Written by: John Sernaque
Call to Worship
Ephesians 4: 32
4: 32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
Luke 6: 36, 37
6:36 Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.
6:37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:
John 8: 11
8:11 She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.
Kind Words Never Lost-
It should be our aim to bring all the pleasantness possible into our lives, and to do all the kindness possible to those around us. Kind words are never lost. Jesus records them as if spoken to Himself. Sow the seeds of kindness, of love, and of tenderness, and they will blossom and bear fruit. 26SDA Bible Commentary 6:1118.
We know these verses but do we practice them? Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven. Are we as the scribes and Pharisees were, quick to condemn those we believe to have wronged us? Are we not sinners? Stiff necked and prideful, our way or the highway. Ready to stone the sinner to death. Guarding our earthly treasures instead of our heavenly treasures. Do we demonstrate human nature in our everyday lives and in our decision making? Human nature was imputed to us by the Devil, Satan himself. We must not travel that route but demonstrate the human Spirit which was imputed to us by Christ Jesus. How many chances did Jesus give unto Mary? I thank God for the many chances I’ve received. Were it not for Jesus, I would die a sinner. But Jesus gave us all the victory over sin, and I claim the victory that Jesus won, today, and every day. Praise God for His compassion and loving mercy, His long suffering. If Jesus gives us more chances than we deserve, can we not do the same for each other?
Our Father, which art in heaven,
We come to the foot of Your throne in thanksgiving, praise, and prayer. We come to You as we are, as sinners, confessing that we have sinned against You in different ways. We are sorry and humbly repent of all our sins. We pray, in Your compassion, mercy, and by Your grace that You forgive us of all our sins, the known and the unknown, from the beginning until now. We ask for yet another chance, though undeserving, lest we die as sinners. We do not premeditate our
sins, but sometimes stumble and fall, making mistakes. We claim Your promise to us that if we confess our sins, You are faithful and just to forgive us of our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We pray for Your strength and courage to forgive one another, as You have forgiven us. We pray to speak softly to one another with kind words as if spoken by You. Help us to demonstrate the human Spirit which was imputed to us by Christ Jesus. Help us to sow the seeds of kindness, of love, and of tenderness. We pray to be merciful, as You also are merciful. We pray to judge not, and that we shall not be judged: to condemn not, and that we shall not be condemned: forgive, and that we shall be forgiven. We thank You for giving us the victory over sin and claim the victory that Christ Jesus won. Help us be more and more like Christ Jesus every day, so that we would overcome, as You also overcame, and sin no more. Hear our cries, oh Lord, and pour out Your Holy Spirit upon us. Let us all be under one accord with You, with each other, and Your plan of salvation for us. We thank You for hearing and answering our prayers, in the name of Christ Jesus, we pray. Amen
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