When a Sin Remains

We serve a holy God. Holiness has been called His greatest and most distinct attribute. In looking in Isaiah 6 and Revelation 4 what the angels cry out three times is "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord our God." When Moses approached the burning bush it was God who said, "Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." In Leviticus 10 the Lord said, "By those who come near Me, I will be treated as holy." God cannot look upon sin, cannot tolerate sin, cannot abide with sin, and sin cannot enter His presence.

As His children, as part of His body, as partakers of the Divine nature, as those indwelled by the Holy Spirit, God has an expectation of our holiness. In Leviticus and I Peter He tells those who are His, "You shall be holy for I am holy." In II Corinthians 6:17 we are told to come out from the midst of the world and be separate. In Hebrews 12 He tells us that we are disciplined by Him so that we can share His holiness. In Ephesians 4 we learn that our new self has been made in God's likeness, and has been created in the holiness and righteousness of the truth. In just these few verses, we see that God is zealous and jealous for our holiness, and that He has equipped us to deal with our sin, so as to have victory over our sin.

Yet, in spite of all of this, we still sin. Romans 7, Galatians 5, and James 1 tell us that there is an ongoing battle with temptation and sin in our life. And, accordingly, God has made a provision for our forgiveness and cleansing, which we find in I John 1:9.

Understanding this gives us insight into Psalm 119:25-32. At first blush, when just reading through, it seems as if the Psalmist is just battling the blues. But let's look a little deeper into it. Why is his soul cleaving to the dust? Why is his soul weeping? Why does he need his heart enlarged? The answer is in this section, and we see it in verse 29. It is because of sin, because of a particular sin he has called "the false way." We now can see that the Psalmist is in a time of oppression, a time of grief, a time of a small and hard heart, because of sin.

Let's dig down into this section and see what is going on in each verse.

Verse 25-Oppression
"My soul cleaves to the dust; revive me according to Your word." Here we see the state of oppression that the Psalmist is in. Look at how low his soul is. It cleaves to the dust. It is lower than a snake's belly. It can't get any lower and it cannot escape this lowly state as it clings to his very soul. What kind of sin would bring on this degree of oppression? What kind of sin would cause this state of oppression in the life of a believer?

It is unrepentant sin! In fact a particular unrepentant sin, a false way that has not been turned away from. What type of sin, what kind of sin could this be. Well, it is:
*an unconfessed sin
*a sin that is undealt with
*a settled sin, a steady sin
*a sin that ignores conviction
*a sin that disdains discipline
*a sin that despises correction
*a sin that resists reproof
*a sin that is entrenched in the mind
*a sin that is embedded as a habit of life
*a sin for which the believer has developed a bunker mentality so as to protect it
*a sin that makes excuses for itself
*a sin that rationalizes its continued existence
*a sin that has full knowledge that it is a sin
*a sin with which you do not struggle, but comply
*a sin that the greater the discipline, the tighter you hold on to it
*a sin that believes the lies of Satan, such as
     a. It doesn't matter
     b. No one is noticing
     c. It really doesn't hurt anyone
     d. It is only a small thing
     e. God really doesn't care
     f. God understands
     g. Me and God have an agreement

     h. Because of____ I am justified in continuing in this sin

It is not a sin of impulse or a sin of the moment, but a sin that is deliberately held on to. Therefore it is not an unknown sin, a sin of ignorance, but a deliberate sin. This type of sin could be any sin.

God is jealous for the holiness of His people. He takes our holiness more seriously than we do. He sent His Son to die for that sin, that unrepentant sin, and He will do whatever He must do to drive it out and kill it. So if we are not active in putting that sin to death (Romans 8:13), He will be.

Unconfessed, unrepentant sin in the life of a believer always brings about oppression. We usually think of spiritual warfare when we use this term, but there is a spiritual oppression, a spiritual lowliness that comes as a result of unrepentant sin in our life; and it comes from the Lord Himself. Let's look at Psalm 32:3-4. When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. Notice what is going on in Isaiah 30:18-20. Therefore the Lord longs to be gracious to you, and therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you, for the Lord is a God of justice; how blessed are all those who long for Him. O people in Zion, inhabitant in Jerusalem, you will weep no longer. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears it He will answer you. Although the Lord has given you the bread of privation and water of oppression, He, your Teacher, will no longer hide Himself, but your eyes will behold your Teacher. Let's also look at Isaiah 64:7 There is no one who calls on Your name, who arouses himself to take hold of You; for You have hidden your face from us and have delivered us into the power of our iniquities.  

