When we fall short
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (NIV) 1 John 1:9
Today's devotional is meant to encourage you; despite the fact we all sin and fall short of God's glory. The key here is not if we sin, but when we sin. What is our response to be? One of the tricks of the enemy is to use your sin against you, to tell you that you are no good, you are not worthy of God's love and grace. Let me share this with you. On that point he is right. We are not worthy. But because of Christ, We become worthy. You see, when you obey Christ in baptism, it is not your unrighteousness that God sees, but it is the righteousness of Christ.
None of us are immune to sin. That is why God gives us His special promise in 1 John 1:9. It tells us if we will confess our sins, He will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. That is to be our response when we fall short. Humility, Sorrow, Coming to the Lord with a contrite heart asking for forgiveness. The goal then is to trust His Word, know He has forgiven us, and move on. You see, we are no good to God when we allow our sin to strangle us, to paralyze us. The enemy loves to use our sin against us, to hold it over our head. But the Bible says that when God forgives us, He not only forgives but forgets. If God forgets, then we need to as well.
We try our best each day. We are all faced with the temptations of this world. We are all faced with the traps the enemy lays for us. From time to time we ALL fall into sin. It is important not that we sin, but how we handle the sin. Running from God is a natural response, but the wrong one. Running to God is what He expects of us. All we do by running from God is compound the problems. We quit reading the Word, quit praying, quit going to church. All of that then makes us even bigger targets for the enemy, and we ultimately fall deeper into sin. The key is to have the guts to say "I sinned". Go to God and ask for forgiveness. Deal with whatever the consequences are of your sin because there are always consequences. Move forward.
Part of the key to living a victorious life for Christ is handling our failures. Not letting our failures compound themselves. Stop and really look at how you handle it when you sin. We all do from time to time, and getting back on the battlefield is critical. The key point today my friend is not if we fall short, but when we fall short, what is our response going to be. Go to 1 John 1:9, and then move forward. God has much for you to do. He has a great plan for your life. The quicker you get beyond your failures, the quicker He can use you and allow His plan to unfold.