18 I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
21 So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Jesus sets us free from the power of sin. We're free to live for God. Telling slaves to be free is to add insult to injury. But telling a liberated slave to be free is an invitation to enjoy his new freedom and privileges.
We continue to struggle with sin. We're like a freed slave who still jumps at his master's voice. But something decisive has happened. It's no longer inevitable that we'll sin when we face temptation. We have the power to say no to temptation.
We also have a new motivation to battle sin: We're no longer under law, but under grace. This is counterintuitive. People think the law and legalism will best motivate us to strive to do what's right. But it's grace that enables us to live for God. "For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace" (Rom. 6:14, ESV et al.). Grace wins our hearts.
Change begins only when we come under grace with its message of divine pardon and welcome. Only then will we "with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (Heb. 4:16).
—Tim Chester in You Can Change
Only when grace appears on the horizon offering forgiveness will the sunshine of the love of God melt our hearts and draw us back to him.
—Sinclair Ferguson (Scottish theologian)
The above is copyright by Men Of Integrity Magazine.
Psalm 51:10-12
10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
You are our hope, You are our joy, You are our overcoming King
So we sing "Hallelujah, Jesus is alive!"
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