Notice in the emboldened words above that it was the Lord who had given Israel the bread of privation and the water of oppression because of their sin, that it was His hand that was heavy upon them, and that it was the Lord who had cut off fellowship with them and delivered them over to their sin. So, for us as believers, when we sin and don't confess it and don't turn from it, we can expect the hand of the Lord to be heavy upon us, to oppress us, so that we will turn from our sin. He is serious about dealing with our sin, especially unconfessed and unrepentant sin that is deliberately held on to.

So, what must we do when we are experiencing His heavy hand upon us because of our stubborn unrepentance?  We see what our response should be in the remaining verses in Psalm 119:25-32.

119:25b...Submission
"Revive me according to your word."
We must bring ourselves back under the authority of His word. When we sin, we rebel against His word, we act in opposition to His word (which is His revealed will), so the beginning of repentance is to submit ourselves again to His word. As Samuel told Saul, to obey is better than sacrifice.

119:26...Confession
"I have told of my ways, and you have answered me."
 Notice here what happens when we confess...God answers. And His answer always begins with forgiveness. True confession of our sins begins with viewing our sin the way God views it, and therefore saying the same thing about it that God says (See Psalm 51). When we truly confess our sins He truly forgives our sins.
(Psalm 32:5-7, Psalm 86:5, Isaiah 55:7, I John 1:9)

119:26b...Instruction
"Teach me your statutes."
Not only do we confess, we ask for guidance in living according to how He would have us live. Again, we know this prayer will be answered, for we know that when we ask anything according to His will He hears us and grants that request. (Psalm 25:4-5, Psalm 86:11)

119:27...Illumination 
"Make me understand the way of Your precepts, so I will meditate on Your wonders."
Not only does the Psalmist ask to know what the word of God says, he also wants to know what it means. He is asking for spiritual understanding and spiritual insight into the word of God so as to thoughtfully and properly apply it. (I Corinthians 2: 6-14, Ephesians 1:17)

119:28...Contrition
"My soul weeps because of grief."
Knowing, understanding, and applying the word of God to his life has caused the Psalmist to be broken-hearted over his sin. The very same soul that was rebelling against God, after comparing itself to the standard of the word of God, cries out, "O, what have I done." These are not the crocodile tears of insincerity, but tears of true sorrow and repentance. (II Corinthians 7:9-10, Psalm 51:17, Isaiah 57:15)

119:28b...Supplication
"Strengthen me according to Your word."
Here the Psalmist acknowledges his own weakness and asks for strength, the strength that the word gives, the strength to combat sin and its accompanying temptations; so that he will not fall back into this sin again. This is the true hallmark of repentance and contrition, the zealous desire not to sin that sin again, and the accompanying desire for holiness in all of life. (Matthew 6:13; 26:41, Psalm 119:133, Ephesians 3:16, 20)

119:29...Restoration
"Remove the false way from me, and graciously grant me Your law."

The Psalmist asks the Lord to give him complete victory over this sin, and to restore their fellowship back to where it was. Sin does not destroy our relationship with God as we will always belong to Him, but it does impede and impair our relationship with Him.  (Isaiah 59:2, Hosea 5:15, James 4:6-10)

119:30...Decision
"I have chosen the faithful way; I have placed Your ordinances before me."
After asking the Lord to remove the false way, the Psalmist announces his decision to follow the faithful way, the Lord's way. It is a decision of a destination, a decision to follow the word of God and let it lead him, wherever that may be. Following the Lord is a choice, and here the Psalmist chooses to get back on the faithful path, the narrow path that leads to life. (Psalm 85:13, Isaiah 31:21, Psalm 101:2-4; 119:103)

