~ Proverbs 28:1
A person entangled in wickedness is suffering under the guilt of what they have done. They run and hide because they live in fear of being found out, caught, and punished. For example, the thief suspects that everyone they encounter may be a police officer and thus lives in constant fear of being arrested. The embarrassment that comes with being found out keeps this person timid, weak, and spineless in the face of other wickedness; they won’t speak up to condemn evil because they know that they too will be implicated. They are essentially owned by their sin and by anyone who may know about it.
Further, a father or mother who has committed evil in their lifetime that remains unforgiven, is less likely to confront the wickedness they see in their child’s life to teach and admonish them. Rather, they are more likely to stay silent because of the shame that they themselves are living under: “How can I confront this? What if they knew about my life?”. Similarly, a friend isn’t likely to call out another who is heading into a destructive lifestyle because they are well aware that they too are not perfect and have made decisions that have hurt and damaged themselves and others around them.
But the righteous are as bold as lions? Who are these righteous and how dare any human pretend to be perfect or right in the eyes of God? What arrogance??!!
A person entangled in wickedness is suffering under the guilt of what they have done. They run and hide because they live in fear of being found out, caught, and punished. For example, the thief suspects that everyone they encounter may be a police officer and thus lives in constant fear of being arrested. The embarrassment that comes with being found out keeps this person timid, weak, and spineless in the face of other wickedness; they won’t speak up to condemn evil because they know that they too will be implicated. They are essentially owned by their sin and by anyone who may know about it.
Further, a father or mother who has committed evil in their lifetime that remains unforgiven, is less likely to confront the wickedness they see in their child’s life to teach and admonish them. Rather, they are more likely to stay silent because of the shame that they themselves are living under: “How can I confront this? What if they knew about my life?”. Similarly, a friend isn’t likely to call out another who is heading into a destructive lifestyle because they are well aware that they too are not perfect and have made decisions that have hurt and damaged themselves and others around them.
But the righteous are as bold as lions? Who are these righteous and how dare any human pretend to be perfect or right in the eyes of God? What arrogance??!!
Well, if there are people pretending to be right before God, or righteous, based on their own merit, they too are wicked because indeed all of us have sinned and are not able to attain the high standard of the glory of God Almighty (Romans 3:23). Jesus confronted this kind of arrogance in his dealings with the religious teachers of His day. He essentially told them that their hearts were far from God and that their worship was in vain due to their hypocrisy (Matthew 15:7-9).
So who are these righteous ones that are as bold as lions and how did they attain this righteousness? Who justified them? How is it possible that they are bold in the face of wickedness and evil when we have clearly established that all have sinned?!
It is God Himself who justifies His chosen ones.
We are not able to justify ourselves in the sight of God. He does it Himself. And when God justifies someone, who then will be able to bring any accusation or charge to condemn them? No one (Romans 8:31-34).
No one can condemn the one whom God has justified.
This person has been set free from the guilt and shame of their own wicked desires, thoughts, and actions.
And how exactly does God justify His chosen?
God sent His son, Jesus, to pay the penalty for my sin and yours. Jesus died on the cross to pay the debt owed for my sin once and for all. And now, anyone who is in Christ Jesus has been set free from the guilt of their wicked and evil desires, thoughts, and actions. Jesus was the sin offering to condemn sin in each of us “in order that the righteous requirement of the law may be fully met in us” (Romans 8:1-4).
We are made righteous through Christ; it is not our own doing, but all due to His doing.
Hymn from my childhood:
> He Paid A Debt
He paid a debt He did not owe,
I owed a debt I could not pay,
I needed someone to wash my sins away;
And now I sing a brand new song,
Amazing grace all day long,
Christ Jesus paid a debt
That I could never pay.
(Author Unknown)
He paid a debt He did not owe,
I owed a debt I could not pay,
I needed someone to wash my sins away;
And now I sing a brand new song,
Amazing grace all day long,
Christ Jesus paid a debt
That I could never pay.
(Author Unknown)
Have you moved from pride to humility?
Have you humbled your spirit, and bowed down before Jesus Christ, the King of kings and the Lord of lords?
If you believe in Jesus,
That He is the Son of of the One True God,
That His birth was prophetic and miraculous,
That He lived a righteous life on earth,
That He died on the cross,
That He rose from the dead,
That He ascended into heaven,
That He will return again.
If you have professed Jesus as your Lord and Saviour,
If you have confessed your sins,
If you have turned away from the sinful nature,
If you believe that your old self is gone and a new version has come (2 Corinthians 5:17) as symbolized through baptism,
And if you are led by the Spirit of God,
Then you are a Child of God and a part of His eternal family (Romans 8:14).
You have been redeemed.
You are counted among the righteous.
Now go with boldness and authority.
Yes, you have sinned, but you are not a slave to sin.
You are now dead to sin, and alive to God through Christ Jesus!
(Romans 6:6, 6:11)
There is no condemnation for you, because you are in Christ Jesus. “Who then is the one who condemns? No one” (Romans 8:34).
Follow the leading of the Spirit of God. Go with confidence because this life is temporary, but the one that awaits is eternal and filled with the goodness of our God. Fix your eyes there, on the unseen and the eternal (2 Corinthians 4:18).
And with every breath that God allows you on this earth,
Proclaim Jesus as the Saviour of the world,
Teaching and baptizing many into the faith
(Matthew 28:18-20).
This is our hope, fellow Children of God, and this is our purpose.
Have you humbled your spirit, and bowed down before Jesus Christ, the King of kings and the Lord of lords?
If you believe in Jesus,
That He is the Son of of the One True God,
That His birth was prophetic and miraculous,
That He lived a righteous life on earth,
That He died on the cross,
That He rose from the dead,
That He ascended into heaven,
That He will return again.
If you have professed Jesus as your Lord and Saviour,
If you have confessed your sins,
If you have turned away from the sinful nature,
If you believe that your old self is gone and a new version has come (2 Corinthians 5:17) as symbolized through baptism,
And if you are led by the Spirit of God,
Then you are a Child of God and a part of His eternal family (Romans 8:14).
You have been redeemed.
You are counted among the righteous.
Now go with boldness and authority.
Yes, you have sinned, but you are not a slave to sin.
You are now dead to sin, and alive to God through Christ Jesus!
(Romans 6:6, 6:11)
There is no condemnation for you, because you are in Christ Jesus. “Who then is the one who condemns? No one” (Romans 8:34).
Follow the leading of the Spirit of God. Go with confidence because this life is temporary, but the one that awaits is eternal and filled with the goodness of our God. Fix your eyes there, on the unseen and the eternal (2 Corinthians 4:18).
And with every breath that God allows you on this earth,
Proclaim Jesus as the Saviour of the world,
Teaching and baptizing many into the faith
(Matthew 28:18-20).
This is our hope, fellow Children of God, and this is our purpose.
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