The God of Another Chance
1 John 1:9
Imagine yourself competing in a Championship baseball
game. It is the final
game of the play-offs, and your team is behind by one run with two outs in the bottom of
the ninth inning. The fans cheer excitedly while you step into the batter's box. With all of the
determination and purpose you can muster, you concentrate on the pitcher and what kind
of pitch he is throwing.
Suddenly, you see his arm in motion, and in an instant you swing the bat, you feel
the contact, and you know that you might have the distance. But as you make your turn at
first base, you see the outfielder leap to the top of the fence and make an unbelievable
catch, and your heart sinks and you realize that you have lost forever the chance to score
and win the championship.
The cheers quiet down to a rumble, and the crowd files out of the stadium. You wish
you could turn back the clock so you could have another chance to score and change the
outcome! But of course that's impossible. So with an aching feeling inside, you take a deep
breath and come to grips with reality: You have been defeated.
Sometimes making a mistake in life feels so final, and you too feel as if you have
been defeated. Especially when you make a serious mistake. You think, "I've missed it, and I
won’t ever have any more chances to succeed. It's all over for me.”
But the "game of life" is not like a game in which you only have one chance to win
before it's over. No, when you make a mistake in life, with God, you get another chance!
The Bible says in Limitations 2:22-23 that God is a God of mercy and compassion
and that His mercies are new every morning. Micah 7:18-19 asks, "Where is another God
like you, who pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of his special people? You
will not stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in showing unfailing love.
Once again you will have compassion on us. You will trample our sins under your feet and
throw them into the depths of the ocean!”
Hear me well right here - the grace and mercy of God doesn't give Christians a
license to sin. And, in light of that truth, we need to be aware of where we are in our walk
with God, and be in constant communication with the Person of the Holy Spirit as He
reveals and convicts us of things in our life that need to be dealt with.
Therefore, 1 John 1:9 reminds us that "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to
forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." As we respond to conviction
and agree with God about those things that need to be dealt with, God is "faithful and just to
forgive us our sins."
However, it is dangerous to abuse God's mercy and grace by deliberately persisting
in sin. If people who persist in sin don't repent, they open the door for satanic destruction
in their lives. This truth is seen in 1 John 5:18, "We know (absolutely) that anyone born of God
does not (deliberately and knowingly) practice committing sin, but the One Who was begotten
of God carefully watches over and protects him Christ's divine presence within him preserves
him against the evil - and the wicked one does not lay hold (get a grip) on him or touch (him)."
As you continue to walk in disobedience, we continue to give Satan an opportunity to do
more and more spiritual, physical, and emotional damage in our lives!
God hates sin, but He loves the sinner. The Bible says in John 3:17, "For God sent not
his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved."
Child of God, God loves you just like you are!! And if you have fallen prey to the temptations
of the enemy, God wants to forgive you and restore you.
In John 8:3-5,7,9-11 we have this very familiar story, "As he (Jesus) was speaking, the
teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of
adultery. They put her in front of the crowd. “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was
caught in the act of adultery. The Law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?” They were
trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down
and wrote in the dust with his finger. They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and
said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” Then he stooped
down again and wrote in the dust. When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one,
beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman.
Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one
of them condemn you?” “No, Lord,” she said. And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no
more.”
The crowd wanted to condemn this woman who was taken in adultery. The selfrighteous scribes and Pharisees who accused the woman had already judged her and
pronounced a sentence of death upon her. In the natural, her situation was hopeless because
under the Old Testament Law, her sin was deserving of almost certain death. But, with God,
this woman got another chance!
Did Jesus give the woman another chance so she could go out and repeat her
mistake and fall into sin again? No, He told her in verse 11, "…Go, and sin no more." In the
same way, God wants us to learn from our mistakes, too, so we don't have to keep sinning
and missing God's best for our lives.
No matter how badly you may have messed up and sinned, God still loves and cares
about you. He wants to turn your life around and make you a success to His glory. With
God, you get another chance!
So many times when a person misses it and falls flat on his spiritual face, the devil
tries to make him feel hopelessly condemned. The devil says, "You've really blown it this
time. This time you won't get another chance. Every body at church is ready to mark you off as
a 'good-for-nothing'. Your life is over with God."
Guilt and discouragement is a trick of the enemy to try to rob God's people of what
belongs to them in Christ Jesus. The devil doesn't want God's children to walk in the
blessings of God. That's why he tries to discourage people and come against their faith through
guilt. 1 John 5:4 says, "...and this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith." It is
by faith that we appropriate and walk in God's blessings.
Some Christians, who don't know what the Word of God says, listen to Satan's
condemnation and lies and allow him to hold them in bondage, weakness, and failure. And
sometimes other Christians even agree with the devil's accusations and judge and
condemn a brother or sister in Christ who has sinned.
