Theme: SIN — Its Deceitfulness

He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in his sight (Psalm 72:14).

But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day;  lest any of you be hardened through

 the deceitfulness of sin (Hebrews 3:13).

The Curse of Sin

Andrew Murray (1828-1917)

People talk about the curse of sin, but they do not understand that the whole nature has been infected by sin, and that the curse is on everything. My intellect, has that been defiled by sin? Terribly, and the curse of sin is on it, and therefore my intellect must go down into the death. Ah, I believe that the Church of Christ suffers more today from trusting in intellect, in sagacity, in culture, and in mental refinement, than from almost anything else. The Spirit of the world comes in, and men seek by their wisdom and by their knowledge, to help the Gospel, and they rob it of its crucifixion mark. Christ directed Paul to go and preach the Gospel of the cross, but to do it not with wisdom of words. The curse of sin is on all that is of nature.

Sin, When Viewed  by Scripture Light,

John Newton (1725-1807)

Sin, when viewed by scripture light, is a horrid, hateful sight;
But when seen in Satan’s glass, then it wears a pleasing face.

When the gospel trumpet sounds, when I think how grace abounds,
When I feel sweet peace within, then I’d rather die than sin.

When the cross I view by faith, sin is madness, poison, death;
Tempt me not, ’tis all in vain, sure I ne’er can yield again.

Satan, for awhile debarred, when he finds me off my guard,
Puts his glass before my eyes, quickly other thoughts arise.

What before excited fears, rather pleasing now appears;
If a sin, it seems so small, or, perhaps, no sin at all.

Often thus, through sin’s deceit, grief, and shame, and loss I meet,
Like a fish, my soul mistook, saw the bait, but not the hook.

O my Lord, what shall I say? How can I presume to pray?
Not a word have I to plead, sins, like mine, are black indeed!

Made, by past experience, wise, let me learn Thy word to prize;
Taught by what I’ve felt before, let me Satan’s glass abhor.

Sin and its Deceitfulness

Leonard Davis

God commanded Adam “Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (Gen. 2:16-17). The serpent said unto the woman, “Yea, hath God said, ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” The deceitfulness of sin puts doubt and confusion in the mind by adding to or changing the word of God. Satan repeated what God had said concerning the trees of the garden, as a question toward Eve. But he left out the last portion of the statement made by God. For the serpent said, “Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Gen. 3:4,5). Thus Satan made it sound as if God wasn’t telling the whole truth to Eve. Oh, the deceitfulness of sinful thoughts and actions. Speaking to Cain  God said, “…sin lieth at the door” (Gen. 4:7). Use of the word “lieth” is unique to this situation. The Hebrew word for “lieth” is the same as an ancient Babylonian word that referred to an evil demon crouching at the door to pounce on those who come thru.

Sin corrodes the truth and destroys one’s belief for it is the enemy of the soul. Many open the door wide by believing they do not sin while others even believe  sin does not exist, except in its rawest form. “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1 Jn. 1:8). This  blight of truth produces darkness within and results in depravity and spiritual blindness. Satan is the very example of the nature of sin and its deceitfulness. Jesus affirmed this when He spoke to the Pharisees who wanted to destroy Him by saying, “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it” (Jn. 8:44). Jesus knew what He was saying  and experienced it first hand. Do you remember when the devil tempted Jesus in the wilderness? After Jesus had fasted forty days and nights and hungered, the devil tempted Jesus to prove that He was the Son of God, but Jesus reputed Satan every time. Then he tempted Jesus with worldly glory if Jesus would bow down and worship him. “Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve” (Mt. 4:10). At this Satan left Him. This is a sure clue as to how we must handle the deceitfulness of sin as it tempts us. Sin hardens the heart so be on guard for it appears desirably attractive in its own deceit, but underneath its deceit has an ugly character. The outward deception of sin can fool our hearts at times, being described this way: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jer. 17:9). Sin soon enslaves and entraps us in its snare causing despair, sorrow and  heartaches galore, on top of suffering for those that follow in its path. When we think we are free to sin as long as nobody knows, that entrapment causes a belief that we can escape its snare, but we actually become enslaved to it. Because of the deceitfulness of sin, we are admonished to exhort one another daily, lest we succumb to its entanglements. This warning is given to the brethren—believers in Jesus Christ—and not to the unbelievers for they cannot discern spiritual things knowing not that they are victims of sin. John the Baptist said: “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (Jn. 1:29). The angel told Joseph: “And she [Mary] shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins” (Mt. 1:21).

