Corona Devo 1688

A friend of mine's daughter was celebrating a spiritual milestone yesterday.  She has been studying the Bible and what God's Word says about living for Him, and yesterday she was making a public declaration of her faith at church, and afterwards family was coming over to celebrate.  

That's big!

I wanted to do something special for her.  Not over the top, but something to encourage her, to commend her, and to reassure her: this "following Jesus" thing is big, but God is bigger.  He welcomes us (all of us), He directs us, He helps us, He forgives us, and (more than we will ever fully grasp): He loves us.

I thought of just the thing.  A cake in the shape of a cross.  Delicious and symbolic--what could be better on a big day-of-faith?  

So, I whipped up a box-mix and popped it in the oven to bake.  I stirred some powdered sugar with a pinch of cocoa powder and a splash of milk to make an icing drizzle, and then I loosened the sides of the cooled cake so that I could pop it out of the pan to be frosted.

But...a part of the cross broke off.  And to be more specific, I broke it.  

My cute cross-cake now had a detached piece.  I pushed the two pieces close together, but there was no disguising the imperfection and my friend and her daughter and all of their people at the party would see it plainly.

Then I realized, that was perfect.

Our relationship with Jesus is this awkward dance of His Holiness and our sin, all mingled together and it never truly looks perfect, because we're not.  

...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God... ~Romans 323

God gave His (one and only) Son to be crucified for all of our sins.  For every sin of every one of us.  Chris was perfect and we are anything but.

But...this was the deal God devised, and we are the blessed beneficiaries.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  ~John 3:16

And because of this sacrifice and the mystery-miracle of sin-payment that it performed for each one of us: we are cleansed, and by looking through the lens of Jesus-on-the-cross, God sees you and me as righteous.

• “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”  ~I Peter 2:24

• Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. (26) Otherwise Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But he has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. (27) Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, (28) so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.  ~Hebrews 9:25-28

We still have sinful cracks and rips and even complete separations from God sometimes, but as long as we repent and come back to Him, He overlooks the cracks, and only sees the us-and-Jesus (meshed together) version of us.  

• It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God – that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.  ~I Corinthians 1:30

• So he got up and went to his father.   “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.   (21) “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’  (22) “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. (23) Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. (24) For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.  ~Luke 15:20-24  

It's unbelievable by human standards, but I am glad that our faith and salvation are founded on our Heavenly Father's standards.  

It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.  ~I Corinthians 1:30

~~~

I looked at my unfrosted cross cake again, and I thought, "It's perfect"...because it's not perfect.

This is the best way (for me) to describe to a new-Believer what their faith-walk will be like: Not perfect.

We'll never measure up, and there will always be new cracks in our God-armor.  But we don't need to measure up--God has paid our debt and He forgives us, teaches us, disciplines us, redeems us, and He really loves us....imperfections and all.

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. (10) That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.  ~II Coronthians 12:9-10

Blessings,

sarah

https://sarahsundy04.blogspot.com