As far as I know I haven’t met anyone who has murdered anyone, (but you never know for sure because it’s not the kind of thing one broadcasts). Taking a life has got to be high on the list of bad acts, but there are plenty of others; adultery, robbery, deceit, abortion, pride, addiction, indifference…etc.
One thing I am certain of is that if you ask a person what is the thing they are most ashamed of doing in their life – something immediately comes to mind. It seems to me almost everyone has got a ‘stand-out failure’ that they regret deeply. Whats yours ?
Being mindful of our failings is a normal human condition, we are wired up toward guilt, we wish we could relive that moment or period in our lives – we wish we could take it all back and do it the right way. We wish…
My observation is that in the main, Christians are not as good at forgiving themselves as God is. We have a tendency to hold on to regret and guilt as if it is a burden we are expected to bear for life, in exchange for our salvation. The notion of forgiving ourselves for our past failings can seem irresponsible considering the hurt and pain our actions may have caused. We tend to see forgiveness as being a condition that pertains to eternal life after we die, but not especially related to the here and now… Why? – because our mind wont let us forget our worst moments.
Rom. 12:2 instructs us to “be transformed by the renewing of our mind“… I would contend that, if after receiving the gift of righteousness from Christ we continue to be conscious of our sins, then we have not allowed our minds to be renewed. If the blood of Christ is powerful to wash away our sin, then we must allow ourselves to fully agree with it’s work and declare ourselves perfect, holy and righteous. To do less is to call the blood of Jesus ineffective and the word of God a lie. There is nothing godly or spiritual about feeling unworthy – the blood of Christ has made every believer completely worthy before God.
Becoming righteous is not a process that depends on the maturity of our Christian walk, it is an instantaneous transformation. God is not slowly chipping away at us to get us into shape, he re-built us in his image in a split second when we believed.
We wouldn’t be ready to stand before God in a million years if it depended on some divine personal improvement program, No, we were completely improved when we were re-born of God.
ain’t it grand !!
cheers, G
mybroom 
Another excellent post with truths that every Christian needs to be reminded of.
thanks for your encouragement, it’s interesting how we Christians need to be reminded again and again about the simple truths. cheers G
Yes, fundamental truths somehow elude us. It makes me think of the Israelites and how God had Moses remind them over and over again of what He had done for them because He knew they would only remember for a time. As Christian, we need to write God’s truths on our hearts and minds, and that generally only comes with repetition. Joy
Hi Joy, we seem to have a built in mechanism that rejects the grace of God – I think we need to agree with God and live free. cheers, G
Hi Joy,
you are right about God’s truth written on our hearts and minds. God in fact made a new covenant of which we are in today.
Hebrews 8 : 10-12
10 “FOR THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL
AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD:
I WILL PUT MY LAWS INTO THEIR MINDS,
AND I WILL WRITE THEM ON THEIR HEARTS.
AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD,
AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.
11 “AND THEY SHALL NOT TEACH EVERYONE HIS FELLOW CITIZEN,
AND EVERYONE HIS BROTHER, SAYING, ‘KNOW THE LORD,’
FOR ALL WILL KNOW ME,
FROM THE LEAST TO THE GREATEST OF THEM.
12 “FOR I WILL BE MERCIFUL TO THEIR INIQUITIES,
AND I WILL REMEMBER THEIR SINS NO MORE.”
note, I WILL REMEMBER THEIR SINS NO MORE. what a lovely truth from God. God writes the Laws into our hearts. it is now built in to us and we remember that God remembers our sin no more! amen.
– grace and peace
Grand it is!
It is grand, it’s good news.
I made a comment on a blog recently regarding homosexuality
I ask
– what is the difference between hatred and murder? none.
– what is the difference between lust and adultery? none.
– what is the difference between lying and homosexuality? none.
we label and categorize sin. as if it is possible to enter Heaven with a simple sin of lying and not enter heaven with murder.
well, the truth really is Jesus died for all sins.
I absolutely agree, sin is primarily a condition from which the act is generated. Human beings may commit varying acts but all possess the same condition until they are regenerated by Christ’s blood. I like your point that lying seems so minor compared with murder but it is just as able to separate us from the presence of God . cheers, G