People of the world are deceived into thinking they can account for their sins without intervention of the Lord on their behalf, even after He said, “Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin” (Isa. 30:1). God told Joshua on behalf of the nation Israel: “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success” (Josh. 1:8). Sin is like a fire destroying everything in its path, but its deceitfulness will make us think that it doesn’t burn. If we could only be like king David when he wrote these words, “for I will declare mine iniquity: I will be sorry for my sin” (Psa. 38:18). The boastful and presumptuous carnal man will not acknowledge his own sin  for he thinks himself innocent though his transgressions speak otherwise. They are a poison that kills the will of man to perform anything good. He is quick to point out someone else’s sin, without realizing that he is caught in a pit of miry clay out of which he cannot crawl out. He doesn’t even care if he sins against the Lord because of his wickedness and becomes deceived within himself and reproachful to others especially children of God trying to be obedient. Oh, how the deceitfulness of sin burns from the lusts of this old carnal world. Lust  aflame brings forth sin and when sin runs its course, it brings forth death. So corroded becomes his soul that it seems as though he covets everything he cannot have and is stupefied so much that the deceitfulness of his own glory and pride is liken unto a partaker of drugs—so much so, that he thinks his secret sins are hid from everyone. He doesn’t realize he cannot hide anything for the Lord searches the very depth of his heart. Every man is tempted by the deceitfulness of sin and when he succumbs and is drawn away sin abounds. Sin and its deceitfulness degrade, debase, and damn ones will to resist.

A truth that the world overlooks David penned down in Psalm 103:10, “He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.” Also, Malachi in 3:6 writes: “For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.” Yet man still sins by his mouth; his words flow from his lips like the fools’ lips which declare there is no God. Boastful in his cursing and lying as he speaks, he falls  prey to the snare of sin’s deceitfulness. Turned with a rebellious and revolting spirit in his heart from any good thing, he fears not the word of God. As a fool he is found among wicked men who lie in wait to trap and snare anyone they can deceive. Even his house is full of deceit, and he judges not the consequences of sin. Jeremiah cried out, “my people love to have it so,” and such are sinners who are snared by sin’s deceitfulness. They become a reproach to all that are about them and as it were serve Balaam. Solomon wisely said, “But he that sinneth against me [God] wronged his own soul: all they that hate me [God] love death” (Prov. 8:36). The man that walks in deceitfulness and sin lies down in shame and is covered in confusion, having committed iniquity and done wickedly and has rebelled and departed from the precepts and judgments of God as the men of Sodom. In contrast the word of God says, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doeth he meditate day and night” (Psa. 1:1-2). Man must apply his heart to search and seek out wisdom to know the reason of things, even to know the wickedness in the deceitfulness of sin. Sin can destroy much good quicker than war for it is like a devouring fire.

They that murmur deceit, complain of good and truth, walk in their own lusts and speak great words to obtain man’s admiration and esteem will suffer according to God’s will. The deceitfulness of sin convinces men that their hands are clean, their hearts are pure and they are single-minded in their vanity. They boast of their goodness and humility, justify their own selves and believe not in the sovereignty of God. No wonder Jesus said, “Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein” (Lk. 18:17). May God help us yet in our sinful state and its deceitfulness by giving us eyes to see it, the will to fight it and empower us to subdue it.

All That I Was, My Sin, My Guilt

Horatius Bonar (1808-1889)

All that I was, my sin, my guilt, my death, was all mine own;
All that I am, I owe to Thee, my gracious God, alone.

The evil of my former state, was mine and only mine;
The good in which I now rejoice, is Thine, and only Thine.

The darkness of my former state, the bondage—all was mine;
The light of life in which I walk, the liberty—is Thine.

The grace that made me feel my sin, it taught me to believe;
Then, in believing, peace I found, and now I live, I live.

All that I am, e'en here on earth, all that I hope to be,
When Jesus comes and glory dawns, I owe it, Lord, to Thee.

