PASTOR'S THOUGHTS:

 

“My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense – Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.” (1 John 2:1-2)

 

Maybe you are kind of tired of hearing about Tiger Woods. If you are, I understand. I get tired of the same old stories analyzed to death by the media. On the other hand, there is something very important we can learn from Tiger. It has nothing to do with golf. It has everything to do with repentance. This past week Tiger made a public confession of his sins. What can we learn from his confession?

 

Tiger’s confession was filled with many wonderful things – truly it was. I don’t say that sarcastically. He blamed no one but himself. That’s refreshing. He made no excuses for his extramarital affairs. That’s refreshing. He admitted to hurting those closest to him. That’s refreshing.  It sounded to me that his confession was from the heart. That’s refreshing. 

 

But here is the thing. While his confession started off great – it ended in disaster. What do I mean by that? His confession led Tiger to a place called BUDDAH. He expressed his desire to return to the teachings of Buddhism. What started off great led to a dead end. The place Tiger ended will bring him no peace; no forgiveness; no true joy. Buddah has nothing to offer but false hope and empty promises.

 

 His confession should have led him to a different place – a place called JESUS. Only in Jesus is there forgiveness. Only in Jesus can a guilty conscience be stilled. Only in Jesus is the slate of sin wiped clean before the heavenly Father. But if anyone does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense – Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. As we make confession of our sins, Jesus takes that confession to his heavenly Father and in essence says, “Here Father, accept this confession for my sake. Accept this confession for all that I have done for this sinner. Accept this confession and forgive this sinner because I atoned for his sins. I paid the price.” That’s what Jesus did, not for a few but for the whole world – for Tiger Woods too! Let us pray that the Holy Spirit would lead Tiger to the right place. And let’s make sure in this Lenten season that our repentance doesn’t just start well but endswell. All is well that ends well they say. It’s true. Each day of your life will end well if it ends in Jesus. Each passing year of your life will end well if it ends in Jesus. You life on this earth will end will if it ends in Jesus. May the good news of Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice be your JOY now and forever.

        Your Servant in Christ,

                                       Pastor Krueger

WELS Daily Devotions