119:31...Determination
"I cling to Your testimonies."
The Psalmist is determined to not let go, to remain faithful to the word of God. This is the commitment that is required to life a godly life, to fully follow the Lord. Decision and determination go hand in hand.
(Philippians 3:12-14, II Timothy 4:7)

119:32...Direction
"I shall run the way of Your commandments."
The Psalmist knows where the word of God will take him...ultimately to God Himself, in His presence for eternity. It is the path of life, the path of joy, the path of fellowship with God, the path of blessing. Even though it narrow, it is well marked, as it has been marked out by the resurrection of Christ. (John 14:6)

119:32b...Passion
"For you will enlarge my heart."
Sin shrinks and hardens the heart. It hardens the heart to the things of God, the ways of God, the will of God, the work of God, and the love of God. When we walk in the faithful way and cling to His testimonies, the Lord enlarges our heart and gives us a greater capacity so as to love Him all the more; and the greater our love for Him the greater our obedience will be, and the greater our walk will be before Him.

In the response of the Psalmist we see a picture of repentance. This is the result that the Lord wanted to achieve and there is a cleansing of the soul and a corresponding peace when repentance takes place. How blessed we are that the Lord takes our relationship with him so seriously, so personally, that He deals with the sin that impedes and impairs that very relationship.

The Issue is not Homosexuality---

No, the issue is not homosexuality, it is sexual immorality, of which homosexuality is but one of its iterations.  Granted, homosexuality is a lower, more degraded form of sexual immorality (Romans 1:24-27); but the root issue here is one of sexual immoraltiy.  And what is sexual immorality?  It is the sexual activity outside of the marriage bond of a man and a woman.

What then would be included in sexual immorality?  Let's make a short list:

1. Fornication:  This includes casual sex, recreational sex, hooking up, one night stands, and even friends with benefits. Yes, even if you are serious about one another, in love, faithful or engaged to the one you are having sex with, all sex outside of the marriage union is immoral.  Whether you are 15 or 45, single, divorced, or never married, sex outside of marriage is a sin. The Bible calls this sin.

2. Adultery:  This sexual sin is well known, and unfortunately very common.  It is having sex with anyone other than your spouse after you have been married, or someone who is single having sexual relations with someone who is married, and it also includes those who have more than one spouse. Our culture has euphemized this term down to extra-marital sex or pre-marital sex.  It is never condoned in the Scriptures.

3. Pornography:  The root for this word is from the Greek word porneia, which means illegitimate sexual activity.  This sexual sin is a blight upon our society, and has spawned a huge internet industry.  Unfortunately, because sin can never be corralled, pornography has also extended its reach to children, and to the point of international child pornography rings.  I have heard some people say, well its just pictures, so what.  Well, that "so what" is still a sin.  Why?  Because you cannot look at pornorgraphic pictures and not be affected, and in all cases, isn't that why the pictures are viewed in the first place.  In Matthew 5:28 Jesus says, "but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart."  And yes, this applies to women as well, in the narrative pornography they read.  Most R rated movies contain pornography, and many of the PG-13 movies range from sexually suggestive to soft porn.

4. Incest:  This is sexual relations between immediate family members. I should not even have to mention this, but there is a push afoot to normalize this here in our country.  I remember on a trip to Paris back in the eighties seeing a music video on public television entitled "Incest is Good," and it showed an older man with a young girl. It was not graphic, but it made its point.

5. Homosexuality:  This sexual sin is between members of the same sex, and even though its proponents have tried to reword the Bible concerning this, it is always protrayed as a sin in the Scriptures.  So, even if the same sex couple is "married" it is still a sin.  Romans 1:24-27 lists two specific judgments of God on those who commit this sin, and the sex act is called shamless/indecent. 

These are the sexual sins that are common place in our country; and they all have their genesis in sexual immorality, the abandoning of a sexual morality that prescribed that sex was to be kept and to only take place within the bounds of a marriage relationship between a man and a woman.

Homosexuality is gaining a greater place at the table of normalcy because our soceity has become accepting and condoning of sex outside of marriage.  No thought or shame occurs any more because couples live together.  No thought or shame occurs anymore because someone becomes pregnant outside of marriage.  No thought or shame occurs anymore when unmarried people talk candidly about their sex lives in any media outlet. Once the barrier of shame has been taken away concerning sex outside of marriage, then it is only a short distance to the removal of all sexual shame.

