Entry 2- The heavy weight of sin
There are Christians (at least self proclaimed) in the church today who say they have never felt the weight of their sins. When they call Jesus Saviour I often wonder what He has saved them from. If not the guilt and penalty of sin, what then? Bad breath? Poor posture? Sub-par hygiene? I don't want to come across in a mocking tone but when I analyze my own sinful propensities I know exactly why Jesus died for me. You see sin is a weighty thing. It is the chief weapon in the devil's arsenal. He is , after all, quite clever here. It isn't that he wants to drive you to drunkenness or pornography or womanizing (or "manizing" to give the ladies equal time) for the singular purpose of letting you enjoy those things for a measurable period of time. He has no interest in gratifying your flesh if the Lord will not. What he is aiming for is the after effects; the feelings of guilt and alienation that inevitably come to our minds when we have shamed Him by our actions. You know the thoughts full well. Oh I have sinned again. The Lord must really be disgusted with me now. I'm going to get chastised for sure. What will it be this time? A flat tire? Sudden sickness? Stubbed toe? Or maybe even something far worse. You see when we think this way the devil has gained the victory. Repentance is good. Self condemnation isn't . If He has saved you then you will forever be saved. He doesn't stop loving you because you have erred. Don't let the wicked one tease you with such things. Sin is a weighty thing but I think the Lord's arms are strong enough to hoist it far above his head and slay it forever on the old rugged cross. I wonder what consolation other "Christians" have who have never experienced the weighty nature of their sins? Probably no consolation since, in their own minds, there is nothing to be consoled for. I don't think, if given the choice, that I would ever want to trade places with them.
posted by only1way at 11:41 AM
12 Comments:
Too many Christians begin to question whether or not they are regenerate after seasons of sin. I do not wish people to go through that. I have seen those seasons in my own life, when sinning doesn't seem so bad. In those times I begin to wonder what has happened to my sense of intimacy with Christ, my sense of not wanting to sin against and so grieve Him, my fear of chastening.
It's the ideal versus reality, sometimes.
June 30, 2007 4:27 PM
Did you ever wonder about David, that one whose heart was so contrite, so soft before God?... Look at him beholding the beautiful girl next door, another man's wife. Look at him plotting how to cover his sin - murder! - . Look at him, years later, numbering the troops. Where was the softness of heart during these episodes? Alas! he is still on this side of the grave, a man, flesh and blood, apt to sin.
June 30, 2007 4:56 PM
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June 30, 2007 5:23 PM
You are right on all counts Mark. There is a David in all of us: a part of us that covets what belongs to another. Oh yes, we keep the David in us hidden in order to keep him cloaked from being exposed to others. But he is there. But how do we know that David lingers within? Search your thoughts. See the frequent musings of the heart. Focus on those dark, carnal thoughts that cause a tingle to the flesh but heavy tears to the spirit. Witness the burnings and thirsts for that which is not ours to take. And when you have looked long enough, see your Savior turn and look upon you (LK 23:61) and feel, like Peter, the need to weep bitterly. That is what sin does to us.
June 30, 2007 5:23 PM
June 30, 2007 7:29 PM
John,
Yes, conviction and sorrow for sin is part of God's grace that leads to repentance......
June 30, 2007 10:02 PM
I can't imagine any Christian not being remorseful over theirs sins - living comfortably with them. It seems unthinkable to me. If they live this way continually, I'm guessing they don't open their dusty Bible on the shelf, if there's one even there.
Tragic.
July 01, 2007 9:25 AM
Hello Susan. Even Biblical remorse can turn sinfully bad when we fail to take the forgiveness provided by our Lord as a balm to our souls. I can remember instances in my life when sin got the better of me and I found myself under its heavy condemnation for days at a time. I thought that I was being holy but actually it was the opposite. It was a dishonor to Him. I would confess my sin but wouldn't leave it at the cross. I would continue to wear the guilt and would virtually drive myself into a monk like hibernation. Not good. The fact is, sin will be with us throughout this pilgrimage. We have our besetting sins which are just that --- besetting. So, let remorse drive us to the right place and to the right person, the Great Physician. He will bind up the wounds and give us a clean bill of health.
