trusted online casino malaysia
Realizing the presence, promise, and power of the Kingdom of God.
Crosfigell

Sin and Salvation

it's time we started facing up to our sin.

"If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have been guilty of sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin."

  - John 15.22

Draw the attention of each one to his sins that so you may save his soul.

  - Rule of Ciarán, Irish, 8th century

Jesus seems to have had no problem pointing out people’s sins.

Indeed, I think we could say He excelled at doing so.

Jesus did not come to condemn the world, as He said, but to save it, at least, as many as will be saved. But evidently a crucial element of that salvation strategy was pointing out people’s sins, causing them to see that they were living in disobedience to the Law of God.

Nasty work, to be sure; but someone’s got to do it.

Without confronting sin, there will be no confession of it; without the confession of sin, there will be no repentance. Without repentance, no faith, and without faith, there is no salvation.

Which makes it all the more difficult to understand why the Church today is so reluctant to talk about sin. Do we think we have evolved beyond sin? If so, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us (1 Jn. 1.8). Worse, by thinking we have no sin, we call God a liar, because He insists that all have sinned (1 Jn. 1.10; Rom. 3.23).

Are we concerned that it’s somehow not polite to point out people’s sins? Jesus didn’t think so. Are you prepared to say to Jesus that He is impolite?

Perhaps we know better than He? The sorry state of the American Church – the lack of spiritual depth, the many compromises with worldliness, our failure of mission, and more – can be tied in to our refusal to deal with sin as we should. After all, why change if there’s nothing wrong?

Without confronting sin there will be no confession of sin; without confession of sin there is no salvation.

Are we content to be a Church without salvation? Because it’s just possible, this is what we’re becoming.

If not, then we shall have to take up the question of sin once again, following the example of our Savior.

But that means we’ll also have to take up the Law of God, because, as Paul pointed out, only through the Law of God is the knowledge of sin. No Law, no sin; no sin, no salvation. (Editorial note: Our In the Gates column is currently running a series of questions and answers on the Law of God.)

Let the light of God’s Law shine on your sin, and you will be amazed to see that, at the same time, it illuminates the path of revival, renewal, awakening, and full and abundant life in Jesus Christ (Lev. 18.1-5).

Then let that Law – robed in the love of Jesus – reach through you to others, and you’ll be equally amazed at what you might see (cf. Mic. 4.1-8).

Psalm 32.3-6 (Hendon: “Take My Life and Let It Be”)
When in silence I remained, groaning in my sinful pain,
You Your hand upon me lay; all my strength You drained away,
All my strength You drained away.

I confessed my sin to You; You forgave me, ever true!
Let confession’s pleading sound reach You while You may be found,
Reach You while You may be found!

Lord, show me my sin, so that I might repent and know Your salvation more fully.

At The Fellowship
Here’s a Fellowship of Ailbe suggestion for the New Year: Get a hold of your time and make it work for the Kingdom. Ah, but how? Write to me and I will send you a free brochure, “The Time of Your Life.” You can use this worksheet to track the time God gives you for a few days, and to discover ways of making better use of the time of your life for the work of the Lord. And if you request it, I’ll also send you a free PDF of Jonathan Edwards’ most helpful sermon, “The Preciousness of Time.” Then, download the free Personal Mission Field brochure (by clicking here), and plan out the progress of God’s Kingdom in and through your life for the coming year. And thanks for remembering us with your end-of-the-year gifts. You can click the donate button here or at the website, or send you much-appreciated gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Dr., Essex Junction, VT 05452.

T. M. Moore, Principal
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

Subscribe to Ailbe Newsletters

Sign up to receive our email newsletters and read columns about revival, renewal, and awakening built upon prayer, sharing, and mutual edification.