Welcome to the end of May. How’s it been? Mine’s been pretty good and pretty busy. We celebrated my godson’s birthday, I visited my mom for Mother’s Day, and now today is my birthday. I went into planning this post thinking it would be a pretty light topic, maybe kind of fun, but I wasn’t sure what yet.
Instead, it’s a bit heavier. A bit uncomfortable. But hopefully encouraging too.
Let me ask you a question to start.
What’s your reaction when you’ve done something wrong?
Do you own up to it immediately? Do you shy away? React defensively?
My usual response is to hide away. I don’t like being in trouble and my tendency is almost always to try and pretend like nothing is wrong and hope it’ll go away if I ignore it. This isn’t a good response or anything, just the one I usually have.
I used to do the same thing too when I knew I’d sinned (by that I mean I’m trying not to do this anymore; I’m still far from perfect). Like I’d messed up and needed to let God take a break from me for a while. It wasn’t even a conscious thought, but something He’s shown me pretty recently that I do and that needs to be fixed.
I did not appreciate finding this out.
But I needed it to be able to learn better. Now when I know that I’ve sinned, I try to stop and acknowledge it. Apologize to God because I’m sinning against Him. Thank Him for His forgiveness. And remind myself what’s better.
It’s so easy to feel like we’ve messed things up so bad sometimes that there’s no coming back. That God must be done with us. We’ve finally sinned too much or too badly and now He wants nothing to do with us. Or at least, that we have to perform some sort of penance first and earn back our place with Him. And then earn back His trust. The same way we’d have to do with a human.
But God is not human. He isn’t surprised when we sin because He already knew we would. He doesn’t need a breather or need us to prove ourselves to Him again. He isn’t going to write us off and decide we’re more trouble than we’re worth. And He isn’t going to take back anything He’s promised.
Do you know the story of the prodigal son?
You can find the whole story in Luke 15:11-32. He demanded his inheritance early from his father and then he left and blew it all. It was gone and he found himself in a really low place, eating with the pigs he was taking care of for someone else.
He knows his father takes good care of his servants though, so he decides he’ll ask his dad if he can work for him, if he can take the role of a servant. He knows he doesn’t deserve to take back his role of beloved son after the way he’s treated his father.
But his dad doesn’t see it the same. He sees his son while he’s still a while off and he runs to him and welcomes him back in as his son again, no questions asked. He throws a big banquet and everything to celebrate. His son doesn’t get it. Hasn’t he messed up big enough this time that his dad would just want to write him off? He wasn’t even sure he’d be willing to take him on as a servant. But he takes him back as his son. He celebrates his son’s return.
God is the same way.
He will discipline as needed, the same way any good parent will. But, the same as a good parent also will, He won’t stop loving us because we messed up. He welcomes us back in with the same love that the prodigal son’s father did. He celebrates our coming back to Him.
Sin is serious, yes. Serious enough for Jesus to die in order to defeat its hold over us and to defeat its overall effects, namely death and eternal separation from God.
Sin distances us from God. But God isn’t the One who moves away. We are. He isn’t waiting for You to get it together and fix things. He’s waiting for you to turn back to Him.
I saw a video recently that spoke on repentance very well in my opinion. You should watch the whole video, but he said that repentance isn’t changing your behavior. A change in behavior follows repentance. It’s a byproduct of it. Repentance is changing your mind. Mentally turning away from your sins and deciding that God’s way is better. And it’s a continual process. Continual progress.
I don’t know about you, but when I have a sin that becomes habitual I tend to feel like my repentance prayers are worth less the more I have to say them. Like it’s diminished by the amount of times I have to repent of the same kind of sin. But God showed me recently that He’s continually forgiving. Repentance is a continual process. It’s a repeated renewing of your mind. Continue changing your mind when you find yourself falling into sin. The power of prayer isn’t in us saying the words. It’s in God hearing them. God hears you. Ask Him to help you.
That’s another thing He’s shown me too. I can’t overcome sinful habits on my own. It’s not just a matter of willpower. If it was then why did Jesus choose to die on the cross and defeat sin Himself?
It’s not that we’re not trying hard enough. God gave us His Holy Spirit when Jesus returned to heaven. His power rests in us. Jesus defeated sin’s hold on the cross. It was enough. Jesus is enough. He has victory over sin and death. And that same power of victory lives in us too.
When you’re faced with the temptation to sin, especially a sin that’s become a habit, ask God to help you walk in that victory. Ask Him to help you believe Him for it. He has the power to overcome sin. And He’s given it to you.
Remember though, you’re not going to be perfect. We are all works in progress, all human, and all prone to sin. You will fail occasionally and it’ll feel like all you can do is fail. Like that sin really does have power over you. But God is your authority. God is sovereign. Speak that over yourself until you believe it. The enemy speaks lies of condemnation. God speaks forgiveness. Take it.
Give yourself the grace that God has already given you. Don’t take sin lightly, but remember that God’s love for you outweighs your imperfections. He already saw every sin you’d ever struggle with. Every time sin would win a battle in your heart. But He also knows who wins the war. Take His gift of forgiveness. Don’t let sin condemn you when God wants nothing more than to forgive you and be in close relationship with you again. He will point out your sins to you, but He doesn’t do so to make you feel bad. He does it so you can be aware of it and so you can turn away from it and back to Him. He loves you. He doesn’t like being separated from you. He literally died to close that distance.
Don’t stay in that place of condemnation. God works in conviction. Showing us our sins isn’t the final part of the story. God has forgiveness free and ready for you to take. Walk in His victory. Walk in His power. Know that He wants you to take it. He loves you more than anything else. He wants to be with you.
If you can’t believe that right now, I get it. It’s a lot to believe that He loves us that much. But He does. He defeated sin and death for you. And it was enough. Your sins are covered. Repent continually. As many times as needed. But do it knowing that God forgives you. That He’s ready to welcome you back in every time. He died to save you from your sins, not to condemn you for them. Be encouraged, knowing that God isn’t finished with you.
The Place Called Home 
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