9-16-2014

Good Morning All,

         Romans 7:18; “For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.”

        After a visit to my doctor (again), I am trying to exercise and lose weight (again).  I know what I have to do: watch what I eat cut down on sugars and fats, exercise more and drink more water.  Yet I really like “Special K Bars”.  Now I know that one bar is at least 2 hours on the tread mill but I follow all the classic denials.  I can try to justify the action; for example, I can eat them on the weekend as a reward for not eating them during the week.  I can try to offset the action; for example, I will spend more time on the tread mill for each one.  The final one is to hide the fact that I eat them and then deny, deny, deny that I ever ate them.  I know what is right but it is hard to do what I should.

    The technical name for this is called “cognitive dissonance.”  It is when we hold two contradictory thoughts at the same time.  As a Christian I know I should forgive you but the sinful nature in me wants to punch you.  So I struggle.  I have a friction in my heart and in my mind.  I know what God’s desire and what God’s law says.  I know I should keep it because of God’s great love for me and why would we hurt someone who loves us?  Yet I desire revenge, I lust, I am greedy, I gossip, I judge the actions of others harshly, I really don’t want to give someone else what I worked hard for.  Both are at work, the devil on the left shoulder and the angel on the right.

    Theologians call this existence “simul justus et peccator”.  We are, at the exact same time, justified saints and we are sinners.  The sinful nature still rears its ugly head in our life.  Sometimes, we can fend it off and sometimes we can’t.  We will always fight it.  We will battle it until we die or until Christ returns.  The struggle will always be there.

    The unbeliever doesn’t have this trouble.  The unbeliever doesn’t think about what their faith says to them.  The unbeliever only worries about self-preservation and his own self-interest.  It is only the believer who struggles because we know what is right, we even desire to do what is right but there are times when we fail.  So we struggle, we battle and we win some and lose some but through it all we are forgiven by God because of Jesus.

    We all have this battle; you are not alone in your battle.  Yet while this struggle occurs in all believers; Christ continues to forgive us and to renew us.  His Spirit continues to remind us of what is right, what is proper and what is according to God’s will.  His desire is that we do his will because that is how the world was designed to run smoothly and peacefully.  Through it all God is with us.  His love and forgiveness will always be with us to give us power to withstand and to pick us up when we fail.

Father of all mercy, your Spirit guides me and shows me what is right yet I often fail.  Give me the strength to withstand the temptations of this world.  Lead me to overcome this world’s deceits.  Lead me to know your truth.  In the precious name of Jesus, I pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret