God is an experience that doesn’t condemn

The Rev. Darlene Strickland, senior pastor, Unity Church of Lawrence, 900 Madeline Lane:

Consider this: God does not forgive. How so? God does not condemn.

As humans, we personalize God. Yet God is not a personality that must be pleased or persuaded; God is a presence we experience and express. God is spirit – source – the creative presence that animates and sustains all life.

As such, life has a built-in system of correction – cause and effect. Every action or choice we make results in a reaction or outcome. If I disregard the law of gravity and leap from a rooftop, I suffer the consequences of my actions. I do not suffer God’s personal wrath or condemnation.

As long as we believe our God condemns, it gives us permission to condemn. Jesus taught that we should forgive “seven times seventy.” This did not mean 490 times. The number seven is symbolic for “completion.” In other words, forgive as many times as it takes. If we are instructed to forgive “as many times as it takes,” how could our creator offer us anything less?

“God is love'” and love is life-affirming. It inherently guides us to discover and express our self as God’s emanation – love. Love teaches and corrects without diminishing. In the presence of love we bloom, discovering and freely giving our unique contributions to our world. This spirit fosters the highest level of responsibility and accountability, both individually and collectively. As we come to know this love as our very essence, we discover the keys to the kingdom: heaven on earth, here and now.

– Send e-mail to Darlene Strickland at revdarlene@sunflower.com.

Gospel’s good news: God forgives all sins

The Rev. Paul Gray, pastor, Heartland Community Church, 619 Vt.:

Fortunately for us, God promises to forgive ALL our sins – past, present and future. Otherwise, we’d be in big trouble.

It’s obvious to anyone that we’re going to tell more than one lie in our lifetime, lose our temper more than once, etc. The original definition of “sin” is to “miss God’s perfect mark.” Romans 3:23 says, “We have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glorious standard.”

God states in Hebrews 10:17 that when he forgives us, he chooses to “never again remember our sins.” Psalm 103:3 says, “Lord, if you kept a record of our sins, who could ever survive?” We get paid wages for what we’ve done; we get what we deserve. God says, in Romans 6:23, “the wages of sin” – which we’ve all committed – “is death.”

If he just stopped there, we’d all – even the nicest old saint – be in big trouble. Thank God, he doesn’t stop there. The rest of that verse says, “But the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, our Lord.”

The Bible makes it clear that unless we personally accept the free gift of eternal life that Jesus Christ provides, we’ll have to pay for our sins ourselves. But when we accept Christ, he pays for our sins. We all sin – more than once – and God won’t forgive even the littlest sin unless we accept Jesus Christ as our personal forgiver. But when we do, he forgives all our sins – past, present and future. That’s the good news of the Gospel.

– Send e-mail to Paul Gray at paul@hcclawrence.com.