1 John 1:8-10 ( NKJV ) If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
This week we are talking about maintaining a sense of right standing with God after salvation. It is a little easier to see how God can make us righteous before Him in dealing with our past life than it is to understand how He can continue to see us righteous in the face of post Jesus sins. Yesterday we discovered from verses 5-7 of this chapter that the blood of Jesus is continually cleansing our sins. Even today, when we commit a sin the blood of Jesus immediately cleanses that sin and keeps us in covenant relationship with God.
This is not an excuse to live any way we want. Sin will kill you. Even though the blood of Jesus maintains our relationship with God, the consequences still must be dealt with and those consequences can be extreme. In 1 John 2:1 John expressly says that the point of understanding this is that we not sin. If you don’t have any remorse over sin, I have to question your salvation. If, however, you are like every other Christians and there are times when sin is still a part of your life, this message will enable you to overcome it and eventually walk totally free.
The problem with sin is not that it breaks our relationship with God but that it opens the door once again to guilt. God still loves us and we still have access to Him even if He may be displeased with us, but we don’t feel like this can be true. We become, in our own heart and mind, unrighteous. What is the solution? Should we do penance, pay some kind of service or endure some kind of punishment in order to get rid of the sense of unrighteousness? Maybe we can just ignore it and it will go away. None of those things will work. There is nothing to pay, but there is something God requires we do. We will deal with God’s solution in three steps.
First of all we must recognize that we do sin. In this verse John is very plain. If we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves. God’s will is that we overcome all sin, however He knows that as long as we are in the flesh sin will continue to be a problem. If we rationalize our sin away, the guilt will remain. If we try and ignore it the unrighteousness will continue to hinder us. We must acknowledge that we have sinned.
It is difficult for some people to admit they can be wrong. It is easier to blame someone else. It is popular today to blame society, the inequities of life or some other cultural thing in order to avoid taking responsibility for our own actions. Until we do take that responsibility we can never be free of the unrighteousness that we feel when we have committed sin. You can’t repent of what you will not take responsibility for. You sinned. It is not fatal. At least it doesn’t have to be. If you will take the responsibility it can be taken care of in moments. If you will not take responsibility it will become a cancer in your life eating away at the will of God for you.
As soon as you recognize that you have done something that has caused a breach in your righteousness, take responsibility. I have a friend in ministry who is almost 90 now and he likes to say, “No fudging please!” That means no shortcuts, no excuses just take the responsibility. In Psalm 51 David gives us the quintessential example of repentance. In one place he says, “I have sinned against you alone oh God.” He took the responsibility and started the process of cleansing.
Take a moment today and examine your heart. If there is something you believe is causing a problem with your righteous stance before God, become accountable, take the responsibility and begin the process that will produce complete victory.
From Indonesia…..
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