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Apples of Gold
Radio Script for February 16, 2009
“Wisdom Is Knowing What’s Important”
Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.
I was thinking about wisdom over the weekend.
And I came up with this as one aspect of wisdom.
Wisdom is knowing what’s important.
See, a million things can fill our lives, but we should focus on the most important things, right?
But what are they?
The wise person knows. Wisdom is knowing what’s important.
I thought about this as I read what Jesus did in Mark chapter two.
A paralyzed man was brought to Jesus. Now remember, Jesus had been healing people left and right. And now here was this paralyzed man.
Isn’t it obvious what Jesus should do? He should heal the man, right? The paralyzed man gets up and walks, everyone cheers, and people believe in Jesus, the miracle man.
But remember, wisdom is knowing what’s important.
Well apparently, and I’m sure it came as a surprise to everyone, Jesus did not see this man’s healing as being most important.
What? What could be more important for a paralyzed man than to be healed so he could walk?
Well in Mark 2:5 we read that Jesus simply turned to the man and said, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
Now let me tell you, if I’m one of the guys who went to all the trouble of getting that paralyzed man to Jesus, I think I’m a little disappointed, maybe even angry.
“Okay, his sins are forgiven. Fine. Now let’s get on to the main event, Jesus. Heal the man!”
But there he was, still flat on his back, legs still useless. Nothing changed – except that little fact that his sins were forgiven.
That brought no amazing reaction from the crowd, and yet that was the main event. Jesus did the most important thing, He forgave his sins.
It’s Monday morning, and you know what the headlines in the paper should read? “Sins Forgiven!”
I say that because over the weekend I’m sure that tons of people went to Jesus and received forgiveness for their sins.
That is the main event! That is the most important thing that happened all weekend – sins were forgiven!
But it doesn’t make the headlines because you can’t see it. You can’t take a picture of it. You can’t really measure it, and you can’t prove it. But it’s most important, and it changes lives – and the world we live in – everyday.
So have you done this? Have you come to Jesus to have your sins forgiven?
A wise person knows what’s important, and this is important.
So what do you have to do?
Well the Bible talks about forgiveness from several different angles.
When Jesus was teaching about prayer in Luke 11, He made it sound like a simple request to our Heavenly Father, “Forgive us our sins.”
That’s a simple prayer you can pray anytime, “Father, forgive me of my sins.”
But now listen up, because other verses have other things to say about forgiveness.
Acts 10:43 says that everyone who believes in Jesus receives forgiveness of sins through His name.
Ephesians 1:7 says that our forgiveness is through the blood of Jesus.
Jesus said Himself in Matthew 26:28 that He would pour out His blood “for the forgiveness of sins.”
Hebrews 9:22 says that “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”
So yes, we ask the Father for forgiveness, believing that our forgiveness was paid for by the shed blood of Jesus.
First John 1:9 talks about another dimension. It says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
Luke 24:47 says that both “repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in His name to all nations…”
In Acts 5, Peter and the apostles indicated that these were a gift from God, “repentance and forgiveness of sins.”
In Acts 2:38 Peter said, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins…”
And one of the most important teachings about forgiveness is what Jesus said in Luke 6:37, “…forgive and you will be forgiven…” He teaches this more in depth elsewhere, and that is that if we want God to forgive our sins, then we must forgive those who have sinned against us.
So a few teachings about forgiveness:
--We ask our Heavenly Father to forgive our sins.
--We believe that our forgiveness comes through Jesus and the blood He shed for our forgiveness.
--We confess our sins to God.
--We repent of our sins.
--We are baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
--And we forgive those who have sinned against us.
Wisdom is knowing what’s important, and this is among them. It’s important that we do this ourselves, and it’s important that we share this information with others – just as Christians around the world did this weekend.
We must stress the importance of coming to God for the forgiveness of sins.
Comments?
E-mail me: dougapple@wave94.com.
May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
© 2009 The Arrow’s Tip
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(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)
Why “The Arrow’s Tip”? Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold. Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.” I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.
Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL 32315
(850) 926-8000
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