Mark Hatfield (1922-2011), longtime United States Senator from Oregon, shared the following true story.
James Garfield was a lay preacher and principal of his denominational college. They say he was ambidextrous and could simultaneously write Greek with one hand and Latin with the other.
In 1880, he was elected president of the United States but, after only six months in office, he was shot in the back with a revolver. He never lost consciousness. At the hospital, the doctor probed the wound with his little finger to seek the bullet. He couldn’t find it, so he tried a silver-tipped probe. Still he could not locate the bullet.
They took Garfield back to Washington, DC. Despite the summer heat, they tried to keep him comfortable. He was growing very weak. Teams of doctors tried to locate the bullet, probing the wound over and over. In desperation, they asked Alexander Graham Bell, who was working on a little device called the telephone, to see if he could locate the metal inside the president’s body. He came, he sought and he too failed.
The president hung on through July, through August, but in September finally died – not from the wound, but from infection. The repeated probing, which the physicians thought would help the man, eventually killed him.
So it is with people who dwell too long on their sin and refuse to release it to God.
It is tragic what happened to President Garfield, especially since it could have been avoided if the doctors had only known the extent of the damage they were causing. But it is even more tragic that the same thing is being repeated day after day in countless lives. They are “dwelling too long on their sin”.
Are you living in Freedom? Are you living in Forgiveness? Are you walking in Spiritual Health? Or are you letting the devil keep you in a prison of guilt and shame because of sin?
Jesus Christ has set you Free from the sin, guilt and shame of your past. Accept it and live in Forgiveness! He is available to you 24/7 to wash your sin away. Confess your sin. Tell it to Jesus and let Him remove it as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12).
Don’t let unconfessed sin fester in your heart. Don’t let it fill your soul with poison. Don’t let its toxins eat away at your life. Don’t let bitterness, unforgiveness, anger, lust, envy, slander or anything else ruin your relationship with Jesus and with others. Don’t let your spiritual enemy control you or limit what the Lord wants to do in and through you. Don’t dwell on your sin. Confess it and be set Free (1 John 1:9)!
This Sunday, February 7, we will consider the question “What is the Church?” If you are not able to join us in person in the building at 10:35am for worship, please join us online for the Live broadcast on Facebook (Search: Honolulu AG). It will also be uploaded later that day to our website (honoluluag.org) and YouTube channel (Search: Honolulu Assembly of God).
There is only one more session left of our “Joy of Belonging” class. Be sure to join us this Sunday at 9:30am in the sanctuary. We will check out the church’s Constitution and Bylaws plus Membership Covenant. Those who are interested in membership will receive an application form. Please join us for this valuable teaching.
The Annual Meeting of the congregation is coming up on Sunday, February 14. It will follow the 10:35am worship service and begin with a Fellowship Lunch. The main dish, rice and meatballs (BQ as well as teriyaki and pineapple!), will be provided. Please bring your favorite side dishes – salads and/or desserts, etc – to add to the table. Everyone is invited to stay for the lunch. Members are encouraged to be part of the Annual Meeting. Let’s rejoice over what the Lord has done here at Honolulu AG in 2020!
Aloha ke Akua!