“Just As I Am, without One Plea,” verse 1, ELW 592
1 Just as I am, without one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me, and that though bidd'st me come to thee, O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Devotion
How much of our lives are about making sure the right people are pleased with us? Our lives become so heavily oriented around others’ expectations that we lose sight of who God says we are. Our lives then become riddled with guilt and shame because we are not measuring up to the image of the perfect person. But Jesus came for us, just as we are. The blood that Jesus shed was shed for you and for me. It is not because any one of us are perfect or that any one of us can become perfect on our own. It was shed so that we become perfect in Christ. It is a promise that is both humiliating and exalting.
Prayer
Gracious God of joyful noise, we thank you for coming for us just as we are. We confess that, far too often, we worry about the expectations of others and ask that we may be reminded of who you say we are; your beloved children. In the name of the one whose blood was shed for me, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.