Hi there,
So this is something that will certainly enhance your understanding of the Cross, if not sin and temptation. What I want you to do is look at the Cross. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 5:21 "He who knew no sin, became sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God". Now this 'becoming sin' is mysterious enough, but I want you to notice something else. This becoming sin was on the Cross. The Cross is a place where there is no rest. However, rather than become restless, in which is regret, Jesus lifted Himself up. What was the purpose of lifting Himself up? To put sin out of reach.
What is the effect of putting sin out of reach? It means that when we look at the Cross, we are no longer able to complete the temptation to sin. If we want to sin, we have to deny that Jesus was sin on the Cross. This is powerful, because it means the Holy Spirit is able to work, as long as our eyes stay fixed on Jesus. There is, just like the gap between Heaven and Hell, a gap between Man gathering at the foot of the Cross and Christ withholding Himself from Man, on the crux of the Cross. The decision is a painful one, but one He is willing to make. The temptation to let sin go, is still something Christ is able to resist.
This is something that we all face, the temptation to let sin go (while we are sinning, mainly). As Christians, we do not simply "sin". We struggle with the sin, we deplore the sin, we hate the sin - essentially we do what our master did, we put sin out of reach. This means that over time, the temptation to sin, is even less. We do not simply stop at repentance. This is a crucial thing. It means the world is not able to retrace our steps back to sin, but must also consider being without sin.
This is the victory of the Cross, that yet as sin seems further and further, yet the Love of the Lord seems ever closer!
I hope this has been of some encouragement.
God bless.
So this is something that will certainly enhance your understanding of the Cross, if not sin and temptation. What I want you to do is look at the Cross. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 5:21 "He who knew no sin, became sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God". Now this 'becoming sin' is mysterious enough, but I want you to notice something else. This becoming sin was on the Cross. The Cross is a place where there is no rest. However, rather than become restless, in which is regret, Jesus lifted Himself up. What was the purpose of lifting Himself up? To put sin out of reach.
What is the effect of putting sin out of reach? It means that when we look at the Cross, we are no longer able to complete the temptation to sin. If we want to sin, we have to deny that Jesus was sin on the Cross. This is powerful, because it means the Holy Spirit is able to work, as long as our eyes stay fixed on Jesus. There is, just like the gap between Heaven and Hell, a gap between Man gathering at the foot of the Cross and Christ withholding Himself from Man, on the crux of the Cross. The decision is a painful one, but one He is willing to make. The temptation to let sin go, is still something Christ is able to resist.
This is something that we all face, the temptation to let sin go (while we are sinning, mainly). As Christians, we do not simply "sin". We struggle with the sin, we deplore the sin, we hate the sin - essentially we do what our master did, we put sin out of reach. This means that over time, the temptation to sin, is even less. We do not simply stop at repentance. This is a crucial thing. It means the world is not able to retrace our steps back to sin, but must also consider being without sin.
This is the victory of the Cross, that yet as sin seems further and further, yet the Love of the Lord seems ever closer!
I hope this has been of some encouragement.
God bless.
