We will, in the next few chapters, deal with some specific common and strong personal sins that greatly affect us. Those are judgments, vows and soul ties. In this chapter we will cover sin and rebellion in general. Whether it's the sin of judging others, making vows, soul ties, or just rebellion, your own sin will create a wound in your inner being, which only Jesus can heal.
First I want to prepare you for what you are about to read.
Acts 26:18 says, "to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me."
We will be discussing sin. That can be good news or bad news. It all depends whether you are living in darkness or in the light. If you are in the light, then I submit you will have light to see the Good News, which includes:
1. Jesus.
2. The Word.
3. Yourself
4. Your sin.
5. His love.
6. His forgiveness.
7. His grace.
Light.
If you are living in the light, then as my list above says, there is no condemnation. Even if you are struggling, you are living in the light, and you delight in God showing you what to repent for. You will be an overcomer if you stand. Do not accept the lies of the devil accusing you. The above list describes "walking in the Spirit" as indicated in Romans chapter 8:1.
Darkness.
If you are in darkness, then you will just feel condemnation, because as the Word says that there is probably some dark thing that you would rather not bring to the light. It may be that you are too embarrassed. It may be that you just enjoy your bad habit or area of sin so much that you don't want to give it up.
2 Thessalonians 2:11, 12 says, "And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness."
1 John 1:6 says, "If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth."
John 3:19, 20 says, "And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed."
It may be that you are mixed with light and darkness. There may be areas of darkness in your life about which you are not yet aware of. It is time to wake up!
How do you get into the light?
Jesus tells us that we get into the light by "following Him."
John 8:12 says, "Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, 'I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.'"
How do we "follow Him"?
Luke 9:23, 24 says, "Then He said to them all, 'If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.'"
How do we take up our cross?
Many feel that taking up our cross is simply to suffer. That is not Scriptural. The meaning embedded in Luke 9:23-24 is to "say no to our soul." Our soul is our will, mind and emotions, that meaning the soul of our old carnal nature. It is simply to exchange your old carnal nature for Jesus' righteous nature. When we sense our old nature trying to control our lives, then we confess and repent and make a decision to allow God's life and character to prevail through us.
When Jesus took up His Cross, it was about Him exchanging His righteous nature for your sinful nature.
Jesus asked the Rich Young Ruler in Matthew 19 to sell all that he had and follow Him. He asked him to take up his cross so that he could follow Him, Jesus, so that the Rich Young Ruler could be in the light. The Ruler refused. Sometimes God has to help us to take up our crosses by allowing suffering.
A wake up call! God's mercy on those who are in darkness.
The Lord is giving each one of us a "Wake up call." There are several New Testament Scriptures that talk about waking up, or awakening. Each time the context of those Scripture passages has to do with a call for you and me to wake up from the darkness of sin to living in the light of the Lord. When we are asleep we are in darkness. Being content with some sin in our lives means that we are in darkness, that we are asleep. If we are constantly living in and for the presence and glory of God, we will be in the light, and our sin will just drop off. The warning is strong. I have personally seen Christian men and women over the years that did not have any desire to be conformed to the image of Christ. I have seen them reap disastrous and weak lives. See what Jesus said about darkness and light in John 3:19-21.
Romans 13:8-14 (Amplified Bible) says;
8 Keep out of debt and owe no man anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor [who practices loving others] has fulfilled the Law [relating to one's fellowmen, meeting all its requirements].
9 The commandments, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet (have an evil desire), and any other commandment, are summed up in the single command, You shall love your neighbor as [you do] yourself.
10 Love does no wrong to one's neighbor [it never hurts anybody]. Therefore love meets all the requirements and is the fulfilling of the Law.
11 Besides this you know what [a critical] hour this is, how it is high time now for you to wake up out of your sleep (rouse to reality). For salvation (final deliverance) is nearer to us now than when we first believed (adhered to, trusted in, and relied on Christ, the Messiah).
12 The night is far gone and the day is almost here. Let us then drop (fling away) the works and deeds of darkness and put on the [full] armor of light.
13 Let us live and conduct ourselves honorably and becomingly as in the [open light of] day, not in reveling (carousing) and drunkenness, not in immorality and debauchery (sensuality and licentiousness), not in quarreling and jealousy.
