Reasons or Excuses?

There are a whole lot of reasons as to why people are the way they are. Everyone comes from different backgrounds and have been negatively influenced and effected in their lives in varying ways. I couldn’t count the times that God has allowed me to find out something hidden about someone that I found less than admirable, that gave me more insight into what made them like they were, and also gave me a more merciful and sympathetic view of them. It’s easy to see someone’s faults, but not so easy to see what developed their faults. I know one thing for sure: There’s always room for some compassion for anyone. And thank God for that because it’s certain that we want him to view us with compassion and pity. But while it’s true that there are valid reasons for many different kinds of flaws in human nature, it is also true that Jesus died and rose again in order to take sin out of the lives of those who believe, and to alleviate those flaws by his power working in us to do just that. The apostle Paul touched on what I’m trying to get across here, in his letter to the Phillipians: “… but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you” (Philip. 3:13-15). The same apostle told us again, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” (Rom. 8:14). And again, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (II Cor. 5:17). After we are baptized into Christ by the holy Ghost, it never stops trying to lead us out of the old and into the new. And if we do continue to follow after the Spirit, we will die to the old nature and grow further into the “divine nature” that we receive through the Spirit. “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin… Being then made free from sin, [we] became the servants of righteousness” (Rom. 6:6,18). So then it’s evident that we are led by God’s Spirit to literally put sin out of our lives by his power, and to “put on Christ” and his nature by that same Spirit and power (Gal. 3:27; Col. 3:5-15).

The point of this writing is that things that were Once REASONS for our flawed nature, become EXCUSESafter we are able to identify them; IF we do not purge them out of our lives by God’s “Spirit of holiness.” And while it is true that God is longsuffering toward us, and has great compassion for our weaknesses, it is also true that ”[his] grace is sufficient” to cure all of our spiritual problems, and that “[his] strength is made perfect in [our] weakness” (II Cor. 12:9). So then we are without excuse to not move forward out of the old nature and into the new once we realize why we have the shortcomings that we have. The truth is that the elect of God do not look for or use excuses because they are totally honest about themselves, and they monitor themselves continually with that honesty; “keeping [their] hearts with all diligence,” and “purifying [themselves] even as he is pure” (Prov. 4:23; I Jn. 3:3). And if we fail to get something wrong within ourselves righted, and we continue to run over the same old ground with it; we simply cannot become weary in striving to overcome the problem with honest determination, and move forward in holiness. In fact, fainting in that very endeavor is what is responsible for most of the false doctrines that exist about this Gospel, which doctrines justify sin in a myriad of ways, and pervert the true way of salvation; which way is true holiness (Eph. 4:24; Heb. 12:14). So there simply is no space for self pity in the way of holiness. We all come from destitue origins spiritually and we all have plenty of baggage to get freed from. We’re all in the same boat, and the requirement to be pure and grow in God’s love and holiness is laid down for all of us. Not only that, but God has gone to the greatest of lengths to make the way for us to be able to do just that. Namely he sent his Son to pay the price for us to be able to receive the very life and nature of God into ourselves, which is his holy Spirit that gives us power over everything that once had power over us. So let’s finish up here with these two powerful passages of truth: “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it” (I Cor. 10:13). And, “He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death” (Rev. 21:7,8). Amen.