When you transpose two numbers when writing down a phone number, that is a mistake. When you drive the wrong way down a one-way street, that is a mistake. When you put salt on your cereal instead of sugar, that is a mistake. Sin is not a mistake.
It seems all too many seek to minimize their sins by calling them mistakes. They say, “We all make mistakes.” And, of course, we all do make mistakes, but we do not have to continue sinning. Satan plants that thought in men’s minds, that sin is unavoidable even for the most dedicated, fully surrendered believer. That’s a devil’s lie!
You sell God short when you say a believer cannot stop sinning. “Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world” (I John 4:4).
Satan is a master at bringing to a struggling believer’s mind passages of scripture that “prove” one can never totally break with sin. He distorts the true meaning of Romans 3:23, Romans 7, I John 1:8-10, I Kings 8:46 and Ecclesiastes 7:20. In distorting these passages of scripture, Satan belittles God and seeks to convince the unsuspecting that God’s power is much overrated and that with God there definitely are some things that are impossible for Him to do. Human lust and frailty are shown to be stronger than God’s Spirit.
Satan whispers, “Do you really think you can keep free from sin for the rest of your life???” But that is not what our LORD asks us to do! “Jesus said, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:34, English Standard Version). God cautions that our life is as a vapor, tenuous, and fleeting. We might not have a tomorrow to be concerned about. We are to focus only on today, and, since eight to ten hours of each day is spent in sleep, we need only ask ourselves “Is God powerful enough to keep me from all sin for ten to fifteen hours?” And the only possible answer is, “YES!” God help you to understand is my prayer.
God’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),
Donald Wiley