"To believe in repentance is to believe there will be repentant murderers who will meet their victims in paradise, to believe there will be repentant slanderers who will meet those they slandered in heaven, to believe there will be repentant thieves who will meet those they've plundered in heaven." Leonard Sweet, Rings of Fire: Walking … Continue reading Quote of Note #170: Repentance
Tag: forgiveness
Quote of Note #169: Forgiveness and Freedom
"To forgive is divine. It makes us look like our heavenly Father. And we accomplish forgiveness through His Spirit living within us. There is no other way. But it is a choice we must make individually to yield our right to strike back or to get even and to instead offer forgiveness. To pardon our … Continue reading Quote of Note #169: Forgiveness and Freedom
Pastor Note #126: A Good Friday Devotional
Introduction:At the very core of his being, our God is a relational God. Every fiber of God’s nature is biased toward relationship. We see that in the mystery of the Trinity—one God in three Persons, woven in a profound interrelationship of love, one with the other. We also see this relational nature of our God … Continue reading Pastor Note #126: A Good Friday Devotional
Pastor Note #124: Forgiving–Why Should I?
Let’s start with this key truth about forgiveness, one that runs counter to much of what we tend to think and what we hear from our culture. Forgiveness does not start out as a feeling. It starts out as a decision. We almost always decide to forgive someone who has hurt us before, often long … Continue reading Pastor Note #124: Forgiving–Why Should I?
Pastor Note #123: The Gospel Art of Apologizing
The art of apologizing is something that has to be learned. We tend to assume that apologizing is an act that everyone just naturally knows how to do. And I suppose in every day, little mishaps, the simple but sincere “I’m sorry” is sufficient to cover matters. But in most matters bigger than minor, … Continue reading Pastor Note #123: The Gospel Art of Apologizing
Quote of Note #148: Forgiving and Gratitude
photo by GAC "To forgive is to make a decision to cancel the debt that you are owed and not hold it against your offender. There is no forgiveness without a debt. And when we realize the enormity of our own debt, it makes forgiveness possible. So in this sense, forgiveness is closely related to … Continue reading Quote of Note #148: Forgiving and Gratitude
Quote of Note #114: “The Friend of Sinners”
Photo by GAC "Time and again it is the morally disgusting, the socially reviled, the inexcusable and undeserving, who do not simply receive Christ but to whom Christ most naturally gravitates. He is, by his enemies' testimony, the 'friend of sinners.' (Luke 7:34)." Dane Ortlund, Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and … Continue reading Quote of Note #114: “The Friend of Sinners”
Quote of Note #96: Patience with the Failings of Others
"Endeavour to be patient in bearing with the defects and infirmities of others, of what sort soever they be; for that thyself also hast many failings which must be borne with by others. If thou canst not make thyself such an one as thou wouldest, how canst thou expect to have another in all things … Continue reading Quote of Note #96: Patience with the Failings of Others
Quote of Note #81: Sin, Guilt, and the Blood of Jesus
We have a strange illusion that mere time cancels sin. I have heard others, and I have heard myself, recounting cruelties and falsehoods committed in boyhood as if they were no concern of the present speaker's, and even with laughter. But mere time does nothing either to the fact or the guilt of sin. The … Continue reading Quote of Note #81: Sin, Guilt, and the Blood of Jesus
Quote of Note #50: Graciousness to Others Because of God’s Graciousness to Me
"As you contemplate the cross of Christ, you should be overwhelmed with the oceans of grace you have received from the Lord. Even when others commit pools or even lakes full of sin against you, you should be gracious to them because of those oceans of grace you have received. 'Be kind to them,' Jesus … Continue reading Quote of Note #50: Graciousness to Others Because of God’s Graciousness to Me
Gary Chorpenning's Notebooks 