Prayer Excerpts

John MacDuff (1818-1895)

Enable us to feel our sins—to have a deep and heartfelt consciousness of their heinousness in Your sight. We are apt to cloak and mask them; we are reluctant to make a frank and unreserved confession of them all. Lord, give us grace, in true penitence and contrition of heart, to cast ourselves—all unworthy—on the infinite worthiness of Him who is all-worthy. For His sake, receive us graciously; love us freely. We rejoice to meditate on the love which He had for us from all eternity. We rejoice to think that it is the same at this hour that it was then—unchanging, everlasting.

We desire to make acknowledgment of our unworthiness and guilt. We will not cloak nor disguise our manifold and multiplied transgressions. Discover to us the depths of our depravity; unveil to us the secret pride and selfishness and worldliness of our hearts. Deliver us from our besetting sins. Let us see our vileness—in the cross of Your dear Son.

Augustus Toplady (1740-1778)

Try me, O God, and search the ground of my heart: prove me and examine my thoughts. Look well if there be any wickedness in me, any root of bitterness yet undiscovered; and lead me in the way everlasting. Show me the true state of my soul. Bring me out from every false refuge. Strip off every deceitful covering, every covering that is not of Thy Spirit. Forbid that the anchor of my hope should be cast, or the house of my dependence built, on any but Christ, the Rock of Ages. Forbid that I should rest short of that repentance which is Thy gift, and is connected with life eternal: and forbid, O forbid, that I should sit down without aspiring to that conformity unto Thee in righteousness and true holiness, abstracted from which repentance is false and faith is dead.

Yet I Sin, Puritan Prayers and Devotions, The Valley of Vision

Eternal Father, Thou art good beyond all thought, But I am vile, wretched, miserable, blind; my lips are ready to confess, but my heart is slow to feel, and my ways reluctant to amend. I bring my soul to thee;  break it, wound it, bend it, mould it. Unmask to me sin’s deformity, that I may hate it, abhor it, flee from it.

My faculties have been a weapon of revolt against thee; as rebel I have misused my strength and served the foul adversary of Thy kingdom.

Give me grace to bewail my insensate folly, grant me to know that the way of transgressors is hard, that evil paths are wretched paths, that to depart from Thee is to lose all good. I have seen the purity and beauty of Thy perfect law, the happiness of those in whose heart it reigns, the calm dignity of the walk to which it calls, yet I daily violate and contemn its precepts.

Thy loving Spirit strives within me, brings me Scripture warnings, speaks in startling providences, allures by secret whispers, yet I choose devices and desires to my own hurt, impiously resent, grieve, and provoke Him to abandon me. All these sins I mourn, lament and for them cry pardon. 

Work in me more profound and abiding repentance, give me the fullness of a godly grief that trembles and fears, yet ever trusts and loves, which is ever powerful, and ever confident; grant that through the tears of repentance I may see more clearly the brightness and glories of the saving cross.

And Such Were Some of You

John Kent (1766-1843)

Ye souls redeemed by Jesus' blood,  salvation's theme pursue;
Exalt the sovereign grace of God, for "such were some of you!"

From head to foot defiled by sin, Deep in rebellion too;
This awful state mankind are in, "and such were some of you!"

Whilst they are sinners dead to God, ye highly favoured few*
Are washed from sin by Jesus' blood; for "such were some of you!"

As ye are chosen from the rest, to grace the praise is due;
Be sovereign love for ever blest, for "such were some of you!"

* Editor’s Note: “few” may designate those responding to the work they’re called to do while here but as per Rev. 5:11 it is “ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands” that make up the heavenly host who will praise His name forever more.

Comments on "Sin"

Alexander Cruden (1701-1170)

Sin is any thought, word, action, omission, or desire, contrary to the law of God. Sin is any want of conformity to, or transgression of the law, (1 Jn. 3: 4). It is taken:

1.  For original corruption, or the depravity and naughtiness of our corrupt nature which is prone to evil. "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me" (Ps. 51:5). "Sin taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence" (Rm. 7: 8).

2. For actual sin, which flows from the corruption of nature.  "When lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin" (Jm. 1:15).

3. For the guilt and defilement of sin. "Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin" (Psa. 51:2). And in, "The worshippers, once purged, should have had no more conscience of sins" (Heb. 10:2).

