Failure, forgiveness and the freedom found in Christ
There’s a reason I don’t like New Year’s resolutions. I don’t like failure. It’s only the middle of January, and I failed to have this blog ready by the deadline given to me. The good news is that “getting my writing assignments in on time” was not one of my resolutions, because I don’t make resolutions. The bad news is that I still failed to get my assignment done on time.
New Year’s resolutions are a part of our culture and, for many, are a way of life. We start a new year, and we want to change things. We want to be better. We diet. We exercise. We spend less time with screens and more time with family. But change is hard. We don’t really like it. We’re not really that good at it. And old habits are hard to break. If nothing else, we learn how to handle failure, usually by Jan. 15.
Rather than resolving to be better, I suggest we repent. Resolutions are all about what we do or don’t do. Either way, it’s about us doing something. Repenting, on the other hand, has to do with our faith. Faith doesn’t come by doing, but by hearing. And only after the hearing are we turned toward our neighbors with our works. The power is in the Word of God, and the motivation is the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
You see, my doing will always fall short. My resolution will inevitably lead to failure. But repentance is a gift of the Holy Spirit. It is granted to us by God and begins in the heart with the realization that I cannot do enough to make myself better. I need to be forgiven.
Forgiveness is found only in Jesus Christ. He resolved to save sinners like me and you and turned His face toward Jerusalem, fully aware of what would happen. His resolution to love you and me drove Him to the cross, where He offered Himself into death for our sins. On the third day, He rose from the dead, and you better believe that changes things. For what the law was powerless to do, God did in the sending of His Son to suffer, die and rise from the dead.
This is the believer’s motivation, not the fear of failure or the promise of a reward that we’ll never fully achieve, but the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Because God first loved me and you, we can respond with love toward our neighbor. There are things to do, but not for salvation. Jesus did that. And we could never make it better. Jesus is enough. The things we do today, tomorrow and throughout 2026, we do out of love for others.
No doubt some of you have already failed at your resolutions for this year. If not, good for you … but let’s be honest. It’s only a matter of time. However, you can still repent and believe the gospel. You can “be still and know that the Lord is God.” You can listen to the Scriptures, join in worship (chapel is on Wednesdays at 10:30), and even share in Bible study (Thursdays at 10:30). Be fed and nourished with the Word of God. You don’t have to do something, but there is something to be done with you. The Word changes things. God’s Word changes hearts, and changing hearts changes lives.
We’re only two weeks into 2026, and I’m already a failure. No worries. Jesus saves failures like me. That’s why He came … to save sinners.
Happy belated New Year!
Written by Rev. Dr. E. Anthony Sikora, CUAA Campus Chaplain
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