Will God give me another chance?

God is a God of second chances. No matter how rebellious we are and sinful we have been, he always stands ready to forgive us and give us a another chance.

Zechariah 3: 4 says that God has taken away all my guilt and shame and has declared me clean.

Psalm 103: 12 says, He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.

Isn’t that wonderful to know that we serve a God who will forgive us after all we have done? We don’t deserve a second chance but God loves us. He wants us to follow him so that he can give us his blessings. He wants to give us a second chance so that we can learn from our experiences and learn to rely on him.

Let’s go ahead and take a look at some examples of God giving second chances in the bible.

EXAMPLES OF SECOND CHANCES IN THE BIBLE

Moses murdered a man (Exodus 2: 11-15). But God used him to free the Israelites.

Rahab was a prostitute (Joshua 2). But God used her to help the Israelites.

Sarah, Abraham’s wife laughed at God’s promise of a child and then denied she laughed (Genesis 18: 11-15). But God gave them a child anyways.

David was an adulterer and had a man murdered. But he was known as the man after God’s own heart (2 Samuel 11: 14-17).

Jonah ran from God. Then God brought Jonah back to him in the belly of a whale (Jonah 1).

The Samaritan woman was divorced more than once (John 4: 1-42). But God used her to bring others to follow Christ.

All these people messed up. But look how God forgave them and gave them a second chance. God used them and he can use you too! Maybe you feel like your story is over because of the mistakes you have made. I have been there, friend. But let me tell you from experience that your story is not over! God doesn’t look at your past. God looks at what you can do for him to glorify the kingdom of heaven. He will use your past and turn it into a beautiful future.

MY STORY

God has given me many second chances but one that stands out the most to me was when my husband and I were separated for 2 years. I was far from God and he kept giving me chances to come back to him, but I kept doing what I wanted to do. I was having an affair and I didn’t want to listen to anybody including God.

Finally, after 2 years I decided to listen to God and I stopped having the affair. My husband and I worked on our marriage for the next year and a half. God mended our marriage and gave me and my husband a second chance. Our marriage is better now than it was when we got married. All because God did not give up on us.

But don’t think that there weren’t any consequences to my sin of adultery. I now suffer from extreme anxiety due to the anxiety I had during the separation. It never went away and here it is 12 years later and I am still dealing with the anxiety.

I may have repented my sin, but I still had to live with the consequences of my sin. That’s what God calls having free will. He may give us choices but at the end of the day it is our decision and we have to live with it.

Proverbs 3: 11-12 says, "My child, don't reject the Lord's discipline, and don't be upset when he corrects you. For the Lord corrects those he loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights."

God doesn’t want us to be upset over the discipline that he gives us or the consequences that may follow our sins. God wants us to learn from our mistakes and move forward.

Philippians 3: 13 says, ….But I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead…

GOD WANTS US TO GIVE OUT SECOND CHANCES

Just as God is in the business of giving us second chances, he wants us to do the same.

Ephesians 4: 32 says, Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

Giving someone a second chance does not erase their crime or invalidate the pain of their victims. A genuine second chance is saying that we are not going to hold someone’s past against them, but expect to see positive changes in their lives.

Ephesians 4: 28 says, If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need.

Just as when we have wronged someone we have no right to demand another chance. But we should work to earn another chance by demonstrating repentance and change.

God’s word says we have all sinned and fall short of God’s glory (Romans 3: 23). No one is perfect. And it is hard to give someone a second chance especially if they have hurt us more than once. But Jesus says we need to forgive even if they have done it more than once. Now that doesn’t mean that we have to be their friend. But we should at least forgive them.

Matthew 18: 21-22 says, Then Peter came to him and asked, "Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?" "No, not seven times,"Jesus replied, "but seventy times seven!"

CONCLUSION

God is a God of many chances. He freely gives them out because he loves us and wants to bless us. He wants us to follow him and call him Lord. We must never forget to repent when we do sin and be thankful that we serve a forgiving God.

If you have the chance to give someone a second chance remember not only can it bring healing in their life but it also gives you a chance to show them, Christ, in your life.

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