#DailyDevotion Participating In The Means Of Grace Makes You Blameless
1 Cor. 18He will strengthen you to the end so that no one can accuse you of anything on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9You can depend on God, Who called you to the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ, our Lord.
What wonderful comforting words coming from St. Paul before he start slamming this congregation for all of its divisiveness. They will need these words as Paul progresses into this letter. These are words we need to hear when we know we really made a mess of the life we have by selfish, self-centered living.
We should take these words to heart. Paul isn’t just trying to butter them up. He speaks this word many times to many congregations. We need to take them to heart and firmly plant them there. Jesus will give us the strength we need to make it to the day of our LORD Jesus Christ. On that day, no one will be able to accuse us of anything. You can bank on that. But you may say, “But what about all these sins I have committed?” Foolish person, are you ignoring the means of Grace Jesus has provided you to overcome your guilty conscience? He has given you baptism, the pastor’s absolution, his Holy Supper, the preached Word and the mutual conversation and consolation of fellow Christians all which bestow upon us the forgiveness of sins so we may walk now and stand on that day with a clear conscience. For the sake of these things, God is no longer holding on to your sins, why should you?
Just to be clear, St. Paul speaks elsewhere, Eph. 1 5 “In Him He chose us to be holy and blameless before Him…” Eph. 5 27 “27to have the church stand before Him as something wonderful, without a spot or a wrinkle or anything like that; yes, it should be holy and without a fault.” Col. 122 “…but now by dying in His human body He has made you friends in order to have you stand before Him without sin or fault or blame…” Hebrews 914 “How much more will the blood of Christ, Who by the everlasting Spirit offered Himself without a spot to God, wash our consciences clean from dead works to worship the living God?” Even Jude says, 24 “To Him who is able to keep you from falling and have you stand without a fault and with great joy before His glory…”
We should take note that it is Jesus, working through these means to make us blameless before him on the great day of his revelation. Sure, our flesh is full of sin, guilt and shame but our new man is pure, holy, without wrinkle, spot, stain or blame. Jesus promises to present us blameless before the Father on that day. He is raising us from the dead with new immortal bodies which are sinless like his glorious resurrected body.
You can depend on God who called you into fellowship with his Son. Fellowship, it is a participation in the blood of Christ. We fellowship with Christ Jesus in and through the means of grace. God has provided these for us to participate with Christ in his death and resurrection so we may participate in Jesus’ resurrection, ascension and glory.
Gracious Father, you have provided us with the means of grace so we may fellowship with Christ now and on the Last Day so we may blameless before your throne. Grant us faith in these means so that we make ourselves available to them all our days. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.