"Inside the LIE of inward shame!"

Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me?" He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep." -John 21:16 (NIV)

We are in a study that is titled, "Spending the Summer with Jesus." In Sunday's sermon, David preached on how the passover was a preview of what God can do for us. He also mentioned how our sin is a reminder of the past life we lived outside of Christ. In many ways that memory can be a disappointment. The memory is also a tool to give us strength in know that is not who we are any longer.

After Judas betrayed Jesus, he was filled with remorse and went out and hanged himself (Matt. 27:3-5). Judas' greater betrayal, however, may have been that he apparently could not believe that Jesus would forgive him and that the Holy Spirit would help him forgive himself.

But Judas was not the only one who failed Jesus. After having promised he'd never desert Jesus, Peter denied him three times. When Peter heard the rooster crow, he remembered what Jesus had foretold and went out and wept.

Later, the risen Jesus came to Peter and asked him three times, "Peter, do you love me?" After Peter answered yes each time, Jesus responded with an assignment. He gave Peter his own ministry: "Feed my lambs. Take care of my sheep." (See John 21:15-17.)

The memory of what we've done can be redeemed for good. The new covenant sealed with Jesus' blood is the promise of God's forgiveness. In that covenant, the Holy Spirit is able to bring us to rebirth, re-creation, renewal, and redemption. We can be used for God's purposes, no matter what we've done.

As the words to the song from Matt Maher, "Christ is Risen (Come Awake)...

Let no one caught in sin remain
Inside the lie of inward shame
We fix our eyes upon the cross
And run to Him who showed great love

To God be the Glory for all things, Don