He is faithful and just

i mentor an almost 15-year-old girl on wednesdays (except tonight because i'm still radioactive). recently she started asking about God's forgiveness, grace, justice as applicable to her own life and family so we've started looking at that together. last week i gave her some verses to read and i've been thinking about ways to teach her more about the blood of Jesus.

tonight, i was looking at 1 john and read this:

1:9 if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness

i've probably read this verse 100 times but tonight was struck again by the simplicity and greatness of this truth. he promises to forgive us! simple: confess = forgiven. he is just so i don't deserve forgiveness for even a moment. yet, he is faithful to his promises! thank you Jesus that you forgive me and make me righteous in your sight! that is incredible and i hope i never lose the sense of awe this gives me.

something happens in my brain everytime i come back to this place of awe. i start singing a particular song line that says "restore unto me the joy of thy salvation." i have great joy knowing i am clothed with the righteousness of Christ, but i want that joy every moment. i want to live in that joy. i want to wake up in the joy, and treat co-workers with joy of my salvation. how radical this world would be if we all truly joyed in our salvation!

that song line comes from psalm 51 that says:

10. create in me a pure heart, o God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me... 13.restore unto me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

i've learned that the word for create used here is something like ex nihlo which means to create from nothing. it's the same word used in genesis for God's creation of the world. my heart had nothing good apart from Christ. he made me a new creation, which is hard to understand because i was 4 when i confessed my need for Christ. but i know that he is carrying to completion the work he has begun in me. he's creating, working, restoring joy.

praise God for forgiveness and grace. please tell me about your awe moments or thoughts about grace and new creation and forgiveness.

thanks for reading!