All Have Sinned, Forgiveness is a Gift


For the season of Lent I'll be sharing devotions from Grace Lutheran's devotional book: "Forgiven." 

While these devotions are not my words and may not represent my own faith or theological understanding, they are valuable personal faith perspectives of 40 of Grace's members and I am so grateful for their generosity in sharing them.

Holy Week

Romans 3:21-26 (all have sinned, forgiveness is a gift)

 But now, apart from law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to show his righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies the one who has faith in Jesus.
To me, this bible passage focuses on the thought of forgiveness. It doesn’t matter the color of your skin. It doesn’t matter your sexual preference. It doesn’t matter where you live. It doesn’t matter how much money you have. It doesn’t matter what your religion is. We are all God’s children. And being a child of God, we have all sinned. Part of Holy Week is acknowledging the redemption of our sins because God gave his only son Jesus Christ as a sacrifice of atonement. So no matter your skin color, your sexual preference, where you live or how much money you have, or your religion, if you believe in God your sins are forgiven.

 PRAYER:
Dear Lord, another year has passed and once again we are partaking in this week of somber reflection. Thank you for giving your only Son for the forgiveness of our sins. I’m sorry that we continue to sin, but we are not perfect. Thank you for being there for us in every step of the way to our everlasting life with you. In Jesus’ name we pray... Amen.

~ Diane and Rich

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