TODAY’S INSPIRATION: I’M NOT PERFECT…

No need to lie, our flesh loves sin, sin can feel, sound, look, smell, and taste oh so good! Have you ever asked yourself, Lord why everything that seems so good is a sin? The key word here is seems. That’s the deception of the enemy. It has to seem good for us to be tempted. When it comes to owning up to our own sins, the phrases “But I’m not perfect.” Or “God knows my heart” is often used as the go-to justification. I have used them. And I am sure most people have. They are both true statements but should not be used to justify our wrongdoing. God knows we are not perfect, He knows all of our weaknesses. The Apostle Paul understood the struggle. He wrote, “I love God’s law with all my heart. But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?” (Romans 7:22-24) In verse 25 Paul gives us the answer, the answer is in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior!

God’s intention is for us to have victory over sin, which is why He sent His Son, Jesus to save us. There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. When we mess up and fall short, God shows us grace. Jesus is our advocate, so that sin won’t keep us from our Holy God. We will dwell in God’s shelter, not because of our own righteousness, but in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. It is not wise to take God’s grace for granted, using “I’m not perfect” or “God knows my heart” as an excuse or to justify our sins. There is a difference between making an occasional mistake and being willfully disobedient to God. We cannot repent and ask for forgiveness but at the same time we are planning our next trip with sin. Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 6:15-23, “What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.” In other words we can be slaves to sin, or we can be slaves to righteousness. We have a choice. Yes God gives us choices. He does not want puppets on a string. His desire is that His love for us, His mercy and His grace will give us the desire to live right in His eyes. And when we choose to be disobedient there are consequences. Sin separates us from God. The enemy knows this. This is where he wants us to be, away from God who protects us and where we get our strength and authority over him. He can’t come in and and take control when we are under God’s protection. Oh he will attempt too but nothing he tries with prosper. We do not have to run and hide from God when we mess up. In Christ, we have the confident assurance that we are forgiven, loved, and righteous. (Eph. 1:7, Rom. 8:37, 2 Cor. 5:21). Thank God for Jesus, who gives us the strength we need to get the victory over sin that we already have. Yes, we already have the victory over any sin because God said He would always give us a way out. Sometimes we have to tap into it by drawing from Jesus. We can do all things through Him.
When we fall short as we all do, we must not just say “I’m not perfect” or “God knows my heart.” We must sincerely repent, and we will be forgiven as Jesus forgave the woman at the well in John 4:1-42. This story is an example of Jesus’s love, truth, redemption, and acceptance.

This new life we live in the grace of God should not be taken for granted. God’s kindness and goodness toward us, should motivate us to change and have the desire to receive the divine nature, the mind of God. Grace is inseparable from God’s law, and God’s law is inseparable from grace. Both work to produce righteousness in a child of God, keeping us free from sin and death. Love and Blessings…

“Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” (Hebrew 2:17-18)

“Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous.” (1John 3:6-7)

“Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:4-8)

“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,” (Romans 8:1)

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”
(1 Corinthians 10:13)