14 But clothe yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah), and make no provision for [indulging] the flesh [put a stop to thinking about the evil cravings of your physical nature] to [gratify its] desires (lusts).
Ephesians 5:10-17 says;
10 And try to learn [in your experience] what is pleasing to the Lord [let your lives be constant proofs of what is most acceptable to Him].
11 Take no part in and have no fellowship with the fruitless deeds and enterprises of darkness, but instead [let your lives be so in contrast as to] expose and reprove and convict them.
12 For it is a shame even to speak of or mention the things that [such people] practice in secret.
13 But when anything is exposed and reproved by the light, it is made visible and clear; and where everything is visible and clear there is light.
14 Therefore He says, Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall shine (make day dawn) upon you and give you light.
15 Look carefully then how you walk! Live purposefully and worthily and accurately, not as the unwise and witless, but as wise (sensible, intelligent people),
16 Making the very most of the time [buying up each opportunity], because the days are evil.
17 Therefore do not be vague and thoughtless and foolish, but understanding and firmly grasping what the will of the Lord is.
1 Corinthians 15:33, 34 says;
33 Do not be deceived: "Evil company corrupts good habits.
34 Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame."
When you awake to who you really are in Christ, the righteousness that He gives you by grace and not by your performance, then that awakening will give you the light and power to go and sin no more. Your focus needs to be on the light and living for God. Do not focus on the sin you are trying not to do, if you do you will be more likely to fall back into that sin. You will have the same experience that the lady caught in adultery had in John chapter 8. She was given the love, power and grace to go and sin no more.
The definition of sin.
People in general, both believers and non-believers, have misunderstood the true essence of sin. Most people see sin as some horrible moral act. It is that for sure, but I submit that the horrible moral act is more a result of sin itself.
Romans 14:23 b, says, "For whatever is not from faith is sin." I submit that sin is doing something that was not originated by God speaking, or not doing something that God has spoken for you to do. Faith always arises from hearing God speak; therefore sin is living without being obedient to what you have heard God speak. Perhaps it may not be hearing God speak currently, but having heard the Word of God, say five years ago that you should forgive, therefore today you forgive as obedience. Maybe you just know it is proper to tithe and give, but you just avoid it because it doesn't seem to make any sense.
1 Samuel 15:22, 23 (KJV) says;
22 And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king."
The sacrifices offered here by Saul were those described in Leviticus as sweet-savor offerings. These had nothing to do with sin, but were rather offerings offered to God for His acceptance and satisfaction. Why then did Samuel compare obedience to this sacrifice? Because, as the story reveals, even in sacrifice there can be an element of self-will, and that can never honor or please God. Only obedience "smells good" to God!
Sin is defined as missing the mark.
I submit that the mark is the path that God has for our lives, His will for our lives. More specifically it has the consequence of not sharing in the prize of the winner. It is as if the person has been aiming at the wrong target. Regardless if they hit their target, they have still missed the mark that God has established and this is the only measurable target that we will be judged by.
Transgressions are defined as "a moral revolt against God," which is seen as the actions that a person takes. These can be either intentional or accidental. Either way, they are revolting against God's will.
Iniquities are defined as " morally evil or pervert," which is seen as the evil desires or the flesh that one allows to rule in their hearts. Iniquity is the rejection of God's authority in a person's life, whereby every intent of the heart is bent on evil. Iniquity also carries the meaning of "the consequence or punishment" which results from iniquity.
All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
What we have fallen short of is the presence of God, which is what we were created for. The mark we have missed is the presence of God. By sin we have missed that mark as an archer watches his arrow fall short of the target and bulls eye. Our natural state of being is to be in His presence. Our natural way of being cared for is to hear Him speak while we are in His presence. That is the essence of "The just shall sustain their lives by faith" (Hebrews 10:38). Sometimes I refer to that as spiritual agriculture. Sin has separated us from God. Even if you are a Christian you can also continue to be separated from God's presence, His glory, and therefore His provisions for your life will not be forthcoming.
The first step to the solution is your believing what the Word of God says about sin.
