First and Ten
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9
“It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23
In football, from the offensive perspective, the major objective of the team for each possession is to score a touchdown. As the team heads towards the goal they are allowed four downs to accumulate at least ten yards in order to keep the ball. Each time the team gets ten yards or more during that four down series, they get to start the set of downs all over again by gaining what is called a “first down.”No matter what happens, as long as they keep obtaining first downs, the drive stays alive and they continue towards their primary goal of scoring a touchdown. In some ways we can liken this to the Christian life. You have an objective to finish your God – given course; to finish your race and meet Him face to face and hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of the Lord.” However, as you progress towards that ultimate goal, there are times that you will commit sin or “miss the mark.” Your enemy, satan, will tell you that it’s all over and that God will not forgive you; you might as well quit. However, God has built into this journey provision for you to keep going, or keep accumulating “first downs.” If you sin, the game is not over. You can come to Jesus and ask Him to forgive you and He will and He will cleanse you from all unrighteousness. Appropriating the blood of Jesus and receiving forgiveness “keeps the drive alive.” Don’t ever allow the enemy to tell you that it’s all over because you have sinned. You have the faithfulness of God expressed through the Lord Jesus Christ and through forgiveness and repentance you can keep on going until you see Him face to face. Keep running; don’t let failure stop you! It can’t unless you let it.
Scripture reading: Hebrews 12:1-3; 2 Timothy 4:7-8