For some reason, when it comes to our relationship with God, there are a lot of Christians who have taken the position that since God extends His grace to me when I sin, I ought to keep on sinning so that I can get more of God’s grace my life. On more than one occasion I have witnessed those who claim to be disciples of Jesus intentionally choose to do something they know to be sin and comment that it’s OK because they know that God will forgive them.

There seems to be an inner desire that wants to presume, to do something based upon unknown or future consequence.  To do something without proof.  Christians frequently presumes to act, teach, and promote beyond what the Lord has written. We frequently see the following rationale offered to justify man’s action, soothe his own conscience, and silence the inner plea to submit to God’s Word:

• God is our Heavenly Father. He loves me! Does He not want me to be happy? I know my Father wants me to have this, because it will make me happy!
• God may have been strict in the Old Testament, but in the New Testament we are under a system of grace. Therefore, we are not in bondage to worry about keeping every law perfectly. We do not have to worry about tedious, detailed observances of any kind.
• Do you really think God would send me to hell just for doing this?
• Will God really condemn me for this one sin?
• What’s so bad about doing this?
• Who will be hurt by doing that?
• No one will ever know about what I do.

True, God is our heavenly Father, and He dearly loves us; however, He seeks our best interest, which is not always what we want, what satisfies for the moment, or what makes us happy in this instant.

But we pull out the Big Bible and quote from Matthew 7:9-11

Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

The assumption here is that we know more about what is good for us than God.  We are assuming that we have judgment, clarity, foresight, knowledge, and wisdom paramount to God!

Since what we want and what God wants for us are often two distinct paths, only presumption would ignore God’s revealed will for us in exchange for satisfying our palpitating desires.

So then how should we live?

Let’s start with the fact that while It’s simple, It’s not easy.

I have discovered that losing weight is simple, but it’s not easy. All you have to do to lose weight is to consume fewer calories than your body needs. That’s simple. You figure out how many calories your body needs each day to maintain your present weight and then you eat less than that.  But restriction of the day to day snacks, and occasional cans of soda is not so easy.

The day to day life in Jesus is simple but it is not easy.

It’s Something I Have to Do

Nobody else can do it for you and you can’t do it for anyone else.  You are the only one that can die to sin in your life. Your wife can’t do it for you.  Not your Pastor or even your neighbor. It is my decision for me.   My deciding to live a holy life, that is a life that is in the center of God’s will and obedient to God’s will.

 God can’t or won’t do it for you, in the sense that he won’t take away your free will and force you to live a holy life, He’s willing to help in the form of the Holy Spirit. With God’s help you can do it. Do you believe that? But you have to want to. And it is a partnership.

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