We've all been there. We have wonderful intentions - we know what we need to do (or not do), and then we give in to temptation...as Paul writes in Romans: "I realize that I don’t have what it takes. I can will it, but I can’t do it. I decide to do good, but I don’t really
do it; I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway. My decisions,
such as they are, don’t result in actions. Something has gone wrong deep
within me and gets the better of me every time. It happens so regularly that it’s predictable. The moment I decide to do good, sin is there to trip me up...I’ve tried everything and
nothing helps. I’m at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do
anything for me? Isn’t that the real question?? Like Paul, we too ask - is there no one who can help us with our temptations? "The answer, thank God, is
that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this
life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and
mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally
different." Romans 7:18-25, Peterson's "The Message" |
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