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HomeWord - Jan. 20, 2009

 

He Is Faithful 
This devotional was written by Kelly McFadden

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

In Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hatches an Egg, Horton – an elephant – agrees to sit on an irresponsible bird’s egg while she takes off for vacation.  He has no idea she will be gone for months, but as time goes on, many of the jungle animals ridicule Horton for sitting on this egg day after day. His response is always, “I meant what I said and I said what I meant... an elephant's faithful, one hundred percent.”  No matter what storm, what situation arose, he stuck to his word and kept his promise to sit on that egg until it hatched.  How absurd it must have been to see an elephant sitting in a nest on a tree.

It makes me think, how absurd it must have seemed to see the Son of God hanging from a cross.  I can imagine the scene and it’s almost ridiculous to think that the Son of God could be killed.  It is not surprising that he was ridiculed by many who were there…but they were wrong.

Jesus hung on that cross for all of us, so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.  When He went to the cross, He carried with Him the sins of the world.  He served as the final sacrifice to free us from our sin.  And now He tells us to come to Him.  He says if we confess, we will be forgiven and He will purify us.  And He is faithful in His promise.

Do you ever catch yourself sheepishly approaching Jesus to seek forgiveness?  Do you ever wonder if He will really forgive you or if you perhaps crossed the line this time?  Or do you ever find yourself asking for forgiveness over and over again for the same sin?  As you look up to Jesus, hear His words… He will forgive.  He will be just.  And through Him, you can be purified from all unrighteousness.

Jesus looks at us and says, “I meant what I said and I said what I meant…I am faithful one hundred percent.” 

Going Deeper: 

  1. Why can it be hard to accept the forgiveness that God offers through Jesus? 
  2. How can you be more like Jesus in your willingness to forgive others? 

Further Reading: Psalm 33:4; Hosea 6:6; 2 Thessalonians 3:3

Kelly McFadden works with HomeWord’s radio broadcast and content teams. She and her husband Michael are the new parents of Campbell McFadden.

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