1. That sin will keep you from living a normal life.
2. That God has given you a way to escape from the bondage of sin.
If you believe these two points, then the rest is all in your thinking. Either your thinking is "stinking" or it is disciplined. Your old flesh nature and satanic forces will work on your thinking to cause you to behave in such a way that you deny that your sins have been forgiven. If you are in bondage in some area of your life, take a look at your thinking and see if it lines up with the truth of the Word of God. You will speak as you think, and your life will finally conform to your thinking. Your thinking will create your habits and your speech. Finally your habits and speech will dictate the course and quality of your life. I am not talking about some perfect sinless state. I am talking about continually making progress in your walk with the Lord, and when needed, repenting and forgiving your way through life. Also, if you are just going though a period of standing on the promises of God and are going through tribulation for that, do not feel condemned by your problems, just make sure you are attempting to live a life pleasing to the Lord.
The tragedy of Adam and Eve's sin is the original and perfect example of how one's own sin can bring inner wounds that need God's healing touch.
These two people had the perfect Father, God Himself, yet their own sin and false perception of God brought about the curse and inner wounds that all of us deal with. Their thinking became tuned to a lie. They bought the lie and even spoke it themselves.
Satan went to work to cause wounds in the first people, Adam and Eve.
Adam and Eve were created in the image of God. Satan lied to them in order to create insecurity and inferiority in their souls. Satan was successful with them, and he attempts the same strategy with us. Satan broke their relationship with their Father, God, and in so doing he inflicted wounds in their souls. This is often referred to as "Broken Bridges."
"Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, 'Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree of the garden'?' And the woman said to the serpent, 'We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.' Then the serpent said to the woman, 'You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.' So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings" (Genesis 3:1-7).
Satan convinced Eve that God had lied to her.
Eve even added to God's Words when she said, "You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die." God did not say not to touch it, only not to eat it. I have always seen the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil as the mind of reasoning disconnected with self-will from the Word of God. I have always seen the Tree of Life as the Word of God itself.
Eve felt insecure, feeling that her Father had lied to her.
She began to think of herself as inferior, and that she had not been made in the image of God. Satan inferred that she was lacking something when he said, "your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God."
Adam and Eve were wounded by the lie. They had lost their Father relationship, and were now living as insecure and inferior people. These wounds have spread to mankind in general. Notice, their wounds did not come from the rejection of their Father, but from their own sin. Also notice that Satan attacked them in their thinking process. That is where the battlefield is, and that is where we need to discipline ourselves.
The result of sin
Adam and Eve came under the curse of providing for themselves.
Like I wrote above, when you are not living in God's glory, you cannot hear Him speak and then His provisions cannot be transferred to you by faith.
Genesis 3:17-19 says, "Then to Adam He said, 'Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, 'You shall not eat of it': Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return.'"
Pain of all kinds came upon mankind. Women in many ways have taken the brunt of it. Women have been brutally persecuted and mistreated by men.
Genesis 3:16 says, "To the woman He said: 'I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you."
Mankind lost the glory of God, the intimate presence of their Father.
That death, or separation from God the Father, causes a great wound in each one of us.
Genesis 3:23- 24 says, "therefore the LORD God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life."
Hosea 4:7 says "The more they increased, The more they sinned against Me; I will change their glory into shame."
Romans 3:23 says, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
Mankind died.
Genesis 2:17 says, "but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
The word used for die in Greek means to separate. Adam and Eve were separated spiritually from God because the Holy Spirit "moved out." Adam and Eve eventually died physically because their spirit and soul were separated from their bodies. They died twice.
Sin caused the birth of the world's first "religion."
Genesis 3:7 says, "Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings." These fig leaves were the father of all religion. Religion covers up and attempts to find a way for man to please an angry God. God's solution was the Lamb of God.
Genesis 3:21 says, "Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin, and clothed them." Blood was shed for Adam and Eve, the blood of a perfect lamb.
Wounds cause the loss of identity and purpose.
Isaiah 61:3 says, "To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified."
This Scripture, which was part of Jesus' missions statement, could be referring to mourning for actual loses of our life's dreams, loved ones, even our health, etc., but I also believe that we have mourned as captives for the loss of our identity. We are of the race of the New Creation. When we really know who God made us to be is when we will begin to live our lives in a godly way. We will see the miracle of grace which is Christ living His life through us.
Its more than just about you!
