I have been a avid archer for a number of years and this weekend I had the chance to go and shoot my bow with a good friend.  As often happens, when I got home I began to think of the idea of “missing the mark”.  How many times do I miss the mark.  How many times we all miss the mark.

     The Greek word that we use for the word “sin”, is where we get this concept of missing the mark.  Try as I may, I still find myself sinning and not living up to the “mark” or standard that God sets.  If you have ever seen the Olympics and the archery competition, take a look at their equipment.  There are all kind of mechanical aids that are used to help the archer stay on target.  Sights, stabilizers, v-bars, clickers, etc., and even the arrows themselves are designed to make hitting the center a little easier.  But with all of this, even the best of archers miss the mark.  I miss frequently, just as everyone does. 

     C.H. Spurgeon writes, “There are two very powerful forces in the world, which have been there ever since the time when Eve partook of the forbidden fruit in the garden of Eden.  Those two forces are sin and grace”.  Grace, overcomes our sin.  In Romans 5:20-21 Paul writes, “But law  came in , with the result that the trespass multiplied; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, just as sin exercised dominion in death, so grace might also exercise dominion through justification leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”. (NRSV)

     By grace, Jesus Christ has overcome our sin.  On a practical note, Spurgeon when speaking of sin and grace writes something for us to consider, “If you have received this grace, which has abounded over your sin, take care that you do more for grace than you ever did for sin”.