The Apsotle Paul, who lived an impeccable life for Christ; Who walked in godliness, holiness, and love; And who fought the good fight of faith: Said he was the chief of all sinners. Amazing statement.
That's something for us all to ponder, and to ponder for the rest of our life here on earth.
Here's another quote to ponder: "We actually are, at present, creatures whose character must be, in some respects, a horror to God, as it is, when we really see it, a horror to ourselves. This I believe to be a fact: and I notice that the holier a man is, the more fully he is aware of that fact." -C.S. Lewis
The fact of the Gospel is that though we are washed by Christ of our sins, and He grants us to be set apart in His goodness before God, we are still sinners, and as new creatures in Christ we now hate our sin. We hate that we love it at times. And that's how it will be until we leave this sinful age, and go home to see our Savior face to face.
3 comments:
Don,
I remember you cited this Scripture when someone who spoke at our old church said, "Christians should not refer to themselves as sinners, but saints." Your recall of 1 Tim 1:15 was excellent- simply pointing out the present tense (I AM) of Paul's self-understanding. Great stuff. Indeed, the closer we grow to Christ, the more we realize our sinfulness. Isn't that the beauty of the paradoxical logic of the kingdom!
That is a good point about loving and hating our pet sins. We have a desire for what we hate. It is much easier to hate those sins that cause me no problem.
My biggest horror is that I used to practice sin that I now hate and could no longer do. This brings deep sorrow to my soul even though I know I am forgiven.
Amen Gregory.
Jazzy, when you share your heart, it's always a blessing and encouraging. Thanks.
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