“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”
~2 Corinthians 5:17 How many times have you played a game as a kid and something didn’t go the way you wanted - maybe you missed a pitch and swung too early, maybe you missed getting the ball in the basket during a game of horse, or maybe there was a missed opportunity to kick the big red rubber ball past the person pitching it on the mound - so the first thing that you yelled was “Do Over!” even in the game of golf, you get this wonderful gift called a “Mulligan” - the ability to take another shot without having that swing be counted against your score. Wouldn’t it be nice in life if we could have do overs any time that we would like? Wouldn’t it be great that if things got really messed up that we could just hit the reset button, just cry “Mulligan” and take another shot at it, or just be able to scream “Do Over” at the top of our lungs and the troubles and struggles with which we are enduring would go away and things would go back to a time of our choosing and we could redo them to a better, more pleasurable outcome for us? We unfortunately, due to sin, no matter how many mulligans or do overs we think we could ever need or have, there still wouldn’t be enough. We would still mess things up and they would never be perfect and things would never be right. We would continue to taint and ruin the perfect plans and gifts from God, and we would continue to be hopeless and lost in our own muck and mire of our sinful and selfish ways - now doesn’t that just sound uplifting and joyful! Yet, there is great joy for us, because of what Paul tells us in our Bible passage above. Paul reminds us that in Christ we are new creations, and that the old is gone and that the new has come. We have the great joy of knowing that in Christ we have a fresh start, we have a new beginning, our sins are forgiven and removed as far as the east is from the west, and they are remembered no more. Our Savior knows our challenges, He knows our joys, He knows our pains, He knows our weaknesses, He knows our highs and our lows of every hour and every day. He knows every miniscule details about our lives - even the number of hairs upon our head. He knows us, He loves us, and He sacrificed His life for us so that we might have hope, joy, and peace in that which is yet to come. In Him we have a new beginning, in Him we have the peace which surpasses our understanding, and in Him we are able to give thanks and serve in His name. In this New Year, take advantage of this fresh start that you have been given through Christ. If there is someone with whom you have not spoken to or refused to forgive, ask the Lord for strength so that you may forgive just as Christ has forgiven you. If you haven’t been in worship because you have put other things first or have come up with different reasons or excuses, don’t deny the Lord the opportunity to speak to you and strengthen you through His Word and Sacraments. If you are not using all of your gifts and abilities to serve the Lord, perhaps in this New Year you can find ways here at church or in the community that you can find ways to serve others with the love of Christ - there are many people in need and many people to serve. Thanks be to God that in Jesus we are new creations - thanks be to God that in Jesus we are given a fresh start - thanks be to God that we have a new beginning each day as we are reminded that our sins are forgiven and that His mercies and grace are new each morning. May the Lord richly bless you and your family and our church family in 2012. May He give us wisdom and strength and may we rejoice that in Jesus we have that wonderful fresh start! |