Every magazine at the cashier's stand will have some article dealing with sex, and it is almost never about sex between marriage partners.  Our culture has becomed consumed by sex, and thereby have become consumers of sex.  There is such a preoccupation with sex in our society, that many pastors have sermon series on sex so they can be considered relevant with the times.

Heterosexual sex outside of marriage has been normalized in our culture, and the logical next step of the normalization of sex outside of marriage is the acceptance and promotion of homosexuality.  In light of this, the stand that the church should take is not against homosexuality per se, but should be against any and all sexual immorality, all that the Bible lists as sexual immorality.  In a very real sense, the church has waited too long to speak out.  Because the church has been silent all these years regarding the proliferation of the acceptance of sex outside of marriage, speaking out against homosexuality now makes it appear that the church is singling out the homosexuals.

Let us as the church, as individual Christians, speak up and out against all sexual immorality.  Let us speak up and out for a biblical sexual morality.  Let us call all sexual immorality what it is, sin before a Holy God.

Christ and Our Sin

...our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus

who gave Himself for us to redeem us

from every lawless deed.

Titus 2:13b-14a

Redeem, lutroo in the Greek.  It means to set one free by means of a ransom.  Every lawless deed (NASB)/all lawlessness (ESV), pas anomia in the Greek.  The phrase here means every type, every form , every kind of sin.

So this small section in Titus tells us that our great God and Savior Jesus Christ gave Himself for us, to ransom us and set us free from any and all sin.  This is not a broad brush of sins in a general sense, but sins in a particular sense.  Christ did not die for sins in general, but sins in particular.  He died for our particular sins, each and every one of them.  Therefore, it is not a universal salvation, but a particular salvation.  We have been freed from the penalty and power of every type and every form of sin.

The ransom has been paid and we have been set free from the bondage and power of each and every type of sin, every kind of sin.  Therefore there is absolutely no sin that can have dominion over us.  We are no longer slaves to sin, any sin, there is no longer any sin that can be master over us.  That means that we have been released from the power of pornography, immorality, homosexuality, bitterness, selfishness, gluttony, arrogance, lying, unforgiveness, and a host of other sins.  Christ has paid the price with His very own blood, and has effected our ransom so that we would be set free from the power and dominion of any sin. 

He has also redeemed us, set us free, from the penalty of each and every sin.  Each and every sin has a just recompense and each and every sin must be accounted for; and Christ has paid the penalty for each and every one of our sins for us.  Therefore we have been released from the damning effect of each and every sin, the eternal consequences of each and every sin, the eternal weight of judgment and the eternal wrath of God for each and every sin.

So, how dare we take sin lightly, any sin, so as to not even speak of sin at all.  There is no such thing as a little sin, or an innocuous sin.  There is no such thing as an inconsequential sin.  Each and every sin must be, and will be, accounted for.  Each and every sin has its just penalty and must be atoned for.  Each and every sin merits the eternal wrath of God, and no sin is overlooked or swept under the rug by God.  Christ redeemed us, each and every one of us, by paying the redemption price for each and every sin for us all.  So let us not take our sin(s) lightly, don't blow them off, don't shrug them off because they seem too small.  Confess your sin, be broken and contrite over your sin, each and every one of them; because Christ died for each and every one, to pays its penalty and to set you free from that sin.

This is the great salvation we are not to neglect.  Let us pay great attention, and give great praise to our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, for the greatness of His saving us.

The Source of Sin

Battling sin and its accompanying temptations is an internal battle.  As much as the temptation might come from the outside of us, it is the inside of us where the battle takes place.  Sin always occurs in the heart, before it manifests itself in our actions or behaviors.  James 1:14 tells us this, "Each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust."  Notice here that is is not someone else's lusts that we are battling against, but our own; it is not someone else's lusts that we are dealing with, but our own. This was Paul's point in Romans 7 as he talked about indwelling sin.

