of a sermon I may have heard, or words that God needed me to hear, or words that God wanted you to read, but whatever their purpose, I feel compelled to share them with you.

"No matter how far you are, no matter how lost you may be, God is always there for you. His love for you is unconditional and He is standing there always with His arms around you. On the other hand, we tend to perceive God as being a frail old man who loves us no matter what we may do to Him, or don't do to Him. But the fact is God is a jealous God; no idols or man is to come before Him in our lives; study the story of Solomon, son of David, if you don't think so. Why is it then that we continue to defy Him? Why is it our nature to speak of our love for Him, then turn our backs to His calling for us? Why is it that we make excuses for our sins based on our expectance for His forgiveness? God sent His pure Son to the world. Jesus Christ was and is the only person to walk this earth and life a perfect life. 

God gave Jesus Christ to die for sins that He, not only never committed, but was virtually incapable of committing! God's perfect Son was whipped, beaten, a crown of thorns was placed on His head, and He was mocked and disgraced as He carried His cross from the town to that hill. God's perfect Son then laid his beaten body against that tree, stretched out His arms, and bellowed out as three nails were driven into His perfect body. He was lifted for all to watch as the blood dripped from His body, and His last breaths were taken. Jesus Christ took those nails for us. For us! He took it for every sin that had, and was to be committed by God's children. Why then can't we turn our eyes from sin? Was it not enough that God had to watch His Son die for the sins of others? Was it not enough that Jesus carried our sins away to the grave? 

Every time we sin, every lie we tell, every time we lust, or cheat, or steal, or covet, or turn our eyes from God and His will, those nails are driven into His Son's body. Close your eyes and imagine our Savior laying on that cross, arms laid out, and think about the sins we voluntarily commit! Then look down at Him, then to your hands. The hammer is in one hand, and the nail in the other. Hear the hammer hit the nail, hear His cry.

 Jesus died for our sins, yet we take that for granted and we say "Well, it's ok. God will forgive me." NO. Why is it so easy for us to expect God's forgiveness when we sin? Are we really worthy of it when we continually try to break His word? God deserves our worship, but more so, than anything, He deserves our begging for His forgiveness for our sins and our anguish over our actions, not our expectance for His forgiveness. By this time, we have all committed some sin, even while we were reading this, and before the night is over, we will have sinned once more. We are all broken people, subject to fail and disobey God, but we shouldn't lower the standard to excuse our actions or expect Him to forgive us, because 

He really didn't have to forgive us did He?

He really didn't have to watch a perfect lamb fall for our wrongdoings did He? 

It is His love for us, His unconditional love for us that made Him choose to send a Savior, but let's strive to appreciate that daily, and push ourselves, and one another to raise the bar and try even harder to live in His image; that is, of course, how he made us, isn't it?"

I don't take credit for those words. God used my mind, and my mouth to say those things that needed to be heard, by me, and maybe by you. It was through Him that they came and through Him that they can speak to me and you and mean something to us.