Romans 3:23
For all have sinned
and fall short of the glory of God
2 Timothy 3:16
All Scripture is
God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in
righteousness Tweet
Romans 5:8
But God
demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ
died for us.
More Than We Deserve
By Joe Stowell
Read: Psalm
103:6-18
He has not dealt
with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities.
—Psalm 103:10
Bible in a Year:
1 Chronicles 19-21;
John 8:1-27
Sometimes when
people ask how I’m doing, I reply, “Better than I deserve.” I remember a
well-meaning person responding, “Oh no, Joe, you deserve a lot,” to which I
replied, “Not really.” I was thinking about what I truly deserve—God’s
judgment.
We easily forget
how sinful we are at the core of our being. Thinking of ourselves more highly
than we should diminishes our sense of deep indebtedness to God for His grace.
It discounts the price He paid to rescue us.
Time for a reality
check! As the psalmist reminds us, God “has not dealt with us according to our
sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities” (Ps. 103:10). Considering
who we are in light of a holy and just God, the only thing we truly deserve is
hell. And heaven is an absolute impossibility—except for the gift of Christ’s
sacrifice on the cross. If God never does anything more than redeem us, He has
already done far more than we deserve. No wonder the psalmist says, “As the heavens
are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him”
(v.11).
Knowing ourselves
for what we are, we can’t help but say, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound!”
He gives us so much more than we deserve.
Lord, thank You for not dealing with me according
to my sins. I am indebted to You for the love and
grace that You demonstrated on the cross to
purchase my pardon and forgiveness—far beyond what I deserve!
If
God never does anything more than redeem us, He has already done far more than
we deserve.
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