Thursday 16 April 2020

sinfulness of unbelief

*12*Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. *13*But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. *14*For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. 
Hebrews 3:12–14.

Are you walking free from sin? Or are you getting tangled up in it?

These verses tell us that the root of the deceitfulness of sin is because of, ‘an evil, unbelieving heart’. It makes sense that sinfulness and disbelief go hand-in-hand - Evil stems from unbelief. Think of it this way - someone who has never believed in God has no knowledge of Him, so they go about their life and get up to all sorts of wrongdoing, yet they do not have a sense that it isn’t right because they have no experience or knowledge of anything different - their unbelief has led to sin. This gradually infects the heart, causes it to be hardened and increase in evil, all because of unbelief.

So it follows then that those who DO have belief should be free from sin. This is true in the fact that Jesus has died in order to wipe away our sins when we turn to him and turn our hearts away from wrong, but you and I know, that we still get it wrong. we still fall for temptation and sin. So, what do the verses above mean for us? Well, if you are a believer in Christ, and you continue to wilfully sin, do you realise that you are choosing to, ‘fall away from the living God’? If you purposefully sin then you are wilfully separating yourself from God. I hope that causes you to pay attention! It is scary, but it is true. When you purposefully do what you know is not right, you are turning away from God in unbelief and falling away from Him - have you ever considered it like that before?

If you are convincing yourself that your wrongdoing is actually not that bad, that everyone does it anyway, that it is not hurting anyone else, then aren’t you just making excuses and trying to downplay sin? This is the ‘deceitfulness of sin’ and the ‘unbelieving heart’ will make excuses and allowances where none should be made. If your belief in God is not strong, then nor will your tolerance for temptation be.

As we can see, sin is not an isolated problem, nor even the root problem itself, unbelief is.

Somewhere along the line your vision of who God is has waned. At some point your trust and security in Jesus has dwindled, and you have allowed your own ideas and temptation to win instead. That is why these verses encourage us to keep our 'original confidence'.
Do you remember the heart-leaping times with God where your spirit is overwhelmed by His love? when you smile just because you are alive and God is with you? Do you remember those times that Jesus felt closer than your brother?
If you have lost that sensation, that assurance and confidence in who God is, then be aware that unbelief can sneak in and steal your heart. You can start to look about for other ways to satisfy. Sin seeps in when belief dips. Maybe you feel let down by God so your trust in Him has dwindled, or maybe things have felt a bit flat recently. I am here to tell you God hasn't changed. He is still the same God that mets your needs, hears your prayers and died for you on the cross. He is still the same God who gave up his majesty, strength and rights to give you a place in his kingdom. He is still the same God who created your innermost being, who has planned your life with purpose and walks with you in it - have you lost sight of Him? Do you consider that God is in your life everyday?

Keeping a focus on who God is squashes unbelief. Doing things that increase your faith like; speaking with Godly people, spending time in prayer and Bible study- these things will increase your belief and will give you power to fight sin.

Are you ready to do that?

It is not too late to deal with you wrongdoing.
Today is a new day, and can be a new step forward for you to escape sin. Jesus has made it possible for you to live a life free from 'the deceitfulness of sin', and stay connected with God. Are you choosing to live that life?

I exhort you to recognise your share in Christ, recapture your confidence in who He is and denounce afresh the deceitfulness of sin. Jesus has paid the price. He has freed you. Is your belief big enough to walk in that freedom?


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