That's self-righteous! Why? Because the Bible says in Isaiah 64:6, "...all our
righteousness are as filthy rags..." Not one of us is perfect in ourselves. The Bible says in
Romans 3:23, "All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." 2 Corinthians 5:21
reminds us that we are only righteous because of Jesus. In ourselves, we have nothing to
brag about. That's why we are to freely forgive others in the same way God forgives us!
Listen to Galatians 6:1 where the Bible says, "Dear brothers and sisters, if another
believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that
person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself.”
Over the years I have watched, as Christians have been harsh and judgmental towards
others who have been overtaken and have fallen because of some sin!
But, the Word of God says in Galatians 6:7 and Luke 6:38 that the love and
forgiveness that we give others will be given back to us. Do you want others to treat you
the way you treat people? What if the so-called "Christians" had had the same attitude that you
have when you were struggling with some sin in your life? Where would you be today?
I don't know about you, but if I am ever "overcome by some sin," I do pray to the
dear Lord that He would not let some of the legalistic "Pharisees" among us see me when
I do it!! I hope and pray that if I am ever "overcome by some sin," and if I ever get out of
the will of God, I hope some spiritual, loving, Christian will see me, and not some of those
hyper-critical, super-dooper saints, see me. Do you know what I'm talking about?
By the way, if there is anything that is unattractive, and unbecoming a child of God,
it is to develop a critical spirit. God deliver me from a critical spirit!! Criticism will grip
your life!!
Perhaps you’re discouraged right now because you have failed in some area of your
life and in your walk with God. Maybe you're confused, and you've been running in the
wrong direction in life. Don’t be afraid to go to God and confess your mistake to Him. He
wants to put you back into His sweet fellowship.
Maybe you've completely turned your back on God, and now you are backslidden,
living without the peace of God and the joy of salvation you once knew. Listen, today, God
hasn't turned His back on you. He is not mad at you (maybe broken hearted, but not mad).
God is your heavenly Father and is full of mercy and compassion, and He still cares for
you. Call on Him today, for He is the God of another chance!
Maybe you've failed in some area of your faith. You started out believing God for
something, but when it didn't come to pass right away, you got caught up into doubt and
unbelief. And Satan has convinced you that just because you faltered in your faith, God won't
do anything for you, so you refuse to believe God for anything again. Child of God, I beg you
to get your eyes off your circumstances, and turn your eyes back to Jesus, for He is the
God of another chance!
Listen, even if you've fallen flat on your spiritual face, God still has a plan for your
life, and He wants you to be victorious and fulfill that plan. The Bible talks about many
men and woman, who failed spiritually, but repented and went on to fulfill the will of God
for their lives. With God, they got another chance!
In the Old Testament Moses, Elijah, David and others failed miserably, but because
of their faith and obedience, they got up and finished their course for the glory of the
Lord.
In the New Testament Peter failed miserably as he stood in fear and denied that he
had ever known the Lord. But, with a heart bent toward God, he repented of his sinfulness
and preached the great "Pentecostal sermon" that caused thousands come to a saving
knowledge of Jesus Christ.
The God who restored Elijah, David and Peter and gave them another chance is the
same God today who wants to restore you and give you another chance. And He is saying to
you today, "You don't have to be defeated. You don't have to be discouraged and depressed. I
will deliver you out of every trouble if you will just trust me for the victory."
Today God is calling out to some of you in this building, and He is saying, "Don't quit!
Don't walk away, for I am still here."
You see, Satan knows that as long as he can keep you on the sidelines of life, asking,
"Why did this happen to me?" you will be defeated. God wants to help you, but He can't if
you are not cooperating with Him according to His Word. Listen to me very carefully; some
of you are the greatest obstacles to God doing a great work in your lives. And until we get
ourselves out of the way, God simply cannot do what He wants to do in our lives, in our
homes, in our church, and in our nation!
So get up from where you're sitting and shake yourself from the dust of doubt,
unbelief, and defeat. Then God can come to your rescue and bring you a mighty victory.
With God you can get another chance!
Maybe you've never accepted Jesus as your Savior. Maybe you've turned your back
on God, or you just haven't trusted Him as fully as you should have. But no matter what
your circumstance, you can have a brand new start today. With God, you have another
chance!
Please, listen to me today, God is for you; He's not against you. And with God on
your side, you're sure to win great victories in life, even if you've failed in the past. So turn
to Him with all your heart. Your life is not over yet - not with God!! With God, you get
another chance!!!
Why not comes right now??
Please stand for prayer.
Father,
Your Word is true. Thank you for your wonderful love and grace. Thank you for being a
God of second chances. In Jesus’ name. Amen.