He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. Psalm 103:10 NIV
How much does God love you? Is He really in your corner or have you exasperated Him? Are you forgiven and in good standing with Him or have you failed Him one too many times? These are some of the questions this Psalm answers.
He does not treat us as our sins deserve! That’s fantastic news! I deserve His wrath not His love, but He loves me any way! For all the times I’ve confessed, then turned around and sinned again, I deserve to be banished from His presence forever, but He still accepts me. If you’ve disappointed Him time and time again, like I have, take heart, our God is full of mercy!
For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him. Psalm 103:11 NIV
I love to get away from the lights of the city at night and gaze up at the sky. The less man-made light, the better the view. On a really dark night nearly 3000 stars can be seen without a telescope. You can view several planets including Jupiter with it’s moons and if you look long enough you’ll catch a few shooting stars. The vastness of it all amazes me as it seems to just go on and on! There’s no way I can take it all in! As far as the skies are above the earth, that’s how much God loves us!
As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103:12 NIV
If you’re like most Christians even after repenting of your sin, it remains right there in the forefront of your mind; a constant reminder of your inability to measure up. Like an old friend, we have trouble letting it go. We’ve spent so much time with it, we become comfortable with its familiarity. We assume God does the same thing, but He doesn’t! As He forgives us, He removes our sin from us! He no longer sees it when He looks at us. He no longer associates us with it! Let that sink in a minute! He no longer associates us with it!!! Listen to God’s word through Isaiah the prophet, “I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake, And I will not remember your sins.” Isaiah 43:25 NASB
As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him. Psalm 104:13 NIV
If you are a parent you know what it’s like when your children make serious mistakes. Your heart breaks for them! The last thing you want is for them to be bogged down and trapped in a never ending cycle of mistakes. You really want to see them healthy and thriving because you love them. You do everything you can to help them get back on track. That’s how God feels about you!
“For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust.”
Psalms 103:14 NLT
I find comfort in knowing that God realizes we are weak. He knew we wouldn’t be able to live a sinless life, that’s why Jesus went to the cross. His expectations of us are realistic. He knows we will only succeed if we stay close to Him, and allow Him to help us. That’s why we must run to Him humbly when we fail instead of allowing our guilt and shame to separate us from Him. And fail we will. He knows that ahead of time. Yet He loves us and hangs in there with us. You and I will find success in our relationship with God as long as we stick with it and continue to work at it with Him by our side.