March 24, 2026
Judge Me, O God - Part 2
John 8:46-47
03/24/2026
46 ``Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell
the truth, why do you not believe me?
47 Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The
reason why you do not hear them is that you are
not of God.'' (ESV)
In the prayer of the Church on Sunday, we said:
Almighty God, by Your great goodness mercifully look
upon Your people that we may be governed and preserved
evermore in body and soul.
With this prayer, we ask God to graciously give us the faith
which hears the truth of His love, grace, and mercy. Because we
are born with sin, our natural desire is to hide from God, to run
from Him. Only as the Holy Spirit gives us faith to receive the
truth of God's Word can we come to know of our heavenly Father's
love.
Jesus, while debating the religious leaders, said: ``Which
one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you
not believe me? Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The
reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.''
This is the harsh truth, we flee from God's Word because we
do not have faith in Him. We find all sorts of excuses to stop
our ears, for we are afraid that hearing of God's love will force
us to change, to confess our sins, and to throw ourselves on His
mercy.
We want to be in charge, but our prayer this week admits
that our help is only in the name of the Lord, that we, of
ourselves, have no hope. We are not comfortable admitting that
we have no strength to redeem ourselves. For many people, this
fact drives them away from the One who brings hope.
May our Lord open our ears to hear His Word for our eternal
blessing. Amen.