GIVING IT UP
I enjoy going to the gym to workout whenever I can, but I’ll admit…I’m not that great at making it every day. However, I am working harder at being active and getting some type of workout in each day. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not pretending to be as health conscious as that sounds. There are things that I’m not willing to give up even as I pursue a more healthy lifestyle. Things that I like too much. That’s a lot like it is for many Christians on a spiritual level. Many (most?) of us want to grow in our relationship with Christ, want to grow spiritually and be “spiritually healthy,” but there are some thing we’re not willing to give up.
I don’t know what it is for you, but there are all sorts of things that believers hold on to: unforgiveness, anger, comfort, status, and on and on. We want more of God, we want to grow deeper in our relationship with God, but we’re not giving it up. The reason that we are not willing to give it up is because we don’t see it for what it is. It’s sin. Living with an unforgiving heart is sin. Living in anger is sin. Living more concerned about your own comfort, desires, and status…it’s sin. And sin keeps us from growing stronger and going deeper spiritually.
So what do we need to do?
We need to do what David did in Psalm 51. We need to acknowledge our sin, confess our sin, repent, and seek God’s forgiveness. We need to give “it” up and rest in the forgiveness, mercy, grace, and love of God. David understood that his sin stood as a barrier to intimacy with God and he wanted it gone. We need to understand that as well and strive to daily kill the sin in our lives. The life of a believer is to be a life lived in faith in the power of the Spirit. As children of God through Christ, who have been set free from sin, brought into relationship with God, and are empowered by the Holy Spirit, we are to wage war against the sin in our lives. For, “How can we who died to sin still live in it” (Rom. 6:2)?
If we want to be spiritually healthy, and grow stronger and deeper in fellowship with God…we have to give it up. We have to repent, let go of the sin we are holding on to, and passionately pursue Christ…who is “faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
What are your thoughts? What would you add to this?
Rocky
Rocky Lindley 