The Truth & The Wages of Sin
I got up early, as is my usual routine these days. I love daybreak, as it represents God's promise of a new day, a day not yet ruined by man. I then came to my friends at DS and spent a little time checking in and posting a bit. Then I went to my daily devotionals and God blindsided me. My friend Max Lucado spoke to me about "Truth".
GOD LOVES THE TRUTH
The Lord hates those who tell lies but he is pleased with those who keep their promises. Proverbs 12:22
"Our master has a strict honor code. From Genesis to Revelation the theme is the same. God loves the truth and hates deceit. In 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 Paul lists the type of people who will not inherit the kingdom of God. The covey he portrays is a ragged assortment of those who sin sexually, worship idols, take part in adultery, sell their bodies, get drunk, rob people, and--there it is--lie about others.
Such rigor may surprise you. 'You mean my fibbing and flattering stir the same heavenly anger as adultery and aggravated assault?' Apparently so.....
Why the hard line? Why the tough stance? For one reason: dishonesty is absolutely against the character of God. Just like Jesus"
Billy Graham continued the assault on my character when his devotional today was titled "God Hates Sin". He went on to lament that we live in an age where people give a wink & a nod to the concept of sin, and then go about their business of deceit, perversion, self service and the list goes on. Rev. Graham asserts that people today think that God is such a loving God that he will forget & forgive us the stuff we do because he is so understanding and kind hearted. Kind of like a rather senile old grandfather who just shakes his head when the grand kids misbehave. Billy Graham then preaches that God, in fact, HATES sin. Why, he asks? Because God loves us and He knows that sin will bring us nothing but misery and destruction and the ultimate descension into a timeless eternity apart from Him. Into Hell. God hates sin because He hates what it does to us.
Late last night, I wrote in my journal that I have not lived a particularly exemplary life, and that there were was much in my past that I am not proud of. That was my way of giving my sins the "wink and a nod" that Rev. Graham spoke of. It occurs to me today that I have been glowing in my "spritual awakening" and boasting of a profound, new relationship with God. And I have been pontificating all over this beautiful web site, literally posing as some sort of righteous messenger of God. Not intending to deceive, mind you, but deceiving none the less.
I am a sinner. Hell, I think we are all sinners at one time or another. But to confess our sins is to secure our salvation. My dilemna is that I am afraid to confess my sins. To confess them means that I must remember them; ponder upon them; and then OWN them. And I just can't do that yet. Oh, my sins were not THAT horrible. I never killed anybody. I never assaulted anyone sexually or otherwise. Never robbed a bank either. But I have sinned.
I need to take the time to consider this, because it can't be coincidence that both of my devotionals brought the issues of honesty and sin to my attention. The trouble for me, and the fear that I have, is that my sins bring me shame. And right now, I am in the middle of grieving the losses of my wife, my home, my possesions, my money...almost everything. To lose my dignity and self respect is not something I can deal with right now. But Billy Graham ended his missive today with : "Confess your sin today. Don't wait. Receive God's forgiveness and restoration so that you might be of use to Him and enjoy His love forever." But I am so afraid.
So, my prayer for the day is that I am asking my God to give me the courage to face myself in order that I can face Him. Because right now I can do neither.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5T6gyCPDvM&feature=related
GOD LOVES THE TRUTH
The Lord hates those who tell lies but he is pleased with those who keep their promises. Proverbs 12:22
"Our master has a strict honor code. From Genesis to Revelation the theme is the same. God loves the truth and hates deceit. In 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 Paul lists the type of people who will not inherit the kingdom of God. The covey he portrays is a ragged assortment of those who sin sexually, worship idols, take part in adultery, sell their bodies, get drunk, rob people, and--there it is--lie about others.
Such rigor may surprise you. 'You mean my fibbing and flattering stir the same heavenly anger as adultery and aggravated assault?' Apparently so.....
Why the hard line? Why the tough stance? For one reason: dishonesty is absolutely against the character of God. Just like Jesus"
Billy Graham continued the assault on my character when his devotional today was titled "God Hates Sin". He went on to lament that we live in an age where people give a wink & a nod to the concept of sin, and then go about their business of deceit, perversion, self service and the list goes on. Rev. Graham asserts that people today think that God is such a loving God that he will forget & forgive us the stuff we do because he is so understanding and kind hearted. Kind of like a rather senile old grandfather who just shakes his head when the grand kids misbehave. Billy Graham then preaches that God, in fact, HATES sin. Why, he asks? Because God loves us and He knows that sin will bring us nothing but misery and destruction and the ultimate descension into a timeless eternity apart from Him. Into Hell. God hates sin because He hates what it does to us.
Late last night, I wrote in my journal that I have not lived a particularly exemplary life, and that there were was much in my past that I am not proud of. That was my way of giving my sins the "wink and a nod" that Rev. Graham spoke of. It occurs to me today that I have been glowing in my "spritual awakening" and boasting of a profound, new relationship with God. And I have been pontificating all over this beautiful web site, literally posing as some sort of righteous messenger of God. Not intending to deceive, mind you, but deceiving none the less.
I am a sinner. Hell, I think we are all sinners at one time or another. But to confess our sins is to secure our salvation. My dilemna is that I am afraid to confess my sins. To confess them means that I must remember them; ponder upon them; and then OWN them. And I just can't do that yet. Oh, my sins were not THAT horrible. I never killed anybody. I never assaulted anyone sexually or otherwise. Never robbed a bank either. But I have sinned.
