"I Heard"

I heard them speak of Jesus,

Not a memory when,

I didn’t know He sees us,

He died for all our sin.

And I had no question,

That it all was true,

In session after session,

The picture that they drew,

Was graphic, sad and bloody,

I knew He died for me,

My thinking was not muddy,

As clear as clear can be.

But never liberating,

This Good News that they shared,

But me commiserating,

When it all was aired.

I just felt condemnation,

And guilt and deep regret,

Was sure of my damnation,

For my old unpaid debt.

And then somehow it happened,

Grace dawned deep in my heart,

And what I once imagined,

I now could claim a part.

i would say relief came,

And now I can accept,

Jesus calls me by name,

And by His grace I’m kept.

The joy of sins forgiven,

His presence everyday,

it’s now the way I’m livin’,

And more than glad to say,

That every day with Jesus,

According to God’s plan,

His love found and seized us,

And here we make our stand.

“He is so rich in kindness and grace that He purchased our freedom with the blood of His Son and forgave our sins…” (Eph. 1:7, NLT)

God is kind and gracious. Our freedom is bought and paid for. The blood of Jesus was shed so that we could have everything we could possibly imagine in terms of God’s blessing. So, if all this is true, what is holding us back? Many times it’s a mentality that slips back into somehow earning God’s acceptance, blessing and favor. He may love us unconditionally, but we still better tow the line or He will not bless us anymore. Yet, Jesus said God blesses everyone, even the ungrateful. When we try to earn it, we can never be fully sure we have received it. That’s because there is always something we shouldn’t have done or something we should have done better. So, this becomes a distorted mind game that cheats us out of really enjoying God’s grace. Jesus died and was raised to that we could know God and enjoy Him forever. It’s abundant life. Get some.

Lord, give us a fresh understanding of Your kindness and grace, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Jason Rich, jasonrichstudios.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Jason, and God bless you.