Being self-centered and selfish always causes a person to think only about their own welfare, their own feelings and well-beingwell being. I have learned, and am still learning, to think outside my own little box of "me." Everything you do and say has an eternal affect on other people. In our previous chapter we covered generational curses. That chapter primarily dealt with the curses that have been passed down to you through sin. What about the curses you are passing down, right now? You are part of a chain of legacy. Actually it is more than that. You are part of a chain in eternity. God trusts you to sow blessings for those coming behind you, both in your children, families, and for the Body of Christ in general.
We subconsciously create legacies with everything we do and say.
Create a legacy for those in your realm of influence of love and trust in God in all circumstances, especially those that are difficult. Be a person who awakes each day with the passion to give God and those around you a "good day." Don't always look for God and others to give you a "good day." This sowing and reaping principle will not only bless you, but millions of others. Be a hilarious giver, not only of money, but also of love, joy and encouragement. 2 Corinthians 9:7 (Amplified Bible) says, "Let each one [give] as he has made up his own mind and purposed in his heart, not reluctantly or sorrowfully or under compulsion, for God loves (He takes pleasure in, prizes above other things, and is unwilling to abandon or to do without) a cheerful (joyous, "prompt to do it") giver [whose heart is in his giving]."
The wounds of your sin.
Wounds come from sowing and reaping.
We will go into the sowing of judgments, vows and soul ties in later chapters. These are three very powerful issues that cause inner wounds in one's life. It is important to know that whatever we sow, we will also reap. What we reap because of our sin causes an inner wound. That includes everything in life, too many subjects to cover. Just take an inventory of your life on a daily basis of what you are sowing, on how you are treating others, and what you are speaking. As we sow bad things through our lives, we will also reap that same bad things, and they will cause wounds that need to be healed in your own being and in those attached to your legacy. The safest way to live your life is to make sure that everything you do and say is based upon love as defined by Jesus.
God set up this universe to produce by sowing and reaping.
Genesis 8:22 says, "While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease."
Galatians 6:7 says, "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap."
Luke 6:38 says, "Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you."
2 Corinthians 9:6 says, "But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully."
Rebellion from authority of any kind causes wounds.
Proverbs 17:11 says, "An evil man seeks only rebellion; Therefore a cruel messenger will be sent against him."
Hebrews 3:15 says, "while it is said: 'Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion [the Wilderness journey of the Israelites].'"
Jesus made a big point of teaching about respecting authority, which is the opposite of rebellion.
Two stories about those who opposed Moses' authority.
One of the Old Testament examples is in Numbers 12, when Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses. "Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses? The anger of the LORD burned against them, and he left them. When the cloud lifted from above the Tent, there stood Miriam--leprous, like snow. Aaron turned towards her and saw that she had leprosy" (Numbers 12:8b-10). The penalty was serious!
Again, in Numbers 16, it tells about the rebellion of Korath with Dathan and Abrimam and the 250 leaders (well known men of distinction) against Moses. The earth opened up and swallowed them alive, they and their households.
When we opposed God's authority either directly or indirectly through His delegated authorities, we are bringing the curse of rebellion into our lives, and the lives of those attached to our legacy.
My parents were humble, obedient, hard working good moral people who believed in God. They were immigrants who appreciated living in America every day of their lives. They had not one bit of rebellion in their hearts. Nevertheless, I went into rebellion as a teenager and was not redeemed for more than 20 years until I met the Lord when I was 39 years old. Why? It was a legacy I had inherited from one of my grandparents. However, one of my other grandparents was not only a godly man, but he was also a passionate church planter. In those last moments as he was preparing to go to Heaven, he said that he saw the angel Gabriel come to take him.
Covering a wound with self-righteousness.
Self-righteousness usually results from one attempting to cover a wound. When confronted directly by God, Job eventually fell on his face, crying, "I heard about You before, but now I have seen you face to face, and I repent!" Job had become self-righteous, like many of us who get a small taste of God. Job's friends were even worse than Job. They thought they had figured out that their performance before God would keep them well and prosperous. That was their orthodoxy and doctrine. They told Job that he would not be suffering unless there was hidden sin in his life. God was not pleased with them at all. They had sown a judgment. However it seems as though Job interceded for them to protect their outcome. Job's friends had a partial truth in that how they lived their lives could indeed foreshadow their outcome, however, as they learned, that kind of "concrete thinking" misses God's primary purposes for life. We have a good resource on Job: Job's Journey available at our web site http://www.isob-bible.org/job/job-book-2.htm.
