Walking the Razor’s Edge: The Tension Place between Radical Resistance/Intorance to Sin While Never Losing Track of Mercy/Grace/Love and Compassion Towards

 

The image that springs to mind is that of trapeze artists.    The goal is to swing through the air and do seemingly death defying stunts all the while knowing that there is a safety net which gives them margin to fall and be able to get back up and try again.

The sin-o-meter is very much a human concept and simply does not exist in the Word or heart of God.    All sin carries the same ultimate penalty of death.  There are no blue collar sins vs white collar sins.   There are no little sins that carry a smaller sentence.   God does not rate sin on a scale and punish people according to the magnitude of the offense.

The challenge is that most people do have this idea somewhere kicking around in their mind.    It is exposed by thought like “I don’t SIN…  Oh sure, I tell white lies as needed and I think it is perfectly appropriate to be creative when I fill in my tax forms, after all the government already takes more than their fair share of of my income.”    “Well, everybody “gossips”, “and surely grumbling and complaining every now and again is just normal right?”  ” I have every reason to be mad at him and treat him that way.  If you only knew what he did to me you would think he was getting off easy.”  “I am a very committed christian, I go to church every week, I sing in the choir and pray….  well, I haven’t read the Bible but that is not essential right?”   “I do exaggerate every now and again” “How can you raise children without lying to them every now and again”.

What these comments are revealing is that we typically label some kinds of sins as heinous (murder, bank robbing, sexual sins, etc) but label others as relatively benign and harmless.    God’s Word reveals that all sin ends in the same place.  Scripture plainly says breaking the law by stumbling even on just one point makes us guilty of breaking it all.   In other words, it is humanly impossible to walk righteously.    

James 2:10 NIV “10For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.”

Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

The real definition of sin is the act of not listening to fully, not hearing completely, and not doing totally what God has commanded through His Word, but also through individual promptings.

Deuteronomy 9:22-24 King James Version (KJV)
22 And at Taberah, and at Massah, and at Kibrothhattaavah, ye provoked the Lord to wrath.  23 Likewise when the Lord sent you from Kadeshbarnea, saying, Go up and possess the land which I have given you; then ye rebelled against the commandment of the Lord your God, and ye believed him not, nor hearkened to his voice.  24 Ye have been rebellious against the Lord from the day that I knew you.

Deuteronomy 28:14-16 King James Version (KJV)
14 And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.15 But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:

Psalm 106:24-26 King James Version (KJV)
24 Yea, they despised the pleasant land, they believed not his word:  25 But murmured in their tents, and hearkened not unto the voice of the Lord.  26 Therefore he lifted up his hand against them, to overthrow them in the wilderness:

Jeremiah 16:11-13 King James Version (KJV)
11 Then shalt thou say unto them, Because your fathers have forsaken me, saith the Lord, and have walked after other gods, and have served them, and have worshipped them, and have forsaken me, and have not kept my law;  12 And ye have done worse than your fathers; for, behold, ye walk every one after the imagination of his evil heart, that they may not hearken unto me:  13 Therefore will I cast you out of this land into a land that ye know not, neither ye nor your fathers; and there shall ye serve other gods day and night; where I will not shew you favour.

Proverbs 6:16-19 16There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, 19a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.

Job 36:12 KJV
“But if they obey not, they shall perish by the sword, and they shall die without knowledge.”

Romans 3:22-24 King James Version (KJV)  “22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:  23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;  24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:”

When we sincerely believe that some “sins” are ok and not a big deal, we become complacent with sin and we give the enemy a foothold into our lives.   From there, he is perfectly positioned to tempt you even further.   

Ephesians 4:27-30 King James Version (KJV)
“27 Neither give place to the devil.  28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.  29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.  30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.”

Proverbs 14:12 New Living Translation (NLT) “12 There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.”

Habakkuk 1:13 King James Version (KJV)
“13 Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?”

If we really take the time to think about it, we will see that the first temptation of man was to eat fruit (forbidden fruit yes) but eating a few bites of something forbidden was bad enough for the fall of man and the earth to happen.   Jesus was also tempted with food as his first temptation.  If he had turned the stones into bread and eaten them, he would have sinned against God and been disqualified as the spotless lamb, all for a few mouthfuls of food.    Esau is another one who traded his birthright all for a bowl of lentil stew.    Sin would like nothing more than to pull the wool over our eyes and keep us complacent and indifferent to its presence in our lives.     

Hebrews 12:1 New Living Translation (NLT)
“12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.”

Philippians 2:14-16 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC)
“14 Do all things without grumbling and faultfinding and complaining [[a]against God] and [b]questioning and doubting [among yourselves],  15 That you may show yourselves to be blameless and guileless, innocent and uncontaminated, children of God without blemish (faultless, unrebukable) in the midst of a crooked and wicked generation [spiritually perverted and perverse], among whom you are seen as bright lights (stars or beacons shining out clearly) in the [dark] world, 16 Holding out [to it] and offering [to all men] the Word of Life, so that in the day of Christ I may have something of which exultantly to rejoice and glory in that I did not run my race in vain or spend my labor to no purpose.”

John 13:7-15 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC)
“7 Jesus said to him, You do not understand now what I am doing, but you will understand later on.  8 Peter said to Him, You shall never wash my feet! Jesus answered him, Unless I wash you, you have no part with ([a]in) Me [you have no share in companionship with Me].  9 Simon Peter said to Him, Lord, [wash] not only my feet, but my hands and my head too!  10 Jesus said to him, Anyone who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is clean all over. And you [My disciples] are clean, but not all of you.  11 For He knew who was going to betray Him; that was the reason He said, Not all of you are clean.  12 So when He had finished washing their feet and had put on His garments and had sat down again, He said to them, Do you understand what I have done to you?  13 You call Me the Teacher (Master) and the Lord, and you are right in doing so, for that is what I am.  14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher (Master), have washed your feet, you ought [it is your duty, you are under obligation, you owe it] to wash one another’s feet.  15 For I have given you this as an example, so that you should do [in your turn] what I have done to you.”

I believe the foot washing Jesus did was to show us that even after we are baptized, “has bathed needs only his feet washed” we still need to have our feet cleaned to take part of Him and His Kingdom.    This verse tells us we will have no part in Him if we do not allow him to wash us this way.   Jesus was speaking as love in the flesh, and we are commanded to continue on as He did and to wash one another’s “feet”.  Let us let him and do likewise.   My next post is all about loving one another as Christ loved us and ties into this one.

Isn’t it wonderful that our Heavenly Husband has given us His Word and is willing to wash us so tenderly and so utterly, adorning us with purity, innocence and righteousness to present us to Himself?

Ephesians 5:25-27 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC)
25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her,26 So that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the Word, 27 That He might present the church to Himself in glorious splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such things [that she might be holy and faultless].