Elder Kearon taught -
"Everything He said and did provided a new beginning for each of those He healed, blessed, taught, and relieved of sin. He didn’t withdraw from them, and He certainly won’t withdraw from you...."
"With baptism by water and the Spirit, we are “born again” and can “walk in newness of life.” How much hope does that new beginning bring to one who has trudged under the burden of sin or suffered from the effects of a troubled life and dysfunctional relationships? Jesus needed no forgiveness of sin Himself or a fresh start in life, yet He was baptised, showing us in high relief the way to the new beginning He has carved for each of us.
And our new beginning doesn’t just happen once. We tend to think that our baptism is our one shot at a new beginning. It isn’t. We don’t have just one chance. These new beginnings can happen every day! And certainly every week as we eat a small piece of bread and drink a tiny cup of water in remembrance of the gift of our perfect Saviour, who died for the express purpose of giving us as many new beginnings as we need! Jesus gives us as many new beginnings as we need.
With commitment and rejoicing in a new life in Christ, we can become “a new creature,” where old things pass away and all things become new. What reprieve does that kind of new dawn bring to a soul who keeps trying, through continuing to choose faith in our Redeemer’s power to heal and restore, despite the crushing setbacks of living in a fallen world? The Saviour never gave up on His commitment to fulfill the will of the Father and complete His divine atoning mission, even through pain that caused Him to tremble, to bleed from every pore, to suffer body and spirit, and to pray that the bitter cup might be removed. Again, He was demonstrating for us what faithful endurance with God looks like.
With every covenant we make and every effort we give to keep it, we can receive “a new heart” and a fuller measure of “a new spirit.” Little by little, the more we invite His goodness into our hearts and cast out the self-defeating voices in our heads, we become His people because we truly make Him our God. Jesus so keenly wants to be our King and our Shepherd and our Prince of Peace, and we can choose to make Him so in our own hearts and minds."
"Do you need a new beginning? Can you make a fresh start, even you? Think about the people the Saviour ministered to—the people He taught, healed, raised, forgave, and restored. Was He selecting them from a particular economic class or background? Was He distinguishing between the righteous and the sinful? Was He singling people out because they were more deserving or more loved? No.
Some came to Him with great faith, believing in His power to heal—like the woman with the issue of blood, the Roman centurion whose servant was dying, the leper, Jairus, and blind Bartimaeus. They each put their faith on the line, hoping that the goodness and power of the rabbi from Nazareth would change their lives and their prospects. And He did. He let His healing flow.
But Jesus also blessed those who had wavering faith, like the father of the sick child who cried out, perhaps as you have, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” And He even poured out compassion upon those who hadn’t sought Him at all, like the woman taken in adultery, the widow of Nain, the disabled man at the pool of Bethesda, and the man born blind. Have you felt Him going about doing good in your life even when you haven’t been seeking Him or following Him?
To each of these scriptural figures, and to all who would listen and respond, He gave a new beginning, whether it was a new life forgiven of sin or a new life healed of disease or a new life raised from death.
What does this mean for you and for me? His goodness and mercy and loving-kindness know no bounds. New beginnings are at the heart of the Father’s plan! Fresh starts are the mission of the Son! New dawns, new chapters, and new chances are the simple core of the gospel’s good news!
So, have you been away too long from your covenants to receive a new beginning? No. Have you done this or that too many times to be given another chance? No. Have you gone too far from Christ for Him to help you write a new story from here on out? No. The adversary is the only one who benefits from the idea that you’re sunk. You are not.
And new beginnings are for more than just our sins and mistakes. Through the goodness and grace of the Saviour, we can have fresh starts that propel change in old mindsets, bad habits, grumpy dispositions, negative attitudes, feelings of powerlessness, and tendencies to blame others and avoid personal responsibility. You can actually change things about yourself that have been wearing you down for years. You can start again through the might of the Master of new beginnings. He never tires of giving new beginnings to us.
To those who are struggling with the same sin or the same setback over and over again, you keep going. He hasn’t put a roadblock in front of you. He hasn’t set a limit on your second chances. You press on. You keep striving. You seek help from those around you. And you trust in the new beginning that is there for you every time you turn back to your Father in sincerity of heart. Leave deliberate sinning, casual repeats, and prideful rebellion behind you, where they belong. You don’t have to be who you’ve been before. Embrace your fresh start, your second or third or fourth—or hundredth—chance, offered to you through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ.
I am grateful beyond description for the new beginnings I have been given and for those I will yet be offered."