Unlike the old comedy skit by Flip Wilson, where he cried out, "The devil made me do it!"; we are complicit in our sin, because it starts and ends with us.  The source of sin is within, within each one of us; and although we have been washed and made clean through regeneration, we still live in a body where sin lurks, and where it is all too ready to respond to temptation, all too ready to indulge its desires in both our flesh and our mind (Ephesians 2:3).  James paints a graphic picture for us in 1:21 where he tells us that filthiness and wickedness still remain with us, as part of us.

What's the point?  Be aware, be very aware of the ease with which we are tempted.  Be aware, of how easy it is to sin.  Be aware that we, as Christians, are still in a body of unredeemed flesh, in which filthiness and wickedness still remain.  This is why Christ was chiding His apostles when they could not even fight their flesh to stay awake; and told them to watch and pray that they might not enter into temptation, because even though their spirit was willing, their flesh was weak.  This is also why we are told in the Lord's prayer to  pray to be led away from temptation and to pray that evil would not have its way with us.

So let us not be lulled to sleep, let us not be deceived, as sin is still crouching at the door desiring to master us; just as it has done from the beginning (Genesis 4:7).  But let us be strong in the Lord, and the strength of his might, let us be watchful and praying, let us be ever diligent in awareness of our own weakness.  Let us who stand, take heed lest we fall.

The Great Disconnect

In the Western church, more noticeably in the church in the US, we are living in a time of disconnection. A time in which there is a disconnection in so many who claim to be a Christian, and that disconnection is between what they claim to be and how they are actually living; and what is even worse, is that others who claim to be Christian see no problem with the disconnection, and in fact see no disconnection at all.

Yes, there is nothing new under the sun, as Solomon would say, as we see this same issue talked about by Paul as he says in Titus 1:16, They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and worthless for any good deed." James also alludes to this problem in James 1:22 as he says, "But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves." So yes, this problem is not new, it actually existed in Israel before the New Testament times, but it seems to me that this disconnection in the Western church (especially in our country) has gone from epidemic proportions, to pandemic. This disconnection is most visibly demonstrated in the area of sexual promiscuity, sensuality, and immorality.

Let me give you three examples that have come to my attention over the last few weeks.

#1. The vote, this week, by the Twin Cities presbytery of the PCUSA to okay the ordination of clergy without regard to sexual orientation.  This was the vote that gave the majority vote in favor of this change to their constitution.

#2. While having lunch with a friend of mine last week he told me of a youth minister in Houston who had moved in with his girlfriend.  His comment to me was that they should know better, and, yes, they should; but what bothered me was that the youth minster and his girlfriend obviously did not see anything wrong with co-habitating outside of marriage.

#3. The latest Youtube buzz about Carrie Underwood singing "How Great Thou Art."  Only a few weeks ago, at the ACM awards, she was provocatively dressed and gyrating around while singing with Steven Tyler.  It was bad enough that I turned off the television.  Obviously she doesn't see a problem with how she was performing at the ACM's or she wouldn't do it.  But does that performance, that activity, square with the profession of being a Christian?  Would she dress and perform like that at church?

Where is the disconnect here?  It is between their profession to be Christians, and their actions.  It is the difference between what the Scripture says and how they live their lives, which is also shown in the choices they make. Let's look at some Scripture that addresses all three of the examples I have listed above.

So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk

(live your life, or behave) no longer as the Gentiles walk,

in the futility of their mind, being darkened in their understanding,

excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that

is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; and they,

having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality

for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness.

But you did not learn Christ in this way, if indeed you have heard

Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus,

that in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside

the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the

lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind,

and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been

created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

Ephesians 4:17-24

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the

kingdom of God?  Do not be deceived; neither fornicators,

nor idolaters, not adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals,

nor thieves, nor the covetous, not drunkards, nor revilers,

nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.  Such were

some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified,

but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ

and in the Spirit of our God.

I Corinthians 6:9-11

Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness;

and sin is lawlessness.  You know that He appeared in

order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin.

No one who abides in Him sins (practices, habitually,

lives a lifestyle of sinfulness); no one who sins has

seen Him or knows Him.  Little children, make sure no

one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness

is righteous, just as He is righteous; the one who practices

sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. 

