2010 – April 27 – When Sin Comes Home to Roost

Study from God’s Word… Psalms 40, 49, 50, and 73 … Passage for Reflection: Psalm 40: 12… NIV 12 For troubles without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me.

My Journal for Today: Have you ever felt guilty, maybe even to the point of emotional paralysis, over some sin – or recurring sins – in your life? We know that David, who penned Psalm 40, as he also did Psalms 51 and 32, dealt seriously with his remorse and repentance from his sins with Bathsheba. Wow; King David had some doozies (i.e., really bad sins) to deal with in his life; and in today’s highlight passage he expresses that his “… sins [whatever they may be, had] overtaken [him]” to the point he felt emotionally blind to life.

That’s what sin can do to our lives. It can render us narrow sighted (at best) and even blinded to reality at times. Our flesh can render our judgment poor; and we become the victims of our own desires or past sin habits; and we make choices which dishonor God and are a witness to our own inability to fight the flesh by thinking that we can overcome its influences with our own fleshly strength.

How many times, after I’ve sinned and see its outcomes, do I have to say to myself, “Bill, you know that you can’t fight the flesh with the flesh?” And as you read this, I don’t know if you’re dealing with some sins from your past that have you feeling down and out. The Apostle Paul was certainly feeling the ramifications of some sin weakness in his life when he penned Romans 7: 14 – 24. But he wanted his readers (the Roman Christians and then you and me) to identify with the reality that all sinners, including himself, must deal with life when sin comes home to roost; and we see our sinfulness, selfishness, and weakness for what it is.

But then, it was also the Apostle Paul, who, in his realization of what Christ had/has done for our sins, penned probably the greatest victory chapter in all of Scripture in Romans 8, which begins in verse 1, by declaring, There is NO CONDEMNATION for those who are in Christ, Jesus! And remembering whatever your sin has been – or maybe is right now – I charge you to recite that verse at least three times and go back and meditate on the entire truth of Chapter 8 of Romans; and then you pray to God a prayer of thanksgiving – that is, if you know Christ as your Lord and Savior – declaring strongly to God the praise that is due Him for dying on that cross and paying the penalty for our sins.

And then, as I am doing as I write this, my friend, you also declare how you are going to honor God by living your life in the truth of Romans 8 rather than the lies Paul felt and spoke of in Romans 7. And when we do that, dear one, we’ll be walking in true repentance and finding the freedom to walk with Christ on His road of righteousness, … walking away from Satan and dealing with our own flesh by surrendering to God’s Spirit within us.

My Prayer for Today: Dear Lord, I know You desire for me to follow You on Your road of righteousness, walking away from my flesh and looking only forward to follow You into Your victory over sin. Amen

2009 – Day 118.Apr. 29 – Cave Dwellers

2009 – Day 118.Apr. 29 – Cave Dwellers

Passage of the Day: 1st Samuel 22: 3 – 23 … 1st Sam. 22 linked for study …

Added Passage: Psalm 34: … Linked for study …

My Journal for Today: If you were with me yesterday, you saw that Chuck Swindoll took us to three Psalms which were written while David and his mighty men were in the Cave out near En Gedi (see our passage in 1st Samuel 22 and 1st Sam. 24: 1 – 3). And as you read the apparent sequence of David’s attitude transformation from Ps. 142 and Ps. 52, we come to Psalm 34; and we read of a man, a leader of men, who could have “caved” (pardon the pun) to despair or disillusionment; but he didn’t.

No, David may have been in the cave; but the cave didn’t get into David. David chose to put his eyes on His Lord, just as we should when we’ve been led into the caves of life. Perhaps, as you read this, you are in an economic cave, surrounded by the coldness of privation. Perhaps it’s an emotional cave based on some relational brokenness. Perhaps, you’ve come to a spiritual cave where things seem very dark and where God seems very far away or just not there at all. We all have times when we feel like we’re backed into a dark, cold, and dreary cave in life.

BUT, in those moments we can choose to “cave” to our own fears and our flesh, or we can, as did David, exercise our faith in The Lord. Read back through Psalm 34, especially if you’re in a cave right now. Let the hopefulness give you light and warmth; and add to it the truth of passages like Isaiah 41: 10 or Romans 8: 31. And even more with the reality of Deut. 31: 6 or Hebrews 13: 5, you can, like David, realize that God is right there with you in your cave; and He will never forsake you.

God doesn’t promise that we won’t be led into the caves of life; but He does promise to be there with us and to give us the strength to bear up in those cave times of life (see 1st Cor. 10: 13 and 2nd Cor. 12: 9). And these truths and promises are the lights which I’ve memorized over the years which shine light into my caves when I find myself in one. They give me warmth to overcome the shivering cold. They let me know that my God will never abandon me to go it alone. And when I realize that, even in the cave, I have God to give me the warmth and light of His love.

My Prayer for Today: Shine your Light, Lord; … give me Your warmth; and I will walk out of the cave WITH YOU. Amen