Less Regrets

Scriptures: Jerimiah 17:5-10; Luke 6:17-26

Key Verse: Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven. (Luke 6:23)

Theme: Less Regrets

I grew up in a culture where reincarnation-themed dramas and movies were very popular. It wasn’t strange at all to hear parents commenting either how blessed their former life was to have such smart and good children in their current life, or on how cursed their former life was to have such disobedient and misbehaving children. Out of curiosity, I googled how many movies and TV series have to do with time travel. One person’s blog estimated 96 movies and TV series. It is fascinating to see the amount of creative productions from science fiction writers and filmmakers.

I came to the conclusion that films about time travel or reincarnation indicate a strong desire of what we wish we could have done or have been in the past. Who doesn’t want to live well without any regrets? If it’s impossible, we wish for better decisions and less regrets. Society has brainwashed us on what makes us successful and powerful; on the contrary, Jesus’s message is all about keeping righteous and loving relationships with God and with one another. Jesus is not prohibiting anyone from being rich, having a good meal, or having a good laugh and enjoying life in general. Jesus is warning us that we will all face consequences of living a self-serving life. Remember the story of a beggar named Lazarus who died from starvation at the gate of a rich man’s house in Luke 16:19-21?

Psalmist says in 103:6-18 that God makes everything come out right and knows us inside and out and. God is merciful and rich in love. God wouldn’t treat us as our sins deserve and would remove our transgressions from us as far as the east is from the west. Jesus also says in Matthew 7:18: “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.” What defines us being ‘good’ or ‘bad’ has to do with how we keep our righteous relationships with God and God’s people. Thanks to our Lord Jesus who has fulfilled the law on our behalf so that we all can be ‘good’ by grace through faith in Christ.

We don’t and can’t travel back to a certain time and mend our ways. It certainly will take a great effort to unlearn being a self-serving person. Let’s take one day at a time so that we all may rejoice on the day to receive our great reward in heaven as Jesus said in Luke 6:23: May the assurance from Hebrew in 8:7-13, quoted from Jeremiah 31:31-34 strengthen you and give you encouragement: our merciful God remembers our sins no more. Amen.