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Think with me for a moment:
“All have sinned . . .”
Paul writes in Romans 3:23, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” That doesn’t leave any wiggle room, does it? No matter your background or upbringing, you’ve sinned. It doesn’t matter how much money your family has or doesn’t have, you’ve sinned. Whether you flip burgers or occupy a corner office, you are a sinner.
When Scripture says we’ve all sinned, it’s laying out a blanket statement that covers every single man, woman, boy, and girl who has ever existed since the first two humans in the garden of Eden. The only exception was the one man who defeated sin, Jesus Christ, the God Man. The rest of us are in the same boat as Adam and Eve.
“ . . . all unrighteousness.”
Though we’ve all sinned, God gives us another all in which we can take great hope. He tells us, “If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and cleanse us of all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:8). There you go again—another huge blanket that covers everything! When we come to Christ, no matter what we’ve done, He promises to forgive us and cleanse it from our record! Whether you’ve murdered or maligned, it can be vanished! If you’ve lied or lusted, been a cheater or adulterer, for any sin at all, He offers full forgiveness. It can all be washed away!
“ . . . all [our] troubles.”
King David writes, “When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all” (Psalm 34:17-19).
The result of all our sin and all our unrighteousness being dealt with on the cross by Christ is incredible: He hears all our cries and sees all our tears and He will rescue us from all our troubles. No matter how hard your life gets, or how many buckets of tears you cry, your Savior hears and sees them all. “You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?” (Psalm 56:8).
Christians are not promised a trouble-free, pain-free life in the here and now. We may not be delivered from pain and suffering in this lifetime, but John’s revelation promises a day when God will cause all our tears to be dried up, never to wet our face again (Revelation 21:4). God promises to rescue us out of all our afflictions, once and for all, when He returns. That’s good stuff!
“ . . . all your plans!”
He also knows all our dreams. In Psalm 20, David cries out a blessing to God’s people: “May he grant you your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans! (Psalm 20:4).
I’ll admit it: I’m a dreamer. So often I find myself daydreaming of the way I hope things will be in my future. But things don’t always go as I’ve planned. It’s in these times I must remember Proverbs 3:5-6. It says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
When I trust God to establish His plans for me instead of my own plans, day by day I continue to find the things I once daydreamed about were small compared to His real plans for my life! His will and purpose for us are so much bigger than we expect.
He’s the king of blowing my mind with His faithfulness! He has an unblemished track record of keeping His promises because He is the sovereign, all-powerful Lord! His plans for me can never fail! “The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations” (Psalm 33:11).
And His plans for me are good! Psalm 25:10 says, “All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.” His blessings for those in a covenant-keeping relationship with Him are better than I could have ever dreamed! They continue to this very day and only get better and better!
“ . . . all your heart . . .”
So He deserves all my trust, faith, and confidence. I can fall headlong with abandon into the arms of my Savior because He’ll catch all of me, every time. Just like Proverbs says, I can trust Him with all my heart.
Who are you trusting in—and how good is their track record? And if it’s the almighty God of the universe, are you trusting Him with all of you?
That’s just a thought, and I welcome yours.
Until next time,
Blake
Copyright © 2021 by Blake Martin @https://pastorblakeman.wordpress.com/2011/09/07/all-2/ No part of this article may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from Lifeword.org.