Reformed Covenanter
Cancelled Commissioner
I read this extract in a sermon last night and it really hit me like a ton of bricks. While I am only giving you the final paragraph in the preview here, it really is worth reading the whole thing if you get the time. Horatius Bonar helps us to see how partial our views concerning indwelling sin often are. Given that it is the Lord's Day, we need to remember that even our Sabbath observance needs to be forgiven as it is so defective and defiled by our impure motives in keeping it:
... There is forgiveness, then, for the iniquities of our holy things forgiveness not only for our omissions of duty, but for our duties themselves; forgiveness, not only for our estrangement from God, but for our sins in returning to him; forgiveness, not only for our prayerlessness, but for our prayers; forgiveness, not only for our long rejection of Christ, but for our sins in coming to him; forgiveness, not only for our unbelief, but for our faith; forgiveness, not only for our past enmity, but for our present cold-hearted love; forgiveness, not only for the sins we bring to Christ, but for our way of bringing them; forgiveness, not only for the sins we carried to the altar of burnt-offering, and laid upon the bleeding sacrifice, but for our imperfect way of taking them, the impure motives that defiled our service, and also for the sins mingling with our worship when standing within the veil in that sanctuary, where the majesty of the Holy One has made its abode. ...
For more, see Horatius Bonar on the forgiveness of our sins in holy exercises.
... There is forgiveness, then, for the iniquities of our holy things forgiveness not only for our omissions of duty, but for our duties themselves; forgiveness, not only for our estrangement from God, but for our sins in returning to him; forgiveness, not only for our prayerlessness, but for our prayers; forgiveness, not only for our long rejection of Christ, but for our sins in coming to him; forgiveness, not only for our unbelief, but for our faith; forgiveness, not only for our past enmity, but for our present cold-hearted love; forgiveness, not only for the sins we bring to Christ, but for our way of bringing them; forgiveness, not only for the sins we carried to the altar of burnt-offering, and laid upon the bleeding sacrifice, but for our imperfect way of taking them, the impure motives that defiled our service, and also for the sins mingling with our worship when standing within the veil in that sanctuary, where the majesty of the Holy One has made its abode. ...
For more, see Horatius Bonar on the forgiveness of our sins in holy exercises.
