Totally forgiven

I read something this morning that was so beautiful I had to share it.

When you hear the name of King David, you probably think of Goliath the giant, or David as the shepherd boy who became king. If you know his story, you probably also remember the disaster with Bathsheba and Uriah and the terrible mess David made. The consequences of his sin affected him personally, his family, and his entire nation.

It's hard for me to forget that episode in David's life, but it's not hard for God.

When David came to the end of his sin, he was truly heartbroken. He went before the Lord, repented, and was forgiven. Today, I was reminded of how complete that forgiveness truly was. 

During the time of Jeroboam, the kingdom of Israel was split. Jeroboam was king over Israel, and Rehoboam (David's grandson) was king over Judah. Because Jerusalem was in Judah, Jeroboam was afraid the people would want to worship at the temple there, and he would eventually lose his kingdom.

In an attempt to decrease the number of people seeking God in Jerusalem, Jeroboam started a new religion. He evicted the true priests from Israel, built two golden calves, and instituted worship of the idols.

Needless to say, God was not pleased. He eventually sent a message to Jeroboam through one of His prophets that he would destroy him and his lineage. In that conversation, He referenced "My servant David." 

"... you have not been like My servant David, who kept My commandments and who followed Me with all his heart, to do only that which was right in My sight;" 1 Kings 14: 8 nasb

When God remembered David, He didn't rehash his mistakes. He didn't recall the mess with Uriah and Bathsheba. He didn't bring up the time he numbered the people and was disciplined for it.

God treasured the sweet days of communion with His servant. When God forgave David, He "remembered it no more". 

When we seek forgiveness with a broken, repentant heart, that's how God views us, as well. He forgives and, ever after, sees our repentance, not our sin.

No matter what we have done in our past, God can forgive. No matter how heinous our sins, God can wash us white as snow and remove them from us forever.

Today, let's take all our mistakes, our failures, our rebellion to the Lord and leave them with Him. Allow Him to forgive and cleanse us with the confidence that He will never remind us of those sins again. 

Forgiven. 

That's how God saw David, and it's how He will see us, as well. 

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In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: More blessed to give than to receive

Here's an intro video to the Hosea study: The Greatest Love Story

#forgiven #repent #linesfromleanna