When we are born into this world, we are born with sin natures, in the image of Adam, the first man God created, and the first man to sin against God. We are separate from God, unable within ourselves to be made righteous in the sight of God. We sin, by nature, and we are destined to hell. So God sent his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ (God the Son), to the earth to be born as a human baby to a human mother. And while he lived on the earth he was both fully God and fully human (God incarnate) living among the people.
But the purpose for Jesus coming to this earth and to taking
on human flesh, although without sin, was so he would be our sacrificial lamb
on a cross to put our sins to death with him so that, by God-persuaded faith in
him, we would now die with Christ to sin, and be raised with him to walk in
newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin, but as slaves to
God and to his righteousness. As those who confess him as our Lord and Savior,
our lives are now to be surrendered to him to obey him and to live only for
him.
But we still live in flesh bodies in a fallen world, and so
we still have the vulnerability to sin against God, although we should no
longer be inclined (motivated, persuaded) that direction. Our desire should now
be for our Lord to please him in all that we are and do and say. For we died
with Christ to sin, so how can we live in it any longer? Sin should no longer
have mastery over our lives to where we still obey sin, in practice. For if sin
is what we obey, it leads to death. But obedience to God leads to eternal life
with God.
So, although we should no longer desire sin, but God and his
righteousness, it is possible for a true believer in Christ to sin (1 John
2:1-2). But a true follower of Christ should not be one who is still committing
sin in practice, deliberately and habitually. For the Scriptures teach that if
sin is our practice, and not obedience to God, that we do not know God, we are
not in fellowship with him, we are not born of God, but we are still of the
devil, and we will not be saved from our sins nor have eternal life with God in
heaven.
[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John
6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 2:6-8; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1
Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32;
Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 12:1-2;
1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]
But should any of us be caught in sin once again, or should
we wander from the truth (Galatians 6:1; James 5:19-20), then we need to repent
of our sins and obey God and submit our lives to God, and allow him to restore
us back to a right relationship with him in full surrender to his will and
purpose for our lives. But true biblical repentance is not a “sin, confess,
sin, confess” ritual whereby our lives are not surrendered to the Lord, to walking
in his ways, but where we sin deliberately and habitually against our Lord.
13 “Do return, O Lord; how long will it be?
And be sorry for Your servants.
14 O satisfy us in the morning with Your lovingkindness,
That we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad according to the days You have afflicted us,
And the years we have seen evil.
16 Let Your work appear to Your servants
And Your majesty to their children.
17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us;
And confirm for us the work of our hands;
Yes, confirm the work of our hands.” (Psalm 90:13-17 NASB1995)
And this doesn’t have to be just about sin, repentance, and
restoration. Sometimes the Lord allows us to go through trials and tribulations
to test our faith, and those trials can be very hard, at times, and they can
really stretch us, and may even tempt us to want to give up the fight, at
times. And so we must turn to the Lord in these times of temptation or trials,
and we must seek his face, and believe in him to restore us and/or to give us
the strength to endure. But we must never give up on God!
For the Lord will have compassion on those who are truly
his, who are not faking their Christianity while deliberately and habitually
sinning against God and against other humans. For biblical repentance is not
just saying you are sorry, especially if you go right back to recommitting the
same sins habitually. True repentance results in not only a change of heart and
mind, but a change of behavior, attitude, and lifestyle. If we are truly
repentant we will not keep repeating the same sinful practices deliberately.
Now, again, this doesn’t have to be just about sin and
repentance and restoration. But this can engage any kind of testing and trials
and tribulations which we go through in this life to test our faith. And there,
as well, we will need God’s lovingkindness and his grace extended to us for us
to survive the onslaught against us. We will need the Lord to ease our pain and
suffering and to give us joyful hearts, even in the midst of suffering. For we
will need to see that suffering has a purpose, and then submit to God.
[Matthew 5:10-12;
Matthew 10:16-39; Matthew 24:9-14; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 21:12-17; John 15:18-21;
John 17:14; Rom 5:3-5; Phil 3:7-11; 1 Pet 1:6-7; 1
Pet 4:12-17; 2 Tim 3:12; 1 Thess 3:1-5; Jas 1:2-4; 2 Co 1:3-11; Heb 12:3-12; 1
Jn 3:13; Revelation 6:9-11; Revelation 7:9-17; Revelation 11:1-3; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 13:1-18; Revelation
14:1-13]
When Pretty Things Get Broken
By Joni Eareckson Tada
I have a piece of
China, a pretty porcelain vase –
It holds such lovely
flowers; captures everybody’s gaze.
But fragile things
do slip and fall, as everybody knows.
And when my vase
came crashing down, those tears began to flow.
My life was just
like China, a lovely thing to me;
Full of porcelain
promises of all that I might be.
But fragile things
do slip and fall, as everybody knows.
And when my life
came crashing down, those tears began to flow.
Now Jesus is no
porcelain Prince. His promises won’t break.
His holy word holds
fast and sure. His love, no one can shake.
So, if your life is
shattered by sorrow, pain, or sin –
His healing love
will reach right down and make you whole again.
‘Cause don’t we all
cry when pretty things get broken?
Don’t we all sigh at
such an awful loss?
Jesus will dry your
tears, as He has spoken;
‘Cause He was the
one broken on the cross.
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Broken and Regretful
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