The Son of God has appeared for this purpose, to destroy

the works of the devil. No one who is born of God practices

sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin

(practice, habitually, live as a lifestyle), because he is

born of God.  By this the children of the devil are obvious:

anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God,

nor the one who does not love his brother.

I John 3:4-10

Italics mine for emphasis or explanation

Listen, the Bible is full of verses that speak to this from many different angles, and through many different scenarios.  What is the issue here?  What is the disconnect?  You cannot live the same lifestyle as the world, and be a Christian.  There is no such thing as a carnal Christian, or a nominal Christian (despite the continued misinterpretation of I Corinthians 3:3).  You are on one side of the fence or the other.  You cannot serve two masters.  There must be a consistency between your talk and your walk.  You must prove to possess what it is you profess, unless of course you fail the test. 

Another issue with the types of examples mentioned above, is that in many cases they have been told it is okay to live in this way, that as long as you have made some kind of profession you are covered...like some kind of holy fire insurance...and, if you don't accept these kind of lifestyles in those who profess to be Christians, you are being judgmental.

Scripture is the sole and final judge in these matters; and we must hold up the Scriptures as the standard for behavior for those who profess to be Christians.  We must not shrink back from declaring the whole counsel of God standing on the authority of Scripture alone.  To be able to do this we must know and have confidence in the Word of God.  In bringing this topic up with those who claim to be Christian it has become painfully obvious that their knowledge of Scripture is woefully anemic.  If we don't know the Scripture, we cannot think Biblically, and therefore cannot apply Scripture where needed.  And, if we do not know the Scriptures it is hard, nay impossible, to speak with any degree of authority on these matters.

The only way to combat this disconnect is for the Scriptures to faithfully, fully, and comprehensibly be taught and preached in our churches.  Yes, doing this might, in fact will, decrease our numbers; but what remains will be purer and then perhaps the church will gain the relevancy in the culture that is truly transforming.

Sin and Death

But each one is tempted when he is carried away

and enticed by his own lust.  Then when lust has

conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is

accomplished, it brings forth death.

James 1:14-15

....The soul who sins will die.

Ezekiel 18:4b

Death is the constant companion of sin.  In fact, it is   

such a close companion that the two cannot be separated.

Christ came down to destroy the works of the devil.  The

works of the devil are sin and death; and the power of both

were broken in His crucifixion, and overcome by His resurrection.

Forgiveness and Love

In Luke 7 (also in Matthew 26 and Mark 14) there is the story of the immoral woman who anointed Jesus with perfume, washed His feet with her tears, and wiped them with her hair.  Now Jesus happend to be at the home of Simon the leper, who was also a Pharisee (key to understanding this story).  What was reported in Matthew and Mark's versions was the response of Jesus to those who were indignant about such expensive perfume being wasted on the feet of Jesus when the poor could have used the money.  In Luke, Jesus responds to the self-righteousness of Simon with the illustration of a parable.  Let's pick up the story in Luke 7:39-48:

Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself,

"If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person

this woman is who is touching Him, that she is a sinner,"

And Jesus answered him, "Simon I have something to say to you."

And he replied, "Say it teacher."

"A moneylender had two debtors; 
one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.

When they were unable to repay, he graciously forgave them both. 

So which of them will love him more?"

Simon answered and said, "I suppose the one whom he forgave more."

And He said to himk " You have judged correctly."

Turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, "Do you see this woman?

I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has

wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.

You gave Me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in,

has not ceased to kiss My feet.  You did not anoint My head with oil,

but she anointed My feet with perfume. For this reason

I say to you her sins, which are many, have been forgiven,

for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little."

Then He said to her, "You sins have been forgiven."

A interesting paradox, in that Simon, who was considered unclean because of his leprosy, was also self-righteous in his Phariseeism.  One who was considered unclean by society and was therefore an outcast,  did not consider himself morally unclean, a sinner in need of forgiveness and cleansing.  Thus his treatment of Jesus, the sin-forgiver, even though He had come into Simon's house in spite of his uncleanness. The immoral woman saw her sin and therefore her need for forgiveness, and notice her treament of the Savior.  Contrast the love they exhibited for Jesus, which was whole point of the parable Jesus gave here. 

