Verse of the Day - Romans 3:20

For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.
~ Romans 3:20 (NLT)

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When's the last time you read through your state's vehicle code? I can tell you when I last read through the CA Vehicle Code (CVC) -- 1977. That was the year I got my driver's license, on my 16th birthday. Gee, do you think it's changed at all since then? Hmm....I wonder how many laws I'm breaking without even knowing it. (BTW, just so you know, in California, it's illegal to drive without headlights when you're using your wiper blades -- just a bit if CVC trivia for all you law-abiding citizens out there. :-)

My point is, no matter how law-abiding you think you are on the road, my guess is that you break laws on the road all the time, whether you know it or not. Either you make a bit of a California stop (oh, and btw, why do Californians take the rap for that, huh? like we invented it?!? okay, so may be we did....:-), or make an unsafe lane change (if you change lanes without using your blinker, I believe a cop would say that's an unsafe lane change), or go above the speed limit. Even a little. Now, I know I got everyone on THAT one, 'cuz even my step-dad, who is the most cautious, safe driver I know does at least one mile over the speed limit. :-)

So, even if you're as careful as my step-dad, you could one day be blinded by the flashing red light in your rear view mirror, because of a traffic infraction. And all of a sudden, you're a "law breaker", and it could cost you a pretty little penny. Somehow, I don't think the officer would be too swayed if you laid out your case for not getting a ticket, by saying, "But Officer, I always stop before turning right on a red light, and I never park in a red zone, and I always use my blinker when merging, and I....I mean, doesn't that count for anything?" He's still gonna write you a ticket, because you broke the law. It doesn't matter how much good you do on the road and how good your intentions are. You break a law, you get a ticket. "Thank ya, Ma'am....and have a good day," he says, as he tips his hat and closes his notebook.

Many people think that being a "good" person is good enough for God, that it will be good enough to make them acceptable to God when they die and meet Him at Judgment Day. But the reality is that, in this life, we're all making unsafe lane changes and speeding....and a bunch of other illegal and dangerous life choices. Sinful choices. So, no matter how good you think you are, you're not perfect. Therefore, you are not good enough for a perfect God. The laws of God simply can't save you, because you can't keep them all. Too many and too rigid for our rebellious souls.

All of this could sound demoralizing and dismal, if it weren't for Jesus. He is our knight in shining armor, our lifeguard, our one-man search-and-rescue team! He knows that we're weak in the face of God's law, and makes a way for us to be perfect anyway! How? By covering us with His righteousness, through His shed blood on the cross. When we come to Him for forgiveness of our sin, He is faithful do to that, and cleans up our guilt and wipes out our punishment. He is that powerful. He is that kind.

So, though we are called to be obedient to His word and live holy lives as His followers, we are destined to fall prey to sin, either of omission (something we didn't do) or commission (something we did do). His perfect law is a continual pointer to our need for a Savior, because no matter how hard we might try, we will never get it all right.

Legalism vs. grace. One is a life of adherence to law, to win God's grace for one's supposed perfection. The other is a life of acknowledgment of law, to take God's grace for one's lack of perfection. God says one is viable, and the other is futile. I pray you can acknowledge your inability to fulfill God's law and can humbly accept the grace of God through Jesus Christ to provide the only righteousness that any of us can count on when we stand before the Throne of Judgment on that Great Day.

What can wash away my sins
Nothing but the blood of Jesus
What can make me whole again
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Oh, precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow
No other fount I know
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
~ from Nothing But The Blood, by Robert Lowrey, 1876


Love,
Joelene