A WIDE, SWEEPING GRACE

Alexa, Amazon’s voice-controlled assistant, has an interesting feature: it can delete everything you say. Whatever you’ve asked Alexa to do, whatever you’ve asked Alexa to find out, one simple sentence (“Delete everything I said today”) sweeps it all clean—as if it never happened. It’s too bad that the rest of life doesn’t have this function! Every mean word, every selfish act, every moment we wish we could delete—we’d just speak the words, and the entire mess would disappear.

There’s good news though. God does offer each of us a clean start. Only, He goes far deeper than just deleting our mistakes or dark secrets. God provides redemption, a deep healing that transforms us and makes us brand new. “Return to me,” He says, “I have redeemed you” (ISAIAH 44:22). Even though Israel rebelled and disobeyed, God reached out to them with amazing mercy. He “swept away [their] offences like a cloud, [their] sins like the morning mist” (V.22). He gathered all their shame and sin and washed them away with His wide, sweeping grace.

God will do the same with our guilt and wrongs. There’s no mistake He can’t mend, no hurt He can’t heal. God’s mercy cleans and redeems the most painful places in our lives—even the ones we’ve hidden away. His mercy sweeps away all our guilt, washes away every regret.

Thinking it over . . .

Where are you most aware that you’ve messed up? How does the picture of God sweeping away all your sin and shame give you hope? Why not spend some time this week reflecting on 2 Corinthians 5:21.