4. For the punishment of sin, "And if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door" (Gen. 4:7); be sure thy sin will fine thee out; thou shalt not long enjoy the fruits of thy wickedness, but a dreadful judgment shall tread upon the heels of thy sin. And in Gen. 19:15, "Lest thou be consumed in the iniquity or punishment of the city."

5.  Sin is taken both for the guilt and punishment of sin. "Blessed is he whose...sin is covered" (Ps. 32:1), and in Mt. 9:2, "Son,... thy sins be forgiven thee." The guilt of them is pardoned, and so the punishment shall be removed.

6. The name of sin is often given to the sacrifice of expiation, or to the sacri­fice for sin. What is there rendered "sin offering"  (Lv. 4:3,25,29), is in Hebrew, "sin." St. Paul says that God was pleased that Jesus Christ, who knew no sin, should be our victim of expiation. "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him" (2 Cor. 5:21).

7. Sin is token for any fault, either in doctrine or life. "Which of you convinceth me of sin?" (Jn. 8:46).

8. For infidelity and unbelief. The Spirit will convince the world of sin, because they believe not on me (see Jn. 16:9).

9. For a sinful course of life. "...sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death" (Jm. 1:15).

10. For the remainders of sin in such as are renewed and regenerated. "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body" (Rm. 6:12) since you are regenerated, and spiritually alive, let not the remainders of corruption exercise an uncontrolled absolute power in you.

11. For sin greatly aggravated. "If I had not come and spoken to them, they had not had sin" (Jn. 15:22, 24): they had not been guilty of this particular sin of infidelity in rejecting me; or, their sin had not been so heinous as new it is; or,  they had had more to say in excuse for their sin.

12. For the idols or calves at Dan and Beth-el, which were the occasion of the sin of Samaria. "They that swear by the sin of Samaria" (Amos 8:14).

God was not the author of sin or of death: it is in­consistent with the divine holiness and purity to in­cline the creature to sin: "for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man" (Jm. 1:13). But sin and death entered into the world by the malice of the devil; and Adam, by his disobe­dience, and yielding to the temptation of Satan, has made us all guilty in the eyes of God. Jesus Christ, by his death, hath restored life to us by his obedience he has recon­ciled us to God the Father; instead of children of wrath, as we were, he hath merited for us the cha­racter of children of God. The Apostle Paul, in several places, speaks of the misery which the first Adam brought on himself and his posterity, and of the blessings which Christ the second Adam has purchased for his children (See Rm. 3:23, 5:12, 6:23; 1 Cor. 15:21,22). Though sin be permitted of God, he can no wise be the author of it, than light is the author of darkness, (1 Jn. 1:5). Sin is not a creature, or a being, but ra­ther the privation of a being; as light is the pri­vation of darkness, so is sin a privation of holiness.

Presumptuous Sins

David prays that God would keep him “back from presumptuous sins” (Psa. 19: 13). From known and evident sin such as proceed from the choice of the perverse will against the enlightened mind, which are committed with deliberation, with design, resolution, and eager­ness, against the cheeks of conscience, and the motions of God's Spirit: such sins are direct re­bellion against God, a despising of his command, and provoke his pure eyes.

Original sin was the rebellion of the first man Adam against his Creator, which was a sin of universal efficacy, which derives a guilt and stain to mankind in all ages of the world. The account the Scripture gives of it, is grounded on the rela­tion which all men have to Adam as their natural and moral principal or head.

I. Their natural.

God created one man in the beginning, from whom all others derive their beings: And that the unity might be the more entire, he formed him that aid which was necessary for communicating his kind to the world. "And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth" (Acts 17:26). And as the whole race of mankind was virtually in Adam's loins, so it was presumed to give virtual consent to what he did; when he broke, all suffered shipwreck that were contained in him as their natural original.

