Memory Loss – March 27, 2021

“The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah . . . For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
Jeremiah 31:31,34

Memory Loss

Don’t you hate it when you can’t remember something? The car keys you just set down take an hour to find. The purpose for the errand escapes you. The appointment you made last week is missed. Memory loss, no matter what your age, sure can be frustrating!

Isn’t it ironic that while we can forget some things, other events remain crystal clear in our minds? Especially if we have been wronged, abused, or sinned against. These crystal-clear memories can bring resentment, bitterness, and a desire to get even. Imagine if God would keep a record of wrongs against him? What if he would save them in his mind only to eventually lash out in anger against us for them?

Thankfully, that is not what God has done. Instead, God promised, “I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” The prophet Jeremiah wrote these words to the nation of Israel that had many times sinned against each other and the Lord. As they turned to the Lord in repentance, what comfort it was for them to know the Lord would remember their sins no more! How could he do this? The Bible says that the “Lord has laid on Jesus the sins of us all” (Isaiah 53:6). Our record is clean. God’s memory of our sin is gone! What true and lasting comfort we can have as we turn in repentance to the Lord to hear him tell us, “I have forgiven your wickedness and remember your sins no more.”

Prayer:
Thank you, gracious Lord, for forgetting my sins. Amen.