March 8, 2022 -- Genesis 3:9-13 -- Sinner, Come home to Jesus!

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” 11 He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” 12 The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” 13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
Genesis 3:9-13 ESV

You and I are very familiar with this one, the blame game. Excuses flow from our lips like pressurized water from a fire house. We spout: It is not my fault. He made me do it. They deceived me. Such excuses, and a host of others very family to you, are a story as old as Adam and Eve's Fall into sin. And excuses and justifications for sins have been spewed out ever since.

For a man or a woman to be released from slavery to sin and the traps of the Devil, he has to be completely honest. Confession is so powerful because it breaks chains and allows the work of God to take hold of the heart. David wrote these words, echoed through many generations and many church halls, recited from the lips of many broken hearts:
For I know my transgressions,
   and my sin is ever before me.
Against You, You only, have I sinned
   and done what is evil in Your sight,
so that You may be justified in Your words
   and blameless in Your judgment.
Psalm 51:3-4 ESV

What sin is weighing you down? What is keeping you from experiencing the sense of God’s nearness? What is it that makes you hide from the LORD God Who sees all? Think about it, He already knows your weakness and your need of His mercy. Confess you sin and find the freedom which only Jesus can bring.

Jesus, friend of Sinners, my Savior, I confess my sin. The repetitious, wearisome sin that obscures the face of my Father and deafens me to His invitation of mercy. Spirit of God, bring me out from my hiding places and put the steel of courage into my spine so that I may reach out for the grace that is so freely offered. When the burden of sin has, once again, been lifted from my shoulders, let me teach others Your ways so that sinners will join me in returning to You. Thank You, O God of my Salvation, for the rich promise that a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise. What Good News that is! Blessed be Your Name, now and forever. Amen.

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