Thoughts From Chris

Everyone sins – from the most pagan and evil to the most godly and spiritual.  Second Corinthians 7:10 talks about a worldly sorrow and a godly sorrow over sin.  One that leads to death and another that leads to repentance.  When we sin, have you thought much about the difference?

I think there are times in my life when I sin (maybe in thought, word, or deed), and rather than having a godly sorrow over it, I have a worldly sorrow over it.   This was always true when I sinned as an unbeliever, but it is sometimes true when I sin as a believer.  Nothing comes to mind right now by way of example, but I am sure if I thought hard enough I could think of several. 

One of the things I have seen over time is that when a person confesses sin “before they get caught” it is almost always because they have genuinely repented over their sin.  This repentance and desire to change have led them to bring their sin to the light (godly sorrow). 

However, when people try to hide their sin, cover it up, and keep it in darkness, and then they get caught, they generally have sorrow, but it is harder to tell if it is godly or worldly sorrow.  If they do have worldly sorrow, the Spirit can change that and bring repentance, but it is very difficult to discern by others, because they wonder, “how long would they have continued sinning, if they would not have been caught.”

The way I have always handled it, is if a believer gets caught sinning and seems sorrowful and remorseful afterwards, I make the assumption it is godly sorrow unless proven otherwise.  Time will tell if it is godly sorrow or worldly sorrow, but I always give the benefit of the doubt.  After all, I cannot see their heart.  Only God can.

Let me encourage you and myself that when we sin, let’s repent and confess it to others before we get caught.  Confessing sin first will render a higher frequency of godly sorrow over worldly sorrow. 

This Sunday we will delve into one of the most unique characters of the Bible – John the Baptist.  Our focus will be on understanding his message.  It was a message of repentance.

What is this concept of repentance all about?

What do you think about the following statement:  “If we misunderstand repentance, we will misunderstand Christianity.” 

Is this an overstatement?

Perhaps our message this Sunday will shed some light. 

This Sunday we will begin a new series that will prepare us for celebrating the birth of Christ at Christmas.  It will be a 5 week study on John the Baptist.  I am not sure how many times you have heard a series on John, but I never have.  For a host of reasons John is one of my favorite prophets in all of Scripture.  I have wanted to do a series on him for several years now. 

If you have some friends you have been wanting to invite to a service, this series would be a good time to do that.  While it will be good for all of us to learn more about how God used this unique man to prepare people for Jesus, there will certainly be evangelistic aspects to the series.

Looking forward to God stretching all of us as we study one of the most unique figures in biblical history.

Scripture tells us to pray for those in authority over us.  When it comes to our president, our prayers these last 8 years have been on behalf of George Bush.  The eight years prior to that our prayers were on behalf of Bill Clinton.  In January the prayers for our president will shift to only the third person in 16 years, Barack Obama.

Let us continue praying for President Bush.  These are difficult days for him.  Let us also prepare to pray for our future President Obama.   He, as well, will be moving into the position of president in a very difficult time period. 

“I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone – for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in  all godliness and holiness.” (I Timothy 2:1-2)

Tomorrow is a big day for our country as we choose a new leader.  Many countries in our world do not have this privilege and honor.  Maybe you really like one of the candidates or do not care for either; the point is that we live in a country where we actually have a “say.”  We should be very thankful for this opportunity and as believers be a good steward of it. 

For the first time, I took advantage of early voting.  It was a long wait (2 hours), but my wife and I voted on Friday at the County Building downtown.  They are projecting record turnout this year.  When you go Tuesday, plan to wait for a while.

God calls us to make a difference in our world and impact our culture. While voting constitutes a very small part of that, it is a part, nonetheless.  As stewards of the earth and this world, we need to do everything we can to make a difference in serving the world and supremely reaching the world for Christ.

As we do this, it is important to keep in mind what we discussed yesterday in our service:  God is in control of all things, and he can be trusted.  No matter how much our impact as believers does or doesn’t make a difference in our world, we need not worry about anything.  God has this world on an intentional path (note 2 Peter 3), and nothing or no one can undermine his cosmic plan for the universe.  He is absolutely sovereign.

Get out and vote, serve the community in various ways, love people (particularly those who seem unlovable), steward the earth, reach the lost, and do everything in the power of the Holy Spirit.  At the end of the day, as you lay your head on your pillow, place your full trust in God – he is in full control.  God tells us not to worry (Matt 6:34), and the reason he tells us not to worry is because we are not in control – he is. 

And I cannot think of a better person to be in full control of all things than the Triune God, himself!