CWW Week 23 - Day 2 - Dealing With Sin

Acting on principle.

Romans 7:18 in the New Living Translation (NLT) reads:

“And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t.”

This verse expresses Paul’s recognition of the inherent struggle within himself. He acknowledges that while he desires to do what’s right, his sinful nature creates a barrier, making it difficult to achieve the good he wishes to do. It highlights the internal conflict between the desire to live righteously and the weakness of human nature.

How has our liberty of conscience, or the desire to do what is right, been affected in recent years?

We have been bullied and coerced in so many ways while being told that the loss of liberty is for our own good. We need only look at how many decided to act against their conscience to see where the traps are.

There comes a time when we must stand true to our conscience.

When the regime in Germany around WW2 was doing it’s ethnic cleansing, a great many Germans turned away because they realised that it was easier to be one of the oppressors than one of the oppressed. Evil thrives when people of good will do nothing.

But what I am referring to is more global and the fight starts within ourselves first. We must be able to practice on the inside what we crave on the outside.

So what is it that’s pushing through from the inside to will and to act in accordance with the will of God, and how is it being thwarted?

Our conscience so often ignored, is from God. It’s is formed in our DNA. It’s the battle ground where our deepest struggles are fought.

It struggles to find it’s way to the surface because of the wall of sin that surrounds it. So why is sin so effective?

Well largely because sin is fun and it seems to insulate us from the often more challenging right thing to do. Sin is made easy when it’s enacted, that is until the bill arrives in the post. Sin comes at a great price but like life today, it’s sin now and pay later.

When ever I sin and I know I am about to; I hear two voices. The one in my left ear is saying “Go on, you’re not hurting anybody; who’s going to know? You deserve this.” And then there’s the one in my right ear saying “You know what you have to do.” When I listen to the voice on the left and I fall again, that same voice comes back at me with another message. “You worthless hopeless fool. Your God can’t save you now because you’re week.” It happens every time.

When this happens there is only one way to rid ourselves of the shame and that is to repent before God and pray in gratitude for His deliverance and mercy.

It takes courage to stand for the right though the heavens fall but the end result is so life changing and life saving.

We must never loose sight of the fact that we are still a work in progress and the price of our salvation has already been paid. When we accept what evil says after we sin we isolate ourselves from God because we feel unworthy. When we do that evil will always win.

Struggle as you may with the concept; your are beautiful in God’s eyes and treasured beyond words.

Questions.

1. When you see evil being played out, do you hit the wall before acting on your conscience?
2. What is it that triggers you and holds you back?
3. Can you begin to trust God to take care of the battle and give it all to Him?

Prayer.

Dear Lord, Papa God.

Grant me the courage to stand in and with my conscience. Papa give me the wisdom to call on Your strength in my battle with sin. Help me to overcome in Your Spirit and the serenity that this brings and have mercy on my sinful soul Lord is my prayer in Jesus name.

Amen.

Have a great day today with Jesus.

Graham Hood.