"Doing What Comes Naturally"

 

Romans 3:10-18 "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after GOD. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. There throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: their feet are swift to shed blood: destruction and misery are in their ways: and the way of peace have they not known: there is no fear of GOD before their eyes."

     Why do people sin ? Why do Christians sin ? We sin because we are all sinners by nature. It comes innately to all of us because every person is a sinner by birth (Psalm 51:5). Jeremiah wrote that the human "heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked" (Jeremiah 17:9 pictured above). HE was not speaking of the organ that pumps blood throughout the body; rather, HE was referring to the internal component of man that motivates how he lives. The SAVIOR also graphically articulated this in HIS OWN WORDs in Matthew 15:19: What comes out of us is the expression of what is truly in the heart -- our behavior reveals what kind of person we are on the inside.

     When we think of horrific sins, we often call to mind great travesties such as the Holocaust, the purges in Russia and China, and the killing fields in Cambodia. These terrible events in history are manifestations of the immeasurable wickedness that lies within the hearts of depraved humans. Those types of acts (and many others certainly could be added) illustrate what happens when fallen creatures are left to themselves. The wonder of it all is that these atrocities do not happen more frequently and that even greater devastation does not take place in the world. How grateful we are for the restraining ministry of GOD's HOLY SPIRIT during this age of grace (2nd.Thessalonians 2:6-7 pictured above). Let us not dismiss, however, the so-called "little" sins (lying, covetousness, gossip, etc.) that likewise sent CHRIST to the cross. We are to "put off" (Colossians 3:8), that is, stop all such behavior. GOD saved us and calls us to be CHRISTlike (Ephesians 4:25-32). Rather than doing what comes naturally (sin), let us strive to be of benefit and blessing to others. GDR

Your servant in CHRIST,

Julie

Copyright, FEATURE: A Daily Bible Study Guide.

Used  with  permission.    www.featoday.org

https://wwwfivestarchristianministries.com/salvation