John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
The Gospel message can be summed up in this one verse. Beautiful, simple, elegant. Accept Christ and you will be ‘saved’. Through the power of the Holy Spirit we become a new creation in Christ. Our hearts our changed. Go and sin no more…
Why then do I still sin?
Last night I did not do what Jesus would do. I chose the low road, allowing a comment to bring up old hurts, old pain and it sent me into a tailspin. How do I go from a place of love to hate in 24 hours? Where was the Holy Spirit? Where was my changed heart? Are the promises of the Christian faith true?
These are the same questions I had as a little girl. Back then, after accepting Christ but learning I still had the capacity to sin left me feeling Jesus had passed me by. I believed what I was told. That I would be a new creation. That I would “go and sin no more.”
But that doesn’t happen. I still sin. Why? Because I am in a spiritual battle, I’m told. There are evil forces trying to win my soul back, trying to make me ineffective, useless for God. But I’m a new creation, filled with the Holy Spirit. Isn’t this Spirit strong enough to defeat my sinful nature?
A new friend commented on one of my posts, stating she sometimes loses her patience, but she is trying harder and I know exactly what she means. Why, though, if I am a new creation, do I need to try harder? Why must I, on a daily basis, put on the armor of God and go into battle, fighting against the desires of a selfish nature if I am supposed to be a new creation?
I don’t have all the answers but if I have learned anything it is this. God does not run from my questions so neither will I run from Him this time. Instead what I will do is ask for forgiveness for my quick temper, accept that I am in a battle and, in the words of Colonel Jessup, pick up a weapon and stand a post.
We can never rest on our laurels because we'll never be perfect. The temptation to sin is always there. Or at least the temptation to do less than we can. All we can do is just try anew every day!
ReplyDeleterest assured that although there are evil forces around us, they can never win your soul back. If you have committed yourself to Jesus as your Lord and Savior and acknowledged he died for your sins and ask him for forgiveness, no one can snatch you from his hands. You are sealed to him forever. However, they can make your life miserable and still away your joy if you allow it to happen. I know after periods of incredible spiritual high, it is usually followed with a spiritual low of doubt, acting like we might not want to, etc. Not sure why that happens, but I've seen it in my life as well as the life of others. Elijah experienced it in the Old Testament. He had met with the prophets of Baal and the king and had set up an offering. The Baal prophets tried for hours to get their "god" to consume the offering. Elijah in just 63 words calls to God to consume it and fire came down from heaven. He saw the might of God. A few days later, the queen was angry at Elijah and vowed she would kill him. He panicked and ran away, hiding from her. He had forgotten what God is capable of doing.
ReplyDeleteThe key here is you realized you took the lower road, confess it, give it to Jesus, ask him to give you strength to not do it the next time and move on, rejoicing in him and his love
betty
I love how you say "God doesn't run from my questions" Deborah! So true. We are allowed to constructively question, in fact, it is an excellent way to learn!
ReplyDeleteAs long as we are alive, we have to deal with sin and the temptation to sin. It is a part of our human nature and the fighting it, a part of faith and reliance on God.
As a Catholic, I believe salvation is something we work toward our entire lives. We can be in a state of grace and fall out of it through sin, but God is merciful. Thank God!:)
I am really loving these posts! Thank you for having the strength and courage to share all this!
Much love, C.
Ladies, Thank you for all your comments. Debbie, Thank God he gives us the chance to try better. And Betty I do understand what you are saying about the spiritual highs and lows. I appreciate your thoughts.
ReplyDeleteColleen, I have always been intrigued by the Catholic faith. There is an outdoor church in a town near me that I attend in the summer. It's catholic and I love the stations of the cross, and there was always something about the idea of purgatory that I found kinder and gentler, like God knew we might not get it right here so he offers time even after our death to be cleansed of our sins. (If I'm understanding that right)
And I did mean that about God not running from me, so I shouldn't run from Him. In the past, I would just turn away from the whole idea of faith and religion but God has been faithful so I can't turn from Him anymore. :)
I agree with you whole-heartedly about Purgatory. To me too it is the creation of a supremely merciful and loving God. The concept of Purgatory is generous and gentle. A God who loves you enough to teach you perfectly how to be most beautiful in His presence.
ReplyDelete