July 01, 2007 9:49 AM
John,
The one thing I noticed when I first read your post was this sentence:
When they call Jesus Saviour I often wonder what He has saved them from. If not the guilt and penalty of sin, what then?
What about the power of sin, also?
What do you think about this post?:
http://doulogos.blogspot.com/2007/06/heart-of-repentance.html
July 01, 2007 9:59 PM
Hello Susan. Good to see your smiling face again. :-) Are you asking about the power of sin literally (as in the power of sin in the law - 1Cor 15:56) or practically as in our daily battle with it. We know that without the law there is no knowledge of sin. So the law is the power of sin because it defines what it is. But the law is weakened because what it identifies/defines for us it can never, by itself,save us from. "But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 cor 15:57). So yes, in the literal sense the Lord does save is from the power of sin.
On a practical note we know that "There hath no temptation taken you butsuch as is common to man ..." And in this situation God does two things.
1. He will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able to endure (sometimes this is hard to swallow).
2. He will provide a way of escape (both 1 Cor 10: 13).
Now here I think we are not so much delivered from the power of sin (in that we as Christians are more than a match against it) but rather we are told to flee from it. We see many times the Biblical admonition to flee from sin rather than raise a hand against it. I could go on for milleniums on this topic but for the sake of brevity on my part and not boring you on the other I will end here. I think in a real sense sin has an even greater power against the Christian since the devil has waged war on us and it is one of his sharpest weapons to bring us to our knees. So in an eternal sense, we are saved from the power of sin. In a temporal and practical sense we are told to run not fight. If we, like Eve, decide to hold the fruit it won't be long before we tak a bite.
BTW, how do I open the link you provided?
What are your thoughts susan?
July 02, 2007 12:39 AM
Hi John!
I meant the practical side of sin - our day-to-day struggles with the 'old man.'
I thought Daniel's post (sorry I'm not adept at providing links; still green on Internet blogging and tech issues, like providing simple links), anyway, I thought Daniel's post raised an interesting point that is relevant to the Christian today in a very real and practical sense.
He basically addresses how we may tend to 'feed' the old man and quench the Spirit. But he uses language in a way that discusses how Christ actually delivered us from the power of sin, if I'm not misunderstanding Daniel.
Basically that the Spirit is now our downpayment on the new creation and the promise of resurrection and we can choose to walk in the Spirit rather than feeding the old man, and therefore are delivered from the power of sin over us. Daniel says it much better and in that post (if you cut and paste my link in your URL browser area, you can go there), you can read my Qs to him in the comments section and you'll see what I mean.
It's more than what I've heard in church about just being delivered from the penalty and guilt of sin.
He may just be stating in different language the admonition of Scripture to walk in the Spirit, but he did so in such a way that hit home with me.
Like you wrote here, I have struggled with the pain and shame of disobedience to my Lord - in seemingly small ways, not the biggies, but ways that do not honor Him in my thoughts and words and I struggle with that - but Daniel's words provide encouragement to the Christian that we do not have to live that way. Anyway, I think it's worth a read. And then some.
July 02, 2007 10:22 AM
By the way, I have also struggled with the biggy sins in my life as well, as you mentioned. Carrying them around when they were already forgiven at the cross.
A few books I've read have helped me to deal with some of those biggy sins in ways that you mention. To let Christ's victory over them stand. He doesn't need to die twice for me. It is finished.
July 02, 2007 10:24 AM
Great post John!
Mark, I know that I used to beat myself up after seasons of sin. I'm so thankful that the Lord has shown me that I should repent and go forward and that He hasn't left me in my sin.
I do look at David's life and use his life to remind myself not to be too quick to judge others who may be going through a season of sin and that they need prayer and guidance.
July 02, 2007 10:32 AM
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