II. Their moral principal

In the first treaty between God and man, Adam was considered, not as a single person, but as the representative of a nation, and contracted for all his descendants by ordinary generation: his per­son was the fountain of theirs, and his will the representative of theirs. From hence his vast progeny became a party in the covenant, and had a title to the benefits contained in it upon his obedience, and was liable to the curse upon his violation of it. Upon this ground the apostle in­stitutes a parallel between Adam and Christ. "That as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners; so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous" (Rom. 5:19). As Christ in his death on the cross did not suffer as a private person but as a surety and sponsor representing the whole church, as it is said, "that if one died for all, then were all dead" (2 Cor. 5:14). So the first Adam, ".who is the figure of him that was to come" (Rom. 5:14), in his disobedience was esteemed a public person representing the whole race of mankind; and by a just law it was else restrained to himself.

The Scripture proves in many places that the sin of Adam was communicated to all his posterity, and that it has infected and corrupted it. "We.were by nature the children of wrath" (Eph. 2:3); that is, liable to punishment, and that hath relation to guilt. And in Rom. 5:12, "by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men [as a just sentence upon the guilty], for that all have sinned." Job describes this sin, "Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one" (Job 14:4). It is the universal law of nature, that every thing produces its like, not only in regard of the same nature, that is propagated from one individual to another, without a change of the species, but in respect of the qualities with which that nature is eminently effected. The Psalmist David likewise speaks of this sin, "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me" (Psa. 51:5).

From the Unabridged Edition of   Cruden’s Concordance, by Alexander Cruden,

Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI, March, 1978

Awaked by Sinai's Awful Sound

Samson Occom (1723-1792)

Awaked by Sinai's awful sound, my soul in guilt and thrall I found,
And knew not where to go; o'erwhelmed in sin, with anguish slain,

‘Twas said I must be born again, or sink in endless woe.

Amazed I stood, but could not tell which way to shun the gates of hell,
For death and hell drew near; I strove in deed, but strove in vain

"The sinner must be born again." Still sounded in my ear.

When to the law I trembling fled, it poured its curses on my head;
I no relief could find; this fearful truth increased my pain,

"The sinne must be born again," o'erwhelmed my tortured mind.

The saints I heard with rapture tell how Jesus conquered death and hell,
And broke the fowler's snare; yet when I found this truth remain,

"The sinner must be born again," I sunk in deep despair.

But while I this in anguish lay, Jesus of Naz'reth passed that way;
It was the time of love: He then relieved me from my pain,

And showed me I was born again, to dwell with Him above.

To heav'n my joyful praises flew, singing that song forever new;
To Christ my voice did raise: all hail the Lamb that once was slain!

Unnumbered millions born again shall shout Thy endless praise.

The Deception of Sin

John MacArthur

For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me (Romans 7: 11).

The experience of Paul in particular

Paul reiterates that sin killed him when the law convicted him. He had been deceived into thinking he was blameless as he went about persecuting Christians in his zeal for God. He was a member of the religious leadership of Israel and probably assumed God was pleased with him. In today's terminology, he thought he had his act together. But then he was confronted with the reality of God's holy law. He looked inside of himself and saw the evil in his heart. He realized that all the religious things he had been doing couldn't help him so he threw himself on the mercy of Jesus Christ.

Sin deceived him in that it led him to expect one thing while he was experiencing another. He thought that if he was righteous in himself, he'd find true blessing and purpose in life. But all he got was the misery, unhappiness, disillus-ionment, disappointment of sin.

The expectations of people in general

The world is filled with people like what Paul was. They are madly pursuing a religion that promotes self-righteousness through various rules and rituals. They may prayerfully repeat certain formulas, light candles, visit shrines, or attend seminars. Many people belong to religions that teach if they do certain things, live a good life, and don't do prohibited things, they will experience blessing in this life and earn the right to enter heaven, attain to godhood, or some other reward after death. Such people are deceived. If they examined their hearts, they might realize that they're not alive at all, and that the promises their religious system has made to them will remain unfulfilled. Sin deceives them into thinking they can find happiness apart from God's truth, but all they find is misery, unhappiness, and death.

Paul once thought all desirable spiritual goals were available through the law, but when he learned the truth, he knew he had been deceived. Millions are similarly deceived. The deceitfulness of sin makes people think they can please God and gain His blessing by their good works alone. But that is a lie.

Scripture warns us of the deceitfulness of sin. Ephesians 4:22 says, “That ye put off concerning the former conversation [manner of life] the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts.” Hebrews 3:13 says, “Exhort one another daily, while it is called Today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”

Taken from Freedom from Sin,© 1987 by John MacArthur,

www.gracegems.org, All  rights reserved; Used with permission.

