But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit
will never have forgiveness,
but is guilty of an everlasting sin.
If we refuse to accept mercy God won't force us to receive it. When we make mistakes he stands ready to forgive us. But we can't be so set in our ways that we refuse to recognize that he is right and we are wrong. We can't say that he has an unclean spirit just to justify our status quo. We need to accept the things he tells us about right and wrong.
When we choose the wrong instead of the right God always gives us an opportunity to come back to him and acknowledge our mistakes in the light of his truth.
After the man, Adam, had eaten of the tree,
the LORD God called to the man and asked him, "Where are you?"
Are we somewhat distant from God? Is he calling out to us because we are hiding parts of ourselves from him? We must not hide. His is the Holy Spirit, and there is nothing unclean therein. We don't need to shield ourselves from his gaze. He wants to show us mercy and to bring us back to the truth from which we have strayed.
This process takes time. We have to iterate over it again and again, going ever deeper, exposing more of ourselves to the one who loved us into being. When we regularly let God shine his light within us "our inner self is being denewed day by day." Jesus binds the enemie's power over us and plunders us from the enemie's grasp. There is no force that can keep us bound if we trust in Jesus.
Jesus is transforming us into his mother, his brother, and his sisters, into people who do God's will. He uses our afflictions, our failures, and even our sins to produce a greater good for those who love him.
For this momentary light affliction
is producing for us an eternal weight of glory
beyond all comparison,
as we look not to what is seen but to what is unseen;
for what is seen is transitory, but what is unseen is eternal.
We can trust in his mercy. Let us not run from him but rather into his arms of love.
I trust in the LORD;
my soul trusts in his word.
More than sentinels wait for the dawn,
let Israel wait for the LORD.
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