Romans Part 3 - LIFESample

How We Address Sin

As I read the passages from Romans 6:11-12, my mind went back to my childhood. As a child, I believed we all sin and I believed it was OK to sin; we couldn't help it. Besides, I thought, ”We are covered by grace given to us by the blood of Jesus.”

While this is true; we are covered by grace, we also have power over sin through Jesus Christ (read 2 Corinthians 10:5). To really be free, we must stop committing sin, just as Jesus told the woman at the well, ‘Go and sin no more’ John 8:11.

Search Your Heart

In the book, "The Fear of the Lord," by John Bevere, he tells his story of getting freed from his pornography addiction. He was exposed as a child, by a neighborhood friend, and it was something that grew in him. He was raised in a Christian home and became a pastor. He still had a struggle with porn. He prayed for deliverance; he got married and he still struggled. His heart was heavy with the realization that his addiction hurt the heart of his wife and more importantly, it hurt the heart of God. Finally, John went away for 4 days where he fasted and prayed and cried out to God for deliverance. The Lord revealed to him that he loved the sin too much and that love was keeping him from being free of it. He has now been free for over 30 years.

We all have different struggles with sin. I would ask us all to self-evaluate (Ps. 139:23-24) right now, as we read today's passage. Take a look at James 1:15. Sin starts with a desire, then acting on that desire, but ultimately, it ends in separation from God.

-Stacy Tennesen