Not Perfect, but Progressing || 1 Peter 1:18-19 || Manna for the Mind #46

Welcome to Day 46 of my “Manna for the Mind” devotional series! This series takes a passage of scripture (typically 1-3 verses) and builds understanding through its context and connecting scripture. This helps us understand what the Bible truly teaches us.

Today, we embark on a profound journey into the words of 1 Peter 1:18-19, a scripture passage that holds the key to understanding the depth of God’s love and the magnitude of Jesus’ sacrifice.

1 Peter 1:18-19

18          For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value.

19          It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.

A slave was ransomed when someone paid money to buy their freedom. God ransomed us from the bondage of sin – not with money, but through the sacrifice of Jesus. The bondage that humanity has with sin is not something any one of us can break on our own. It can only come from the true belief in the sacrifice of Jesus and believing that he went to the cross to break your bondage to sin through his death and resurrection.

Think of how John phrases his introduction to Jesus in John 1:29.

John 1:29

29          The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

Every morning and evening, a lamb was sacrificed in the Temple, symbolizing that the people’s sins were forgiven. Isaiah 53:7 prophesied that Jesus, God’s servant, would be led to the slaughter like these lambs. Life had to be given with the old sacrificial system, and blood had to be shed to properly pay the penalty for sin. In the Old Testament, it was the blood of an animal. With the coming of Jesus, it was the sacrificial lamb’s blood. God chose to provide the sacrifice himself. The sins of the world were removed. Jesus died as the perfect sacrifice. This is how our sins are forgiven.

The “sins of the world” John talks about means the sins of everyone, including you. Jesus paid the price for your sins through his death. It’s time to confess it. Ask for his forgiveness. Embrace it. Feel it. Believe it. You must ask for his forgiveness with sincerity and intentionality. There’s no change if you ask for forgiveness out of obligation or ritual. If you do it because you are supposed to, there’s no genuine change in your heart. Come before God with the sincerity and intention that comes with actual change. You will feel it and embrace God’s loving forgiveness as you progress. Your words will change. Your actions will change. Your life will change because you are ready for your heart to change.

Hebrews 9:14

14          Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For more by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.

Sinful deeds are more than just wrong actions. It can even include our attempts to reach God by being good enough. Our culture glorifies, even worships, self-effort and personal achievement. It defines success as obtaining specific goals, financial security, health and fitness, and the respect of others. The Bible shows us a different idea of success: accepting Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins, abandoning the futility of sinful deeds, and allowing the blood of Christ to purify our consciences.

The perfectionist, always-working, money-making society we live in today is unsustainable. I have fallen victim to this mindset many times. I have coveted the art of comparison through social media, others’ testimonies, and what I lack. I don’t have the financial security my friends have. I don’t have the best health compared to those around me. I am not as strong as I should be. I fail at life because I am not at the same level as those around me. This is based on the definition of success that the world sets.

Yet, I, like you, accept the sacrifice Jesus made for me. I, too, struggle with believing that he did it for me, but that is through his love and my negative self-image. I’m speaking out of the space of my insecurity. God loves me because of it. I try not to go out of my way to be sinful, but I accept that I can’t be perfect. God’s forgiveness waits for me and is always available for me. I’m not perfect (no matter how much I say it), but I’m consistently progressing into the person God created me to be. I allow the Holy Spirit to guide my thoughts and actions instead of reacting to what my emotions think is terrible. They may be the same, and they may not. However, the Holy Spirit can take over my heart and purify it. Allowing it to remove the ways that could harm those around me and replace them with ways that allow me to be more Christlike. Again, not perfection, but progression. How are you progressing today?

Father God, we thank you for the sacrifice from you that saved us from the punishment and bondage of sin. The sacrifice you sent, Jesus Christ, your son, was the ultimate sacrifice that paid the price for us. Thank you for the forgiveness that exists for all of us. Forgive us for not embracing your forgiveness. Heal our minds and remove our sins from our memory because you forgive and forget it. Let us learn from our mistakes and overcome our guilt and shame. It’s in your name, we pray. Amen.