Lord, If Thou Dost Not Soon Appear

Isaac Watts (1674-1748)

Lord, if Thou dost not  soon appear, virtue and truth will fly away;
A faithful man amongst us here will scarce be found, if Thou delay.

The whole discourse, when neighbors meet, is filled with trifles loose and vain;
Their lips are flattery and deceit, and their proud language is profane.

But lips that with deceit abound shall not maintain their triumph long;
The God of vengeance will confound the flattering and blaspheming tongue.

“Yet shall our words be free,” they cry; “Our tongues shall be controlled by none:
Where is the Lord will ask us why? or say our lips are not our own?”

The Lord, who sees the poor oppressed, and hears th’oppressor’s haughty strain,
Will rise to give His children rest, nor shall they trust His Word in vain.

Thy Word, O Lord, though often tried, void of deceit shall still appear;
Not silver, seven times purified, from dross, and mixture, shines so clear.

Thy grace shall in the darkest hour defend the holy soul from harm;
Though when the vilest men have power, on every side will sinners swarm.

If Saved, Why Not Continue to Sin?

GotQuestions?org

The Apostle Paul answered a very similar question in Romans 6:1-2: “What shall we say, then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” The idea that a person could trust in Jesus Christ for salvation and then go on living just as he/she lived before is absolutely foreign to the Bible. Believers in Christ are new creations (2 Cor. 5:17). The Holy Spirit changes us from producing the acts of the flesh (Gal. 5:19-21), to producing the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23). The Christian life is a changed life.

What differentiates Christianity from every other world religion is that Christianity is based on what God has done for us through Jesus Christ. Every other world religion is based on what we must do to earn God's favor and forgiveness. Every other world religion teaches that we must do certain things, and stop doing certain other things, in order to earn God's love and mercy. Christianity, faith in Christ, teaches that we do certain things and stop doing certain things because of what Christ has done for us.

How could anyone, having been delivered from sin's penalty, hell, go back to living the same life that had him on the path to hell?

How could anyone, having been cleansed from the defilement of sin, desire to go back to the same cesspool of depravity? How could anyone, knowing what Jesus Christ did on our behalf, go on living as if Jesus Christ is not important? How could anyone, realizing how much Christ suffered for our sins, continue sinning as if Jesus' sufferings were meaningless?

Romans 6:11-15 declares, “Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.”

For the truly converted Christian, then, continuing to live sinfully is not an option. Because our conversion resulted in a completely new nature, our desire is to no longer live in sin. Yes, we still sin, but instead of wallowing in it as we once did, we now hate it and wish to be delivered from it. The idea of “taking advantage” of Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf by continuing to live sinfully is unthinkable. If a person believes himself to be a Christian and still desires to live the old, sinful life, he has reason to doubt his salvation. “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” (2 Cor. 13:5).

Sin Quote

Hosea Ballou

O sin, how you paint your face! how you flatter us poor mortals on to death! You never appear to the sinner in your true character; you make fair promises, but you never fulfil one; your tongue is smoother than oil, but the poison of asps is under your lip!

Reason to Keep Short Accounts with God

William Gurnall (1617-1679)

Thou mayest, though a child of God, be under fresh guilt and defilement yet unrepented of. Now in this case–God can shut His door upon His own child. As a saint, thou hast a right to all the promises of the Covenant: but as a saint under guilt or the defilement of any sin that thou hast not yet repented of, thou art not fit to enjoy what thou hast a right to as a saint. God doth not disinherit thee, indeed, but He sequesters the promise from thee, and the rents of it shall not be paid to thee till thou renewest thy repentance and faith on the Lord Jesus for the pardon of it. Thy God will choose a fitter time than this to signify His love to thee.

O Could I Find  Some Peaceful Bow'r?

Harrison

Could I find some peaceful bow'r where sin hath neither place nor pow'r;
This traitor vile, I fain would shun; but cannot from his presence run.

When to the throne of grace I flee, he stands between God and me;
Where'er I rove, where'er I rest, I feel Him working in my breast.

Lord, free me from this deadly foe, which keeps my faith and hope so low;
I long to dwell in heav'n my home where not one sinful thought can come.