Recall Notice

Our Daily Bread is hosted by Les Lamborn

READ: Acts 3:13-21

Repent . . . that your sins may be blotted out. —Acts 3:19

In 2010, auto manufacturers recalled a staggering 20 million cars in the US for various defects. The thought of such a large number of defective cars on the road is startling enough. But what is more disturbing is the apathy of some owners. In one instance, the executive director of the Center for Auto Safety warned owners, “It’s a free repair. Get it done. It may save your life.” Yet, despite the risk to their own lives, 30 percent never responded.

Likewise, many ignore God’s “recall notice” to the entire human race. Unlike a defect found in automobiles, the moral defect of the human race is not the Maker’s fault. He made everything “very good” (Gen. 1:31), but people’s sin ruined it. God’s offer to us is “repent . . . that your sins may be blotted out” (Acts 3:19).

Why the Tears?

"Jesus said to her, 'Woman, why are you weeping?'"  John 20:15

When Mary Magdalene came to the tomb on Easter Sunday morning, she met the resurrected Christ in the garden.  She did not know it was Jesus because her eyes were filled with tears, and she was preoccupied with her deep hurt and utter despair.

Her hopes and dreams had crashed and burned as she saw Jesus beaten and crucified.  Her Lord and Savior was now dead.  How could that be?  Wasn’t He the Messiah?  And to add insult to injury, someone had even taken His body from the tomb.  It couldn’t get any more heartbreaking for Mary.     

And in her profound state of grief, Jesus asks her this simple but probing question, “Why are you weeping?”       

How Snow Illustrates One Of The Bible’s Most Important Messages

Photo by Stefan Perneborg.

Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord:

though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red like crimson,
they shall become like wool.
Isaiah 1:18

Snow is poignant illustration of one of the most important messages in the Bible:

Each of us is a sinner. We need to be purified. We need God’s forgiveness.

Receiving A Miracle

Dear friends and partners,

   This week I finish part 2 of the study, "Receiving a miracle from God."  The prophet Isaiah asked the question in chapter 53, "Who will believe the report of the Lord?"  The report of the Lord is the final word on your life no matter what the world has to say.  Through the years I have learned to trust God in the most difficult situations imagined.  I know many of you have done the same.  The same God that miraculously brought you out of the matter is the same God who will do it again!

   The doctors report may be against you, but the word of the Lord is for you.  Sickness and disease cannot win against a victorious Believer in Jesus Christ!  Debt, lack and poverty cannot take your life because Jesus paid the price for your sins and He has redeemed you from the curse of the law that was against you.  I encourage you today to walk in the promise of the word of God and receive your miracle now!

The Ultimate Proof of Total Forgiveness

That God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. —2 Corinthians 5:19


The ultimate proof of total forgiveness takes place when we sincerely petition the Father to let those who have hurt us off the hook—even if they have hurt not only us, but also those close to us.


I had come face-to-face with this reality, so I prayed for certain people to be forgiven. However, after a few moments, it was as if the Lord said to me, "Do you know what you are asking Me to do?"


I thought I knew the answer to His question, so I said, "Yes."


He then seemed to reply, "Are you now asking Me to set them free as if they had done nothing wrong?"


That sobered me! I needed some time to think, but while I pondered His words, the Lord reminded me of the many sins for which He had forgiven me. I became frightened of the possibility that He might reveal—or let come out—some of the terrible things I had done.

Experiencing the Cross: A Glimpse of Hell

Julie Barrier

I had the most remarkable encounter with God today. I was meditating upon Jesus on the cross, and, after decades of being a Christian, God revealed to me an aspect of Jesus’ suffering that I never understood or even considered. What was it truly like for Jesus to experience “hell” on the cross?

Coming to Terms With the Past

Jeremiah 33:1-26

"I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security."

Jeremiah 33:6

A pastor friend told the story of a couple who had come to him for counseling. The couple had been married 40 or so years, and they were both plagued with guilt. They hadn't become Christians until their later years, and, prior to that, they had both lived sexually immoral lives. Although they had been faithful to each other during their marriage, their past dips into immorality were now making them feel guilty for enjoying sex with each other.

The pastor thought for a moment, then asked the couple to name their favorite hymn. They both said at the same time, "It Is Well With My Soul." So the pastor told them to go home and either listen to or sing the hymn every night before they went to bed.

A week later the couple returned to the pastor's office. They told him that they had felt foolish at first, but they had sung their favorite hymn together each night. The wife blushed and the husband got teary eyed as he told the pastor, "When we got to the part that says, 'My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought! My sin not in part but the whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O, my soul!' well... after all these years we feel fresh and squeaky clean and new all over again."

Throughout the Bible, God's relationship with Israel was tested over and over by Israel's sin. The book of Jeremiah talks about the horrible result of that sin. When the prophet received the prophecy recorded in chapter 33, Jerusalem was under siege from the invading Babylonians. Soon God would allow his people to be carried away from their land into captivity and their land to be destroyed. Like the couple who wrestled with memories of past sins, the Israelites would live with heartrending images of how their unfaithfulness to God had resulted in the burning and pillaging of their land. Their city would be filled with dead bodies.

But the story doesn't end there. The prophet went on to say that because of God's immense love, God would heal Israel's pain, cleanse the people from their sin, and restore them to abundant peace and security. "Then this city will bring me renown, joy, praise and honor before all nations on earth that hear of all the good things I do for it," God said (Jeremiah 33:9).

Likewise, God does not want us to be forever burdened with our past sins. "You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness" says Romans 6:18 . And Romans 6:4 promises, "We were therefore buried with him . . . in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life."

So too is the promise for our marriages, which so often bend under the load of sins, both past and present. We must be honest with ourselves, with the Lord and with each other about memories or habits or activities that may be eroding our relationship and then deal with them. But we can do so in the joy of knowing that in Christ we can find forgiveness, restoration and a new start.
Nancy Kennedy

Let's Talk

• What are some things from the past that each of us is still struggling with?
• How are they affecting our marriage?
• How can we talk about those struggles in a way that builds up our marriage?

 

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