Do you ever feel guilt free? Or, are you often saying, “I’m so sorry,” and battling anxious thoughts? Perhaps, like many, you carry around a lot of guilt. In the back of your mind, you think, I’m not good enough. I can’t live up to what God expects of me. If this is you, let me reintroduce you to our heavenly father . . . the one who created you and loves you with a greater love than you can imagine. A love so great that he sent his one and only son to die to redeem you to him.
Bad Impression?
I must say that it is easy to get a bad impression of God. There are many verses in the Bible, especially in the Old Testament, that are difficult to apply to our lives today. For example, this one, “He that is wounded in the stones, or hath his privy member cut off, shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 23:1). Wow, think about that a minute. This seems extreme!
However, the scripture describing the Year of Jubilee is one of my personal favorites.
“Every fiftieth year, on the Day of Atonement, let the trumpets blow loud and long throughout the land. For the fiftieth year shall be holy, a time to proclaim liberty throughout the land to all enslaved debtors, and a time for the canceling of all public and private debts. It shall be a year when all the family estates sold to others shall be returned to the original owners or their heirs” (Leviticus 25:8-10).
Think about it, you could run up a big debt on the 49th year and then start over on the 50thyear. I’m sure Wall Street would not like this law.
None Of Us Are Good Enough
None of us can live by the standards of the Old Testament. If we could, Jesus would not have needed to come. Yet, Jesus makes an interesting statement in Matthew. He said:
“Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled” (Matthew 5:17-18).
Jesus brought a revolutionary message. Yes, he was a radical. There is a striking difference between the concepts of the Old and New Testaments regarding the character of God and the identity of God’s people.
God Loves You
Because of Jesus, we know there are absolutely no incompatibilities. When speaking to Nicodemus, an influential ruler of the Jewish people, Jesus explained God’s plan perfectly.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:16-17).
With these words, we can understand the compatibility between the Old and New Testaments. We can also see the transformative message of Jesus. Our creator desires a personal relationship with each of us. This is made possible with the coming of Yeshua Ha Mashiach, or Jesus, the Anointed One. Yes, because of Jesus, you can live guilt free.
Also see, Gone Fishing.
Copyright © 2023 Chuck Locklear