I Can't Do This

by Francine Biere
Published February 3, 2006

If a child is not deeply sorry for their behavior, chances are they'll do it again. We are no different.

And like children, we need to understand that there is a blessing in acknowledging our own disobedient behavior. As adults, we need to further comprehend that if we don't see it for what it is, sin will control us.

In the first chapter of Romans, Paul writes of the sinfulness of humankind and in the last half, he specifically addresses unbelief and its consequences.

"For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools … Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper.” Romans 1:21-24, 28

What a horrifying picture. If you are brutally honest, it's not hard to believe and accept this to be true. All you have to do is read newspapers or watch television and you can see evil.

It goes back to choice. If we choose sin, God permits us to continue and experience its consequences. It seems the more involved we are in sin, the more we sin and the further away we get from God. Think of a habit or addiction – yours or someone else's – and you know how easily it is to become enslaved to that addiction. It's the same with sin.

So, seeing it is the first step toward forgiveness as well as freedom from sin's control of our lives. Many times, the sadness about or mourning over that sin can make us feel almost as guilty as the behavior itself. It envelops us in darkness where we are very much alone.

But the promise we have is that as agonized as we are over our sinful actions, God provides matching supernatural blessings. David, the shepherd, the giant killer, the king, and the psalmist, tells us the comfort God has for those who ask for forgiveness. "For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us. Just as a father has compassion on his children, So the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him." Psalm 103:11-13

East and west can never meet. What a secure picture of how God forgives those who love as well as obey Him. He separates us from our sin and no longer remembers it.

Certainly, we can hope in this assurance, but we can also rest in the knowledge that we don't have to do this in our own power. You see, the Sermon on the Mount contains building blocks that started with being poor in spirit. The truth is, it's difficult to acknowledge our sin and then turn from it without help. If we empty ourselves out then allow God to fill us up, we have His strength within us.

Again, Jesus gives us words of contrasting magnitude – mourn sin in ourselves as well as others and receive comfort as deep and wide as the pain we feel. Our compassion works much the same way. As we reach out in God's strength and power to others, they begin receiving comfort and provision. The surprising benefit is a divine contentment that doubles our blessing.

The world would like us to believe that we can have happiness at any cost, but most of us know, deep down in our hearts and souls, that's simply not true. There is always a cost – to someone else and to us. The cost of ignoring sin is to sink even further down into what Paul calls, "depravity." Even worse are the eternal consequences.

Still, it's our choice – this much we can do and then trust in the Creator of the universe to comfort us with His unending love, just like a wayward child in the arms of a loving parent.

All Scripture taken from the New American Standard Bible.

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