Those who see their sin for what it is, those who understand the horribleness of their own moral filth and wickedness appreciate their salvation the most.  Those who don't see their sin for what it is tend to take salvation for granted...almost like it is owed to them, much like Simon.  The immoral woman understood the depth of her sin and understood the corresponding greatness of her salvation.  This was the basis of the depth of her love for her Savior, and why she was willing to humble herself and make a fool of herself in front of others in showing the depth of her love and gratitude.

It is the same for us.  When we understand our sin...our own sin...its despicableness, its stench, its foulness, its abomination to God; then we comprehend the greatness of His love for us in forgiving us and saving us, and our love for Him comes pouring out in return.  When we understand the depth of our sin, we understand the depth of His love and the magnitude of His forgiveness.  Thus the truth, he who has been forgiven much, loves much. 

Is your love for the Savior informed by the knowledge of your sin for which He died?  Do you see your sin for what it is before and just and holy God?  Or have you gotten comfortable with your sin, and therefore blind to it?

Pastors, do you preach about sin to your people?  Do you guide them to see the depth of their sin?  I know its not popular to preach about sin in this age when it is presumed the Church's job is to make people feel better about themselves.  But unless people see themselves as sinners they won't see themselves in need of a Savior.  And unless they see their sin for what it is, their love for the Savior will be cold and shallow.  So we need to preach on sin, not to beat people up, but so the sinner will see their need for salvation; and the saved will see the greatness of their salvation, and bring both to love the Savior all the more.

O God, Our Help

Thank you, Lord, that you want us to be holy.  Thank You for being more desirous of our holiness than we are.  Thank You for imputing the righteousness of Your Son to us, and that we stand before You in His holiness.  You have desired truth in our innermost being and have put Your Holy Spirit within us, who is also the Spirit of truth. 

It is You that has done for us and to us what we were incapable of doing ourselves.  You made enemies Your friends.  You made haters of God, lovers of God.  You made the violent, peacful.  You have made the guilty, innocent.  You have made idolaters, true worshippers.  You made the selfish, givers.  You have made the arrogant, humble.  You have made the dead, alive.  You have given the hopeless, hope; and to the blind you have given sight.  You have set the captives free.  You have healed us from the pestilence of sin.  You have removed Your wrath from us.  To the mortal You will give immortality, and to the corruptible, incorruptibility.  You loved us when we were unlovable and despicable.  You made us sons of God when we were sons of hell.  All of this was done in and through Your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Who else would do this, or could do this, O Lord, but You.  It is You that has made us, not we ourselves.  As we go forward help the words of our mouth and the meditations of our heart to be acceptable in Your sight, for whom have we in heaven, but You; and there is no one else to please, no one else worthy of our pleasing, but You and You alone.  Amen

My Sin

Bill Lawless has a powerful post on sin, not just sin in general, you know--other people's sin--,but the sin with which we have our personal battle.

Reformed Lawless: 9/11 and My Sin

Sin and its Remedy--Psalm 119:25-32

This fourth section of the Psalm starts out with the cry "My soul cleaves to the dust!" What could make a believer feel this way? What would have this kind of affect and bring a believer to this state? From the context of these verses it is sin. Sin, you know what that is don't you? Maybe, or maybe not! Sin, the enemy of man that seeks to master him (Genesis 4:7), and the cause of his death (Genesis 2:16-17). It doesn't get mentioned in our churches much any more as the pendulum of the church culture has swung hard toward a "positive christianity". To preach on sin is a faux pas in our comfort driven church culture because we don't want to make the people feel bad for fear they won't come back or will go somewhere else. In fact, we have even renamed sin as it is now called a poor choice, a bad decision, falling down, failure, or a problem. You know, you can do all of these and still not sin, so to call sin any one of these is to lessen what it really is, and what it really does.

I John 1:8 tells us that all of us, as believers, still sin. So by not preaching on it, people in the church today are ignorant of their sin and how to deal with it, and the results are disasterous in their lives and in the life of the church. Even though the church today takes sin lightly, God does not, and never has. God hates sin and will not leave it undealt with in His children, His people who are called by His name, but because of His goodness and His faithfulness He has given us a way to deal with sin, any sin, not just for the moment, but for everday. So let's see what He tells us in this section of Psalm 119.

