Take The Whole Journey With God

Read Romans 7:7-25
Theme: Salvation available to all by faith.
Title in NIV: The laws of God reveal our guilt.

God has a plan for us. The plan is a journey through life discovering the excellent way of God. The ones who decide to follow the plan and finish the journey are blessed.

Vs 7 reveals the first step: We have to realize what sin is. How do we do that? We read the law (bible). It is very clear about what is right and wrong. When we realize what sin is, our knowledge causes sin to spring up in us

Next, step two, since we have realized what sin is, we have to recognize sin. The law made me aware of specific sins and now I can name my specific sins.

Then, with knowledge of the bible and our realization that we all have sins, we become aware of the false promises sin promises. Sin promises all sorts of pleasures, peace, prestige that can't be sustained after the moment has past. Sin promises for the moment. Consequences abound with the type of life that lives for sin's promises.

Also, we find our self in a war. Our spiritual self that wants to live for God and our fleshly (human) self that wants to live for our desires. It really battles it out inside of us. We find our self doing things we don't want to do. We don't do things we want to do. Sometimes it is enough to make us stop the journey.

So, we are on this journey with God and we feel terrible. We can't be the kind of person we want to be because when "I want to do good, evil is right there with me." (vs. 21)  "I delight in my inner being, but another force is waging against my mind and body and making me a prisoner." (vs. 23)  We begin to think: Is this really the journey God wants me to go through? Why is this so hard? Who will rescue me? Vs.25 "Thanks be to God-- through Jesus Christ our Lord!"
It is really a awesome plan: When I give my life to Jesus Christ, he rescues me from my fleshly human desires, but we have to realize our guilt so we understand we need rescuing and we need our Savior. Have you ever seen anyone on top of their house wanting to be rescued from a flood---that is not there, the ground is dry?  Have you ever seen anyone yelling to be saved from a burning house that is not on fire? Me either. We have to have a legitimate reason to be rescued and going on the journey with God, He shows us what we need to be rescued from.

Some people fall off the path before God is done with them and before God has taught them all they need to realize about their sin and desires. Blessed are those who stay the course and continue with the journey. Blessed are those who don't fall and who persevere. God does not expect perfection. We will be made perfect when we die in Christ (Colossians 1:28; Heb 10:14). Until that great day when we are united with Him, we have to daily deny our human desires and live for him and realize we are forgiven when we fail.

I just have to share Romans 8:1-2 "There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, becasue through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death."

Blessings to all!!