As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103:12
My pastor and mentor, Rev. David Schultz, was quite fond of the above verse. He wanted His flock to know of the compassionate grace of the Good Shepherd and he believed that this verse delivered that grace in great abundance.
Martin Luther believed this too. In a Christmas sermon Luther preached: We, too, know well enough that we are poor sinners. But here is the thing to do is not to look at what we are and do what at what Christ is and has done, and is still doing for us. We are not speaking about our nature now but about the grace of God, which is as far above us as "the heaven is high above the earth" and as far as "the east is from the west." If you consider it a great matter to be a child of God, do not think it a small matter that the Son of God, born of a woman and made under the Law, came that you might become such a child.
The Psalmist David points us to a very definite truth - God's mercy and forgiveness is immeasurable. Does Home Depot have anything on their shelves that can measure east from west? Of course not! God is not like the guy I used to work for who used to say, "I can forgive but I can never forget." When God removes sin, it is gone. When God forgives sin, He does not bring it up again. Rejoice in this good news - God has forgiven you. Say "good-bye" to guilt and shame today!
