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Topic: Acceptance (01/12/04)
TITLE: Condemnation and Acceptance By Derek Elkins 01/12/04 |
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The man who steals from the company he works for does not need a lecture on business ethics; he needs Jesus. The housewife who seeks excitement or solace in the arms of someone other than her husband does not need a divorce; she needs Jesus. The teenager consumed by pornography available on the Internet does not need to be grounded indefinitely from the computer; what he needs is Jesus.
We tend to focus on the immediate offense and overlook the underlying need. The cause of sin is the absence of Jesus. We need to remember the unique relationship of the sin and the Savior. Too often, we are quickest to condemn and slowest to accept.
A disciple demonstrates the love of Christ by exhibiting the personal acceptance that Jesus offered. To Jesus, Zaccheus was not a corrupt tax collector, but someone who desperately needed acceptance from God. To Jesus, the Samaritan woman at the well was not an adulterer, but another sinner who needed acceptance from God.
When we isolate specific sins, we isolate those people who commit those sins. But when we see through the eyes of Jesus, we see another sinner who needs the healing of the Great Physician and ultimate acceptance from God.
· A disciple does not judge those who are already judged, but accepts them as those
who need God
Application – Has my judgment of sin contaminated my relationships and impeded the Cause of Christ? Do I truly love the sinner?