You have set me free from guilt and condemnation and set my feet a-dancing every day of my life!
You have given me to drink of the waters of eternal life and of the Presence of Your Holy Spirit!
You have given me Your Word, and written it on the tablets of my heart!
You have shown me great things hidden from the foundation of the world!
You have given me confidence in Your Love and Mercy!
You have made Jesus Christ my eternal Teacher and the Shepherd of my soul!
I will not go astray, for He leads me with quiet and gentle guidance.
Pour out the same gift of Your Holy Spirit on all who know me and for whom I now pray!
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One of the saddest things about atheism is that those who do not know God must rely on themselves and their own meager resources. When their resources, including the resources of their friends, fail them, as they inevitably must, the response must be fear, anxiety, resentment, anger, and lashing out in disappointment. God has not designed man to be independent of Divine Resources -- He has designed us to walk with Him, talk with Him, and to know the strength and joy that comes from knowing Who is in charge. He wants to share with us, as any good Father, His eternal resources of strength, joy, wisdom, understanding, peace, and love. But you would not!
Jesus wept over Jerusalem: How I longed to gather you into my arms as a mother hen gathers her chicks. But you would not! Jesus is the Face of God, who longs to give good things to His children, but you would not! What is it that keeps us from receiving the "Living Water," "the Gift of the Father-- the Holy Spirit" from the God who longs to pour it out?
Part of the answer is pride-- but you would not! Part of the answer is fear, and part of the answer is guilt. Jesus Calling for Sept 7 says this:
....I abhor the use of guilt as a means of motivation among Christians. Some pastors try to whip their people into action with guilt-inducing sermons. This procedure can drive many people to work harder, but the end does not justify the means. Guilt-evoking messages can undermine the very foundation of grace in a believer's heart. A pastor may feel successful when his people are doing more, but I look at their hearts. I grieve when I see grace eroding, with weeds of anxious works creeping in. I want you to relax in the assurance of My perfect love. The law of My Spirit of Life has freed you from the law of sin and death (Romans 8).
The only guilt Jesus imputed was to the Pharisees who "laid heavy burdens on peoples' backs and who did not lift a finger to help them." To the "sinners," He gave a song of praise and thanksgiving as He freed them from their heavy burdens and hearts. He placed in their mouths a song of praise to their God -- just as He does today, again and again. Millions of people are still singing their Kaddish today, just as I am. Would that everyone I know join me in my song!
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