Do you wrestle with yourself? Do you feel as though there is an angel on one should and a devil on the other? Are you often caught between doing what is right and what is wrong? Do you want to do good but find yourself doing evil? Do you feel guilty because of the evil you do?
We have all been there and will likely be there again. We know we are to strive to not sin, yet we find ourselves committing sin over and over again. It is especially difficult to stop when the sin is a favorite of ours. However, we know that we are no alone in our struggle.
The Apostle Paul transparently reveals his own struggles with sin. No, he was not perfect. No, he did not claim to be perfect. Quite the opposite. Paul talks openly about doing what he hates while loving God. He recognizes and acknowledges his human frailty and failures. He doesn’t put himself on a pedestal to look down on others. Instead, he states he has the same problem everyone else has and he continues to wrestle with it.
This doesn’t mean we are to continue sinning. In fact, Paul had stated just the chapter before today’s verse that we are not to continue sinning. We are to strive to not sin. But we cannot do it alone. We need the grace and power of God to work in our lives to help us reject sin, to stop sinning. The good news Paul preaches is that we have a Savior who forgives our sin while He continues to work on us so that we stop sinning.
As we struggle with our sin, we must remember two very important points. First, because Jesus went to the cross, we are forgiven. Second, God continues to work on us, and we are to work with him to remove sin from our lives. This is the good news and the reason for the church. The church is a hospital where those who are sick need to go to get better. No one in the church is perfect, but all of us should be striving for perfection. The only doctor in the church is Jesus Christ. The rest of us are patients who do our best to help one another.
I pray we all know we are forgiven. I pray we know that God continues to work on us to make us like his Son. I pray each one of us strives to rid ourselves of sin by working with God. You are forgiven. God continues to work on you. Strive to rid yourself of sin. Ask for God’s help.
Romans 7:15 I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.
Marty Pressey 