I heard a man use the phrase “worthless sinners” in a prayer today in reference to all of us sitting around him (in a classroom of professing believers). In the context of his prayer, he was talking about the fact that we should forever remember that we are all worthless sinners. Initially, I agreed with him wholeheartedly! But, in an instant after he spoke those words in his prayer, a thought entered my mind that caused me to stop and think about what that kind of mindset might mean for us as believers.
YEAH…that’s right…we are all worthless sinners…may we never forget it! We are sinners, who have no worth of our own. Humanity is born into sin. That is 100% true. We are corrupt from infancy, and should definitely have an explicit understanding of this. Sin has corrupted our being, and we will always struggle with sin because of this. However, how does salvation change our understanding of who we are as sinners? (Or at least...how should it change our understanding?) There is a definite change that happens…and it MUST be so! Therefore, how do we allow our past sins to interact with our present state under grace? If “old things are done away with, and all things become new”…then how do we live? Should we be stuck in the past…holding on to the “old man”…or should we live in the present…with an understanding of the grace and mercy that covers us?
How many of you know someone who walks around constantly reminding everyone that they come in contact with about the pathetic state of our original nature? Sin is real, and it really affects us…BUT what about the effects of the change that was produced in us according to Christ Jesus’ redemptive work on the cross? How should that affect our lives? SHOULD IT? Absolutely…even more so than the effects of sin, the effects of grace cover us completely. How would our attitude toward ourselves and towards others change if we fully grasped the far-reaching aspects of this wonderful truth? Should we not emphasize this truth FAR above the reality of our sinfulness?
I wonder what the Father thinks about us constantly wallowing in the sinfulness of our past as opposed to having a complete understanding of the grace that was freely given to us. I guess it really all comes down to having a proper understanding of how salvation affects us.
Please don’t misunderstand me…I believe that we should have a healthy understanding of the sinful nature of man. Key word there: healthy! Is it healthy to emphasize sin whenever you get a chance? Or rather…should we emphasize the grace of God, and how that grace affects us who were once completely entangled by sin? But no more…sin no longer has the victory over us as believers! Christ paid our debt and conquered sin and the grave! Let us not allow sin (or the idea or concept of sin) to have more power in our lives than it deserves!
1 comments:
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied." Matt. 5:6 and "Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." Phil. 3:13-14 (NASB). I completely agree with you, my beloved friend. God has delivered us from our past and we are covered in Christ's righteousness. Yes, we should never forget that, but it should spur us on to living out the good works which He has prepared beforehand (1 Cor. 2:10). We should be in awe and worship Him in thankfulness and respond by pursuing righteousness because we are now able to do so with His Holy Spirit within us. Thank you for your thoughts! I miss you!
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