The solution.
I believe that Scripture gives us the solution for sin from many different points of view. The discussion below in Romans chapters 7 and 8 comes from one very important point of view. One of my other favorites is embedded in 1 John 1:7, which says, "But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin." As I wrote in the beginning of this chapter, it is vital to "stay in the light," by continually taking up our cross. If we do that we become addicted to the light and sin just falls off. We become disinterested in sinful ways and we crave more and more of the light. As 1 John 1:7 says, "we have fellowship one with another..." That means not only fellowship with God through the Holy Spirit, but with other believers who also radiate the light. I cannot explain the experience, but when we experience light, we change.
In Romans chapter 7, the apostle Paul felt the horrible final judgment of his own sin, that being "condemnation." Condemnation is like the judge of the highest supreme court making his final decree of guilty, and there is no higher court to which you may appeal. Then he asked the question in Romans 7:24, "O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" The "body of death" was a horrible method of execution for those who have been convicted of murder. The authorities would strap the dead corpse to the convicted killer until the body of death would spread disease, rot the killer's body and he would die, a slow and painful death.
The answer was, Romans 7:25 which says, "I thank God—[I can be delivered] through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin."
Romans 8:1-4 goes on to say, "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit."
Walking in the Spirit is the discipline marked out here by Paul.
That means to determine to live a life pleasing to the Lord, to obey Him and honor him. It also means that when we miss it and sin, that He is quick to forgive. However, that forgiveness is meant to keep us on the path of walking out a righteous life, not a sloppy life.
You are forgiven!
The word "forgive" as defined by the Strong's Concordance means: Aphiemi, of separation. One of its root meanings is die, to murder. To die means to separate. To be forgiven means that your sins have been "removed by surgery," to have been separated from you and put on Jesus. He bore your sins. He suffered the consequence of your sin on your behalf.
1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Isaiah 53:10 says, "Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand."
You must forgive yourself.
If you do not agree with God's forgiveness for you, you will not forgive yourself for your past sin, and Satan will keep you in guilt and condemnation. Often it is not easy to forgive yourself. The solution is to simply believe the Word of God instead of your own feelings and emotions.
We all need to realize the deep, deep truth about our co-crucifixion with Christ.
Galatians 2:20 says, "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me."
If you really believe that then you will live like that. How can a dead man sin? If Christ is alive in you, He cannot sin. You are no longer "a sinner," even though you sin from time to time. You are a born again child of God, and a member of a new race, the New Creation in Christ Jesus. Your old "self" was crucified, it has realized the penalty of death already. Your old man has a death certificate in the heavenlies. You also have a birth certificate in the heavenlies, Psalms 87:5. You are not a dual personality. The "flesh" that wants to sin is simply the old thinking in your mind. It is like a recording that needs to be erased and recorded over.
How do you stop the cycle of sin?
It is all about "stinking thinking." The truth will make you free, but you have to get your mind renewed to the truth. You have been crucified with Christ, the Holy Spirit does live in you and He brings His holiness with Him. Go on a fast from "stinking thinking" and your life will conform to the image of Jesus. Romans 12:1-2 makes it clear that we need a discipline to renew our minds, and that is done primarily by the Word of God replacing our old thinkingprimarily the Word of God replacing our old thinking does that. Memorize the Word, confess it and meditate upon it.
Be honest with God about your sin. Stay in the Word so that it may be a mirror to convict you of sin. Then confess it to God and enjoy the wonderful healing that will result!
I personally know a man who was completely delivered, quickly, from one of the most addictive sins known, pornography. When he realized, as a new Christian, that this was unpleasing to God, he quickly repented and decided to bring this into the light. The "feeling" of freedom felt so good to him that he became addicted to the Word of God. This became his exchanged passion, and he is growing in the Lord.
Be sensitive to repent, not only of your moral sins, but also of your unwillingness to make Jesus the king and ruler of your entire life. Repent for the selfishness and self-centerness of your flesh. Repent for exalting your emotions and feelings over the Word of God. Allow God to change you into the image of Jesus, the image of love.
Most of all, wake up!
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