Forgiveness

1 John 1:9

If we’re honest, there isn’t a single day that we can say “I’m good enough”. We may be born again Christians and sin no longer has reign over our souls, but we still fight with the flesh daily. The apostle Paul, who called himself “chief of sinners”, knew this battle well. In Romans 7:22-23 he says, “For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.” 

God doesn’t want sin to have a hold on us, and longs for us to be free of its crippling grasp. The Bible devotes much to the topic to make us aware of its toxic effects. God doesn’t want us to cover up and hide our sin, but rather expose and uproot it. Because unconfessed and unrepentant sin festers under the surface. It spreads like cancer, destroying us from deep within. And it hinders our relationship with God, keeping us from being able to glorify Him.

We may be sinners, but we have forgiveness and atonement for our sin through the blood of Christ. And because we have confidence in that forgiveness, we can be free. Free to ask God to shine the spotlight into the deepest, darkest recesses of our being. And to expose and cleanse any unrecognized or unrelinquished sin. Because even if we fool other people or even ourselves, God knows our true motives and agendas.

What a privilege it is to be able to go to God in prayer and confess our sin. To share with Him our struggle, and to ask for victory. And as we surrender to the process of being shaped into the image of Christ, we will be renewed, strengthened, and refreshed!

Blessings, Becky