Suffering for our own faults

21 "I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. 22 For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. 23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!"

Romans 7: 21-25


What a time we are living in. I shake my head and wonder how it came to be like this. I am tempted to despair as I watch things slowly collapsing around me. I feel like the Psalmist, who said, "There are many who say,“Who will show us any good?” LORD, lift up the light of Your countenance upon us." Psalm 4:6

Today I despaired because of my own sin. On top of that, I heard of a young man (a friend of my son's) who took his own life. I walked past the funeral home where people came from all over to give their condolences. I never saw so many cars lined up everywhere for a funeral. I couldn't help but think to myself, if only the young man would have known how many people cared about him, maybe he wouldn't have ended it that way? But it is too late now, too late for second chances, too late to tell him anything. He has passed beyond the veil.

And yet I remain on this earth, wondering what will happen next, and somehow must find strength to keep running faith's race. I didn't feel well today, and I let it get to me. I argued with my husband and then felt angry with myself for what I said. Yet why was I expecting anything good to come out of me, from my own human viewpoint without relying on Christ?

John Nelson Darby wrote once that, "We find the greatest difficulty often in bringing our sorrow to God. How can I do so, some may be saying, as my sorrow is the fruit of my sin? How can I take it to God? If I was suffering for righteousness' sake, then I would, but I am suffering for my sin; and can I, in the integrity of my heart towards God, take my sorrows to Him, knowing I deserve them?

Yes the Lord Jesus has been to God about them. This, then, is the ground on which I can go. There has been perfect atonement for all my sins; Christ has been judged for them. Will God judge us both? No, I go to Him on the ground of atonement, and God can justly meet me in all my sorrow, because Christ's work has been so perfectly done."
(From None but the Hungry Heart edited by Miles Stanford, for the day of June 7, emphasis mine)

Did you read what Darby wrote? Jesus has been to God about our failures for today, even though we should have known better. One might think He wanted us to do some good thing in order to make up for the bad thing we did. But that is telling God we don't quite think it was finished enough! But Jesus said it was totally finished, and so, even if we are tempted to berate ourselves for our failures, we can choose by faith instead to think of how great and merciful a God we have, who foreknew all our failures in advance.

It is not about us trying to be good, it is about Him being formed in us. Over and out. Christ inside of us is our only hope, as Paul wrote in Colossians 1:27:

"To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." (emphasis mine)

I glorify God when I take Him at His Word instead of wallowing in my own failure. The tricks of our enemy only grow more and more devious as he tries to ensnare us in these last days. But if I keep my eyes on Jesus, I will overcome.

Lord, let me be like the ones described in Revelation 12:11: “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death."

Proclaim Forth His Victory

"If God is for us, who can be against us?" Romans 8:31

I read in Revelation 11:15 today: "Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, 'The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever."

If God is dwelling in eternity future already, He sees this verse as a done deal. The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ already. We are just waiting to see the outward fulfillment of this in time.

Therefore, we can have boldness as we approach the Throne of grace in prayer. We can come to God proclaiming forth His victory over principalities and powers, and the enemy. We don't just have to give him a laundry list of what we want Him to do for us, but praise Him for what is already done.

One of the greatest things I like to thank Him for is wiping out all the transgressions I have committed, that proclaimed me guilty as charged. Colossians 2:13-15 declares:

"And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it."

The confession part is for my sake, for He has, according to this verse, forgiven all my sins already. The confession is for relieving my guilty conscience. He hasn't just forgiven mine, but those of the whole world! The only thing that stands between an unbeliever and God is their refusal to believe. But their sin, it has already been paid for. I John 2:2 says:

"And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world."

The victory is accomplished! I can praise God for what He has done, knowing it is perfect and complete, and according to the Word, I am also complete in Him.

Colossians 2:9-10 "For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power."

When we face problems, we can approach them with confidence, knowing that Jesus won that day on the cross 2,000 years ago.

John 19:30 "When Jesus therefore had received the sour wine, He said, 'It is finished!' And he bowed His head, and gave up His spirit."

The word for finished is #5055 in the Greek Lexicon, teleo. It means: end, goal. To make an end or accomplishment, to complete anything, not merely to end it, but bring it to perfection or its destined goal, to carry it through. (definition from Lexical Aids to the New Testament compiled by Spiros Zodhiates, Th.D)

Isn't that great news? When we approach God with our problems, first we can thank Him for the great victory He has wrought through His Son, Jesus Christ. This victory can never be taken away from us.We always have hope as a believer, no matter how great our problems. When we start our prayer with this thought, somehow it takes our mind off the smallness of our problem and onto the greatness of God.

Psalm 111:1-2

"Praise the LORD! I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart,
In the company of the upright and in the assembly.

Great are the works of the LORD;
They are studied by all who delight in Him."


Let us delight in Him today. Amen.