WHEN I DON’T WANT TO

For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.  Romans 6:14

For years, I numbed out to Christian realities like sin and grace.  I knew how they were both defined and I believed I understood them.  However, I had no knowledge of the limitless expanse of sin within myself and the unfathomable expanse of grace within Christ.

I was like a patient who feels mildly ill, goes to the doctor, and just wants a pill for whatever is wrong; not wanting to know how sick they are nor what disease they have. I treated sin like that.  I had a vague sense that I was a sinner but didn’t understand how serious it was.  I was completely unacquainted with myself through the mirror of the Word.

I found out the hard way that if I didn’t take sin seriously then I didn’t need to explore grace.  A simple definition from the dictionary sufficed.  Only as God showed me my great sin and the consequences of it without a Savior, did I begin to take hold of Jesus’ feet and pour out thanksgiving for my pardon from a condemned life.  If salvation from hell had been all He’d given me, that would be enough.  But daily, there is still grace; as much as I think I need, and even more that I don’t know I need.

Paul is beginning a section of “Do this, do that!”  The commands are strong.  “Kill sin. Hate sin. Train to be a soldier.  Fight the fight.  Engage in the kingdom clash.” Each command will be taken on by the person who knows he is sinful and holds on to grace like a life-preserver.  When we don’t want any part of it, we need to pray two prayers:

Show me my sin, Lord.  And give me the heart to know Your grace.  Amen