April 24, 2010

April 24 Luke 18:1-17
It was a cold Sunday morning, probably the coldest of the year. I rolled, rubber-banded, and placed the newspapers one by one in my canvas bag slung over the front handle bars of my bike. Sunday papers were always at least three times as big as the weekly papers. I stuffed as many of the 180 papers as I could into the bag so that I would make as few trips as possible on my Sunday morning route. The papers themselves may have outweighed my 90 pound frame. Launching out into the 5:00 a.m. cold, it was difficult to gain speed with all the weight and without speed it was difficult to keep my balance. The cold stung my face as I pushed against the pedals. A few blocks from home, I had to slow down for a turn. Exhausted from peddling, the turn being a little tighter than I had anticipated, and the unexpected presence of some ice wrought the effect of loss of balance, and my bike went down. Try as I might I could not get my bike upright again. There was just too much weight on the handle bars. A passing policeman shone his spotlight on me and then drove on. He didn’t even stop to help. I was freezing and I couldn’t get my bike upright again. The papers were so heavy I couldn’t get the bag off of the handlebars. Frustrated I walked home. Walking into Dad’s bedroom, I awakened him, confessed my inability and asked for help. He graciously got up, dressed and helped me deliver my route. Man was I grateful.
Salvation is like that. Our sin has overwhelmed our ability to make our life upright and righteous. Try as we might we cannot restore it to the level of holiness required to enter into the presence of God. The sin is so wrapped around the handlebars of life and so heavy that we cannot remove it. There is nothing left but to walk home, to enter into the room of the Father and to say, “Lord, I am a sinner. Will you deliver me?” He is gracious. He is merciful. He delivers us. Like a child, unable, we ask. He delivers. That is the glory of our Lord. Like the tax-gatherer who recognizes the overwhelming greatness of His sin, we ask. He is gracious. He is merciful. He delivers us. That is His glory. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
P.S. Thanks, Dad, for showing me in that simple act the love of the Father.