I need to take the time to consider this, because it can't be coincidence that both of my devotionals brought the issues of honesty and sin to my attention. The trouble for me, and the fear that I have, is that my sins bring me shame. And right now, I am in the middle of grieving the losses of my wife, my home, my possesions, my money...almost everything. To lose my dignity and self respect is not something I can deal with right now. But Billy Graham ended his missive today with : "Confess your sin today. Don't wait. Receive God's forgiveness and restoration so that you might be of use to Him and enjoy His love forever." But I am so afraid.
So, my prayer for the day is that I am asking my God to give me the courage to face myself in order that I can face Him. Because right now I can do neither.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5T6gyCPDvM&feature=related
Replies
I grew up in a fundamentalist Southern Baptist home and environment.
I believed in much this same way...that the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.
While I believed and believe this...and believe the scriptures and the way the word says that I am...I also draw the line that Jesus was my payment for my sin and that His work upon the cross paid the full price for me.
My judgment fell upon Him. He called me to Himself and I responded.
Therefore, I am in no way responsible to carry my shame...and if I do...I crucify Him afresh and make His salvation of no effect. He whom the Son sets free...is free indeed. Eternal life is just that...it\'s eternal...if I am to believe His promises.
In Him is no lie, nor shadow of turning. I wash my feet, not my whole body, through the sanctification of myself toward Him. I can approach Him without shame...because my sin and my iniquity, He will remember no more.
What sin of mine did He not forgive? None.
I do not serve a \"love me or fear me\" God. I used to...
He made provision for me...and for you...and acceptance is all it takes. To be in knowledge of our sinful nature is the light of the Holy Spirit into our souls...we agree with Him...but the provision for that sin was already made for us on Calvary. Therefore, accept His gift and live the life He\'s given you...free of shame...and of fear.
My Dear Friend ~ I have been exactly where you are spiritually...I literally spent 3 days broken & weeping before Our Gracious & Merciful Father when forced to confront my sins and take ownership of them...God does not require that we confess our sins publicly, only that we acknowledge them before Him and since He already knows them, there\'s nothing to fear...that fear isn\'t coming from Him, it\'s coming from the enemy of our souls, satan.
God HAS been using you, you HAVE NOT been pontificating nor have you been posing or pretending...you have simply been sharing the wonderful work of Grace that is taking place in your life, as your spirit awakens...and there is no need to ponder or dwell upon past transgressions, the simple act of confessing them brings ownership...actually it transfers ownership of them to God...and you know what He does with them? He throws them into the \"sea of Forgetfulness and remembers them no more.\" (that\'s Scriptural, but cannot find the reference right this moment.) The Father isn\'t like us, his children; He not only Forgives, He really does FORGET!!!! So don\'t be afraid, my dear, just go to God with a contrite & humble heart, He\'s waiting with His arms wide open...You\'ll be in my prayers...Blessings & Hugs...this is just a part of the transformation, you\'re being recreated in Christ\'s image...and what a wonderful, beautiful image that is.... your Sister in Christ ~E~, who is Just A Sinner, Saved by Grace....
my dear friend Joe,
I am beyond touched by the journey you are taking on. I read this tonight and I am again thankful. there is so much nonsense on the posts in the past few days, and I was about to check out for the day when I saw this journal.
I do believe that God is a forgiving God if he knows we truly are sorry for the errors in our ways. does that mean we can do whatever we want and then just say \"oh sorry\", no, it means as long as we are growing and moving in positive and good directions, then I believe God does forgive... because more then anything we are his children.
every last one of us has fallen off the right path, I would argue with anyone who says otherwise. it is what we do with our mistakes that count.
I assure you that God knows you are trying right now to bring him into your life and that is exactly what God hopes for, with all of us.
you do not need to disclose anything you have done, other then to God and to yourself. God does forgive and you also need to forgive yourself.
I am here for you,
judi
Joe,
How about this for a coincidense(sp). Today on my daily devotions this was the subject
Peace to you,
Dave
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2010
Time to Clean House
If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth.
- 1 John 1:8
It is inevitable that when I wear white pants, I will have little marks and stains on them. I want to blame it on the fact that I spill because I am wearing white pants, but the truth is that I spill all the time. I just don\'t see it all the time. I think I spill as much on my jeans as I do on my white pants. It is just that white pants display dirt.
The same is true of sin in our lives. We can go through life thinking, Well, I\'m not sinning that much, when actually we are. The Bible tells us, \"If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness\" (1 John 1:8-9 NLT).
I tend to be a messy person. My wife Cathe, however, is the polar opposite. She is always cleaning. She is constantly straightening things up. If we deal with sin in our lives the way I deal with cleaning, then it will build up until we have a spiritual crisis. That is because we have gone about it in the wrong way-the procrastinator\'s way. But if we are smart, we will handle sin the way Cathe handles cleaning, which is to keep messes from building up. That means constantly confessing our sins before God.
Maybe there is something in your life that you have tried to change, but you can\'t. Now is the time to ask God to clean house. Ask Him to help you. Don\'t try to clean up your life before you come to God. Come to God, and then let Him clean up your life.