I recently walked past two individuals with quite somber faces holding signs about sinners and hell. It made me think about what those around me must be thinking.
Sinner. It’s often used of one who does bad things. Yet what if a person believes themselves to be morally good? They follow the 10 Commandments; therefore, don’t even stop to think about their need for Jesus and blow right past those signs.
Yet, sin has just as much to do with separation from God as it does with the specific actions of sin. Each person has a God created space in their lives that only He can fill. Yet, He is absent or separated from those who have not put their faith in Jesus. Because of this, the person will experience all the negative side-effects of not having God present in their life, such as loneliness. They are indeed lonely as they’re the only one in that God space. They feel this regardless of how moral they might think themselves to be. They will feel insignificant as they are the highest ranking person in that space, which isn’t saying much. They will feel insecure as it’s up to only them to be powerful enough to ward off all invaders of their peace; and yet, they know they can’t.
Everyone experiences these emotions and thoughts, from those who know they are morally bankrupt to the person who thinks they’re morally ok as both are separated from the source of peace, love/belong and security – Jesus. He’s the only one who can fill that void and bring true satisfaction, no matter how moral anyone thinks themselves to be.
Do I dare say, even some Christians fit into this camp as well? “I’m doing stuff that will please God. I’m going to church. I tithe. I share my faith. I pray and read my bible. God’s cool with me, right?” Hmm, maybe not. Now that you’re a believer, Jesus lives inside that God-shaped vacuum, but is He on the throne telling you what to do or are you on the throne telling Him what to do, even morally good things?
Our sin leads to death which means separation from God. Jesus’ righteousness leads to being a holy one/saint, one who is separated to God. In one, He is outside the life. In the other, He is inside the life. One is controlled by the person. The other should be controlled by Jesus. The one with Christ inside has a real choice – draw closer (holiness) to Jesus by listening to and following Him, the source of all their needs or standing next to Jesus with their back toward Him, suffering all the side-effects that come with that choice.
You are a saint, a holy one, who can choose to draw closer to Jesus with each and every decision. Make it your goal in 2015 to get better at keeping in step with where Jesus is going, not you.
S“E”t Free Nowww