Let me summarize this week’s series on chronic sin patterns with some practical advice that Paul offered in Romans 12. In verses 1-2, he wrote, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and…
Category: Sin
iBelieve: When I Struggle with Habitual Sin (part 4)
Even though we wrestle with living in Romans 7, the promise that God offers is that “There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death” (Romans 8:1-2, NLT). In…
iBelieve: When I Struggle with Habitual Sin (part 3)
The premise of the Christian life is that believers are empowered to live above the domination of sin. Through the grace of Christ, sin does not have control over our lives. We have the ability to have control over it. But there’s a problem. Even though we are free from the power that sin holds…
iBelieve: When I Struggle with Habitual Sin (part 2)
So what do we do with those pesky habitual sins? I think one has to look no further than the Book of Romans for some timely words of wisdom. In Romans 6:1-2, Paul offers the premise of the believer’s attitude toward sin. “Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us…
iBelieve: When I Struggle with Habitual Sin
Afterward Jesus returned to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish holy days. Inside the city, near the Sheep Gate, was the pool of Bethesda, with five covered porches. Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches. One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him and…
What Happened?
The story of creation begins with God who spoke, created, named, blessed, finished, and rested. The account is accented with the steady refrain “and it was good…” God created and placed the man and the woman in his creation. Humankind was created with a profound capacity for knowing God intimately. Created in the image of…