These words from The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges:
Why do so many Christians feel constantly defeated in their struggle with sin?
Our first problem is that our attitude toward sin is more self-centered than God-centered.
We are more concerned about our own "victory" over sin than we are about the fact that our sins grieve the heart of God. We cannot tolerate failure in our struggle with sin chiefly because we are success-oriented, not because we know it is offensive to God.
(From W. S. Plumer)...We never see sin correctly until we see it as against God. All sin is against God because it is His law that is broken. His authority that is despised. Pharaoh and Balaam, Saul and Judas each said, "I have sinned," but the returning prodigal said, 'I have sinned against heaven and before thee" and David said, "Against Thee, Thee only have I sinned."
God wants us to walk in obedience--not victory. Obedience is oriented toward God; victory is oriented toward self.
This may seem to be merely splitting hairs over semantics, but there is a subtle self-centered attitude at the root of many of our difficulties with sin. Until we face this attitude and deal with it, we will not consistently walk in holiness.
This is not to say God doesn't want us to experience victory but rather to emphasize that victory is a byproduct of obedience.
As we concentrate on living an obedient, holy life, we will certainly experience the joy of victory over sin.
---From Chapter One, Holiness is for You
No comments:
Post a Comment