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three truths – powerless

Sometimes we refer to the writers of the New Testament as “saints” such as St. Paul or St. Peter.

But God didn’t seek us out because we were saints. He loved us when we were far from him. Listen to these sentences from Paul – they reveal three truths about ourselves and one amazing truth about God.

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. – Romans 5:6-8

Truth number one: we were powerless to change our own condition.

A few years ago, I hurt my lower back. For the first several years I would have “flare-ups” every few months and they would lay me out for a two or three days up to an entire week. One day at the office, I felt a flare up coming and I had to make a decision: stay at the office and risk not being able to drive home or just go home.

So, I went home. When I got there, Tonya and the girls were gone so I decided to lay on the living room floor and watch TV.

That turned out to be a bad decision.

Every time I shifted my weight or tried to get up, a sharp pain would shoot through my lower back. I couldn’t roll or twist, much less get up.

I was stuck on the floor.

My worst fear was that the news would go off and I’d be stuck watching a Regis and Kathie Lee marathon. My second worst fear was more primal: what to do if I had to go to the bathroom.

I had no power to change my condition.

I was powerless.

The same is true when it comes to my spiritual condition. I couldn’t will myself into being a better person: no mistakes, flaws or imperfections. My best intentions always fell short. My deepest needs – nothing I could do could fully satisfy them.

My tank was not three-quarters full. I wasn’t running on a low battery.

I was powerless.

Thankfully, God not only knew that but did something about it.

———- For Further Reflection ———-


3:16: The Numbers of Hope by Max Lucado