But also with raising kids is the act of discipline. Sitting in timeout, saying your sorry to appease your parent's wishes (although you don't meant it 97% of the time), and the "gentle" smack of the backside (the "this hurts me a lot more than it hurts you wasn't true when I was a kid and it isn't true now as a parent). Let's face it...my kids are little sinners...they will sin. They will talk back, scream, run in the house, throw hard/sharp objects in the house (and at people) and bite (they learned that from their daddy!). But no matter how many times I place Lucas in timeout I won't stop being his daddy. As a new dad, I am trying to help him understand that even if I ask him to sit in timeout, it is because I love Him. I am in this for the long haul and I am not leaving. Our goal in raising our kids to make them more like Jesus, and sometimes that comes through discipline. But ultimately, if Lucas does his "time" by sitting on the steps, we aren't going to love him more or less afterwards. We love him the same...He is ours. And nothing will change that.
I think for a lot of kids who grew up in church, we get that Jesus forgives our sins. But how you define sins is where things get gray. I know for me, I thought Jesus forgave my have sins (or even the ones I was currently doing). That makes sense...we tend to ask for forgiveness (or sit on the stairs in timeout) to "make up" for our past mistakes...but what about tomorrow...and the next day? Did Jesus really forgive us for those? How can I have confidence that God is my forgiver...what my sins have been "nailed to the cross" and that I can't out-sin His love for me? This is a question that all Christians wrestle with...but especially those who grew up in the church.
Use the questions and passages below to wrestle with this idea of "God as Forgiver" this week.
1. Read Romans 8:29. What is the purpose of our faith? To be better people or to be conformed into the image of Jesus?
- How are these two "goals" different?
2. Re-read Colossians 2:13-14 from Sunday night.
- What does it mean that God "nailed our sins to the cross" of Jesus?
- Agree or disagree: We should remember our sins and struggles because it humbles us before God and causes us to desire holiness (the image of Jesus)?
3. Read Hebrews 4:14-16
- What does it mean that Jesus is our "high priest" before God? What does a priest do?
- Read verse 16..."confidence"...when do you have the most confidence that God is your forgiver?
* When life is going well and you are morally good?
* When you are struggling and you know you are forgiven and can go to Jesus for strength?
- Answering this question will help you recognize if you have confidence more in your ability to be good and keep God's love or your confidence that you are forgiven and His love for you won't change depending on how you live.
4. Read Hebrews 12:6-11
- Knowing what we know from Romans 8:29...do you trust that God's discipline...even when you are sinning is not meant to hurt you and isn't out of anger, but is out of love for you as His child and is meant to make you more like Jesus?
*When you put your faith in Jesus, God takes your sin...past, present and future, and nails it to the cross. You are covered in the perfect life, death and resurrection of Jesus. So when you sin, you don't have to beat yourself up or put yourself in timeout hoping that God will love you more and accept you again. You need to trust in Jesus more. Cling to the cross. Be fully confident in God as your forgiver.
Join us this Thursday night at 7pm at Matt & Amanda's as we continue to build our confidence that Jesus is our forgiver.
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