116 - Rising Above Sin

In our walk with Christ, what is our spiritual focus in regard to sin? Is it merely telling ourselves that we should not sin and then trying with all our might not to sin, or is it far more than that? Could it be about our minds so transcending this world, by seeing ourselves as we truly are, saints and priests of the Most High, that our hearts realign with God? Is it not about who He has made us to be and the joy set before us, our true future, a righteousness that comes through faith and the confident hope of our eternal home, by which we walk in the reality of who He has made us, our true spiritual nature as holy, righteous, and pure?

Sinning is to be out of step with who we now are, with what Christ died on the cross to recreate in us, our new nature. We rise above by setting our minds not on the old self that is gone, the self that has been crucified with Christ, but on the new self. Our eyes are opened to an eternal perspective, no longer seeing ourselves from a worldly point of view. The darkness of sin becomes starkly evident in light of the greatness of God and who, in His likeness, He has now made us to be. This frees us from the transient illusion of sin and leads us to please our God by living out who we are in Christ.

We have an understanding within the heart that comes from the Spirit, not by the letter of the law. Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY’; but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Sin goes deeper than the outward act. Our hearts and minds wander from our calling and from our position before God, from the holiness to which we have been set apart by His saving grace. Do we think true righteousness is a confidence in the flesh, as if we are right with God simply because we avoided certain sins while our hearts remain unchanged? God extended His heart to us by sending His one and only Son, an act that revealed the depth of His love for us, and He desires that same depth of heart in our relationship with Him.

We walk with Christ in a spirit of gratitude and thankfulness for His saving grace. We walk with an enlightened perspective based on what God has done within each one of us. God has not merely performed an outward washing, but has cleansed us to the depths of our soul so that we might see all things as new and walk in that vision. We come to see sin for what it is, and to recognize its deluding effects on our lives as it clouds our eyes from seeing ourselves as God sees us.

If what Jesus said is true, “What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits his soul?” then what is the grandness of sin? What can a man give in exchange for his soul? We live sober lives with a consciousness of and focus on what is eternal, knowing that the heavens and the earth will one day be destroyed. What, then, was the benefit of the things we are now ashamed of, in which we once lived? We live not in fear, but in understanding. On one hand, we are conscious of the gravity of our new life in Christ, and on the other hand, we live with a confident expectation of a holy life and joyfully await our new heavenly home.

We are so conscious of this world, so drawn to that consciousness, that we count as secondary our spiritual standing and the eternal reality that transcends all we see. If our spiritual awareness could transcend our earthly awareness, would we not, as Paul the Apostle did, count all things to be rubbish in comparison? If we could physically feel the presence of God as He dwells and moves within us, if we could see the myriads of angels sent to aid us in our walk with Christ, if we could see the hand of God moving in all He has created, if we could see this enveloping reality just as clearly as we see this world, would we not rise above? Would not our desires shift? Would not our lives align with what is actually happening, with what true life is, the eternal reality that encompasses us?

Christ died on the cross, making a way for us to see ourselves in a completely new light. Let us take hold of that light today. “Let us lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:1-2