Oppression
25. My soul cleaves to the dust-
Unconfessed sin in the life of the believer always brings oppression. Look at Psalm 32:3-7. See what is going on with the Psalmist. His body is wasting away. He is groaning all night. His vitality was drained away. Why was all of this happening to him? The Lord's hand was heavy upon him. Why was the Lord's hand heavy upon him? He was keeping silent, not dealing with his sin. Look at Isaiah 30:18-20. Here we see God giving the bread of privation and the water of oppression to His people. Why? Because of their sin. Again, look in Isaiah, chapter 64 verses 6-7, at how God repays the iniquity of their sin into their bosom. He brings the consequences of their sin back against them.

We usually talk about spiritual oppression being caused by Satan and his demons, but do we realize that the greatest weapon that the enemy uses against us is our own sin? And God will not let sin go undealt with in His people. Read the story of Balaam in Numbers 22-25 and 31:15-16. So if you are oppressed, if your soul is low, if His hand is heavy upon you, and you are in a time of privation and oppression, maybe there is sin in your life that you need to deal with. What is the first step in dealing with your sin? It is

Submission
25. Revive me according to your word.
In light of his low condition the Psalmist asks God to revive him. The word revive in the Hebrew means to restore to health, to restore to vitality, to heal and recover, and he asks God to revive him according to His word, not according to the wishes of the Psalmist, but according to the revealed will of God. So we see here a submission of the Psalmist's will to the will of God. This is important because sin is lawlessness (I John 3:4), it is rebellion against God's standards. So we see here a shift in attitude from rebellion to submission. Now you can see why God's hand would be heavy, why He would give you the bread of privation and the water of oppression, because sin is rebellion against God.

Where are you, my friend? Are you continuing to stubbornly or ignorantly stand in your rebellion, your lawlessness. Because to remain silent (Psalm 32) in your sin is to continue in rebellion against God. Submit yourself to God, humble yourself before Him and He will give you grace. As submission of the heart is always required before

Confession
26. I have told You of my ways and You have answered me; Teach me your statutes.
The next step to becoming restored to spiritual vitality and health is to tell God of your ways, your doings, your actions, the way you are thinking and living your life. In Psalm 32:5 we see the Psalmist calling it for what it is--sin. He did not hide it or keep silent about it any longer, but confessed it to God for what it is--sin. In I John 1:9 we are told that if we confess our sins then He will forgive our sins, just like in Psalm 32:5. In I John 1:9 the word for confess literally means to say or speak the same thing. If you really think about it what this means you will see that we are to say the exact same thing about our sin as God does, to call it for what He calls it, not to whitewash it or play it down by calling it other than what it is like poor decision, bad choice, falling down, failure, or problem. In fact, for us to call it the same thing as God does we must think about it and see it the way God does, and we are certainly capable of doing this since we have the mind of Christ through the indwelling Holy Spirit.

We also see in this verse that when we tell God of our ways He answers us. When we see our sin the way He sees it and therefore speak about it as He would, He will not be silent. He will answer in forgiveness just as we saw in Psalm 32:5 and I John 1:9.

Notice the next thing the Psalmist does is to ask God to teach him His statutes. He has already stated in Psalm 119:1, 3, 9, 11 that it is the word of God that makes his way blameless, keeps him from unrighteousness, keeps his way pure, and keeps him from sin. In fact, this is one of the recurrent themes of this Psalm as seen also in verses 36, 80, 101, 105, 136, and 165. Again, our sin is the greatest tool Satan uses against us. So in our positive, friendly church culture where sin and its consequences are not mentioned or made less than what they are, he is having a field day. Especially when "practical principles" are being taught in lieu of the Word of God. It is the Word of God that is corrective. It is the Word of God that is restorative. It is the Word of God that is a light for our path and a lamp for our feet. No wonder the church looks so much like the world. So, my friend, do you view your sin the way God does, for the lawlessness and rebellion that it is, and have you confessed it to Him as such?