Love does not rejoice in unrighteousness: Part 2

Living with our own sins

One of the primary areas where we are content to live in harmony with unrighteousness is in the area of our own sins. We are quick to judge the sins of others and are often harsh in our renouncement of our own brethren when they sin, but we are equally quick to excuse our own sins and to rebuff anyone who tries to address areas of sin in our personal life. We are like the man who is skilled at finding the specks in his brother’s eye yet all the time fails to see the log that is in our own eye (Matthew 7:3). Paul, in writing to the Corinthian church, spoke of this same condition that was apparent in the church. “I am afraid that when I come again my God may humiliate me before you, and I may mourn over many of those who have sinned in the past and not repented of the impurity, immorality and sensuality which they have practiced.” (2 Corinthians 12:21)

Jesus invites us to come “just as I am” but He doesn’t want us to stay “just as I am”. When we come to Jesus we all come dirty. We are all filthy with the stain of our own sins. We also come with habits, practices, and ideas that were not formed by the Word of God but rather were formed by our association with the world. We come as sinners and it is sinners that Jesus came to save (1 Timothy 1:15). Once saved, however, Jesus begins to work a work of sanctification in our lives; to clean us up from the inside out. It is this process of sanctification that Jesus asks us to partner with Him in the work. The Holy Spirit does the work, but we must yield to His leading and teaching in our lives. This is why Paul said that we should, “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.” (Hebrews 12:14)

We can no longer tolerate sin in our own lives. We must be willing to confront it and repent of our sin that we might find forgiveness and a changed life by the power of the Holy Spirit. “I will send My terror ahead of you, and throw into confusion all the people among whom you come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. I will send hornets ahead of you so that they will drive out the Hivites, the Canaanites, and the Hittites before you.” (Ex 23:27-28) The Holy Spirit is at work in our lives, exposing areas of sin that we might “drive them out.” He doesn’t ask us to deal with all our issues all at once, but when He does bring an area of sin to the forefront, we must deal with it and drive it from our lives.

More to come… David Robison